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Comment Guidelines

Thank you for visiting. Just like with the communities that I manage, I am providing a set of guidelines for anyone who wishes to comment here. Participation in the comments section of website constitutes agreement to these guidelines.

Because of the live nature of the comments, it is not possible for me to review and/or confirm the accuracy or validity of a message before it is posted. If you believe that someone has violated these guidelines or you have spotted a comment that may otherwise require attention, please contact me with a link to the content and a brief description of what you believe is wrong. Notification is voluntary, but in no case is it acceptable to respond to a disrespectful comment with more disrespect.

Any comment that violates these guidelines will be removed. While I am happy to listen to feedback and answer questions, interpretation of these guidelines is at my discretion.

  1. Posting the same comment multiple times is not permitted. Please try to post your comment in the most appropriate place.
  2. Advertisements are not allowed. Generally speaking, comments made specifically for the promotion of a website, product or service are considered advertising or, at least, comments made that unnecessarily send people to a website that you are in some way affiliated with. It does not matter if it is a commercial website, a personal website, a non-profit website, etc. You may only post a link to your site/a site that you are in some way affiliated with if the link specifically answers the question that is being asked and the answer cannot be simply posted without the link. Even then, link directly to the page where the information can be found. General and unnecessary links will be tagged as advertising.
  3. Please no signature links at the bottom of comments. The website field in the comment form is the one place to include one link, as long as the content of that link is otherwise in line with these guidelines.
  4. Affiliate or referral links are not allowed.
  5. Do not post personal, real-life information such as home addresses and home phone numbers.
  6. As I only know English, please ensure your comment is in English so that I can read it and properly respond.
  7. Vulgar language and inappropriate material are not allowed and will be removed. Abbreviations, self-censoring, and attempts to circumvent the word censoring feature also violate this guideline. If you feel that the censor is acting in error, please contact me.
  8. I generally aim for a work friendly atmosphere around here. Please keep this in mind when participating.
  9. When linking to outside websites, you must ensure that the content of the link is appropriate, in line with the guidelines laid out here. This includes mentioning or referencing a site, even if the mention is not hyperlinked.
  10. No discussion of illegal activities, transactions, or websites such as warez, cracks, etc. is allowed. This includes the posting of information that you have obtained illegally.
  11. General political and religious discussions are not welcome, except how they are strictly related to an article I have published here.
  12. Do not post copyrighted materials (articles, videos, audio, etc.) that you do not have permission to reproduce or distribute. For text articles, most of the time you may quote a small portion of the article (usually no more than 1/5 or 1/6) and you must link to the source (if online) or provide the source (if offline). Posting the entire article, even with the source, constitutes copyright infringement. Please do not post links to video or audio that is hosted somewhere it shouldn’t be.
  13. When posting and linking to images, videos, files, etc., please refrain from hotlinking. This is the direct linking to images (.jpg, .jpeg, .gif, .png, etc.), video (.avi, .mov, .mpg, .mpeg, .wmv, etc.), audio (.mp3, .wav, etc.), archives (.zip, .rar, etc.) or otherwise downloadable or streamable files, on servers that you do not have permission to link to, instead of linking to the page where the item can be found. This includes providing a direct link to the file, even if that file is not embedded into your post.
  14. Respect is the name of the game. You must treat others with respect. Please refrain from inflammatory and defamatory comments as well as flaming, taunting, and general disrespect. Do not simply put down the opinion or advice given by others. If you don’t agree with it, say why – respectfully. Don’t just tell them they’re wrong. Do not make uninvited remarks about typos, posting styles, etc. When an opinion-based discussion is being had, do not state things like “there is no argument” as if your opinion is the only one or the only one that matters. When someone has clearly stated their opinion, do not say things like “Are you serious?” and “Are you kidding me?” Remember, this is not a debate club. This is a friendly space. Allow people to have their opinion. No one is to act as some sort of opinion judge, responding to each one to say whether they agree with it or not or whether or not it is a valid, well thought out opinion.
  15. Please decide how to identify yourself and stick with it. Do not post as more than one person.
  16. Automated participation, and content scraping is not permitted.
  17. I do not mass delete comments by request. All submitted comments are granted to me with non-exclusive, perpetual electronic publishing rights because any content posted on this website becomes a part of the conversation that others are invested in, even if you no longer are. You may request an item to be removed at any time, and I will do my best to accommodate reasonable requests. If you wish to no longer be identified in the comments, I may be able to remove the alias that you have posted under and replace it with something more generic. Please contact me.
  18. I have the final say on all matters related to the management of this website. If you have an issue with how I moderate the comments section or with the comment functionality, please do not make a complaint in the comments. Instead, you may contact me directly with your complaint. Comments that reference the removal of other comments will be removed. I am not perfect and if you feel that I have made a mistake, please privately contact me so that I can review the situation. If you would like a copy of your removed comment so that you can adjust it and repost, please contact me. As long as the comment is fixable, I will be glad to send you a copy.
  19. Whenever you are participating here, please keep in mind that my overall goal is for a friendly, respectful discussion at all times. Even if we disagree, we can do so in that manner.

Freedom of speech rights do not extend to privately owned websites, such as this one. These guidelines detail the types of behavior and activities that are allowed here.

If a visitor violates these guidelines and shows a disregard for them, other comments and me, they run the risk of losing their ability to comment. I reserve the right to block anyone and to edit or remove any content without warning. These guidelines are subject to change at any time without notice.

Do you have a question about these guidelines or anything else? Do you have a suggestion? Do you want to offer some feedback? Or are you experiencing some trouble with the site? Well, no matter what it is, please do not hesitate to contact me and I’ll be glad to help however I can.

Thank you for reading.