The Official FAQ thread

[Bill Boehme]

This thread provides answers to some of the most frequently asked questions it is still a work in progress.

1. I created my AAW forum account today and it asked for my AAW membership number. I recently joined the AAW and I don't know how to find my membership number.
   
   
   Answer: If you have received a printed copy of the American Woodturner journal, your membership number can be found on the mailing label. If you have created an account on the AAW main site to access the members only areas of the web site, you can go to your profile page and your member number will be shown near the top of the page as shown in the figure below (if you aren't logged in, then you will need to go to the log-in page first).
   
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2. Why do I need a different login for the forum than the one that I use for the AAW main site?
   
   
   Answer: On this site, you log in with your username and password. Forum member usernames are their real names since about 2009. Members who joined before the rule change were allowed to keep their existing screen name. Any woodturner can join the forum ... it isn't necessarily to be an AAW member to become a forum member.
   
   In order to log into the members only section of the AAW main site, a member's username is their email address.
   
   There are several reasons that log-in information is not shared between the two sites:
   

   • They are separate sites
   • The members only section of the AAW main site is a secure encrypted site because it contains personal information about members
   • Forum membership is open to all woodturners
   • Trying to share the same database wouldn't be practical and would create a security vulnerability especially if sharing log-in information.
   • Hopefully you use strong passwords that are different for each site
   
   
3. How long does it take to get "accepted" to participate in the forum?
   
   
   Answer: Moderator approval is required to insure that the required information is provided and the members identity is verified. Usually new member registrations are approved within 24 hours (often much less), but occasionally the time may exceed 24 hours. The most common reason for rejection is for using a "screen name" rather than your real name.​
   
   
4. Next

 

[Bill Boehme]

4. On the index page that lists the threads in a forum, I see a small image at the beginning of each thread. On some threads there is a small image inset into the larger one. What do these images represent?

Answer: As shown in the screen shot below, a miniature version of the avatar of the thread starter is shown for each thread. If the person who starts the thread doesn't have an avatar then they are given the ubiquitous question mark avatar. If YOU have replied to a thread then YOUR avatar will appear as a tiny inset to the thread starter's avatar. If you don't have an avatar then you will see a question mark. If you have not replied to a thread then you will not see an inset image.

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