Forum Rules

[Rag]

The following rules are in place to maintain an open, friendly and organised atmosphere on the forums, and so if you plan on becoming a part of this community it’s important that you do your best to follow them.

If you break a rule, you’ll receive a warning from the staff worth a certain number of points. Should your warning level (displayed at the top right of your posts) reach 100%, your account will be banned for two weeks. To see a record of warnings you've received, just click on the percentage shown beside the warning level.


The Rules

• No spamming*
  A post falls into the category of “spam” when it adds nothing to the topic in question, contains few or no words, or is generally of no interest to anyone. The forums are primarily a place of discussion rather than idle chat, so make sure that your posts are worthwhile. Never double-post (post two or more replies in a row) unless you have no choice – use the edit button if you need to add something.
  
  
• No flaming*
  A comment is classed as flaming when it insults or is designed to otherwise offend another member. If you strongly disapprove of someone or disagree with their opinion, either express it maturely without name-calling, or keep it to yourself.
  
  
• No pornography or otherwise indecent content
  Posting unsuitable images, writing or links to such material is prohibited. As a general rule, anything that isn't work-safe should not be posted, but if you must post a link that may be borderline then make sure you provide adequate warning about its contents.
  
  
• Album Rules
  The album is primarily for hosting personal images of yourself and other personal images related to your live (things you've bought, photos you've taken, places you've been, hanging out with friends and so forth). It can also be used to display images such as current and former avatars/signatures as well as any works of art you've created.
  
  
• Exercise good grammar and post etiquette
  This is a discussion forum, not a chat room, so please make an effort with your posts. If a reply is rendered almost impossible to read because of poor punctuation, spelling and all-round messy typing, then it's no better than spam, even if you might have something worthwhile to say. The forum has a built-in spellchecker which you can activate before submitting a post, so don't hesitate to use it.
  
  
• No advertising
  Members that join up solely to advertise will be banned and have any links removed from their posts. If you’re a part of the community, however, you’re allowed to include links in your signature and promote your site in the [Advertisements] subforum in Website Galaxy. To be able to do the latter, you must have at least twenty posts.
  
  Exploiting the private messaging system for advertising purposes will also earn an instant ban, and so members are encouraged to report any such PMs they receive to an administrator.
  
  
• Plagiarism is forbidden
  Any member who attempts to take credit for someone else's work, be it art, writing or graphics, will be punished with a two-week ban. Plagiarism is unacceptable in the real world and will not be tolerated here. When posting artwork it's also advised that you don't "forget" to mention that some or all of the picture may have been copied or traced.
  
  
• One account only
  There can only be one account per user. If you want a different username, you can get it changed [here]. If you register a new account while banned from the forums, you’ll be blocked with a permanent IP ban.

*Note: Spamming and flaming are permitted in the [Spam Forum], but all other rules still apply. This isn't, however, an excuse to post nothing but rubbish in there.



The album is not to be used for questionable material, such as your own little porn stash. It would also be appreciated if you kept non related images to a minimum.

Additional rules:

Several forums have specific rules that apply to them. These will be detailed in notice threads at the tops of their pages, and should be read if you wish to take part in that section.

Finally, if you’re using a signature, check the [Signature Guidelines] to make sure it’s within the limits.