Forum Rules/Guidelines/Etiquette

[KappaMan]

Welcome to the Summarized rules/Guidelines/Etiquette thread. Here you will find information on posting etiquettes, rules that should not be broken, how to get banned , etc.

Please keep in mind that when you signed up, you agreed to the following Forum General Rules:

Originally Posted by SkyRoadster.com Registration Agreement

Forum Rules

Registration to this forum is free! We do insist that you abide by the rules and policies detailed below. If you agree to the terms, please check the 'I agree' checkbox and press the 'Register' button below. If you would like to cancel the registration, click here to return to the forums index.

Although the administrators and moderators of Saturn Sky Forum will attempt to keep all objectionable messages off this forum, it is impossible for us to review all messages. All messages express the views of the author, and neither the owners of Saturn Sky Forum, nor Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd. (developers of vBulletin) will be held responsible for the content of any message.

By agreeing to these rules, you warrant that you will not post any messages that are obscene, vulgar, sexually-orientated, hateful, threatening, or otherwise violative of any laws.

The owners of Saturn Sky Forum reserve the right to remove, edit, move or close any thread for any reason.

[KappaMan]

The Forum’s censor software has been set up to identify and eliminate words or phrases that are generally offensive because of vulgarity or racial and ethnic slurs.

Bypassing the censor software by altering the spelling of the terms in order to introduce those prohibited words into an open thread is a violation of Forum rules.

For the most part, Forum moderators try to be reasonable in the enforcement of the rules when it involves profanity, allowing, for instance, the occasional use of even the “F-bomb” if enough letters are omitted from the spelling. Leaving out one letter isn’t acceptable. Neither is adding a letter or substituting letters that look like the letters that have been omitted.

Forum moderators are not tolerant in the enforcement of the rules when racial or ethnic slurs are involved nor in instances where language is used in a demeaning or vindictive manner toward a group of people or, worse, against a specific Forum member.

As always, decisions on the enforcement of the Forum’s rules/guidelines will by nature require subjective judgment at times. If you disagree with a moderator’s judgment call, do it by PM or e-mail to a moderator or administrator.

[mod note: don't know if there is censoring software on Solsticeforum, but the rest seems reasonable]

[KappaMan]

Personal attacks are absolutely not allowed. Even if you believe another member is a troll or a jerk or whatever, do not make personal attacks.

That means no name calling, no posting pictures or links that are hostile, no hateful posts, no posting of personal information, etc. Personal attacks cannot be tolerated.

Comments need to be kept civil or they will be deleted and posting privileges will be jeopardized.

The Forum should be a fun and friendly place to hang out and not a hostile environment. Civility to fellow Forum members is always appropriate.

[KappaMan]

Avatars

Forum members can select their own avatars by picking an image that is roughly square and no wider than 100 pixels, and less than 20K in size.

The images selected should be in good taste. They should not include nudity or semi-nudity or any image that would be considered lewd, graphic, seductive or suggestive -- the same guidelines used to determine the appropriateness of any image posted on the Forum.

Moderators will try to be consistent in enforcing the Forum’s guidelines on avatar images, but will by necessity have to make subjective judgments. Their decisions will be final.

The Forum’s moderators and regional events coordinators will be allowed to use animated gifs in deference for their service to the Forum. Other Forum members should use JPGs for their avatars.

If you have any questions about the acceptability of an image as an avatar, just PM or e-mail any avatar for a review of the image.

[mod note: don't know if the animated gif applies to Skyroadster.com]

[KappaMan]

God bless America, where we enjoy constitutionally protected rights.

Free speech, although not absolute, is one of those rights.

Being a member at Solsticeforum.com is not, however, a constitutionally protected right.

The Forum is a private enterprise and its owner has the right to establish rules of behavior for participants. Property rights are Constitutionally protected.

Participants who agree to follow Forum rules and then don’t sometimes find that their inappropriate posts have been deleted.

A pattern of such defiance of the Forum’s rules/guidelines can jeopardize a member’s posting privileges.

Regarding Post Appropriateness

Keep in mind that many people of both genders and different religions, backgrounds, occupations, sexual orientation, race, etc. read what you post. Sometimes it's funny to post something that may be a bit borderline for appropriateness.

The best test that can be used is this:

When you are just about to submit your post, think about these questions:

"Would you be willing to stand on a podium and read aloud your post in front of a room full of strangers, knowing that everyone can hear you well, even record and re-listen you what you are about to post, realizing that the thousands of folks in the room come from all different backgrounds, religions, races, etc.?

Are you fairly certain your post wouldn't be extremely offensive to anyone (not whether everyone will agree, would they find it offensive)?

Are there no stereotypical groups that you would be uncomfortable saying these things to if you were around a group of just those folks?"

If you can answer yes to these questions, your post is likely not offensive. And if you still answer yes but find your post modified or deleted by the Administrator or Moderator in the future, don't be offended - just respect that it's possible your post may have been offensive and been reported, or was borderline enough to warrant action.

[KappaMan]

It is inappropriate to throw cold water on the For Sale theads posted by other members or a vendor by attacking the price or quality of the [Sky], parts or service being offered for sale or suggesting alternate sources for the item.

If you don’t like the price or the item being offered, move on.

It boils down to this: If your contribution to a For Sale thread does not advance the sale of the item being offered, you’re probably in the way and shouldn’t be in the thread. If you don’t like the deal, you should take it to e-mail or IMs.

If you believe other Forum members are in jeopardy because of the seller's offer, notify a moderator.

[mod note: obviously we don't have a for sale section - yet]

[KappaMan]

Supporting vendors pay for the considerable bandwidth charges incurred by the Forum in exchange for the right to use the Forum to market and promote their goods and/or services.

Their payments mean that the Forum is free to the rest of us.

Forum members are allowed to post For Sale threads to sell their own [Solstice] or parts their have bought for use on their own [Solstice], but they must not use the Forum to promote sales/services beyond that.

The Forum does not prohibit occasional and casual mention of non-supporting vendors. But those mentions cannot be so specific that they include addresses, phone numbers, sales contact names, e-mail addresses, URLs or links. And if the "casual" references become frequent, they will be considered as marketing and promotion.

You cannot, for instance, make a post telling other Forum members to buy their new [Solstice] from dealer XYZ when XYZ is a non-supporting dealer.

If, however, you post a thread about a new [Solstice] you have purchased and the thrust of the post is about the [Solstice], it would not be inappropriate to mention in the post that you were pleased by your dealings with XYZ dealer.

[KappaMan]

The Forum allows members to post regarding a bad transaction with a vendor or another Forum member, but only after they have made a reasonable effort to resolve the issue offline. Then, when a post is made outlining the problem, the post must be factual and may not deteriorate into a rant or a vendor/tuner/member-bashing exercise.

We leave such threads open as long as they conform with Forum rules/guidelines and in order to give all sides in an issue the opportunity to comment. Then, the threads are locked and archived for future reference.

The matter may not be addressed in multiple threads or revisited with the same already-posted information on subsequent days.

[mod note: obviously we don't have a "for sale" section - yet]

[KappaMan]

The use of emoticons without text in posting to a thread can appear to be freeposting when it makes no apparent contribution in advancing the topic of the thread. Freeposting is a violation of Forum rules. Moderators will use their best judgment in enforcing the rule against freeposting.

Freeposting is considered bad etiquette because the purpose of a forum is discussion and advancement of interesting topics. However, forums use bandwith, and excessive freeposting can increase bandwidth demands because of the extra baggage that goes with each post, including but not limited to:
-loading bandwith for limited bandwith forum participants (ever get that pic that takes forever to load, or the eight posts with complicated avatars?)
-post storage server memory, including backups and file information
-numerous search engine caches across the globe

While it seems a bit like "global warming" there is direct and real cost of this bandwidth and server space to the owner of the Forum.

[KappaMan]

Hijacking a thread is not considered good etiquette.
There are several definitions/methods of hijacking a thread, any and all are considered poor forum etiquette.

Several examples;

Asking a new question that is completely off topic to the original thread post.

Two (2) or more members begin “chatting” in a separate “personal” conversation.

Why the concern about “Hijacking threads”?

Users join threads because they find a thread compelling and feel they must get involved. A number of users sign on, hit "Today’s Active Topics" and read the few of interest to them. But, if the thread is titled for one topic and changes a few posts in, chances are only a very few people are ever going to see it, however marvelous and useful it ends up being.

Also, it isn't fair to the originator of the thread, since many are reluctant to interrupt an ongoing conversation, even if it's just to return to the title topic.

Yes, you can even hijack your own thread. I guess the thought process is something like "I started this thread, I'll discuss what I please". This is self-defeating, since once a thread is off-topic most will lose interest and never return, even if it drifts back.

Give a little consideration to other posters and readers. You can always start a new thread based on an off-shoot of an ongoing thread.

Thanks


P. S. If a thread is "hijacked" the hijacking post(s) may be edited and labeled with a friendly reminder or it may be removed/deleted.


[mod note: I've been guilty of this myself, but we do have a tendency to get back on track after a while. Looking back, this only seems to happen on a limited number of threads - so hopefully it remains at a low level through the intro of our fav. lil roadster :cheers]

[KappaMan]

1) Before asking a question please try the search facility to see has it been asked before, or try the Technical FAQ or Sky FAQ, Specifications, Performance Data Forumto see if your question already has an answer. You might also try looking in each of the Sub-forums, as many times, there are relavant discussion threads "stuck" to the top and you may find your answer there as well.

If you do have a question that seems to be new, PLEASE

2) Post your question in the appropriate forum
2a) be patient for a reply, and do not post the same question in two different discussion threads.

If you do happen to ask your version of the same question asked before, it's not a big deal, but you may see the "brentil" smiley - which looks like . It is named after a senior member on Solsticeforum whose head was about to pop from repeated postings from new members asking the same exact question. These repeated new thread questions are called "head poppers."

You'll also likely get a gentle reminder to try the search facility or be directed to the correct area if your question is actually a duplicate. For clarity of the forum, your post/thread may be deleted if no significant discussion is started - but DO NOT FEEL BAD. You'll find the folks here very helpful and friendly.

[KappaMan]

1) It takes 30 days and 30 posts before you can have an avatar. Patience, grasshopper. See also "freeposting".

2) You're welcome to have a signature, but you won't be allowed to have an image. WHY? Because images increase bandwith with every post, placing unnecessary burden on bandwith and server.

2a) It's not recommended to include your e-mail address in your signature, unless you're really fond of :spam

3) If you double post / post in error, please press the (edit) button and select the necessary options to delete your post.

3a) If you have just posted, and wish to add something to your post, please do not post again, but press the (edit) button, you can then add / edit your post.

4) If you notice a post that may be in violation of these rules, try sending a private message to a moderator, or the site administrator, 'Troy Roberts'. You can also report a post that may be offensive by pressing the button, known as the "Report Bad Post" button - but keep in mind this sends an e-mail to the moderators and administrator, which may not be seen right away.

5) Etiquette note: CAPITAL LETTERS ARE JUST LIKE RAISING YOUR VOICE. IF YOU TYPE EVERYTHING IN CAPITALS, YOU ARE RAISING THE EMPHASIS ON EVERYTHING YOU SAY, WHICH MEANS YOU ARE YELLING. Just try not to type everything in caps, OK?

6) Feel free to direct violators back to the rules. Even Moderators.

[KappaMan]

"Troll," in the context of forums and the like, describes somebody who is posting just to be confrontational or to raise hackles. Blatant trolling would be something obviously offensive to members of a forum ("The Solstice is an ugly piece of crap and will only sell twelve of them a year" is one example).

There are more subtle trolling techniques as well. One Internet dictionary (www.whatis.com) gives a real example in which somebody posted about "the discovery of an ancient African carving containing a list of prime numbers." The poster listed some of the prime numbers supposedly on the carving, some of which weren't actually primes. People who saw the message, thinking he was serious, responded with corrections. The troll then announced that those who spent their time responding to him had been "hooked."

Trolling aims to elicit an emotional reaction from those with a hair-trigger on the reply key. A really subtle troll makes some people lose their minds. A troll is someone who posts to simply gain attention. Trolls contribute nothing useful and often make fools of themselves in the end.

How does one deal with trolls? Many people feel trolls should simply be ignored, and I think most would agree here. If you happen to see a post that says DNFTT, it means "Do Not Feed The Trolls". Ignore a blatant rant, or respond only once and be done with it. Feeding them makes them grow - even negative responses are responses.

The other option is to pounce on every last falsehood and fabrication. This can lead to a classic flame war - which does nothing for topic advancement and can change the flavor of a Forum or make other members quit with the negative atmosphere.

A "Flame War" is back-and-forth posting in an attempt to get the last argumentative post in. It, by definition, stops short of personal attacks or name calling (which can get you banned), but degrades a topic thread discussion in exhaustive, repeated pointmaking.

Remember, too, there is a middle ground. What some folks call a "trollish" post may actually be just spirited discussion, or provocative topic discussion. Truly offensive trolls are usually found and banned, with offensive posts deleted. But, it is sometimes interesting to see if a good "discussion" forms from a borderline "trollish" post. It can happen, and that's what we're all here for, right? Information and discussion.

Best bet: if you're caught by a troll, shrug it off, ignore it, report the posts, and get on to better discussion topics.

[KappaMan]

Above all, have a great time enjoying and participating.

[KappaMan]

If you are an insider, (such as a GM employee or a supplier in the case of this forum), it is in your best interest, and the best interest of the forum to be careful what information you post.

While it is not likely that participation in an enthusiast forum is prohibited, usage of the internet from work may be restricted, and it is likely you are not free to post "anything you want".

This is especially true if you are considering posting information that is considered "confidential", such as pictures, project or program information, marketing information, driving impressions, financial information, and the like - i.e. things that are not readily available to the public - things that can constitute a breach of information security.

Security info breaches really do no good for anyone. Information leaks hurt competition, are many many times inaccurate, and can ultimately result in the crippling or shutting down of a website, with corresponding draconian measures from the company point of view (like blocking access to websites - which would prevent folks who really need to see the information discussed from seeing it except from at home).

So, post responsibly, do not post anything that can be considered "confidential" information, and if you have "insider information" that is not available to the general public or available to everyone in the public domain, you should keep it to yourself - while we all want to know the whole scoop, it's not worth your job, or the hardship that could result.

Included is a link to an article that may be of interest - a case where a K-mart employee was fired for posting financial information on a forum:

http://www.detnews.com/2005/technolo.../A01-73849.htm

And another interesting link regarding information security:
Out of the Bag: Internet fanatics uncover the next Corvette Z06, and GM is not pleased (12/13/04 AutoWeek article)