The member sidebar sits at the left hand side of the screen, and has 3 elements:

• Login details show who is logged in
• Bookmarks to your favourite things on Areyoulocal.co.uk
• A help button, and buttons to press to make site suggestions or report a bug

The login details show the local name and place you gave us. To find out how to change your local name and place, as well as other personal details, click here.

To logout, press the 'logout' option beneath the login details.

The sidebar stores bookmarks of your favourite things, so that you can get back to them in a single click.

The bookmarks are organised into lists.

Each list has a clickable heading. Click the heading to collapse the list, and click the heading again to expand the list. Collapsing the bookmarks lists helps you stop the sidebar from getting too long.

If there are more than five bookmarks in a list, you can scroll the list with a scrollbar.

There are many types of things that can be bookmarked:

• My places - a list of your favourite streets, neighbourhoods and blocks of flats.

  If you click on a link, it changes the current place.

  To find out how to update your favourite places, click here.

• 
  My groups - a list of the local groups you belong to.

  If you click on a link, you are taken to the group's home page.

  You can search for local groups, clubs and societies and join one you like, or you can make use of Areyoulocal.co.uk's powerful tools to start your own group.

• 
  My businesses - a list of the local shops and services you like to keep up to date with.

  If you click on a business, the business's home page is displayed.

  You can search for local shops and services and bookmark them.

• 
  My messages - a list of the most recent Areyoulocal Messages you've received.

  If you click on a link, the message viewer appears, showing the message you chose.

  Areyoulocal Messages are a convenient way for neighbours to make contact without the need to give an email address. To find out more, click here.

• 
  My newsletters - a list of newsletters that you have subscribed to, or which you edit.

  If you click on a link, the newsletter is displayed.

  There are newsletters for every place, every group and every business. Many newsletters are regularly updated, and if you enjoy reading one, you can subscribe to it, causing a bookmark to be added to this list.

• 
  My events - a list of events that you have bookmarked, or which you are organising.

  If you click on a link, the event's details are displayed.

  Getting involved in local events is a great way to get more out of your local community. To learn how to browse your local events calendar, click here.

• 
  My market items - a list of market items that you're interested in. These include items that you're selling or giving away, items you've bookmarked, or items that you've placed a bid for.

  If you click on a link, the market item is displayed.

  Click here to find out more about using Areyoulocal.co.uk to buy, sell, auction and give stuff away in your local community.

• 
  My weblogs - a list of local weblogs (online diaries) that you've bookmarked.

  If you click on a link, the weblog you chose is displayed.

  You can search for the weblogs of other people nearby, and even write your own, in which case that too appears in this list.