Frequently Asked Questions

About Trails

1. What is Trails?
2. How do I contact Trails with more questions about Trails?
3. What is Trails's Terms of Service?

Your login account

1. Do I need to create a login account to use Trails?
2. How do I create a login account to use with Trails?
3. How do I change my login profile?
4. Do I need to log in to Trails every time I visit?
5. What happens if I check the “Remember me” box on the login page?
6. Why am I being asked to reenter my password?

Your privacy

1. What is Trails's Privacy Policy?
2. Should I post my email address to Trails if someone asks for it?

Proper use of the site

1. What happens to users who spam Trails?
2. How do I report questionable content to editors at Trails?

About Trails

1. What is Trails?
   Please see this webpage for an introduction to the Trails web site.
2. How do I contact you with more questions about Trails?
   Please see this webpage for contact information.
3. What is Trails's Terms of Service?
   The Terms of Service for Trails can be found at this webpage.

Your login account

1. Do I need to create a login account to use Trails?
   No. You don't need to log in to read text, or write comments. If you want your comments to be associated with a persistent Trails username, you will need to create a login account and interact with the site while logged in. There is no charge for creating a login account with Trails.
2. How do I create a login account to use with Trails?
   To create a login account, click “Register” in the main menu (on the left). There is no charge to create a login account. Your password to log in will be emailed to you. Your account is not created until the first time you log in with the password.
3. How do I change my login profile?
   Click on on “Your Profile” to change your login profile information (e.g. username, password, email address, preferences). For instance, if you prefer not to receive email from Trails, you can set this as a preference in your login profile.
4. Do I need to log in to Trails every time I visit?
   No, all content on the site is available to visitors that are not logged in. However, we recommend you log in when you visit Trails. It provides access to features such as email alerts, and other advanced features on the site.
5. What happens if I check the “Remember me” box on the login page?
   If you check the “Remember me” box, Trails will remember who you are when you return to the site by setting a cookie to automatically log you in. This will make it easier to access and interact with your answers and other content on the site. You will still need to re-enter your password to view or edit your login profile. If you do not check the “Remember me” box, you will need to log in each time you return to the site.
6. Why am I being asked to reenter my password?
   If you have checked the “Remember me” option in the login box, Trails will still periodically ask you to reenter your password for your own protection or for technical reasons. This can happen when you view or edit your login profile, or when the cookie created to remember your credentials has expired.

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Your privacy

1. What is Trails's Privacy Policy?
   You can find our privacy policy at this webpage.
2. Should I post my email address to Trails if someone asks for it?
   No. You should not post your email address or any other personal information about yourself on the Trails site. We will as a matter of routine redact material that contain or ask for personal contact information.

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Proper use of the site

1. What happens to people who spam Trails?
   Users that spam Trails will no longer be able to log onto the site or post directly to the site. Instead, postings from users that engage in spam will be placed in a low priority moderation queue and will only appear on the site after being checked and approved by a moderator. Spam is in this case defined as material that have very little to do with the subject at hand, and appears to be posted to the site for no other reason than to promote certain services, products or product websites. Note that Trails does not disapprove of hyperlinks, and links to relevant and helpful information found at others sites is encouraged. What distinguishes link spam from other links is the relevance and helpfulness of the link.
2. How do I report questionable content to editors at Trails?
   At the bottom of every question/answers page we provide a link to We encourage you to use this link whenever you see questionable content posted to the site. In your email, please provide the URL of the page you find questionable, and the reason you find the content questionable.

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