Community Page
What is the User Center?

The User Center is the place to manage your account and post and edit content. It also displays high-quality user-generated content from others. From here, you can read and write messages, check both your activity and the community’s activity, as well as post and manage blogs,reviews, applications and more.

Can I use my account info from the previous site to sign in to the new version?

Yes, if you already have an eChinacities account from the previous site, you can still use your existing username and password to login. To login, simply click on login button on the top right corner of the page. Alternatively, you can also login using the login section on the community page.

Who do I contact if I’m having trouble signing in?

If you have trouble signing in, please contact cs@echinacities.com.

What activity shows up in the Live Feed?

The live feed is designed to give you a glimpse of the community’s most recent activity. It includes new blog posts, comments, listings reviews, photos, albums, new job postings and more.

Why does my blog appear in the Hot Blogs section?

The community moderators are always on the lookout for interesting blogs worth sharing with the eChinacities community. If your blog appears in the Hot Blogs section, then it could mean one of two things: the moderator liked your blog and therefore promoted it to this section, or the blog has received many comments and page views.

Is the community page moderated?

Yes, all content uploaded by eChinacities.com members is moderated to ensure a positive, community environment that allows people to connect, share and feel welcomed. We encourage as much free discussion as possible but will step in when a discussion devolves into ugliness and offends or harm others or the website. Under no circumstances will we tolerate racism, hate speech, obscenities, abusive comments, illegal activity, harassment or spam. Content that falls into one of the above mentioned categories will be promptly deleted. Repeat offenders will be issued warnings and may even be banned. See the community guidelines below for a full list of rules.

What are the community guidelines/moderation rules for the community page?

One account: Each user is allowed to create one account – no exceptions. In the case of discovering multiple accounts, we will delete all surplus accounts and just preserve one.

Post in English: eChinacities.com is an English-speaking community. As such, content must be posted in English so that it is accessible to everyone.

Post intelligently: post thoughtful, good-quality, interesting content that others will be interested in reading, seeing, commenting on or sharing.

Keep it respectful: eChinacities.com promotes mutual respect. Please refrain from posting vulgar, offensive, racist or illegal content, or any other content that is threatening or disrespectful in nature. Name-calling, bashing, insulting or berating others will not be tolerated. Furthermore, posts that encourage illegal activity or violate the laws of the People’s Republic of China, will be promptly deleted and may also result in a warning or ban. Also, it is important to note that many people on this site speak English as a second or even third language, so we ask you to be respectful of others’ posts and to not denigrate grammatical errors, typos, etc. It is also against this site's policy to denigrate a user because of his or her location, race, gender, or creed

Keep your contact details private: Do not add your phone number or email address to public posts. These will be removed by the moderators. Also, do not use your email address or phone number as your username.

Do not spam: no spamming of any kind (whether blatant or embedded) will be tolerated. Any posts whose sole aim is to promote a product, business or service will be deleted. This includes posting web links, email addresses and telephone numbers in blogs, comments, reviews, albums, photos, personal signatures or in the “About me” section. It does not matter if the advertising is for a commercial website, a personal website, a nonprofit website, etc. To advertise on eChinacities.com, please contact marketing@echinacities.com. Moreover, members caught spamming others’ mailboxes with advertisements will be banned.

Do not post nudity or vulgar content: Photos and images containing pornography or the suggestion thereof, foul language, or any other material that violates the community page’s rules will be removed. The same is true for links and references to other websites. When you link to an external website, it is your responsibility to make sure that the content on the linked site is appropriate for our community and does not violate our guidelines. Keep it family friendly folks!

Do not post the same thread multiple times: Repeated posts will be deleted by moderators. If repeat posts continue, moderators may delete all the posts and issue a warning. If the repeat posts are caused by a technical error, please report the issue to community-mod@echinacities.com.

Do not post politically sensitive content:Please also refrain from engaging in overtly political and sensitive discussions, which, in addition to you, could also get us in trouble. Politically sensitive topics will be removed immediately.

If you see something, say something: If you see a post that violates the community guidelines but has not been dealt with by our moderators, please contact community-mod@echinacities.com. Also, as this is a brand new section of the website, we appreciate and value your feedback and suggestions. We’ll be adjusting and fine-tuning these guidelines, and indeed the site on the whole, as we go. Feel free to contact us on the email address above if you have any thoughts, suggestions or feedback regarding the site.

Have fun: The community page was made especially for all you active, vocal and intelligent members out there. While respecting the rules is a must, we want you to enjoy using this website above all else. Don’t be shy: voice your opinion by posting comments or reviews, explore your writing talents by writing blogs, share some of your most (or horrendous) memories of China with others through the photo section and make friends while you’re at it. If the community page can achieve this, then we’ll consider our mission accomplished!

What are the warning/banning guidelines of the community page?

In order to keep the Community section a friendly place, users whose posts violate the Community Guidelines will receive a warning via email for each infraction. However, in the case of serious violations such as mass spamming or promoting illegal activity, we will not hesitate to ban a user immediately without prior warning. In the majority of cases, warning and banning will be handled according to the following “3-2-1” system:

1) Three warnings against a user during a one-month period of time will result in a temporary three-day ban, after which the ban will be lifted.

2) Two more warnings will result in a temporary two-week ban, after which the ban will be lifted.

3) One more will result in either a one-month or permanent ban, decided on by the moderators.

In the case of a permanent ban, after three months have passed, banned users may submit an appeal to community-mod@echinacities.com to re-join the community on a “parole” basis, which will be decided on a case-by-case basis. If after re-joining the community the user receives one additional warning, then their permanent ban will be reinstated, permanently

User Center
What info is listed in the “What’s New” section of the User Center homepage?

What’s New is similar to the Live Feed on the community page. It lists all the latest major activity from members including comments, new blog posts, new deals and coupons, listings reviews, new albums and photos, job posts, votes etc.

What’s the difference between My Messages, Admin Notices and System Notices?

My Messages includes private messages from other members. Admin notices are messages sent by the moderator and System Notices include new notifications of activities related to you such as new comments on your blog, posting status etc.

Who can I send messages to?

You can send messages to other registered eChinacities members. Just click on “Send Message”, enter their name, type your message and click send.

How do I change my profile picture?

Click on “Settings” followed by “Select Image”. You will then be prompted to upload a file from your computer or mobile devices . Once you’ve uploaded the image, you can re-size the photo by dragging or moving the box on the right-hand image. Don’t forget to click save.

How do I edit my profile?

Click on “Settings” . This page allows you to change your personal information, profile picture . You may also navigate the menu bar at the top to change your password, privacy settings and security settings.

Are my personal contact details visible to others?

No, your personal contact details will not be visible to others.

How do I change my password?

Go to "Settings”. Look out for“Change Password” at this page. You will be prompted to enter your original password, followed by your new password twice. Click on confirm to save.

How do I change my privacy settings?

You can correct or remove any information you provide via your account settings. Any resume you create on eChinacities.com is stored on our database in the United States or China. You can control the visibility of your resume by setting it to “Visible”, “Limited” or “Private”.

How can I block spammers from sending me messages?

Go to “Settings” and then click on “Security Settings” in the menu bar right underneath it. From here, you can manage your message filters. However, if due to site maintenance this option is not available, please contact community-mod@eChinacities.com to block spammers.

How do I report users due to spam/harassment?

Please let us know of any spammers or troublemakers. Send an email to community-mod@eChinacities.com and we will deal with it as quickly as possible.

What are points?

Points are a reward system devised by eChinacities.com. Users are rewarded points each time they create or update a resume or post a blog or invite friends to register on this website. Points can then be exchanged for gifts or services offered on our site. At present, the points system in our Answers is independent from the points system on the rest of the website.

How can I earn more points?

The Answers section is the quickest way to accumulate points. Members are given points every time they log in, post or answer a question. However, members will also gain points by posting blogs or reviews. But there’s a catch! Members can also get deducted points for not signing in for 3+ days or deleting blogs and content. However, since the site is still in its infant stage, not all point earning capabilities have been unlocked. More details to follow!

Why have points been deducted from my account?

Points will be deducted from members who don’t sign in for over three days or who delete blogs. However, more info on this will be available soon!

How can I redeem my points?

Click on “Points” on the top menu bar of the User Center. Then click on “Redeem Points” on the menu bar right underneath it. Once you have enough points, you can click on the “Exchange Now” button underneath the item you wish to purchase with your points.

Blogs
How do I post a blog?

Log into eChinacities. Once logged in, either click on “My Home” at the top right hand corner of the page or directly click on “Post Blog” on the right side of the community page (under your profile picture). If you chose clicking “My Home”, simply click on Blogs on the left side column of the User Center. You will then see a blue “Post Blogs” button at the top of the page.

How many blogs can I post per day?

There is currently no limit on the number of blogs users can post per day. However, this is subject to change.

Why has my blog been deleted?

Blogs are only deleted if they violate the user guidelines/community rules. For a full list of rules, please click here. If you think that your blog was wrongfully deleted, you may contact the moderator at community-mod@echinacities.com.

Who can see my blog?

This depends on your privacy settings. Members can choose to make their blogs public (for all to see) or private (only you can see). However, we encourage members to share their blogs with the community as much as possible. To change the settings, click on “Settings” at the top menu bar of the User Center. This will then bring up a second menu bar that contains an option for “Privacy Settings”. However, this function may be temporarily unavailable due to site maintenance.

How do I edit or delete my blog?

Click on “Blogs” on the left column of the User Center (under your profile picture). Then click on “My Blogs” at the top of the page (underneath “Post Blog”, “Privacy Settings”, “Security Settings”). From there, simply click on “edit” or “delete” beside the relevant post in the list.

Why can’t I change the category name of My Blog?

“My Blog” is a default category. If you do not wish to post in this default category, simply create a new one by clicking on “Blogs” > “My Blogs” > “Manage” (in the “My Categories” box on the right side). From there, click on “Add Category”, enter the category name and click on save. You can also delete categories anytime from the manage categories section.

Comments
How do I see my comments history?

Once you’ve logged in, go to the User Center home and click on “Comments” on the left side column. From there, click on “My Comments” near the top of the page. This will bring up a list of all your comments on the website.

Can I edit a comment after I’ve already posted it?

No, comments cannot be edited after they have been posted. Please make sure you think twice about what you post!

How many times can I vote on a comment?

Members are only permitted to vote once per comment. You can however change your vote from a thumbs up to a thumbs down and vice versa.