Foriquette - How to use the bulletin boards.

The following paragraphs shall list a few hints and wishes from the BSW as how to behave here to make reading and writing on the boards just that wee tad easier for all of us.

Things to consider on the bulletin boards

  • Try to use correct spelling and grammar. Also use paragraphs in longer texts. This makes it easier for those who later want to read and understand what you wrote. Of course, nobody is perfect and will never make mistakes. Some people will make less, others will make more, maybe because of a special condition, because the language used is not their native tongue, or just because people are different. But a shot for a minimum of structure and order and an honest try to do it right is also a sign of respect for your fellow partners in the discussion. When you write something, it is there for being read - and if you do not consider important enough what you wrote to use an extra minute to make it readable, why should anyone else consider it worth reading?
  • Another point to make your texts more readable is to use ways to stress points only very sparsely. This includes different sizes, colours, boldface, all-caps as well as the extensive use of exclamation and question marks. A few, well placed of these make it more clear, what is important to you - if you yell all the time, you won't be understood at all.
  • Whenever you have a question, first have a look whether it has been asked before, e.g. using the function "Suchen" ("search") of the boards. You'll save time and nerves of those who want to help and answer - and you'll get more answers in the long run, if you are not notorious for always asking things you could have found out easily on your own.
  • Please read the whole discussion before you reply and take part in the discussion. Otherwise you will probably only bring up a point again that has been handled already. If you consider it taking too much time to read a thread thoroughly, it probably is not important enough for you and you should refrain from posting in that discussion at all. If 100 people have to read a new posting for a minute each (and in heated discussions you easily have more readers), more time of all will be lost than if you first read the thread and noted that your post wasn't necessary at all.
  • If you want to start a new topic, take a minute and consider, which of the boards would be the best place for it. Do not default on using the main board ("Allgemeiner Chat"), just because more people tend to read it. Do not put information into each and every single city board. If, e.g., some guild or city organizes a tournament, you may place multiple postings in your partner cities because you know they may be interested. If you don't know it, refrain from placing extra posts - a general one should suffice. After all, we also want the reader to go and find his important information on his own - trying to "hunt down" as many recipients as possible is nothing other than spam flooding or phone calls in the afternoon offering irresistible new price schemes for your mobile phone. Also, choosing an inappropriate forum because the moderation won't accept it in another one isn't the way to do it.
  • When starting a new thread, try to find a subject line that roughly covers the topic, so people will know whether they can help or find this interesting without actually opening the thread. Lines like "What about... ?" or "Help! Problems!" aren't helping at all.
  • In heated discussions it will help a lot to keep them constructive, if you do not try to immediately pay back any wrongings or insults you may feel have been issued to you. Firstly, try to assume good faith in your fellow BSWlers, that something went missing between writing the words and reading them. Also, even if somebody is insulting you, try to not step down onto his level and refrain from the cheap jab back at him.
  • Please consider, that discussions should be about issues, not about people. If somebody is right, he will still be right if he's mentally handicapped, has no friends and no job. If he's wrong, he's wrong regardless of the attributes talked of above. Speculation or even distribution of proper information about these things should not be used on the boards.
  • Also consider, that BSW is meant as a place to retreat and relax in your spare time. Controversial discussions about strongly debated topics, as politics or religion, are always hazardous and generally not suitable for a place like this. Particularly thou shalt not spite upon others due to their beliefs or political leanings.
  • Images or texts with strong violent or sexual contents, or links to suchlike, are also not suitable for the boards. Even if you'll see worse every day in the newspaper, on television or in advertisements - BSW shall also be a retreat for those wanting to relax from all these stimuli. Even if it is considered suitable for younger people and somehow ubiquitous, not everybody wants this stuff all of the time.
  • Please take into account, that not everybody is always up to date with his electronics, and not everybody has the superfast DSL connection. E.g. large images (in byte size as well as in pixel size on the screen) will slow down many. Do not post these, instead link them, and give those guys using a 56k dial up modem proper warning. They will be thankful.