This guide covers our old ProBoards v4 software. Click here for the ProBoards v5 Help Guide.
Rank is often used in discussion forums to indicate the level of member participation. For members, actively submitting posts on the message board increases their status and their rank in the forum. Icons indicating member rank can usually be found below usernames on profile pages and in the mini-profile areas to the left of each post a member makes.
Administrators can adjust the requirements for the message board ranking system on the Modify Rankings page in the Manage Members section of the admin panel. The page is divided into the following 5 columns:
Delete: To completely delete a particular rank from the discussion forum, check the box to the left of the rank and click Save Ranks at the bottom of the page. Once done, the selected rank will be removed.
Posts Required: The Posts Required field is where you can modify the number of posts required to reach each specific message board rank. For example, members with 0-49 posts would display the New Member rank, etc.
Rank Name: Rank Names can be changed at any time and will display below member usernames in member profiles as well as mini-profiles to the left of forum posts.
# of Stars: Stars can also be used to display member rank below the Rank Name in a member's profile. You can assign as many stars as you'd like to each rank. Leave this field blank to remove stars.
Star Image: If you choose to display star icons below rank names in member profiles, you can select different star images using the drop-down menu.
Once you've set member rankings to your liking, click the Save Ranks button at the bottom of the page. You can have as many member rankings as you'd like and can add 5 new rankings at a time.
Apart from recognition for participation, rankings can also be used to control access to particular boards on the forum based on member rank. This feature can be set using the Limit Access feature in either the Create Category page or the Modify Category page found in the admin panel.