I've had several folks ask questions about using WWE Universe (formerly WWE Fan Nation), so I put together a few helpful pieces of info for you.

Disclaimer: If you are getting errors or having consistent problems using WWE Universe, you'll definitely want to reach out to the Fan Nation folks by using the "Support" Forum at http://fans.wwe.com/go/forum/view/711/981/Support. They are the experts. :)

Anyway, with the disclaimer aside... here are some tips for you... There are several ways to communicate with folks on Fan Nation, but there isn't a "true" chat functionality like you see in instant messanger (as of this blog posting). I bet they will look into adding that kind of chat in the future.

My Inbox - Messages
To message with a person one-on-one, go to "My Inbox" on your profile and click "Create New Message" to send messages to people in your friends list... or you can go to a person's profile and click on "Send Message" just under their avatar. (If that option is not on their profile page under their avatar, then you must add that person as a friend before you can message them directly from their profile page.) For these messages (that show up in your Inbox), only the people you messaged can see the message in their Inbox and click reply to write back quickly, so these are great for one-on-one, back-and-forth communicating because the general public cannot see these types of messages.

My Inbox - Shout Outs
To send a Shout Out (formerly Broadcasts) to all of the people in your friends list, go to "My Inbox" on your profile and click "Broadcasts!". Click "Post a Shout Out" to send a message to all of your friends at one time. People cannot reply to a shout out, so it's not good for back-and-forth communicating. Shout Outs are good for announcing a new blog you have posted or letting people know about new photos you have uploaded. NOTE: People are using this way too often for general "Hi" messages and it's hard to keep up with the number of shout outs coming in.

Leave a Comment
To let someone know your thoughts about their profile page or their blogs or their photos, go to the person's profile or blog or photo that you want to comment on and click "leave a comment". It's a great way to give a quick shout-out... Or to let someone know if people like what they are doing and helps them decide if they should post more photos or more blogs. It's not great for back-and-forth communicating, but you can use these comment/messages to communicate back-and-forth if you want to... Just remember that everyone can see these types of messages. (In addition to individual people profiles, you can also leave comments on group profile pages and blogs and photos as well.)

Body Slams
To send someone a quick "hi there" and not really communicate back-and-forth, you can send someone a body slam. It's just a fun, silly, quick way to acknowledge someone. To send a body slam, go to the person's profile and click on "Body Slam Me!" just under their avatar. (If that option is not on their profile page under their avatar, then you must add that person as a friend before you can send them a body slam.)

My Blogs
To post a blog to your profile, go to "My Blogs" on your profile and click "Add Blog Post". Blogs are a great way to post an extended commentary or slideshow of pictures, etc. People cannot reply to a blog, but they can post a comment and rate your blog to provide feedback.

Forums and Threads
To talk to a group of people about a particular topic, you can participate in the various Forums (see "Forums" in top navigation bar). This can be a great alternative to having a true chat or instant messager functionality, but remember that thread postings can be seen by any WWE Universe member. Maybe they will bring back chat rooms in the future as WWE Universe continues to grow (and gets positive publicity).

Live Blog Chats
WWE Universe hosts "Live Blogs" during WWE shows now... These are a form of a Live Chat that is moderated and filters out the gibberish and troublemakers. Check out http://fans.wwe.com/fannationlive for the most recent Live Blogs' transcripts. It is really fun to read as the Live Blog is happening during a WWE show real-time, but there are so many participants that you won't see your comments posted very often. Make sure your comments are on-topic and relevant to increase the likelihood your comment is posted during these Live Blogs. If these Live Blogs continue to grow a crowd and receive positive feedback, maybe it will encourage the folks at WWE Universe to work on bringing back chat rooms.

Keeping it clean... Most people on WWE Universe are here to share the excitement and enjoyment of WWE events and superstars... and there are many kids on Fan Nation... so please try to keep things clean and positive so we can all continue to enjoy WWE Universe for many years to come. :)

Outta here y'all!