Forum Guidance

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While every effort is made to ensure that contributors stay within out published guidelines MacAssist cannot be held responsible for any content posted by a contributor to either forum. MacAssist accept no liability for the results of following any advice or instructions given by any individual who posts on either forum. The forums are populated by fellow computer users, and anyone acting upon advice or direction given on either forum does so entirely at their own risk.

MacAssist advise you to ALWAYS back up your data before attempting any maintenance work on your computer and/or peripherals. Telephone support is available from experienced MacAssist engineers. This is a chargeable service, see the support section of the site or call 0870 742 1176 for further details.

The opinions expressed by forum users and the iWebmaster are not necessarily those of MacAssist.

MacAssist Forum Guidelines

What are the two forums for?
The 'MAC' forum is for Macintosh Technical posts. So if your printer won't print, if you want to find out if the latest Mac has a superdrive, or some other question like that, then this is where you should post.
The 'TOSH' forum is for general chit chat. Usually it will be related to Macs in some way, but within reason you can chat about whatever you like.

Who can use this forum?
Anyone. You don't have to be a Mac User (but most of the contributors will be... obviously!). We have quite a few regulars who seem to be normal people, but it's said that everyone who uses a forum falls into a category of some kind. However we're not going to comment about that, you'll have to make up your own mind.

What are the rules?
Be respectful, don't get aggressive, don't use bad language (or variations thereof), don't pretend to be another poster and don't ask for serial numbers, cracks, or warez. Don't be deliberately argumentative or aggressive, don't do annoying things like pick up on peoples spelling or grammar errors or WRITE AN ENTIRE POST IN CAPITALS (as that tends to mean you are shouting). Posts deemed offensive, inappropriate or libelous will be deleted and may result in further action being taken by the iWebmaster limiting your future use of the forum. Basically, just think about what you post and try to tread carefully around volatile subjects such as politics! (Where possible it is perhaps better to avoid these subjects altogether.) Remember to use 'smilies' to help other forum users know how to take something that could otherwise be taken the wrong way.

Is there anything I specifically shouldn't post?
Yes! Do NOT post porn, spam or blatant ads and that absolutely includes ANY AND ALL free iPod, iMac, Mac Mini's or any other such 'unbelievable' deals. Posts like this will be deleted and the contributor may well find themselves banned.

How do I make a post?
Go to the forum you want to post on, then at the top of the list of messages (just under the menu tabs) you'll see the words 'Post New Message'. Click that!

Do I have to use my real name?
We've had some pretty mad names used since the forum started back in 2001. Names like 'Not_Dark_Yet', 'Madmacs', 'Colonel Panic', and 'The Taxman'. However others use their real names, it's really your decision. Apart from the mistrust of other forum contributors, there is little be be gained if you choose to masquerade as a Doctor from London when you're actually a welder from Wolverhampton. Of course MacAssist advise all contributors to exercise the same caution here, as in any public place, when sharing personal information.

Do I have to include my email?
You don't have to include your email, or even use your real name. However as much as you can post anonymously, what's the point? You might as well include an email address, even if that is a MacMail address or something.
(Note: In rare circumstances the moderator know as the 'iWebmaster' may request a 'real' email address on which you can be contacted. This information would however remain confidential. For more information please see the questions below about the iWebmaster.)

Will MacAssist add me to some email list if I post here?
No.

What about my email address and junk mail (spam)?
It may be possible for your email address to be collected (harvested) by robots (computer programs that search the web) looking for email addresses though we have worked hard to try an reduce this as much as possible. To avoid getting added to lists we advise you to place the word REMOVE- after the @ symbol of your email address. For example johnsmith@REMOVE-mac.com. Doing this will help prevent your email address from being added to lists. For more practical suggestions to help you avoid junk email see 'how to avoid junk email' written by one of the forum regulars Simon Jones.

What about posting pictures?
You can post pictures on both forums, however don't go mad and post pictures on all of your contributions. You can't submit pictures so you'll have to find somewhere to host them online like your ISP's free webspace, photobucket.com or tinypic.com. Pictures that contain nudity or that might be seen as offensive in any way will be deleted. Anyone found misusing this feature will very quickly find themselves suspended from posting. Please also note that pictures should be of a reasonable size. Suitable for people on dial up connections. Try not to make them any bigger than say 640x480.

Can I post HTML code?
Because of problems we've had in the past with spammers posting ad's and other unsuitable material our forums will filter out any posted HTML code, rendering it invisible. Clearly some people may find this somewhat annoying if they have, for example, a question about web page design and HTML. In these case we advise that you simply substitute the 'less than' and 'greater than' angled brackets for some other brackets. Our suggestion would be as follows: <html> to [html]. You can use ISO escape sequences to create the tag on the page by using &lt; for < and &gt; for >. For a full list of ISO escape sequences, all of which can be posted on the forums, see Dr Simon Grant's ISO escape sequences page or Webmonkey.

Can I post links to other sites?
Yes. There is a input field on the posting page that allows you to create a hot-link, though you don't have to use that. You can simply post the www address and our forum will create the hot-link for you. However be aware that posting long or complex addresses that include characters such as questions marks (?) ampersands (&) and percentage symbols (%) will be problematical and may not be properly converted into hot-links. For those kind of addresses we recommend that you either use the space provided on the posting page for links, or you use an address shortening service such as TinyURL.

How do I delete a post I made?
When you make a post you can use a password. This is required should you decide you want to delete a post you made. To delete a post click on the post you wish to delete (it has to be one of your posts) then enter your password in the text box next to the 'Delete this post' button. After you've entered your password, hit the button and the post will be gone forever.

What are the profiles (the who's who section) about?
Many regular users of this forum have profiles. They are simply web pages you can create (follow the 'create profile' link at the top of the message list pages) that tell others a little bit about you. You can make them as long or short as you like, and even include a picture.

What does 'set preferences' do?
There are number of different ways you can have the forum list and messages displayed. Use 'set preferences' to see the different options open to you. You can change your preferences at any time.

How does the forum remember me?
The forum uses cookies. These are small text files stored by your web browser. If you post on the forum once, your web browser will remember that and next time you visit using that web browser on that computer, the forum will know who you are. This is for your convenience and is NOT used in ANY commercial way at all.

Why did the forum forget me?
Either you are using a different computer, a different browser, or the cookie that was stored has somehow been deleted.

Something bad happened, who do I sue?
NOT MacAssist! Quite simply anyone who uses the forum is wholly responsible for anything they post. MacAssist can not be held responsible for anything posted by anyone who is not directly presently employed and acting on behalf of MacAssist. If you encounter problems after following someone's advice on this forum then take that up with the person who's advice you followed. Having said that, most of the forum regulars are informed people who wouldn't knowingly give bad advice. However we advise that as a rule BEFORE you undertake any maintenance work on your computer you should ALWAYS back up your data.

Is the forum moderated?
The forum is indeed moderated by our very own iWebmaster.

I want to complain about a post/thread/contributor.
If you are, for whatever reason, unhappy about a post, thread, or any forum contributor, you should make your feelings known to the iWebmaster by using the iWebmaster contact form.

What or who is the iWebmaster?
The iWebmaster has extensive powers and privileges to enable them to moderate the forum. The iWebmaster keeps a watchful eye on the forum and tries to read all posts, though this is not always possible. The iWebmaster can alter, archive and delete threads as well as levy penalties for misconduct or misuse of the forum. Although such measures have rarely been invoked, the iWebmaster has the ability to limit contributors ability to post and view the forum.

The iWebmaster has requested that I contact them. What should I do?
If the iWebmaster requests an email address to contact you on, you MUST provide one on which you can be contacted BEFORE continuing to use the forum. In exceptional circumstances the iWebmaster may also ask for a 'real' email address, as opposed to a 'Hotmail' or 'Yahoo' free web based email address. This information would remain confidential. If for any reason you cannot provide an email address you should contact the iWebmaster by phoning 0870 742 1131, and again you should do this BEFORE continuing to use the forum. Failure to do so may result in an immediate suspension of your ability to freely post messages on either forum.

What are **Yellow Card** and other such posts about?
The iWebmaster is present to make sure that the MacAssist forums retain the good natured atmosphere that they are well known for. The iWebmaster can issue warnings to contributors for misuse, misconduct, inappropriate or antisocial behavior, or for just being a pillock!

** Waved Yellow Flags **
You may see this posted in a thread that looks like it may be heading for dangerous ground. It is derived from the formula one car racing danger warning, and is intended as a warning to contributors of the 'yellow flagged' thread that they should slow down and be prepared to stop.

** Yellow Card **
Just as in soccer, you'll be given a yellow card for much the same reason as you would in a soccer game. This is again just a warning and while you may not think you deserve one it'll be no use shouting at the iWebmaster about the injustice of the situation. The iWebmaster's decision is final.

** Red Flag **
IF YOU SEE THIS YOU SHOULD IMMEDIATELY STOP POSTING IN THAT THREAD. In other words NOTHING should be posted after a Red Flag warning from the iWebmaster. The Red Flag indicates that the thread has been stopped, all forum members should cease posting in that thread with immediate effect. This will appear when a the iWebmaster wants to stop a thread (without deleting it) for whatever reason. Anyone who posts after the iWebmaster has Red Flagged a thread could be banned without warning.

Have I been banned?
Further to the warnings above you can be severely limited or even banned from contributing to the forum or even from being able to read it!
Approval posting : This is where you can read the forum and make posts in the usual way but they are only visible to other contributors after being approved by the iWebmaster.
Posting ban : You can read the forum but you are unable to make posts.
Total ban : You can neither read or post to the forum. In this case you'll be 'stopped at the door' by the iBouncer.

How long does a ban last.
This depends largely on what it is you were banned for. Posting pornographic pictures or any other spam will pretty much ensure you never darken these doors again. However the the MacAssist iWebmaster will listen to any request to be unbanned either via email or the iWebmaster contact form.

What if I don't agree with the way the forum is run.
Don't come back!