M Kerkvliet
11-21-2007, 02:03 AM
I am going to make this an instructional thread on how to post pictures on the forum using Photobucket.
There are other photo hosting sites out there. I am only using Photobucket as an example because it is the one I use. It is a free site, though if you pay a membership fee you get rid of the ads, and get a more features. I am not a paid member, so I cannot comment on the benefits of that choice.
The benefits of using off site hosting are at least two fold. First, it allows you to post the pictures within your message, vs. a thumbnail at the end of your message. You can comment on each picture you post either above or below it. Take a look at "cmjlarson's" threads on the 16 HP Russell rebuild. Clayton and Jane make a perfect example of the advantages of hosting off site. Quite simply, it makes for a nicer presentation.
Secondly, it lessens the use of valuable server space on the WMSTR community forum server. This is not to discourage posting directly on our site (thumbnails) but rather to encourage the use of off site hosting.
The first thing you need to do is sign up for a Photobucket account. If you registered here, you will not have any trouble creating an account there.
After you get your account active, you need to upload photos that will be used on this site, as well as any other sites you visit. I have some pictures there that get hit from 3 different sites I frequent.
FYI... My camera takes HUGE photos. I resize them to 800 X 600 before uploading to Photobucket as that seems to be the size that displays best for most people. If I were to upload 1024 X 768, folks would have to scroll sideways to see the whole picture.
So, lets get started!
Here is a screen shot of my home page on Photobucket. To upload a photo from your computer, just click on one of the "browse" buttons and navigate to the folder on your computer where the photo is stored. I have a "Photobucket Uploads" folder on my computer where I store everything I have ever uploaded. Some of the pictures I have uploaded can be seen in the lower part of the picture.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting1t.jpg
Now that you have your picture uploaded to Photobucket, you need to get it to display on the WMSTR Forum! This part is easy. What I like to do is have 2 tabs open in my web browser, or if you don't have tabbed browsing then use 2 windows. That way I can have Photobucket open in one of the tabs and the WMSTR Community Forum open it the other and move back and forth easily.
On the Photobucket page, find the picture you want to use and then look at the 4 choices of links you have under each picture. Different forum software uses different links. For our WMSTR forum, you need to use a "Direct Link", the second choice from the top. Click on "Direct Link" and a little yellow box should light up and say "Copied". See photo below...
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting2t.jpg
In this case the picture I chose is called "cleaned-up.jpg"
Now, go over to the WMSTR forum tab, (or window) and bring up either a "New Thread" option, or "Post Reply" if you are replying to a thread that is already going. You can type whatever verbiage you want in your message, and whenever you are ready, click on the little yellow icon above the message posting area. See circled below...
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting3.jpg
A box like this will appear on your screen...
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting4.jpg
The letters "http://" will already be in the box, and will be highlighted blue. You need to delete them or you will have that same text twice, and that doesn't work! If they stay blue, you can paste right over the top of them and your text will replace what is already there.
Remember a few steps back on the Photobucket page where we clicked the "Direct Link" choice and it said "copied"? Well, now we need to paste that selection in that box. Either right click in the box and choose the "paste" option, or just use the keyboard shortcut (my preference) which is "ctrl+V" that is the "ctrl" key and the "v" key at the same time.
This is what should result... only with your information.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting5.jpg
Click on "OK" and your picture should now appear in your message! (If only some text appears, you will have to click "preview post" too see the pictures.)
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting6.jpg
You can type above it, or below it. To get your cursor under the picture, if it is not there already, you have to click anywhere on the picture (you will see a line and little squares surrounding the picture) and then hit the "end" key on your keyboard. AFTER you hit "end", then you can press the "enter" key and you should have a new line under your picture. It may be easier to type all of your text first, and then click wherever you want the picture to be inserted, and then click on the yellow icon to insert the picture in that location.
In this last screen shot, you can see the red circled areas where I have 2 tabs open in my browser (I use Firefox, but IE has tabbed browsing too now). After you are done inserting your picture, you can click "Preview" at the bottom of the page, and see what your post will look like.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting7.jpg
Give it a try and see what you can come up with! You cannot hurt anything, and you can always delete your post if you don't think it looks right.
Also, be sure to turn off your pop-up blocker. We have had instances where pop-up blockers kept the picture posting box from showing up! You can allow pop-ups from the WMSTR forum only if you wish.
I am going to lock this thread as it is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please send me a PM.
There are other photo hosting sites out there. I am only using Photobucket as an example because it is the one I use. It is a free site, though if you pay a membership fee you get rid of the ads, and get a more features. I am not a paid member, so I cannot comment on the benefits of that choice.
The benefits of using off site hosting are at least two fold. First, it allows you to post the pictures within your message, vs. a thumbnail at the end of your message. You can comment on each picture you post either above or below it. Take a look at "cmjlarson's" threads on the 16 HP Russell rebuild. Clayton and Jane make a perfect example of the advantages of hosting off site. Quite simply, it makes for a nicer presentation.
Secondly, it lessens the use of valuable server space on the WMSTR community forum server. This is not to discourage posting directly on our site (thumbnails) but rather to encourage the use of off site hosting.
The first thing you need to do is sign up for a Photobucket account. If you registered here, you will not have any trouble creating an account there.
After you get your account active, you need to upload photos that will be used on this site, as well as any other sites you visit. I have some pictures there that get hit from 3 different sites I frequent.
FYI... My camera takes HUGE photos. I resize them to 800 X 600 before uploading to Photobucket as that seems to be the size that displays best for most people. If I were to upload 1024 X 768, folks would have to scroll sideways to see the whole picture.
So, lets get started!
Here is a screen shot of my home page on Photobucket. To upload a photo from your computer, just click on one of the "browse" buttons and navigate to the folder on your computer where the photo is stored. I have a "Photobucket Uploads" folder on my computer where I store everything I have ever uploaded. Some of the pictures I have uploaded can be seen in the lower part of the picture.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting1t.jpg
Now that you have your picture uploaded to Photobucket, you need to get it to display on the WMSTR Forum! This part is easy. What I like to do is have 2 tabs open in my web browser, or if you don't have tabbed browsing then use 2 windows. That way I can have Photobucket open in one of the tabs and the WMSTR Community Forum open it the other and move back and forth easily.
On the Photobucket page, find the picture you want to use and then look at the 4 choices of links you have under each picture. Different forum software uses different links. For our WMSTR forum, you need to use a "Direct Link", the second choice from the top. Click on "Direct Link" and a little yellow box should light up and say "Copied". See photo below...
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting2t.jpg
In this case the picture I chose is called "cleaned-up.jpg"
Now, go over to the WMSTR forum tab, (or window) and bring up either a "New Thread" option, or "Post Reply" if you are replying to a thread that is already going. You can type whatever verbiage you want in your message, and whenever you are ready, click on the little yellow icon above the message posting area. See circled below...
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting3.jpg
A box like this will appear on your screen...
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting4.jpg
The letters "http://" will already be in the box, and will be highlighted blue. You need to delete them or you will have that same text twice, and that doesn't work! If they stay blue, you can paste right over the top of them and your text will replace what is already there.
Remember a few steps back on the Photobucket page where we clicked the "Direct Link" choice and it said "copied"? Well, now we need to paste that selection in that box. Either right click in the box and choose the "paste" option, or just use the keyboard shortcut (my preference) which is "ctrl+V" that is the "ctrl" key and the "v" key at the same time.
This is what should result... only with your information.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting5.jpg
Click on "OK" and your picture should now appear in your message! (If only some text appears, you will have to click "preview post" too see the pictures.)
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting6.jpg
You can type above it, or below it. To get your cursor under the picture, if it is not there already, you have to click anywhere on the picture (you will see a line and little squares surrounding the picture) and then hit the "end" key on your keyboard. AFTER you hit "end", then you can press the "enter" key and you should have a new line under your picture. It may be easier to type all of your text first, and then click wherever you want the picture to be inserted, and then click on the yellow icon to insert the picture in that location.
In this last screen shot, you can see the red circled areas where I have 2 tabs open in my browser (I use Firefox, but IE has tabbed browsing too now). After you are done inserting your picture, you can click "Preview" at the bottom of the page, and see what your post will look like.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/posting7.jpg
Give it a try and see what you can come up with! You cannot hurt anything, and you can always delete your post if you don't think it looks right.
Also, be sure to turn off your pop-up blocker. We have had instances where pop-up blockers kept the picture posting box from showing up! You can allow pop-ups from the WMSTR forum only if you wish.
I am going to lock this thread as it is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please send me a PM.