Forum etiquette

[spoRv]

With this brief post, I'd like to clarify some good behaviour to follow in this forum, and some bad ones to avoid, to let this place happy and constructive.

Be kind: we are all intellingent and mature people, and if there could be some little "fight" between us, try to turn our rage into kindness, to build something positive... me and one of my fellow members here are sometimes in opposite direction, but we like to "agree to disagree"! Opinions are welcome, as long as they are argumented and polite!

Be humble: no one here wants to claim to be the best in his field; we ALL make mistakes - me first! - but admit them, even if could be hard, reveals great humbleness... also, change your mind is not a sign of weakness!

Be patient: we all have a life out of here... family, work, pets, hobbies... everything takes time, so don't push too hard asking for the completion of a project - this of course should not prevent you to kindly ask when it will be ready, once in a while!

Be sympathetic: remember that there are many members (me included) that are not from a native English-speaking country, so sometimes if one member seems a bit rude, or acts, in your opinion, in a strange manner, please ask him explanations; probably it's only a misunderstanding, due to language barriers or "culture clash"!

Be thankful: if you think a post is good for the community, or helped you somehow, there is a little "Thanks" button at the end of the page; clicking it will make the poster happy! Then you could also rate the whole thread with stars, and it's a good thing to do if you like the whole thread.

Be responsive: project makers do their projects with lot of hard work, spending a lot of their free time, so giving back feedbacks, in particular when asked, should be almost mandatory if you would like to see improvements in that project; don't worry to write negative comments - if they are constructive and not offensive, could help as well as positive ones!

Be happy: the mission of the forum is to showcase our projects, share our knowledge, find out new ideas, have good time at the end, with people who loves the same things... so, let's have some fun together!

[Valeyard]

My 2c: Remember that not everyone is a native English speaker. So if someone writes in pigeon-English it's none of your business to know whether they're illiterate, suffer from dyslexia, "are just stupid", or if they are ESL; and nor is it your business to presume.

[jerryshadoe]

These are pretty standard forum rules that make sense and are easy to understand.

As far as "pigeon-English" is concerned, I agree that there are lots of people out there to whom English is NOT a native language. I'll go a step further and say that sometimes comments that we see in "English" were actually translated by something like google translator. I, personally, know a lot of people in the world that do this when reading (and posting replies) on numerous forums that are mostly in English. Furthermore, I have done something similar when engaged in forum discussions on Russian (and other) forums. Granted, some things get "lost" in translation and some things seem "order not right in" (LOL) but this is the "glory" of the digital age on the "information highway" - foreigners can communicate with each other and exchange ideas/thoughts/emotions/etc... With the way things are going, we are well on our way to having "universal translators" like the ones on Star Trek; just a matter of progressing the technology a little further ;o)

Ok, I'm getting off-topic and I apologize. I acknowledge that all people, regardless of whether English is their native language or not, have their own "writing style" and we should all respect that. HOWEVER, if something does seem "off," don't be surprised if people ask for a clarification. I believe that this, as long as it's done respectfully, is something that is "ok." Here, patience on everyone's part is VERY important.

And now, my "brothers" and "sisters," LET'S COMMUNICATE ;o)

[Jetrell Fo]

Any chance we could communicate about the shoutbox? This past week was a bit tense and it looks as if a few things transpired that confused a few, myself included. Maybe we can figure out something where people here can communicate about things that are considered "too sensitive" for the shoutbox?

I look forward to some positive discourse on this subject.

Thanks.

[Evit]

May I add...

Be apolitical: we all share a passion for preserving films and that's something we can all agree upon, this is what this forum is about. Sharing political opinions (even as hinting or little jokes) can only lead to troubles and undermine the respect we have for each other. You don't want to hear my views, I probably don't want to hear yours