vB Codes Explained

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What are vB Codes?

vB Codes are a variation on the HTML tags you may already be familiar with. They allow you to add functionality or style to your message that would normally require HTML, but without the problem of breaking the design of the pages that they are used on. You can use vB Codes even only if the administrator has specified that you can in the forum rules. You may want to use vB Codes as opposed to HTML, even if HTML is enabled for your forum, because there is less coding required and it is safer to use.

Current vB Codes:

URL Hyperlinking

If vB Code is enabled in a forum, you do not need to use the [URL] code to create a hyperlink. Simply type the complete URL in either of the following manners and the hyperlink will be created automatically:

http://www.yourURL.com
www.yourURL.com

Notice that you do not need to include the http:// part of the address if it begins with 'www'. If the site does not begin with "www", you must use the complete "http://" address. Also, you may use https:// and ftp:// URL prefixes in auto-link mode.

If you want to include the vB code, just encase the link as shown in the following example (vB Code is in red).

[url]www.vbulletin.com[/url]

You can now have true hyperlinks using the [url] code. Just use the following format:

[url="http://www.vbulletin.com"]vBulletin Home Page[/url]

In the examples above, the vB Code automatically generates a hyperlink to the URL that is encased. It will also ensure that the link is opened in a new window when the user clicks on it. Note that the "http://" part of the URL is optional if the address begins with www; if it does not, then you will need to include the full http:// part. In the second example above, the URL will hyperlink the text to whatever URL you provide after the equal sign. Also note that you DO need quotation marks inside the url tags.

Email Links

To add a hyperlinked email address within your message, just encase the email address as shown in the following example (vB Code is in red).

[email]john@vbulletin.com[/email]

In the example above, the vB Code automatically generates a hyperlink to the email address that is encased.

Bold, Underline and Italics

You can make make text bold, underlined or italicized by encasing the applicable sections of your text with either the [b] , [/b] , [u] , [/u] or [i] , [/i] tags.

Hello, [b]James[/b], [u]John[/u] and [i]Mary[/i].

Bullets/Lists

You can make bulleted lists or ordered lists (by number or letter).

Unordered, bulleted list:

[list]
[*] This is the first bulleted item.
[*] This is the second bulleted item.
[/list]

This produces:

This is the first bulleted item.
This is the second bulleted item.

Note that you must include a closing [/list] when you end each list.

Making ordered lists is just as easy. Just add either [LIST=A] or [LIST=1]. Typing [List=A] will produce a list from A to Z. Using [List=1] will produce numbered lists.

Here's an example:

[list=A]
[*] This is the first bulleted item.
[*] This is the second bulleted item.
[/list=A]

This produces:

This is the first bulleted item.
This is the second bulleted item.

Adding Images

To add a graphic within your message, just encase the URL of the graphic image as shown in the following example (vB Code is in red).

[img]http://www.vbulletin.com/images/vblogo.gif[/img]

In the example above, the vB Code automatically makes the graphic visible in your message. Note: the "http://" part of the URL is REQUIRED for the [img] code. Also note: some forums may disable the [img] tag support to prevent objectionable images from being viewed. In that case, you will have to include a hyperlink to the image.

Quoting Other Messages

To reference something specific that someone has posted, just cut and paste the applicable verbiage and enclose it as shown below (vB Code is in red).

[QUOTE]Ask not what your country can do for you....
ask what you can do for your country.[/QUOTE]

In the example above, the vB Code automatically indents the text you reference.

Code Tag

Similar to the Quote tag, the Code tag adds some <PRE> tags to preserve formatting. This useful for displaying programming code, for instance:

[CODE]#!/usr/bin/perl
print "Content-type: text/html";
print "Hello World!";
[/CODE]

In the example above, the vB Code automatically indents the text you reference and preserves the formatting of the coded text.

Incorrect vB Code Usage:

[url] www.vbulletin.com [/url] - don't put spaces between the bracketed code and the text you are applying the code to.

[email]john@vbulletin.com[email] - the end brackets must include a forward slash ([/email])

Note: You should not use both HTML and vB Code to do the same function. Also note that the vB Code is not case-sensitive (thus, you could use [URL] or [url]).