Frequently Asked Questions
Before Signing Up
What is a SayBox?
- A SayBox is the form of shoutbox we offer. You can see the default SayBox style on the left of every page on this site, underneath the menu.
Why use a SayBox?
- SayBoxes are a good compromise between a chatroom and a message board, although SayBoxes can be used alongside either or both of these.
- SayBoxes are remotely hosted by us - this means you simply have to put one line of code into your webpage where you want the SayBox to appear, and it's ready to go.
How much does this cost?
- SayBoxes are offered free of charge to you. There are no setup costs, no usage costs, and no support charges.
- We do place advertisements on all hosted SayBoxes. These keep the service free for you, but can be removed for a small fee.
How can I get a SayBox?
- If we're accepting signups, just visit the signup page and fill out the form.
- If signups are currently down, be patient and keep checking back until we reopen signups.
I'm worried about giving some details on the signup form. Can I trust you?
- Please read our privacy policy.
I use the same password for everything! Do you get to see it?
- The password you choose is encrypted as soon as you submit the signup form, and remains encrypted in our database. This means we never get to see your password.
- We do suggest, however, that you should not use the same password for all your online activities.
- Please also make sure you read our privacy policy.
How much space/bandwidth can my SayBox use?
- Each SayBox is allowed 500 posts at any one time.
- If a SayBox reaches 500 messages, the oldest 10 posts will automatically be deleted.
- We do not impose a bandwidth limit at this time; however if your SayBox is found to be unreasonably taking server resources we may take action.
- Paid SayBox accounts have no limitations on storage space.
Getting Started
How do I put my SayBox on my website?
- When you submit the signup form, you should receive an email back explaining how to put your SayBox on your site.
- You'll click the confirmation link in the email you receive before you can use your SayBox account.
When will my SayBox account be activated?
- Your account will be activated as soon as you click the confirmation link in the email you receive shortly after signing up.
How long do I have to activate my account?
- You have seven days to activate your account from the time you submit the signup form successfully.
- All accounts that have not been activated within this time will be automatically removed.
How do I post a message on my SayBox?
- The text boxes under the message area are for name, website URL and message (in that order).
- Once you've typed what you want to say, press the 'say' button to add your message to the SayBox.
- Pressing the 'reset' button will clear whatever is typed in the boxes.
What are the links on the SayBox for?
- If you enter a URL when posting a message, your name will appear as a link.
- The 'Smilies' link brings up a list of all the available smilies you can use in a post.
- The 'Admin' link takes you to the admin panel.
- The 'SayBox' link takes you to the SayBox homepage.
- The text advertisement will take you to the website of whoever paid to place that ad.
Why are some names a different colors than others?
- If a user puts a web address in the URL/Email box, their name will appear as a link to that address. This may cause it to change colour if links are defined as a separate colour to plain text.
- You can also change the color of a user's name by defining that user in your 'Users Settings' section of your admin panel.
What are smilies?
- Smilies are the little pictures (faces by default) which appear to replace certain key combinations, such as a happy face for :)
- Smilies are common in chatroom, message boards, IM clients and shoutboxes to express a mood or feeling.
- A list of smilies is available - just click the 'Smilies' link on the SayBox.
Advanced Use
How do I change settings on my SayBox?
- Log in to the admin panel to access the admin features, including changing SayBox settings.
How do I log in to the admin panel?
- Click the 'Admin' link on your SayBox to open the admin login page.
- Login with your username and password to gain access to the admin panel.
What are the benefits of upgrading?
- Ads are completely removed from your account.
- AJAX autorefresh gives full chatroom style functionality to your SayBox.
- Smartban option, to automatically ban problem users, is enabled.
- Antispam feature, which can prevent web URLs from being posted, is enabled.
- Shout storage limit is removed.
- Unlimited usernames allowed.
- Unlimited slots to add more smilies.
- Quick moderation mode allows deletion or editing of shouts directly from the SayBox.
- 'New' icon marks each new shout made since your last visit to the page.
- The option for users to edit or delete their shout after posting is added.
What else can I do in a post?
- You can use most regular UBBC tags in a post on your SayBox.
- We also allow you to link IM screennames in a similar way. [aim]Screenname[/aim] will create an AOL Instant Messenger link, for example.
- Supported IM links are AIM, MSN, ICQ, and YIM.
Customizing your SayBox
How do I change the colours of my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Modify Appearance' link.
- You can change the colours of your SayBox by altering what's in the boxes here.
- You'll need to know the hex code of any colours you want to change to (this takes the form of, for example, #000000 for black)
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save settings'
- Restore default colours by clicking the 'defaults' link.
Can I change the font used on my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Modify Appearance' link.
- You can change the font used in your SayBox by altering what's in the boxes here.
- You'll need to know the name of any font you want to change to.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save settings'
- Restore default fonts by clicking the 'defaults' link.
Can I change the size of the font used on my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Modify Appearance' link.
- You can change the font size used by altering what's in the boxes here.
- We recommend you stick to a small font size.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save settings'
- Restore default size by clicking the 'defaults' link.
How do I change the size of my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Modify Appearance' link.
- You can change the size of your SayBox by altering what's in the boxes here.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save settings'
- Restore defaults by clicking the 'defaults' link.
Can I change the scrollbar colours?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Modify Scrollbar Colors' link.
- You can change the scrollbar colours by altering what's in the boxes here.
- You'll need to use hex code for the colours you change (example: #ffffff for white)
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save settings'
- Restore default colours by clicking the 'defaults' link.
Is it possible to change the smilies?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Customize Smilies' link.
- You can change the smilies used by altering what's in the boxes here.
- Please note that using smilies other than the default will mean you have to host them yourself.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save settings'
- Restore defaults by clicking the 'defaults' link.
Can I add extra smilies?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Customize Smilies' link.
- Click the 'Create a new smiley' button and enter the code you want to use for the smiley, the name of the smiley, and a link to the smiley.
- Save your changes by clicking the 'Create' button.
Can I use more than one code for the same smiley?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Customize Smilies' link.
- You can add extra codes for each smiley by changing the characters in the 'code' box.
- Separate each code with a comma.
- Please note that you cannot use commas in smiley codes.
Unwanted Users and posts
How do I remove posts from my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'View Shouts' link.
- You can delete shouts from here by clicking the 'delete' link.
- If you have a paid account, you can delete shouts directly from the Saybox. You will need to be logged in to do this.
Do SayBoxes have flood protection?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Preferences' link.
- Enter a number in the box next to 'Seconds until reshout'
- Whatever number you enter will be the number of seconds a user has to wait after posting before they can post another message on your SayBox.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save'
- Restore defaults by clicking the 'defaults' link.
Can I censor bad language on my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Set Censored Words' link.
- To censor a word, enter the word and what it should be censored to in the format 'censored=c******d' (without the ' marks).
- To censor more than one word, put each new word and its censored equivalent on a new line.
- You can choose to completely disable the word filter by ticking the box below the text entry area.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save' .
- Restore defaults by clicking 'Reset'.
- Paid SayBox accounts include a smartban option, which stops spammers posting anything bad on your SayBox. If you have a paid account, enabling this feature will mean any user who attempts to post a word from your filter list is automatically banned.
A visitor is causing problems on my SayBox. What can I do?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Ban Settings' link.
- A list of everyone who's posted on your SayBox will be displayed, along with their IP address.
- Ban IP address to stop users posting on your SayBox by entering each IP address to be blocked on a new line in the text box on this page.
- You can also ban people by name; just enter their name into the 'Ban users by name' box.
- You also have the option to stop banned users viewing your Saybox.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save'
- Clear the list by clicking 'Reset'
- Some users may have a "dynamic" or changing IP address. Thus, their IP address may change at some point, allowing them to get round the ban. Add their new IP address to the ban list to keep them away on the new IP.
Can I change the message banned users see?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Ban Users' link.
- Edit the message banned users see from the 'Banned Message' area on this page.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save'.
Can I stop guests posting on my Saybox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Preferences' link.
- Tick the box next to 'enable access password' and in the text box below, enter the password you want to use.
- Save your changes.
- Anyone who tries to post on your Saybox while the access password is enabled will need to enter the password you set.
Posts on your SayBox
Can I stop people from posting one letter shouts?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Shout Preferences' link.
- Enter a number (1-500) in the top box here to set the minimum number of characters a user must enter to be allowed to post a message.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save'
Can I stop people from posting really long shouts?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Shout Preferences' link.
- Enter a number (1-500) in the second box down to set the maximum number of characters a user can enter to be allowed to post a message.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save'
Can I stop people posting using my name?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the User Settings' link.
- Click the 'add user' text.
- Enter your name and the password you want to use in the form that appears.
- Save your changes by clicking the 'Add User' button.
- Anyone trying to use your name to post will now be required to enter the password you set.
Can I set the min/max length of names used on my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Shout Preferences' link.
- Enter a number (1-50) into the 'min name length' and the 'max name length' boxes.
- Save your changes by clicking 'Save'
- Restore defaults by clicking 'Reset'
Can I stop people posting smilies?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Preferences' link.
- under 'Miscellaneous Preferences', tick the 'Disable smilies' box to disable the use of smilies in posts.
- Save your changes by clicking the 'Save' button.
I have more shouts than are displayed on my SayBox. How can I view them all?
- Click the 'Archive' link on your SayBox to open the message archive in a popup window.
- View older pages by choosing the page number in the dropdown menu at the top of the window.
- If you reach 500 shouts, the oldest 10 posts on your SayBox are automatically deleted. Paid accounts are exempt from this limitation.
- You can download an archive of current shouts if you don't want important posts to be deleted.
How do I put emphasis on text in my SayBox?
- SayBox allows a small amount of UBBC for text emphasis.
- Put [u] [/u] around text you want underlined, example [u]text[/u]
- Put [i] [/i] around text you want in italic, example [i]text[/i]
- Put [b] [/b] around text you want in bold, example [b]text[/b]
- Put [color=(color)] [/color] around text you want in a different color, example [color=ffffff]text[/color]
- Put [sup] [/sup] around text you want to be shown in superscript, example [sup]text[/sup]
- Put [sub] [/sub] around text you want to be shown in subscript, example [sub]text[/sub]
- Put [url] [/url] around text you want to be a link, example [url=http://www.saybox.co.uk]text[/url]
- Put [email] [/email] around text you want to link to an email address, example [email=email@anemailplace.com]text[/email]
Can I edit posts on my SayBox?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'View Shouts' link.
- Select the shout you want to modify by clicking the radio button next to it.
- Click the 'Modify' button near the top of the page.
- Change whatever needs to be altered in the relevant textboxes
- Save your changes by clicking the 'Save' button.
Can I see the time a post was made?
- Hover your mouse cursor over the post on your SayBox to see the time that shout was posted.
- Times are all displayed in the timezone set in your admin panel.
Can I see the total number of shouts on my SayBox?
- Log in to the admin panel.
- You can see the total shouts on your SayBox in the 'Stats' box on this page.
- or
- Click the 'Archive' link below your SayBox.
- The total number of shouts is displayed at the top of that window.
Can I see how many different people have posted on my SayBox?
- Log in to the admin panel.
- Click the 'More Stats' link towards the right side of the page.
- You can see the total number of different names used for posts on this page.
Can I search for specific people/posts on my SayBox?
- Log in to the admin panel and click the 'Search Shouts' link.
- You can search your SayBox by name, message, link, and IP address from there.
Can I keep a post at the top of my SayBox?
- Login to your admin panel and click the 'View Shouts' link.
- Select the shout you want to pin by clicking the radio button next to it.
- Click the 'Pin' button near the top of the page to pin it to the top of your SayBox.
- Follow the same steps to un-pin a shout.
- The pin image can be changed from your 'Preferences' page.
- If the order of your shouts is reversed, your pinned shouts will appear at the bottom of your Saybox.
Can users have avatars by their name when they post?
- After logging into your admin panel, click the 'User Settings' link.
- From this page you can create user accounts and set an avatar for them to use.
- The maximum avatar size is 15x15 pixels.
A post on my SayBox keep repeating itself, how do I stop it?
- This glitch can occur if your PC rejects the cookie set by a paid SayBox account.
- In this situation you should see a message warning you about cookie settings, but the reposting glitch does still occur for some people.
- Shouts that appear to be repeating without user input will only be visible to you, and are not stored.
- Choosing to allow the Saybox cookie will fix the problem. Refer to the help file of your internet browser for information on how to do this.
Statistics
How do I view my SayBox's statistics?
- Once logged into your admin panel, you can see some quick statistics in the box on the right side of your screen.
- To view more statistics click the 'More Stats' link in the title bar of the Quick Stats box.
What are adpoints?
- Every time an ad is displayed on a free Saybox account, your adpoints increase. Adfree will be automatically enabled on your account when you free a certain number of adpoints.
- You can set the frequency ads display at from your admin panel.
Account Details
My details have changed. How do I update them on SayBox?
- Log in to the admin panel.
- Click the 'Account Information' link.
- Update your information on this screen.
- Press the 'Save' button to save the changes you made
- Press the 'Reset' button to restore the original information.
Can I change my password?
- After logging into the admin panel, click the 'Account Details' link.
- You can change your password on this page.
If I no longer want a SayBox, how do I get rid of my account?
- We hope you'll like our service so much that you never decide to get rid of your SayBox.
- To delete a SayBox, login to the admin panel, then click the 'Delete Account link.
- Click 'Yes' on the next screen to delete your SayBox account.
- If you delete your account, it cannot be recovered.
If I delete my account, what happens to my personal information?
- Once your account is deleted your information is removed from the database.
- Your signup email and any support emails you might have sent may be kept for future reference.
- Our privacy policy still applies to deleted accounts.
Why do you require personal information about me when I signup?
- The information you submit is used in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
- We do not sell or disclose any of your personal details.
- SayBox does not send out mass mailings. Your email address is used for account activation, payment notifications, and password recovery.
Problems with a SayBox
My SayBox is not displaying. What's wrong?
- If your SayBox is not displaying, visit our main website and check whether you can see both the site and the demo SayBox.
- If you can see our website and demo SayBox, but not your own, there is a problem with your SayBox. Start a new thread on our forum and wait for one of our staff to reply.
- If you can see our website, but not the demo SayBox, it may be one of two problems.
- The software powering SayBox may be temporarily unavailable. In such a case we try to let users know the cause, and how long we expect the service to be down.
- You may have something on your computer preventing SayBoxes from being displayed. Norton Internet Security blocks SayBoxes by default, so you may need to disable or alter the settings if you use NIS.
- If you cannot view our website at all, the server is probably down or unavailable. In such a case, we will try to keep users informed or the cause and likely length of the downtime.
My account was deleted. Why?
- If we delete a SayBox, it will be for violation of the TOS.
- Make sure your password is not easy to guess - if someone else logs in to your account and deletes your SayBox, there is no way to restore it.
When I try to login to my admin panel, the page just reloads. What's wrong?
- This happens when your browser is not accepting the SayBox login cookie.
- Clearing your cookies and lowering privacy settings may help.
Why don't the admin panel links work on my account?
- Each link from the admin page pops up a new window.
- If you are running any popup blocking software, you will need to disable it or add saybox.co.uk to the allow list.
I've lost my Saybox code! How can I get it back?
- Login to the admin panel.
- You SayBox code can be found on the right hand side of the page.
- Use the dropdown menu to choose between code for an inline SayBox and for a popup SayBox.
I can't find the letter "X" in the treasure hunt. Where is it?
- Right here:
Why does Norton Internet Security block my SayBox?
- NIS blocks SayBoxes by default.
- To get around this, either add saybox.co.uk to the "allow" list, or disable adblocking completely.
- Symantec have not responded to our request to stop SayBoxes being automatically blocked.
SayBox Directory
What is the directory?
- The SayBox directory is an opt-in listing service for SayBox users to promote their website.
- Anyone opting in to the directory will have their site and description of the site displayed on our 'Directory' page.
How do I get listed in the directory?
- You must have a SayBox to be listed in our directory
- To add your site to the directory, simply check the box in the account information part of your admin panel.
- The URL listed in the directory will be the one you give in your account information
- To add a description of your site, fill in the relevant part of your account information.
I'm in the directory, but no longer want to be. Can I opt-out?
- To opt out of the directory, uncheck the box in the account information part of your admin panel.
About SayBox
Who runs SayBox?
- SayBox is run jointly by Ron and Renegade.
- Generally, Ron is responsible for coding, and Renegade for written stuff and user support.
Who created SayBoxes?
- The SayBox code was written by Ron.
Who made the website?
- Website design and coding was done by Ron.
- Most of the text on the site was written by Renegade.
- The smileys were created for SayBox by Dexxaboy.