ACCEPTABLE USER POLICY (AUP)
BY PARTICIPATING IN THE NATIONAL COUNCIL for METAL DETECTING (NCMD)
FORUM YOU ARE AGREEING TO ABIDE BY THE ACCEPTABLE USER POLICY. IF YOU DO NOT
AGREE WITH THE AUP THEN YOU SHOULD NOT PARTICIPATE ON THIS FORUM.
As a member of this forum it is expected that you will act as an ambassador for
the hobby of Metal Detecting, and that you will support and uphold the
principles of responsible metal detecting. In addition, you will promote those
ideals whenever possible and will never do or say anything that will harm or
bring the NCMD or
the NCMD FORUM, or
the hobby of Metal Detecting into disrepute.
Preamble:
The
NCMD FORUM is not a club. The
NCMD FORUM is owned
by the NCMD and is
operated by volunteers for the mutual benefit of the
NCMD members. The
NCMD FORUM is a place where
NCMD members can
meet for discussion or collect information with respect to Metal Detecting.
1. Introduction
Any grouping of individuals with a common purpose, interest or
background is held together by the enthusiasm of the many and the dedication of
the few.
The NCMD FORUM has
been created as a medium for keeping the
NCMD members in touch with events concerning Metal
Detecting. It also has the benefit of allowing members to meet and discuss
issues relating to metal detecting. Contributors are drawn together by a common
purpose: Membership of the NCMD
and the hobby of Metal Detecting. Whatever the motivation the underlying drive
is the opportunity to benefit from the experience of others.
2. Your rights and responsibilities as a contributor to the
NCMD FORUM
As a contributor you are part of the
NCMD FORUM community.
Similarly to clubs, the main principles of association are defined by the
organisers - in this case the Admin Staff - and the Forum is run and managed for
its contributors - you.
These guiding principles, which define your rights and responsibilities,
distinguish the NCMD
FORUM and its community:
- You own your own details.
- You own your own words.
"You own your own details" means that, through your profile, you can add or
remove your personal details at any time and these changes are automatically
captured on the database used for communication between you and the
NCMD FORUM.
"You own your own words" means that you are directly responsible and liable for
everything you choose to publish in the discussions, including third-party
copyrighted material, and that you own the copyright and retain the moral rights
in what you create and publish.
3. Why have Rules?
Conversation and discussion generally requires visual and auditory
clues to give the participants an idea of the emotional context of the
discussion. However, because the natural visual and auditory clues are missing
during online discussions, we need to be more aware of how our written words
might be understood or interpreted by others.
The Rules are here to act as guidlines for appropriate ways to engage in
conversation with fellow members. The aim is to protect anyone who reads or
contributes to conversations on the Forum and to help everyone have a fun and
rewarding time. They are 'our' rules and anyone can contribute to and enhance
them.
When you participate in a conversation you are implicitly accepting these Rules,
and any on-going amendments, as part of the
NCMD FORUM Terms &
Conditions.
4. The Rules
Please read this to understand what defines acceptable behaviour in
our discussions. Monitoring behaviour can be carried out by any contributor by
using the "Report Post" Blue button. The Administrators, Supermods and
Moderators will, in most cases, discuss the matter and will respond with an
agreed resolution to the issue raised.
As a user and contributor to the NCMD
FORUM you agree to abide by the following guidelines for:
Manner:
• Be polite to each other! Do not abuse or call others names.
• Exchange ideas in a civil manner and avoid "flames" (angry, mean-spirited
posts).
• Assume goodwill and remember that most misunderstandings arise from the
text-based format of the discussion rather than from negative intent on the part
of others.
• Practice good posting manners and refrain from dominating conversations with
endless sequential posts and self-gratifying boasting.
• Learn to listen to written words and the person behind those words.
• Not shout at other contributors by posting in all capital letters .
• Take care with humour that might work verbally but seems rude or mean when
translated to words on a screen.
• Present opinions and positions in a tactful and moderate fashion
• Please do not goad people by using language designed to inflame
Content:
• Your post should be constructive.
• To avoid misunderstandings "txt spk" should be avoided. Please try to ensure
your post is legible and easily understood.
• Posts that are deemed irrelevant are subject to removal. To avoid this, please
ensure that your post is appropriate to The
NCMD FORUM.
• Do Not post anything that could be interpreted as self-publicity (including
spamming, ie: posting the same or similar picture or message in many
discussions), advertising (including pyramid selling and chain letters), buying,
selling, donating or soliciting (except in the designated classifieds area).
Classified adverts not related in some way to metal detecting will be removed.
• Do Not post anything unlawful - for example, sending or posting material that
is indecent, racist or defamatory, or harassing and threatening.
• Do Not post anything intended to disrupt or vandalise the service.
• Do Not post any personal details of others, known both in and outside the
community.
• Ensure that your contribution to any post is relevant to the thread being
discussed.
• Do Not post any third-party material that infringes any legal rights - for
example, copyright or other proprietary rights.
• Do Not post private email, private messages or any other private material
anywhere on the Forum unless it is using the Private Messageing (PM) facility.
• Please note that any post deemed to be malicious towards another Forum will be
deleted. If you have something negative to say about another Forum then please
post it on there and not on the NCMD
FORUM
Responsibility:
• Accept responsibility for all material that you publish on the Forum.
• Accept responsibility for a discussion you have started.
• Always acknowledge (when possible) the name of the source of any third-party
material legitimately quoted or referred to.
• Do not quote any contributor who specifically requests not to be quoted.
• Do not intentionally misquote another contributor or the
NCMD FORUM staff.
• Do not falsely represent yourself.
Signatures:
You are encouraged to use a 'signature' in your posts, but please ensure
that it is manageable and does not take up too much space.
Banner adverts as signatures may not be used. Failure to comply with this
reciprocal arrangement may mean that your banner could be removed.
The signature should not be used to advertise metal detecting finds for sale or
for purchase.
Monitoring:
• Report any transgressions to the
NCMD FORUM Staff by using the "Report Post"
• If another Forum member annoys you and you do not wish to view their posts,
then use the 'ignore button'. That's what it is for!
Use of images:
• Images over 60kb are not allowed and you will be unable to post any that
are above this size
• It is recommended that you optimise images for the web. Use jpg's.
Use of Avatars:
Avatars are the pictures used on the forum as a visual identification of a
member. Any picture (within AUP guidlines) can be used so long as it has the
following features:
• Avatars should be no larger than 10kb in size.
• Avatars should be 96 pixels wide and 96 pixels high.
Admin Staff and Moderators:
• Please remember that these people give up their free time to help you.
• They have the authority to amend, move, lock or delete posts where they deem
it necessary to do so.
• Deletion of a post is a last resort.
• The Administration Staff will advise you why they have moved, amended or
deleted your post. This may not be possible during busy periods or when they are
pressed for time.
Amendments:
• This AUP may be changed at any time without prior notice.
Warnings:
Respect those who give up their time for the sake of THE
NCMD FORUM. Anyone who gives
abuse to forum staff may find themselves being banned from the Forum.
When a post is considered to have gone beyond what is acceptable it may be
instantly deleted, but THE NCMD
FORUM staff will, in most cases, ask for an explanation first, as controversial
posts can be resolved in this way. However, if the poster fails to respond in
reasonable time then the Admin Staff will take whatever action is deemed
necessary. This action could be banning the offender from the section or
removing them from the forum completely. If the latter course is taken then the
username and the ISP address of a person who has been banned will be entered
into the system so that it can never be used again.
When and if anyone is banned, then a public notice may be placed (but not
always!) on the Forum with the reasons given for the ban. The member in question
may appeal this decision by writing, giving full details, to the General
Secretary of the NCMD.
Note:
Any members who wish to question or comment upon the decisions or actions of
Administrators or Moderators of the Forum, may do so only via the private
messaging facility. Any such matters posted on the forum will be removed
immediately, and the poster(s) may be have their membership suspended
indefinately.
The guidelines and rules listed in our AUP are not exhaustive, and do not cover
all manner of offensive behaviour. Forum Moderators shall have authority to
address and deal with any inappropriate behaviour in a manner they feel
justified by the circumstances.
The Administration Staff also reserve the right to evaluate each incident on a
case by case basis. The action we take may be more lenient or more severe than
those listed under the AUP.