# Please tutor me on textual tricks. **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 17, 2000, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784 "2000-08-17T21:12:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/1 "2000-08-17T21:12:57Z")
More specifically, how do you do bold & italics? Also, how do you make one or two words (such as “click here” or “Cecil’s column”) become a link? Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Ozone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e95f7d/32.png) [@Ozone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ozone)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/2 "2000-08-17T21:29:10Z")
Oh man, I read that too fast. I thought it said _ **SEXUAL** _ tricks. 😛 When you’re in a reply screan, typing your text… as I’m doing now… 🙂 , scroll up and click on the link called “vB code”. That’ll tell you how to do **bold** , _itallic_, underline, etc… As well as links, quotes, and other fun stuff. If you haven’t found it yet, also click on “Smilies” to learn how to make funny little smily faces… 🙂 😃 😛 😉 :rolleyes: etc… Cool? ---
**Author:** ![Ozone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e95f7d/32.png) [@Ozone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ozone)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/3 "2000-08-17T21:32:01Z")
Hmm, one more thing. How is it that you’ve been here almost a year, and have over 400 posts, but haven’t learned to do bold, itallic, etc…? Something’s fishy about that… ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/4 "2000-08-17T21:36:06Z")
This link will take you a [cheat sheet](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/index.php?action=bbcode) of vB codes. You may want to print it out. However, it’s also available fromt eh “Reply to Topic” window. Just below the SD banner, you’ll see a list of “Forum Rules.” In the last line of those rules, you’ll see a link that says, “vB code is on.” Click that and it opens this same cheat sheet in a new window. But, please never click the “Smilies” link just in front of it. That way lies evil. Additionally, we have one, well two, custom codes that aren’t on the cheat sheet. Those are for sub- and super-scripts. You can toggle those like all other vB codes, except you’ll substitute either of the tags _sub_ or _sup_ inside the square brackets. ---
**Author:** ![tshirts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@tshirts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tshirts)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/5 "2000-08-17T23:16:38Z")
\*\* [Don’t forget the link. Here’s how to post one, Part Next](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=25307)\*\* ---
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/6 "2000-08-19T01:32:05Z")
Another handy trick for figuring out how people do things is to click the Quote icon below the post you’re curious about. You’ll get a text box with their stuff in it, along with the codes they used to make it happen. Once you’ve memorized the codes, you can leave without actually posting a reply. It will also have quote tags around it, but ignore those (unless you want to know how to do a quote). ---
**Author:** ![NickyLarson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b2d939/32.png) [@NickyLarson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NickyLarson)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/7 "2000-08-19T04:05:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ozone \* > \*\*Hmm, one more thing. How is it that you’ve been here almost a year, and have over 400 posts, but haven’t learned to do bold, itallic, etc…? > > Something’s fishy about that… \*\* Well?.. ---
**Author:** ![barflyer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dc4da7/32.png) [@barflyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barflyer)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2000, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/8 "2000-08-24T02:45:58Z")
rastahomie seems to bee one of the “General Questions” fans. Maybe he’s one of them theoretical types. Too much time in the Ivory Tower kept Einstein from knowing how to comb his hair or wear matched socks. ---
**Author:** ![Yankee\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/7ea924/32.png) [@Yankee\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yankee_Blue)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/9 "2000-08-26T14:31:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NickyLarson \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Ozone \* > > \*\*Hmm, one more thing. How is it that you’ve been here almost a year, and have over 400 posts, but haven’t learned to do bold, itallic, etc…? > > > > Something’s fishy about that… \*\* > > Well?.. \*\* Uh… **hangs head, kicks at dirt** I just never \*bothered \* to learn before I saw this thread. I did not know it was required. Is there a fine involved? (note: above is the first time for any ‘fancy’ text in one of my posts.) I’ll follow it with a gratuitous smilie: 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BarnStormer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5f8ce5/32.png) [@BarnStormer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnStormer)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2000, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-tutor-me-on-textual-tricks/29784/10 "2000-09-04T09:07:38Z")
These recent “tricks” aren’t anything like when pictures were allowed. And there was even html enabled, I believe, although I didn’t use it. But I envied those who did.