Plaza Nuts and Bolts
by Caelinn

How to: Hyperlink

There are two ways of making a link in a post. The first is simple - simply type the URL (site address) into the text, and it will automatically become a working hyperlink that looks like this: "http://www.lotrplaza.com". You will not be able to click the link until you actually make the post.

However, perhaps in some posts, such as in character (IC) posts, you don’t want a link that is too noticeable and will break up the flow. For such cases it is best to use the second method. In this method you can make a single word or a phrase into a hyperlink. First type the word you wish to use as the link (e.g. "click me" or "linky"). Highlight this word or phrase using the cursor. Then select the hyperlink button from the tool bar (the button with an image of the world and a chain). A small window will appear asking you to specify the type of hyperlink and the site’s URL. For a normal website link select "http" as the link type. Then enter the URL and click "OK". The hyperlink will appear in your post hidden behind the word or phrase you highlighted - looking like this "follow me". Once again you will not be able to click the link until you have posted your post.

How to: Add Images to Posts

In some threads it may be useful to add a picture to illustrate what you are saying. All images posted in the forums and houses must be hosted on your own online server (using free hosting services such as www.photobucket.com) and not hot-linked from the owner’s site, as this is bandwidth theft. To post an image you need to know the URL of the image, which should end in the file type such as GIF or JPG. You cannot put an image that is only on your computer into your post, as no one else will be able to see it.

To add the image click on the button which has an image of a tree on it. A small window will appear asking you to enter the URL of the image, as outlined above. Once you have entered the URL, click "OK" and the image will appear in your post. Some images are too big and may stretch the page when the post is made. To avoid annoying other members with stretchy pages, you can resize the image using the handles on the edges of the image (when the image is selected). These handles look like small white boxes and when grabbed by the cursor can make the image bigger or smaller by dragging. To make sure the image will not stretch the page, the image should fit within the edges of the box where you type your post.

Debates R Us
by Eoarod

Golly! How to write just a few paragraphs on the current Debate Season! It has been so amazing it’s hard to pick just a few highlights – but such is my task and I’ll do my best.

I can hardly discuss the season from beginning to end without mentioning the amazing beginning the Shire Team had, for the Shire had no team at all until just before the season! Luckily the Jr. Debate League was able to help out and give the newly formed Team Shire one practice Debate before regular IK’s began! Truly the Shire accomplished a lot just participating in the Season, and they notched up some nice wins along the way!

Overall this season was simply stellar. It was evident from the first round of Debates that on the whole the League had raised the Debating bar yet again. The scores from the first round were beyond question the highest scores ever! So much so we could not even have a “Top 10 Individual Debaters” list following that round as all the scores were so close!

It was also a season of teamwork – not just amongst members of the same team – but between teams in Debates. Many issues were worked out with barely a hitch in the proceedings and cheerleading was enthusiastic and supportive – not to mention the some few keggers going on in some matches! Possibly most importantly all the mascots – from Rðser the Roster Rooster of the Riddermark to Muffin the Mule of the Shire survived debates with Mordor (Lorien may have lost one of their mascots – but there are so many of them it is impossible to tell if one’s missing or merely lingering under a piece of furniture).

Topically speaking we ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous! From “The Valar should have taken a more active role in determining the fate of the One Ring” to “Huan did more for the furtherment of the cause of good than Shadowfax.” No laughing now, MT managed one heck of a team score defending that noble Mearas!

All good things must come to an end, however – and so we find ourselves on the edge of our collective seats awaiting the judgments of the two Semi-Final matches. The topics were challenging to say the least – the arguments excellent on the part of all four teams! We are very fortunate to have two Admin/Loremasters taking on the judging challenge of these two stellar Debates!

Still, there’s a bit of fun left before we cover up our podiums and get on to the post-season discussions. Finals will begin soon, then All Stars following that – and who knows what other surprises may come our way as the season wraps up? We’ll all need to party and celebrate the astounding tribute we’ve all made not only to ourselves and our teams – but to the Master Tolkien and his works – for at the end of the day that is truly what we celebrate – our Middle-earth!

Around the Plaza in 706 days
by RohRowFire

The Plaza is such a vast place that most of us participate in only a handful of the forums available to us. I thought I would make a round of some of the forums not covered by full-length articles and let you all know that there is some good in all of them!

My first stop is the Tolkien - the Man forum where a couple of interesting discussions are taking place. One is Would Tolkien join the Plaza? where theories abound as to what the Master would think about all of us discussing his works and his life as well as what he would think of the phenomenon that is the Internet. And some of the Plaza’s “biggies” (when it comes to discussion of lore) are participating in a comparison of Shakespeare and Tolkien. Good reads both!

In the Movies forum, Mighty Ent Man asks if there are really two different versions of Lord of the Rings, the written version by Professor Tolkien, and the movie version by Peter Jackson. Of course movie fans cannot help but compare Star Wars to Lord of the Rings and George Lucas to Peter Jackson (a couple of threads with these topics), whether or not there should be a fourth movie and what that movie would be (several threads), and even a thread asking for sympathy for Grima! Whether you like, love, dislike, or hate the movies, there’s a thread here just waiting for your input!

The Supporting Members forum is a private forum for those who have the ability to donate money to the Plaza to help defray the enormous server costs for a site this large. For those non-supporting members who wonder just what happens in that locked forum, I can tell you that the biggest discussion so far has been Hoth’s pantyhose. Yes, Mandos’ secret is out thanks to his lovely Lady of the Stars, who just cannot seem to hold her tongue. Other topics of grave importance have included Rings’ diatribe against the slovenly males of the species, whether or not Eru walks among us in disguise, the importance of maggots to medicine, and of course the lovely little snippet from when it was announced that Orlando had joined the Plaza and Beebs thought we meant Orlando, Florida. Yes, tease her about that one, mercilessly...

by Firien Echui

With the coming of the new RPG Forum comes the formation of the Plazawide RPG Guild, a place for all the numerous role players and game masters of the Plaza to gather together and discuss the art that is role play. That is not all that the new guild has to offer, however, not in the least! Headed up by Guild Chiefs Firien Echui and Aduchil, it offers many resources to help the Plaza role player in need. We have training in both the fundamentals of RP and more advanced aspects, as well as specific areas of training such as cavalry combat, swordplay, two-handed weapons fighting, hand-to-hand combat, and much more, including training in the role play of each specific race of Middle-earth. We have also formulated several documents to help you on your way to the most realistic Middle-earth role play possible. Among these are questionnaires to fine tune every aspect of your character no matter what race, as well as very extensive glossaries of weapons and armor that might have been used in the Lord of the Rings, all of which include pictures, to help you choose items that are the most realistic. Whether you are new to role play or an advanced player, there is something in the RPG Guild for you. Come by and visit us today!