Forum Rules

[TroyHepfner]

Hi everyone,

I want the forum rules to be clear and unambiguous, so I am posting a thread specifically for forum rules. I'll also make it a sticky thread so it stays at the top of the thread list where it is always visible.

For the most part, we haven't had many problems. But we have had a few incidents recently, so I think a reminder is good.

The Rules

Rule #1: No profanity or objectionable language. A lot of children frequently visit my web site, and some participate with their parents in my forums.

Rule #2: No spam. This is my company forum, and I do not want to see any unsolicited advertisements, especially for gambling sites, lingerie sites, drug sites, or any site that is inappropriate for children. I may choose to mention a web site or product in my blog that I think is cool or I choose to promote, but these are the only advertisements allowed in the forums.

I reserve the right to edit or delete any post that I feel violates these rules.

I also reserve the right to add new rules or update existing rules as our community grows and evolves.

Penalties

The first infraction of rule #1 will usually result in a warning from me via a private message or e-mail.

For subsequent infractions of rule #1, the penalty will depend on what was said. I realize that people can get excited and say things without thinking, so the frequency and severity of language used will determine what happens next (how many additional warnings the user may get).

I have a zero tolerance policy for rule #2. I don't like spam, and I don't have time to deal with it. Any spam will result in the immediate banning of the one who posted it.

Conclusion

I want these forums to be family-friendly, and a safe, fun place to visit for everyone. The rules are pretty basic, but I expect members to abide by them. Thank you.

[TroyHepfner]

Just bumping this thread so it becomes visible on the main page again. We've had some spamming incidents recently, so I want to make sure newcomers see the rules.

[TroyHepfner]

New rule: anyone who uses our employee names as part of their user account name (e.g, TroyHepfner21) to post spam and make it look like it is coming from us, will be immediately banned.

[TroyHepfner]

I changed the forum rules. I now have a zero tolerance policy for spam. Spammers aren't going to get a warning anymore - I'm just going to ban them. The burst of spam that we were hit with this morning prompted this change. I'm a game developer, and I want to be writing games. I don't have time to deal with spam!

Moderators: if you delete any spam posts, please report the spammer to me via private message so I can ban them. If you're not sure whether a post should be considered spam or not, feel free to leave it in the moderation queue and I will look at it later.

[TroyHepfner]

I've made some further adjustments to combat the recent increase in spam. From now on, ALL activity on new forum accounts will be moderated. All posts must be approved by myself or one of the moderators before they appear on the site. Also, new accounts may no longer use private messaging, visitor messages, signatures, profile pictures, etc, since these have been abused lately.

As new forum users begin to contribute meaningfully to the community and demonstrate that they aren't spammers, I will manually promote them to an approved user, who will then have greater permissions on my forum to use features like signatures, send private messages, upload their own profile pictures, etc.