Posting Guidelines
Posted: 26 Nov 2014, 12:37
These rules deal with posting on these Forums. If you came here from the Relic-Forum you might already know those. Anyways we'd suggest to read them all again.
The short version
1. If a Mod or Admin tells you something, then do it.
2. No spam, no flaming.
3. No warez.
4. No porn, no nudity.
5. Do not drag threads offtopic (especially in the bugs and balancing forums).
7. All posts are to be made in English.
8. Do not post the same thread in more than one forum.
9. No politics, no religions.
10. No Racism, no Nazi symbols or names.
11. Do not abuse the quote function.
12. No oversized letters, the red color is used only by admins and team members.
The long version
1. If a Mod or Admin tells you something, then do it.We aren't able to cover all possibilities within these guidelines, so the general rule of thumb is: If a Mod says black is white, it's white. Listen to what they tell you to do, regardless of whether you can find a rule about it or not.If you disagree with an admin or mods, send them a private message or complain in the in forum issues stating the reasons why.
2. No spam, no flaming.That means no threads inciting flames or mindless chatter. Profanity is to be kept to a minimum: while permitted in context, excessive swearing will not be tolerated. Personal attacks - 'flames' - are strictly prohibited.
2.1 Don't post in an obnoxious manner.
This includes abusing the colour and size tags, spamming images or smilies all over the place, and generally creating an eyesore. The use of internet forum pictures specifically designed for posting in threads is prohibited; examples would be things like "WTF," "Thread Necromancy," or anything with kittens in it and a witty caption, like "Even Kittens can't save this thread" etc.
2.2 No Double Posting.
Use the "Modify" function. Reading 3 posts in a row by the same author is extremely annoying. Got something to add to your original post after you've hit reply? Use modify.
2.3 No bumping old threads with inane replies, especially not one-liners like "lol" or "i agree".
Only add to an old thread if your comments are relevant and would be seen as a viable addition to a thread. Continuing on a conversation dropped months ago is not a viable reason.
3. No warez.At All. Mentioning it at all gets you fired out of the nearest Dora cannon, never to return. It's evil. We hate that here.Theft of intellectual property is a serious concern to those it most affects... the creators. We have taken a firm stand against the promotion of software piracy (also known as warez) and the theft of digital media and other intellectual property (IP).As such any forum member that advocates the theft of IP, or provides access through any means to warez, will be banned permanently and on the spot. This includes hinting at downloading warez, or admitting to downloading warez.
What is warez?
Warez basically means pirated software in any form. This includes anything related to illegally downloading music, movies, or any form of software. No-CD cracks, serial numbers and other things that are directly related to pirating software are banned as well.
Take note that file sharing of bootleg music or pirated software through peer to peer programs like BitTorrent or eDonkey is a form of warezing.
Warez also refers to theft of IP. This is a broader term and would include, but is not limited to, the use of someone else's work, in part or in whole, and presenting it as your own. If you do use small part of someone's work product in a post ensure that it is properly referenced (link if available) and credit given.
3.1 Abandonware is also considered warez.
The phenomenon known as Abandonware is also legally considered to be warez, and promoting, linking to or admitting to using abandonware will also result in a ban.
What is abandonware?
The phenomenon known as abandonware is a belief that if a game is old and outdated copyright restrictions no longer apply. This is not true. Any game that the publisher has not formally released into the public domain is still protected by the full weight of copyright law unless it has been 95 years since the release of the game.
Since no computer game has existed that long the argument of abandonware advocates is moot and will be treated as Warez.
Bans associated with the violation of these rules are considered permanent. Such bans may be lifted at the sole discretion of the administrators of this forum and only after it is clear there has been a change in the banned member’s attitude. If posting privileges are restored the first post to the community will be an apology.Consider it fair warning not to test the boundaries, or intent, of these rules... even in jest.
4. No porn, no nudity.Pornography is banned from the forums. The hard and fast rule of thumb for acceptable amounts of flesh being posted are that no nipples or genitalia are to be exposed, and no pictures that suggest or imply sexual readiness / provocative poses are allowed. This is dealt by on a case by case basis, so if you are worried about a post not meeting the guidelines, post about it in Forum Issues or Private Message an administrator for clarification.
5. Do not drag threads offtopic.Threads may be locked if you drag them offtopic. You may be banned from the thread, and have your posts deleted. The moderators are not here to clean up threads though so do not expect offtopic posts to just be deleted, and the thread left open. You are responsible for your posts, so if you get thread locked due to offtopic posts, it is your fault and no one elses. Offtopic posts that derail a thread ( provide fodder for others to post offtopic ), will most likely be deleted straight away.
6. Do not post a thread/post and have the only content of the first post a link to a website or just an image, with no qualifying text.Members need to know where they are going, and a either a brief summary by the thread starter or commentary as well as some kind of discussion incentive is required.
7. All posts are to be made in English.If you post something in a different language then a translation is required. This is a international Forum and although most of the staff speak more then one language it would be to confusing if everyone would write in his mother tongue here. The staff can only moderate English/German text, therefore we cannot moderate posts that are not written in those languages. If you are German, and don't speak English that good, you can post German in the German subforum, but only there.This also includes posting legibly and not overusing "txt msg shorthand". We're not an English class here, and for a lot of our members English is not the primary language, and occasional typos happen. We do however ask that you put some effort into your posts - if you are prone to bad spelling, use a spell checker. This also refers to excessive use of text message/AOL/leetspeak. You are not pressed for time to answer, and you have a great big keyboard in front of you, so nothing is gained by using "u" instead of "you" other than making it harder for others to read your posts.
8. Do not post the same thread in more than one forum.Choose the most appropriate forum for your topic and post it once only. In addition, creating a thread in one forum for the sole purpose of advertising a thread in another forum is not permitted.
9. No politics, no religions, Personal political and religion views don't belong into the Forum, except we start them because we think they are important or we want you to discuss about them. This Forum is primary a gaming forum and not a platform to discuss political, religious oppinions or events.
10. No Racism.Don't blame other peope because of their religion, origin or culture! Also don't use Nazi symbols (like SS signs, swatsikas etc.) because they are forbidden in Germany/Austria. Also don't use a username connected to such an organisation. We won't tolerate Nazi glorification!
11. Do not abuse the quote function.Using the quote function to take someone else's words out of context or misrepresent them is considered flaming and will not be tolerated. Use of the quote function should be kept to a minimum, as over-use breaks up the flow of a thread and impedes readability. As a rule of thumb, more than two or three quotes in a single post is overdoing it. Also don't quote the whole post above yours, it's just not neccessary, you can post without a quote, the context would still work. If you want to answer a specific argument then quote only that, but not the whole post.
12. Do not use oversized letters in your post, you can use the standard underline text with the normal bold or CAPS letter size if you want to express "strongly" your point of view, the Red font or similar colors is reserved only to admins and team members, this color will be used only for very important notifications.
The short version
1. If a Mod or Admin tells you something, then do it.
2. No spam, no flaming.
3. No warez.
4. No porn, no nudity.
5. Do not drag threads offtopic (especially in the bugs and balancing forums).
7. All posts are to be made in English.
8. Do not post the same thread in more than one forum.
9. No politics, no religions.
10. No Racism, no Nazi symbols or names.
11. Do not abuse the quote function.
12. No oversized letters, the red color is used only by admins and team members.
The long version
1. If a Mod or Admin tells you something, then do it.We aren't able to cover all possibilities within these guidelines, so the general rule of thumb is: If a Mod says black is white, it's white. Listen to what they tell you to do, regardless of whether you can find a rule about it or not.If you disagree with an admin or mods, send them a private message or complain in the in forum issues stating the reasons why.
2. No spam, no flaming.That means no threads inciting flames or mindless chatter. Profanity is to be kept to a minimum: while permitted in context, excessive swearing will not be tolerated. Personal attacks - 'flames' - are strictly prohibited.
2.1 Don't post in an obnoxious manner.
This includes abusing the colour and size tags, spamming images or smilies all over the place, and generally creating an eyesore. The use of internet forum pictures specifically designed for posting in threads is prohibited; examples would be things like "WTF," "Thread Necromancy," or anything with kittens in it and a witty caption, like "Even Kittens can't save this thread" etc.
2.2 No Double Posting.
Use the "Modify" function. Reading 3 posts in a row by the same author is extremely annoying. Got something to add to your original post after you've hit reply? Use modify.
2.3 No bumping old threads with inane replies, especially not one-liners like "lol" or "i agree".
Only add to an old thread if your comments are relevant and would be seen as a viable addition to a thread. Continuing on a conversation dropped months ago is not a viable reason.
3. No warez.At All. Mentioning it at all gets you fired out of the nearest Dora cannon, never to return. It's evil. We hate that here.Theft of intellectual property is a serious concern to those it most affects... the creators. We have taken a firm stand against the promotion of software piracy (also known as warez) and the theft of digital media and other intellectual property (IP).As such any forum member that advocates the theft of IP, or provides access through any means to warez, will be banned permanently and on the spot. This includes hinting at downloading warez, or admitting to downloading warez.
What is warez?
Warez basically means pirated software in any form. This includes anything related to illegally downloading music, movies, or any form of software. No-CD cracks, serial numbers and other things that are directly related to pirating software are banned as well.
Take note that file sharing of bootleg music or pirated software through peer to peer programs like BitTorrent or eDonkey is a form of warezing.
Warez also refers to theft of IP. This is a broader term and would include, but is not limited to, the use of someone else's work, in part or in whole, and presenting it as your own. If you do use small part of someone's work product in a post ensure that it is properly referenced (link if available) and credit given.
3.1 Abandonware is also considered warez.
The phenomenon known as Abandonware is also legally considered to be warez, and promoting, linking to or admitting to using abandonware will also result in a ban.
What is abandonware?
The phenomenon known as abandonware is a belief that if a game is old and outdated copyright restrictions no longer apply. This is not true. Any game that the publisher has not formally released into the public domain is still protected by the full weight of copyright law unless it has been 95 years since the release of the game.
Since no computer game has existed that long the argument of abandonware advocates is moot and will be treated as Warez.
Bans associated with the violation of these rules are considered permanent. Such bans may be lifted at the sole discretion of the administrators of this forum and only after it is clear there has been a change in the banned member’s attitude. If posting privileges are restored the first post to the community will be an apology.Consider it fair warning not to test the boundaries, or intent, of these rules... even in jest.
4. No porn, no nudity.Pornography is banned from the forums. The hard and fast rule of thumb for acceptable amounts of flesh being posted are that no nipples or genitalia are to be exposed, and no pictures that suggest or imply sexual readiness / provocative poses are allowed. This is dealt by on a case by case basis, so if you are worried about a post not meeting the guidelines, post about it in Forum Issues or Private Message an administrator for clarification.
5. Do not drag threads offtopic.Threads may be locked if you drag them offtopic. You may be banned from the thread, and have your posts deleted. The moderators are not here to clean up threads though so do not expect offtopic posts to just be deleted, and the thread left open. You are responsible for your posts, so if you get thread locked due to offtopic posts, it is your fault and no one elses. Offtopic posts that derail a thread ( provide fodder for others to post offtopic ), will most likely be deleted straight away.
6. Do not post a thread/post and have the only content of the first post a link to a website or just an image, with no qualifying text.Members need to know where they are going, and a either a brief summary by the thread starter or commentary as well as some kind of discussion incentive is required.
7. All posts are to be made in English.If you post something in a different language then a translation is required. This is a international Forum and although most of the staff speak more then one language it would be to confusing if everyone would write in his mother tongue here. The staff can only moderate English/German text, therefore we cannot moderate posts that are not written in those languages. If you are German, and don't speak English that good, you can post German in the German subforum, but only there.This also includes posting legibly and not overusing "txt msg shorthand". We're not an English class here, and for a lot of our members English is not the primary language, and occasional typos happen. We do however ask that you put some effort into your posts - if you are prone to bad spelling, use a spell checker. This also refers to excessive use of text message/AOL/leetspeak. You are not pressed for time to answer, and you have a great big keyboard in front of you, so nothing is gained by using "u" instead of "you" other than making it harder for others to read your posts.
8. Do not post the same thread in more than one forum.Choose the most appropriate forum for your topic and post it once only. In addition, creating a thread in one forum for the sole purpose of advertising a thread in another forum is not permitted.
9. No politics, no religions, Personal political and religion views don't belong into the Forum, except we start them because we think they are important or we want you to discuss about them. This Forum is primary a gaming forum and not a platform to discuss political, religious oppinions or events.
10. No Racism.Don't blame other peope because of their religion, origin or culture! Also don't use Nazi symbols (like SS signs, swatsikas etc.) because they are forbidden in Germany/Austria. Also don't use a username connected to such an organisation. We won't tolerate Nazi glorification!
11. Do not abuse the quote function.Using the quote function to take someone else's words out of context or misrepresent them is considered flaming and will not be tolerated. Use of the quote function should be kept to a minimum, as over-use breaks up the flow of a thread and impedes readability. As a rule of thumb, more than two or three quotes in a single post is overdoing it. Also don't quote the whole post above yours, it's just not neccessary, you can post without a quote, the context would still work. If you want to answer a specific argument then quote only that, but not the whole post.
12. Do not use oversized letters in your post, you can use the standard underline text with the normal bold or CAPS letter size if you want to express "strongly" your point of view, the Red font or similar colors is reserved only to admins and team members, this color will be used only for very important notifications.