SF-FANDOM strives to provide a flame-free, spam-free environment for discussion of science fiction, fantasy, history, mythology, and such other subjects as we may occasionally include. We do not currently require registration to browse our forums; however, registration is required to post messages. In general, the following policies are enforced on SF-FANDOM forums.
Rule I – Personal Attacks and Responses
We do not allow personal attacks or responses to personal attacks.
Rule II – Poison Pen Campaigns
We do not allow members to start or take part in a campaign to harass another person.
Rule III – Spamming and Soliciting
We do not allow spam or posted solicitations, except where noted.
Rule IV – Self-Promotion
We do not allow forum use for self-promotion, except where noted.
Rule V – Copyrighted Material
We do not allow the posting of copyrighted material except as provided under Fair Use guidelines.
Rule VI – Restricted Discussion Topics
Some forums may have certain topics restricted in an attempt to maintain the general peace among forum members. Generally, these topics will be placed at the top of each forum and should be reviewed before posting to that forum.
The lack of specific restrictions does not constitute prior approval. Moderators or administrators may, at their discretion, remove any topics that they feel are in violation.
Rule VII – Disputes with Moderators
We do not allow the posting of arguments regarding forum policy on the forums.
Rule VIII – Circumventing Forum Restrictions
We do not allow circumvention of the forum restrictions.
Rule IX – Profanity and Masking
We do not allow the use of swears, curses, etc., or masking swears, curses, etc., in posts.
Rule X – Explicit Sexual Content
We do not allow the posting of explicit sexual content or links to explicit sexual content.
Rule XI – Stealth Networks and Illegal Links
We do not allow use of the forums to discuss how to use/access sites that encourage/participate in illegal activities.
Rule XII – Fan Fiction
We do not allow the posting of fan fiction, except where noted.
Rule XIII – Reservations
SF-FANDOM reserves the right to change any and all of the above forum policies without notice.
Additional Notices
Privacy
Your privacy is of paramount concern to us. We will not disclose your private information to third parties or use it for promotional purposes. If you register with our forums, you will have certain options available to you which can help ensure your privacy. However, though we take what we feel are reasonable precautions against unauthorized access to our database, your registration in our forums grants to us immunity from all prosecution for violation of your rights in the event that an unauthorized access occurs. For more information please review our [URL=”http://www.xenite.org/main/privacy.htm”]Privacy Policy[/URL].
Moderator Review
Except where noted, we do not preview or approve content for posting. We therefore accept no liability for whatever content is posted to our forums, although we reserve the right to remove any content that we deem to be inappropriate. All content is subject to administrative review upon our receipt of complaints. We may also, at our discretion, modify or remove content without prior notice. Your participation in our forums, either registered or unregistered, grants to us all rights and privileges to modify or delete your content in accordance with the guidelines set forth here and in our privacy policy. Your participation also grants to us immunity from all litigation for comments made by others that you deem to be damaging, misleading, or in any way defamatory.
Forum Administrators and Moderators
Forum administrators and moderators are volunteers. Unless otherwise stated, administrators and moderators are not employees or agents of Xenite.Org and SF-FANDOM, their owner or owners, or any associated entities. Volunteers have limited rights and privileges and do not set SF-FANDOM administrative policy. As part of their normal functions, forum moderators may, at their discretion: intervene in topics to ensure that discussion communities do not depart from our policies and guidelines; and/or seek second opinions from other SF-FANDOM forum administrators and moderators; and/or intervene in forums without assigned moderators, or whose assigned moderators are not available. By participating in our forums you agree to accept the decisions of our moderators and administrators regarding the content you post.
Freedom of Speech
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution only provides you with a limited guarantee:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
SF-FANDOM, being a privately operated domain, does not receive funding from the United States government and does not act in any capacity as a law-making body or arm of the Congress. We are, therefore, under no obligation to allow you to post whatever you wish in our forums. Your actions, if they are deemed abusive, may result in probation, restriction, banning and may also be prosecuted under various laws, including but not necessarily limited to invasion of privacy, at our discretion.
Explanation of Rules
Rule I – Personal Attacks and Responses
We regard Personal Attacks, sometimes called “flaming” or “flame-baiting”, to include the use of insulting or derogatory language to refer directly or indirectly to any other individual (including celebrities, particularly those to whom we have dedicated forums), or an attempt to provoke an angry or emotional outburst. Examples include: name-calling, implying the unfitness or inferior quality of another person, or maligning another person’s reputation.
If you think another member has crossed the line, report the message privately to the forum moderator using the “Report Bad Post” link (red, white and black triangle: [img]https://www.sf-fandom.com/vbulletin/images/buttons/report.gif[/img] on the upper right) provided with every post. Do not post a reply or response of any kind to abusive messages.
Rule II – Poison Pen Campaigns
Poison Pen Campaigns are defined as singling someone out for abusive and harassing comments, complaints, or allegations in an attempt to attack, impugn, malign, or otherwise discredit another member�s character. This can be caused by a single person or by several and does not necessarily have to take place on the forums.
The organization of protests against corporate policies which affect the fan community in general (i.e. “Don�t Cancel Dollhouse”) may be allowed through the promotion of online petitions and protest pages. Protests may be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Rule III – Spamming and Soliciting
Spamming is the posting of the same message repeatedly either in the same forum or across multiple forums. The content of the message is irrelevant.
Soliciting is the posting of commercial messages with the intent of making profit.
We may grant long-term members permission to post soliciting notices. Please contact a forum administrator for approval.
Rule IV – Self-Promotion
Self-promoting posts are defined as posts by artists, authors, agents, publicists, publishers, etc., seeking to promote their work or their client�s work.
We may grant long-term members the ability to post self-promoting notices. Please contact a forum administrator for approval.
Rule V – Copyrighted Material
Except for “Fair Use”, copyrighted material should not be published.
“Fair Use” requires that less than 25% of copyrighted material be used without seeking permission. If you wish to share an interesting news article from another web site, it is best to post the first few paragraphs and then provide a link to where the entire article may be read.
Rule VI – Restricted Discussion Topics
Some forums may have certain topics restricted in an attempt to maintain the general peace among forum members. These topics will be placed at the top of each forum and should be reviewed before posting to that forum.
Rule VII – Disputes with Moderators
Posting messages which question or argue with moderators regarding forum policy or administrative actions are prohibited. All forum moderators and administrators may be contacted by email, and any disputes should be handled privately. If you cannot reach an understanding with a moderator, or if the moderator advises you to contact the administrators, you should cease communication with the moderator and contact our administrative staff. Continued arguments with moderators are considered harassment and may result in immediate banning.
Members are expected to be courteous when issuing a complaint or disagreeing with a moderator or administrator. Sending rude, harassing, or threatening messages to forum moderators or administrators will be deemed abusive and may result in immediate banning.
All decisions by moderators, super-moderators, or forum administrators may be appealed to the senior administrators. Appealed decisions are final
. Continued arguments or harassment of administrators, on or off the forums, after an appealed decision has been issued may result in immediate banning.
Rule VIII – Circumventing Forum Restrictions
Circumventing forum restrictions includes use of other ISP connections or accounts to post to the forums when account privileges have been restricted.
Rule IX – Profanity and Masking
Profanity is filtered at our discretion. The lack of specific filters does not constitute prior approval to post obscene or offensive language in our forums. Screen names should not include profanity or obvious insults.
Masking is the substitution of some characters in order to avoid forum filters. Some otherwise innocent words may be filtered automatically due to constraints of the technology we use. It may be necessary to circumvent the filters to convey exact meanings, but circumventing filters to include profanity is not permitted.
Movie titles, show names, direct quotes, etc. may be exempted from this rule in order to convey meaning and permit discussion by using the first letter of the word and self-editing the remainder with asterisks (e.g. the movie “D*** Yankees”). This may be further edited at moderator/administrator convenience.
Rule X – Explicit Sexual Content
Links to websites which provide explicit sexual content are not permitted in our forums. Explicit sexual content includes but is not necessarily limited to images, movies, or stories depicting sexual acts or behaviors, private body parts or functions. Inclusion of explicit language or images in your messages is not permitted.
Rule XI – Stealth Networks and Illegal Links
Use of our forums to share information, either explicitly or via coded message, on how to access illegal sites or participate in illegal activities (e.g. illegal downloading of television shows or movies) is strictly forbidden. If we detect such behavior, we reserve the right to report it to the proper authorities without warning or comment.
Rule XII – Fan Fiction
This provision is provided as a courtesy to the professional writing community, some of whose members from time to time visit our forums. We do have a Fan Fiction forum and you are encouraged to post your stories there.
Rule XIII – Reservations
SF-FANDOM, being a privately operated domain, does not receive funding from the United States government and does not act in any capacity as a law-making body or arm of the Congress. We are, therefore, under no obligation to allow you to post whatever you wish in our forums. Your actions, if they are deemed abusive, may be prosecuted under various laws, including but not necessarily limited to invasion of privacy, at our discretion.
Moderator and Administrator Actions
Violation of any of the above may result in: warnings, probations, restrictions, and/or banning.