FAQ

I. User conduct & Posting Policy

The vBMWr Forum is a benefit extended to you by our private motorcycling club. The goal is to improve the membership experience through increased communication, fellowship, and inclusiveness. It is a place for our community to come together.
Here we share roads and rides, talk about upcoming events, give advice on tech issues, even just shoot the breeze on topics not even related to motorcycles. What we don’t do is attack each other or act in a way that would bring discredit to us as individuals or our association as a whole. We cannot encourage enough the use of simple common sense – if you wouldn’t say it or show a photo of it over breakfast with newly-met friends and bystanders at a neat old diner on some amazingly off-the-beaten-track scenic road, then don’t say it, show it or link to it here.

Hot buttons
OK, the above is vague. We know that. We intended that, we’d rather folks rely on common sense than look to a long list of specific rules. Because many of us have bosses, spouses, even kids looking over our shoulders as we read the boards, think of them as your audience. That said, it never hurts to make a few things quite plain.

1. Flaming/personal attacks. Just don’t do it. Clever quips and snappy retorts are part of any conversation; we mean the ill-intended, vicious personal attack.

2. Vulgar language, photos or links. You know what we mean – if it is something you wouldn’t want your significant other, grandparents, children, judge, boss or prospective employer looking over your shoulder to see, don’t write, show it or link to it. And remember that something you write in the privacy of our home is now available for the whole world to see.

3 Trolling. Trolling is intentionally baiting members by posting inflammatory subject matter, then arguing just for "fun." Moderators will use their judgment and if they observe trolling will handle it with warnings, suspensions, etc as laid out in the "Concerns and Complaints" section.

4. Creating a hostile environment. Our membership is a diverse community in terms of race, gender, and religion. Items offensive to, or that create an unfriendly environment for various people will be removed by the moderators with an explanation.

5. SPAM. Creating posts consisting solely of advertisements, links, or other commercial content is prohibited, and will either be doghoused or removed by a moderator without any explanation required.

Code of conduct
The code of conduct began as a long list of bad behaviors, since abandoned for a single, 2-word line: Play nice. It is simple and easy to remember. If your aim is to irritate, to insult, to shock or just generally annoy – please find some other sand box to play in (and there are lots!)

Banned topics or topics that lead to flame wars?

As winter sets in and snow gathers round our trusty steeds conversations naturally start to wander. As we look out the window and see snow and sleet instead of sun the frustrations of not riding often set in. Over the years (and many winters) we’ve pretty much been able to identify some things that inevitably start flame wars, breed ill will, and just in general make people act in ways they’d never have believed themselves capable (and yes, that is meant in the bad way.) Below are a few of these topics:

1. Religion and abortion
2. Politics
3. Handguns

These topics are banned on the forum.

Moderation, enforcement and management of threads
The moderators for each forum will be the arbiter of this code. They have been chosen because they have good judgment and are expected to exercise it to maintain the forums as an inclusive experience that fosters community.

Cause for editing a post
We don’t edit posts. If it is bad enough to violate these guidelines we’ll just delete it.

Cause for deleting a post
Posts that violate these guidelines will be deleted, we’ll leave a note who deleted it and why. The moderators have a lot of leeway – if in their judgment it is incidental or by mistake they may or may not notify the poster to edit his own post. That said, there are no guarantees and if, in the best judgment of a Moderator, the post violates posting guidelines they can delete it at will.

Cause for deleting a Thread
If, in a moderator’s judgment, a thread violates the posting guidelines it will be removed.

Cause for editing a poll
Again – we don’t edit. The only exception is if the poll owner requests that a moderator add a choice to the poll that they forgot to add prior to submitting it. This is done at the moderator's discretion.

Cause for deleting a poll
Polls that violate the posting guidelines will be deleted. The moderators have a lot of leeway – if in their judgment it is incidental or by mistake they may or may not notify the poster to edit his own poll. That said, there are no guarantees and if, in the best judgment of a Moderator, the poll violates the posting guidelines he can delete it at will.

Sig lines and other publicly visible info
As the world changes we are working to adapt the forum to be increasingly useful for members. We have been through much debate and a couple different implementations; these are the current rules.
Your sig line can contain a maximum of 4 lines, including line spaces, and 300 characters. You are welcome to include links, format it as you like and change the font, color and size of text. We are limiting the maximum text size to 3 (the default size is 2). You cannot embed images or objects from the internet (eg, YouTube video frames), but you can link to them.
The content of sig lines is governed by the general site guidelines (so no personal attacks, obscenities, political statements, SPAM, religion, etc.) These rules also apply to other ephemera such as avatars, location info, custom user title and any other fields visible with postings or in the public profile area.

Concerns & Complaints
Moderators are all volunteers, they are not perfect and as often as folks turn a bright line quite grey there will be moderation results that seem inconsistent. If you have a complaint or feel you’ve been treated unfairly just drop a line to the Forum Admin (it will help to have a complete explanation of your thoughts with links to specific threads and posts.)
If you see a posting that you feel is inappropriate and want to bring it to the moderation team's attention, please do not try to do this by posting in the thread. Instead, at the bottom left of every posting is a blue exclamation mark . Click on this button and write a short statement indicating the problem you perceive with the post. This will be sent to the moderator(s) in charge of this area of the forum and they will look in on it. Please have some patience, as the moderators are volunteers and it may take a while before they have an opportunity to check it out.

II. Suspension of posting privileges.

The vBMWr is a small but diverse family. We have Members from all over the world, from all age groups, from all walks of life. Each brings a unique and valuable perspective. Because of this we don’t take suspending posting privileges lightly. We are also serious about maintaining a friendly and fraternal atmosphere, and if a user threatens that with violations of these posting guidelines, they can (and most likely will) have their posting privileges suspended.
It is possible to become permanently banned from the forum. The user will remain banned until such a time as the vBMWr Board of Directors, acting on a petition by the banned user for the probationary return of posting privileges, approves of the probationary lifting of the suspension.

III. Who is Behind the Curtain

Moderators
The vBMWr Forum is run by a volunteer staff. These volunteers often devote a significant number of hours a week to ensure that the forums are up and running and continue to be a friendly community. Their job is to keep the discussion inside the lines. They do not always read every single post, so if you see something that violates our rules or guidelines, please report the post. There is a "report post" button on the left-hand side of the screen that will ask you to explain the problem and it will email the moderator immediately.
Please feel free to ping any moderator at any time with any questions – please remember though that any and all questions, comments and/or complaints involving a moderator’s actions should be directed to the Forum Administrator.

Qualifications
The Forum Administrators chooses the moderators. Important qualities are a thick skin, a strong sense of fairness, an even keel, the ability to apply the posting guidelines fairly and consistently, and act in the best interest of the vBMWr.

Selection / nomination process
Anyone can nominate themselves or others, just send a note to the Forum Administrator. The Administrator will conduct an informal interview and when there is an opening, the pool of candidates will be reviewed and position filled. The requirements of the job are not insignificant and openings for new moderators, while not common, are not rare either.

Moderator Code of conduct
Moderators must be fair, impartial and consistent in the application of the posting guidelines. Just as users must use their common sense, moderators must rely on their good judgment. As always, any user who believes a moderator’s action (or lack thereof) is either not sufficient or is too harsh should contact the Forum Administrator or the PPBMWR President Jay Kuhns at jkuhns@offspringnet.net (it will help to have a complete explanation of your thoughts with links to specific threads and posts.)

The Forum Administrators
The Forum Administrators are volunteers chosen by the vBMWr Board of Directors and tasked with managing the vBMWr Forum. They choose and manage the forum moderators, updates and manages the Terms of Service, keep the nuts and bolts from coming loose, and generally are the go-tos for ensuring the vBMWr forum is a place to which we all want to keep coming back. The Administrators can be reached by using the contact button at the bottom of the forum page.
Modify Delete

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You may not have to -- it is up to the administrator of the board as to whether you need to register in order to post messages. However, registration will give you access to additional features not available to guest users such as definable avatar images, private messaging, emailing to fellow users, usergroup subscription, etc. It only takes a few minutes to register so it is recommended you do so.

If you do not check the Log me in automatically box when you log in, the board will only keep you logged in for a preset time. This prevents misuse of your account by anyone else. To stay logged in, check the box during login. This is not recommended if you access the board from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university cluster, etc.

In your profile you will find an option Hide your online status; if you switch this on you'll only appear to board administrators or to yourself. You will be counted as a hidden user.

Don't panic! While your password cannot be retrieved it can be reset. To do this go to the login page and click I've forgotten my password. Follow the instructions and you should be back online in no time.

First check that you are entering the correct username and password. If they are okay then one of two things may have happened: if COPPA support is enabled and you clicked the I am under 13 years old link while registering then you will have to follow the instructions you received. If this is not the case then maybe your account need activating. Some boards will require all new registrations be activated, either by yourself or by the administrator before you can log on. When you registered it would have told you whether activation was required. If you were sent an email then follow the instructions; if you did not receive the email then check that your email address is valid. One reason activation is used is to reduce the possibility of rogue users abusing the board anonymously. If you are sure the email address you used is valid then try contacting the board administrator.

The most likely reasons for this are: you entered an incorrect username or password (check the email you were sent when you first registered) or the administrator has deleted your account for some reason. If it is the latter case then perhaps you did not post anything? It is usual for boards to periodically remove users who have not posted anything so as to reduce the size of the database. Try registering again and get involved in discussions.

All your settings (if you are registered) are stored in the database. To alter them click the Profile link (generally shown at the top of pages but this may not be the case). This will allow you to change all your settings.

The times are almost certainly correct; however, what you may be seeing are times displayed in a timezone different from the one you are in. If this is the case, you should change your profile setting for the timezone to match your particular area, e.g. London, Paris, New York, Sydney, etc. Please note that changing the timezone, like most settings, can only be done by registered users. So if you are not registered, this is a good time to do so, if you pardon the pun!

If you are sure you have set the timezone correctly and the time is still different, the most likely answer is daylight savings time (or summer time as it is known in the UK and other places). The board is not designed to handle the changeovers between standard and daylight time so during summer months the time may be an hour different from the real local time.

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There may be two images below a username when viewing posts. The first is an image associated with your rank; generally these take the form of stars or blocks indicating how many posts you have made or your status on the forums. Below this may be a larger image known as an avatar; this is generally unique or personal to each user. It is up to the board administrator to enable avatars and they have a choice over the way in which avatars can be made available. If you are unable to use avatars then this is the decision of the board admin and you should ask them their reasons (we're sure they'll be good!)

In general you cannot directly change the wording of any rank (ranks appear below your username in topics and on your profile depending on the style used). Most boards use ranks to indicate the number of posts you have made and to identify certain users. For example, moderators and administrators may have a special rank. Please do not abuse the board by posting unnecessarily just to increase your rank -- you will probably find the moderator or administrator will simply lower your post count.

Sorry, but only registered users can send email to people via the built-in email form (if the admin has enabled this feature). This is to prevent malicious use of the email system by anonymous users.

Easy -- click the relevant button on either the forum or topic screens. You may need to register before you can post a message. The facilities available to you are listed at the bottom of the forum and topic screens (the You can post new topics, You can vote in polls, etc. list)

Unless you are the board admin or forum moderator you can only edit or delete your own posts. You can edit a post (sometimes for only a limited time after it was made) by clicking the edit button for the relevant post. If someone has already replied to the post, you will find a small piece of text output below the post when you return to the topic that lists the number of times you edited it. This will only appear if no one has replied; it also will not appear if moderators or administrators edit the post (they should leave a message saying what they altered and why). Please note that normal users cannot delete a post once someone has replied.

To add a signature to a post you must first create one; this is done via your profile. Once created you can check the Add Signature box on the posting form to add your signature. You can also add a signature by default to all your posts by checking the appropriate radio box in your profile. You can still prevent a signature being added to individual posts by un-checking the add signature box on the posting form.

Creating a poll is easy -- when you post a new topic (or edit the first post of a topic, if you have permission) you should see a Add Poll form below the main posting box. If you cannot see this then you probably do not have rights to create polls. You should enter a title for the poll and then at least two options -- to set an option type in the poll question and click the Add option button. You can also set a time limit for the poll, 0 being an infinite amount. There will be a limit to the number of options you can list, which is set by the board administrator

As with posts, polls can only be edited by the original poster, a moderator, or board administrator. To edit a poll, click the first post in the topic, which always has the poll associated with it. If no one has cast a vote then users can delete the poll or edit any poll option. However, if people have already placed votes only moderators or administrators can edit or delete it; this is to prevent people rigging polls by changing options mid-way through a poll

Some forums may be limited to certain users or groups. To view, read, post, etc. you may need special authorization which only the forum moderator and board administrator can grant, so you should contact them.

Only registered users can vote in polls so as to prevent spoofing of results. If you have registered and still cannot vote then you probably do not have appropriate access rights.

BBCode is a special implementation of HTML. Whether you can use BBCode is determined by the administrator. You can also disable it on a per post basis from the posting form. BBCode itself is similar in style to HTML: tags are enclosed in square braces [ and ] rather than < and > and it offers greater control over what and how something is displayed. For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from the posting page.

That depends on whether the administrator allows you to; they have complete control over it. If you are allowed to use it, you will probably find only certain tags work. This is a safety feature to prevent people from abusing the board by using tags which may destroy the layout or cause other problems. If HTML is enabled you can disable it on a per post basis from the posting form.

Smileys, or Emoticons, are small graphical images which can be used to express some feeling using a short code, e.g. :) means happy, :( means sad. The full list of emoticons can be seen via the posting form. Try not to overuse smileys, though, as they can quickly render a post unreadable and a moderator may decide to edit them out or remove the post altogether.

Images can indeed be shown in your posts. However, there is no facility at present for uploading images directly to this board. Therefore you must link to an image stored on a publicly accessible web server, e.g. You cannot link to pictures stored on your own PC (unless it is a publicly accessible server) nor to images stored behind authentication mechanisms such as Hotmail or Yahoo mailboxes, password-protected sites, etc. To display the image use either the BBCode [img] tag or appropriate HTML (if allowed).

Announcements often contain important information and you should read them as soon as possible. Announcements appear at the top of every page in the forum to which they are posted. Whether or not you can post an announcement depends on the permissions required, which are set by the administrator.

Sticky topics appear below any announcements in viewforum and only on the first page. They are often quite important so you should read them where possible. As with announcements the board administrator determines what permissions are required to post sticky topics in each forum.

Locked topics are set this way by either the forum moderator or board administrator. You cannot reply to locked topics and any poll contained inside is automatically ended. Topics may be locked for many reasons.

Administrators are people assigned the highest level of control over the entire board. These people can control all facets of board operation which include setting permissions, banning users, creating usergroups or moderators, etc. They also have full moderator capabilities in all the forums.

Moderators are individuals (or groups of individuals) whose job it is to look after the running of the forums from day to day. They have the power to edit or delete posts and lock, unlock, move, delete and split topics in the forum they moderate. Generally moderators are there to prevent people going off-topic or posting abusive or offensive material.

Usergroups are a way in which board administrators can group users. Each user can belong to several groups (this differs from most other boards) and each group can be assigned individual access rights. This makes it easy for administrators to set up several users as moderators of a forum, or to give them access to a private forum, etc.

To join a usergroup click the usergroup link on the page header (dependent on template design) and you can then view all usergroups. Not all groups are open access -- some are closed and some may even have hidden memberships. If the board is open then you can request to join it by clicking the appropriate button. The user group moderator will need to approve your request; they may ask why you want to join the group. Please do not pester a group moderator if they turn your request down -- they will have their reasons.

Usergroups are initially created by the board administrator who also assigns a board moderator. If you are interested in creating a usergroup then your first point of contact should be the administrator, so try dropping them a private message.

There are three reasons for this; you are not registered and/or not logged on, the board administrator has disabled private messaging for the entire board, or the board administrator has prevented you individually from sending messages. If it is the latter case you should try asking the administrator why.

In the future we will be adding an ignore list to the private messaging system. For now, though, if you keep receiving unwanted private messages from someone, inform the board administrator -- they have the power to prevent a user from sending private messages at all.

We are sorry to hear that. The email form feature of this board includes safeguards to try to track users who send such posts. You should email the board administrator with a full copy of the email you received and it is very important this include the headers (these list details of the user that sent the email). They can then take action.

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