Here's a little tutorial for newcomers on how to post on the message board. I'm only covering the most popular tools since some of the more complicated ones can get pretty confusing.

When you click on "Reply" while reading a message (or start a new thread by clicking "New Discussion") you'll see this, the message editor:

 If you're starting a new thread, first type in the title in the top space. Next type your message.
To start a new paragraph, hold "Shift" and hit "Enter" on your keyboard.
If you want to add emoticons to your message, place the cursor where you want the emoticon to be, click on the  icon and choose from this menu:

When you've finished typing, you can choose the type of font you want. First highlight the text by left-clicking your mouse and dragging the cursor across the text (or hitting Ctrl+A on your keyboard) and then click on "Font Style". This menu will appear and you just choose the font you want:

Then choose the font size by clicking on "Font Size" and choosing from this menu:

 Next, choose the color of your font by clicking on the  icon and choosing the color from this menu:

 One of the nice things about MSN boards is that you can add photos and graphics to your messages. To do this, first put the cursor where you want the picture then click on the  icon and the photo editor will appear:

You can choose photos from any MSN Group you visit by clicking on "My Online Photos" at the top right or choose from the Clipart Gallery at the top left. Or, you can post a photo from your own computer files by clicking "My Computer" at the top center.
When you do, this window will appear:

Click "Browse" and this window will appear (or a similar one, depending on your computer's contents):

Then click on the appropriate folders to find the photo you want, then double-click on the chosen file and then click .

The photo will then show up on your message. When adding more photos, be sure to hold "Shift" and hit "Enter" on your keyboard to put the next photo below the first one, otherwise the whole message will widen and everyone will have to scroll back and forth to read it. Clicking "Shift" with "Enter" twice will put a space between the photos.

Another way to post photos is to just right-click on a photo from another page then choose "copy" from the menu that pops up. Then click the  icon at the top of the message editor and it will be pasted on your message.

Still another way to post photos (or other types of files) is to click on  at the top of the message editor. This window will pop up:

Browse your computer's folders just as described above and when you've found the file, click . This is not the preferred way to post photos and graphics because the reader must click on the file name to view it.

Suppose you want to link a word or image, say a photo of yours that you'd like to link to your album, so people can just click on it to go right to that page. Or maybe you want to link it to your email address. It's easy. Just highlight (or click on) the picture and then click on the  icon. This hyperlink editor will appear:

You can either choose the page you want from its menu or type in the page. If you type it in, be sure to leave off the "http://" in the address, since it's already there. For email, select "Mail To:". Then just hit "Insert" and the photo or text will be hyperlinked.

When your message looks the way you want, just hit .

And here are some handy Key Codes for typing unusual symbols not found on your keyboard. To use
them, hold the Alt key and type the code number on the number pad to the right of your keyboard.

 

If you'd like to practice posting but don't want to risk having everyone see any possible botched attempts (and believe me, we all do that), I've set up an MSN site just for experimenting. It's called THP Test Site, and everyone there is automatically made an Assistant Manager, which means everyone can post as much as they want yet delete anything including whole threads. You can try out HTML tricks or practice making backgrounds, tables, borders, posting pictures, whatever, then once you've perfected it, you can post anywhere like a pro and no one will be the wiser!
All you have to do is go there and post a message titled "make me an AM" and it'll be done! It's like a posting playground where you're the boss! Have fun experimenting!

PS ~ To get a head start, read Making Backgrounds, the page after this one.