THE RULES

All posters to this forum must abide by the following rules, to ensure that the experience is pleasant for all users. Please take some time to review them so you are not subjected to punishment for violations.

These rules provide information and instruction that may greatly increase your enjoyment of the site, so please do make your best effort to understand them.

0. About These Rules

• 0.1: These rules are subject to change as I gain experience in what makes this site a better and more enjoyable place to visit.
• 0.2: You are responsible for ignorance of these rules. Being unaware of them or misunderstanding them is not an excuse for violations.
• 0.3: I (codehappy) am the sole enforcer of these rules.
• 0.4: I (codehappy) am the sole revisor of these rules.
• 0.5: Should any of these rules be ambiguous or create confusion, or should there be any controversy as to the meaning of one of these rules, I (codehappy) am the sole authority and final interpreter of these rules.
• 0.6: Specific questions about these rules, suggestions for new rules, or suggested modifications to these rules, may be posted in the "Questions and Comments" forum.

1. Posts

• 1.1: Do not post inline pornographic or otherwise non-worksafe pictures to the forums.
• 1.2: Do not link to pornographic or otherwise non-worksafe pictures (including spoiler links) without some warning (either an "R" or "NC-17" rating for a spoiler link, or some text indicating that an inline link is not worksafe.)
• 1.3: This site is my private property. I reserve the right to delete, modify, edit, or move any posting here. I reserve the right to banish any user from the board.
• 1.4: Respect the forums. Do not post general chat topics in the "Hall of Broken Memories" or "Questions and Comments". Do not post questions about the site in the "General Discussions" forum, etc.
• 1.5: In topics in the "Hall of Broken Memories", please try to keep the posts more-or-less on-topic. Minor, short diversions are acceptable, however lengthy off-topic material is likely to be deleted or moved.
• 1.6: Do not post "spam" material in any forum here. "Spam" includes: multiple posting, any form of political or religious recruiting, or unapproved commercial solicitations.
• 1.7: "Flaming" for your amusement and the amusement of others is generally acceptable, however threats of violence or harrassment are not tolerated.
• 1.8: Please search the "Hall of Broken Memories" for the topic you are interested in before posting a new topic there. Duplicates will be deleted or moved.
• 1.9: Do not impersonate another user of the board in an attempt to create confusion.

2. Spoilers

• 2.1: Description of valid "spoilers". The exact, complete classification of a spoiler can hardly be codified here, as the amount and variety of possible spoiler material on the Internet is too vast to completely categorize. However, by reviewing items that have been added as "spoilers" to topics in the past, and by knowing these rules, you may get a good idea of what is and what is not a spoiler.
• 2.1.1: Some examples of things that are not spoilers:
  • a. material merely containing scientific, factual or continuity errors,
  • b. rants about how the subject material is evil, immoral, degenerate, or of poor quality,
  • c. modified pictures vulgarizing the subject for a joke site (unless especially egregrious),
  • d. any other forms of parody or "joke" works (unless especially egregrious),
  • e. bad fan fiction (unless especially egregrious or having a disturbing bent),
  • f. pornography involving the actors, creators, or other persons identified with the subject, not in the context of the original subject,
  • g. any words spoken or deeds done by the actors, creators, or other persons identified with the subject, not in the context of the original subject
• 2.1.2: Spoilers must directly pertain to the topic at hand - they must use identifiable characters or material from the source. Consider this "copyright infringment" rule-of-thumb: if I were the creator of the source material, and the material was covered legally under copyright law, could I sue for copyright infringement (ignoring "fair use" considerations)? If the answer is "no", the item is not likely a spoiler.
• 2.1.3: Some examples of things that are usually spoilers (but not always, and by no means complete):
  • a. Material (art or fan fiction) of a pornographic, fetishist, gory, or excessively violent nature
  • b. Interesting sites made by obsessive or escapist fans that create spoilerworthy material
  • c. Outrageous juxtapositions (e.g.: a crucifix on which Jesus Christ is dressed as Pippi Longstocking)
  • d. Reworkings of the material ("alternative universe" or "adult" versions) that introduce disturbing undercurrents
  • e. Fan "tributes" in extreme bad taste (e.g.: Snoopy trying to protect the World Trade Center from terrorists in his Sopwith Camel)
• 2.1.4: Ask yourself: "Does this link have serious shock value?" "Does it portray heretofore-unimaginable depths of human insanity?" If the answer to either question is yes, and it does not fail any of these 2.1 rules, it's probably a spoiler.
• 2.1.5: Please note that non-pornographic spoilers are (in some sense) "prized" much more highly than pornographic ones, since they require more imagination to find. However, it is also harder to determine whether the spoiler meets the high standards of this board.
• 2.1.6: Spoilers must be available somewhere on the Internet. Spoilers must have a URL at which they can be found.
• 2.1.7: I am the final authority in whether a spoiler is valid or not, the rules in this section not withstanding. If I have ruled on a matter of spoilers, do not argue it with me. If you think you have a good reason why one of these rules should be changed, take it up with me in the "Questions and Comments" forum.
• 2.2: You are welcome to post a link to non-spoilers as well in the appropriate topic. However, do not post these in the "Spoiler URL" field. Post them as inline links (using the [link] tags) in the post.
• 2.3: If you post spoilers with dynamic URLs (which may change with time), or that are stored in temporary archives, it behooves you to make them available at some more stable location elsewhere on the Internet, and provide this URL.
• 2.4: If a hyperlinked spoiler does not work when clicked on, please indicate this in the post, or in a following post, and indicate what is needed to show the spoiler (e.g., cut-and-paste the URL into your browser's navigation bar.)
• 2.5: Do not post multiple spoilers from the same site in the same topic, unless it is not easy to navigate between the spoilers. Multiple spoilers from the same site strewn through different topics is acceptable.
• 2.6: In unspoiled "Featured Topics" (which are shown at the top of the list in the front page of the "Hall of Broken Memories"), or in topics for which there is an additional point or medal award offered (beyond the Bounty), do not post spoilers until the award is decided. Instead, post prospective spoilers as inline links for consideration for the award and bounty.
• 2.7: Do not contact the owners of the linked sites.
• 2.8: Do not post spoilers that you have created, or contracted to be created by a third party, whether in response to a topic on this site or not. This is the highest law specific to this board. Fabricating spoilers compromises the integrity of the whole site concept and ruins the fun for everybody. We are not interested in creating niche pornography, or becoming some sort of Something Awful Photoshop Phriday clone. We are merely passive observers in this twisted cyber-world.
• 2.9: Do not post spoilers that you did not find yourself, without subject-specific aid from a third party. If you go around asking people, "Hey, have you seen a spoiler for so-and-so?," this may lead to fabrication of a spoiler by some twisted individual and a violation of 2.8: the highest decree. It is OK to use a site that somebody gave to you beforehand to find a spoiler, or to ask help from others without mentioning the topic that you are looking for (for example, asking random Internet yahoos "Hey, know any good slash fiction sites?" and using those links to find spoilers is OK.)

3. Voting

• 3.1: Review any spoiler before you vote on it. To ensure that this rule is enforced, I will from time to time (without warning) activate a system which immediately exacts heavy penalties on users who vote without first clicking the Spoiler URL.
• 3.2: Nominating topics for the List of Incorruptibles. The only requirements for a topic to be worthy of the List of Incorruptibles are that: it must be a real topic (i.e., something that people have heard of, and not something that the poster just made up or that is hopelessly obscure) and it must be currently unspoiled. Nothing else need be considered. If you know it's a real topic, and it hasn't been spoiled yet, go ahead and click on the "Nominate this topic for the List of Incorruptibles" link. This will help you pick up points, and help send rightful topics to the List of Incorruptibles quickly.

4. Points and Medals

• 4.1: Any attempt to subvert the point, medal, or log-in system will be subject to heavy penalty.
• 4.2: Board users may nominate other users that they believe to be worthy of "The Eternal Order of Broken Memories", "The Philosopher's Medal", or "The Citizen's Medal of Hilarity" either in the "General Discussion" forum, or in response to a post which they believe demonstrates the nominated user's worthiness.

5. Punishment

• 5.1: Newbie offenders will usually be met with clemency and at most be given a temporary Mr. Yuk sticker; however, regulars on the board are expected to follow the rules and behave themselves well.
• 5.2: Punishments include, but are not limited to, the following (in order of severity):
  • Application of a Mr. Yuk sticker. The Mr. Yuk sticker is an indicator to everyone on the board that the wearer has violated the rules. It will appear in every post made by the user. The Mr. Yuk sticker is usually only worn for a short period, but serious offenders and trolls will be given the ignomious sticker to wear forever.
  • Point penalties. The user may be docked a certain number of points (the number depending on the severity of the offense.) It is possible to go negative.
  • Suspension of privileges, including posting privileges, spoiler privileges, etc. May be temporary or permanent, depending on the offense.
  • Banishment. Just as Dante gave several circles of Hell in his Divine Comedy, there are several circles of banishment on this board. Depending on the circle you are in, you may experience more or less frustration in trying to break back into the welcoming, warm BM boards. Worst of all banishments is said to be a "banishment to deep silence". None know what terrible form of BM banishment that might be, for no denizens of that depth have ever been able to report on its horrors.
  • Notification of your ISP. Yes, despite what some think, what you do on the Internet can affect you in the real world. Serious violations, not only in violation of board law but in violation of your Internet Service Provider's terms of service (TOS), will result in notification of your ISP and possible termination of Internet services or even legal proceedings. Only for the worst of the worst.