Getting Help in the Colony
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Getting Help in the Colony
We understand how frustrating it can be when things don't work the way you're expecting them to, especially if you're a new member and still feeling your way around.
Never fear. Help is just a click away.
First, ask one of the Guardians
The Guardians look after the day-to-day smooth running of the Colony, and they're always happy to point you in the right direction or sort out any problem you run into. There are two ways to reach them.
In public: start a thread in Café Life
For most questions, and especially the ones new members have, this is the best route. You'll often get several answers, and the next person with the same question finds it too.
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Go to the Café Life forum and click Post Thread.
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Select the Help Please! prefix.
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Tag one of the Guardians in your post. Tagging someone simply means typing their name with an @ in front of it.
For example
Hello, I'm new here and can't seem to find the way to check my Colony messages. Help would be appreciated. @Jonny @Vagabond Heart
You'll find you get help pretty quickly, and not only from the Guardians. Other members will almost certainly pitch in as well.
In private: start a conversation
If the matter is personal, or you'd simply rather not discuss it in the open, send a Guardian a private message instead.
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Go to the top of the page and click the envelope icon beside your Colony name.
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Click Start a new conversation.
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In the box marked Recipients, type the name of the Guardian you're writing to. You don't need the @ symbol here.
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Add a subject, write your message, and send.
Which one should I use?
Most questions belong in Café Life, where everybody benefits from the answer. Start a conversation when you need to ask something in confidence.
Not sure how to do something?
Have a look through this forum first. Your question may already be answered in the FAQs, which is the quickest solution of all.
If nothing obvious turns up, start a thread in Café Life with the Help Please! prefix and you'll get plenty of support.
Bug reports and technical issues
- One thread per bug, please. Don't add yours to somebody else's thread, as it makes both harder to follow
- Give us as much detail as you can, including a link if there is one, which browser you're using, and which operating system
- Screenshots and videos are enormously helpful and often settle a problem in one go
And if you know the answer
Please jump in and help another member without waiting to be asked. That's rather the point of the place.
Problems with your subscription or membership
Account, billing and membership
Anything to do with payments, invoices, your plan or your account is handled by the Litopia team rather than the Guardians, and is best raised directly with us.
Contact LitopiaThe complete Help Guide
There's now a full written guide to the whole of Litopia, the Colony included: 113 articles covering everything from your first post here to your author page, blog, newsletter, podcast and shop.
It's free to every member, searchable, and available to download and keep.
Read it online, or take it with you
Browse it at litopia.com/help, or download the whole thing as an ebook for your Kindle, Kobo, phone or tablet.
Open the Help GuideStill stuck? Just ask. That's what we're here for.