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Posting Guidelines and General Information

Started by admin, 21 November 2007, 06:25 AM

admin

Guideline: a line by which one is guided: as a) a cord or rope to aid a passer over a difficult point or to permit retracing a course b) an indication or outline of policy or conduct.

The Golden Rules

This Forum isn't run by rules, per se. Rather, it is moderated by a tight-knit group of moderators who have volunteered to put themselves in the position of making difficult judgment calls. Most of these Guidelines are geared towards just improving the state of the forum through smart tips (using good subject lines is just wise, ya know). Some of these Guidelines are more prohibitive, however, and they function as rules. The rules come in two-forms: the cardinal, and the compulsory.

Cardinal Rules


  • The Usage Agreement must be respected in full.
  • No trolling. Don't make posts that are inflammatory just to get people riled up. Substance is a key to not being labeled a troll, but substance alone cannot prevent you from being considered a troll. Substance with a dash of personal attacks will get you labeled as a troll.
  • Ad hominem and personal attacks are not permitted. Criticize the ideas, not the people. An ad hominem attack is a logical fallacy describing the attempt to discredit an argument by merely attacking the credibility of the arguer. Excessive flaming will not be tolerated. Users who verbally assault the character or person of other posters on a regular basis will be banned. Moderator's judgment applies here. "You are wrong" is not a personal attack; "You wrong because you are an idiot" probably. Persistent name-calling in the absence of content will likely be assessed as a violation of this rule.
  • No pornographic, sexually offensive, sexually explicit, or objectifying material. Simple rule. Moderator's judgment applies here. We'd like for our readers to be able to read W116.org at work and share with friends without fear of retribution.
  • Respect the privacy of others. Do not post other's private phone numbers, addresses, pictures, etc., without their express permission.
  • Abuse of editing privileges is not permitted. Editing posts for grammar or information is fantastic, but after an initial grace period of 10 minutes, users may not delete/edit content for the purpose of evading possible moderation (removing flames, trolls, etc.). Also, starting a thread, not liking how it turns out, and then deleting your own posts is irresponsible and unfair, and an actionable offense. It's simply not cool to troll users and then delete it, acting as if nothing has happened.
  • Each forum member may have only one account.
  • Each forum member must maintain e-mail. All users must provide a current, frequently read e-mail address in his/her internal profile. Note that non-moderators do not have access to your internal e-mail address (which is separate from "Display e-mail").
  • Do not place foul language in thread subjects.
  • And of course, NO SPAMMING. No commercial-oriented posts, and no flooding with useless content or content designed to engage readers into forum wars or trolling other sites. Do not post topics linking only to advertisements or auctions with out comment. No shop is to tout for business.

Compulsory Rules


  • Use descriptive subject lines and research your post. This reduces the chances of double-posting, and it also makes it easier for people to see what they do/don't want to read. Also, scan the subjects of the last several days' posts to make sure you aren't duplicating posts.
  • Post in the right forum! If it's about Interiors, post it in the Interiors & Exteriors forum. Even if it's only humor, an observation, or angst, if it's about something that we have a forum for, post it there.
  • Restrict the use of excessive foul language. Although we don't really care if people cuss (um, we have been known to cuss ourselves now and again), excessive foul language is likely to get moderated, if only because excessive foul language usually indicates that someone is utterly clueless. Buy a thesaurus. We also require that you leave rough or offensive language out of the thread subjects. A lot of people read the Forum at work, and while foul language is par for the course, let's try and keep it to a minimum.
  • No blatantly juvenile toilet humor. Simple rule. Moderator's judgment applies here. Talk about what you do to relieve yourself, although popular (for some odd reason) is not needed here.

Discussion of the nature of 'Open'.

W116.org is an enthusiastís site dedicated to a particular model of car, and this Forum is an extension of W116.org. It's an incredibly fun place to hang out, and it's a truly "open" place because our community members come in with broad interests and backgrounds, yet still find a way to meet on common ground. Users of all levels of expertise intermingle, and enthusiasts with intense passions meet up with others just like them.

The Forum, as fun and diverse and it may be, wasn't ever intended to facilitate the needs of everyone who wants to talk about anything at any time. It is not intended to be "community television" or a public park. Rather, W116.org and its Forum are privately owned and operated. We use moderators to keep the content in-line, to a certain extent, with the vision and purpose of W116.org as a whole.

We run this forum with the open minds of true enthusiasts. We love to see people learn to open their minds to new ideas, new technologies, and new people. "Open" at W116.org means that non-enthusiasts can come here and talk about their cars without being shut down or kicked at the drop of a hat. "Open" at W116.org means that people can actually talk about many things outside of the realm of the W116 and not be kicked for it. "Open" at W116.org does not mean that the loudest, most profane individuals are given the chance to steal the floor by sheer audacity. If you hang around for a while, you'll realize that it is a very open, yet responsible place. "Open" has never meant that individuals have a license to abuse the Forum and its audience. Open has never meant that blatant racism and sexism would be tolerated. "Open" has never meant that individuals are free to beat topics into the ground and thrive on "pissing people off;" "shock value" is not something that we value, and it has absolutely nothing to do with true openness.

Put simply, the W116.org Forum is a community of people with similar interest on certain levels, and the forum is an open atmosphere for intelligent interests. Still, as a community, we have to get along, and for that to happen, there have to some rules.