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Post by Jhomes87 on May 27, 2012 1:13:56 GMT -6
Forum Rules
1. Why We Have Rules. We want our forums to run smoothly and be a good experience for everyone who visits. We don’t want to have a lot of bureaucratic rules. But we do have to follow the Proboards terms of service, so there are rules that go along with that. And we have seen what happens on the net when there are no rules – an unpleasant experience for everyone. So please enjoy the site, but know that we will enforce our rules to make this a better community.
2. Knowing The Rules. The rules apply to everyone who visits the forums, and we assume you have read them. Not knowing the rules isn’t an excuse for violating them. We will post that there’s been an update if we make any significant rules changes. To the extent these rules are relevant, they also apply to anyone who blogs here, or replies to blog entries.
3. Warnings And Bans. We will generally give you one warning if you break a rule. A second offense will result in a one-week suspension. If you’ve been suspended once, and you repeat the offense upon your return, you will receive an immediate 2-week suspension. And a third violation will result in a permanent ban. But if the rule is an important one, marked with an asterisk (*) below, we may, at our discretion, suspend you upon a first violation, or ban you permanently, at our discretion. Some rules (spamming, for example) are so clear that there is no possible excuse of “I didn’t understand that.”
*4. One Account Per Person. If people could have multiple ID’s, they wouldn’t have to follow the rules at all. You may not have more than one account, and if you sign up for a second to get around a suspension, you will be permanently banned. The administrators have the ability to see the IP address of each poster, so it won't be difficult to find out if you have created multiple accounts.
*5. No Spamming. These boards are for the exchange of ideas about country music charts, and are not for promoting artists, other websites, or anything else designed to make money for you or anyone else. You cannot advertise, although you can express opinions that are highly favorable about artists you like. If you’re not sure whether what you want to do is a violation of this rule, ask a moderator before you do it.
*6. No MP3 Or Music File Sharing In Violation Of Board Rules. You cannot link to commercially available MP3’s without permission of the copyright holder. That will put us in danger of being shut down, or at any rate losing our credibility. You may link to MP3’s that are not commercially available, or to an artist’s website that contains an MP3. Downloading MP3's or other music files without purchasing them is illegal and we will not tolerate it.
7. No Requesting MP3’s On The Boards. Since nobody can link to commercially available MP3’s, it’s also against the rules to request such access. Nor is it acceptable to use PM’s to seek MP3 access. This is simply not a forum for MP3 exchanges, and it can’t become one.
8. No profanity, nudity, pornography to be posted. Your grandparents and your United States Senators (or similar figures in your home country) should be perfectly comfortable visiting this site. Use the English language in all its richness to express your ideas, and stay away from profane language. Putting an * in the middle of “b*tch” does not make it permissible to post. That’s still profanity. Find a better way to express your thoughts. And discussion of sexual imagery in songs is permitted, since that is part of a legitimate exchange of ideas, but blatantly sexual posts are forbidden. It’s the difference between “I don’t think a song about [topic] will ever get played on enough stations to reach the top 20,” which is fine, and “Artist X is so hot on that album cover that I want to [perform indescribable acts] with her (him),” which you may not post.
9. Stay On Chart-Related Topics. We’ll give you some leeway, but remember that this is a board devoted to discussing country music and country charts. We love the American Constitution, but you do not have limitless First Amendment rights to post on this board, which is operated by us, a private group, and not by any government agency. The audience for your posts, the other posters here, has come here to exchange ideas about songs. So please don’t abuse your “captive audience” with comments about politics, religion, or other topics irrelevant to country music and charts. And if you have comments about rule-breaking or suspensions or other board issues having to do with posters’ personalities and not country radio, please contact a moderator privately, rather than posting about that.
Permissible:
Brad Paisley had his streak of #1 songs broken only because he made a positive reference to President Obama. (related to charts)
I wish Carrie Underwood would return to the themes she explored in Jesus, Take The Wheel – then she’d be regularly spending a month at #1. (related to charts)
Not permissible:
Obama’s taking away our freedoms. (off topic)
You’re a fool, taking the Bible literally. (off topic)
Also not permissible:
Obama’s the only hope this country has. (equally off topic)
Your immortal soul is in serious danger. (equally off topic)
Also not permissible:
Hey, did you hear [name of poster] got suspended? That was completely unfair. (off topic)
It’s about time [name of poster] got suspended; what a jerk. (off topic)
The rule here about MP3’s is harsh and stupid. (take it up with the mods)
10. Post In The Right Place, In The Right Way. Moderators have the right to move threads that are started in an inappropriate forum. Unless you’re doing that to create havoc, you won’t receive a warning or suspension for posting in the wrong place – we’ll just fix it. Moderators may also lock a thread that has gone in the wrong direction, or delete unacceptable content.
Please don’t repeat yourself – if you’ve expressed an opinion earlier, no need to say it again. And don’t repeat others, either; you should read the thread, or the last few pages of it if it happens to be long, and if someone else has already posted what you were going to say (“The video will be out next week!”), then you shouldn’t re-post it. Nor should you ever post consecutively – just edit your previous post to include more information.
11. No Trolling. Trolling is posting to draw a reaction from other posters, and it’s impermissible. This is not a fan board, so in a Keith Urban thread you can express negative ideas about Keith Urban (“I don’t think I’m In has any shot at reaching #1” is fine.) But don’t post on a thread just to upset others (“I think Urban’s career is just about over, and it’s about time that guy goes back to wherever he came from” is trolling.)
12. Try Not To Produce Posts Without Content. You don’t have to be perfect about this, and enthusiasm isn’t a crime, but we’d rather have posts driven by thoughts and ideas. If you develop a pattern of posting in the “discouraged” zone below, we’ll work with you to try to correct it. We won’t suspend you unless you’re incredibly stubborn about content-free posting. And there’s going to be some leeway, because we know fans sometimes cross the line – but if we think it’s getting out of hand, we’ll let you know that you’ve got to raise your game a notch or two and offer up some more chart-related commentary.
Discouraged:
I love love love this song.
Heard it again this morning on my way to work!
This song really sucks.
Up to #27 on Mediabase! Huge bullet!
Encouraged:
I hope there’s room in the top 10 for a song with pedal-steel guitar – I love that sound, but it’s been the kiss of death for X, Y, and Z lately.
Up to #27 on Mediabase, and I notice it’s gained more than 1 million three weeks in a row after its long slump.
The vocals here are so babyish – but the lyrics are about adultery – I think the song’s going to fall short because the lyrics don’t fit the voice. Top 30 at best.
13. Starting New Singles Threads. Please provide (and link to) a source confirming officially that the song is going to be a single. Wikipedia is not official. Billboard, or All About Country, or other industry publications are; record label websites are fine as well. And leave room on the first post of the thread so we can add information about the artist’s recent singles history and where the new single is on the charts, to be modified every week. Feel free to post a streaming link to the official single, or to the album version of it; but not to a download site.
14. Moderator Decisions Are Final. We aren’t going to allow appeals; you have to live with the moderator’s judgment.
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