Computer Forums - Announcements in Forum : Newsletter Content Submission

Dave · 03-13-2007 until 04-13-2017

Greetings Members!

We want to continue to grow Tech-Forums into an active community for web users worldwide. These rules are in place so that all members can enjoy their time here.

1) Be Respectful
Treat other members as you would have them treat you. This means no flaming, insulting, or belittling other members.

2) Stay on Topic
Posts in a thread should not deviate from the original topic. For a new discussion, make a separate post.

3) No inappropriate language or images
Avoid vulgar, racist, and sexist comments, as well as swearing. We have a Zero Profanity policy. There is an automatic censor, but that does not mean anything it misses is necessarily acceptable. The censor should never have to be used, as appropriate language should be used initially. Do not post pornographic, violent, gory, or otherwise offensive graphics or links. Images should be scaled down as necessary to maintain a consistent and readable forum layout.

4) No Spamming
Spamming is a broad term. Spamming includes unauthorized advertising, unproductive and useless posting, post-padding, empty posts, referral and associate links, pyramid schemes, etc.

5) Keep Things Legal
Any discussion, links, or information on hacking, cracking, serial numbers, pirating, warez, or any other illegal matters is not allowed. This includes talks of Emulators and Torrents. Discussion of legal torrents such as Linux distrobutions is fine. But anything that is copyrighted, pay per use or covered by any sort of copyright is forbidden. The links provide the information needed.

6) No Avatar or Custom Title Abuse
Avatars and custom titles are subject to Rule 3. Titles may not contain "Banned", "Administrator", "Moderator", or any of their abbreviations.

7) Signatures must adhere to the following specifications:

Text signatures may not exceed 15 lines in size 1, or 8 lines in size 2. Text size 3 and above is not allowed. Text size 1 may only be used with a graphic, with no more than 8 lines.
The combined size of all images in a sig is a maximum of 468x120. Please keep the file sizes small for loading times.
Any scripts that display a user's IP address and browser information are not allowed.
Signatures are subject to Rule 3.
Signatures are a privledge. They are gratned for use when you reach 40 posts. If you abuse the system and try to get to 40 posts as fast as possible you will lose this right.

9) The Buy/Trade/Sell area is a privledge.
It is not a right. You must earn you way into this area with having 100 posts. As with the signatures spamming you way to 100 posts will get you disbarred from this area. The B/S/T area has a very special set of rules to follow. Read up on them so you know them before you get access and start to post there.

9) Off-Topic Area is also a privledge.
It is not a right. You will gain access to this area at 40 posts just like your signature. This area has its own set of rules as well. Read up on them and get to know them before you enter so that you do not get into trouble upon gaining access.

10) Questions or Concerns
If you have a question, comment or concern contact the Moderator of the area you have the issue with. If they can not resolve the issue they will refer it to the next person in line.
Confidential concerns can be posted in the Confidential Discussions forum. Only the original poster and the moderator team can see these posts, and any discussions there are treat as private.

11) Enjoy yourself! Have a great time posting and we look forward to your feedback.

When the rules are breached, the moderators and administrators may issue infractions, remove privileges, or choose to ban a user immediately, depending on the severity. Ignored warnings and continued offense usually result in banning.

The administrators and moderators reserve the right at all times to edit or remove any posts, images, signatures, avatars, and custom titles.

Tech-Forums reserves the right to change or alter these rules at any time without notice. Anything not expressly covered in these rules is subject to an Administrator/Moderator's approval. An Administrator and/or Moderator’s word is final.

Updated: 10 Nov 2008 -----------------------------------------------

The Infraction System is a way to give points to members that break the rules. Here's the point system:

Sig Rule Violation is 5 points and expires after 6 months.
Inappropriate Language is 5 points and expires after 1 month.
Small Infraction is 5 points and expires after 14 days.
Flaming is 10 points and expires after 14 days.
Necroposting is 10 points and expires after 14 days.
Piracy/Warez is 15 points and expires after 1 month.
Spam is 15 points and expires after 1 month.
PM Spam is 15 points and expires after 1 month.
Inappropriate Thread/Post is 20 points and expires after 1 month.
Permanent Ban is 1000 points and never expires.

Custom Infraction is whatever points that an Admin wants to give and will expire whenever they want.

The points will accumulate until they expire. If a user accumulates a certain amount of points, there are automatic bans. The accumulated points are:
30 points is a 7 day suspension.
75 points is a 1 month suspension.
150 points is a permanent ban.

The Infraction System is a disciplinary system to get members to conform to the rules. That's why this system has a set amount of points and a set amount of time for expiration of those points. The auto ban is also a great way to show that abiding by the rules is imperative. Note: Some of the infractions are extended. That means a user will receive extended expiration times if given a second infraction that matches an existing active infraction. For example, a user is given a small infraction that expires in 14 days. An hour later this user is given the same infraction for another post. Since the user already had an active small infraction, this new infraction's expiration time is added to the end time of the previous infraction. Effectively, this new infraction will now end 27 days and 23 hours later instead of the default of 14 days. If the user was given a third infraction, it would be added to the end of the second infraction as well, which in this case would put them in the temp ban.

Explanation of Infractions (this list is not all inclusive):

Sig Rule Violation is self-explanatory. See the sig thread.

Inappropriate Language is for bypassing the profanity filter, and may be for insinuations and inuendos.

Small Infraction is for small offenses that might not be covered in the other categories.
Flaming is self-explanatory.

Necroposting is when a thread older than 3 months and is posted in. If the thread is over 3 months old. Do not post in it. The 3 moth limit is not from the date the thread was created but from the date of the LAST post in the thread. The date can be found by the user name.

Piracy/Warez is self-explanatory.

Spam is when a member does a link drop, not for the join and only spam people.

PM Spam is when a member is reported for sending spam via PMs.

Inappropriate Thread/Post is anything that is not allowed here. This is a tech forum.

Permanent Ban is 1000 points and no one will ever accumulatively achieve this. This
amount of points is given to one time spammers and those that will never be allowed back.
If you receive an infraction, only you and the Forum Leaders will know. It is not a public record that everyone can see. I hope this helps with understanding the system.

*Please refer to the RULES, News and Announcements forum often to find any changes or additions made to these rules.

03-13-2007 until 04-13-2017
Dave Admin Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: "Almost Heaven" USA Posts: 4,862	General Forum RULES Greetings Members! We want to continue to grow Tech-Forums into an active community for web users worldwide. These rules are in place so that all members can enjoy their time here. 1) Be Respectful Treat other members as you would have them treat you. This means no flaming, insulting, or belittling other members. 2) Stay on Topic Posts in a thread should not deviate from the original topic. For a new discussion, make a separate post. 3) No inappropriate language or images Avoid vulgar, racist, and sexist comments, as well as swearing. We have a Zero Profanity policy. There is an automatic censor, but that does not mean anything it misses is necessarily acceptable. The censor should never have to be used, as appropriate language should be used initially. Do not post pornographic, violent, gory, or otherwise offensive graphics or links. Images should be scaled down as necessary to maintain a consistent and readable forum layout. 4) No Spamming Spamming is a broad term. Spamming includes unauthorized advertising, unproductive and useless posting, post-padding, empty posts, referral and associate links, pyramid schemes, etc. 5) Keep Things Legal Any discussion, links, or information on hacking, cracking, serial numbers, pirating, warez, or any other illegal matters is not allowed. This includes talks of Emulators and Torrents. Discussion of legal torrents such as Linux distrobutions is fine. But anything that is copyrighted, pay per use or covered by any sort of copyright is forbidden. The links provide the information needed. 6) No Avatar or Custom Title Abuse Avatars and custom titles are subject to Rule 3. Titles may not contain "Banned", "Administrator", "Moderator", or any of their abbreviations. 7) Signatures must adhere to the following specifications: Text signatures may not exceed 15 lines in size 1, or 8 lines in size 2. Text size 3 and above is not allowed. Text size 1 may only be used with a graphic, with no more than 8 lines. The combined size of all images in a sig is a maximum of 468x120. Please keep the file sizes small for loading times. Any scripts that display a user's IP address and browser information are not allowed. Signatures are subject to Rule 3. Signatures are a privledge. They are gratned for use when you reach 40 posts. If you abuse the system and try to get to 40 posts as fast as possible you will lose this right. 9) The Buy/Trade/Sell area is a privledge. It is not a right. You must earn you way into this area with having 100 posts. As with the signatures spamming you way to 100 posts will get you disbarred from this area. The B/S/T area has a very special set of rules to follow. Read up on them so you know them before you get access and start to post there. 9) Off-Topic Area is also a privledge. It is not a right. You will gain access to this area at 40 posts just like your signature. This area has its own set of rules as well. Read up on them and get to know them before you enter so that you do not get into trouble upon gaining access. 10) Questions or Concerns If you have a question, comment or concern contact the Moderator of the area you have the issue with. If they can not resolve the issue they will refer it to the next person in line. Confidential concerns can be posted in the Confidential Discussions forum. Only the original poster and the moderator team can see these posts, and any discussions there are treat as private. 11) Enjoy yourself! Have a great time posting and we look forward to your feedback. When the rules are breached, the moderators and administrators may issue infractions, remove privileges, or choose to ban a user immediately, depending on the severity. Ignored warnings and continued offense usually result in banning. The administrators and moderators reserve the right at all times to edit or remove any posts, images, signatures, avatars, and custom titles. Tech-Forums reserves the right to change or alter these rules at any time without notice. Anything not expressly covered in these rules is subject to an Administrator/Moderator's approval. An Administrator and/or Moderator’s word is final. Updated: 10 Nov 2008 ----------------------------------------------- The Infraction System is a way to give points to members that break the rules. Here's the point system: Sig Rule Violation is 5 points and expires after 6 months. Inappropriate Language is 5 points and expires after 1 month. Small Infraction is 5 points and expires after 14 days. Flaming is 10 points and expires after 14 days. Necroposting is 10 points and expires after 14 days. Piracy/Warez is 15 points and expires after 1 month. Spam is 15 points and expires after 1 month. PM Spam is 15 points and expires after 1 month. Inappropriate Thread/Post is 20 points and expires after 1 month. Permanent Ban is 1000 points and never expires. Custom Infraction is whatever points that an Admin wants to give and will expire whenever they want. The points will accumulate until they expire. If a user accumulates a certain amount of points, there are automatic bans. The accumulated points are: 30 points is a 7 day suspension. 75 points is a 1 month suspension. 150 points is a permanent ban. The Infraction System is a disciplinary system to get members to conform to the rules. That's why this system has a set amount of points and a set amount of time for expiration of those points. The auto ban is also a great way to show that abiding by the rules is imperative. Note: Some of the infractions are extended. That means a user will receive extended expiration times if given a second infraction that matches an existing active infraction. For example, a user is given a small infraction that expires in 14 days. An hour later this user is given the same infraction for another post. Since the user already had an active small infraction, this new infraction's expiration time is added to the end time of the previous infraction. Effectively, this new infraction will now end 27 days and 23 hours later instead of the default of 14 days. If the user was given a third infraction, it would be added to the end of the second infraction as well, which in this case would put them in the temp ban. Explanation of Infractions (this list is not all inclusive): Sig Rule Violation is self-explanatory. See the sig thread. Inappropriate Language is for bypassing the profanity filter, and may be for insinuations and inuendos. Small Infraction is for small offenses that might not be covered in the other categories. Flaming is self-explanatory. Necroposting is when a thread older than 3 months and is posted in. If the thread is over 3 months old. Do not post in it. The 3 moth limit is not from the date the thread was created but from the date of the LAST post in the thread. The date can be found by the user name. Piracy/Warez is self-explanatory. Spam is when a member does a link drop, not for the join and only spam people. PM Spam is when a member is reported for sending spam via PMs. Inappropriate Thread/Post is anything that is not allowed here. This is a tech forum. Permanent Ban is 1000 points and no one will ever accumulatively achieve this. This amount of points is given to one time spammers and those that will never be allowed back. If you receive an infraction, only you and the Forum Leaders will know. It is not a public record that everyone can see. I hope this helps with understanding the system. *Please refer to the RULES, News and Announcements forum often to find any changes or additions made to these rules.