FORUM RULES [MUST READ]

[FF4|Dennis]

Section 1: Posting Guidelines

• 1. Language
  Posts should be in English only. Non-English posts may be removed. If a message is unreadable due to spelling and / or grammar, it may be removed. We don't ask you to be a 'Spelling Bee' champion, only that you post messages that are legible. This means no Spanish, Latin, binary, hexadecimal, or whatever slang you want to invent on the spot. Please also be aware that some automated spambots post in languages other than English. If you see a spam thread, DO NOT POST IN IT, as this makes the bot/s reply.
  
  
• 2. Post Legibly
  In the digital age, you would have thought that legibility would no longer be a problem. As RFC 1588 states, use mixed case and proper punctuation. Posting in "l33t sp33k" (replacing letters with numbers and/or special symbols) or "LeEt CaPs" (alternating case excessively) is prohibited. Users are not to use {color=silver}text{/color} when posting to a thread or the shout box. If found using the invisible font, esp. to post spam or illicit links or material, users will be temporarily/permanently banned.
  
  
• 3. Illegal Subjects
  Prohibited subjects include, but are not limited to: Warez/pirating, hacking, drugs, pornography, religion, and racism. Incitement or 'encouragement' of these activities is also prohibited. Further subjects that are considered 'Illegal' by forum moderators include 'versus' threads, conspiracy threads and the portrayal and/or re-enactment of violent deaths/acts via images, words or videos. If we see you posting threads promoting any of these topics you will be warned or banned. Please note that we may add to this list in future, to ensure that subjects and topics that encourage or promote flaming or abuse in any way are kept under control. It's at the Admins' discretion as to whether posted content is acceptable or not.
  
  
• 4. Which Forum?
  Make post in the forum/thread that is most appropriate for the topic being presented. Keep the focus: Questions outside the scope of a certain forum and/or topic will be moved, locked, or simply deleted. To ensure you post in the correct forum section, please make sure you review the entire FF4 forums before posting.
  
  
• 5. Search
  Before creating a thread, use the forum Search function to try and find previously relevant threads or post. We have a large forum community and there is a good chance that your question/suggestion has been posted in the past.
  
  
• 6. Respect
  Respect every forum member and admin. All forum posters are to be treated equally with respect. Repeatedly using vulgar language and flaming somebody is not acceptable behaviour. Respect Forum Admins, as they are the authority of the forums. Speaking to them with intentional spite will not be tolerated and may result in the loss of your forum privileges.

Section 2: Post Content

When posting in an online forum or chat, there are several things in which you have to pay attention to. One of the most important things is content. We still have a small member base but you must keep in mind that what you say can/will be offensive to other members. To prevent this from occurring unnecessarily, you must abide to our stricter set of rules regarding what you post. All moderators are instructed to ensure that these rules are maintained and will discipline any offenders.

• 1. Spamming
  Spamming will ultimately get you removed from our forum. This includes continuously inviting people to your website, posting tons of threads within a very short time, or just plain out flooding. FF4 does not allow any unauthorised advertisment threads/posts on our forums. Creating multiple threads on the same subject is the same as Spamming. Any type of "Free Stuff" threads will result in a warning and if multiple threads are posted within a certain time frame you will be banned. If an account is created and used to automatically spam advertisments of any kind, it will be perm banned immediatley without any kind of warning. ISPs will be contacted and written complaints made to the relevent legal authorities.
  
  
• 2. Swearing
  Remember that we have younger members in our community. Overuse of swear words will result in a warning. Further excessive use of adult language will result in further sanctions towards those concerned.
  
  
• 3. Tolerance
  Racist, sexist, homophobic, or religious insults are the quickest way to get you banned from the forum.
  
  
• 4. Images, Videos and Text
  No pornographic, offensive, overly/mindlessly violent or inappropriate images, videos and/or text are allowed. This covers any Signature, Avatar, User Name, User Title, Video or Image associated with your personal forum account or any image/s, or link to such, posted by any user. If you would not show your boss the image, it shouldn’t be on these forums. Remember that Forum Moderators have the final say on what is acceptable.
  
  Users may post images using only the following methods:
  1. Re-size images so they are 1280x1024 (or widescreen comparable) MAXIMUM resolution when using IMG tags.
  2. Include the link, but DO NOT use the IMG tags to embed the image directly into the post (obviously no image resolution restrictions with this method).
  3. Post a thumbnail that links to the likes of 3rd party image hosting sites.
  4. Make use of the 'Attach Files' function of the forum.
  5. For reference threads and Community Mod forums, common sense suggests that the higher resolution images required for accurate asset creation should be zipped uploaded and the link posted or sent in a private message.
  
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  5. Flame wars
  Direct or indirect ‘flaming’ of any forum member to incite or perpetuate a conflict or argument is strictly prohibited and will result in immediate action by a forum admin. Any forum topic which a forum admin deems as controversial or that may possibly lead to an argument/flame war will be closed or deleted. We will not baby-sit topics on these forums.
  
  
• 6. Private Messages
  Abuse of the Private Messeging System is against forum rules. If anyone sends threats or insults to you via the Private Message (forum or chatbox), contact an admin who will act accordingly.
  
  
• 7. Subject Lines
  Make your subject lines descriptive. Subject lines such as "Check this out!" or "This is so cool!" or "I can't believe this!" are not descriptive, and result in multiple postings on the same subject. Before posting, you might want to look through the current page of posts to see that someone has not already posted on the same subject. Failure to describe your thread or link within a thread will result in it being locked and possibly removed.
  
  
• 8. Tone
  The tone of your post is very important. Always bear this in mind. Everyone has a different outlook, opinion and perception about what a person says and how they say it. It is a good idea to make use of the 'preview' option and review what you have typed, and how you have put it across. It's also a good idea not to post if you are angry about another user's views. Calm down and think your reply through..
  
  
• 9. Attitude
  Constructive critism is welcome, but should be thought through and subjective. If you don't like something, put forward mature points as to why. A persistantly bad attitude and/or negative comments towards the team, the mod or otherwise will lead to your permanent removal from the forums.
  
  
• 10. Forum Tampering
  Any attempt to manipulate the coding of the site, or perform any actions not of normal operations of the site, will result in an immediate IP ban.
  

Section 3: Forum Signatures/User Images & Titles

We allow you to display a custom signature below every post you make, but we do insist that you adhere to the following rules in order to keep the forums pleasant to browse and clear of visual clutter.

If you choose to make use of the Signature function, you must follow one of the below options. NOT a mixture!

Signature Options:

• 1. Up to 6 lines of text.
  
  
• 2. One forum signature no larger than 450x120 pixels and 3 lines of text.
  
  
• 3. One forum signature no larger than 450x120 pixels and one 'minor' forum sig. The total size taken up must NOT exceed 550x200.
  
  
• 4. One forum signature no larger than 550x200 pixels. This size of forum signature must not include any text.
  
  
• 5. Forum users are welcome to include a few lines of text IF the Signature rule they are following does not express a limit on text. However, if the amount of text used is deemed as excessive by a Forum Admin, it will be removed without warning.
  
  
• 6. Your signature, Avatar, Username and/or User Title must not include any image or text which could be deemed as obscene, vulgar, sexually-orientated, hateful, threatening, illegal, racist or religiously inflamatory or otherwise volatile of any forum decency standards. See forum rules 1(3) and 2(4).
  
  
• 7. Any signatures contravening these rules will be removed WITHOUT NOTICE, either in full or in part. Repeated abuse of this rule will result in your personalized signature privileges being revoked permanently.
  

Section 4: Reporting a Problem Post/Thread

• When you want to report a Problem Post or Thread because you think it breaks one of our Furum Rules, you can contact an Admin by sending an PM or
  use the "report an abuse" option at the bottum of the page. The Admin will then take a look and act accordingly.
  

Section 5: Moderation

Users must be aware of what Admins are here to do on the FF4 forums, and what punishments they can expect if they are in breach of the forum rules.
Admins are expected to lead by example, and as such are subject to the general forum rules. Admin discipline is handled by the Lead Admin, then the Clan Leader if required. We make this decision to escalate any complaint, not the userbase.

• 1. Respect FF4 members and Admins
  The admins are here to assist the members, and ensure the smooth running of the forums. It's their job to enforce the rules. If they ban a member, edit/remove a post or lock a thread - it will be for a reason. Do not dispute an admin's decision or argue with them in the forums. If an action is taken against you that you feel was made in error or unjustified, you can appeal by following the steps laid out in point 5 of this section.
  
  
• 2. Advanced Warning System
  Warnings are given by admins to those who break the rules. Warnings are issued by the admins and when they feel like you got to much warnings, they will Ban you off the forum.
  
  
• 3. Bans
  Temporary Bans are most commonly issued as opposed to permanent bans. If your account is temporarily disabled, do NOT create another account. Bypassing a temporary ban may result in a more permanent action, and your duplicate account being perm banned. If you are perm banned, you are not welcome to return to the FF4 forums.
  
  
• 4. Multiple Forum Accounts
  Users must NOT create more than one forum account, for any reason. Doing so will leave accounts open to deletion at any time with or without prior notice. The FF4 Forum has systems in place that automatically pick up and alert the team of multiple accounts.
  
  
• 5. Complaints Against Moderators
  If you have a VIABLE complaint against a particular admin, we suggest you try to work out your situation via Private Message or email with him/her. If you continue to have trouble you may contact the Lead Admin, FF4|Dennis. After discussion with the Lead Admin, your issue can be escalated to the Clan Leader, FF4|Gameboy. Trying to contact anyone else regarding moderation issues will result in you being ignored or banned for being a pest. Do not post your issues in any forums. If you do, we will warn you and remove it. Ignoring this procedure will result in a ban.
  
  
• 6. Harassment of FF4 members
  Harassment of staff members via e-mail, instant messages, or other means of contact is a punishable offense, and could result in legal charges should the contents be serious enough. This includes registering inflamatory user accounts/names to indirectly or directly, verbally or otherwise attack team members.
  

Section 6: FF4 Rights

• 1. The FF4 forums are a privately funded, privately operated closed community forum. It is not an open public community forum where "free speech" is a right. Our approach has always been, and remains to only intervene in order to ensure the smooth running of the forums or when users breach the above policies. However, there may be occasions where we need to intervene for reasons beyond the scope of the policies listed on this page and we reserve the unconditional right to do so in order to protect ourselves, our users and the goals of the site itself.
  
  
• 2. The administrators reserve the right to edit or remove posts.
  
  
• 3. The administrators reserve the right to edit, ban or delete user accounts and profiles at their discretion without giving prior warning.