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Why should I sign up?
Why can't I log in?
Why do I get logged off automatically?
I've lost my password!
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What is a referral bonus?
Who is an Autonoto Referring Agent?
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What is "Forum"?
How do I post a topic in a forum?
How do I edit or delete a post?
How do I add a signature to my post?
How do I create a poll?
How do I edit or delete a poll?
Why can't I access a forum?
Why can't I vote in polls?
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What is "BBCode"?
Can I use HTML?
What are Smileys?
Can I post Images?
What are Announcements?
What are Sticky topics?
What are Locked topics?
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I cannot send private messages!
I keep getting unwanted private messages!
I have received a spamming or abusive email from someone on this board! |
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I'm an auto repair shop owner or manager - why should I get involved?
How much does it cost? Can I cancel at any time?
How much do I pay for the Featured Subscription?
What is the best deal in automotive shop advertising? Is it guaranteed?
Will Autonoto keep my email address confidential?
Why should I participate in Forum?
What is "In the neighborhood" field in the car repair shop record?
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What are "Featured auto shops"?
What is "Autonoto Rating"?
Why can't I update information for every auto repair shop?
How do I change my settings?
Why am I getting "we detected a suspicious activity" error?
What is "CA certified smog (or smog-only) station"?
How can I find smog testing stations outside of California?
Why do some car repair shops show on the map with a message "This is an approximate location"?
How can I go back to the main Autonoto page from any of the sub-pages?
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| Login and Registration Issues |
Why should I sign up?
Registration will give you access to additional features not available to guest users such as private messaging, emailing to car experts and car enthusiasts, etc. As a registered user, you will be able to tell others about your great or not so great experiences you had at the places that service your car, and many more. It is free!
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Why can't I log in?
Have you registered? Seriously, you must register in order to log in. Have you been banned? (A message will be displayed if you have.) If so, you should contact Autonoto team to find out why. If you have registered and are not banned and you still cannot log in then check and double-check your username and password. Usually this is the problem; if not, contact the Autonoto team using link at the bottom of Autonoto page.
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Why do I get logged off automatically?
If you do not check the Log me in automatically box when you log in, we will only keep you logged in for a preset time. This prevents misuse of your account by anyone else. To stay logged in, check the box during login. This is not recommended if you access the website from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university cluster, etc.
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I've lost my password!
Don't panic! While your password cannot be retrieved it can be reset. To do this go to the login page and click I've forgotten my password. Follow the instructions and you should be back online in no time.
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| Referral Program |
What is a referral bonus?
It’s 25% of any subscription fees for a year, which we pay to Autonoto Referring Agent who referred us a paying garage. See the referral program for more details.
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Who is an Autonoto Referring Agent?
An Autonoto Referring Agent is an independent contractor who gets paid 25% of subscription fees received from the garages he or she refers. See the referral program for more details.
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| Forum Related Issues (Posting) |
What is "Forum"?
Forum is a platform for car repair shop owners and users to discuss topics of mutual interest.
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How do I post a topic in a forum?
Easy -- click the relevant button on either the forum or topic screens. You may need to register before you can post a message. The facilities available to you are listed at the bottom of the forum and topic screens (the You can post new topics, You can vote in polls, etc. list).
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How do I edit or delete a post?
Unless you are the board admin or forum moderator you can only edit or delete your own posts. You can edit a post (sometimes only for a limited time after it was made) by clicking the edit button for the relevant post. If someone has already replied to the post, you will find a small piece of text output below the post when you return to the topic that lists the number of times you edited it. This will only appear if no one has replied; it also will not appear if moderators or administrators edit the post (they should leave a message saying what they altered and why). Please note that normal users cannot delete a post once someone has replied to it.
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How do I add a signature to my post?
To add a signature to a post you must first create one; this is done via your profile. Once created you can check the Add Signature box on the posting form to add your signature. You can also add a signature by default to all your posts by checking the appropriate radio box in your profile. You can still prevent a signature being added to individual posts by un-checking the add signature box on the posting form.
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How do I create a poll?
Creating a poll is easy -- when you post a new topic (or edit the first post of a topic, if you have permission) you should see a Add Poll form below the main posting box. If you cannot see this then you probably do not have rights to create polls. You should enter a title for the poll and then at least two options -- to set an option type in the poll question and click the Add option button. You can also set a time limit for the poll, 0 being an infinite amount. There will be a limit to the number of options you can list, which is set by the board administrator.
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How do I edit or delete a poll?
As with posts, polls can only be edited by the original poster, a moderator, or board administrator. To edit a poll, click the first post in the topic, which always has the poll associated with it. If no one has cast a vote then users can delete the poll or edit any poll option. However, if people have already placed votes only moderators or administrators can edit or delete it; this is to prevent people rigging polls by changing options mid-way through a poll.
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Why can't I access a forum?
Some forums may be limited to certain users or groups. To view, read, post, etc. you may need special authorization which only the forum moderator and board administrator can grant, so you should contact them.
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Why can't I vote in polls?
Only registered users can vote in polls so as to prevent spoofing of results. If you have registered and still cannot vote then you probably do not have appropriate access rights.
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| Forum Related Issues (Formatting and Posting) |
What is "BBCode"?
BBCode is a special implementation of HTML. Whether you can use BBCode is determined by the administrator. You can also disable it on a per post basis from the posting form. BBCode itself is similar in style to HTML: tags are enclosed in square braces [ and ] rather than < and > and it offers greater control over what and how something is displayed. For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from the posting page.
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Can I use HTML?
That depends on whether the administrator allows you to. If you are allowed to use it, you will probably find that only certain tags work. This is a safety feature to prevent people from abusing the board by using tags which may destroy the layout or cause other problems. If HTML is enabled you can disable it on a per post basis from the posting form.
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What are Smileys?
Smileys, or Emoticons, are small graphical images which can be used to express some feeling using a short code, e.g. :) means happy, :( means sad. The full list of emoticons can be seen via the posting form. Try not to overuse smileys, though, as they can quickly render a post unreadable and a moderator may decide to edit them out or remove the post altogether.
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Can I post Images?
Images can indeed be shown in your posts. However, there is no facility at present for uploading images directly to this board. Therefore you must link to an image stored on a publicly accessible web server, e.g. http://www.some-unknown-place.net/my-picture.gif. You cannot link to pictures stored on your own PC (unless it is a publicly accessible server) nor to images stored behind authentication mechanisms such as Hotmail or Yahoo mailboxes, password-protected sites, etc. To display the image use either the BBCode [img] tag or appropriate HTML (if allowed).
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What are Announcements?
Announcements often contain important information and you should read them as soon as possible. Announcements appear at the top of every page in the forum to which they are posted. Whether or not you can post an announcement depends on the permissions required, which are set by the administrator.
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What are Sticky topics?
Sticky topics appear below any announcements in viewforum and only on the first page. They are often quite important so you should read them when possible. As with announcements the board administrator determines what permissions are required to post sticky topics in each forum.
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What are Locked topics?
Locked topics are set this way by either the forum moderator or board administrator. You cannot reply to locked topics and any poll contained inside is automatically ended. Topics may be locked for many reasons.
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| Forum Related Issues (Private Messaging) |
I cannot send private messages!
There are three reasons for this; you are not registered and/or not logged on, the board administrator has disabled private messaging for the entire board, or the board administrator has prevented you individually from sending messages. If it is the latter case you should try asking the administrator why.
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I keep getting unwanted private messages!
In the future we will be adding an ignore list to the private messaging system. For now, though, if you keep receiving unwanted private messages from someone, inform the board administrator -- they have the power to prevent a user from sending private messages at all.
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I have received a spamming or abusive email from someone on this board!
We are sorry to hear that. The email form feature of this board includes safeguards to try to track users who send such posts. You should email the board administrator with a full copy of the email you received and it is very important this include the headers (these list details of the user that sent the email). Administrator can then take action.
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| Auto Repair Shop Owners FAQ |
I'm an auto repair shop owner or manager - why should I get involved?
Once you subscribe your shop, you have exclusive control of your shop's record in the Autonoto database. You can keep it up to date with a list of car makes you specialize in, service categories, convenience services you offer, plus you can add keywords and promotional description to help customers find you. You can attract more customers by offering discounts to Autonoto members and by providing additional information about your repair shop. Note that until a car repair shop gets an owner assigned, anyone with a (free) Autonoto account can modify the shop's entry in the database.
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How much does it cost? Can I cancel at any time?
The Basic Subscription is only $15 a month, payable monthly starting with the day you subscribe on. It can be canceled at any time, we simply stop billing you after the day you cancel.
You can save and get 2 months free if you purchase the Basic Subscription for one year - you get 12 months for 150 billed on the day of subscription and yearly after that. You can cancel at any time, we simply stop billing you for the subsequent years and also refund you $150 minus $15 for each started month of subscription and minus the referral bonus of 25%, if the referral bonus has been paid.
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How much do I pay for the Featured Subscription?
The Featured Subscription (which also includes all the features of the Basic Subscription) is only $30 a month, payable monthly starting with the day you subscribe on. It can be canceled at any time, we simply stop billing you after the day you cancel.
We believe that the Featured Subscription is the best deal, not only on our site but also in the industry. You additionally get 2 months free if you purchase the Featured Subscription for one year - you get 12 months for $300 billed on the day of subscription, and yearly after that. You can cancel at any time, we simply stop billing you for the subsequent years.
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What is the best deal in automotive shop advertising? Is it guaranteed?
Featured Subscription is the best advertising deal :=). We are so confident that this is the best deal and that you will be delighted with our Featured Subscription, that we offer an unconditional, full money back guarantee. That is, you have a full year to change your mind and get a full $300 refund, even on the last day of your subscription year!
Please note that if we pay off a 25% ($75) referral bonus for your subscription, your refund will be lowered by the amount of the bonus and a $15 processing fee.
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Will Autonoto keep my email address confidential?
Yes. To protect your privacy and to prevent spam, we will not make your email visible to Autonoto users and we will not sell or give it away to others.
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Why should I participate in Forum?
The Reasons are too numerous to list and everyone may have different ones. For example you can build additional reputation by demonstrating technical expertise or by providing more information about service offerings. To learn from others, to better understand the customers, and so on.
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What is "In the neighborhood" field in the car repair shop record?
Information about places of interest within short walking distance from the car repair shop, like names of shops, parks, swimming pools etc.
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| Other |
What are "Featured auto shops"?
When you do a search you may see "featured auto shops". These are shops selected by our search engine, or paid advertisements. If you are an auto shop owner and would like to attract more customers, simply sign up as auto shop owner and selected "featured subscription".
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What is the "Autonoto Rating"?
Autonoto Rating is a rating we assign to car repair shops based on reviews they receive and other factors, like number of views. The auto repair shop search results can be sorted by Distance or by Autonoto Rating.
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Why can't I update information for every auto repair shop?
Information for some auto repair shops is managed directly by the owners. If that is the case, we rely on the information provided by the owner, as we believe she/he knows all the details about her/his business :=)
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How do I change my settings?
All your settings (if you are registered) are stored in the database. To alter them click the Profile button. This will allow you to change all your settings.
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Why am I getting "we detected a suspicious activity" error?
To protect our database, we are imposing certain limits. For example, you can't write more than one review per day for a given car repair shop. If you believe your activity should not trigger this error, please let us know.
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What is "CA certified smog (or smog-only) station"?
Many states require cars to pass tests which check car exhaust emissions. Only government certified stations can perform such tests. Autonoto maintains a comprehensive list of the certified stations for the state of California, where the emissions quality enforcement is the strongest in the country. Some cars (especially those which are known to pollute more) are required by the government to be tested in the "smog-only" stations which are more strict and are not allowed to perform tuning or repairs.
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How can I find smog testing stations outside of California?
On the Advanced Auto Repair Shop Search page select "Smog..." category, but please be aware that the results will not be as comprehensive as for California.
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Why do some car repair shops show on the map with a message "This is an approximate location"?
When you place mouse cursor over a balloon indicating a car repair shop on the map, the above message is sometimes displayed in addition to other car repair shop information. It is typically caused by an error in the street address (like a misspelled character) which prevents the mapping system from accurate map placement. If you know the correction, please let us know or edit the car repair shop information directly to correct the error.
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How can I go back to the main Autonoto page from any of the sub-pages?
Click on the Autonoto logo in the upper left corner or on the Home link in the upper right corner.
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