Please keep in mind that this is an all ages board, and is read and used by young posters. Also, this is the message board for the Dragon Tails webcomic and that as a community, these boards should reflect many of it's values.
The following rules are your guide to behaviour on these boards. They address the general case, while moderators and administrators address the specific case. When a rule and a moderator appear to be saying different things, the moderator is always right. Avoid arguing with them - if you feel you've been wronged or misrepresented, you're welcome to contact me by EMail. Voicing your grievances on the message board itself is ill advised.
Rules
- No swearing. Avoid using bad language. Mild cursing is tolerated in moderation but be careful of your tone, especially against fellow posters.
- No offensive content. This includes, but is not limited to :
- Gore and excessive violence (both photographic and animated) including 'stick death' and violent Flash animations
- Pornography and strongly sexually suggestive material (both photographic and animated)
- Racist and hate speech material
- Other material generally considered rude, vulgar or crass (including bodily functions)
Posting written material or inline images containing the above is unacceptable. Links to gratuitous examples of the above is prohibited. It is sometimes reasonable to link to an external resource that contains borderline material because of it's redeeming attributes (an article about a breakthrough in medical science with graphic pictures of surgery for instance) and it is polite to warn people about what they might see. Please note this is simply netiquette and not a licence to break this rule. If you have concerns about material you wish to post, you can contact me first.
No illegal content. This includes, but is not limited to :
- Material concerned with illegal drugs and drug use
- Material concerned with making weapons and explosives or committing crimes
- Pirated software, music, or other media, including modern commercial game emulation, file sharing networks and ways of circumventing copy protection
Discussing the implications, ethics and other theoretical aspects of these subjects is acceptable, but promoting, advocating or providing specific details is not.
No advertising, spamming or scams. This includes, but is not limited to :
- Promoting other EZBoards (or other non EZBoard message boards for that matter)
- Pyramid and other MLM schemes, referral programs and money scams
- Passing through the board to advertise your service, event, competition or personal website - even if your link seems to correspond to the theme of the message board
Sharing your website or webcomic with the other forum dwellers is something reserved for people who become part of the community, as this is not a public noticeboard for you to advertise on. Avoid promoting your website in your first post as it makes it difficult to tell if you intend to stick around or not.
Not all behaviour is so simple, these tips can help you fit in better with the exiting community.
Guidelines
- Make your signature a reasonable size. Large, ugly and slow loading signatures visually pollute the board, enlarge threads and slow down modem users. Show respect for your fellow posters by ensuring your signature, if used, is somewhat discreet, space efficient (avoid using vertical content) and quick loading. If you use other message boards and don't want to change it for this one, then disable your signature when you post by unchecking the box below your message body. You will be warned if your signature is unacceptable.
While I am personally against the practice of using your signature to list your site URL's, EMail addresses and IM accounts (as everyone has a perfectly good profile for this) if you insist on doing it, it is permissible to include an EZBoard link, assuming it's not a blatant advert.
- Don't post nonsense and gibberish. Don't waste people's time by spieling off nonsense prose or other forms of brainless rambling. While we all have a sense of humour, material that's completely devoid of intelligence, thought or wit, does not belong on these boards.
- Make use of the preview function. The preview checkbox that sits next to the post button is a powerful tool that will show you exactly how your post, profile picture and signature will look before you add it to the board. You can use it to check your EZcodes and other formatting, as well as seeing how your profile and signature looks without making 'test' threads, and save yourself from having to fix blatant mistakes with edits.
- If you have a large picture to display, either in filesize or dimensions, link it. Stretching threads is a no-no, and if it occurs your expected to edit your post to fix it.
- If you post an external link, please be discerning. We do not need to be inundated with Flash animations and quirky sites. You can share sites with the rest of the board that make you laugh or think, but just try not to make a habit of it, and consequently be sure to only pick the best of the bunch, as mediocre Flash animations are not rare treasures that the world must be notified about. If you're going to post trivial and silly content, it *must* be all ages.
- Avoid provocative subject matter. Reviving topics like Creationism VS Evolution or gun control, or challenging people's religious convictions are ultimately unproductive and breed bad will. They are not a good way to 'entertain' or 'liven up' the board.
- If you're not a moderator, don't feel compelled to act like one. If someone is breaking a rule in a way that annoys you or makes you feel uncomfortable, feel free to tell them that you don't think they should be doing that. Do not travel the boards looking for people who you feel are breaking rules so you can tell them off. Do not copy-paste quote sections of the rules at people. Do not warn people of the rules when they first arrive - that can be insulting. If someone is being a nuisance on the board, and a moderator is aware of the situation, consider backing off. Goading and provoking troublemakers takes control of the situation away from the moderator and makes their role more difficult.
- If you're new to the boards, you can simply join in on existing threads, or start one of your own to announce your presence. If you do start an introduction thread, please take the time to tell us about yourself, because while we're generally friendly and interesting people it's difficult to respond to "Hi I'm new. Bye."
Handy icebreakers include what some of your interests are, how you found this board, if you know anyone who already posts here or even what part of the world you hail from. If you're going to use a new thread to announce yourself, be sure to give us something to go on.
But most of all, just try and be yourself, use your common sense, treat others with understanding and respect and have fun!
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