Fredtalk: How not to get banninated

First, the GOLDEN RULE: Don't take up too much of the Admins' time. We can and will suspend or ban users solely based on how much of our time they take up. See Brian's note ( HERE ), for more on this.

The following should be considered an addendum to, and not a replacement of, the FredTalk User Agreement:

1. Abuse of "Report to Admins" link: Users who abuse the "report to admins" button by repeatedly reporting innocuous threads which do not violate the User Agreement, will be suspended or banned. ( See the above "Golden Rule" )

2. Reposting a deleted thread: If it was deleted, we did so for a reason. Reposting it will get you banned.

3. Posting PMs: This is a change from our previous position on PMs. Posting PMs per se, is not a violation of the User Agreement. DO NOT send anything via PM which you would not post publicly! That being said, it is NEVER OK to post personally-identifiable information about another user (such as phone number, e-mail, real name, address, names of family members, etc.), EVEN if the user sends this info to you via PM.

4. Being Annoying: Posts which do not technically violate the rules, but are obviously intended to annoy, or which contribute nothing of value to the conversation, will be considered a violation of the Mutual Respect clause of Rule #1. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Attempting to circumvent the bad-word filter by using misspellings or combinations of letters, numbers, ASCII characters, images or emoticons.
- Posting huge images which stretch out the screen
- Making posts which consist entirely of emoticons or annoying blinking flashy graphics.
- Making posts in ALL CAPS.
- Repeatedly posting copypasta, or cutting and pasting long articles, news stories or other blocks of text, yet not otherwise contributing any original content.
- Being a troll or otherwise making any attempt to initiate drama or inflame other users. This includes bumping old posts for the purpose of stirring up drama.

5. If you get banned: This should go without saying, but apparently some folks need it spelled out for them: If you get suspended or banned, your permission to use FredTalk is revoked. That does not mean you can register a new account with a fake e-mail address. We reserve the right to employ any means necessary to prevent abuse of our system, including reporting your activities to your ISP, employer, or law enforcement.