Must... rant... -.- Btw, the "you" in my bullet points is directed to the people who have committed these crimes, not anyone here.
1. Spammers. Really get on my nerves. If you haven't anything intelligent to say, then don't bother making a post. There is also no point in ressurecting an old thread just to post "I agree" or a smilie.
2. People who use constant chatspeak and shortened words. The odd one or two here and there isn't a problem; I mean when a person is using only shortened words rendering their posts unreadable. This isn't a chatroom and you are not texting on a mobile phone, so cut it out.
3. Any kind of stupid speak, like ebonics or KrAzY. Also cutesy spellings of words, especially body parts.
4. People who give themselves deliberately sexy names. Especially if said people are under 16 years of age. Even adults should think before they call themselves "Sexygirl69"; it's hard to take them seriously when they do.
5. Poor spelling and grammar. Yes, I know that it's sometimes hard to spell correctly all the time, especially if English is not your first language, but at least try. Also, try to capitalise the first word in a sentence and use full stops and commas when needed. It makes your posts easier to read and stops people from assuming that you're just an idiot.
6. People who insist that they are right, despite all evidence to the contrary. This also goes for people who refuse to listen to different opinions to theirs, or who make a thread expecting people to agree with them, and then throw a tantrum when the opposite happens.
7. Pre-teens and teenagers online. Yes, I know that it's virtually impossible to avoid them, and that not all pre-teens and teens are bad, but in my experience a lot of them are guilty of the crimes listed here; and they never listen to mods who try and put them right, or read the rules of a forum. These people, if they don't end up banned from everywhere, will eventually grow up to become those irritating adult noobs that we've all encountered, both on and offline.
8. Newbies with say, 1 or 2 posts who insist that they should be made mods. Or who start bossing other users around, telling them to abide by the rules or threatening them with banning. Only mods and admins can do this; when an ordinary user starts doing it, it becomes annoying for all concerned.
9. Abuse of numbers. Like, for example, 1337. Also, smilie abuse. Sometimes if there's a character limit, people fill in the gap with smilies rather than say something worth reading. Also, some people swamp their posts with so many smilies that their post becomes meaningless.
10. Image theft. Not only is it extremely rude to steal someone's hard work and pass it off as your own, but it's also illegal if they have it copyrighted. Ask permission first and always give credit. Also, if you put your photos on a public site, you need to understand that there's always a risk that some weirdo may take them. Put them in a passworded album, and/or watermark them to keep them safe.
11. Friending. For example, people who PM you asking you to be their friend (some message boards allow this, also this pertains to Facebook, Myspace and other social networking sites) and then get pissy when you refuse them. I will not take random friend requests ever, not unless I actually know the person. Think about this for a minute. If you were walking down the street and a complete stranger walked up to you and said, "OMG! Wanna be bestest friends forever!" I somehow doubt you'd comply. I'm a cranky, cynical bitch. Unless you actually take the time to get to know me, it's unlikely we'll have anything in common. So don't bother asking.
12. Imposters. It's actually illegal to impersonate someone, and could get you in a lot of trouble. Parodies, where a person isn't being serious, are fine as long as they are funny and don't actually claim to be the person.
13. Fanfic atrocities. Just cuz you're writing fiction is no reason to basically crap all over canon. Yes, you can have a non canon pairing, but for the love of cheese, do it properly. That means research, keeping characters as they are in canon, and writing correctly. Not pairing your fave canon with your stupid self insert Mary Sue. Also, if you get criticised, take it to heart and try to do better, don't just throw a tantrum and shriek, "If you don't like it, don't read it!". If you don't like criticism, then don't put your fanfic on a public forum.
14. People who REFUSE TO READ THE RULES. Most sites have them stuck at the top of the forums. They are not hard to find or obey.
15. Disrespecting the mods and admins. Contrary to what a lot of people (see 7) think, mods and admins are not required to bend over backwards and be constantly sweetness and light to users, while taking every bit of abuse that said users throw at them. If you are as rude to your bosses or teachers as you are to online mods and admins, then you will not get very far in life and will probably end up either in traction or in a prison cell. Mods and admins have a hard, thankless job in looking after forums and don't need some bratty little creep abusing them for deleting or locking their spam thread. Either suck it up when you're told off, or leave.
1. Spammers. Really get on my nerves. If you haven't anything intelligent to say, then don't bother making a post. There is also no point in ressurecting an old thread just to post "I agree" or a smilie.
2. People who use constant chatspeak and shortened words. The odd one or two here and there isn't a problem; I mean when a person is using only shortened words rendering their posts unreadable. This isn't a chatroom and you are not texting on a mobile phone, so cut it out.
3. Any kind of stupid speak, like ebonics or KrAzY. Also cutesy spellings of words, especially body parts.
4. People who give themselves deliberately sexy names. Especially if said people are under 16 years of age. Even adults should think before they call themselves "Sexygirl69"; it's hard to take them seriously when they do.
5. Poor spelling and grammar. Yes, I know that it's sometimes hard to spell correctly all the time, especially if English is not your first language, but at least try. Also, try to capitalise the first word in a sentence and use full stops and commas when needed. It makes your posts easier to read and stops people from assuming that you're just an idiot.
6. People who insist that they are right, despite all evidence to the contrary. This also goes for people who refuse to listen to different opinions to theirs, or who make a thread expecting people to agree with them, and then throw a tantrum when the opposite happens.
7. Pre-teens and teenagers online. Yes, I know that it's virtually impossible to avoid them, and that not all pre-teens and teens are bad, but in my experience a lot of them are guilty of the crimes listed here; and they never listen to mods who try and put them right, or read the rules of a forum. These people, if they don't end up banned from everywhere, will eventually grow up to become those irritating adult noobs that we've all encountered, both on and offline.
8. Newbies with say, 1 or 2 posts who insist that they should be made mods. Or who start bossing other users around, telling them to abide by the rules or threatening them with banning. Only mods and admins can do this; when an ordinary user starts doing it, it becomes annoying for all concerned.
9. Abuse of numbers. Like, for example, 1337. Also, smilie abuse. Sometimes if there's a character limit, people fill in the gap with smilies rather than say something worth reading. Also, some people swamp their posts with so many smilies that their post becomes meaningless.
10. Image theft. Not only is it extremely rude to steal someone's hard work and pass it off as your own, but it's also illegal if they have it copyrighted. Ask permission first and always give credit. Also, if you put your photos on a public site, you need to understand that there's always a risk that some weirdo may take them. Put them in a passworded album, and/or watermark them to keep them safe.
11. Friending. For example, people who PM you asking you to be their friend (some message boards allow this, also this pertains to Facebook, Myspace and other social networking sites) and then get pissy when you refuse them. I will not take random friend requests ever, not unless I actually know the person. Think about this for a minute. If you were walking down the street and a complete stranger walked up to you and said, "OMG! Wanna be bestest friends forever!" I somehow doubt you'd comply. I'm a cranky, cynical bitch. Unless you actually take the time to get to know me, it's unlikely we'll have anything in common. So don't bother asking.
12. Imposters. It's actually illegal to impersonate someone, and could get you in a lot of trouble. Parodies, where a person isn't being serious, are fine as long as they are funny and don't actually claim to be the person.
13. Fanfic atrocities. Just cuz you're writing fiction is no reason to basically crap all over canon. Yes, you can have a non canon pairing, but for the love of cheese, do it properly. That means research, keeping characters as they are in canon, and writing correctly. Not pairing your fave canon with your stupid self insert Mary Sue. Also, if you get criticised, take it to heart and try to do better, don't just throw a tantrum and shriek, "If you don't like it, don't read it!". If you don't like criticism, then don't put your fanfic on a public forum.
14. People who REFUSE TO READ THE RULES. Most sites have them stuck at the top of the forums. They are not hard to find or obey.
15. Disrespecting the mods and admins. Contrary to what a lot of people (see 7) think, mods and admins are not required to bend over backwards and be constantly sweetness and light to users, while taking every bit of abuse that said users throw at them. If you are as rude to your bosses or teachers as you are to online mods and admins, then you will not get very far in life and will probably end up either in traction or in a prison cell. Mods and admins have a hard, thankless job in looking after forums and don't need some bratty little creep abusing them for deleting or locking their spam thread. Either suck it up when you're told off, or leave.
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