When you join StumbleUpon, make no mistake, you're joining a community. Once you install the StumbleUpon toolbar download and begin to stumble other users' sites, recommend sites, images or videos you like, that's just the beginning of what StumbleUpon has to offer.

Why, then, do so many people miss the opportunity to take their StumbleUpon experience to the next logical step by making themselves part of a StumbleUpon Community Group?

The first thing you can do is make the StumbleUpon forum part of your routine. If the official StumbleUpon blog is the first place you'll find news, the forum is the first place you'll find answers to StumbleUpon questions, or solutions for problems, or be able to submit a question yourself. (Naturally, they do encourage you to search the FAQ or Help section before asking your question, but it's a comfort when you can't find an answer to be able to ask it straight away in the forum.)

The "Get Satisfaction" Forum is also broken into well-organized segments within its front page, to help you easily find answers in your category. No fumbling around through confusing layer after layer of forum posts.

The segments are:

• Frequently Asked Questions

• Ideas Under Consideration

• Common Problems

• Recent Praise

There's also a button beside each query that says either "Solved" or "Needs Solution", as well as showing how many answers have been received. At the bottom of each segment, there are instant status tabs: "Common", "Solved", "Being Worked On" and other similar status indicators. The community greets new members, and lists its products and services, including toolbar versions for different browsers that are now available.

StumbleUpon Community Rules

Of course, like any online community, it has its rules. They're the basic, common-sense ones about no spamming, flaming or publishing private content without permission. No personal insults or profanity. (Perhaps the most interesting rule in posting to the forum is "No off-topic or useless posting": Off-topic I can see - but what is their definition of "useless"?)

Sign Up Required

The only minor annoyance is having to specifically sign up for the Forum, but that's easily done in a few seconds. Your welcome email also gives you the standard option to have new replies to your posts emailed to you, as well as one more useful feature.

It also allows you to check a box that authorizes Get Satisfaction to send you a daily email about anyone new who has added you as a contact. This allows you to thank them, stumble their sites or just check out their profile.

You can add products and companies you like or are interested in under a specific "Add Product or Company" tab. And your Dashboard is also where you can register your App, if you're a developer.

Your Settings page is also a valuable promotional tool. You can customize it with a thumbnail, use your real name or nickname, make it geographically relevant by adding your location, and provide your Twitter ID, Flickr ID and blog or website URL. Go check out the StumbleUpon forum today.