Black Belt Poker Community Guidelines
Overview
Like forums, the Black Belt Poker groups will be open to abuse
if we don't encourage people to adhere to a certain set of
guidelines. Hopefully, this will make people's experience of the
groups more enjoyable, whilst making it clear to everyone what we
consider to be acceptable/unacceptable.
General Posting Advice
Use the comment box to reply to new
threads. Don't post your comment as a new thread.
Don't start threads unnecessarily; ensure
they have a purpose.
Avoid using capital letters as it is often
considered shouting.
Try to use break points in your opening
post to make your comments easier to read.
Think before posting. Treat other posters
with respect and remember that not everyone will be thinking on the
same level as you.
Avoid posting bad beat stories. They are
unconstructive, take up space and few are interested in hearing
them.
Post hands in the 'hands' tab rather than
the 'general' board.
Add as much detail as you can to your
hands to make it easier for users to analyse.
If you have any questions regarding the
software, or want to make a suggestion or highlight a bug, please
send an email to community@blackbeltpoker.com.
In certain cases, posts or threads may be removed to maintain
the organisation or credibility of the groups.
Offensive Material
Pornographic material or posts/profile images that are
considered to be in bad taste will be removed. The same goes for
any racist comments, or content that looks to discriminate on the
grounds of religion. Please contact us if you receive offensive
content via the private messaging service.
Illegal Content
Do not post content that is considered illegal, or seeks to
promote illegal activity. These posts will be removed, as will
those construed as potentially libellous. Users whose sole purpose
is to impersonate someone will have their account terminated.
Spam
Please don't spam the groups or advertise any products on the
site (eg. your status update box) without direct permission from
Black Belt Poker. These posts will be immediately removed. You are
not permitted to use the private messaging system to advertise a
product either, and we encourage users to report such activity if
they believe the service is being abused.
We don't mind the occasional link to an external page, but if we
believe the link is blatant spam, or is of little relevance to the
thread, then the link will be removed. We will also be keeping an
eye on those who continually post links, or are covertly spamming
the site on a regular basis.
We also ask members not to publish content from another site
without crediting the site from where the information was found. In
general, posting entire articles obtained from other sites on Black
Belt Poker is not something we encourage.
Trolling
Trolling is Internet slang for someone who posts controversial,
inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages in an online
community. We're happy for users to debate or disagree on certain
topics, but ask you to keep discussions civil. Once flaming occurs,
the post (or maybe thread) will be removed, and the flamer issued a
warning dependent on the severity of the flame. If you wish to
carry on an argument that we find unacceptable, then we ask you to
do so off-site and away from the groups.
Trolling on a whole is unacceptable at Black Belt Poker and not
something we take lightly. We want people to feel free to post
their thoughts and ideas openly without being subject to personal
attacks or undue criticism. Therefore, treat people how you would
like to be treated yourself and respect the other members of the
community.
Profanity
We're not Big Brother, but at the same time we ask you to keep
profanity down to a sensible level. Swearing as such is not banned
but excessive swearing will be frowned upon and may be considered
trolling if directed towards an individual.
Account Security
Please be aware that Black Belt Poker takes no responsibility
for the content a user may post. As an individual, you are
personally responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of the
password and account, and are fully responsible for all activities
that occur under your name. If you believe that there has been
unauthorised use of your password or account or any other breach of
security, then we urge you to contact Black Belt Poker as soon as
possible.
Finally ...
Black Belt Poker apply what is widely known as the "three strike
rule". There are exceptions where an immediate ban will be issued,
but in most cases, users will be issued two warnings via private
message and/or email, with the final infringement resulting in a
ban from the groups/site. We ask you to please use your common
sense and think carefully before posting. In most cases, reprimands
can be avoided if the user just takes a few moments to consider
what he/she is about to write.
Black Belt Poker is a huge project, and we have high aspirations
for the site. However, we don't want that time to be taken up by
unnecessary moderation of the groups, so please read through the
above guidelines before posting so you know where we stand on
certain issues. We won't be censoring your every move, but do ask
you to help us make the groups an informative, yet friendly place
to post.
The guidelines are subject to change. In all cases, Black Belt
Poker's decision is final. If you would like to contest a decision,
please contact us at info@blackbeltpoker.com. We won't be debating
any decisions publicly on the site. Similarly, if you have a
suggestion on how to improve the groups, please contact us at the
same address.