# FAQ

## What this FAQ covers

Conduit is a social blogging site for accounts, articles, comments, article lists,
favorites, and following.

Choose an answer about a route or task, then open the page named in the table for its
detailed procedure.

| If you need to… | Go to |
| --- | --- |
| Choose a feed, tag, or article list | [Understanding the interface](doc:understanding-the-interface) |
| Sign in | [Sign in](doc:sign-in) |
| Create an account | [Sign up](doc:sign-up) |
| Change account details | [Manage your settings](doc:manage-your-settings) |
| Find or create an article | [Find articles](doc:find-articles) or [Create and edit articles](doc:create-and-edit-articles) |
| Read or manage an article | [Read and manage an article](doc:read-and-manage-an-article) |
| Add a comment | [Comment on articles](doc:comment-on-articles) |
| Work with profiles | [Profiles overview](doc:profiles-overview) |
| Follow another user | [Follow other users](doc:follow-other-users) |
| View favorite articles | [View favorited articles](doc:view-favorited-articles) |
| Understand a general error | [General error messages](doc:general-error-messages) |
| Resolve a common issue | [Common issues and solutions](doc:common-issues-and-solutions) |

## Before you start

**Prerequisites**

| Have or know | Why it matters |
| --- | --- |
| The work you want to do | The application separates authentication, editing, articles, settings, and profiles into different routes. |
| Whether you are signed in | Home uses a different article source when a token is present, and the header offers different links for signed-in and signed-out sessions. |
| The article slug when editing an existing article | The editor uses the slug route for an existing article and the route without a slug for a new article. |

## Find the right route

A route is the address for the page where you perform a particular kind of work. The
header provides links for Home, authentication, new articles, and settings.

**Steps**

1. Choose the work you need to do.

   | If you need to… | Select or open |
   | --- | --- |
   | Return to the article lists | **Home**, or `/` |
   | Enter an existing account | **Sign in**, or `/login` |
   | Create an account | **Sign up**, or `/register` |
   | Create an article | **New Post**, or `/editor` |
   | Change account details | **Settings**, or `/settings` |
   | Open an existing article | [Read and manage an article](doc:read-and-manage-an-article) |
   | Open a profile | [View a profile](doc:view-a-profile) |
   | Open a profile's favorites | [View favorited articles](doc:view-favorited-articles) |

**Result:** You have selected the route for the work you want to do.

## Sign in or create an account

Authentication lets you enter an existing account or create a new one. The sign-in form
has Email and Password; the sign-up form has Username, Email, and Password.

**Prerequisites**

Use **Sign in** for an existing account and **Sign up** for a new account.

**Steps**

1. Choose the account action.

   | If you need to… | Select |
   | --- | --- |
   | Enter an existing account | **Sign in** |
   | Create an account | **Sign up** |

2. Enter the requested values in the fields shown on the selected page.

   | Page | Fields |
   | --- | --- |
   | Sign in | **Email**, **Password** |
   | Sign up | **Username**, **Email**, **Password** |

3. Select **Sign in** or **Sign up** on the selected page.

**Result:** The selected account form has been submitted.

## Manage account settings

Account settings hold the profile picture URL, username, short biography, email address,
and an optional new password.

**Prerequisites**

Open `/settings` from **Settings** when the signed-in account is available.

**Steps**

1. Open `/settings`.
2. Choose one account action.

   | If you need to… | Do this |
   | --- | --- |
   | Save changed settings | Edit **URL of profile picture**, **Username**, **Short bio about you**, **Email**, or **New Password**, then select **Update Settings**. |
   | Log out without editing settings | Select **Or click here to logout.** |

**Result:** The selected alternative is complete: the settings update was submitted, or
the logout action was selected.

## Create, read, and comment on articles

An article is a published piece of writing with a title, description, body, and tags.
The article page displays the body as sanitized markdown and includes comments.

**Prerequisites**

Select **New Post** to create an article. On an article page, select **Edit Article** to
edit an existing article.

**Steps**

1. Select **New Post** to open a new-article form, or select **Edit Article** on an article
   page to open the existing article in the editor.
2. Enter the article title in **Article Title**.
3. Enter its short description in **What's this article about?**.
4. Write the body in **Write your article (in markdown)**.
5. Enter a tag in **Enter tags** and press Enter to add it to the tag list.
6. Select **Publish Article**.
7. Choose the article action you need.

   | If you need to… | Select |
   | --- | --- |
   | Return to the editor | **Edit Article** |
   | Delete your article | **Delete Article** |
   | Add a comment | Enter text in **Write a comment...**, then select **Post Comment** |

**Result:** The editor submission, article action, or comment submission has been selected.

## Browse feeds and profiles

Home is the article-list starting point. It can show **Global Feed**, **Your Feed** when a
token is present, a tag filter, and **Popular Tags**. Profiles show authored or favorited
article lists.

**Steps**

1. Open `/`.
2. Choose the list or profile action you need.

   | If you need to… | Select or open |
   | --- | --- |
   | Read the global article list | **Global Feed** |
   | Read the signed-in feed | **Your Feed** when it is available |
   | Filter by a tag | A tag in **Popular Tags** |
   | View authored articles | **My Articles** |
   | View favorited articles | **Favorited Articles** |
   | Follow or unfollow another user | **Follow** or **Unfollow** |
   | Change your profile settings | **Edit Profile Settings** |

**Result:** You have selected an article list, profile list, follow action, or settings route.

## Understand errors and limits

The error list shows the API-provided key and value.

**Steps**

1. Read the error text shown in the error list.
2. Compare the displayed text with the action you just selected.
3. For a general error message, open [General error messages](doc:general-error-messages).
4. For a setup or recurring issue, open [Common issues and solutions](doc:common-issues-and-solutions).

**Result:** You have the API-provided error text and the page that owns the next remedy.

The error list uses this message format: `key errors[key]`.

## Continue with the task

Use the route or action you selected to continue:

| Next task | Page |
| --- | --- |
| Learn the Home surface | [Understanding the interface](doc:understanding-the-interface) |
| Navigate between routes | [Navigation basics](doc:navigation-basics) |
| Sign in | [Sign in](doc:sign-in) |
| Sign up | [Sign up](doc:sign-up) |
| Manage settings | [Manage your settings](doc:manage-your-settings) |
| Work with articles | [Articles overview](doc:articles-overview) |
| Find articles | [Find articles](doc:find-articles) |
| Create or edit articles | [Create and edit articles](doc:create-and-edit-articles) |
| Read an article | [Read and manage an article](doc:read-and-manage-an-article) |
| Favorite articles | [Favorite articles](doc:favorite-articles) |
| Comment on an article | [Comment on articles](doc:comment-on-articles) |
| View or follow profiles | [Profiles overview](doc:profiles-overview), [View a profile](doc:view-a-profile), or [Follow other users](doc:follow-other-users) |
| View favorited articles | [View favorited articles](doc:view-favorited-articles) |
| Resolve an error | [General error messages](doc:general-error-messages) or [Common issues and solutions](doc:common-issues-and-solutions) |