BULLETIN BOARD POLICY

Seriously, here are the few rules for the official ADB, Inc., BBS:

1. When registering for the BBS, you are to enter your full legal name in the name field. Anyone found not in compliance will be warned once via e-mail to comply, or their account will be suspended or terminated.
    
2. Be polite and use common sense. Avoid using obscenities; they will just be bleeped anyway. Do not personally insult anyone, although if you don’t like their proposed new ship or disagree with their interpretation of a rules question, feel free to politely but firmly point out the failings of their argument. Do not point out their personal foibles or discuss their immediate female parentage. If you are insulted, post a reply stating that you protest the insult but do not return insult for insult. If the situation continues, write to webmaster@starfleetgames.com or design@starfleetgames.com and ask for a referee to come and shut the shouting match down. When that happens, we will not care who threw the first punch; everyone who threw a punch will catch the same flak.
    
3. Absolutely no discussion, mention, promotion, or support can be given on this BBS for unauthorized “for use with SFB” products published by companies other than ADB. In such cases, your message will be deleted and you will be warned not to repeat the error. Repeated cases will be grounds to cancel your posting privileges.
    
4. Authorized SFB web sites can be mentioned and/or promoted.
   Unauthorized SFB web sites cannot be mentioned or promoted. Messages violating this rule will be deleted; repeated violations may be grounds for suspension of posting privileges.
    
5. Everything posted to this BBS becomes the property of ADB, Inc., immediately. However, if it is used in an SFB or SFU product, you will be credited and compensated under our standard terms just as if you had sent the item in by mail. This is of course subject to standard terms and conditions; if we have had a new ship in the file for years then it really doesn’t matter who was the first to post a similar ship on the new BBS this year.
    
6. Nothing from this BBS can be posted to any other forum without permission from ADB, Inc. Such permission can never be given to unauthorized sites. No one is authorized to copy email addresses from this BBS and use them for unsolicited email.
    
7. The only forum to debate these rules is by Email to webmaster@starfleetgames.com and/or design@starfleetgames.com, not on the BBS itself.
    
8. New items suggested by players are often posted in the “wish list” and “proposals” topics. You are invited to take part in the discussion of whether the new item should become part of the game, and how the finished item should be written. ADB, Inc. may periodically make a public comment on whether the item will, might, or will not be published.  Those who oppose publication of an item may, after seeing ADB, Inc., state that the item will not be published, withdraw from the (rancorous) debate without fear that not sticking around will let someone talk ADB, Inc., into changing its mind and printing it. If ADB, Inc. says an item will not be published (outside of Stellar Shadows), those involved may if they wish continue debating and developing the idea, either for their own amusement, or as practice in rules writing, or in the faint hope that a revised version of the original idea might be acceptable. (If ADB, Inc. finds the revised idea “possible” then a new debate topic will begin with the revised draft proposal, and those who originally opposed it may review the draft and state or restate their opinions.)
    
9. ADB, Inc. and its webmaster reserve the right without warning to reorganize the board for better efficiency, close or consolidate topics, to archive unused topics, and to make other changes needed for its effective operation. We will not, generally speaking, shut down a debate in progress; see #7 above. While ADB, Inc. and its webmaster reserve the right to delete any message that violates the rules or is found to be offensive, this is done as little as possible and only when clear violations or necessity is present. (We also reserve the right to delete messages that are off-topic, garbled, overly formatted to the point of being an eyesore, or duplicates of other messages. Limited cross posting for good and noble purpose(s) is allowed on a case-by-case basis.) A special Q&A topic will be set up and managed by special rules (i.e., only Steve Petrick and his designated assistants can answer questions); others who try to answer questions will have their messages deleted and be warned to follow the rules.
    
10. Because a few members of this board cannot disagree without being disagreeable, all discussions of politics, religion, gun control, abortion, and similar "hot button" issues is banned. If you try to start such a discussion, or a topic for such a discussion, this will be deleted and you will be warned not to try it again. Further attempts will result in suspension.
     
11. There is a "real world military" topic in which some purely military issues may get slightly into politics, and this is tolerated so long as other rules (i.e., no insults) are not broken. Those who have participated in this topic know that our non-US participants often have very different views than you are used to. It won't hurt you to hear another side of the issue and you may learn something. It should also be noted that some of those who post frequently in that topic simply have no idea what they're talking about; be polite in alerting them to this fact.
     
12. Those who cannot follow the rules are subject to a series of warnings, and if these are not effective, may be suspended from posting privileges for 7 days, 30 days, 365 days, or permanently. Normally you get three warnings and then each violation results in the next level of suspension. In some cases, the webmaster may suspend you for a few hours while your case is reviewed before making a suspension permanent. However, some transgressions are so serious as to result in an accelerated schedule. For example, if you happen to mention an unauthorized product, and it appears that you did so without intent to promote that product, you will be warned. Repeated posts would, however, be seen as a violation of rule 2 and could result in immediate and permanent suspension. Any attempt to directly advertise an unauthorized product WILL result in permanent suspension from this BBS and from all Rated Ace tournaments, and could result in legal action.
     
13. You may feel free to disagree with the company management at any time (we need to know if we're going in the wrong direction) but directly insulting the management, or even worse deliberate lies and misquotes which in the sole opinion of the management are designed to embarrass it, may result in immediate (and possibly permanent) suspension without warning.
     
14. Anyone using the Board is presumed to have read this policy and is subject to its terms.