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Would like clarification on some Forum rules (1 Viewer)

DaveF

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I'm curious about the interpretation and enforcement of a few Forum rules. (I'm not trying to point fingers; I just grabbed some easy-to-find examples. Nor do I want to get anyone in trouble. I just want clarification on a couple of things).
1) Discussions about Copying
The rules state:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...q&page=1#rules
Pictures of famous people, etc. are not allowed.
But I see such things scattered about, ranging from promotional materials, such as Jack Briggs' (in)famous "2001" sig :)
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...378#post422378
to Jon_B's use of a clip from a movie
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...503#post423503
to (admin) Jason Whyte's celeb photos
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...430#post423430
So, with regard to both of these issues, what are the current rules, interpretations, and enforcement policies?
Thanks :)
 

Dome Vongvises

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I'm curious about this too. Evidently, my sig has offended Ronald Epstein in some way, so he sent me an e-mail asking me to remove it. I didn't realize you couldn't have something "offtopic" in your sig file. That, and he said it was too long. I've fixed the long problem, but I'm a little curious about the "offtopic" nature.
 

Rain

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I'm curious to know what's considered so bad about a recipe in a sig.

If all "off topic" sigs are disallowed, then there are many, many violations of this rule running rampant all over HTF.

In particular, there are many people who use their sigs to promote their religions. Wouldn't that also be considered a violation?

Personally, I couldn't care less about what people put in their sigs. Yeah, sometimes I don't agree with it, but I figure that it's a personal thing and I've never taken offense. But I don't think there should be a double standard.
 

Dome Vongvises

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If Parker Clack and any of the moderators need to see the culprit in question, it's this

Thai Omelette with Minced Pork (Tastes omelette like, hint of sharpness)

serves: 2 lean people or 1 fatass


2 eggs

1/4 pound of ground pork

1 1/2 tbls of fish sauce

2 tbls of thin soy sauce

pepper

garlic powder

optional: onions
1. Beat eggs and add fish sauce, soy sauce, pepper, and garlic powder.

2. Add pork and mix thoroughly.

3. Let pork absorb egg mixture for 2 minutes.

4. Fry egg mixture on Med-High with vegetable oil until golden brown.

5. Serve with rice and Thai style chili sauce (siracha)


As of now, I have had it removed from my sig, but I sure would love a final decision from you folks.
 

Michael Reuben

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We've all seen it, Dome, and you've had a final decision direct from Ron Epstein. It doesn't get more final.

I'll have to defer to others on DaveF's original question, since I hardly ever look at signature files. I have their display blocked, which dramatically speeds up the time it takes a thread to load over a 56K dial-up connection.

M.
 

Jack Briggs

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There are certain times when the rules are loosely interpreted. In the case of my sig, Rob Gillespie noted (back when he was an admin) that, in some cases, a sig is closely related to the member's "HTF personality." This was during a commentary issued early last year when we were experiencing another one of those periods of "problem members" needing to be weeded out.

As long as the sig is about what we are all here for--film, home theater, etc.--there shouldn't be a problem. And as for those religious symbols in sigs: strictly forbidden. (I had to ask someone just this week to change a sig.)
 

Ronald Epstein

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Gentlemen,

As far as the referenced posts concerning

copying different formats of CDs....

There are two ways of looking at this. The

first is the fact that there are many LEGAL

pieces of hardware and software that allow

you to make copies of CDs.

Computers have CD-Rs. There are also standalone

players. There are tons of burning software

available like NERO and EASY CD CREATOR. What

did the industry think was going to happen when

you give the public access to this kind of stuff?

Let's not forget that as of this moment, it

is legal to make copies of CDs for yourself.

For that reason, I have absolutely no problem

with posts that talk about how to successfully

copy CD products.

Let's not also forget that file swapping programs

for MP3 music are LEGAL and available from popular

download sites like CNET.

But let's use our heads here, folks....

We don't want ANYONE discussing ANYTHING that

aludes to bootlegging. People shouldn't be talking

about making copies of product other than for their

own use.

So, yes, it is allowed to talk about software

and hardware configurations for copying CDs for

personal use. But to cross that thin line and

talk about defeating macrovision, anti-copy devices

or anything that the public could use to thwarft

a system the studios have put in place is something

we do not want here.

As far as signatures are concerned....

This is such a grey area.

We don't want religious or political statements

in signatures. That's a no-brainer on a forum

that bans such discussion.

The food recipes? Well, Dome has certainly

condensed the version I saw this morning. As long

as it doesn't take up half the post, I suppose that

we will allow it.

Okay?

Thanks, guys!
 

Kevin P

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Ron,

Thanks for the clarification of the copying/bootlegging rule. I figured as such, that discussions of legal copying was ok but straying over the legal line is a no-no.

This phrase may lead to some confusion, however, as it seems to imply that any discussion of copying, whether legal or not, is forbidden:

11. ...Any discussion pertaining to copying of ANY video or audio source...is forbidden.
Just thought I'd let you know.

Keep up the great work guys!

KJP
 

Ronald Epstein

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Kevin,

I'll admit something to you.

We make the rules very stringent here to

give us room to enforce them should anyone

try to move around it.

We also made that rule because, really, we

don't want any discussions of copying on this

forum.

However....

We do realize that in the real world, people

make copies of CDs, copies of DVDs, and so on.

If the technology is available (and most all of

it is legal), people are going to use it as it

best suits their needs.

As long as the membership can act like

responsible adults here and not promote bootleg

activity as described in my original reply here,

I think we can all get along just fine.
 

DaveF

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(Man, I'd totally forgotten about this thread) Thanks for the responses and clarifications! :) And I was unaware about religious or political references in sigs being unallowed. That's good to know.
 

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