Guide to Forum Etiquette, stolen shamelessly from Sar on FFR

[The Dude]

Friend of mine put this on another forum but I believe it applies here aswell. Basic guidelines for new people that will help them become more respected members

Originally Posted by Sar

Tips:

* Use proper capitalization and punctuation. This is important; if you don't you will not be taken seriously by other members.

* Avoid exclamation marks at all costs. They're corny and make people crave the sound of your spleen being removed.

* One punctuation mark per sentence. Putting a hundred question marks or exclamation marks only dulls your point and makes you look like an idiot.

* Remember to split posts into paragraphs.

* When you do split paragraphs, remember to skip two lines, not just one, so we can actually tell it's a new paragraph. There's no indent option, so skipping one line doesn't do anything but make things look really sloppy.

* Post in the Final Fantasy sections, but post in all the other ones, too.

* Get a custom avatar. People with default avatars tend to be overlooked.

* Request that your name be changed to Hikari XXIV, with the space and capitalization.

* Don't take the internet seriously.

* Don't get insulted.

* Don't get offended.

* Use common sense. We all have our retarded moments but in all seriousness, if you're always making lame one sentence posts or just acting like an idiot whether on purpose or otherwise, chances are you're going to find the people around not wanting you on here as much. If you having problems with trying to not have constant idiot moments, pm a mod or Smod who can help.

That should about do it. If you remember to follow all those rules of thumb and common sense, you'll fit in and be a respected, active member of the community in no time.

We're all expecting great things from you.

PERSONAL DISPUTES

Please do not use these forums for personal disputes, heated debates, flame wars etc. You are expected to treat each other with respect in the forums and take any personal disputes to a private mode of discussion off the forums.

PERSONAL TOPICS

Personal topics are threads that, whilst posted in public forum, are intended for a discussion between only a few members. These kinds of topics are frowned upon. Public posts should be open and inviting to all members. Personal discussions among a select group of users should take place in private message.

RESPECT OTHER USERS

Sometimes people can write something that you may find offensive. Before launching into a public condemnation though, please consider that the person may not have intended to cause offence. It is very easy to misinterpret a post on forums. There is absolutely no need to resort to insults. Remember that your fellow members are human beings whose culture, language, and humor may be different to your own. Be careful with slang or local terminology.

NO TROLLING

What is a troll? It's a person who posts something which is bound to stir people up and then sits back and watches as dozens of people jump in and start arguing. Generally they will do anything it takes to get attention. If you see a message like this, please try and refrain from replying to it - it may well be seen to anyway.
Trolling is further considered one of two things. Either continual running a topic into the ground incessantly, or dragging up old arguments against a specific user/group/etc. long after their appropriate discussion and targeting them specifically in arguments needlessly. Trolling is the first step towards outright harassment of other members. This is the single biggest no-no in the community. Letting every argument drop isn't always a possibility, but learning when to let things go is a valuable tool, and not just in this community.

POWER-POSTING

Power-posting is when board members post 'empty' messages to the board, in order to simply increase their number of posts more quickly. Examples of power-posting are replying to a message with only 'LOL' or 'I agree', but failing to contribute anything further to the discussion. If you reply to a message, make sure you have something to say. Power posting clutters up the forums, clutters up the 'new posts' function, and uses extra bandwidth and server space. While we don't mind people using bandwidth to chat usefully on the board, we do mind people using it just because they want a more impressive 'post counter'. If you're not sure if you're power-posting, take a moment and think it over before you post. If all your post contains is a 'LOL' or an emoticon, it's a power-post. If it adds something to the discussion, it isn't.

IGNORE SPAMMERS

Spam is a blight upon the face of the net. Nobody likes it. However, it is hard to avoid. Despite our best efforts, you will very occasionally see spam on the forums. Complaining about spam in public increases noise, but not signal. It may make you feel better, but it doesn't help. PM a moderator and they will review it for removal.
The staff has become lenient on some forms of spam, like spam that is somewhat amusing, and yet also on topic. Any other forms of spam will be deleted.

DO NOT FLAME

Flaming, in the most common sense definition, is saying something negative in an attempt to get a more negative response. This is completely and totally unacceptable. It will not be tolerated, and in most cases will be punished. Never resort to personal insults, never extend a debate beyond the topic on hand needlessly, and try to avoid patronizing language.

DO NOT FLAME THE STAFF

They have the final say. Your vote doesn't always count. They try to please everyone they can, but in the end, they're charged with making this community as enjoyable for as many people as they possibly can. They can not always be right, nor can they please everyone with the decisions made, but they're doing their "jobs" and hopefully we can all agree that they're doing their bests to ensure a good community here.