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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 11:16:32 GMT -5
First and foremost, welcome to What Does the Fox Say? forums! We are excited and honored that you have chosen to become a member of our online community. If you would like to know more about us, you can check out the About page located in the navigation bar at the top of the page. That being said, this thread contains important information pertaining to our prospective and current members. This is our Member Handbook. We highly recommend that all users, prospective and registered, read the information below. Doing so will ensure that your account doesn't get banned or compromised, ensures your online safety, and gives you some basic information about some of the things we expect from you while you are here. Honestly, it should take only a few minutes of your time. When you have read this handbook, if you have any additional questions and/or a topic needs further clarification; Simply post your question or concern in our Support forum.MemberHANDBOOKTo view a topic, simply click on the link below. A new window will pop up linking you to the contents related to the topic you've chosen.
Forum Rules
Additional Guidelines
Online Safety
Account Security
Moderation Policy
User Groups
User Ranks
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 15:14:19 GMT -5
Please take a few moments to read over the following information regarding the forum rules. These forum rules have been put in place to ensure that our members can remain members of our forum, as well as to protect our forum from being shut down. Please keep in mind that these rules are subject to change with or without notice. Typically, if we make changes, we'll post an announcement detailing those changes. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
ForumRULES - Discrimination: Discrimination is treatment or consideration of, or making a distinction in favor of or against, a person or thing based on the group, class, or category to which that person or thing belongs rather than on individual merit. This includes, but is not limited to; sex, race, beliefs, age, lifestyle choices, and religious beliefs. Discrimination is frowned upon and is prohibited from our forums.
- Illegal Content: Illegal content is not permitted on our forums. Illegal content includes, but is not limited to, the following: torrents, or the promotion of obtaining torrents in the form of movies, music, television, etc. Piracy is illegal. Additionally, anything that promotes the use of or sale of illegal drugs, alcohol, and/or extreme violence or hate crimes.
- Spam: Spam is irrelevant, unwanted or inappropriate messages sent on the Internet to a large number of recipients. As this is a forum, our member base can and/or will have a large number of people. That being said, spamming will not be tolerated.
- ProBoards TOS: We suggest that all members and prospective members take the time to read the ProBoards TOS. The TOS contains rules, regulations, and guidelines required by forums hosted with the PB Software. That being said, breaking the TOS could result in our forum being pulled off the internet. We don't want that and we doubt that you do. Please make sure you read and understand them.
- Thread Hijacking: Thread hijacking is the act of trying to steer a web forum discussion thread off topic by discussing a subject entirely unrelated to the subject at hand. That being said, all members are required to keep topics/threads on topic in accordance with the initial post in the thread. If you want to create a topic, all members have that ability.
- Mini-Modding: Mini-Modding happens when members try too hard to be helpful. Mini-modding is acting as if you are a staff member and telling people what they can and cannot do. While we appreciate the help, our staff is more than capable of dealing with these situations. Additionally, you can always report a post if it breaks a forum rule or the ProBoards TOS.
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 15:47:28 GMT -5
Please take a few moments to read over the following information regarding the additional guidelines. These forum-wide guidelines have been put in place so that our members know what is expected of them. Please keep in mind that those outlined in this post are subject to change with or without notice. Typically, if we make changes, we'll post an announcement detailing those changes. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
AdditionalGUIDELINES - Respect: Not only does respect go along way, we expect all of our members and staff to respect each other. Be mindful of others. It is okay to share your input or opinion on something so long as you remain respectful about it. You are not permitted to down talk any member, nor bash them in any way.
- Cursing: While cursing is not encouraged, it is permitted on our forums. That being said, please keep the cursing to a minimum. At registration, all registrants are required to be age thirteen years of age or older. That being said, at any given time their will be a variety of people from different age groups that find excessive cursing to be offensive. We ask that you do NOT directly cuss at someone. If you need clarification of what that means, then cuss words should not be in your vocabulary at all.
- Advertising: We only allow advertising in select areas of our forum. You can advertise in your user profile by way of the "Website" option in your personal tab settings and/or add links to your sites in your signature. From more information about signatures, please see that section of this guide.
- Images: We encourage our members to post images to their latest graphics and Web/forum design projects. That being said, anything that you post to our forum for critique must be your own original work. We frown upon people that post work, claiming it as their own, when it doesn't belong to them. Give credit where credit is due. Additionally, should the graphic be large and/or you choose to post an image of a Web/forum design project, we encourage you to make use of our Add Attachment option. Doing so will allow you to insert a clickable thumbnail that enlarges when hovered and displays the full size when clicked on.
- Live Links: Live links to Web/Forum design projects are allowed. That being said, please do not take advantage of this option. If you take advantage by using this opportunity to advertise a forum or website, we may be forced to prohibit the posting of live links in critique posts.
- Spelling/Grammar: While we are not constantly searching for correct spelling, grammar, and/or punctuation, we do ask that our members write their posts in 1-3 complete sentences. We ask you to do this as it will not only help advance discussions across the forums, but it will also make your posts easier to understand. Additionally, all posts are required to be written in English. We also recommend that you make use of our forum's built-in spell checker. When a word is misspelled, it is underlined in red. When you click on the word, it will recommend the appropriate spelling of the word. Doing this will also ensure that your posts are easy to read and understand.
- Avatars: While it is not required, by any means, that you have an Avatar, we do encourage you to assign one to your profile. If you upload your own avatar, the dimensions of your avatar should be squared evenly. We recommend using a size of 150px by 150px to ensure that your avatar doesn't skew and displays properly across the forums. Additionally, you may opt to use the built-in default avatar creator. If you haven't experimented with it, we encourage you to do so as we find it to be a nifty tool provided with our forum software.
- Signatures: Signatures will be displayed at the bottom of all of your posts. That being said, members can post signature banners and links in their forum signatures. Images in signatures should be no more than 400px in width and 100px in height. Additionally, signatures should contain no more than five links. Things you can link to are your own websites, forums, blogs, and/or social media profiles. Links should remain in your signature in default text size and shouldn't be increased.
- Multiple Accounts: There should be no reason for a user to have multiple accounts on our forum. Should you forget your password or login information, check out the FAQ in the Support board for information on how to recover your account. The only time a user should have a secondary account is if given the express permission to do so by the Administration team. The only time that permission will be given is under extreme, dire, circumstances.
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 16:34:06 GMT -5
We ask that you take a few moments to read over the following information regarding online safety. We want to ensure that our members remain safe and that is why these guidelines are in place. Additionally, certain protocols are in place to further ensure the safety of our members. Again, any of the information below is subject to change at any given time with or with out notice. We will make an announcement if any changes occur. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
OnlineSAFETY - Personal Information: Do not disclose any personal information to any member of the forum. This includes, but is not limited to: Real full names, physical address, telephone numbers, debit/credit/bank account information etc.
*EXCEPTION: During the holidays, we may have a Christmas Card Exchange and/or a Secret Santa. During these events, certain personal information will have to be given out. When the time arrises, details will be explained to the members in an announcement.
- Trust No one: I know that it sounds pretty bad, but on the internet you cannot trust anyone. Pay attention to your surroundings and people's behavior. Ensure your own safety and avoid confrontations. Just because you think you can trust someone, does not mean that you can. Predators lurk the internet 24 hours a day 7 days a week and we don't want anything to happen to you.
SafetyPROTOCOLS To ensure the safety of yourself and others, you are required to report any of the following to the Administration team:- Any threats of violence towards yourself and/or other members of this forum; by any member of this forum.
- Any death threats towards yourself/and or other members of this forum; by any member of this forum.
- Any threats of suicide by another member of this forum.
- If you notice someone who is seriously, or extremely depressed, no matter the reason, it must be reported.
- Any stalking of yourself and/or other members of this forum
* NOTE: We are required, by law, to report anything brought to our attention from the above list. That means that if you report to us, we will have to notify the authorities. While we appreciate the fact that people do NOT want to be considered narks, we still highly recommend that all of the above be reported immediately. In your report, you should include proof in the form of a quote of the person(s) in question and provide as much detail as possible. Again, we have your safety and best interest at heart and this is the best way to ensure that you remain safe.
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 16:48:32 GMT -5
Account security is extremely important especially in online forum communities. Please take a few moments to read over these tips regarding securing your account. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
AccountSECURITY - Passwords: When creating a password for your account you should use a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. You should not use a password that you use for other online accounts. Additionally, you should change your password (at minimum) every sixty to ninety days. That being said, we recommend you change your password often to ensure that your account doesn't get hijacked by another person.
- Keep Account Info Private: Do not share your account login details with anyone. Our forum staff will NEVER ask you for a password.
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 17:08:49 GMT -5
The following information is in regards to the forum-wide moderation policy. This policy is put into effect immediately. Everything outlined in this post refers to rule-breaking as well as breaking the ProBoards TOS. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
ModerationPOLICY Automatic/PermanentBAN
- Discrimination
- Illegal Content
- Spam
- ProBoards TOS violations
- Harassment, threats to members and/or national security
FirstOFFENSE- A PM Reminder will be sent to the user notifying them of a broke forum rule. A link will be sent directing them to the member handbook instructing them to read the section containing the broken rule.
- The user's staff notes will be updated with the date and time of the infraction as well as the person who took action.
SecondOFFENSE- A PM Reminder will be sent to the user notifying them of a broke forum rule. A link will be sent directing them to the member handbook instructing them to read the section containing the broken rule.
- The user's staff notes will be updated with the date and time of the infraction as well as the person who took action.
- The user will receive no more than three days of revoked posting privileges on our forum.
- An official warning of 25% will be placed on the user's account.
ThirdOFFENSE- A PM Reminder will be sent to the user notifying them of a broke forum rule. A link will be sent directing them to the member handbook instructing them to read the section containing the broken rule.
- The user's staff notes will be updated with the date and time of the infraction as well as the person who took action.
- The user will receive no more than seven days of revoked posting privileges on our forum.
- An official warning of 50% will be placed on the user's account.
FourthOFFENSE- A PM Reminder will be sent to the user notifying them of a broke forum rule. A link will be sent directing them to the member handbook instructing them to read the section containing the broken rule. Additionally, an email will be sent to the user in question regarding their account status and revoked privileges outlined below.
- The user's staff notes will be updated with the date and time of the infraction as well as the person who took action.
- The user will receive no more than thirty days of revoked posting privileges on our forum.
- An official warning of 75% will be placed on the user's account.
FifthOFFENSE- The user will be permanently banned from our forums.
* NOTE: Offenses occur for each individual rule that you break. This means that if you break two separate rules, you would have two infractions. Even if you violate the same rule twice, it still would be the equivalent to two separate infractions.
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 17:20:11 GMT -5
As with most forums, there are groups that our members can and will be a part of. Each of the groups available are detailed below for both members and staff. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
UserGROUPS ForMEMBERS- Graphic Designer: The graphic designer group is an open group for all of our forum's members by way of petition. User's can petition to join this group so long as they meet the following criteria. The user must have a minimum of 10 posts on the forums. The user must have submitted a minimum of 5 graphics to the graphic showcase area for critique.
- Web Designer: The Web designer group is an open group for all of our forum's members by way of petition. User's can petition to join this group so long as they meet the following criteria. The user must have a minimum of 10 posts on the forums. The user must have submitted a minimum of 5 Web/Forum design projects to the Web and/or Forum showcase area for critique.
Additional groups will be added at a later time as the forum grows. If you have a suggestion for user groups you can make the suggestion by way of the Support forum. We are always interested in ideas.ForSTAFF
- Administrator: Administrators are responsible for running the forum. They create new forums/boards, layouts and designs for our forums, customized coding and graphics, as well as plugins and installation.
- Global Moderator: A Global Moderator, or GM, is responsible for enforcing the rules and guidelines across the entire forum. Additionally, they take care of reported posts and content submitted by our members.
- Moderator: A Moderator is responsible for enforcing the rules and guidelines in 1-2 specific boards per their choice.
Additionally, all forum staff contribute to the forums on a regular basis. They come up with and help implement forum contests, prizes, and other events.
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Post by ❀ Zimm on Jul 22, 2015 17:26:41 GMT -5
In this post you will find the user ranks that you can earn by posting on the forums. Additionally, information is provided to tell you the required amount of posts to reach a rank as well as how that rank will be represented. If, after reading through the information below, you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to post them in the Support forum.
UserRANKS - Newb: 0-5 posts - Represented by 1 yellow star.
- Initiate: 6-500 posts - Represented by 2 yellow stars.
- Member: 501-1000 posts - Represented by 3 yellow stars.
- Veteran: 1001-5000 posts - Represented by 4 yellow stars.
- VIP: 5001-10000 posts - Represented by 5 purple stars.
- Elite Member: 10001+ posts - Represented by 6 silver stars and a colored username outside of the usual member and staff colors.
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