Hi there newbites, you are very welcome to the forums!
A number of you have had a post hit the spam filter in the last few days. This is unfortunate but does not happen to most forum users.
What you will see if this happens is the message "topic not found" and your post not appearing immediately on the forums.
If this happens to you, unfortunately, your post hit the spam filter and I will have to rescue it.
This rarely happens, but is more likely to happen if you post a post with a lot of links in it. (Don't be afraid to do that, just be aware that this can sometimes happen.)
In case anyone is reading this, if you notice your post disappears with a message as noted above ("topic not found"), please do not repost. Your subsequent posts will go into the spam filter too, because now the system things you're posting the same thing over and over (which is what spammers do).
You can email me via the contact form -- there's a link at top right-- or you can wait -- I check the spam filter more than once a day and release any posts which have met this fate. Your post WILL be brought back ASAP.
The last few days I have had a few individuals whose posts went into the spam filter repost a message as many as 10 or 20 times in quick succession. I understand the urge to repost, but be aware this doesn't help but does mean it takes longer to remove your post from the spam filter.
Be assured that once I have rescued a post of yours from the spam filter, I can implement a fix which means it should not happen to you ever again. (I can only do this once it happens, but I won't go into all the details of why.) So please be assured, the site is not faulty, and this won't be happening to you forever.
This is also a good time for me to suggest you read the FAQs about the Forums, not to be confused with the FAQs about bed bugs (here on the main site, or here, for those who really don't like to leave the forums).
While the FAQs about bed bugs are essential reading, the FAQs about the Forums cover how to use this site, and they are helpful too. There's a FAQ on the "disappearing post" issue and what to do if it happens, among many other items covered.
You can find both of these FAQs threads later in the "green stickies" at the top of the main forums page (click FORUMS at the top of the page to get there).
Thanks for your patience and for using the site!