The User Control Panel you say, where’s that? Well it’s at the top left of your screen on the toolbar containing other features such as ‘New Posts’, the ‘ID Database’, and ‘Quick Links’. The UserCP as it’s called, allows you to edit your settings and options, and the aim of this article is to guide you through using this part of UltimateReef.

(Hint - Click the picture to see a larger view of it)

Firstly, let’s look at the options. We have:

• Edit Signature
• Edit Email & Password
• Edit Profile
• Edit Options
• Edit Avatar
• Edit Profile Picture

These are all features you will no doubt use once or twice whilst on UltimateReef, so a brief explanation on all of them might well be of use to you!

When you select this option you will be greeted by a preview of your signature (if this is your first time this will be blank). Below is the area where you will write the content of your signature and below this is the area where you are able to add a signature picture.

A point to mention on editing your signature is that it’s a great help to include a link to your tank build thread for all other members' reference when you’re asking for help - basically it guides everyone to relevant information about your setup! How do I add a link to my signature I hear you ask?! Well, here goes!

Firstly, go to your tank build thread and copy the URL address right at the top (right click and select copy).

Now go to User CP, then Edit Signature. There are two options here - you can either just paste in the URL of your thread like this

OR you can have a word/s acting as a link to your thread, for example

To do the latter you must type your word/s in the Edit Signature box, highlight it, and click the button at the top of this box which looks like a globe with a chain on it named ‘Insert Link’.

This will open a new pop-up box. Delete anything in this pop-up box and right click and paste in your URL address. Click OK and you will now see some new text in your Edit Signature box, something like this

Click either ‘Preview Signature’ to take a look at your signature before you save it, or just select ‘Save Signature if you’re happy with it.

And there you go! The basics of adding your tank build thread into your signature!

It’s important to keep your email up to date in order to receive emails from admin such as this newsletter. After changing your email address, you will need to respond to the confirmation email that will be sent to your new email address. Until you confirm your new email address, your username will appear in blue, and some forum features may not be available.

Also you might find you need or want to change your password from time to time. It’s pretty basic stuff and you won’t really need any guidance on doing this but as a precaution we recommended that you use a secure password containing upper and lower case if possible and also with numbers.

Again, editing your profile is pretty simple too. Just click in the boxes and fill out any information you’d like others to see. To reset all the information just click ‘Reset Fields’ at the bottom of the page and to save the changes you’ve just made click ‘Save Changes’.

Now, there are many, many options available to you on UltimateReef. These include ‘Login & Privacy’, ‘Messaging & Notification’, ‘Thread Display Options’, ‘Date & Time Options’, and ‘Miscellaneous Options’. All of these are important, but some will be of more use than others. For example, in Messaging & Notification you will want to ensure that private messaging is enabled. Most options are set by default when you register with UltimateReef so it is likely you won’t need to change much in the Edit Options section of the User Control Panel.

From reading threads I’m sure you’ve realised that almost everyone has an avatar - a picture of themselves or just a random picture, usually selected for some obscure reason. Now, within the Edit Avatar section you are able to select an image you'd like as your avatar. The best way to do this is to first find an image you like and load it to your computer. The image needs to be 80 x 80 pixels. Then use the ‘Browse’ button to search your files for it. Once found and double clicked your selected image location will be viewable. Just click ‘Save Changes’ as usual and you will see your avatar in your posts.

Your profile picture will only be displayed in your public profile. For this reason less people chose to upload one, but if you do want to the procedure for doing this is the same as editing your avatar.