Have you written a macro for solving a common problem in Excel? Do you have a technique that never fails to remove a particularly nasty trojan from a Windows XP computer? We want to know, and we have a way for you to post it: Expert Exchange Articles.

Articles are another way Experts Exchange users can share information with the tech community, providing articles on best practices, FAQs, tips and tricks, tutorials, reviews and resources.

Writing articles not only expands your influence but adds to your Expert Points total. The rewards and recognition system works the same as it does for answering questions. The more quality articles you write, the more recognition and rewards you receive.

Here's the points breakdown for Articles:

• Submitting an Article: 500 points
• Community Voting: 500 points per 10 yes vote net
• EE Approval: 4,000 points
• Editors Choice: 5,000 points

Most submissions are general articles. The basic definition of an article is simply that it provides a piece of code or technique, along with a written explanation of it, that helps resolve an issue. More specific articles will take one of the following forms:

FAQs

These articles provide solutions to questions the author feels are common problems. An example is how to write Access code that deletes records from tables without showing the "Are you sure" box.

Tutorials

These articles give step-by-step instructions for accomplishing a task. An example is how to replace a corrupt profile in Exchange.

Reviews

These articles give a synopsis and evaluation of a recently published work.

Best Practices

These articles are more like guidelines or a 101 document. An example is an SEO best practices guide.

Tips and Tricks

These articles offer up tidbits of useful knowledge to help make your tech life a little easier.

Resources

These are generally lists of links to other reputable and useful sites. Please have these articles approved by a Page Editor.

Experts Exchange's system allows you to format text, embed both images and code snippets in the body of your article, to delineate steps within the article, and to distinguish text quoted from another source.

Text Formatting:

• Underline: [u] to start, [/u] to end
• Bold: [b] to start, [/b] to end
• Italic: [i] to start, [/i] to end
• Text formatting can be mixed and used within Steps, Bullets, and Quotes
• All formatting tags must be closed within the container they were started

To add a Link

• [url="http://www.example.com"] to begin the link tag
• [/url] to end the link tag
• Example: [url="http://www.example.com"]Link name[/url]
• Links can be used within Steps, Bullets, and Quotes

To add a step:

[step="number of step" title="title of step"] will format a step number and title, and [/step] will close the step formatting
Example: [step="2" title="This is Step 2"][/step] will show "2 This is Step 2". Text inserted between the opening and closing tag will be shown as a subhead of the step's title.

To add a code snippet:

[code] will begin formatting the subsequent text as a code snippet; [/code] will close the snippet formatting. The snippet will be formatted in monospaced type. After you have entered your snippet, you can embed it within the article by clicking the Embed button.

To add quoted text:

[quote] will begin formatting the subsequent text as a quote, and [/quote] will close the quote formatting. The text will show with light blue quotation marks behind it.

To add a file:

Click the Add File button, and select the image you want to upload. After you have uploaded, give the file a description, and then click the Embed button. The file will be inserted where the cursor is placed.

After you have finished your article, click Submit, and you will see a preview of your article, and you will be asked to assign it to one of the core zones. After selection a zone, finish submitting your article.

The following are guidelines -- not hard and fast rules.

• Have you checked to make sure someone hasn't written an article that covers the same subject matter? If so, you should ask that it be reviewed, and you should be prepared to explain why your article is better and/or different.
• Have you explained everything so someone else will understand it?
• Have you spell-checked and edited your content?
• Did you test all the code?
• Have you included the necessary files for your article? Remember, there is a 50 MB limit, so attachments should be sized accordingly, and any unnecessary data and files should be removed from any zipped file.
• If you are extending someone else's article, you should add a comment to the existing article.
• Quality counts, not quantity.

Obviously, the most important issue is that your code is complete, compiled, and runs as advertised.

If you are providing a sample executable program, ensure that you have included all of the files necessary to run the program. If you are providing a sample project, only include those files or directories that are essential to the operation of the project. Do not include files that are automatically recreated.

We do not dictate coding style, but you should use generally accepted coding practices so that other programmers can understand your code.

Please respect others' code when using it as the base. Always ensure that you give credit to other authors, and that all copyright notices remain intact. This applies to any type of code, including HTML and style sheets. You retain the copyright of your article and your code, but as is detailed in the Experts Exchange membership agreement, by posting it you agree to the following:

• That Experts Exchange is granted an irrevocable license to use as it sees fit;
• That you have specific permission to use any code that is not yours;
• That by posting it to a public website, others may use it as they see fit.

For uploaded project files, please use the following conventions:

mycode_source.zip: This is the source code associated with your article mycode_demo.zip: This is the zipped demo project associated with your file

Replace "mycode" with a name that is descriptive of your article.

If you find a bug in your own article, you should edit it to reflect the new circumstances.

If you find a bug in someone's article, you should first attempt to contact the article's author, and then work with him to produce an update. We would prefer that the continuity of the article be maintained by you adding a comment to the article, rather than creating a whole new article.

Please visit the Experts Exchange Member Agreement for legal terminology.

If you have questions on any of what is stated in these submission guidelines, you can contact Community Support.