BMW.SG Forum Policy. (PLEASE READ)

[ryan]

BMW.SG is an automotive forum, which aims to bring all Bimmer enthusiasts and owners alike to engage in healthy discussions and interactions. We are always trying to keep the forums in shape and make it enjoyable for all registered members to enjoy.

To maintain the peace, we wish to advise you to read through the policies thoroughly to understand why we lay down rules and regulations in the forums. We do hope you enjoy our forums, and we welcome all forms of feedback. Please email admin@bmw-sg.com for any queries or suggestions.

Thank you.

Forum Policies / Regulations updated on the 7th May 2008

New Account Registration and Restrictions

This is to prevent any sort of spam and abuse of our systems by rogue members / vendors.

You must have at least 10 posts and must be registered at least 5 days in order to be automatically upgraded to a BMW.SG Member.

If you are not a BMW.SG Member, your account will be restricted by not having the following functionality:

• Private Messaging
• Signature Use
• Views to certain folders etc.

Please note that these measures are to cut down spamming incidents we have experienced in the past, and are effect to protect the community on the whole.

If you have troubles posting with your account or surfing the site, please contact us at the contact us link at the bottom of this page.

No Flaming

No aggressive, personal attacks on someone just because of a disagreement with their point of view will be tolerated. Flaming is a cheap shot, the easy way out, and an immature & unintelligent way of "getting back" at another poster by simply being mean-spirited. It is used in lieu of intelligent, logical discourse because the flamer is incapable of intelligence and logic, so they fall back on a personal attack. Again, it will not be tolerated in the BMW.SG forums.


No Blatant "Fanboyism"

We have a very "marque diverse" community in the BMW.SG forums. So, while intelligent, rational discussion of the pros and cons of each marque as they relate to BMWs are welcome (and expected), blatant "fanboyism" for either marque will not be tolerated. So, if all you can think to say is "BMWs suck" or "BMWs are crap and too expensive", then just keep your opinion to yourself - please.


No Trolling / Personal Attacks / Name calling

No posts obviously designed to attract flames or otherwise incite other posters to react negatively and aggressively will be tolerated. We are all in the BMW.SG forums based on one common trait - our love of the marque, and we do not need to try and bait or trap each other. Doing so is a waste of time, space, and bandwidth. If there is still a case to be settled between individuals or groups, please settle them out of the forum via PM or email.

If you spot a thread which happens to be in a very heated discussion, which involves your personal friend / relative / associate, please do not jump in to exacerbate the situation. Do not fan on the flames, if you are discovered doing so, you are liable for your forum account to be suspended as well. You can ask them to bring it offline or to settle the situation via the PM function or email, that is the best way of helping them. Calling others names are not allowed on the forums as well.

Healthy discussions are welcomed, troublemakers are not.


No Profanity

No profanity in the BMW.SG forums, please. Not everyone wants to read foul or off-color language, and those who do not should not have to be subjected to it. This includes attempts to circumvent the word censor or any other form of word ma5k1ng. Also, please do not post links to pornography or other adults-only content.


No Sock Puppets/Smurfs

"Sock puppets" or "Smurfs", (one user registering multiple times with multiple usernames) are forbidden at BMW.SG. Doppelgangers serve only divisive or deceptive purposes, neither of which is welcome at BMW.SG. Accounts known to be sock puppets will be closed and identifed as belonging to the user who opened them, and the user may be temporarily banned.


No Cross Posting

Please do not start more than one topic (in the same OR different forums) with the same question or message. Even if your topic's subject spans multiple forums' "themes", please pick the most appropriate single forum, and start your topic there ONLY. Starting multiple topics with the same question or message is confusing, splits up the discussion / answers and makes the moderators' jobs much harder. Please resist all temptation to cross post. Besides, the Moderators will lock duplicate threads as soon as they see them anyway.


Excessive and Unnecessary Posting

Posting just to raise your post count (aka post whoring) - will not be tolerated in any form.
If you think you will get more respect having more posts, you are mistaken.
If an Admin or Moderator deems you are abusing your account in this manner, your post count will be zeroed.
(Post whoring is when you post messages back to back that could have been easily in 1 post or when you have innocuous conversations back and forth with minimal post material or content or even minimal word content for that matter. Please use the Private Message system for such conversations.)

Likewise forum flooding is prohibited, as is spamming the forums with posts linking to other sites/forums (which is considered advertising).


Post in the Appropriate Forum

If you are starting a new topic, please give some thought to which forum your topic logically belongs before posting. In particular, if your topic is Exhaust-specific or Interior-Specific, please do not post it in one of the generic "BMW" forums at the top of the forums list - they are intended for BMW topics that cross both platforms. Please post your Exhaust-specific or BMW-specific topic in one of the specified forums, respectively. And, before posting a new topic in one of the "General" forums, please be sure it would not be more appropriate in one of the "General", "Off-topic", or other more specific forums.

Also, we like to discuss all kinds of things in BMW.SG, and we like to have fun. So, there are forums provided for topics not related directly to the Marque (like "The Lounge"). Feel free to use these forums for discussing other topics.


Descriptive Topic Subject

When starting a new topic, please give a little thought to coming up with a meaningful and descriptive subject, especially if you are looking for help or an answer to a question. With a descriptive topic subject, you will increase the likelihood that interested parties will open your topic. And, in the case of a question, you will more likely get a timely, knowledgeable answer.


Staying On Topic

We like to have fun in the BMW.SG forums, but not at the expense of getting people's questions answered. So, staying on topic is somewhat relative - as long as the original poster's question is answered in a timely fashion, some straying off topic will be tolerated. But it will always be discouraged if it comes at the expense of helping each other and getting questions answered and problems solved.


User PM (Private Messenger) for Messages Directed at Specific People

This is also somewhat subjective. While a little personal back and forth between two members that is probably not of interest to the rest of the community is fine, if it continues, please take it offline to the Private Message feature in the forums, or to e-mail. Please use your own discretion.


Abuse of User PM (Private Messenger) for Messages

If you are reported for abuse of your user PM, you will have your account BANNED with immediate effect without warning. This is to protect members of our community from having to recieve unrelated and unwanted Private messages from users.

Tech Support / Questions Posting Guidelines

In addition to the general guidelines above, please try to observe the following guidelines when posting questions or requests for technical support:


Read the FAQs Before Posting a Question or Problem

PLEASE read the BMW.SG FAQs to see if your question is listed and answered there before posting it. While the BMW.SG Administrators, Moderators, and members are all very happy to answer questions and provide help, it gets very tiring (and time consuming) answering the same questions over and over in the forums. So, please help them all out and use the FAQs - that is what they are there for.


Search the Forums

The third thing we ask you to do before posting a question or problem is to please use the search feature in the forums to see if your question has been answered or your problem has been solved before. Again, this helps the Administrators and Moderators a great deal. Since they all strive to insure that no one's question in the forums goes unanswered, answering you own question if possible will save them time (and typing!). So doing a little work up front to try and answer your question yourself is a huge help and is much appreciated.

Provide Model Specifics

In addition to entering a meaningful, descriptive subject (please see the General Guidelines) when starting a new question or technical support topic, please provide specifics in the post itself. Information such as:

- Car Model
- Year of Make (YOM)
- Model Number (E46, E36 etc.)
- Any specific description of what is (or is not) happening

It helps the people who want to help you, but will also greatly increase the likelihood that you will get an accurate answer in a timely manner. In fact, you might have already noticed that many long time members include the first four items in their profile's signature so that this information is displayed below each of their posts. This lets everyone else always know where they "are coming from" in regards to their own posts.

Share the Wealth!

If you have been helped by another member in the forums, share the wealth by reaching out and answering someone else's questions when you can! That's what the BMW.SG forums are for - helping each other get the most out of our BMWs.

Your cooperation and adherence to these guidelines and suggestions is greatly appreciated. Doing so will insure that the BMW.SG forums continue to be the best place on the Internet for BMW information sharing and problem solving. See you in the forums!

Signature size and usage policy.
We have to impose a limit on the size signature lines and graphic blocks on the forums. Currently the max number of characters allowed is 200 and the maximum size of graphic images is 300(w)x50(h) and no larger than 5kb.
Please choose one or the other - not both.

This is more than adequate for most members, and in is place so the members who still rely on a dial-up connection do not have to load every image when they access the Lounge - the more kb of data they have to load, the less likely they are to read/participate.

We currently do not allow pictures which have racist, sexist, ethnic slurs. Please ensure that your avatar is PG-13 safe as the forums are visited by many adults in working enviroments.

Please adjust your graphics to fall within the above criteria it will make for easier faster page loading, and less space taken up in posts.

We do not allow links to commercial entities or to your own business. Should you want to put up links to any commercial site that you currently own, please contact us for banner advertising rates.

Avatar Size and Usage Policy
The maximum allowable size for any avatar is 135x135 pixels.While we allow the use of animated Avatars and other photos, we currently do not allow pictures which have racist, sexist, ethnic slurs. Please ensure that your avatar is PG-13 safe as the forums are visited by many adults in working enviroments.

If we detect that your avatar does not conform to this rule, you will first recieve a caution to either change or remove your avatar. Failing any change, we will remove it ourselves directly.

Official BMW.SG Forum Titles and Signature Graphics

The use of any user title or signature graphic by regular members which implies an official capacity in the forums, such as Helper, Moderator, Admin etc, is not allowed. Also any signature graphic which appears to imitate the official BMW.SG version, or uses any element of the design, will be removed without notification.

No posting of PML / shop / workshop names

As defamation cases have occurred on the internet before, we request that all customers do not post shop names on the internet.

Different persons may have differing experiences with certain shops for different reasons. Some may be good while others may be bad. As BMW.SG is not able to verify your experiences with specific shops & their products/services offered, kindly refrain from posting shop or any references which may identify these shops / products.

We reserves the right to edit / delete posts which which are in breach of this rule at its absolute discretion, and shall not be obliged to offer any explanation for its actions.

Posting / Discussion / Sale of Replica / Copy of products are NOT allowed!

Please note that all discussions, postings and sale of replica / copy products will not be allowed, and the thread / post will be removed without notice or prejudice. If you persist in posting despite warnings from the administrators / moderators, your account will be banned permanently.

I would like to advertise my services / goods. What should i do?

If you would like to advertise with us, you may be interested in our "Site Sponsor" plan. Please click here for more information. ( http://www.bmw-sg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4382 ). You may also choose to email us at admin@bmw-sg.com for more information.
Our classifieds folder is meant for forum members to buy, trade and exchange parts from each other.

Classifieds "Bazaar" Forum Use

The BMW.SG Classifieds Bazaar forum is to be used for the sale of BMWs, Parts, or otherwise car-related products between forum members. It is not to be used for the sale of products by or to commercial entities, as defined by the commercial forum policy.

E.g. Mr Tan wishes to sell his BMW tyres / rims /air filter / to Mr Kim. This form of activity IS allowed.

What is NOT ALLOWED is.. "Dear Members! We are having a sale at XXX123 here! Please come and check out our wares..etc"

All commercial entities ARE NOT ALLOWED to use this folder(The Bazaar) to trade their wares / services.

What is a commercial entity?

Definition: Commercial vendors/entities include manufacturers, individuals selling items he or she made for more than the cost of parts and/or actual shipping charges, individuals performing services (like modifications or any other service) for which the price charged is more than the cost of parts and/or actual shipping charges, car dealers, distributors, manufacturer's representatives, importers, magazine and e-zine writers and others.

If you are a commercial vendor/entity/company, and your thread is spotted here. It will be deleted without warning. You will be then issued a warning. If you violate this warning, you will be banned from the forums for a period of 1 week. Future violations will be effected with a permanent ban which includes all future registered profiles.

Examples of commerical entities are:

Sale of parts in bulk of 2 or more - (headlights, taillights etc.)
Any form of service (mobile polishing, loans, insurance etc)
Bulk sale of number plates - 2 or more

I would like to advertise my services / goods. What should i do?

If you would like to advertise with us, you may be interested in our "Site Sponsor" plan. Please click here for more information. ( http://www.bmw-sg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4382 ). You may also choose to email us at admin@bmw-sg.com for more information.

No Indirect Advertising / Promoting Of Other Services / Companies
No indirect advertising is allowed in our forums. If you would like to promote another company or service which is not under our site sponsor plan, the relevant threads and posts will be removed. We do this to protect the interest of our current site sponsors.

If you feel that they're good and would like to share their services, hook us up and we'll arrange for them to be a site sponsor, it works out best that way in a win-win situation whereby both parties benefit.

No Thread Hijacking
Hijacking an existing thread to post your offer will get your post removed and the possibilities of your account banned. If you want to sell something, start your own thread! It's impolite to barge into someone else's conversation.

All Offers Must Be Done In Public ("PM Me For Details" Deals Will Be Removed)
In order to maintain transparency in transactions, all deals must be openly detailed. Threads which get our suspicion such as:

"I have a XXX Widget for sale. PM me for details" - We will remove such threads without warning or advance notice.

Why? We don't know how many items you're selling.

If you want to sell XXX Widget or part, post in a clear detailed manner, listing down the condition, price and number of items you want to sell.

Title: XXX Widget For Sale
Thread Content:
"Hi,

I have 1 piece of XXX Widget for sale at $50.00. Please contact me via PM or via number 9555-5555 to transact."

Close Your Thread After The Sale Has Been Completed
Closing your thread with a notice that your item has been sold will prevent un-neccessary replies and PMs to your account. It's also polite to notify the public that your sale has concluded.

Report All Rouge Buyers / Sellers!
We take a serious stance in ensuring transactions go smoothly on this forum. If you feel that you have met a rouge seller or buyer, report them to us immediately at this URL (http://www.bmw-sg.com/forums/sendmessage.php)

Your Right To Leave

Do remember that it is a privilege, not a right that you can use our forums to engage in discussions. Should you feel that you do not agree with our rules and regulations, or choose to defy them, you are free to leave our forums anytime you wish.

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INFRACTION (A.K.A DEMERIT POINT SYSTEM ( Update 5th June 2008 )
================================================== ========

Please note there is a Infraction (a.ka demerit) system implemented in our forums.

Think of it as a yellow/red card we show when we find that you have violated forum rules and policies.

The infraction system will kick in for threads / posts AFTER the 5th of June 2008.

There will be a grace period for June 2008, where warnings will be given instead of actual infractions.

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INFRACTION (DEMERIT) POINT SYSTEM
=================================

Please note that we have applied various points to the offences listed below. Each violation has a point and expiry date assigned to it.

Points will expire after X days listed below.

• Off Topic Posting - 1 point (expires after 14 days)
• Signature Rule Violation - 1 point (expires after 10 days)
• Inappropriate Language - 1 point (expires after 10 days)
• Inappropiate Topic - 1 point (expires after 10 days)
• Profanity - 2 points (expires after 10 days)
• Spammed Advertisements - 2 points (expires after 10 days)
• Trolling / Personal Attacks / Name calling - 4 points (expires after 14 days)

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PUNISHMENT MECHANISM
=========================

Incurring the various points within a time period, will move the affected user into the following groups listed below.

Each infraction level has an expiration time. When the infraction expires, the associated points are removed from the user's point total and the user's infraction groups are recalculated.

Warnings may be given instead of an infraction (aka demerit point).

Infraction Level 1 (5 points accrued) -

• User will not be able to post new threads.
• User will not be able to post replies to other threads.

• Private Message System will still be active.
• User will still be able to view forum content posted by others.

Infraction Level 2 (7 points accrued) -

• User will not be able to post new threads.
• User will not be able to post replies to other threads.
• Private Message System will be deactivated.
• User will still not be able to view forum content until demerit points are expired.

Infraction Level 3 (10 points accrued) -

• Account will be banned for 2 weeks.

Infraction Level 4 (After 1st ban)

• Account will be banned permanently.

Please note that points will be adjusted over time, and without warning.

[ryan]

Hi all, please read the new infraction rules and punishment mechanism.

For the month of June 2008, as a grace period for the community to understand the points, we will issue warnings via the infraction system, and not actual infraction points.