| Northern Illinois Sports Beat http://www.northernillinoissportsbeat.com |
| Northern Illinois Sports Beat Message Board Rules (And Short Q&A) |
There are people out there who actually think that posting on a message board is a
very dangerous thing and should only be attempted with risks involved. However,
there is really none of that. People think this because they are afraid of the reaction
they will get when they post something. Message board posting is not a dangerous
thing at all if you do it properly. People consider that only because they basically
think is is dangerous. It isn't.
If you are worried about your identity if you choose to hide it, then do not post any of
your personal information, interests, and have a user name as something that gives
out even a small identity of you. There are a lot of people that do not post on
message boards because they fear the peculiar thing they are posting will be
synonymous with the person posting it. There is an easy solution to this. Create a
user name that you can remember but does not really identify who you are. You must
be careful about releasing any of your personal information and interests on the
boards.
Those who lurk only do so because they are wanting to read information about their
team, or sports in general. The truth is that the analysis of each team and player that
is talked upon on the boards is incomplete. If you know something and can contribute
to what is not already there, then go ahead and post it. Your information IS helpful to
those who are already currently talking about the subject. It can make a difference in
the overall interpretation of the subject.
Even if you don't think your contribution will have a great effect on the overall
discussion of the subject, just post it anyway! A little thing makes a big difference on
the boards - that's a fact!
Message Board Rules and Regulations
Glossary
Message Board – The Northern Illinois Sports Beat message boards and it’s
subsequent topics, threads, and other pages provided by ProBoards.
Main Pages – The homepage of Northern Illinois Sports Beat and its subsequent
pages provided by Yahoo! Geocities.
The NISB Website – Refers to both of the above entities
Administrator/Publisher – The one in charge of the message boards. There is only
one administrator, Cody Cutter, posting either as “35” or “Northern Illinois Sports
Beat.” These two user names are referred to as the Admin Accounts.
Moderator – Person(s) who assist the administrator in message board moderation,
but do not have full administrative powers.
NISB Staff – Moderators and the Administrator
User – A message board poster(s).
A. User Registration
B. User Settings
C. Post Content and Necessary Admin Action
D. User Account Suspensions and Banishments
E. Student Athletes on the Message Board, and School Personnel Requests
F. Miscellanea
A. User Registration
1. In order to post on the message board, you must be a member of the message
board. Registration and the filling in of any said data requested in the registration
form is required in order to post.
1a. At any given time, the Administrator will open up the forum to guest accounts.
The Administrator has the right to open the forum to guest accounts and close the
forum to guest accounts at any time.
1b. Any person wishing to have the Administrator post a message on the message
board can submit that information to the Administrator, but the Administrator has the
right to determine whether or not that will be posted by the Administrator or not.
2. The user must provide a user name, a password for access to posting privileges, a
valid e-mail address and birth date. Failure to provide any said data will result in no
access to posting privileges.
3. Each prospective user must agree to the following three (3) terms of service
agreements:
3a. The Terms of Service between ProBoards and the prospective user – which is
underneath the captcha text in the registration form.
3b. The Terms of Service between ProBoards and Northern Illinois Sports Beat –
which is linked at the bottom of the first set of terms.
3c. The Terms of Service between Northern Illinois Sports Beat and the prospective
user – which is this set of rules you are looking at right now. The prospective user will
be e-mailed this set of terms, and must reply back to Northern Illinois Sports Beat
saying that they have indeed read the terms. Only then will the prospective user will
be granted posting privileges. (This is also a way to verify e-mail addresses.)
3d. Failure to agree to these terms will result in no access to posting privileges.
B. User Settings
1. The user has the right to elaborate on their board profile if they so choose.
1b. NISB Staff has the right to determine if any profile information is considered
derogatory or not.
1c. Only the Administrator has the right to force changes to profile information.
2. While the user must provide a user name, they are strongly recommended to
refrain from referring to themselves as a derogatory user name.
2b. NISB Staff has the right to determine if any user name is considered derogatory
or not.
2c. Only the Administrator has the right to force name changes.
C. Post Content and Necessary Admin Action
1. No posting anything derogatory, flame, trash talk, insults and insults pertaining to
ones self (location, disability, race, religion, sex, etc.).
2. No super-posting (repetitive, consecutive posting of no worth) will be allowed.
3. No libel and slander will be allowed.
4. No user name identity disclosures without consent from the discloser are allowed.
5. Under recommendations stated in the Freedom of the Press and Freedom of
Speech, media bashing is allowed; however, if you have any concerns with NISB, one
is encouraged to contact the Publisher.
6. NISB Staff has the right to determine if any message posting is inappropriate or
not. However, anyone can report a complaint.
6a. NISB Staff can delete any inappropriate post(s), edit any inappropriate post(s), or
delete and lock any inappropriate topic(s) altogether at their own discretion.
6b. NISB Staff will log all cases of moderated message editing and deleting brought
about by a user.
7. Only the Administrator has the right to determine whether or not to comment on a
particular moderation action on the message boards.
8. In the case of insubordination, measures may be taken to combat that.
8a. Only the Administrator will handle all insubordination cases.
8b. If the Administrator feels that a user has committed insubordination, the user will
receive a final warning. If the problem is not solved, the user will be suspended
indefinitely.
Hot Topics – The state of high school sports in Illinois has been the subject of
discussion as of late. A message board is the finest item in which anyone can discuss
among others the hottest topics of the time. Such hot topics include class expansion,
Public vs. Private, ad fan conduct. These items ARE allowed on the message boards
24-7-365. However, if the conversation gets too out of control, it will be deleted and
changes to this rule might come into effect. These kind of topics are watched over
carefully. If you are an EXPERT on this topic and would like to write a column about it,
you may contact #35.
D. User Account Suspensions and Banishments
1. Only the Administrator can execute user account suspensions and banishments,
and at the discretion of the Administrator.
1a. Moderators and other users have the right to suggest suspensions and
banishments to the Administrator. However, the argument of the Moderators will have
more weight than the users.
1b. The Administrator, on a case-by-case basis, will review each suspension and
banishment.
3. A suspension is indefinite, meaning only a reinstatement can be granted before a
suspended user can post again.
4. Suspended users will be notified by E-mail, with that E-mail message detailing any
punishments committed, and provide steps toward reinstatement.
4a. The Administrator will determine reinstatement requirements on a case-by-case
basis.
4b. Once a user is reinstated, a further violation of the message board rules will
result in permanent banishment from the message boards.
5. A banishment is defined as the banishment of the user name, e-mail address and
different variations of those two.
5a. If a once-banished user re-registers under a completely different user name and
e-mail address, and is found to have the same identity as a banished user, they will
be immediately banned.
5b. Permanent banishments only expire with the termination of Northern Illinois
Sports Beat (and subsequent aliases if necessary) as a whole.
Illustrations to Section D:
Q - What happens if a suspended user does not respond to a reinstatement notice?
A - The user is suspended indefinitely. (Paragraph 3)
Q - Once a user is reinstated, what further violations of the message board rules that
result in permanent banishment are there?
A - The present message board rules at the time of reinstatement.
E. Student Athletes on the Message Board, and School Personnel Requests
1. "Student athletes" in this section are defined as any athlete or student athletic
assistant (manager, statistician, etc.).
2. Student athletes can post on the message board. There is no way for NISB to
restrict the registration action as one registers.
3. All student athletes must adhere to their coaches and/or school's policies
regarding message boards, forum posts, and anything in their agreement regarding
such.
4. Head coaches, athletics directors, principals and other appropriate school
administrators have the right to ask NISB if a user is a person on their team. This is
known as an SAP complaint.
4a. The SAP complaint will be handled by the Administrator.
4b. The Administrator will conduct an investigation as to identity research (see
Section F, paragraph 1). It is recommended the submitter also submit a list of names
to cross-check.
4c. The Administrator has the following options to answer to the complaint, and
nothing else but:
*"No, said user is not a student athlete."
*"Yes, said user is a student athlete: (Insert name(s) here). Do you have a policy
against this person posting messages? If so, what disciplinary action do you request
(suspension, banishment, or neither)?"
4d. All disciplinary action brought forth by said persons in paragraph 4 will be
enforced by the Administrator.
4e. If banishment is requested, no appeal will be granted.
5. NISB cannot request permission for school student user accounts to "un-ban"
NISB's message board from the school's blocked site's list.
Illustrations to Section E:
Q - Explain what is meant by "coaches and/or school's policies" in paragraph 3.
A - They can be either a school-issued athletic handbook or code of conduct, or
team rule.
Q - Can a head coach, athletics director, principal and other appropriate school
administrator submit an SAP complaint regarding someone from another school?
A - No. It is suggested that they discuss the situation with the alleged user's school
officials or coaches. (Paragraph 4)
Q - If a coach finds out after the fact that a user was posting during their tenure as a
student athlete, can the coach submit an SAP complaint?
A - No. Since the coach has no control of the athlete at the time of the submittal of
the complaint, the grandfather clause will be in effect. (Paragraph 4e)
F. Miscellanea
1. The Administrator has the right to conduct identity researches at any time.
However, the Administrator will not disclose user name identities to anyone except
when complying in legal action, or in SAP complaints (see Section E).
1a. By reading the Terms of Service between ProBoards and the prospective user
(see Section A, paragraph 3a), you understand that you are subject to an identity
search at any time. Furthermore, users will not be notified if they are involved in an
identity search.
2. Private messages sent to the Admin Accounts are NOT private.
3. The Administrator has the right to appoint users as Moderators, as well as remove
users as Moderators.
4. The message board rules were officially enacted on (date). No grandfather clause
will be given to any user who is banned or suspended before this date. All warnings
will still be held over.
4a. The message board rules are subject to change at any time by the Administrator.
Illustrations to Section F:
Q - What do identity searches compose of?
A - Any information made available to NISB about the user from the user, with
research made possible from what was submitted. (Paragraph 1)
Q - If a rule was added, and a user was in violation of it before hand, will it be
considered a rule violation?
A - No, the grandfather clause will be in effect. (Paragraph 4a)
Q - If a rule was deleted, and a user was in violation of it, will it still be considered a
rule violation?
A - Yes. (Paragraph 4a)
By reading this far, you agree to everything above.
Rules last changed on January 7, 2009.
Board Technical Support – You can E-mail #35 for board tech support.
very dangerous thing and should only be attempted with risks involved. However,
there is really none of that. People think this because they are afraid of the reaction
they will get when they post something. Message board posting is not a dangerous
thing at all if you do it properly. People consider that only because they basically
think is is dangerous. It isn't.
If you are worried about your identity if you choose to hide it, then do not post any of
your personal information, interests, and have a user name as something that gives
out even a small identity of you. There are a lot of people that do not post on
message boards because they fear the peculiar thing they are posting will be
synonymous with the person posting it. There is an easy solution to this. Create a
user name that you can remember but does not really identify who you are. You must
be careful about releasing any of your personal information and interests on the
boards.
Those who lurk only do so because they are wanting to read information about their
team, or sports in general. The truth is that the analysis of each team and player that
is talked upon on the boards is incomplete. If you know something and can contribute
to what is not already there, then go ahead and post it. Your information IS helpful to
those who are already currently talking about the subject. It can make a difference in
the overall interpretation of the subject.
Even if you don't think your contribution will have a great effect on the overall
discussion of the subject, just post it anyway! A little thing makes a big difference on
the boards - that's a fact!
Message Board Rules and Regulations
Glossary
Message Board – The Northern Illinois Sports Beat message boards and it’s
subsequent topics, threads, and other pages provided by ProBoards.
Main Pages – The homepage of Northern Illinois Sports Beat and its subsequent
pages provided by Yahoo! Geocities.
The NISB Website – Refers to both of the above entities
Administrator/Publisher – The one in charge of the message boards. There is only
one administrator, Cody Cutter, posting either as “35” or “Northern Illinois Sports
Beat.” These two user names are referred to as the Admin Accounts.
Moderator – Person(s) who assist the administrator in message board moderation,
but do not have full administrative powers.
NISB Staff – Moderators and the Administrator
User – A message board poster(s).
A. User Registration
B. User Settings
C. Post Content and Necessary Admin Action
D. User Account Suspensions and Banishments
E. Student Athletes on the Message Board, and School Personnel Requests
F. Miscellanea
A. User Registration
1. In order to post on the message board, you must be a member of the message
board. Registration and the filling in of any said data requested in the registration
form is required in order to post.
1a. At any given time, the Administrator will open up the forum to guest accounts.
The Administrator has the right to open the forum to guest accounts and close the
forum to guest accounts at any time.
1b. Any person wishing to have the Administrator post a message on the message
board can submit that information to the Administrator, but the Administrator has the
right to determine whether or not that will be posted by the Administrator or not.
2. The user must provide a user name, a password for access to posting privileges, a
valid e-mail address and birth date. Failure to provide any said data will result in no
access to posting privileges.
3. Each prospective user must agree to the following three (3) terms of service
agreements:
3a. The Terms of Service between ProBoards and the prospective user – which is
underneath the captcha text in the registration form.
3b. The Terms of Service between ProBoards and Northern Illinois Sports Beat –
which is linked at the bottom of the first set of terms.
3c. The Terms of Service between Northern Illinois Sports Beat and the prospective
user – which is this set of rules you are looking at right now. The prospective user will
be e-mailed this set of terms, and must reply back to Northern Illinois Sports Beat
saying that they have indeed read the terms. Only then will the prospective user will
be granted posting privileges. (This is also a way to verify e-mail addresses.)
3d. Failure to agree to these terms will result in no access to posting privileges.
B. User Settings
1. The user has the right to elaborate on their board profile if they so choose.
1b. NISB Staff has the right to determine if any profile information is considered
derogatory or not.
1c. Only the Administrator has the right to force changes to profile information.
2. While the user must provide a user name, they are strongly recommended to
refrain from referring to themselves as a derogatory user name.
2b. NISB Staff has the right to determine if any user name is considered derogatory
or not.
2c. Only the Administrator has the right to force name changes.
C. Post Content and Necessary Admin Action
1. No posting anything derogatory, flame, trash talk, insults and insults pertaining to
ones self (location, disability, race, religion, sex, etc.).
2. No super-posting (repetitive, consecutive posting of no worth) will be allowed.
3. No libel and slander will be allowed.
4. No user name identity disclosures without consent from the discloser are allowed.
5. Under recommendations stated in the Freedom of the Press and Freedom of
Speech, media bashing is allowed; however, if you have any concerns with NISB, one
is encouraged to contact the Publisher.
6. NISB Staff has the right to determine if any message posting is inappropriate or
not. However, anyone can report a complaint.
6a. NISB Staff can delete any inappropriate post(s), edit any inappropriate post(s), or
delete and lock any inappropriate topic(s) altogether at their own discretion.
6b. NISB Staff will log all cases of moderated message editing and deleting brought
about by a user.
7. Only the Administrator has the right to determine whether or not to comment on a
particular moderation action on the message boards.
8. In the case of insubordination, measures may be taken to combat that.
8a. Only the Administrator will handle all insubordination cases.
8b. If the Administrator feels that a user has committed insubordination, the user will
receive a final warning. If the problem is not solved, the user will be suspended
indefinitely.
Hot Topics – The state of high school sports in Illinois has been the subject of
discussion as of late. A message board is the finest item in which anyone can discuss
among others the hottest topics of the time. Such hot topics include class expansion,
Public vs. Private, ad fan conduct. These items ARE allowed on the message boards
24-7-365. However, if the conversation gets too out of control, it will be deleted and
changes to this rule might come into effect. These kind of topics are watched over
carefully. If you are an EXPERT on this topic and would like to write a column about it,
you may contact #35.
D. User Account Suspensions and Banishments
1. Only the Administrator can execute user account suspensions and banishments,
and at the discretion of the Administrator.
1a. Moderators and other users have the right to suggest suspensions and
banishments to the Administrator. However, the argument of the Moderators will have
more weight than the users.
1b. The Administrator, on a case-by-case basis, will review each suspension and
banishment.
3. A suspension is indefinite, meaning only a reinstatement can be granted before a
suspended user can post again.
4. Suspended users will be notified by E-mail, with that E-mail message detailing any
punishments committed, and provide steps toward reinstatement.
4a. The Administrator will determine reinstatement requirements on a case-by-case
basis.
4b. Once a user is reinstated, a further violation of the message board rules will
result in permanent banishment from the message boards.
5. A banishment is defined as the banishment of the user name, e-mail address and
different variations of those two.
5a. If a once-banished user re-registers under a completely different user name and
e-mail address, and is found to have the same identity as a banished user, they will
be immediately banned.
5b. Permanent banishments only expire with the termination of Northern Illinois
Sports Beat (and subsequent aliases if necessary) as a whole.
Illustrations to Section D:
Q - What happens if a suspended user does not respond to a reinstatement notice?
A - The user is suspended indefinitely. (Paragraph 3)
Q - Once a user is reinstated, what further violations of the message board rules that
result in permanent banishment are there?
A - The present message board rules at the time of reinstatement.
E. Student Athletes on the Message Board, and School Personnel Requests
1. "Student athletes" in this section are defined as any athlete or student athletic
assistant (manager, statistician, etc.).
2. Student athletes can post on the message board. There is no way for NISB to
restrict the registration action as one registers.
3. All student athletes must adhere to their coaches and/or school's policies
regarding message boards, forum posts, and anything in their agreement regarding
such.
4. Head coaches, athletics directors, principals and other appropriate school
administrators have the right to ask NISB if a user is a person on their team. This is
known as an SAP complaint.
4a. The SAP complaint will be handled by the Administrator.
4b. The Administrator will conduct an investigation as to identity research (see
Section F, paragraph 1). It is recommended the submitter also submit a list of names
to cross-check.
4c. The Administrator has the following options to answer to the complaint, and
nothing else but:
*"No, said user is not a student athlete."
*"Yes, said user is a student athlete: (Insert name(s) here). Do you have a policy
against this person posting messages? If so, what disciplinary action do you request
(suspension, banishment, or neither)?"
4d. All disciplinary action brought forth by said persons in paragraph 4 will be
enforced by the Administrator.
4e. If banishment is requested, no appeal will be granted.
5. NISB cannot request permission for school student user accounts to "un-ban"
NISB's message board from the school's blocked site's list.
Illustrations to Section E:
Q - Explain what is meant by "coaches and/or school's policies" in paragraph 3.
A - They can be either a school-issued athletic handbook or code of conduct, or
team rule.
Q - Can a head coach, athletics director, principal and other appropriate school
administrator submit an SAP complaint regarding someone from another school?
A - No. It is suggested that they discuss the situation with the alleged user's school
officials or coaches. (Paragraph 4)
Q - If a coach finds out after the fact that a user was posting during their tenure as a
student athlete, can the coach submit an SAP complaint?
A - No. Since the coach has no control of the athlete at the time of the submittal of
the complaint, the grandfather clause will be in effect. (Paragraph 4e)
F. Miscellanea
1. The Administrator has the right to conduct identity researches at any time.
However, the Administrator will not disclose user name identities to anyone except
when complying in legal action, or in SAP complaints (see Section E).
1a. By reading the Terms of Service between ProBoards and the prospective user
(see Section A, paragraph 3a), you understand that you are subject to an identity
search at any time. Furthermore, users will not be notified if they are involved in an
identity search.
2. Private messages sent to the Admin Accounts are NOT private.
3. The Administrator has the right to appoint users as Moderators, as well as remove
users as Moderators.
4. The message board rules were officially enacted on (date). No grandfather clause
will be given to any user who is banned or suspended before this date. All warnings
will still be held over.
4a. The message board rules are subject to change at any time by the Administrator.
Illustrations to Section F:
Q - What do identity searches compose of?
A - Any information made available to NISB about the user from the user, with
research made possible from what was submitted. (Paragraph 1)
Q - If a rule was added, and a user was in violation of it before hand, will it be
considered a rule violation?
A - No, the grandfather clause will be in effect. (Paragraph 4a)
Q - If a rule was deleted, and a user was in violation of it, will it still be considered a
rule violation?
A - Yes. (Paragraph 4a)
By reading this far, you agree to everything above.
Rules last changed on January 7, 2009.
Board Technical Support – You can E-mail #35 for board tech support.
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| Those Who Know Northern Illinois High School Sports Know about NISB! |
