This guide covers our old ProBoards v4 software. Click here for the ProBoards v5 Help Guide.
If you've identified a message board you'd like to join, click the Register button in that forum's top menu-bar. This will take you to the registration page where you can create your new account.
Username: On the registration page, you'll be asked a few questions to get your account up and running. First, choose a Username you'll use to login to your account. Usernames can only contain letters and numbers (no symbols or spaces).
Password: Next, choose a password. Passwords should be a minimum of 6 characters and can include letters, numbers and spaces. Re-enter your password to confirm. If the passwords don't match, you'll be asked to enter them again.
Email: Now, enter an email address that we can forward your activation key to. Your email address can also be used in the future to retrieve your password if you forget it. Re-enter your email address to confirm. Your email address will only be viewable to forum staff members unless you choose otherwise in your modify profile page.
Birthday: You'll then be asked for your birth date. You can choose to hide this information from other message board users on the modify profile page after registration. Once hidden, only forum staff will be able to view your birth date.
Gender: Next you'll be asked to select your gender from the dropdown. Once your account is created, you can choose to hide this information on the modify profile page.
Captcha: Once you've finished filling out the registration form, you'll be asked to enter the CAPTCHA phrase as it appears in the image provided. If entered incorrectly, you'll be asked to try again. If the CAPTCHA phrase isn't displayed, click the refresh button in in the CAPTCHA box. If the phrase still won't display, check the following; ensure you're running the latest version of Adobe Flash; have Javascript enabled in your web browser and, have disabled ad-blocking software. We use this system to help prevent forum spam.
Terms of Service: Finally, you'll be asked to review and agree to the Terms of Service which govern the use of ProBoards free forums. View the T.O.S. by clicking the Terms of Service link on the registration page; the T.O.S. page will open in a new window so your registration info will not be lost.
Once you've read and agreed to the Terms of Service, click the Create Account button at the bottom of the page to create your new account. If there was a problem with your registration information, the page will reload and display a list of errors that need to be corrected.
Otherwise, your new account will have been created successfully! You are now free to login in to the discussion forum using the username and password you provided on the registration page.
Account Activation
If the forum's account activation system is enabled, you'll be asked for an activation key after the first time you login. Check your email to retrieve the activation key and paste it into the activation key box after logging in. Or, you can simply click the Click here to activate! link in the email to have the code entered automatically. If you paste the activation code from the email, make sure no spaces are added.
If you didn't receive the activation code in your email, check the spam or junk folder in your email account to ensure it wasn't routed there automatically by your email provider. If the code isn't being accepted, you can request a new code. Above the box where you type in the activation code you'll see the following phrase: Please enter your activation key in the form... by clicking here where clicking here is a link. Click that link and you'll be taken to the resend activation code page. Click the send new activation code link to have a new code regenerated and sent to your email address.
If you're still unable to retrieve the activation code after using the resend activation code method, revisit the resend activation code page and ensure that there are no typos made in the email address you entered in. You may also consider adding the email address noreply@proboards.com to your email contacts list and try to resend the activation code once more. If you continue to have troubles receiving the activation email, you may want to consider changing the email address on the resend activation code page to an email address with a different email provider.
Once the activation code is entered successfully, you should be able to view the message board contents and make posts with your newly created account.
Limited Registrations
Keep in mind, some discussion forums enable the limited registrations feature. If this feature is enabled, you'll see a message stating that your account is pending approval from a staff member. Once your account has been reviewed, you'll receive an email notifying you of the action the staff has taken. ProBoards does not manage each individual message board and is unable to approve your account for you; please wait for a member of the forum's staff to review your account.