Chatterbox: Chirp at Cricket

NEW ULTIMATE GUIDE

Many people have seen the old Ultimate Guide to the CB, which I believe is highly useful for new or returning CBers. However, the old thread has 19 pages of comments, all full of useful information hidden amidst lots of “top” comments.

This version has all the information from the previous Ultimate Guide, AND the information from the comments, AND several new additions! It’s rather long, so I’m going to post it in multiple segments.

This guide is roughly organized in order of importance for new CBers, so if you don’t have a lot of time or don’t feel like reading through all of this, you can read as far in as you’d like, and you’ll probably get the most important information.

Glossary

Admin (noun): The amazebubble people that run CB, post all are comments, and make this all possible! Three cheers to Admins!

AE (noun, abbreviation): Alter ego. An alternate name or personality that some CBers have and post as for a little fun or a different way of expressing themselves. They often post in bold, italics, or bold italics. Ex: Shifting Sands, Devil Owl, Puck. Note: AEs should be used in moderation and only on threads where it is appropriate.

CAPTCHA (noun): The little spam box at the bottom of a page when you submit a post or a comment. Some people name theirs and post what they see. Ex: Sir Galahad, Meox, Fruity. Fun fact: CAPTCHAs used to be four letters; now they are five!

CAPTCHAE (noun): A crossbreed between AEs and CAPTCHAs. They usually have a side having something to do with a CAPTCHA (like being able to transform into a common CAPTCHA form, like a cat), but are smart as an AE and can speak in normal letters AND Captcha. The only known CAPTCHAEs are Chilly and Hallia, and their owners have made a frequent point of asking them to stay that way (as the only ones) due to originality.

CB (noun, abbreviation): Chatterbox!

CBer (noun): Anyone who goes on CB. Ex: Ella Starburst, Jwyn, Agent Winter.

CB Reunion (noun, event): An event when past CBers come back and visit. The last reunion was on February 14, 2019. The vague plan is to have one every four years, so the next reunion would be February 14, 2023.

CBer Story (noun, activity): A story in which one person writes a story in which CBers are characters. Usually the writer will ask for applications to be in the story. 

Charrie (noun, shorthand): Character, often used in a RP. Ex: "Anyway, here are my charries." 

Chatterbox Rancor (noun): A virtual beast made up by CBer Shoshannah Lily, to explain why threads or comments sometimes just don't post. Basically, giving a virus a name and putting a collar on it. (I haven’t actually used this term before, but I’ve heard it around, and it was in the comments of the old Ultimate Guide, so I thought I’d include it!)

Charrie Sheet (noun): A sheet in a RP that one uses to introduce/create one's charrie. 

Impersonator (noun): Someone who posts as another CBer, often saying that they’re leaving. There have been multiple instances of impersonators on the CB, often leading to conflicts, hurt feelings, and general dismay. Don’t impersonate someone. We mean it.

OC (noun, abbreviation): Original Character. Any character that you invent, especially from a story or comic, and generally not including AEs or characters from RPs.

OP (noun, abbreviation): Over-powered or over-powering. When a character in a RP is super-powerful and it's not fun for other people to RP with them because they sort of can do anything and take over the RP. One example of an OP character could be in an Element RP. The OP charrie could have water, ice, frost, and be able to read minds. Sometimes it's easy to get carried away and not realize your charrie is a bit OP. The others in the RP can gently remind you.

RP (noun, abbreviation): Roleplay. A story in which multiple CBers participate. Each participant has a character which they create based on the topic and then everyone works together and writes a communal story from the perspective of their respective character. Usually written in first person, but it's not a requirement. Earliest known establishment: Dmboogie, 2009.

SI (noun, abbreviation, activity): Secret Identity. A game in which every player takes on a name usually based on a theme (for example, in a Food SI one might be Fried Chicken) and then tries to guess who others are and avoid being guessed. 

Ski Lodge (noun, activity): A type of CB story in which there is a secret murderer and all other participants are murdered as the story continues. Usually a horror/scary story, so if you're not a scary-story lover possibly give them a miss. Participants guess the murderer as the story goes on. Commonly written under an alias for added spookiness. The originals took place in ski lodges, but they do not have to.

Solo Write (noun, activity): A newer term for CB story. Basically, one person writes a story using characters submitted by other CBers.

Thread (noun): A page on the CB, listed in the areas of the CB.

Topping (verb): Because of a glitch in the system, the first comment on a new thread sends the thread to the back pages. To find it quickly, go to the section where you posted the post (e.g. CaC, Inkwell, etc) then sort the "Submitted by" column to most recent by clicking on the actual words "Submitted by" (usually twice is enough). To send the new thread back to the front pages, wait until the first comment appears, then make a second comment.  This is called topping a post. Anyone can top a post by making the second comment on the post. If the second comment is made before the first comment is visible, the post remains in the back pages. Additionally, if a thread has slid off the first page, people will post under the name “Top” to bring it back to the front. Contrary to popular belief, THE ADMINS CANNOT TOP A THREAD; they have no control over the topping algorithm. Some people have special topping names. Ex: Clovertop, Toppers Inc.

FAQ

Who’s Top? Top isn’t actually a CBer! Anyone can post under the name Top, or a topping name like Toppers Inc, to try to move a thread back to the front pages. See “topping,” above.

How do you post a new thread? Or a new comment? In each area of the CB, there is a box in the upper left corner that says “Click here to talk ___.” This will post a new thread. If you’d like to post a comment on an existing thread, scroll to the bottom of the original text of the thread, right above where it says “back to the ___,” and click “Add new comment.” You can also reply to other peoples’ comments: just go to the bottom of their comment and click “Reply.”

How can you avoid having a “...” instead of a title of your new thread? Although there’s no way to guarantee avoiding the dreaded ellipses, there are a few common tips for avoiding it: A) When you begin a post, don't press enter and then start writing. In other words, if there is an extra space before your text it is almost certainly not going to have a title: the computer will look at the first line, see a blank line, and as a result put nothing as the title. B) Don't start with an emoji. The computer will most likely not know how to render it as the title. C) Perhaps you shouldn't write the first line of your post in bold or italics. Doing so has worked many times for CBers, but if you are cursed by the "..." it may have something to do with your particular computer not understanding how to analyze such text. (If you're copying and pasting a document, try deleting the title and rewriting it in the CB box—again, no symbols, bold/italics/underline!--admin)

How can you find an old thread or search the CB? If you know what the thread is called or what was discussed there, you can type the following into your search engine of choice: “site:cricketmagkids.com/chatterbox <thread name or keywords>”

That’s all for this segment, but I’ll post more as soon as this thread shows up!