Hopefully these few paragraphs might go some way to answer a few questions about joining the EMLRA Forum. The most frequent complaint I get is that your account isn't yet active, it's usually because I haven't seen an email from you first, all is explained below. Note that I say that I might not have seen the email from you, not that you didn't send it
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
So, obviously to be on the forum, you'll need to register first. It's more or less the same as so many other forums out there. There may or may not be a Captcha image to try and work out. There may be a silly question to answer. It's also handy if you include your location, or county, or even just the country. When you complete the initial registration process, you will get an automated confirmation email from the Forum, not from me, or anyone else, it's the forum program that is doing this.
This is not the end of the process. You still need to email the site admin (that is me, but might be anyone else, depends if I'm in or not). When you email the admin, all I need is your new forum name along with a couple of words to confirm who you are. No need for anything more than that. Remember to include your new forum name as well as your own name.
If this isn't done, your registration will remain unverified. Admin will have been informed via email that a new application was made at the same time as you got the automated confirmation. Until they get that personal email from you with your Forum name and real name, that is as far as it will go. If you are already registered on the Forum and you change your email address via your control panel, you will probably find yourself locked out and will need to advise Admin. This is a security feature to prevent your account being hijacked. Admin will have been told by the Forum software that something has happened but please get in touch with them ASAP so they can re-activate things.
Another little hiccup that deserves a mention. Online registration to the EMLRA Forum has nothing in common with Online Applications to join the EMLRA as a club. EMLRA charges members an annual fee, it offers club insurance to display with them at shows, a newsletter on an irregular basis but typically 6 per year on a two month interval, some of the usual merchandise, and concessionary tickets on a first come first served basis for display vehicles to fly the flag at many events around the country. Entry to some of these events alone are worth the annual membership fee so we feel it reasonable to expect such vehicular entrants to meet a standard. This includes the vehicle owners behaviour both at shows and on the Forum.
The forum, on the other hand, is free. EMLRA hosts it for free, it costs you nothing but respect, politeness and common sense. Humour, however developed or deviant, is optional but prefered. Contributions are made voluntarily and are usually of a high standard and submitted with encouragement and enlightenment in mind. People who turn up with a chip on their shoulder, or an axe to grind might not agree with that statement.The Memberlist option seen on the EMLRA Forum has nothing to do with the EMLRA itself, indeed, if you search the Memberlist in both ascending and descending order, you will see your Forum number changes. The EMLRA Membership Secretary, and myself, have been confused on more than one occasion by people who join the forum and then rant on about not having had anything from the club. When they include their Forum number in the rant, the will to live goes downhill very soon.
If you join the EMLRA via the website, you will have to join the Forum seperately, it isn't done for you automatically, much as I would like to be able to write a script that did this, anyone here good at php?
The above is all a bit long winded but, believe me, some of the comments and thoughts that come our way as a voluntary organisation have to be seen to be believed. We make mistakes as well, sometimes more than once, and likely to do again, but we do try to make things work and we don't do it on purpose. If you are a member, there are contact details in the Newsletter for all of the Committee and other co-opted helpers.
If you think there is something to add to this posting, please drop me a line. If you didn't understand any of the above, or took offence, best to halt your application right now.