Forum Rules

Guest Mon Mar 08, 2010 6:32 am

Overview

This thread is here for you to be aware of the rules and guidelines that control this forum. The information below can be found in the guild charter and is posted here for your reference. The Judicial Committee is responsible with updating this section when charter changes affect the below areas.

Article II. Code of Conduct

Section B. Forum Posting Guidelines

_{1. This is a set of guidelines to aid you in your posts on this forum. A certain level of readability is required both to make it easier for everyone to view the posts and to maintain a professional looking site from the outside:

-1a. Always post in full words. Examples of what is not acceptable are: ur, txt, c, u, cum, peeps, nething.

-1b. Never post using numbers in place of letters. Examples of what is not acceptable are: m8, som1, 2.

-1c. Always capitalize where necessary. Example: I, names and places.

-1d. Always write in full sentences and use paragraph breaks if appropriate.

-1e. Do not swear unless it fits the post. These instances will be fairly rare.

-1f. Punctuate!

2. Basically if you stick to what you learned in English class all should be good.

3. The following guidelines will help promote a user-friendly environment:

-3a. Do not post in all capital letters, use excessive punctuation, etc. We ask that you refrain from using sensational tactics in order to bring more people to your thread. Let your post stand on its own merit.

-3b. Posting IBL, IBTL, or variants of “In Before The Lock” constitutes spamming. We appreciate that our posters understand the Rules of Conduct to the point where they can call whether or not a thread is in violation; however, saying in before the lock does not contribute to a constructive community and it does fall under spamming. If you wish to acknowledge a post that violates policy, please report it instead.

-3c. Do not bump posts. The act of bumping ones post is considered spamming and contributes nothing constructive to the discussion. Your thread will be seen; there is no need to continually bump it to the top of the list.

-3d. Do not hijack topics. Posting comments within a thread which severely disrupts the original conversation is prohibited.

-3e. Petition posts are frowned on. This is a discussion forum. Petition threads do
not contain much discussion; instead, a petition is usually page after page of /signed. This is not constructive. If you have an issue, please discuss it in a civil and informed fashion.

-3f. Do not post about locked or deleted threads. Posts that are moderated have a reason behind the moderation. We lock before we post on a locked thread to stop the violation in question as soon as possible, so if you have yet to see a comment by a member of the community team on a locked thread, please wait for it and do not post on the subject. Please, do not post linking to threads you feel should be moderated.

4. Lastly, please have fun. Although it looks like there are a lot of procedures and rules in place, most of these are common sense, and are meant as a safeguard to keep these forums active and relevant for the community of a game we all love. Abusing these forums affects everyone who enjoys this game, so we ask for your cooperation and your support in achieving
and maintaining this goal. Suggestions to make this an even better place for our community are always welcome! You can PM any of the Elder Council or Judicial Committee members with your input and we will review it for implementation.}

Section C. Forum Posting Rules

_{1. The Rules of Conduct are guidelines to the user on expected conduct and behavior upon the Order of the Unifying Force website. These guidelines can change at the sole discretion of the Community Team as necessary to best benefit the Order of the Unifying Force Forums community and cultivate an atmosphere appropriate to a gaming forum. Despite our best efforts to detail the different sections with specific examples, there will always be areas that will be ultimately handled on a per incident basis by the Community Team. Even when not specified, the Community Team has the sole right and final judgment of how to interpret and apply these rules and guidelines to any specific circumstance and situation, including proper punishment or exception. It violates the entire community when you engage in any of the following behavior:

- 1a. Post, transmit, promote, or distribute Content that is illegal.

- 1b. Harass, threaten, embarrass, or do anything else to another Member or guest that is unwanted. This includes: saying bad things about Members or guests, repeatedly sending them unwanted messages, attacking their race, sexual orientation, religion, heritage, etc. Remember: if you disagree with someone, keep your response targeted at the subject, not the person.

- 1c. Transmit or facilitate distribution of Content that is harmful, abusive, racially or ethnically offensive, vulgar, sexually explicit, defamatory, infringing, invasive of personal privacy or publicity rights, or in a reasonable person's view, objectionable. Hate speech is not tolerated.

- 1d. Trolling, which we define as posts or threads, which knowingly lead to overly strong negative and emotional responses for mere shock value, are not allowed on the Order of the Unifying Force forums. Accounts made with the sole intent to “troll” will be immediately and permanently suspended. Constant personal attacks are also considered trolling.

- 1e. Posts deemed inappropriate to a particular forum will be moved to a more appropriate forum or even removed completely depending on the nature of the post. Examples of such posts would be off-topic posts posted in a political forum or a technical help question posted in off-topic. This is done to facilitate proper communication on the forums and allow for the flow of conversation. Posts that have been removed are not to be reposted. Reposting removed posts or making posts questioning said removal, will be cause for account suspension.

- 1f. Impersonate another person (including celebrities), attempt to get a password, other account information, or other private information from a Member or any other user on the Order of the Unifying Force forum. Remember: The Community Team will NEVER ask for your password. Do not give your password, user information out to anyone.

- 1g. Upload any software or Content that you do not own or have permission to freely distribute.

- 1h. Promote or encourage any illegal activity including hacking, cracking or distribution of counterfeit software.

- 1i. Upload files that contain a virus or corrupted data.

- 1j. Post messages for any purpose other than personal communication, including without limitation advertising or promotional messaging, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or other commercial activities.

- 1k. Post or communicate any player’s real-world personal information within the Service or through any Site or any Service bulletin board.

- 1l. You may not give false information or intentionally hide any information when registering for your Order of the Unifying Force forum account. Posting profanity or otherwise objectionable content in your profile is also prohibited. You are responsible to make sure your account information, especially your email address, is up-to-date.

- 1m. If you are suspended, it is not proper to get back to the forums on an alternate account. If your account is suspended, and you use an alternate account to post, the alternate account will be permanently suspended, and not only will you receive another official warning, but your suspension will be lengthened. You do not need to contact us to review a suspension, as they are all reviewed by the rest of the Community Team. If we feel there is an issue with your suspension, we will gladly reverse it, or shorten its length and you will be notified with a Private Message.

- 1n. Post threads on a guild site, or discuss in an in-game guild public chat, topics that are considered controversial in nature. Topics include, but are not limited to: Politics, Religion, etc.}