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SmallBusiness.com:Tutorial (Talk pages)
Introduction | Editing | Formatting | SmallBusiness.com links | Citing sources | Talk pages | Keep in mind | Registration | Wrap-up |
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Talk pages are a key feature of SmallBusiness.com, offering the ability to discuss articles and other issues with other SmallBusiness.comns. They are not a chat room, soapbox, battleground or for general discussion of the entry topic. They are a place to discuss what goes into the entry itself.
If you have a question, concern or comment related to improving the article put a note in the article's Talk page and not in the article itself. You do that by clicking the 'Discussion tab at the top of the page. Do not worry if the link shows up in red; it is all right to create the talk page if it does not already exist.
Note: You must be registered and logged-in to SmallBusiness.com to use Talk pages.
You should sign your comments by typing ~~~ for just your username, or ~~~~ for your username and a time signature (see the example discussion below). This way, when you save the page, your signature will be inserted automatically. Otherwise your comments, etc., will still appear but without your name. Most of us use time signatures because it makes following discussions much easier. For your convenience, there is a button at the top of the edit box with a signature icon inserts "--~~~~" when pressed.
User talk pages
Every Small Business Dot-comer has a user talk page on which other contributors can leave messages. This includes contributors who have not created an account. If someone has left you a message, you will see a note saying "You have new messages", with a link to your user talk page
You can reply in either of two ways. One is to put a message on the user talk page of the person you are replying to. The other is to put your reply on your own talk page beneath the original message. Both are common on SmallBusiness.com; however, be aware that replying on your own talk page runs the risk that your reply won't be seen, if the user does not look at your talk page again. If you choose this approach, it is a good idea to post a notice at the top of your talk page so people know they have to keep an eye on it.