Bell? How do you do this!

the way we did it....

hang a bell on the door they go out to potty. each time you take them out ring the bell and say something like "potty time". eventually they will get it. the first time they ring the bell on their own. get to the door quickly and praise them for ringing the bell.

caveat: your dog may/will probably at some point ring the bell just to go out, and may do this several times a day. at some point you will probably want to ween him off the bell.

Cyclefiend2000 is right on target.  I have 3 dogs and taught them to "twaing" the doorstop whenever they had to go out.  ( Basically the same thing as a bell.)  I'd say "Let's go out", take their paw or use my hand/foot to twaing and then let them out.  It does take time and continuous effort but it works.  Don't give up...be persistant !!!  Spunkie was 5 months old before she would twaing everytime she needed to go potty.
As said, make sure you are always close to the door so if you hear the twaing or bell, immediately praise puppy and let pup out.  One day the light bulb will go on.  I have to chuckle because Spunkie sometimes twaings, not because she has to go potty but because she wants to smell "the good stuff" from our barbeque grill.

Above is exactly how we did it...everytime we went out I rang the bell...eventually he got it. It took a couple of weeks. Good Luck! []

Do you guys think this will help also with the fact that she just isnt getting potty training? She goes outside, but also just goes inside wherever/whenever. We take her out at all the appropriate times, and probably 10 times a day to avoid accidents, but inevitably she does something in the house! I am hoping that giving her a way to let u know might help? In my other post, I explained taht there are old spots where are other dog had accidents and we are moving soon so spot cleaning with enzymatic cleaner at this point isnt going to happem....not to mention I cant have wet carpet with my stepkids running around...we rent and live in an apt.

Also, what kind of bell should I use? And do you hang it on the door knob? If so with what? What do you do if the dog decides its a toy and wants to play wiht it?

we use a jingle bell. tied to the door knob with pretty heavy cord.

I just posted the bell thing on your other one but anyway...
 
Any bell will work really - Just tie it on a cord low enough so your dog can reach it.  Tie it to the door you usually use to take her out and then everytime you take her out ring the bell (make sure she sees you). Eventually she will go to the bell and smell it or accidently bump it and when she does TAKE HER OUT even if you know she doesnt need to go. You'll need to take her out everytime she rings it even if you just came in... After she "knows" what shes doing you can call her a liar but at first take her out EVERY TIME!   You might think it's a waste of time becasue it may take 2 or 3 weeks and the first few times she rings it it might just be an accident but she WILL GET IT!   My lil'ne is already getting it and it's only been 2 weeks.
 
I think it will help because some dogs just dont know how to tell people what they want -- Plus if youre in an apartment it might be a lil confusing.

Someone mentioned that they ring the bell, thats not correct. You are supposed to grab your dog's paw and ring the bell with their paw. It may work the otehr way but your sending a strange message to your dog, THEY need to tell you when its time and thats what your trying to get them to do, why should you have to ring the bell? haha!
The bell technique works best in conjunction with YOU guesstimating when your dog might have to go potty. It is less effective if you are just picking random times to go out. Think of the most obvious times that your dog would have to potty like after they wake up, 10 minutes after eating and drinking and defintly right before bed. Don't use your keyword (go potty) until AFTER you are outside and DONT come back in until your pup has done the deed then lavish on the praise!Also be sure to take away the dog's water about a hour before bedtime.

Just be careful your puppy does not associate ringing the bell with a trip outside for play time, or as stated by cyclefiend2000 he will ring the bell all the time. This has become the case with our 10 mo. old puppy. He seems to ring the bell more when he WANTS out, than NEEDS out.

However, it is a good way for them to get your attention, especially if your puppy is like mine. He would always sit politely at the door and never make a sound. If you didn't see him, or ignored him (i.e. in the other room where you can't see the door) then he would pee on the carpet. That is why I taught mine to ring the bell. But yes beware, he may soon learn to ring it all the time and you will be playing every dog's favorite game of "in and out puppy".