HOW TO: Advanced Formatting

If you feel confident with your basic formatting skills, lets take a look at some more advanced options.

Most of the places you can post things in a Ning social network (like GW), you can utilize HTML code, allowing you many more options than just the basic formatting button bar provides.

If you're familiar with HTML coding I probably won't have anything new for you here. If you are not familiar with HTML coding, but feel confident you can learn a few tid-bits, then this post should help you.

All HTML tags use the less-than and greater-than symbols. The code starts with the less than /b> and ends with the greater than >. Most code needs a closing code also, this is done with the forward slash symbol /. This really is the most basic of instruction, if you need more detail I suggest searching for a HTML tutorial.

So for example entering:

Gets a result of: Advanced Formatting

Hopefully that's enough to give a starting point. If that's not, again I suggest find a more complete tutorial. Here's some suggestions to help format your posts and replies more effectively.

BLOCKQUOTE
Entering this:

Will get you this:

This is a great place to paste information previously discussed, thus illustrating you are quoting from a different location (either previously in the discussion, or a completely outside source).

FONT
Entering this:

Will get you this: Change your font style.

Entering this:

Will get you this: Change your font color.

Entering this:

Will get you a larger font size, but only in blog posts.

Or combining them:

Will get you this: Change your font style.

LISTS
"UL" stands for Unordered List, "OL" stands for Ordered List, "LI" stands for List Item.
For an unordered or bullet list, entering:

Gets you this:

• Some stuff here.
• More stuff.
• Still more.
• Last one.

For an ordered or numbered list, entering:

Gets you this:

1. Number One.
2. Number Two.
3. Number Three.
4. Number Four.

CENTER
Entering this:

Will get you this:
You can center things too.



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I'll post others if I think of them, but these are the main codes I use often to make my posts more aesthetically pleasing. Remember not to over format, it doesn't take much to make a post look sloppy and disorganized.


+~+~+~+~+

I am not a Ning expert. I'm a tech-head who has worked in IT for over 10 years; and I have some experience on another Ning network. This is not an official statement from the GW staff; just some friendly tips for my fellow GW users. Feel free to message me if you have questions, comments, or suggestions for other topics. ~Johnny