Forum Rules

[Steve]

Both myself and Lori thought it was time to update and repost the forum rules. So here they are.

Forum Rules:

This is not an original idea but one whose time clearly has come. By joining this bulletin board and posting therein you agree to the following policies, procedures, restrictions and allowances:


1. This is a friendly board. Everyone is welcome here. I expect everyone to treat other members with courtesy and respect—the same courtesy and respect with which you want to be treated. Discussion and disagreement are part of the process. All posts must be civilized. If you don’t agree with another member’s opinion, nasty comments or ad hominem attacks will not be tolerated and they summarily will be removed. This has deteriorated other boards. Remember, there is an “ignore” option, if you feel that you just don’t want to read anything by a particular member. There is also a report button at the top of every post. Feel free to use it, if you feel a post is offensive or out of line.


2. I want everyone to have fun here. Sometimes fun consists of a little light-hearted banter between friends. Sometimes the banter gets into threads and takes them off topic. Please be respectful of the person posting the thread. They may not get all the inside jokes and may not appreciate having your private conversation in the middle of a thread designed to help them locate a good restaurant or show. I think that, for example, Trip Reports and Slot Tournament forums lend themselves to some degree of conversation but, choose the thread wisely (make sure you know the writer).


3. You may not post general questions. That’s it. All wide-ranging, open-ended questions that solicit, for example, memories, behavior, general opinions, wish lists, etc. need to be submitted to me first for consideration as Topic of the Week. I want to keep those questions limited to that forum. If the question is not considered a viable candidate for TOTW but it is a good question, permission will be granted to post it in an appropriate, alternate forum. If you insist upon starting a thread that fits into the above categories, we are taking these questions down or locking the thread as soon as they are posted. If you would like to write an essay about something in LV, that’s fine in the appropriate forum, but a general question may not be attached to it. It is a proven fact that when I post a Topic Of The Week question , it gets more of a response due to the fact that the question is emailed to the entire membership list.


4. You also may surmise that any questions that solicit another member’s financial status, political views, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, race, creed or color, or posts referring to same, will not be allowed. There are plenty of other bulletin boards that may devote themselves to those things. Please find them and ask those questions there.


5. This is about Las Vegas and all that it entails. Because gaming is such an integral part of LV, that aspect sometimes leads us to other cities such as Reno, Laughlin, AC, Biloxi, etc. Please try to keep these mentions limited to Trip Reports, unless it’s germane to a conversation about gambling, for instance. I don’t want to see threads seeking a great Italian restaurant in Reno, which, thus far, we have not seen.


6. You may never post copywrited material from any published source.. If you see a newspaper article that may be of interest to the membership, please paraphrase it, in your own words, and feel free to tell people where you saw it but no links to articles either. The only exception is in the “Breaking News” forum and that should be limited to some material change to LV that is currently newsworthy (i.e. Front Page), a hotel is changing ownership, one of the movers and shakers suddenly died, ground is breaking on a new hotel/casino, etc. You may post a link to the article, in that case, but please summarize it as well, so people know where they are going, if they follow the link. The fluctuations of the economy, for instance, are not breaking news. I also do not allow the direct posting of links to news articles. Why? Because if I allowed random posting of these links, it would have a direct impact on the readership of my newsletter. Links are allowed to be posted if it a direct answer to a specific question. An example would be.."Does anyone know where I can but Las Vegas souveniers?" In response to that question, you can post links to sourvenier stores. I also do not allow the posting of links for personal profit under any condition.


7. Many of the members also belong to other Las Vegas bulletin boards. There is a wealth of information out there and it’s only natural to want to learn all you can and interact wherever you feel comfortable. I ask that, out of respect to the members who spend most of their time on ELV, you not post links to your trip reports where they are posted on other Las Vegas sites. I realize that ELV does not have all the bells, whistles and bandwidths that other boards have but that’s just not right. While I know trip reports are a great endeavor of time and effort, please take just a few extra minutes and copy and paste them here as well. If you have to edit out some pictures, we’ll have to live with that, but the TR forum is one of our most popular and the reports are very much appreciated. Links to trip reports posted on other sites may be removed.


8. I pride myself on being tolerant. There is only so much a person can tolerate. If you are asked to stop doing something (i.e. posting general questions, making crass remarks, acting aggressive toward or demeaning another member, or any other disruptive behavior) and you repeatedly insist upon doing so, I will take action which, ultimately, may include your disassociation from this board under your current screen name or any future screen names you may adopt.


9. Management reserves the right to amend these rules at any time.