TCG mentioned below is the abbreviation of TravelChinaGuide.com

Q: What kind of community is TCG Community?
Q: How can I join this community?
Q: What should I do if I lose my password?
Q: Can I change my password?
Q: What's the function of the 'Control Center'?
Q: How to edit my Profile?
Q: How to upload my profile photo?
Q: How can I find other members of the community?
Q: How can I write a message to other members?
Q: What are Points? How can I earn points?
Q: What is Destinations?
Q: What is Forum Broadcast?
Q: What is Hot Threads?
Q: How many boards do you have?
Q: How can I start a thread?
Q: How to Start a Poll?
Q: How to reply other's threads?
Q: What's the differences between the 'fast reply' in the bottom of the page and the 'reply' button?
Q: What is the order of all the threads in each forum?
Q: How to find the latest posts in all forums?
Q: How to find the thread that I'm interested in?
Q: Can I find my posts without having to search them?
Q: How can I go back to the Forum when browsing posts?
Q: Why am I kicked off while writing a long post?
Q: What is Travel Tips? How can I write a tip?
Q: How to write my own Travel Review?
Q: What is Photo Album on TravelChinaGuide Community?


QuestionQ: What kind of community is TCG Community?

AnswerA: The TCG Community is a place where members exchange ideas, opinions and discuss matters, concerning China and the rest of the world. We have four parts in our Community: China Forums, China Travel Review, China Travel Tips and China Photo Album. By clicking the buttons on the Community home page, you will enter the different parts.

QuestionQ: How can I join this community?

AnswerA: On the top of the Community page, you can find a 'Join Us for Free' button. Click the button and you will enter the Join for Free page. Then you can input your User Name, Password and valid Email Address. After your submitting, our system will send you a letter to the email address you inputted for you to activate your user name.

QuestionQ: What should I do if I lose my password?

AnswerA: At the top of the Community page, you can find a 'Lost Your Password' button. Click the button and you will enter the Get Password page. Write down your user name and click the 'Get Password' button. Then our system will send you an email containing your password to the email address you provided when you joined the community.

QuestionQ: Can I change my password?

AnswerA:Yes, you are assured to do this. After login, you can click the 'Control Centre'. The first item on the right column on this page is 'Profile'. Enter it then you can change your password. After all is done, please submit. TCG Community will then accept your new password.

QuestionQ: What's the function of the 'Control Center'?

AnswerA: After login, you can see your user name, points, control center, messages, etc. at the top of the page. 'Control Center' is where you can edit your 'Profile', check out your messages in 'Msg Box', edit your Friends List, Travel Tips, Photo Album, Travel Reviews and Travel Journals.

QuestionQ: How to edit my Profile?

AnswerA: After login, you can click 'Control Center' button on the top of the page. Then click 'Enter' in the 'Profile' column. In this page, you can change your password and enter your personal information. Click the 'Submit' button and your profile will be updated.

QuestionQ: How to upload my profile photo?

AnswerA: First of all, you have to open your 'Control Center' and then enter 'Profile'. You can change the information in you profile here. Then click the 'Submit' button and you can see a page asking you to upload your profile photo. Browse the picture you want to upload from your computer and click 'Submit' to upload it.

QuestionQ: How can I find other members of the community?

AnswerA: Anytime you come to the homepage of TCG Community, you can see the 'Members' button under the 'Photo Album' button. If you want to see some or all the members of our Community, you can click this button. Here you can search for a certain member by name or order the member list by points, last login time or user name. You can also write or send a message to any of them after your login.

QuestionQ: How can I write a message to other members?

AnswerA: There are two ways:
First, you can click the 'Members' button under the 'Photo Album' button. Then you can search for a member by name or order the member list by points, last login time or user name. You can send a message to any of them after your login.

Second, you can click the name of a member when browsing his/her posts. After doing that, you are in the page of the member's profile. Click 'Send **** a Msg' on the right hand side of the member's photo.

Third, you can click the 'P.M.' button in the title area at the top of an existing post. Then you can write your message in the pop-up writing box.

QuestionQ: What are Points? How can I earn points?

AnswerA: Points are awarded each time a member contributes for making a contribution to the community. Members are listed on the members' list based on how many points they have. Points are awarded in the following way:
3 points for starting a thread or vote in the China Forums;
2 points for each reply;
8 points for one travel review;
5 points for one travel tip;
2 points for uploading one picture to each thread, post and tip;
2 points for uploading one picture to the Photo Album;
1 point for one comment to the photo;

If any of your threads, posts, comments, reviews or tips are deleted, your points will be reduced accordingly.

QuestionQ: What is Destinations?

AnswerA: You can see this sign on the left column of the homepage of TCG Community. The list contains many names of Chinese cities and provinces. If you choose a place from the list and click the 'Go' button, you will come to a page which presents all the travel tips, photos, threads on the Forum and travel reviews about this place. In addition there is a general introduction of this place and names of members that have been here. We encourage you to write travel reviews, and tips, or upload photos or start a question on the specific places.

QuestionQ: What is Forum Broadcast?

AnswerA: This is the place where the TCG administrators release important announcements in the Forum. The three items you see are the most recent ones. If you want to read more about the topic, please click the 'Forum Broadcast' button.

QuestionQ: What is Hot Threads?

AnswerA: Clicking this button will give you a chance to see all the elite posts in the Forum. The three items you see are the most recent ones.

QuestionQ: How many boards do you have?

AnswerA: There are currently 16 sub-forums in our China Forums. There are three main sections: China Travel Forums, Virtual China and Misc (for miscellaneous). China Travel Forums is for you to exchange travel China ideas and find travel partners. Virtual China relates to many cultural and social topics about China. Misc is a relatively free section for you to talk about anything you are interested in the world, or make advertisements or tell us your suggestions about the community! The three sections have several boards, or major themes. You can see the explanation of each board under its title.

QuestionQ: How can I start a thread?

AnswerA: Before starting a thread, you need to join TCG: this is free. Once you are a member you can select a board and click the 'Start a Thread' button. You will be taken to the Start a Thread page.

Title: You can input the topic of your post in Title.

Destination: Select the place which matches your thread; if there is no suitable place in the list, choose 'General'. Note that only some of the boards have the option of DESTINATION.

Upload a Photo: Upload a picture or photo relating to your post. Browse your computer to located it, then upload it.

Thread Mood: Choose a sign to indicate your emotion.

Send me a message if anyone replies: If you choose this option, TCG Community will send you a message in your msg box once your thread has been replied to.

Content: Write the main content of your post; the characters should be less than 3,000.

Submit: When you have finished, click this button to add your post to the Forum.

Reset: If you want to rewrite your post, click this button to try again.

QuestionQ: How to Start a Poll?

AnswerA: Starting a vote is similar to starting a thread, so you must first be a member. Then select a specified board and click 'Start a Vote' button. You will see a Start a Poll page.

Title: Input the topic of your vote in Title.

Destination: Choose a city from the options your vote concerns. If your vote is about none of these cities or your topic has nothing to do with tourism, please choose the option: General. Blank is not allowed. Pay attention that not all the boards have the option of DESTINATION.

Thread Mood: Choose a face, anyone to your liking, for your vote.

Send me a message if anyone replies: If you choose this option, TCG Community will send you a message in your msg box if your vote has been replied.

Vote Type: A vote can be either exclusive choice or multiple choices, so click the little circle to choose the one you want. Exclusive means voters may select only one, multiple choices permits more than one to be selected.

Vote Items: This is for you to describe the items in the vote item by item. The total number of items should be no more than ten. Press the 'Enter' key on your keyboard to start a new vote choice.

Content: In this part, you are going to write something to explain your vote. For example, why you want to start such a vote; what kind of result you want to get or some words that can arouse people's interest. When writing the main content of your vote, the characters must be less than 3,000.

Submit: When you have finished, click this button to add your vote to the Forum.

QuestionQ: How to reply other's threads?

AnswerA: If you logged in and are interested in posting a reply to a thread in the Forum, you can click the 'Reply' button in the title area at the top of an existing post. Then you will see a Reply page:

Title: You can either follow the title of the original post or you can write another title for your reply.

Upload a photo: You can upload a picture to your reply by clicking the browser button.

Content: This space is provided for you to write your reply article; the whole characters should be less than 3,000.

Submit: If everything is done, click this button to add your post to the Forum.

Reset: If you want to rewrite your post, click this button to try again.

You can also use the 'Fast Reply' box which is at the bottom of every thread.

QuestionQ: What's the differences between the 'fast reply' in the bottom of the page and the 'reply' button?

AnswerA:At the bottom of every thread, there is a 'Fast Reply' for you to write your comment on the above posts. But if you want to add a picture, you need to click the 'Advanced Mode' button or 'Reply' button on a post, to go to the Reply page.

QuestionQ: What is the order of all the threads in each forum?

AnswerA: The order of the posts is by Time of Reply. It means that those posts most recently replied will be at the top.

QuestionQ: How to find the latest posts in all forums?

AnswerA: There are two ways: first, at the home page of Community, there is a column named China Forums. At the bottom right of this column, there is a 'Latest Posts' button. Click the button to enter the latest posts page. Second, when you enter a sub-forum, e.g. Travel Q & A, you will see a 'Show All' button in line with the 'Start a Thread' and 'Start a Vote' buttons. Click the 'Show All' button, and you can see the latest posts in all forums.

QuestionQ: How to find the thread that I'm interested in?

AnswerA: We have a Search function in every forum which is composed of three parts.

Left: a box for you to choose Title, Author and Content when searching keywords.
Middle: a box for you to input the keywords.
Right: a box for you to choose specific forums or All Forums.

For example, you want to find all posts related to Beijing Bus. You can choose Content first and input Beijing Bus in the middle box. Choose All Forums in the right box then click the 'Search' button. The result is a list of all the posts related to Beijing Bus.

QuestionQ: Can I find my posts without having to search them?

AnswerA: After login, you can enter your 'Control Centre'. On the top of the page you will see a 'See What Your Page Looks Like' button. Click it you will see all your recent posts.

QuestionQ: How can I go back to the Forum when browsing posts?

AnswerA: Whenever you click the title of a post in the Forum, there is a 'Back' button in line with the 'Reply' buttons on top of the post topics. If you want to go back to the main page of the Forum list, click this button and then you can do it.

QuestionQ: Why am I kicked off while writing a long post?

AnswerA: We suggest you that to write your long posts or travel reviews in Word or Txt or some other document outside TCG and then paste them to our community. This is because our system will log you out if you didn't refresh the page over 20 minutes!!

QuestionQ: What is Travel Tips? How can I write a tip?

AnswerA: When you come to the home page of TCG Community, you can see a link of 'Travel Tips'. Click it to read all the travel tips, page by page. Under 'All Travel Tips' there is a 'Write your travel tips' button and you can write your own tips by clicking here after login. When you see the Write a Travel Tip page, you can:

Title: This means the title or topic of your travel tip.

Select a category: Please choose a category which most fits the content of your travel tip. There are ten categories to choose from. They are: Must See Activities, Lodging, Nightlife, Tourist Traps, Dining, Warnings or Dangers, Packing Lists, Transportation, Misc and Shopping.

Destination: There is a list of names of Chinese cities. Choose one from them which is the exact place that your tip is about. If the sites of your tips are more general then you can select 'General' from the list.

Text: This is where you write your travel tips. The maximum length of text is 3,000 characters.

Submit: If your text is finished, click this button.

Reset: If you want to rewrite your tips, please click this button.

Upload a photo: After you click the 'Submit' button you will get a feedback: 'Your travel tip has been added.' Under this sentence there is a 'Upload a photo' button. You can click this button to add a picture to your tip from your PC.

QuestionQ: How to write my own Travel Review?

AnswerA: On the home page of TCG Community you can see a 'Travel Review' link. You can read all the reviews page by page by clicking it. If you want to write your own travel reviews, and you are logged in, just click the 'Write your Travel Reviews' button to start your writing.

After clicking this button, you will see 'Enter the title and select a destination'. Write your review's title and select either the city that the travel review is about, or if it is not in the list choose the appropriated provinces, and then submit. Of course if you don't want to submit, you can click 'Back' to return to the 'Control Centre'.

If you want to continue, you will see 'Build a new chapter under this article'. You may enter a subtitle but it is optional. The maximum length of the article is 8000 characters. If you write a sub-title, after submitting it you will see there is an 'Edit' button before your text which means you can edit it by clicking this button. Under the 'Edit' button there is a button 'upload a photo for this chapter' which means you can select a picture to add to your article. Still there are 'Build a new chapter under this article', 'Sub-title' and 'Text' options. If you want to divide your article to further chapters, you can go on to these options.

If you want to add new information or if you want to build a new chapter or chapters to your article which you have already submitted, you can first go to your 'Control Centre', and then enter 'Travel Reviews'. Then click the title of your target article to continue your writing. After you finish, click the 'Submit' button, then TCG Community will accept your change.

Please note that you can only upload one picture in each chapter.

QuestionQ: What is Photo Album on TravelChinaGuide Community?

AnswerA: The Photo Album is a place for people to upload and share their photos. Both registered members and guests on TravelChinaGuide.com can create photos albums, upload photos and share them with others.

  1. 1. Create and manage photo albums


QuestionQ: How can I create a photo album? Where can I find all my photo albums?

AnswerA: The TravelChinaGuide members can click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums" and then click "Create New Photo Album" button. The guests on TravelChinaGuide.com can click "Upload Photos" button on the pages to find "Create New Photo Album" link and then click it to create a photo album.

As a TravelChinaGuide member, you can click "Control Centre" and enter "My Photo Albums" on the left to view all your photo albums after login.

Please note that the guests on TravelChinaGuide.com can enter the album names to search their albums or they can find their albums according to "Photo Album Categories".

QuestionQ: How can I delete a photo album?

AnswerA: TravelChinaGuide members can click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums" and then click "Delete" Button to delete a certain photo album after login.

Please note that the guests can not delete or edit their photo albums.

QuestionQ: How can I set my photo album cover? Can I change my photo album cover?

AnswerA: If you are a member on TravelChinaGuide.com, after login click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", choose your target photo album, click a photo and then find "Set as album cover" button to set it as your photo album cover.

Changing your photo album cover is almost the same as "Setting a cover for your photo album". You just need to choose another photo you like and set it as your new photo album cover.

QuestionQ: Can I set privacy settings for my photo albums? How to set privacy settings?

AnswerA: Yes, members on TravelChinaGuide.com can set privacy settings for their photo albums when creating them. Currently, you can set your photo albums "Public (Everyone can see them)", "Visible to Friends", "Password Required" or "Private (only you can see them)"

Please note that you can change privacy settings for your photo albums. Just click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", choose your target photo album and click "Edit" to change it after you log in.

QuestionQ: What can I do if I do not want others to comment on my photos?

AnswerA: You can use "Comment Settings" to decide whether you want others to comment on your photos or not. You have two options: "Available to all" and "Not available to all."

If you want to change your "Comments Setting", just click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", choose your target photo album and click "Edit" to set privacy settings after login.

QuestionQ: Can I get a message or email notification if someone comments my photos?

AnswerA: Yes, you can choose to receive a message or email notification when you create photo albums. Similarly, you can change your settings like setting "Comment Settings".

QuestionQ: How can I edit my photo album title and description?

AnswerA: If you are logged in, you can click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", choose your target photo album and click "Edit" to edit photo album title and description.

Please note that the guests on TravelChinaGuide.com can not edit photo album titles and descriptions.

  1. 2. Upload Photos


QuestionQ: What type of photo file can I upload to Photo Album?

AnswerA: Currently, both members and guests on TravelChinaGuide.com can upload photos in formats of jpg (jpeg), png and gif.

QuestionQ: Is there a photo size limit when uploading?

AnswerA: To ensure the best, TravelChinaGuide doesn’t set the photo size limit. But members and guests are only allowed to upload up to 10 photos at a time.

Please note that pornographic, violent, bloody, commercial photos or screen shots are prohibited.

QuestionQ: Can I watermark my photos?

AnswerA: Yes, you can watermark your photos after uploading them and adding titles and descriptions. All you need to do is click "Set watermark for your photos" and then follow the instructions.

Note that this function is only available to TravelChinaGuide members.

  1. 3. View Photos


QuestionQ: How are the photos displayed in a photo album?

AnswerA: You can view the photos in two ways as a visitor: default display mode and slide show mode. To view the photos in slide show mode, you just need to click "" button below the photo and all photos will be automatically displayed in order.

QuestionQ: Why can’t I open and view some photo albums?

AnswerA: TravelChinaGuide members can set their photos albums "Public (Everyone can see them)", "Visible to Friends", "Password Required" and "Private (only you can see them)". It is highly likely that a photo album is not set to "Public" if you can not open it.

If you want to view the photo album, you may need add him/her as your friend or contact him/her to get the password.

QuestionQ: Can I vote for a photo?

AnswerA: Of course you can! Just move your mouse over "" or "" button to cast your vote. You will find "Most Popular Photo Albums" on our "Photo Album Homepage".

Please note that you can cast one vote per photo.

QuestionQ: Can I leave a comment on a photo?

AnswerA: If the album owner has enabled this function, you can write your comments for the photos in the album. Just click "Let me say" button below the photo or input it in the box at the bottom.

Both TravelChinaGuide members and guests can leave their comments on the photos.

QuestionQ: Why can’t I write a comment for a certain photo?

AnswerA: The album owner can set comment settings for the album. If the album owner chooses "Not available to ALL", no one is allowed to write a comment.

QuestionQ: How can I view all photo albums of the album owner?

AnswerA: There are two ways. One is to click "XXXX’s photo album" on top and the other is to click the album owner’s name below the photos as "thumbnail" on the right when you browse a photo.

  1. 4. Edit Photos


QuestionQ: How can I delete a photo?

AnswerA: TravelChinaGuide members can, after login, click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", click your target album and then use the "Delete" button on the photo.

If you want to delete a group of photos, just select the photos you want to delete and then click "Batch Processing" and use "Delete All (Selected)" button.

QuestionQ: Can I move a photo into another photo album? If so, how can I do it?

AnswerA: Yes. If you are logged in, please click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", click your target album and then use "Move" button on the photo(s).

Also, you can use "Move All (Selected)" button under "Batch Processing" to move a group of photos into another photo album.

QuestionQ: How can I edit a photo’s title and description?

AnswerA: After you log in, please click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", choose your target album, click a photo and then you will see the title and description below. Then click "" to edit its title and description.

You can also see the photo in "Large Size", share it with your friends, move it into another photo album or delete it if you like.

QuestionQ: Can I manage my photos’ comments? How can I do it?

AnswerA: Yes, you can delete your photos’ comments after you log in. Please click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums", choose your target album, click a photo and then you will see its comments at the bottom. Then click "" to delete the comments or replies.

  1. 5. Share Photos/Photo Albums


QuestionQ: Can I share a photo (photo album) with my friends?

AnswerA: When you browse a photo album, you can click the "Share" button below the photo to email it to your friends. Also, you can share the whole photo album with your friends via email too. Just click "Share Album" button below the thumbnail images on the right.

  1. 6. My Favorite Photos and Photo Albums


QuestionQ: What are Favorite Photos and Photo Albums? How can I save a photo (photo album) to My Favorite Photos (Favorite Photo Albums)?

AnswerA: When you browse some wonderful photos/photo albums, you can save these photos/photo albums to your Favorite Photos and Favorite Photo Albums. Then you can appreciate them or share with your friends at any time.

It is very easy to save a photo (photo album) to your Favorite Photos (Favorite Photo Albums). Just click the "Save" button below the photo or "Add Photo Album to Favorites" button below the thumbnail images on the right.

QuestionQ: Can I remove a photo (photo album) from my Favorite Photos (Favorite Photo Albums)?

AnswerA: Of course you can. If you are logged in, just click "Control Centre", enter "My Photo Albums" and click "Delete" button on the photo (photo album) to delete it.

If you want to delete several photos or photo albums together, just use "Delete All (Selected)" below "Batch Processing".