EPT
There is a common complaint amongst the community that new users usually don’t understand the necessary guidelines that dictate this website and its members. Things such as post content, OP content and LR etiquette are all notorious ban traps. The most common thing that annoys me endlessly is when new users begin a thread simply to ask a question.
“Hey guys, when is GSL on tonight!? Sorry if this is the wrong way to ask, but i didn’t know!”
This is then followed by someone taking a screenshot of the calendar with a big red arrow pointing at 2h 30m GSL Code S Finals! I understand new users probably don’t know the intricacies that go with this community, but i rarely find ignorance as an excuse. There is just a wealth of knowledge in this community, that a little bit of initiative goes a long way. But, if you didn't know these existed - they may be helpful!
Simple Questions Simple Answers - Strategy Forum
Simple Questions Simple Answers - Custom Games & Maps
April General Discussion Thread - Jinro makes one of these for each month, and not enough people take advantage of it!
OR
IRC
+ Show Spoiler +
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/Iaqyc.jpg)
These are the best resources to answer any simple questions you may have; please exploit them all greatly!
If you still cannot find the answer to your question, TL.net has this incredible PM system which makes their moderators and administrators very accessible. This leads perfectly into the next issue, which is OP content. If you have an idea for a thread, and you are not 100% convinced that it deserves its own thread, the general rule of thumb is to not post it.
However, if you feel it would greatly add value to the community by all means go ahead and PM a moderator! PMing a moderator seems to be the solution to many problems around here, and unless they are offline or extremely busy they will definitely respond.
A great way to avoid warnings or bans is to read these threads before even thinking of posting:
TL.net Ten Commandments
Strategy Forum Guidelines
Strategy Forum Purge
When i first registered here i got a warning for not posting in proper english; i was using abbreviations and short hand in all my posts. I was not even aware that this was a posting requirement at TL.net! If there was someone there to tell me, things would have been much better!
There is so much potential for community contributions that it would be a shame if your account got banned before you had an opportunity to shine.
TL.net =/= Google
Obviously, the above covers asking simple questions, but i thought a special reference to Liquipedia and TLPD need to be mentioned. These great resources offer an incredible wealth of knowledge that can answer pretty much any question that doesn’t require discussion. Please check these before asking questions, they can open your eyes!
LR Threads:
The biggest ban trap of them all; I have come across many people who actually do not know the purpose of these threads. The LR stands for Live Report; i.e. it is thread primarily used for reporting what is going on in the current game. These threads exist to allow people who cannot access the stream the ability to follow the game and keep updated. They rely on people "Live Reporting" the games rather than making pointless comments or balance queries.
Obviously, discussion about the games ensue which is not so terrible. The problem is when people feel the need to express their grievances. LR threads do not exist as an avenue to express ways you think the tournament can be improved. They do not exist as a sounding board for your thoughts on balance. It is a very clear guideline that balance whine in an LR thread is a big fat no-no. So quite simply – DON’T DO IT! If you have a coherent argument, MAKE A NEW THREAD; if you don’t have a coherent argument then DON’T POST IT! The amount of terrible posting that goes on in LR threads is abominable and the majority of it is by low post count users that may be new to the site.
I thought i was doing everything right – but then i got warned/banned/thread closed!
The best way to understand what happened is to PM a moderator. A useful technique is to head to the closed threads section, jump on the automated ban list (another very entertaining part of the community) and spot a moderator that is active. Obviously if you see one who has just posted it is much easier. Click PM and ask them why you got warned/banned; if you remain calm and polite they will most certainly hear you out. There is also this:
Why my thread was closed topic?
This is located in the Website Feedback Section– another great resource; if you feel something needs to be improved on the site, post away and you will most certainly get a response.
Martyring
For those who do not understand what this means, it is basically saying "I'm going to get banned for this, but..." or "I don't care, ban me!" The majority of times you say this, your post isn't ban worthy, not even worthy of a warning but by simply placing that in your post you are going to get automatically banned. Without fail.
I have learnt a lot about what is acceptable on this site by checking out the Closed Threads Section.
TL.net has always prided itself on “quality” – the threads, topics and professionalism that TL carries along speak a lot to it’s community members and administration; at the end of the day – if we put crap in, we are only going to get crap out! The onus is on YOU to make sure this community stays as incredible and worthwhile as it is.
Well i hope this was helpful in some way. At the end of the day i think “don’t be a douche” goes a long way on these forums. TL.net has a very transparent community and the moderators, administrators and banlings are usually open to discuss any issues you may have.
Edit: User contributions - JWD the man himself adds:
On May 14 2011 23:40 JWD wrote:
The only really common no-no I see from new posters that you didn't talk about is posting in memes (e.g. "u mad", "cool story bro", "TLDR", image macros, spammy YT videos, copy-pasted ASCII art).
Oh and one more thing: some explanation about why martyring always results in a ban. If a user martyrs in an otherwise good post, he is insulting the mod staff and confusing other posters by suggesting he will get an unwarranted ban. If a user martyrs in an otherwise bad post, he is indicating that he knew his post was terrible and decided to put it up anyway. That's just making work for the mods.
The only really common no-no I see from new posters that you didn't talk about is posting in memes (e.g. "u mad", "cool story bro", "TLDR", image macros, spammy YT videos, copy-pasted ASCII art).
Oh and one more thing: some explanation about why martyring always results in a ban. If a user martyrs in an otherwise good post, he is insulting the mod staff and confusing other posters by suggesting he will get an unwarranted ban. If a user martyrs in an otherwise bad post, he is indicating that he knew his post was terrible and decided to put it up anyway. That's just making work for the mods.
I mean if it justified it's own thread a mod could move it but anyway, glad you guys found it interesting hehe :p
