SendingtoSoldiers.com - Sending gifts and items to BFPO

Shop and raise money for Forces charities at the same time

A new British Forces shopping website has launched; ShopForces.com.

The site is a handy directory of UK online businesses and shops - most importantly, each time you follow a link from the ShopForces website and make a purchase, a donation is made to two charities, SSAFA Forces Help and The Royal British Legion.

So, next time you are going to make a purchase online, be it from Amazon, Boots or anyone else, go to ShopForces, click on the relevant shop link on their site and your work is done; if you proceed to make a purchase from the relevant store a commission payment is made to ShopForces and money is then donated to charity.

Full details on the ShopForces website here.

The Ebluey database crash

Many of you have written to us over the last week or so about the E-bluey database crash which affected the service between 18th and 19th May.  We have not posted on this topic simply because the welcome page of the Ebluey service has contained a better explanation than we could ever provide of who was affected by this and what, if anything, they needed to do.  Users would have seen this explanation every time they logged on.

In any event, we have been assured by e-bluey that the problem ended not too long after it began; and the service has been operatiung as normal since.  So get writing those blueys!

E-bluey User Guide available online

We still get regular emails asking us about the e-bluey service.  Whilst we are always happy to try and help, there is an excellent and well detailed help guide available online for people who are not familiar with the e-bluey service.

The E-bluey Online Booklet is available to read and download here and it includes all the latest updates to the service; so it has information on how to use the Fax Bluey and Photo Bluey services too.

Photo-Bluey - how to use this part of the e-bluey service

We get many questions emailed to us concerning the photo-bluey service.  We've pasted below some useful information which answers most of these queries:

Im an e-bluey user, can I automatically send a photo-bluey?

You will need to enable your e-bluey account. Go to the tab marked 'photo-bluey', click on 'Enable photo-bluey' - your account is now enabled and a screen should appear thanking you for enabling photo-bluey.

What photos can I send?

You will only be able to send photos that are stored on your computer.   You cannot send 'hard' copies of pictures, only ones that are saved in a folder on your (or someone elses) PC.

How do I send a photo-bluey?

Login to your e-bluey account and select a Recipient from your Address Book as usual and click 'Compose e-bluey'.

On the next page click the 'Add Photo to Letter' and follow the prompts to browse your PC to select a photo to insert in your e-bluey. You may find it useful to create a folder on your computer specifically for photo-bluey usage.  You can save to this folder any pics you think you may want to send using the bluey service.   Then type your e-bluey as usual, Review and/or Print Preview your e-bluey, then click 'Send e-bluey'.

What size photos can I send in my e-bluey?

You can browse your PC and insert any photo of any size. The photo print area on your e-bluey is a maximum of 185mm wide x 115mm high. Photos less than 185mm wide x 115mm high will be printed in the actual size. Photos larger than 185mm wide x 115mm high will be reduced proportionately to fit as closely as possible to 185mm wide x 115mm high. Remember that larger photos will take longer to upload - be patient when using large photos especially if you do not have a high speed (broadband) Internet connection.

How will be photos be printed at the other end?

The photo will be inserted at the top of your e-bluey.  Most bluey terminals print the photos in black and white, however the terminals should, as part of a phased upgrade, print the photos in colour in future.

Send an ebluey - a new site to guide you

There is a new e-bluey online booklet available from Walsh Simmons who seem to have been to appointed by the Ministry of Defence to market the e-bluey service.

The site is pretty good, explaining the different types of bluey available (including Fax2Email, Fax-Bluey and Photo-Bluey) and how one goes about signing up to these services. 

I know that most visitors to sendingtosoldiers.com are already regular users of the ebluey service, however for those that aren't the site provides a useful starting point.