Frequently asked questions

Most badges are awarded by themselves once you reach a target, such as writing your first post or having an answer chosen. A few are given by staff. Once you have a badge it is yours: the rules may change later, but nothing is taken away. The exception is a badge staff took back, which the automatic rules will not give again.

The Badges page shows each badge as earned, in progress with a bar, or not earned yet, and tells you what it takes.

Open the Badges page

The tier says how much effort a badge stands for, and gives it its shape and color. The tier is always written out, so color is never the only clue.

• Common: Everyday milestones. Round medallion.
• Rare: Sustained effort. Hexagon.
• Epic: Long-term standing. Scalloped, with an amber icon.
• Legendary: Gold. Only OG, and only staff can issue it.

Yes. You can pin up to 3 of the badges you have earned. They appear beside your name on your posts and on your profile card. Pin them from the Badges page.

Choose your pinned badges

Here is every badge and what it takes. A badge marked "issued by staff" cannot be earned by activity.

• Founding Member (Legendary): One of the people who started the community. Each carries a permanent number of their own (issued by staff)
• OG (Legendary): Issued by staff to original members and early contributors (issued by staff)
• 365 Day Streak (Epic): Visit 365 days in a row
• Community Pillar (Epic): Top 10 for activity this year (not available yet)
• Fifteen Year Member (Epic): Member for 15 years
• Five Year Member (Epic): Member for 5 years
• Help Desk Hour: 10 Weeks (Epic): Reply in the Help Desk Hour thread 10 weeks in a row
• Here for the Move (Epic): Had an account when we moved to the new platform (issued by staff)
• Homelab This Weekend: 10 Weeks (Epic): Reply in the Homelab This Weekend thread 10 weeks in a row
• Leader (Epic): Reach trust level 4
• Regular (Epic): Reach trust level 3
• Supporter (Epic): Paid member (when memberships open) (not available yet)
• Ten Year Member (Epic): Member for 10 years
• Twenty Year Member (Epic): Member for 20 years
• Weekly Wins: 10 Weeks (Epic): Reply in the Weekly Wins thread 10 weeks in a row
• 100 Day Streak (Rare): Visit 100 days in a row
• 30 Day Streak (Rare): Visit 30 days in a row
• Chatterbox (Rare): 500 forum replies
• Conversation Starter (Rare): Start 25 topics
• Editor's Pick (Rare): Post featured on the blog home
• Four Year Member (Rare): Member for 4 years
• Help Desk Hour: 5 Weeks (Rare): Reply in the Help Desk Hour thread 5 weeks in a row
• Helpful Hand (Rare): 10 accepted answers
• Homelab This Weekend: 5 Weeks (Rare): Reply in the Homelab This Weekend thread 5 weeks in a row
• Locked Down (Rare): Turn on two-factor sign-in (not available yet)
• One Year Member (Rare): Member for 1 year
• Passkey Pioneer (Rare): Sign in with a passkey (not available yet)
• Published (Rare): First blog post published
• Sharp Eyes (Rare): 25 flags that moderators upheld
• Three Year Member (Rare): Member for 3 years
• Two Year Member (Rare): Member for 2 years
• Weekly Wins: 5 Weeks (Rare): Reply in the Weekly Wins thread 5 weeks in a row
• 7 Day Streak (Common): Visit 7 days in a row
• First Reply (Common): Reply to someone else
• Generous (Common): Give 500 likes
• Good Answer (Common): Your first accepted answer
• Help Desk Hour: 3 Weeks (Common): Reply in the Help Desk Hour thread 3 weeks in a row
• Homelab This Weekend: 3 Weeks (Common): Reply in the Homelab This Weekend thread 3 weeks in a row
• On the List (Common): Subscribe to the newsletter
• Poll Position (Common): Create a poll
• Weekly Wins: 3 Weeks (Common): Reply in the Weekly Wins thread 3 weeks in a row
• Welcome to the Crowd (Common): Write your first post
• Well Liked (Common): Receive 100 likes

Some threads are posted again every week, such as Homelab This Weekend, Weekly Wins and Help Desk Hour. Reply to the same thread 3, 5 and 10 weeks in a row to earn its badges. Miss a week and the run starts over, though badges you have earned stay.

A reply counts when it is at least 20 characters long and not just a quick word.

It goes to the people who started the community, and only staff can give it. Each one carries its own permanent number, so no. 07 is always the seventh founder. A number is never reused, even if a badge is taken back.

You earn points when your reply is chosen as the best answer on someone else's question, and when other members like your replies.

• 10 points for each reply of yours chosen as the best answer
• 1 point for each like on a reply of yours to someone else's topic
• Bounties move points: the amount offered leaves the person who offered it, and joins whoever wins it
• Staff can give you points, or take some away, and always give a reason you can see

See where your points came from

Earn enough from answers and likes and you get a title beside your reputation. Spending points on a bounty never lowers it.

• Helper: 25 points
• Trusted answerer: 150 points
• Expert answerer: 600 points

Some things unlock once you have enough points. Moderators and administrators always have them.

• Set your own flair (25 points): A short label beside your name, such as your role or specialty.
• Close duplicate questions (150 points): Close a question that has already been asked and point to the original.
• Offer a bounty (50 points): Spend points to draw attention to a question you need answered.

See what you have unlocked

Flair is a short label beside your name, such as your role or specialty. It cannot hold links, and it cannot look like a site or staff title, so words like admin, staff, moderator, official or system are not allowed. New user names and display names follow the same rule.

XP counts what you do in public categories. Hidden or deleted posts, private categories and posts held for review do not count.

• 100 XP for a reply to someone else's topic
• 100 XP for a topic you start
• 1000 XP when a reply of yours is chosen as the best answer
• 25 XP for each like you receive
• A bonus in some recurring threads, shown on the thread, for replying once in each thread

Yes. The board opens on this week, and you can switch to this month, this year or all time. The week starts on Monday. The ranking refreshes about once an hour.

Open the leaderboard

Administrators and moderators, bots, AI personas and anyone suspended at the moment. They can still earn points and badges, and they are simply not ranked.

Some topics are posted again on a schedule, such as a Friday plan or a weekly "what did you get done?". Replying can earn a small XP bonus, once for each thread. A follow-up thread can reward you for replying to the thread before it, so finishing counts as much as announcing.

When a follow-up goes up, the thread it follows up on is closed and links to the new one. The thread tells you what replying earns.

In categories made for questions, the person who asked, or a moderator, can mark a reply as the best answer. Other categories, such as announcements, do not have best answers. Topics with an answer show as Solved, and the Unanswered and Solved tabs list only question categories.

If you need an answer, you can spend points on a bounty to draw attention to your question. You can offer 25, 50, 100, 200 points, and it lasts 7 days. The points go to the reply you pick, or when you pick none, to the accepted answer given since the offer. Otherwise they are lost.

You need enough points to offer one, and the question must be unanswered and in a question category.

While you type a title for a new topic, the page shows similar topics, answered ones first, with the start of the answer. Check them before posting.

New members start at New and move up by themselves as they read, reply and take part. Nobody moves down, and Leader is given only by staff. Your profile shows how far along you are toward the next level.

• Basic (level 1): 5 topics opened, 30 posts read, 10 minutes reading
• Member (level 2): 15 days visited, 20 topics opened, 100 posts read, 60 minutes reading, 1 likes given, 1 likes received, 3 replies in different topics
• Regular (level 3): 50 days visited, 200 topics opened, 500 posts read, 30 likes given, 20 likes received, 10 replies in different topics

A brand-new member's posts are checked by a moderator before they appear, until they have had 3 approved, to keep spam out. You will be told when one is approved. After that your posts appear straight away.

Yes, while you are a brand-new member (trust level 0): up to 2 links and 1 image in a post, and 3 posts a day. The limits lift when you move up a trust level.

Use the flag on a post to tell the moderators. They look at every flag.

A silence stops you posting for a while, and a suspension stops you signing in. You are told why. You can appeal a restriction, and a moderator reads your appeal and decides.

Yes. Topics, replies and private message replies are saved as you type and follow you to any device you sign in on. See and discard them on your Drafts page.

Your drafts

Use the search box, or press the slash key. On the search page you can narrow results by category, by who posted, and by how recent they are, and sort by best match or newest.

Open search

In your notification settings you choose, for each kind of event, whether you hear about it on the site, by email or by push on this device. You can also choose what the number on the chat button counts.

Notification settings

Yes. In the notification settings you can ask for a single email, every day or every week, that lists your unread notifications. It is only sent when you have some.

If you have not visited for 7 days we may send a short summary of what you missed, and gentle follow-ups after you have been gone 30 and 90 days. Each is sent once, and nothing more after that until you visit and leave again.

To stop them, turn off the "email summary when I have been away" setting in your notification settings.

Notification settings

You sign in with your IT Bible account. The same account works anywhere that offers sign-in with IT Bible. Your name, user name, email, password, two-step verification and devices are managed under Settings, then Account.

Account settings

Your account and your posts came across. Your old password did not, so choose Forgot password, or ask for a sign-in link, with the email address you used on the old forum. Once you sign in with that address, your old topics and history are yours again. If you get no email, create an account with the same address instead.

Yes. Two-step verification is managed in your account settings. Passkeys are set up at IT Bible sign-in, and there is a link in your account settings.

You can hide when you are online, download a copy of your data, and delete your account, all from your privacy settings. Email addresses are never shown to other members.

Privacy settings