Young@Park guidelines for using the message board and chat room.
The y@p website message board is a public forum and, while we encourage a free flow of information and ideas on the boards, we also ask that you follow a few basic rules. By using or participating on the Y@P message board, you agree to the Rules of Conduct as stated below, as well as the Y@P website User Agreement.
Moderation? The Y@P Message Boards are a moderated forum. However, the moderators cannot be everywhere and see everything. Because of this, please use these rules as a guideline as to what is and is not allowed, rather than the content of other users posts. If you see something that is against the terms of the site, please email us using the contact us link. Note that the moderators have the final say in any situation that you report. They will evaluate the situation on a case-by-case basis and take appropriate action where needed.
• What Is A Moderator??A Moderator is a volunteer chosen by Parkinson’s Victoria the Community Manager from among the user base who gives of his/her valuable time to help keep the message board a positive and informative method of communication for everyone. They try hard to be fair but cannot be everywhere. Because of this, please use these rules as a guideline as to what is and is not allowed, rather than the content of other users posts. If you see something that is against the Board Rules, please report it via the contact us link.
• What Do Moderators Do?? Moderators monitor board posts and respond to complaints to keep posting free of undesirable content as described in this article. They can delete posts, edit posts as well as remove any user's ability to visit the boards. Please respect and adhere to moderator’s warnings, both public and private. Likewise, if your thread was deleted or locked by a moderator, do not repost or unlock the topic. They deserve respect and appreciation for their time.?
• What If I Disagree With A Moderator?? Moderators are not perfect and are only human. Disagreements occur. Try to communicate with them first on a respectful level and settle your disagreement. If you do not agree with a decision, you are not entitled to start a thread arguing about the verdict or flaming any of the moderators. Any such messages will be removed. This extends to Private Messages as well. You can contact Parkinson’s Victoria info@parkinsons-vic.org.au for a final and absolute decision.
• Following are some things you'll want to keep in mind while posting on the Y@P Message Boards. Please read the rules so you will be familiar with them:
• Flaming & Bashing? Hate posts and personal attacks will not be tolerated on the Y@P Boards. Treat others on these message boards as you would expect them to treat you. Talking trash about another user or posting topics specifically to provoke a negative response from an individual, a group or an entire community is not acceptable on the Y@P Boards. These posts will be deleted and will result in you being blocked from the site.
• Pornography & Sexually Explicit Content ?Absolutely no forms of pornography or overly sexually suggestive imagery are allowed on the boards, this includes links and/or posting a name of a porn site. Note that pornography is not limited to images - descriptive sexually explicit posting is also not allowed on the boards. This includes describing sexual acts in a profane manner or using sexual slang terms for body parts or actions. We allow mature discussions of sexuality, but the boards are not your bedroom, local bar, porn shop or back alley. Please keep all discussions on this subject mature and use proper terms.?
• Pedophilia?Content that in any way depicts or implies sexually explicit/suggestive/provocative/nude imagery of seemingly underage persons (under 18 years of age) is not allowed at the boards for any reason. Violators will be permanently banned and their accounts will be terminated. This includes but is not limited to all images, "friends" pictures or pictures taking from social networking sites, school sites, any joke-style images, written stories, jokes or remarks.. Any hint of pedophilia or related content will be dealt with harshly with the added possibility of Y@P contacting your ISP and local authorities. Also note all these types of content can be subjective and Y@P holds the right to make a judgment on what can fall under pedophilia related content. When in doubt -- leave it out.?
• Other Explicit Content? Explicit images/videos, which include but not limited to death scenes, death pictures, torture, mutilation and human feces, are not allowed. Explicit written descriptions of these acts is also not allowed on the boards.?
• Posting "Real Life" Information ?Posting any real life information about another user/person is strictly prohibited. This includes such things as full names, addresses, phone numbers, etc. Purposely posting links to users social networking pages, websites, school, etc. for the sole purpose of harassment will be severely dealt with and can result in a permanent ban.?
• Racism/Hate? Y@P will not tolerate hate speech in any form. This includes but is not limited to racist slang terms, hateful comments based on skin color or background, religious bashing or intolerance, gay bashing, sexist or misogynistic material, faith based prejudicial statements, derogatory remarks, and all poor taste jokes about these topics. Also note that using the word "gay" to describe something as stupid/lame/dumb is not allowed. Remember, these boards are open to all walks of life and with that comes the need to respect them all. So leave your hate at the door please.?
• Trolling? We are all entitled to our opinions and that may included negative opinions about a console/game/anything else, but if you are knowingly or purposely posting to incite anger/negativity on the board or from the community, you will be banned for trolling. These boards are meant for meaningful discussions and debates, not a place for you to start trouble. Be mindful. ?
• Profanity? Offensive language is unacceptable. Remember, you don't have to use excessive profanity to get your point across, and it's usually better to avoid it altogether. Profanity in posts will be edited out, and repeat offenders or those who use excessive profanity will be banned. In particular, be careful when quoting outside sources or other users as you are responsible for your own post and everything inside it. When linking to external sites that contain profanity, please include a warning.?? Note that as thread titles are more visible than thread content, they are held to a higher standard. Vulgar, obscene, sexual terms, slang terms for body parts, etc. that might otherwise be allowed on the boards should not be used in thread titles.?
• Criminal Activity ?No discussions of illegal activity will be tolerated on the boards. Any instruction on how to carry out illegal activity or admission of illegal activity will be dealt with harshly. This includes but is not limited to discussions about how to obtain drugs illegally, how to steal, fraud, how to kill someone, rape (including statutory rape), abuse of humans or animals, and auto theft. To sum up, if it's against the law, don't post it. ?
• Spam?Purposely spamming a message board with senseless, vacuous, or empty messages is highly frowned upon! This includes such things as party posts, chain letters, two-word "I agree" or "me too" responses, merely posting an icon, one word replies, bumping old topics, +1, "didn't read" or "old", continually posting the same topic or post, posting the same question across several boards and using the Quote feature without contributing anything new to a thread. On a similar note, participating in spam attacks (post riots, etc.) on the Y@P Boards or planning a spam attack on the Y@P Message Boards or any other Website is unacceptable, and these actions will be reported to your ISP.?
• Circumventing a Ban? Creating an alternate username and logging into the boards to continue to post will result in added ban time to your original banned account and the new username will be permanently banned.?
• Copyrighted Material? Y@P board users agree not to post any material that is protected by copyright, trademark or other proprietary right without the express permission of the owner(s) of said copyright, trademark or other proprietary right. This includes but is not limited to magazine, book and newspaper scans, television broadcasts and copyrighted photos and pictures.?
• Advertising & Solicitation? Posting for the pure purpose of driving traffic to your own website is not allowed. This includes any pyramid schemes, free offers, other board systems, money making ventures, etc. These boards are not an advertising platform for you to use. Spam advertising via the Private Message system will result in immediate termination of your account.?
• Piracy, ROMs, and Warez?Y@P has a very strict policy against piracy, ROMs, warez, and the illegal use of copyrighted material. Linking to or giving information about any site that distributes illegal software, ROMs, media, or emulators, seeking help to circumvent any copyright laws, admitting to possessing and/or distributing illegal copyrighted material, or encouraging software or media piracy is grounds for an immediate ban. It is also unacceptable to post first-hand impressions, reviews or screenshots of known pirated material. This goes for all copyrighted material, including but not limited to games, movies, music and television broadcasts.?
• Impersonating Other Users / Accessing Another User's Account?You may not impersonate another board member or create an account specifically for the purpose of provoking other users. Also, accessing or using someone else's account or attempting to access another poster's account is strictly prohibited. If you engage in this type of behavior, you will be barred from the boards permanently. ?
• Altering Board Code ?Altering or changing Y@P code and/or exploiting code bugs for purposes other than what the message boards were intended to do is strictly prohibited. On a similar note, using automatic scripts on any part of Y@P is also not permitted. Hacking, altering board code, exploiting code bugs and using scripts are all grounds for an immediate and permanent ban. ?
• Off-Topic Posts? Okay, so you probably won't get banned for an off-topic post, but please try to post suitable subjects on the board. Off-topic posts will most likely be deleted, and further action may be taken against repeat offenders.?
• Questionable Content?Since we can't have a rule to cover everything, this is the rule to, well, cover everything. These are public boards, so act like you would if you were in a public place. Y@P reserves the right to choose the guidelines of objectionable content based on its knowledge of users and company policy. These issues are left to the discretion of the individual moderators, but may include any material that is knowingly false and/or defamatory, misleading, inaccurate, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, racist, sexist, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, invasive of a person's privacy or that otherwise violates any law or encourages conduct constituting a criminal offense.
By registering at the Y@P Message Boards, users agree that any post deemed inappropriate may be removed at the sole discretion of Y@P. Y@P also has the right, at its sole discretion, to revoke you registration privileges at any time without notice or reason. Think of these rules as a forewarning and, if you break them, you're taking your account status into your own hands.
Y@P is not responsible for messages posted on the Y@P Boards or the content therein.
Y@P reserves the right to change any or all other parts of this User Agreement at its sole discretion and without notice, including but not limited to implementing Rules of Conduct, Terms of Service and/or other measures.