Frequently Asked Questions

Registration and signing in

• How do I register on Which? Conversation?

  It’s quick and easy to register. 1. Just click this Sign in/Register link and click the ‘Register’ tab. Fill out the boxes and click the ‘Register’ button. You’ll be sent a confirmation email with a link to activate your account – click on the link in your email and you’re all done. 2. When you add a comment to any conversation you’ll be asked if you’d like to register. Since you’ve given us a name an email address when adding your comment all you have to do is give us a password. As above, click on the link in the confirmation email to activate your account.

• How do I register with my Twitter, Facebook or Google+ account?

  Registering with your social media account couldn’t be easier. Just click this Sign in/Register link, then click on the logo of your desired social network – we have Twitter, Facebook and Google+. If this is your first time doing this you’ll be taken to your chosen social network where you’ll be asked for your permission to let us sign you in with your account. We will only collect your name, email address and profile photo in order to use this for your Which? Conversation account. Click the button to give your permission and you’re in. From then on you can just click on the same social network logo to sign in with the same account.

• Do I have to register to use the site?

  No – anyone can post comments without registering. However, there are loads of benefits to registering. You’ll get access to your own profile page, where you can see a list of all your comments, be notified if you have any replies to your comments, add friends and much more.

• How do I sign in if I have already registered?

  To sign in simply click this sign in link, enter your username and password and click ‘Sign in’. If you’re not logged in when you’ve added a comment, we’ll recognise you and just ask for your password after you’ve submitted your comment.

• I’ve registered but I’ve forgotten my password

  If you’ve forgotten your password, click this sign in link’ Click the ‘Forgotten your password?’ link, then enter your username or email address to be sent a link to create a new password.

• How do I change my password?

  You can change your password by signing in with your current password and visiting the ‘Settings’ section of your profile page (hover over your name in the top right corner of the site and select ‘Settings’). Enter your new password in the box next to ‘Change password’ then press the ‘Save settings’ button.

• Can I sign in with my main Which.co.uk account?

  No you can’t. To sign into Which? Conversation you’ll either need to set up a Which? Conversation account (read ‘How do I register on Which? Conversation?’) or sign in with your social media account (read ‘How do I register with my Twitter, Facebook or Google+ account?’). We’re looking into allowing Which? members to sign in with their existing details and hope to release this update in the future.

Your profile photo

• How do I upload or change my profile photo?

  Uploading a profile photo is optional, but picking one will set you apart and create a personality for yourself on Which? Convo. You can do this by hovering over your username in the top right corner of the website and selecting ‘Profile’. Then click ‘Change profile photo’ – once there click ‘select your file’ and pick your desired image file. Please make sure the file is no more than 1,000KB and that it is one of the following file types: gif, jpg, bmp or png. You can resize and move the box to crop your photo, with a preview of your circular avatar to the right of your image. When you’re happy click ‘crop image’. All done!

• How do I delete my profile photo?

  If you’d like delete your current profile photo but not upload a new one, visit the Profile section of your profile page (select it by hovering over your name at the top of the website after logging in). Click ‘Change profile photo’, then ‘Delete’ and then the ‘Delete my profile photo’ button.

Finding conversations I’m interested in

• What’s the best way to find a conversation I’m interested in?

  There are several ways to something you’re interested in: 1. We’ve designed Which? Convo around a number of key topics – Technology, Home & Energy, Motoring, Food & Drink, Parenting, Money, Shopping, Travel & Leisure and Health. Have a look in these to find the content you’re after. 2. You’ll find a search box on our homepage as well as on topic pages – you can use this to search for the subject you’re looking for, and hone it down by filtering by individual topics. 3. We add tags to all our conversations – tags represent the issues our discussions relate to. Click on these to find other articles on similar themes. 4. If you’re looking for older content our topic archives splits our content into months – you can find it at the bottom of each topic page. 6. At the bottom of every conversation we provide four suggested similar conversations.

Adding comments

• How do I post a comment?

  Once you’ve found a Conversation you’re interested in, make your way down to the comments section (you can click on the comment bubble for a short cut). Then click on the ‘Add a comment’ button – type your comment in the box, put in your chosen display name and your email address then press ‘Post comment’. Your comment has now gone through. If you’ve already registered, we’ll ask for your password to sign in so we can assign that comment to your account. If you haven’t registered yet, we’ll ask for a password to set up your account.

• How do I reply to a comment?

  To reply to another user’s comment, just click on the ‘reply’ button on the in the bottom right corner of their comment. You’ll see a comment box appear beneath their comment, the comment box jump up to be underneath their comment. Post your comment as normal.

• Are there any rules for commenting on Which? Convo?

  We wouldn’t want to call them rules, but we do have some community guidelines. These allow us to have a positive community atmosphere where everyone is welcome. There are also certain terms and conditions that you must agree to before you comment on the site.

• Why hasn’t my comment been published?

  Your comment should go up straight away. However, this doesn’t always happen. If your comment includes a link to a website or an email address, we will automatically hold it back from publication until one of our moderators has manually checked it. This is to ensure that all links are relevant and appropriate for other readers to click on. This moderation may take longer on weekends. Which? Convo also has an automatic spam filter that checks every comment before it goes live. We get hundreds of spam comments every day, and we hope you’ll never see them! If you think our spam filter has wrongly blocked your comment, please contact us and we’ll look into it.

• My comment was originally published, but now it’s disappeared – why?

  Although we prefer to leave all comments published, if your comment breaks one or more of our community guidelines or T&Cs our moderators may choose to remove your comment from the website. If this is the case, we will always try and make it clear when and why it has been removed. If you don’t think that your comment broke our rules and you’d like to see it published, please contact us and we’ll look into it.

• My comment has been edited by the mods – why?

  You must stick to our community guidelines and T&Cs on Which? Convo. If you break any of these rules our moderators may decide to edit part(s) of your comment so that we can retain the rest of it. If you’re unsure, please contact us and we’ll be happy to explain why we’ve edited your comment.

• How can I see who the moderators are?

  If someone replies to you with a red outline around their profile photo and a red line down the right-hand side of their comment, they’re a Which? employee. Patrick Steen and Lauren Deitz are the community managers you’ll see on Which? Conversation.

• How does Which? Conversation block spam?

  Which? Conversation has an automatic spam filter that checks every comment before it goes live. We get hundreds of spam comments every day, and we hope you’ll never see them! If you’re a legitimate commenter, there shouldn’t be any problem. But if you think our spam filter has wrongly blocked your comment, please contact us and we’ll get onto it.

• Can I see all the comments I’ve made?

  Yes! If you’re registered on Which? Conversation, sign in with your details then head on over to your profile page. You’ll see a list of all your comments under your Activity tab, as well as any ideas you’ve shared.

• Can I see replies to my comments?

  Yes, you can. If there’s been a reply to one of your comments, you’ll be notified of it when you sign in. Look out for a number next to your name in the top right-hand corner of the site. You can click on ‘replies’ to go and see what replies you’ve had. Or visit your profile page and click the ‘Replies’ tab. Click on the replies to see them in full on their related Conversations. People can also mention you in comments by using @yourusername in their comment. You can see these under the ‘mentions’ filter.

• How can I alert another community member to my comment?

  Another commenter will be alerted to any reply you make to their comment. If you’re not replying to one of their comment, you can alert them by mentioning them in your comment. You can do this by using an @ followed by their username eg. @patrick.

• Can I vote on someone else’s comment without replying?

  Yes, you’ll spot some thumbs on the bottom left corner of each comment. Click the up thumb if you agree with them, or the down thumb if you disagree. We’ll add these up to create one score.

• How can I share or link to a comment?

  You can share a comment on social media or by email – just click the ‘Share’ button on the bottom right of a comment. Then click on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or the email button. You can also get a link to an individual comment by clicking on the time-stamp on the top right corner of the comment. This will send people directly to that comment

• Can I favourite a comment or conversation for later reading?

  Yes, you can. You can favourite comments or Conversations by visiting the Recent Activity page and clicking ‘favourite’ underneath a comment. You can also favourite a community member’s comment by visiting their profile. These favourites will then appear in your profile for later reading under ‘Activity’.

• How do I vote in the poll?

  Choose the answer you agree with most then click ‘vote’. If you’ve already voted in the poll or if we’ve closed the poll you won’t get the option to vote – instead the results will be displayed.

• Can I use bold, italics and other formatting in my comments?

  Yes you can. Just type the following commands around your text: <b>Bold</b> for Bold, <i>Italics</i> for Italics, <u>Underline</u> for Underline and <strike>Strikethrough</strike> for Strikethrough

Subscribing to emails

• Can I be emailed when new comments are made on a conversation?

  Yes, to be emailed when new comments are added to a conversation you’ve commented on, click ‘Follow this conversation by email’ beneath your comment and then select ‘Email me when new comments are added to this conversation’, then post your comment. You’ll be sent an email asking you to confirm that you’d like to subscribe to that conversation – select ‘Confirm your subscription’ to do this.

• Can I be emailed when someone replies to my comments?

  Yes, you can be emailed when new replies have made to the comments you’ve made on a particular conversation you’ve commented on. Click ‘Follow this conversation by email’ beneath your comment then select ‘Email me when someone replies to my comments on this conversation’ before posting your comment. You’ll then get an email whenever someone replies to any of your comments on that conversation. You can also only be emailed when new replies are made on an individual comment you’ve made, in this case select ‘Email me when someone replies to only this comment’ instead. As above, you’ll be emailed with a link to confirm your subscription. Do this and we’ll start sending you the emails with new replies.

• I have signed up for some comment emails but now I want to unsubscribe – is this possible?

  Yes, there are three ways to unsubscribe from comment emails: 1. There’s an ‘Unsubscribe’ link at the bottom of every email you’re sent. 2. There’s an ‘Unsubscribe’ link beneath the comment box of a conversation you’re subscribed to – click ‘Follow this conversation by email’ and change your selection to ‘Please don’t email me’. 3. You can manage all of your comment subscriptions by visiting the ‘Settings’ page in your profile (look under ‘Subscriptions’). Untick the conversations you’d like to unsubscribe from and click ‘save changes’.

• Can I change the email address that my comment alerts go to?

  Yes, you can. Go to the ‘Settings’ page of your profile and enter your new email address in ‘Account email’, then click ‘Save changes’. This will also change the email address for your account.

• How do I reply to the comment I’ve been emailed?

  In the email you’ve been sent, click on the link included. This will take you directly to the right comment which you can then reply to on the site. Please do not reply to the email alert within your email account as your comment will be lost and no-one will be able to see it!

Sharing and social networks

• Is Which? Conversation on Twitter or Facebook?

  Yes, you can follow Which? on Twitter @WhichUK. You’ll see us tweeting about the conversations we’re having, as well as other issues from Which?. We’re also on Facebook and Google+, so make sure to follow us there too!

• How do I share a conversation or comment on social media?

  You’ll see social media icons at the top and bottom of every conversation – click on these to share on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or Reddit. We’ve written a bit of tweet text for you, but feel free to write your own! You can also share your comments, or anyone else’s comment for that matter, by clicking on the ‘Share’ button and then your chosen social network.