Main points to understand before participating

  1. The right (if you are an American citizen) to free speech as guaranteed by the 1st amendment to the U.S. Constitution does not apply when posting at this message board. AppleNova is a privately owned and operated forum. Posters are allowed a great deal of flexibility in their posts, but you must be respectful of other members and the guidelines. We reserve the right to ban any member who violates our Posting Guidelines or is a negative disruption to our community.
  2. Where there are grey areas in the guidelines outlined below, the moderators and administrators will work together to determine the best solution for a dispute on either a series of related threads or a specific thread. Reasonable contribution from the membership is welcome but not mandatory for a decision to be made.
  3. All comments about a moderator or an administrator should be directed to him or her personally (or another administrator if the member does not feel comfortable dealing directly) by using private messaging or e-mail. Do not start a thread or make public posts in any forum for the purpose of expressing displeasure with the actions of a moderator or administrator.
  4. Ad-hominem attacks of forum members will not be tolerated. We understand that things get heated, but it helps to maintain a modicum of respect for the membership. Attack ideas, not people. Be open-minded and try to help foster meaningful discussion. Yes, meaningful discussion is possible if everyone respects each other.
  5. Sexually graphic or otherwise offensive material is strictly forbidden. AppleNova will strive to maintain a work-friendly and family-friendly environment in regards to pornography and hate-speech. These cases are up to the discretion of the moderators and administrators. Pursuant to this, toilet humor is not tolerated. It is expected that the membership can conduct themselves with enough maturity to avoid such idiocy.
  6. Respect the privacy of fellow forum members. Hopefully this will not be an issue, but do not post personal information or pictures of a member without that member's approval. Disputed information will be deleted.
  7. While foul language is tolerated to a certain extent, profanity in thread titles, usernames, and other profile fields is not allowed. Excessive, unnecessary use of profanity in forum discussions (again, at the moderators' discretion) is not welcome.
  8. Spamming will not be tolerated. Spamming can be defined as posting excessively with no content, posting with commercial intent, or posting solely to redirect traffic to another site. This also includes pyramid schemes or other opt-in advertising services. Do not use the forums for personal gain or to boost your post count. Spamming will result in an immediate ban from AppleNova without warning.
  9. Be descriptive with the title of new threads. Do not start a thread with an ambiguous title like "Guess what..." or "Help!" and then use the text portion of the post to explain. Do not give threads misleading titles in an attempt to gain more views. Give your post a headline. This courtesy is especially appreciated in the more highly trafficked forums. Furthermore, threads with no original content will not be allowed. Do not post a link or quote an article while contributing little to nothing of your own.
  10. Do not create new threads that duplicate existing, recently active discussions. Please read the forum listings and read relevant topics beforehand to keep from duplicating existing thread topics.
  11. Posting requests or information about obtaining pirated or illegally-distributed software is prohibited. Any and all such posts may be removed without warning. If the offending member continues with such posts, he or she is subject to immediate suspension from the forums for any amount of time the administrators or moderators deem necessary. Furthermore, posts asking for technical support regarding pirated software, requesting or breaking serial numbers, or otherwise bypassing licensing schemes is also not allowed and will be treated in the same manner as posts that directly ask for pirated software.
  12. Do not register multiple posting accounts for the purpose of justifying yours or others' discussions, to attempt to circumvent administrative actions, or for any other reason without the direct approval of an administrator. This offense will result in a ban at the IP level.
  13. Members are not allowed to use anonymously-accessible, unprotected e-mail systems such as dodgeit.com for creating and using accounts at AppleNova. Members also are not allowed to post account login information on publicly-accessible web sites such as bugmenot.com.
  14. Members are allowed to have custom signatures appended to the end of their posts. This privilege is allowed to give a bit of personality to the community of the forums. Members who choose to use this feature must do so in a respectful and mature manner. vB tags are allowed in signatures to add a bit of style. However, members should limit signatures to three lines of text or less and should not include any images. Members should not use the vB size tag to make the signature text larger. If abused, this privilege may be revoked from offending members. If it is abused or used for posting lewd, abusive, or obnoxious messages, an administrator may change it and disable the offending member's ability to modify it. Signatures that don't follow the above guidelines can and will be modified without warning. What the signature is changed to is up to moderator/admin discretion. (You don't want that)
  15. Similarly, members are allowed custom titles, but are only permitted to change them after having made 1000 posts. Titles can also be set by the forum administrators, but they are not open to requests for changing them. This feature is a privilege to members who are an active part of the AppleNova community. If a member abuses this function, it too will be revoked.
  16. The quality of this board depends on the quality of the posts. The only way to guarantee thoughtful, informative discussion is to write thoughtful, informative posts. AppleNova is not a real-time chat forum. You have time to compose, edit (before and after posting), find or research links, and count to a hundred if you're angry. Use it.

Who we are:
Staff members (moderators and administrators) are members who have volunteered to help enforce the Posting Guidelines and the rules of the forums and to help with the running of the site by marshalling threads and dealing with problems as they arise. Posts from the staff on the forums do not necessarily represent the official views of AppleNova unless explicitly stated so.
The staff's most visible functions are the locking and moving of threads. If your thread is locked, an explanation should be posted by the moderator who locked the thread as to why. If you feel the moderator who locked your thread has erred in locking it, e-mail or private message the moderator or an administrator about it. Do not create a new thread protesting the lock or complaining about a staff member's actions. If your thread is moved, the bulletin board software will automatically append a notice and arrow icon to the title of the thread in its original forum stating that it has been moved. Again, if you feel your thread was moved or locked in error, please contact the moderator responsible or an administrator via e-mail or private message.
The administrators and moderators have the right to edit, move, or delete any material at any time. Furthermore, the administrators reserve the right to update this document at any time.
**Never post while angry. Not a rule, just some advice.**

The following is a non-inclusive list of guidelines specific to each forum.


Speculation and Rumors:

The purpose of the Speculation and Rumors forum is to contain focused technical and aesthetic speculation about future hardware and software products from both Apple and third parties.
Threads consisting of unsubstantiated individual predictions about upcoming products are not allowed. Threads that are blatant trolls, offer no content, or are redundant will be locked. This includes threads about the Apple Store being down.

Apple Products:

The Apple Products forum is the place for discussion of all of Apple's current and past hardware and software offerings. This area should be used to discuss the G3, G4, G5, Core Solo, and Core Duo; Mac OS X, Mac OS X Server, and Darwin; Apple's software including iLife, Pro apps, Express apps, and iWork; iPod, iPod nano, and iPod shuffle; the iTunes Music Store; and all Apple computers. Advice about purchasing currently shipping hardware should be posted in the Purchasing Advice forum.

Third-Party Products:

The Third-Party Products forum is for the discussion of all products from third parties. This includes all current and past software and hardware not made by Apple.

General Discussion:

General Discussion is the forum for nonspecific technology conversations, including those about tech industry happenings and scientific achievements. It is not the place to ask for technical support; such questions should be posted in the Genius Bar forum.

Purchasing Advice:

Purchasing Advice was created for members to guide others with making purchase decisions. Feature comparisons and questions seeking advice regarding the purchase of new and used Macs, PCs, software, and hardware peripherals are all welcome here.

Nova Bazaar:

Nova Bazaar is a forum for members to share items for sale or to request used items from other members. Posting in this forum is only available for veteran members of AppleNova, those members who have been with us for over a year, have at least three hundred posts, and are in good standing. We have implemented these requirements because we do not want this forum to be abused by spammers. The administrators and moderators reserve the right to revoke access and remove content at any time from any users we feel are abusing this forum.
  • New threads in Nova Bazaar must state an up front asking price and must not be ambiguous about what is being sold. Nova Bazaar is not to be used for auction-style bidding or for linking to third-party listings.
  • Thread titles should be informative and refer to the product being sold. eBay-speak like "L@@K" doesn't cut it.
  • "For sale" threads are allowed only in the Nova Bazaar forum; they are wholly unwelcome everywhere else at AppleNova and will get the offending poster banned from site entirely.
  • You can also request used Mac items in the Nova Bazaar. Like sales, requests for used items should include an up front asking price.

AppleOutsider:

The purpose of AppleOutsider is to provide an area for discussion of topics that do not relate to the tech industry. The tone of this forum should generally be lighthearted and fun.
  • While mild cases of silliness, lameness, offensiveness, crudeness, and vulgarity are tolerated, it should be kept to a dull roar. Excessive use can be edited at the moderators' discretion.
  • AppleOutsider is not a forum to spew vitriol against people, organizations, or theologies. AppleOutsider is for serious discussions; so, the moderators and administrators expect a level of maturity from all members at all times.
  • Topics of a political nature, especially ones which offer polarized dogma or partisan rhetoric, are not allowed.
  • Threads with no original content will not be allowed. Example: posting a link or quoting and article while contributing little to nothing of your own.
  • Angry rants will not be allowed. The purpose of AppleOutsider is to foster discussion between forum members, not to vent anger or to push an agenda.
  • Evangelizing viewpoints with no attempt to foster discussion will not be allowed. All threads in AppleOutsider must be open to comment and the topic starter must start the discussion.

Programmer's Nook:

Programmer's Nook is a forum for software developers to discuss issues related to programming languages, techniques, bugs, and data structures. The Programmer's Nook forum may also be used to discuss the tools used for developing software. Questions about software problems not directly related to the software development process should be placed in the Genius Bar forum.

Genius Bar:

The Genius Bar is an area for members to help other users with a wide variety of tech problems. This can include tech support, modifications, and both hardware and software questions. It can cover a wide variety of computer related peripherals, not just computer hardware. Please keep in mind that people posting in the Genius Bar are doing so to get help. Posts should be helpful and on-topic .
NOTE: it is NOT intended as an area to rant about displeasure regarding a manufacturer or product. People come to the Genius Bar for help. The last thing people in this situation need is unhelpful ranting.

Feedback:

Feedback is for presenting feedback and suggestions on AppleNova to the staff. If you have technical problems with the forums, be sure to cite any error messages in your post and include as much description of the events surrounding the event.
Do not start a thread in Feedback or make a post in any other forum for the purpose of expressing displeasure with the actions of a moderator or administrator. Comments meant for the staff should be sent directly to the moderators and administrators. If you do not wish to address the staff member with whom you have a complaint, then contact one of the other administrators. You can find a list of the current staff members on the Forum Leaders page. If you have a legitimate suggestion as to how a potential problem could be fixed, express it in a manner which will not be interpreted as hostile.