Posting Rules & Guidelines |
FedoraForum.org Rules & Guidelines
Welcome to FedoraForum.org
Here are the forum rules, some guidelines, and some tips on how to ask and answer questions. Our goal is to provide a civil, helpful, and consistent environment for members to request and provide help while keeping everyone, including the forum staff, happy.
How To Post
Click on the "Forums" link at the top of any forum page and select the forum appropriate for the topic after reading the descriptions. Once inside the forum, click the "New Thread" button on the top left to get a text box for entering the post text. But first, read and understand all of the rules and guidelines below.
Forum Rules
The following rules must be obeyed. They are for the good of all the members of the forum. Failure to comply with these rules will result in administrative actions all the way up to loss of membership.
1). Respect the forum staff.
Staff members serve without pay to keep the forum running efficiently. They monitor threads and posts to ensure compliance with the forum rules. Decisions by and instructions from Administrators and Community Managers are final and must be respected. Do not argue with a staff member or make derogatory comments about a staff decision or instruction in a thread. Members should contact staff members via a private message (PM) to discuss decisions or instructions from the staff. Never ignore or fail to comply with decisions or instructions by a staff member. Finally, there are times when the Staff will give an instruction to a member that does not fall within these rules, but the situation requires individual instruction and direction. Accept that direction without question.
2). Don't be abusive.
Abuse of other members never accomplishes anything useful. The staff takes a dim view of people who instigate or participate in such conflicts. We are here to help each other not fight.
3). Don't cross-post (double-post).
Posting the same content in multiple parts of the forum is counter-productive and wastes the time of other members. Cross-posting leads to confusion when replies are made in the duplicate threads. Staff members will close, merge, or delete duplicate threads and posts. Posts or threads advertising other posts are also considered to be cross-posting.
4). Don't advertise in threads or posts.
Threads, posts, signatures & home pages are not to be used to advertise a product. Links to other sites that sell products also may be considered advertising. With prior staff approval, some non-commercial forms of publicity may be allowed. Always check with a staff member before posting such content.
5). Don't breach copyright.
Never upload or post copyrighted material without first getting the permission of the copyright owner. Include in the thread or post that the permission of the copyright owner was obtained and identify the copyright owner.
6). Don't use profane language or post images containing nudity, violence, or other offensive content.
Our members can be as young as thirteen and people of all ages can view your posts. Therefore, all content here has to be considered family friendly. A staff member will edit or delete threads and posts with potentially offensive content and issue a warning to stop the practice.
7.) Don't post content about religion, current politics, or that is sexually explicit.
There are many forums for such posts. This is not one of them. Most people have strong feelings on these topics and may be offended or provoked by such content. A staff member will close threads that veer into these topics.
8). Don't post content about "cracking".
Content about any form of password or encryption "cracking" is not allowed. Even though there are packages such as aircrack in the repositories, discussions about cracking or software related to cracking often lead into discussions of illegal activities. A staff member will close threads related to "cracking" and other illegal activities.
9). Don't post homework questions.
Its obvious that getting someone else to do your homework is a form of cheating. A staff member will close any threads asking for help on homework assignments.
10). Don't post garbage or nonsense.
Posts containing nonsense, conspiracy theories or inane ramblings are a waste of time, space, and often provoke members. Such posts will be closed or deleted and members who post such material will be in danger of losing their membership. A staff member's judgment regarding the value of such posts is final. Non-linux content should be posted only in the Wibble sub-forum or in the Social Groups area of the forum (under User CP).
11). Don't post in languages other than English.
Fedora and FedoraForum.org are both* located in the USA. While we have an international membership, we must insist that English is used in all posts as questions and solutions must be standardized and the staff must be able to understand them. Threads and posts in other languages will be closed with instructions to post again in English. Please don't worry or apologize about imperfect English. Forum members understand this issue well and will compensate for English language errors. *(Note: FedoraForum.org itself is not officially connected with or sponsored by FedoraProject or Red Hat, Inc.).
12). Don't re-post moderated threads.
New members may notice that their first few posts do not appear in the forum immediately (a.k.a. "moderated"). This is a normal circumstance to allow a staff member to review the post content. Be patient when that happens and do not submit the post again. A staff member will review moderated posts as soon as possible. Acceptable posts will be released from moderation. Posts that violate the forum rules will be deleted.
13). Use the default font type, size, color, and justification in posts.
There are various font types, sizes, colors and other options available for the text in posts. However, the default font type, color, size, and justification should be used for all routine post text. Use other font types, colors, and sizes sparingly and only when needed for emphasis or special formatting circumstances. Using non-default font attributes routinely or capriciously will not be allowed. Staff members may edit such posts and issue a warning to stop the practice.
14.) Don't create multiple accounts.
Only one account is allowed for each forum member. Extra accounts will be deleted or merged and a warning will be issued to stop the practice. A request for a username change can be submitted via the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of every forum page or via a private message to a administrator who is online. Generally, this courtesy is granted only once, so think carefully when requesting a change.
15.) Keep your registered email address up to date.
Broken or out of date email addresses cause notifications for subscribed threads and private messages to bounce back into the support email inbox. As such we have to intervene sometimes and disable notification emails for user accounts that use temporary addresses to register or let the details get stale when changing internet service or mail service provider.
16). The posting rules also generally apply to signatures, avatars, and usernames.
Inappropriate content in avatars and signatures is not allowed, however the staff may allow religious symbols or signature quotes when they do not offend others.
A staff member will request changes to signatures and avatars and usernames that are considered inappropriate. The staff 's judgment is to be considered final in all matters. |