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Old 18-05-11, 17:54   #1
Gabi
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Joined: Oct 2003
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Lightbulb Things you should know when posting on the forum

For members who feel lost at times, a thread to lead you through the labyrinth of rules, netiquettes and things to know on TRF:
  1. Treat other members and their opinions with respect.
  2. Do not spam or troll
  3. Post responsibly
  4. Do not relay messages from banned members
  5. Do not post nudity
  6. Do not create multiple accounts
  7. Do not use anonymous proxies
  8. Image size restrictions (1024x768 pixels/500 kb)
  9. Do not multi-post
  10. Avoid over quoting
  11. Signatures may not contain URLs
  12. Posting links versus advertising
  13. Do not circumvent the forum censor
  14. If you have questions, doubts or complaints contact us
  15. Actions taken by moderators in case of infringements
  16. Access to the mature section
  17. Reporting Posts
These are the bullet points - more detailed information can be found below.


1.) Treat other members and their opinions with respect, even if you don’t agree with them.

Name calling, hostile remarks, harassment, offensive, threatening and derogatory comments are not acceptable and will not be tolerated.
This does not mean that you can’t be in disagreement or have negative feelings about a topic, but we would like to ask you to voice these in a polite and constructive manner.

Personal conflicts should not be brought into discussions on the forum, they can be dealt with via PM. If a post or poster offends you, please try to talk about it via PM or VM before reporting the post to moderation. It is entirely likely that the person did not realise their post would offend you as an individual on a personal level, and might reconsider their post if you explain why such material causes you distress. That said, just as in real life, please understand that nobody has the right not to be offended. Sometimes the best approach when seeing something you disagree with online is to ignore it and move on.

However, just like in real life, sometimes two members simply do not get along.
In that case we strongly advise to make use of the “ignore” feature which can be accessed via the User Control Panel – Settings and Options – Edit Ignore List. Add the member that bothers you to that list and you will never have to read one of their posts again.


2.) Do not spam or troll

Our definition of spam is as follows:
  • posts that are frivolous, irrelevant and unnecessary and do not contribute to the discussion. This includes “+1”, “In before the lock”, “what he said” and the like.
  • when members hijack threads for personal off topic conversations.
  • multiple posting of pictures, GIFs or emoticons only and one word replies.
Contrary to popular belief these rules also do apply to Open Chat (clicky).

If you come across a “spam thread”, whether posted by a member or an advertising bot, do not post in it, do not comment. Use the report button and leave the thread alone – it will be dealt with by a moderator. The same applies to single spam posts in an existing thread.

As game threads and listing threads (“your latest purchase”, “your mood”, “which song are you currently listening to” and the like) are somewhat frivolous by definition a maximum of 2 posts per 24 hours is applicable.

We define the act of trolling as posting deliberately provocative messages with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument by baiting others to retaliate.


3.) Post responsibly

No pornographic, sexually suggestive or vulgar material or posts.
No reference to or promotion of drugs, piracy, illegal software or any other illegal activities.
No explicit gore, violence or cruelty. Content that falls within these lines will be removed at Moderator discretion.
This is an English speaking forum, therefore English should be used in general.
Out of consideration for our many members whose first language is not English you should refrain from using deviations of the English language like, for example, leet speak, ghetto-talk and phonetic spelling.


4.) Do not relay messages from banned members or discuss their suspensions

Please do not pass on messages or make threads for members who have been banned (temporarily or permanently).
The point of a suspension is for them not to have a voice here which would be moot if others act as their proxy.

If a banned member has a question about their account, they may send us an e-mail directly by using the "Contact Us" link (which may require logging out first if they have tried to log into the forums while banned).

Please do not discuss suspensions of others on the forum while the member in question is not around and able to comment.
It generally tends to lead to speculations and rumours that often lack a sound foundation.


5.) Do not post nudity

We have a strict no-nudity policy as far as images go. Please do not post any photographs of yourself or anyone else, including celebrities, in which genitals or nipples (for men and women both) are visible.
In the interests of the protection of younger members, no member under the age of 18 may post semi-naked pictures of themselves. This would include even the most casual of shirtless shots.

The same rules also apply to drawings and other types of images of fictional characters, especially in relation to modding. Do not post nude mods of Lara or any other fictional character on this forum, and do not request them here either. As far as Lara is concerned, this is how we define the boundaries of what is acceptable and what is not: No outfit must show any more skin than what the bikini outfits in TR Legend shows.


6.) Do not create multiple accounts

Each person is allowed to have one single account. Do not make another account for any reason. If you have technical problems and cannot access your original account, send an e-mail using the "Contact Us" link rather than making a new account.


7.) Do not use anonymous proxies

An anonymous proxy is when a person intentionally hides their IP address in order to prevent themselves from being identified. These are often used by people who intend to troll the forums from an alternate account, hence they are no longer allowed. However it is fine to post from a university or corporation which may be using a corporate proxy (these are still identifiable).


8.) Image size and hosting restrictions

All images are to meet both size restrictions, 1024x768 pixels and 500 KB.
In general threads images (including GIFs) up to the above mentioned sizes can be posted using the button.
Images larger than 1024x768 pixels and 500 kb should be posted as a link using the button or as a thumbnail rather than embedding them in the thread.
If you are posting a lot of images, or quoting a post with images they should also be converted into links. This is out of courtesy to other members so that the forum layout is not distorted by large images, and so that the thread does not take a very long time to load.
For image showcase threads, this rule can be relaxed but it is still advisable to post thumbnails for very large images rather than embedding them.

NOTE: When posting multiple GIFs, the combined file sizes of all GIFs in the post must not exceed 500kb.

For example, you may post a single 500kb (or smaller) GIF, or maybe you might post 2 x 250kb GIFs.

However, 3 x 200kb GIFs would exceed the 500kb filesize limit, and thus, not allowed.

Images may only be posted using approved image hosts. The approved image hosting services are:

imgur, photobucket, twitter, facebook, tumblr, instagram, abload, gyazo, postimage, dropbox, steam, casimages, deviantart, flickr, Xbox, google, microsoft



9.) Do not multi-post

Please do not make multiple posts in a row without another member posting in between.
Clicking the button on your own post enables you to make changes to the content.
If you want to quote more than one post you can do so by clicking the button on those you want to include in your reply and then proceed to as usual.


10.) Avoid over quoting

When using the quote function to reply to another member's post, please edit large posts to quote only the portion(s) of the member's post that are pertinent to your reply. If the entire post is relevant to your reply, please consider editing out the middle portion and inserting "edited for brevity" in its place. The member's entire post will always be available for those interested by clicking on the icon next to the quoted member's name.

When quoting posts containing images, especially multiple or very large ones, please change the images to links by deleting the IMG code around the urls. The member's entire post will always be available for those interested by clicking on the icon next to the quoted member's name.


11.) Signatures may not contain URLs

You can link to your homepage in the appropriate space on your profile by clicking "Edit Your Details" on your User CP. Your homepage will then be visible to anyone who clicks your user name or visits your profile page.


12.) Posting links versus advertising

You may post links on the forum when it is reasonable to do so in the context of the thread. However, excessively posting links is considered advertising. If you would like to show off your own site, please do so in the Fan Art section rather than linking to it in other parts of the forum.
Additionally, new members must have 100 posts and be a member for a month before linking to other sites. This is to discourage anyone from joining for the sole purpose of advertising their own websites. However, it is fine for a new member to post images or YouTube videos, especially if they are asking for help or trying to help another member.
Members may not post links to petitions, surveys or other sites which require a person to submit personal information (such as name or e-mail address) in order to see the relevant content.


13.) Do not circumvent the forum censor

Since people of all ages can view the forum the use of profanity is not allowed.
This forum has a censor software that converts anything on the censor list into asterisks.
Please do not try to self censor by replacing some letters with asterisks or any other characters. Always type the whole word and let the software do its job.
Example:
**** - the whole word was typed in and got censored by the software.
s*** - the censor was bypassed by adding asterisks to the first letter of the word.
Also do not post images/video clips which contain words (spoken or written) that would get censored when typed out in a post.


14.) If you have questions, doubts or complaints contact us

Instead of doing this via a thread or a post somewhere on the forum, please contact a moderator via PM.
If this does not solve the issue, feel free to take it up with one of the super-moderators or the administrator via the "Contact Us" link.


15.) Actions taken in case of infringement

We do operate an infraction system where for each rule breaking 5 infraction points will be added to the member's account.
Members who disregard any of the above will be contacted by moderation and issued with 5 infraction points.
The second time this happens the system will automatically suspend the account as listed below:
  • PM/VM/in-thread message - Informal warning
  • 5 points - Formal warning
  • 10 points - 24hr suspension
  • 15 points - 3 days suspension
  • 20 points - 7 days suspension
  • 25 points - 28 days suspension
  • 30 points - 3 months suspension
  • 35 points - 6 months suspension
  • 40 points - 12 months suspension
  • 45 points - 24 months suspension
  • 50 points - 48 months suspension
Further information can be found here.

The posting of pornographic material, spam attacks and creation of a duplicate account will immediately result in a permanent suspension.



16.) Access to the mature section

We have an additional forum for mature members over the age of eighteen.
To gain access, members can send a request via the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of the page if they meet the following criteria:
  • They must be 18 years of age or older
  • They must have a minimum of 100 qualitative posts on our forum
  • They must be an active member for six months or more
17.) Reporting posts

If you see a post which blatantly goes against the forum rules, please feel free to alert the moderation team to the issue by clicking the report icon underneath that post.
Doing so takes you to the next page where you explain the reason for reporting that particular post. Common reasons for reporting a post include it falling under our spam policy or censor circumvention.
After you're done filling that in, click 'Send Report' and the moderation team will review the report as soon as they are able.

Please do take care only to report posts which do actually require the attention of the moderation team. Reports should contain a brief sum-up of the context of the reported post and the reason the post is being reported. Reports that contain insults, threats or otherwise attempt to direct moderation will be ignored.


Last, but not least, some useful links:

A guided tour of Tomb raider Forums by Quasimodo
Announcement
Terms and Conditions

Rules for XNALara
Rules for Congratulations


Please note that these rules and statements may change at any time. We therefore advise to check back occasionally for amendments.
Thank you for choosing to be part of our community. We hope you enjoy your stay.



18 May 2011, Version 1

04 September 2012, edited Version 2

27 June, 2014, edited Version 3

27 June, 2014, edited Version 4

09 May, 2015, edited version 5

26 June 2015, edited version 6


13 October 2015, edited version 7

31 January 2021, edited version 8

7 Feb 2023, edited version 9

Last edited by tlr online; 07-02-23 at 21:39. Reason: Changed contact us link
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