Frequently asked questions

[Direhit]

Q: I just registered but am unable to view all of the forums. Why is this?

A: When you register, you MUST register with a valid email. A valid email is an email you can access and access regularly; and one that's hosted by a reputable email provider (Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.). Only when this is done will your account qualify for approval to view all forums.

If you do NOT register with a valid email, then your account will never be approved for full membership and will be deleted within 3 days after your registration attempt. Registration attempts from non-verifiable emails are often noted as having a malicious manner (i.e. harboring behind it ban evaders or other undesirables), and are often times also added to our email ban list to prevent any further email attempts. The IP of the registration may also be banned.

It is strongly advised for you to register with an AUTHENTIC and VERIFIABLE email address to ensure a smooth membership transfer.

[Direhit]

Q: Why can't I use a certain e-mail address? It says that my e-mail address is banned.

A: Some email addresses and domains have been used maliciously on the forums in the past. Because of this, we have taken a proactive approach in banning these email addresses and domains to ensure the forum's safety in the future. If you run into a message saying the email address you have chosen is banned, please try another email address to complete your registration and/or email change attempt.

[Direhit]

Q: I just changed my e-mail address in my profile, and now I can't see the rest of the forums. What happened?

A: When you change your email address you are basically reverted back to an unregistered user until you confirm that the email address you changed to actually exists. Much like you had to do when you first registered, an email will be dispersed to your new email address and it will contain a link you must click to authorize your new email with the website. You will not be able to see all the forums, or partake in any forum discussion until you click the activation link.

If for some reason you do not receive the email containing the activation link, contact an administration in our IRC channel, or by using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of the website.

[Direhit]

Q: What gives? I can't see anything else other than the Cesspool, and I can't edit my posts. What's wrong with my account?

A: Nothing is wrong with your account. You did something against our guidelines are have been confined to the Cesspool forum only. Your user group is now "Cesspool Prisoner."

As a Cesspool Prisoner, you are not allowed to see any of the forums other than the Cesspool. You are also not allowed to use signatures, the private messaging system, or edit your own posts. There may be a few other restrictions, but since you're a Cesspool Prisoner, we're really not too worried about your privileges.

The only way to relieve yourself as a Cesspool Prisoner is by either contacting the administrator who confined you with an apology and explanation, or by waiting out the set duration for your confinement (which is usually quite lengthy).

[Direhit]

Q: Why can't I use signatures? Why does my user group say that I am a signature violator?

A: Those that are in the Sig Violator user group are not allowed to use sigs. Most of the time, this is due to a temporary infraction being levied against you, and the infraction will expire after a few days. You can see how long the infraction will last by viewing your own profile. Upon being automatically restored, it is strongly advised that you make sure that your signature conforms to the limits stated in the Guidelines.

If you do not see any active sig violation infractions in your profile, and are unable to use sigs, then you have probably been placed in the Sig Violator group for the long term, due to repeated violations. This will not be lifted until you speak with an administrator. Being polite and civil will greatly increase your chances of being restored.

[rasp]

Q: I just registered. When will I be able to view the forums?

A: Registration acceptance / denial is done a few times per week, on any given day. There are two administrators responsible for doing them and due to their schedules, may only be able to do so a few times per week. If you do not get your authentication email, send an email to rasp (at) thecatacombs (dot) net, or private message him in the IRC channel and he will investigate your inquiry.

[rasp]

Q: I have received an infraction. What does this mean?

A: If you break one of the forum's rules, you will be issued an infraction. The infraction system is a point system. Some rules carry with them more than one point that is issued to an account if an infraction occurs because that rule was broken.

Infractions expire after a pre-set duration. If you acquire a number of infractions in a limited amount of time, or before others can expire, you will be automatically banned for seven days.

[rasp]

Q: I signed up on the forums but I was declined registration. What gives?

A: The administrators that monitor and authorize new registrations religiously investigate new IP's and cross-reference them with other banned users and IP's to severely reduce ban evasion. We also make sure the IP's are not coming from proxies or well known spam hosts with no contact email to report abuse. Unfortunately, sometimes regular users are denied registration because a banned user's IP may resolve to the new registrant, or because they have tried to register from a proxy. If either is the case use the "Contact Us" link to alert us that you are not a bot, and are a legitimate user.

[Unabomber]

Q: What is this Reputation System? How does it work?

A: Since you asked...

(posted with permission from the original author)

What is reputation?
The reputation system is very similar to the Karma system seen on other popular websites and forums (Slashdot.org, for example). Its purpose is to hopefully give users an idea of how respected, knowledgeable, helpful, gracious, etc., a person is. It is a system in which you rate your peers. It is a system that, hopefully, will make you think twice about your posts. Try to help others by giving reputation to the people you believe know what they are talking about and are the most helpful! Try to earn more reputation by helping others and giving the most detailed answers, while avoiding being disrespectful to others.

What are good and bad things to give negative reputation for?
Negative reputation should be given if the person is posting something that detracts from the conversation. If the post is rude, inappropriate, breaks forum rules, is not gracious, etc; these are all good reasons to give negative reputation. If you have a personal grudge with someone, their clanmates, their families, etc, is it not appropriate to give them negative reputation for no reason. Giving negative reputation because you don't agree with what was said is not an appropriate use of the reputation system. People are entitled to their own opinions, and just because you don't agree doesn't mean the user was wrong or not contributing to the conversation. If you are disagreeing, it is considered polite to explain why.

How much reputation can I give out? Are there any limits?
There are quite a few limits in place to prevent minor abuse of the reputation system. Obviously there cannot be a flawless system, but these limits try to curb any intentional abuse. You must have a certain number of posts and positive points in order for your reputation to count on other people. Until you meet those requirements, your reputation will show up as grey dots (see below). Everybody is limited to giving out a certain number of reputations per day; you cannot give the same person reputation until you have given reputation to a number of other people. This prevents friends from giving 10 reputations to the same person every day. Use them wisely!

What are good and bad things to give positive reputation for?
Reputation should be given to people who post meaningful, helpful, and thoughtful posts. Any post that contributes to the thread in a positive way probably deserves positive reputation. This does not mean that you agree with what was said; the point brought up may be completely opposite to what you believe, but it may be a good point nonetheless, and worthy of a pat on the back. Giving positive reputation to someone because they are your friend and deserve to have a few more green dots next to their name probably isn't a good reason to give positive reputation.

What the Reputation system is:
* A way to indicate your approval or disapproval of someone’s post in a polite manner.

What the Reputation system is not:
* A popularity contest
* A private message system
* A place to hurl anonymous insults
* A place to flirt/harass or otherwise bother
* A place to air personal/political/religious agendas
* A place for advertising (This is an immediate site ban, and termination of your account)

All messages left with reputation points must conform to our normal content guidelines.

Reputation System Abuse
If you believe someone has crossed the line, please contact Rasp or Unabomber and give us specifics on what rep is in question. We will investigate it.

If you are found guilty of abusing the rep system, you may receive a warning, infraction points and/or lose permission to use the system for up to a year.

In addition, the offending points will be reversed, which is defined as the following:
- Your negative points become positive points thereby boosting the person you intended to slam
- You may take a negative hit on your own reputation

[rasp]

Q: I registered, and am a legitimate user, but have not gotten my authorization email.

or

Q: I changed my forum password but never got the email to authorize it.

A: The emails from the forums come from rasp (at) thecatacombs (dot) net. If you have not received your authorization email in a reasonable time, then check your spam folder and see if it's in there. If it is, make sure you add thecatacombs' email address to your "Not Spam" list to prevent this from happening in the future.

Also note that some email providers like AOL and AIM will often times not even deliver the vBulletin emails. We highly recommend you use a Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, or similar reputable email source for your forum profile.