Zelda Dungeon Forum Rules

[Mases]

The rules of the Zelda Dungeon Forums are pretty much what you would expect from any online community. The purpose of the forum is to have constructive and intelligent conversation about the Zelda series, but of course we understand tension will rise at some point in time. So here are a few rules about what is allowed, what isn't allowed, and what could happen if rules are broken.

1. All Members Are Treated Equal
This includes webmasters, administrators, all forum staff members, all site staff members, old respected members, and newly registered users. Anything that has happened at any other online community in the past is not an issue of the Zelda Dungeon Forums. So if you are a newly registered user, you should expect to have a clean slate. However, certain events that happen outside of the Zelda Dungeon Forums will be taken into account when they are relevant to the forum or to the specific user. In particular, Hylian Knights, Hylian Nobles and Forum Staff members are expected to act as leaders and representatives of Zelda Dungeon while at the Zelda Dungeon Forums and while at other portions of the online Zelda community.

The below rules are expected to be followed by all members including the forum staff and webmasters. While there is equality for all members, the forum staff should be respected. The staff voluntarily takes time out of their daily lives to make this place the best it can be and they deserve to be treated with the utmost respect.

2. Swearing
Blunt swearing is not tolerated. If it is used in an offensive way attacking a member or a members idea, then this will result in a warning and/or ban. Just because something appears as (******) to replace a swear, it does not make it okay to say it. We will be a bit lenient with the language, allowing words like 'damn' and 'hell', but please remember we have a younger audience here at the forums.

3. No SPAM or Duplicating Topics
This means no 'Stupid Pointless Annoying Threads'. A topic that is posted and has no purpose at all, or is just meant for one answer, and then closed (exception in the Game Help section) is not tolerable. Duplicated topics are also considered SPAM and will be deleted, however we understand that there are many threads in each section, so we are somewhat lenient here. If you want to post a thread, please at least check the first couple of pages in the section to make sure someone else hasn't already posted the same discussion. We understand that sometimes there are old topics buried deep within the forums and a user might miss that thread. That's fine, but if it becomes a consistent problem, it will be dealt with. Double posting is also not tolerated. This is, posting twice in a row in the same thread without having another member post after your last post. We have made adjustments so that if this happens, the double post will be merged with the previous one. However, these adjustments have shown to stop working in the past. Therefore, it is important to know how to properly use the Edit button to add to a previous post instead of posting a second, consecutive one.

4. Bumping Old Topics
At other forum communities, it is usually a sin to bump old topics. Here at the Zelda Dungeon forums, interesting topics that have not been posted in for several months CAN be bumped. However, the user that bumps it must have a good reason for doing so. If he wants to contribute to the thread with interesting and valuable ideas/opinions, than that is fine. If he simply makes a post saying that he agrees with somebody or anything that adds very little value at all to the thread, then that is not tolerated. Only bump threads that are old if you truly have something valuable to say.

5. No Attacking or Flaming Other Members
This goes back to rule number 1, all members are equal. If a member is breaking any of the rules, do not attack or flame him, but rather, contact a member of the staff and it will be taken care of. If one user attacks and flames another user, but then the response continues the attacking and flaming, both users will be punished. If the person is actually a member of the forum staff, then contact MrMosley, Mases, or Justin.

6. No Multiple Posting
Two things specific about this rule. One, it does not look good on the forum if one member makes a new post in nearly every single active topic out there right after one another, filling every single part of the page with 'posted by ______'. Also, more importantly, this is a community forum and not a chatroom. If Person A makes a post, and immediately person B responds. Person A should not respond immediately after, but instead this person should wait awhile before responding. Let others get involved in the thread. Thus, this is a Community and not a chatroom. If you are interested in one on one discussion, then we have a link to an IRC chat at the top of the page.

7. No Religious or Political Discrimination
While we have a limited general section, 'Mature' discussion is not tolerated outside of the actual Mature Discussion section. The Mature Discussion has its own set of rules which can be viewed as a sticky thread within the Mature Discussion forums. Mature Discussion Rules

8. No Inappropriate Posts or Images
This includes anything that could be considered sexist or racist. This is very judgmental, so if you think it may be considered inappropriate by any group of people, be safe and don't post it. This includes images that have partial nudity or any inappropriate body gestures. Also, the Zelda Dungeon Forums has a younger audience, and some posts may be inappropriate for all users. We don't like to discriminate against particular users, but we have to keep things civil and organized. Thus, images that reflect deformed faces, cross dressing, obnoxious blood, violence, etc... (whether they are real or photoshopped images)... are not tolerated. [Exceptions in the Mature Discussion ONLY].

9. Opinions
Remember, this is a community forum and there will always be different opinions. All members are entitled to their own opinion as long as it does not break any rules. (Rule #4, don't flame somebody for having a different opinion). Especially take this into account within the Theorizing area of the forums, as well as the Mature Discussion. In both cases, there are hardly ever any concrete answers and things can always be interpreted differently. Let's try to be fair towards all members while also be constructive.

10. Grammar and Spelling
Having proper grammar and spelling at the forums is desired, but we understand that it doesn't always happen, given we have a large base of younger users, as well as foreign users. To help improve spelling, a thread is available on how you can install an add-on to your computer to Improve Your Spelling. Grammar, we are bit lenient with. If a user misses a period or a comma, that's perfectly fine. However, if it becomes a constant problem where a post has no periods at all, then this is a problem. Also, much like how we don't allow posts that are in all Caps-Lock, we don't want a post that is in all lowercase letters. Capitalizing the first word of a sentence is something that is usually taught at the age of 5 or 6, and there should be no reason that this is a consistent problem at the forum.

11. No Duplicate Accounts
This is pretty self-explanatory. Super Moderators and Administrators know if you make a duplicate (or alternate) account. If you are banned, or even if you aren't banned, do not make another account. If you aren't banned and want to change your username or something, request it. Adjustments can usually be made if you are relatively new and do not have many posts. Duplicate accounts will be banned immediately. Continuously creating duplicate accounts may warrant a permanent ban.

We want to keep the forum clean and as long as you can work with us to try to make quality posts, we will work with you to enjoy your stay here at the Zelda Dungeon Forums.


So what happens if a member breaks a rule?
Here at ZD Forums, we use an infractions system to handle the breaking of forum rules. To read more about the infractions system, Click Here.

Signature Size Limits
The maximum limit of the size of your signature is about 400x250 Pixels. You can use more then one image in your signature, as long you don't pass the maximum limit.
Using animated GIF images is allowed, as long they are not too large of a file size.

Here is an example.



So what happens when your signature is oversized?
a) A Moderator will send you a warning asking you to reduce your signature size.
b) You will have 2 days to change your signature after you received a warning, regardless of if you have been active those two days or not.
c) If you ignore the PM, your signature will be removed and you will receive an infraction.

Reminder - the 400x250 limit is a bit arbitrary. If a user user has a signature that is 450*150. (Wide but not tall)... we'll usually be a bit lenient with it. If a user has 9 tiny images that all add up to being smaller than 400*250 they will be removed. The purpose of the rule is to keep signatures from being obnoxious, and not to dictate exactly what is not allowed.


Things to consider.
1) We are moral people and if you are willing to work with us, we are willing to work with you.
2) The general rules of the Zelda Dungeon apply to all areas of the Message Board. However, some individual sections have their own added rule set.

If you have any questions or concerns about the Zelda Dungeon rules or something that happened within the Message Board, don't hesitate to contact MrMosley, Justin, or Mases.