How To Post Attachments as Thumbnails

[Greg]

This will be a work in Progress..The instructions as they are now should work fine.

The Attachments are for uploading pictures from YOUR COMPUTER...not a site like PhotoBucket! I suggest you format your pictures to .jpg and a size of no more tha 120KB to better ensure success. (.gif max size appears to be 21KB) Contact the Computer Advice moderator or another mod/member on that forum, if you need help to do this. I suggest you save the pictures you want to download onto your desktop so you can find them easily. After you have done that,....

1. First, open a "New Thread" or a "New Reply" window by clicking on the appropriate button. You will see an area toward to bottom with "Manage Attachments" as it's title, shot 1.

2. Click on the "Manage Attachments" button and you will be taken to a "Upload" window, shot 2.

3. Here you will select the pictures on your computer to load into your post. Pushing the "Choose File" button will take you to the 3rd shot with a window to choose the picture to upload. This is a shot of a Mac screen, and your's will probably vary, but the concept is the same.

4. Choose the picture you want to upload. Click the proper button to select/choose it, and you should be taked to the 4th shot, the "File Selected" window. This will show you the picture information and you then click on the "Upload" button.

5. If your picture is the proper type, the list is at the top of the window, and the size is not too large, (limit about 120kB), you should be taken to the "Chosen Window", shot 5. This shows the pictures you have chosen and are to be selected when you click "Close this Window".

[Greg]

This is a continuation of the above post as the limit of Attachments you can make is now 4 . Again, this should work fine...

6. Shot 6 shows you a complete list of the files you are now ready to post. Click the "Submit Thread" or "Submit Post" AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE!
(If you chose the buttons just below the posting window, but above the Managing attachment area, you post the thread/Reply BUT NOT THE ATTACHMENTS...)

7. After clicking on the "Submit" button, you will see your post, shot 7, AND the attachment in thumbnail form. Click on the picture and it will expand to full size. Congratulations!

*8* NOTE. If you have done everything right, but click the "Submit" button JUST BELOW THE POST WINDOW, instead of the window towards the bottom of the page, your post will show you text, but NO attached pictures. This is shown is shot 8.

If you want to change the pictures to attach, just go window showing you the attachments and "Remove" buttons, push "Remove" to delete the pictures you don't want, and continue to the main window and select the button now changed to "Save".

[Greg]

There are some cool tips and tricks you can use while working in the "Manage Attachment" area of the MTF.

The first shot is the drop down "User CP" menu, showing the "Attachments" button at the bottom. Click on it.

That brings you to this window showing you the specifications area with total number of attachments and total size. the individual attachments you have, It also shows you other information as to size, thread, post, date and time.

The next shot shows you the "Show Thumbnails" button at the bottom of the screen. Click on it. Wa La! This view shows you your actual thumbnail. Click on a thumbnail and it opens to show you the attachment at full size.

The thumbnail option allows members to post pics without using a host site, and gives you an opportunity to enhance your posts. Please use it... but also, please don't abuse it. Posting picture after picture of generally the same subject in one post, or "just to post a pic", wastes site storage space and doesn't really enhance your post. Also, refrain from posting "Quotes" replies with lots of thumbnails unless they are absolutely necessary for your reply. Enjoy!

Greg