Rules - Please Read

davidcookonline · Site Admin Joined: 19 Apr 2008 Posts: 5 Location: Oregon

Welcome to Club Cook!

We are so glad to have you here! To keep things friendly and running smoothly, there are a few guidelines for the board. Please read them and abide by them. They're not that difficult or far-fetched, and if you're a fan who has visited other boards in the past I think you'll see that most of them are general guidelines that almost every forum has; they're just common sense.

Please note: All members are responsible for reading and abiding by these guidelines. Not being aware of any of these policies will not be a valid defense!

1. Rights and Responsibilities:
Club Cook and David Cook Online is a private and independent fan-run forum, and access is a privilege instead of a right. We are an "all-ages" forum and the guidelines reflect that family-friendly atmosphere. Users must adhere to the rules of our forum and abide by our standards of proper conduct.

2. Member Conduct:
This is the most important thing to keep in mind as a registered member. Be respectful of David Cook, anyone associated with him (family, friends, band members, etc.), other artists, the forum admins, and other members. Harsh or disrespectful treatment of anyone will not be tolerated. This forum is a flame-free and drama-free zone! Personal attacks and insults will not be tolerated. Gratuitous or excessive obscenities and vulgarity are not allowed here; neither are slanderous, hateful, threatening, or sexually-oriented posts. Please respect your fellow forum members and David fans and choose your words carefully. Each user has their own point of view, and these views must be respected even if you don't like them or agree with them. If your sole purpose of being here is to be disrespectful or start arguments, then please do yourself and all of us a favor and leave because you will be banned eventually.

Non-compliance with these simple member conduct guidelines will result in restrictions being placed on your account. These include, but are not limited to, personal PM privileges taken away, temporary (1 week - 6 months) suspension from the forum, or a permanent ban.

3. Rumors and Speculation:
Discussion about various rumors relating to David are allowed, within reason. However, please refrain from speculating about or spreading harmful gossip or making up rumors to have a little fun at everyone else's expense. The forum moderators reserve the right to end discussion on a particular topic or lock a thread at any time if we feel it has become inappropriate. Remember, David may be in the public eye but he is first and foremost a human being and has the right to a private personal life like everyone else. Please respect that.

4. Post in the Appropriate Area:
We try to keep things semi-organized here at Club Cook, to make things easier to find due to the large size of the board. Please post your topic in the appropriate subforum, there are plenty to choose from! If there's a subject you want to discuss and don't think there's a correct subforum for it, suggest a topic for a new one in the Suggestions Box. Occasionally the Admins do a little "houscleaning" and move topics to a more appropirate forum.

5. Private Messages:
This forum supports private messages (PMs). This feature is currently enabled and forum members can use it if they wish. PMs are subject to the same rules of conduct as the general forum. If PMs are abused, the privilege can and will be taken away.

6. Inactive Accounts:
From time to time, the forum admin will delete accounts that have been registered but not verified or activated. This is done to keep the member base at a manageable size and to give a true reading of the forum's size and activity. Please be sure to activate your account as soon as possible after registering. If your account is deleted, feel free to re-register and then activate your new account.

7. Content Disclaimer:
Content posted to Club Cook does not necessairly reflect the views of the forum admins and mods or the forum as a whole. Rather, they are the views of each individual member making the posts. The admins and mods will attempt to remove any objectionable or questionable material as quickly as possible but we are not responsible for any content that may be offensive to you. If you see what you believe to be a violaton of the forum's guidelines, please let us know right away by clicking on the "Report Post" icon at the top of the post in question.

8. Language and Vulgarity:
Please keep in mind that the minimum age required to register for the forum is 13, and fans even younger than that may read the board. Don't swear excessively or post anything that would be deemed inappropriate for a 13-year-old to read. Since David has fans of all ages, I try to keep Club Cook FORUMS and the David Cook Online site as a whole as positive and family-friendly as possible.

9. No Direct Linking:
If you'd like to share a great David photo you found or use an image for your avatar or signature, do not directly link the image from another site. Bandwidth theft is illegal and it can cost the site's owner quite a bit of money. I do speak from experience on this, unfortunately. (Bandwidth theft/direct linking is when you go to a site and copy & paste the URL of an image located there somewhere else without the permission of the original site's owner.) If you need space to store images, try Photobucket or Image Shack.

10. No Ticket Scalping:
Club Cook is a place for David fans to come together and discuss David, music, and anything else that might be on their mind. It is not a place for ticket scalpers to hawk their over-priced concert tickets. If you're a David fan who finds yourself with an extra ticket or unable to go to a show for some reason, you may post your tickets for sale at face value for other fans who were unable to get tickets.. However, those who register for the forum for the sole purpose for advertising their tickets for sale far above face value and make no other contribution to the board will be permanently banned from the forums. In addition, those who spam the board with links to Music Today and presale information will be banned from the forums for a minimum of one month.

11. Personal Issues:
If you have an issue or grievance concerning another member, contact the admin or a mod prior to posting it publicly on the forum. Please do not think that posting it in the public forum for everyone to see will result in any positive actions in your favor! It just might backfire and result in your temporary suspension or other restriction to your account. This applies only to personal issues between members. If you have an issue or problem with the forum itself, check to see if it's already been answered in the Help Desk or FAQ forums. If not, you may post your question in the Help Desk, or contact the admin or mods.

12: No Drama!
And last but not least, Club Cook is proud to be a drama-free zone! Please leave your personal issues and gripes at the door and use this board for fun and entertainment. I don't care what someone said about you on another board or if you're upset that one of your online arch-enemies is a regular poster here. What goes on elsewhere has absolutely no bearing on this forum or how any members are treated here. If you have issues with people from another board posting here and being welcomed here, I suggest you move along to another board and take your gripes and negativity with you.

That's about it. If you have any questions or concerns, please send me a PM or email me. If you have any suggestions or ways to improve Club Cook, please let me know in the suggestion box.

These rules are subject to change and will probably be modified and added to regularly. So please familiarize yourself with them and check back fairly often to see the latest version.
_________________