About Forums 

Already a member? Go straight to the FLL forums or Jr.FLL forums!

The FLL and Jr.FLL forums are now open! Please review the information below prior to jumping in as we have added a bit more information. Please note that some private Jr.FLL forums will only be accessible with your Team Access Pass.

The forum is a place to collaborate and learn from the knowledge that our program participants have discovered over the years. Whether you are a rookie or a veteran, the forum is the community’s resource for sharing and learning. You can also join the Global FLL Discussions to talk with teams around the world. Dive in: post a new topic or question, respond to other topics.

Use the forum categories and sub-categories to find your area of interest or expertise, and take advantage of the "search by tags" feature when you are logged into the forums to filter out the most relevant posts. When posting, make sure to tag your post with the keywords related to the subject matter. Also, don’t forget to take advantage of the search options to find relevant forum posts that may answer or address some of your questions.

After reviewing the FAQ below, jump to Visit Forums for instructions on getting started!

Frequently asked questions

Updated September 23, 2008!

In addition to these FAQ regarding general forum guidelines, take advantage of the FAQ direct within the FIRST Forums. It offers specific pointers on utilizing the forums to their full extent.

What information will I find in the FLL Country Forums?
The FLL Country Forums are the place for teams to find the translated FLL Challenge documents to learn more about the FLL Program in a particular country. You can view the Challenge and program documents, and can post in the country's Open Discussion forum as well as in the Global FLL Discussion forums. To post, remember you must be logged into the forums.

Where do I find the "forum access code"?
You no longer need an access code to enter the forums. You can simply go to the forums to view the discussions or login to post. If you are logged in and come across a forum that you cannot enter or that you cannot post to, don't worry. Some forums are restricted for certain groups and they have special permissions to access those areas.

What if I find inappropriate content? How do I report it?
There are a number of systems set in place so that inappropriate content does not make it into our forums. However, we all know that no electronic system can be perfect. If you come across content that you feel is inappropriate in any way, you are able to flag it. Flagging the content alerts our moderators to it, allowing them to then take the appropriate action.

To flag content, click on the "Inappropriate Content" icon within the post. This icon is a white triangle, outlined in red, with an exclamation point '!' in it, and can be found at the top right corner of each post.

How do I post a question?
Posting a new question or topic is easy. Within the forums go to the category (ex. FLL Challenge) and sub-forum (ex. Game Strategy) that your question relates to and click "New Thread." Give your post a title; write your question, answer, or comment; add tags appropriately; and click submit. If you like, you can preview your post before clicking to submit to see what it will look like once posted. If you preview, be sure to click submit once done previewing.

How do I post a response?
Posting a reply is just as easy as posting a question. Locate the 'Post Reply' button immediately below the original question, and follow the prompts to post your response. You can click on the 'Post Reply' button and add a new post to the end of the thread. Alternatively, you can leave a quick reply in a quick editor box listed below the posts in the thread.

When using 'Quick Reply' you can choose to quote a particular post if you are replying to something someone wrote. You may need to click the quick reply button in a post to activate the quick reply box before you can type into it.

If you want to quote multiple posts from within a thread in your reply, select them by clicking the multi-quote button. This button will change to indicate that you've selected it. Clicking post reply will then bring you to the full editor with all the posts quoted.

What are tags?
Tags are like keywords, and when you use them correctly, you will help ensure that your posts can be found. You can use tags to highlight the really important themes of your question. The most popular and widely used tags will appear in the forum tag cloud. The bigger the tag, the more times that tag has been used to classify a forum post.

You can also use tags to filter your forum search results. Selecting "Tag search" from the 'Search' menu in the top navigation bar within the forum allows you to enter specific tag words for which to search. Choosing "Advanced Search" from the menu brings you to a search page with a tag cloud at the bottom. By selecting a particular tag from the tag cloud, your results will be filtered to include only the forum posts and replies with those tags.

How do I use tags?
You can use tags to highlight the really important themes of your question. If your question is related to organizing a Jr.FLL local event, you will want to use the tags “Jr.FLL,” “local event,” and “help.” Where appropriate, make sure to tag your posts with either Jr.FLL or FLL, and use both tags if the question relates to both programs.

Why can’t I post a question?
Make sure that you are logged into the forums. At this time, only registered forum members can create new posts. If you are logged in and still can’t post, try logging out and logging back in. If that still doesn’t work, let us know about your problem.

Why can’t I post a reply?
Make sure that you are logged into the site. Only registered site members can respond to forum posts. If you are logged in and still can’t post, try logging out and logging back in, and if that still doesn’t work, let us know about your problem.

Can I post a question to multiple categories?
While technically you can, we strongly recommend that you do not. Each category and sub-forum is a separate topic from the other, and the threads or posts within each cannot "talk" to each other. That means, if you were to post the same question in multiple places, you would need to check each location for replies. Instead, we recommend that you determine which category your question fits into best and post it there.

I can’t find the right forum category, what now?
The categories that we created are meant to guide your discussions in the forums. We have chosen to create very high level categories in the hopes that we will be able to foster more discussions. We recommend that you use the search feature and search for keywords or tags related to your question. This search should result in a list of posts related to your question and will give you an indication of what forum is the "right" forum to use. Don't forget that if you don't know which category or sub-forum topic to use, you can place your post in the "Miscellaneous" folder.

I should have access to one of the private forums, but I don’t. Why?
Site members may have access to any one of a handful of private forums depending on their particular role. For example, all Team Site administrators will have access to a Team Site Admin forum category that is private to just those admins. FIRST has created these forums to allow our members with unique or more involved roles, in relation to the programs or the web site, to have a private place to share their experiences and exchange ideas. When you are logged into the forums, you will be able to view and post to all the forum categories for which you have access. If, however, you aren’t logged into the forums, you will have limited access.

How are the Jr.FLL and FLL forums different from the FIRST forums?
The Jr.FLL and FLL forums are areas within the FIRST forums. In other words, the FIRST forums are a superset of the Jr.FLL and FLL forums. Read and write access to other FIRST forums outside of the FLL forums are according to FIRST forum accounts.