Have you ever noticed different text decoration styles around the forum? Maybe something is bold or italicized – or maybe even… crossed out?
In this tutorial, I will walk you through different formatting options you have when creating a post in the forum. These can be used for showing emphasis, writing titles, separating longer posts, and so much more.
So, let’s look at some different things you can do in the forum!
But first - some guidelines!
-
Don’t overdo it! Remember, these formatting options are supposed to make sense and enhance your posts or comments. Overusing formatting options can make your post hard to read, complicating it more than necessary. If you overuse formatting tools in your post, you might find that a moderator will hop in and edit it to make it easier to read.
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Format with a purpose! Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. I know it’s fun to include funky text, highlighted words, and headings! But if they don’t serve a purpose, it just makes the post unnecessarily jumbled and complicated.
What’s In This Post?
Basic Text Formatting
We have a few different options for basic text decoration and formatting. These include bolded text, italic text, and some highlights!
| What it Looks Like | How to Type It |
|---|---|
| bold | ‘‘bold’’ |
| italic | *italic* |
~~strikethrough~~ |
|
| highlight | <mark>highlight</mark> |
| green underline | <ins>green underline</ins> |
You can also make text bold or italic right in the text editor. Simply type what you want, highlight it, and select the correct button:
(bold)
(italic)
Centering Text
I do a lot of my writing and browsing the internet on my computer, so I like my posts and writing to be very organized and pleasing to look at. One of the ways I accomplish this is through centering my headings and images when necessary. This requires use of HTML, so if you aren’t comfortable using this code, then it is a-okay to just not do it!
This is what it looks like…
Yes, hello – this text is centered!
…and this is how you type it!
<div align="center">
Yes, hello -- this text is centered!
</div>
Headings? Yes, please!
Sometimes, you might want to split your post up into sections. You can do this by creating something called a “Heading”. This allows readers to see that your post has different sections! You can see headings in articles all over the internet, in books, magazines, and so much more.
Headings are also a good thing to use for people who rely on screen readers. Their screen reader will usually recognize that the post is split into different sections, allowing them to skip over parts of the post they don’t want to read.
Headings are not necessary for most people in the forum, but if you like to create longer posts that have different sections – such as @Cosmic_Curiosity’s astrology posts – then headings might be something you want to learn to use.
The forum has several heading options to use.
This is what they look like…
Heading One
Heading Two
Heading Three
Heading Four
…and this is how you type them!
# Heading One
## Heading Two
### Heading Three
#### Heading Four
Quotes And Nested Quotes
If you’re in the forum for any amount of time, you will likely see a post with a gray box around it. In the forum, this denotes a quotation! We use quotes for a lot of different reasons. These include quoting members we are replying to or quoting from a book or article. Moderators will also use the quote function to make text stand out for announcements, warnings, or suggestions.
What it looks like…
This is a quote!
…and how to type it!
This is a quote!
You can also create a quote easily by using the forum’s button feature right in the text editor. Simply type out your quote, highlight it, and click/tap this button:
Lists, Lists, And More Lists!
Yes, we can create all kinds of lists here in the forum! They can also be nested, meaning you can have lists within a list – list-ception? – with a little practice! There are so many different things you can use a list for so I am not going to bother listing them all out.
Unordered Lists
To make an unordered list, you can use the - or * symbol before your writing. When you push enter and go to the next line, the forum will automatically continue your list, adding a symbol to your next line so you can continue the list.
It looks like this!
- red
- orange
- yellow
- green
- blue
- purple
And this is how you type it!
* red
* orange
* yellow
* green
* blue
* purple
Ordered Lists
Making an ordered list is just as easy as an unordered list. Instead of using the - or * symbol, use a number!
It looks like this!
- red
- orange
- yellow
- green
- blue
- purple
And this is how you type it!
1. red
2. orange
3. yellow
4. green
5. blue
6. purple
Nesting Lists
Sometimes we want to include more information under a list. Nesting information in a list can be kind of weird to do in the forum, but it is doable! Simple create your list item, go to a new line, add two spaces and the list symbol, and start typing!
It looks like this!
- red
- apple
- orange
- …orange
- yellow
- flower
- green
- leaves
- blue
- berries
- purple
- tulips
And this is how you type it!
* red
* apple
* orange
* ...orange
* yellow
* flower
* green
* leaves
* blue
* berries
* purple
* tulips
You can also create lists right in the text editor with these two buttons. Simply type your list, highlight it, and click/tap the button:
Hiding Information With Blurs And Read-Mores!
Sometimes, you might want to hide information in your post behind a blur or read-more. This can be to hide surprises, sensitive information, or triggering content. You can read more about our guidelines about triggers and hiding information in our guide here:
It looks like this!
This text is blurred!
And this is how you type it!
[spoiler]This text is blurred![/spoiler]
It looks like this!
This is a read-more...
And here’s the MORE!
And this is how you type it!
[details="This is a read-more..."]
And here's the MORE!
[/details]
You can also do both of these straight from the forum’s text editor. Simply type what you want to blur, highlight it, and click/tap the buttons below:
So, that’s what we have for our tutorials, so far! I hope you have learned something new about how to use the forum. If you have any questions, please feel free to pop them in the comments and I will do my best to answer them for you.
Looking for more tutorials? We have those!
Find all of our tutorials here → Forum How-To 💬 Guides for Using the Forum!
And we have a tag for forum tutorials now, too → forum-tutorial
I need this 
You’re welcome!
You were the first person who came to my mind, besides us moderators, who posts long-form content 
so you became my example!