SLC Dunk Training Camp

With training camp starting today for the Jazz, I figured we could all use a training camp ourselves. There are some of us that have been here for a couple of years and some new faces, not unlike the current Jazz roster. The only difference is that we're not trying to trade clark for some guy from Bleacher Report.

Whether you know the system inside and out or if this is your first rodeo, it's time to get (re-)acquainted with SLC Dunk, our users, and what we have to offer.

You're all encouraged to read this with headbands if you want, just know that there will be ladders to run at the end of the post. That will be just to cool down. Warning, this post is a little long and may contain a lot of pictures, so easy with the scrolling finger, we don't want anyone out on the first day. Besides, who scrolls anymore? Just spacebar down.

You don't have to read all of this to participate, just know that for each infraction, you owe me $100 internet dollars.

First, read the SLC Dunk Manifesto

The manifesto is a great guide to SLC Dunk and some of the things that have grown from the site. It has the rules of engagement and how to add to the SLC Dunk community.

I've incorporated some of that here, but this is more of a how-to guide mixed with some of the elements of the manifesto. They're both a bit long but only the manifesto is a good read.

Sign Up

First off, if you don't have a username with SLC Dunk or SBNation, get one. Click the Sign Up button in the upper-right corner of the page and make up your own clever username, connect your Yahoo! username, or click on the Facebook Connect at the top-right of the page. You could have been signed up by now instead of reading these sentences.

What do you need one for? Well, first, you can't comment. You can't participate in Fesenko Friday. You can't be anything but a bystander in game threads. You can't post. Your expertise cannot be shared with the rest of SLC Dunk.

So sign up now and come back. I can wait.

Dashboard

Okay, so what can you do with your fancy username now that you've given in to peer pressure? First, make sure to do a quick setup of your account by clicking on the little notepad by your username in the upper-left corner of the page.

I'm not going to redbox it for you. From there you'll get taken to your Dashboard. We'll talk about FanShots and FanPosts in a bit. You'll see something like this,

On the Edit Profile tab you'll be able to enter in your favorite teams, upload a profile pic, give us a blurb about you, and a signature for each of your comments if your heart desires. Follow your heart, that's what I do.

Edit Settings allows you to change basic stuff but you're most likely to be interested in whether or not comments live update in posts. You can also determine how many posts you see on each page and some other options.

If you want to connect your Facebook, Twitter, and Yahoo! accounts to your SLC Dunk account, you can do that on the Edit Account tab. Fantastic stuff you can do on the internets these days.

With that, you're ready to move on to...

Comments

That's why you're here, isn't it? That's why we want you here as well. We get a lot of great, funny, and insightful comments. Don't be intimidated though, just jump in. I used to be able to post a welcome reply to one of your first comments. I haven't been able to do that so much lately as we've had quite a bit of growth. There's a good chance that someone will welcome you though.

There are some ground rules with comments:

• First, as you agreed when you joined SLC Dunk, swearing above damn/hell is not allowed. If something frustrating happens in a game thread and you post something worse, I'm not going to ban you but know that repeat offenses might come with warnings.
• Speaking of which, I can't police all of the comments anymore. If you see something objectionably, not just something where someone disagrees with you, click on the flag option on the comment and send it to me for review. Comments to flag would include personal attacks, spam, racist or other bigoted remarks, etc.
  
• Keep the comments on-topic. Game threads of blowouts may delve into more interesting stuff, but for the most part, you know what to do here.
• If you're replying to a comment, make sure to use the reply option instead of the generic post button at the bottom of the thread
  
  Note the "Post a Reply" and "Post a new comment" header. We've all been guilty of this of course.
• Remember, comments cannot be deleted or edited after posting. There would be some advantages to be able to do this for typos, etc. However, it also prevents someone from posting a remark, getting a bunch of responses, and then changing it later. It would be too easy to make everyone look like puppy-hating Laker fans. So make your comments wisely. Measure twice, post once as they always say.
• Learn to use the shortcuts listed at the top of the comments and you'll be a comment/game thread pro in no time,
  
• Another pro tip, you can click on the Show Formatting Guide in the comment box to give some tips on how to post excellent LOLCat pics, links, and emphasis. Without them, you'll be stuck with plain text.
  
  
  If you've made an outstanding comment, you can also post it to your Facebook page by clicking on the checkbox below your comment.
• Most important, when making comments, please make them as grammatically correct and as coherent as you can. I'm not a fan of chat/txt/LEET speak for comments. I'm one of the last people that should be critiquing grammar but let's at least get complete thoughts out. I'm not going to be banning people or being anal about it but there's a noticeable difference when a bit of effort is made.
  
  The exception to this is game threads where this will slide.
• Everyone has been around the Internet to know not to make First! comments or troll comments. I don't use the banhammer much, but it will come down at times, particularly after a tough loss.
• Finally, there are some great comments made. If you're particularly impressed by one, why not rec it? Click on Actions again under the comment, then Rec. If a comment gets enough recs, it changes to a nice green color:
  
  
  I have yet to set the number for green comments. I set it low enough so that I could get a screenshot. I'll set it a bit higher though so that it takes a bit to get one. I also plan on highlighting good comments from game threads in recaps.
• If all else fails, lurk a while longer, see what everyone else does, and then jump in.

So now you're ready to take your comments to the next level. You've had an idea that needs to be laid out in greater detail and length. So what next?

FanShots vs. FanPosts

On the right-hand side of the page, you'll see the FanPosts. A little further down you'll see FanShots. You'll also see links to FanShots and FanPosts at the top of the page. What's the difference between a FanShot and a FanPost?

First, FanShots are for quick links, videos, and quotes. If you click on the FanShots link at the top of the page, you'll be taken to a page with a list of FanShots. You'll also notice this at the top,

Click on that button and drag it to your browser's bookmark toolbar. Now, when you're on any page with Jazz news that you find interesting, just click on that button, and you'll get a new window that pops up with that link already populated and ready to post to SLC Dunk.

If you highlight text first, then click the button, it will put the highlighted text in as a quote. In addition, if you're on a YouTube video and click the button, it will automagically embed that video into a new FanShot.

You can also do a top-five list as a FanShot. But don't ask about the chat option, I have no idea what that does.

FanPosts are the granddaddy of posts on SLC Dunk. There's a minimum word requirement of 75 words to post one. Though, truth be told, if you're struggling to get to 75 words, it might not be worthy of a FanPost. It doesn't have to be lengthy. You might just want to give some quick thoughts and then attach a poll or something. That's fine. Just make sure it's coherent and well thought out.

Everyone has a different style and different opinions and we welcome all.

The most important part of all of this to remember is that this is a community-driven site. I post as much as I can. The other regulars that I have add when they can. We can't get to everything though and we can't write about every angle.

That's where you come in. If there's something we're not addressing that you feel needs to be discussed, you can do that. I also promote quite a bit of stuff to the front page. If your post doesn't get put on the front page, it's not that I didn't like it. Most FanPosts get a lot more comments and discussion that mine do anyway.

If you like a FanPost, please make sure to rec it. Right now, posts with 2 or more recs get promoted to the recommended FanPosts section which gets put to the top. I might raise that limit in the future as the site grows but that's where we'll leave it for now. Here's the toolbar you'll see at the end of every post,

Just click on the rec button if you feel it's worth a rec. You can also flag it for the same reasons you would flag a comment.

There are also a couple other options on there, Tweet and Facebook Like. If you want to share this, click on those two buttons. You've all seen those before.

That's about it. Now you're FanPosting/Shotting and recing like a seasoned vet.

Those are great, but nothing can prepare you for...

Game Threads

I know what's up. I know the biggest draw to the site are the game threads. This is where nearly all of the sites memes and acronyms are created. Participation is mandatory!

You can let loose a bit with game threads. It's not quite the same as being at the ESA with everyone, but game threads have a life of their own. Whether there's a big shot, a turnover, or the ecstasy of a game-winning shot, it's cool to see everyone post nearly at once with our catchphrases describing the moment.

If you have auto-refresh turned on, which it is by default, you'll see near real time updates from everyone. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that game threads are what everyone misses about the off-season.

The first one is just over a week away (Oct 7). Can't wait.

Other notes

• We also have a mobile site where you can comment. It's http://mobile.slcdunk.com. Some of the functionality is lost, but you still have basic comment abilities.
• The links at the top of the page also go to the Jazz roster, stats, schedule and SLC Dunk archives. Check those out.
• You can use your SLC Dunk login on any other team site on SB Nation. You just have to join each site and accept their rules.
• You can find SBN's welcome guide here.
• Do you want to start your own Jazz blog? Well, don't. With all of your FanShots and FanPosts, you have your own URL with your own RSS feed. Just replace username in the following URL with your own and you'll see a list of just your posts,
  
  http://www.sbnation.com/users/username/blog
  
  You can post anything you want on the Jazz or any other team.