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The Rules of Pacers Digest

Hello everyone,

Whether your are a long standing forum member or whether you have just registered today, it's a good idea to read and review the rules below so that you have a very good idea of what to expect when you come to Pacers Digest.

A quick note to new members: Your posts will not immediately show up when you make them. An administrator has to approve at least your first post before the forum software will later upgrade your account to the status of a fully-registered member. This usually happens within a couple of hours or so after your post(s) is/are approved, so you may need to be a little patient at first.

Why do we do this? So that it's more difficult for spammers (be they human or robot) to post, and so users who are banned cannot immediately re-register and start dousing people with verbal flames.

Below are the rules of Pacers Digest. After you have read them, you will have a very good sense of where we are coming from, what we expect, what we don't want to see, and how we react to things.

Rule #1

Pacers Digest is intended to be a place to discuss basketball without having to deal with the kinds of behaviors or attitudes that distract people from sticking with the discussion of the topics at hand. These unwanted distractions can come in many forms, and admittedly it can sometimes be tricky to pin down each and every kind that can rear its ugly head, but we feel that the following examples and explanations cover at least a good portion of that ground and should at least give people a pretty good idea of the kinds of things we actively discourage:

"Anyone who __________ is a liar / a fool / an idiot / a blind homer / has their head buried in the sand / a blind hater / doesn't know basketball / doesn't watch the games"

"People with intelligence will agree with me when I say that __________"

"Only stupid people think / believe / do ___________"

"I can't wait to hear something from PosterX when he/she sees that **insert a given incident or current event that will have probably upset or disappointed PosterX here**"

"He/she is just delusional"

"This thread is stupid / worthless / embarrassing"

"I'm going to take a moment to point and / laugh at PosterX / GroupOfPeopleY who thought / believed *insert though/belief here*"

"Remember when PosterX said OldCommentY that no longer looks good? "

In general, if a comment goes from purely on topic to something 'ad hominem' (personal jabs, personal shots, attacks, flames, however you want to call it, towards a person, or a group of people, or a given city/state/country of people), those are most likely going to be found intolerable.

We also dissuade passive aggressive behavior. This can be various things, but common examples include statements that are basically meant to imply someone is either stupid or otherwise incapable of holding a rational conversation. This can include (but is not limited to) laughing at someone's conclusions rather than offering an honest rebuttal, asking people what game they were watching, or another common problem is Poster X will say "that player isn't that bad" and then Poster Y will say something akin to "LOL you think that player is good". We're not going to tolerate those kinds of comments out of respect for the community at large and for the sake of trying to just have an honest conversation.

Now, does the above cover absolutely every single kind of distraction that is unwanted? Probably not, but you should by now have a good idea of the general types of things we will be discouraging. The above examples are meant to give you a good feel for / idea of what we're looking for. If something new or different than the above happens to come along and results in the same problem (that being, any other attitude or behavior that ultimately distracts from actually just discussing the topic at hand, or that is otherwise disrespectful to other posters), we can and we will take action to curb this as well, so please don't take this to mean that if you managed to technically avoid saying something exactly like one of the above examples that you are then somehow off the hook.

That all having been said, our goal is to do so in a generally kind and respectful way, and that doesn't mean the moment we see something we don't like that somebody is going to be suspended or banned, either. It just means that at the very least we will probably say something about it, quite possibly snipping out the distracting parts of the post in question while leaving alone the parts that are actually just discussing the topics, and in the event of a repeating or excessive problem, then we will start issuing infractions to try to further discourage further repeat problems, and if it just never seems to improve, then finally suspensions or bans will come into play. We would prefer it never went that far, and most of the time for most of our posters, it won't ever have to.

A slip up every once and a while is pretty normal, but, again, when it becomes repetitive or excessive, something will be done. Something occasional is probably going to be let go (within reason), but when it starts to become habitual or otherwise a pattern, odds are very good that we will step in.

There's always a small minority that like to push people's buttons and/or test their own boundaries with regards to the administrators, and in the case of someone acting like that, please be aware that this is not a court of law, but a private website run by people who are simply trying to do the right thing as they see it. If we feel that you are a special case that needs to be dealt with in an exceptional way because your behavior isn't explicitly mirroring one of our above examples of what we generally discourage, we can and we will take atypical action to prevent this from continuing if you are not cooperative with us.

Also please be aware that you will not be given a pass simply by claiming that you were 'only joking,' because quite honestly, when someone really is just joking, for one thing most people tend to pick up on the joke, including the person or group that is the target of the joke, and for another thing, in the event where an honest joke gets taken seriously and it upsets or angers someone, the person who is truly 'only joking' will quite commonly go out of his / her way to apologize and will try to mend fences. People who are dishonest about their statements being 'jokes' do not do so, and in turn that becomes a clear sign of what is really going on. It's nothing new.

In any case, quite frankly, the overall quality and health of the entire forum's community is more important than any one troublesome user will ever be, regardless of exactly how a problem is exhibiting itself, and if it comes down to us having to make a choice between you versus the greater health and happiness of the entire community, the community of this forum will win every time.

Lastly, there are also some posters, who are generally great contributors and do not otherwise cause any problems, who sometimes feel it's their place to provoke or to otherwise 'mess with' that small minority of people described in the last paragraph, and while we possibly might understand why you might feel you WANT to do something like that, the truth is we can't actually tolerate that kind of behavior from you any more than we can tolerate the behavior from them. So if we feel that you are trying to provoke those other posters into doing or saying something that will get themselves into trouble, then we will start to view you as a problem as well, because of the same reason as before: The overall health of the forum comes first, and trying to stir the pot with someone like that doesn't help, it just makes it worse. Some will simply disagree with this philosophy, but if so, then so be it because ultimately we have to do what we think is best so long as it's up to us.

If you see a problem that we haven't addressed, the best and most appropriate course for a forum member to take here is to look over to the left of the post in question. See underneath that poster's name, avatar, and other info, down where there's a little triangle with an exclamation point (!) in it? Click that. That allows you to report the post to the admins so we can definitely notice it and give it a look to see what we feel we should do about it. Beyond that, obviously it's human nature sometimes to want to speak up to the poster in question who has bothered you, but we would ask that you try to refrain from doing so because quite often what happens is two or more posters all start going back and forth about the original offending post, and suddenly the entire thread is off topic or otherwise derailed. So while the urge to police it yourself is understandable, it's best to just report it to us and let us handle it. Thank you!

All of the above is going to be subject to a case by case basis, but generally and broadly speaking, this should give everyone a pretty good idea of how things will typically / most often be handled.

Rule #2

If the actions of an administrator inspire you to make a comment, criticism, or express a concern about it, there is a wrong place and a couple of right places to do so.

The wrong place is to do so in the original thread in which the administrator took action. For example, if a post gets an infraction, or a post gets deleted, or a comment within a larger post gets clipped out, in a thread discussing Paul George, the wrong thing to do is to distract from the discussion of Paul George by adding your off topic thoughts on what the administrator did.

The right places to do so are:

A) Start a thread about the specific incident you want to talk about on the Feedback board. This way you are able to express yourself in an area that doesn't throw another thread off topic, and this way others can add their two cents as well if they wish, and additionally if there's something that needs to be said by the administrators, that is where they will respond to it.

B) Send a private message to the administrators, and they can respond to you that way.

If this is done the wrong way, those comments will be deleted, and if it's a repeating problem then it may also receive an infraction as well.

Rule #3

If a poster is bothering you, and an administrator has not or will not deal with that poster to the extent that you would prefer, you have a powerful tool at your disposal, one that has recently been upgraded and is now better than ever: The ability to ignore a user.

When you ignore a user, you will unfortunately still see some hints of their existence (nothing we can do about that), however, it does the following key things:

A) Any post they make will be completely invisible as you scroll through a thread.

B) The new addition to this feature: If someone QUOTES a user you are ignoring, you do not have to read who it was, or what that poster said, unless you go out of your way to click on a link to find out who it is and what they said.

To utilize this feature, from any page on Pacers Digest, scroll to the top of the page, look to the top right where it says 'Settings' and click that. From the settings page, look to the left side of the page where it says 'My Settings', and look down from there until you see 'Edit Ignore List' and click that. From here, it will say 'Add a Member to Your List...' Beneath that, click in the text box to the right of 'User Name', type in or copy & paste the username of the poster you are ignoring, and once their name is in the box, look over to the far right and click the 'Okay' button. All done!

Rule #4

Regarding infractions, currently they carry a value of one point each, and that point will expire in 31 days. If at any point a poster is carrying three points at the same time, that poster will be suspended until the oldest of the three points expires.

Rule #5

When you share or paste content or articles from another website, you must include the URL/link back to where you found it, who wrote it, and what website it's from. Said content will be removed if this doesn't happen.

An example:

If I copy and paste an article from the Indianapolis Star website, I would post something like this:

http://www.linktothearticlegoeshere.com/article
Title of the Article
Author's Name
Indianapolis Star

Rule #6

We cannot tolerate illegal videos on Pacers Digest. This means do not share any links to them, do not mention any websites that host them or link to them, do not describe how to find them in any way, and do not ask about them. Posts doing anything of the sort will be removed, the offenders will be contacted privately, and if the problem becomes habitual, you will be suspended, and if it still persists, you will probably be banned.

The legal means of watching or listening to NBA games are NBA League Pass Broadband (for US, or for International; both cost money) and NBA Audio League Pass (which is free). Look for them on NBA.com.

Rule #7

Provocative statements in a signature, or as an avatar, or as the 'tagline' beneath a poster's username (where it says 'Member' or 'Administrator' by default, if it is not altered) are an unwanted distraction that will more than likely be removed on sight. There can be shades of gray to this, but in general this could be something political or religious that is likely going to provoke or upset people, or otherwise something that is mean-spirited at the expense of a poster, a group of people, or a population.

It may or may not go without saying, but this goes for threads and posts as well, particularly when it's not made on the off-topic board (Market Square).

We do make exceptions if we feel the content is both innocuous and unlikely to cause social problems on the forum (such as wishing someone a Merry Christmas or a Happy Easter), and we also also make exceptions if such topics come up with regards to a sports figure (such as the Lance Stephenson situation bringing up discussions of domestic abuse and the law, or when Jason Collins came out as gay and how that lead to some discussion about gay rights).

However, once the discussion seems to be more/mostly about the political issues instead of the sports figure or his specific situation, the thread is usually closed.

Rule #8

We prefer self-restraint and/or modesty when making jokes or off topic comments in a sports discussion thread. They can be fun, but sometimes they derail or distract from a topic, and we don't want to see that happen. If we feel it is a problem, we will either delete or move those posts from the thread.

Rule #9

Generally speaking, we try to be a "PG-13" rated board, and we don't want to see sexual content or similarly suggestive content. Vulgarity is a more muddled issue, though again we prefer things to lean more towards "PG-13" than "R". If we feel things have gone too far, we will step in.

Rule #10

We like small signatures, not big signatures. The bigger the signature, the more likely it is an annoying or distracting signature.

Rule #11

Do not advertise anything without talking about it with the administrators first. This includes advertising with your signature, with your avatar, through private messaging, and/or by making a thread or post.
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Phil B.Wilson Colt's Blog

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  • #1

    Phil B.Wilson Colt's Blog

    Loaded with camp observations, this is pretty much the daily locale for Colt's Info. If you like it, give him some page hits so the penny pinchers at Gannett keep it as a feature.
    http://blogs.indystar.com/philb/

    Nailed

     Nothing like a one-inch nail in the front left tire to alter plans for today’s blog. Instead of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, the thoughts of the day are brought to you by my newest and best friends at a Westside Discount Tire. That is, their my buddies until I get the bill.


    * You can count on outside linebacker Freddy Keiaho bringing more toughness to the position than Cato June. Not knocking June, a speed guy who could cover but sometimes got shoved aside on run plays, but I like Keiaho’s physicality. Then again, if he can’t cover, we’ll be griping about how the Colts need a linebacker on pass defense. But there’s something about this guy, his hard-nosed and humble nature. Not too many football players from Fiji. The hunch is he could be something special. It’s way to early to be sure, so we call it a hunch.


    “So far, he is adjusting well and relaxing,” said Colts coach Tony Dungy. “That’s the big thing he’s going to have to do. He’s another guy who plays with energy and plays fast. The biggest thing for him is to slow down and be patient and let the game come to him.”


    * Along those same lines, I love the low-key temperament of running back Joseph Addai. It’s like the Colts have their share of Lincoln Navigators (judging from the parking lot, the players’ vehicle of choice), then there are the pickup trucks. Addai fits that image, just like Keiaho, Bob Sanders, Antoine Bethea, Gary Brackett, Rob Morris and the entire offensive line.
    “Every time they give me the ball, I will be happy with that,” Addai said. “It’s really for the team, whatever they want to do, that’s what I’m going to roll with.”


    Sounds like typical coach speak, but that’s Addai. I remember a couple games last year when I asked him if he knew how many rushing yards he had. He didn’t. When TV and radio sports talk folks break down the Colts, they need to realize it takes all kinds to blend together. The biggest stars have strong personalities. And take it from me, strong personalities can be difficult to deal with at times. But that depends upon the nature of the other guy. The Colts have more than enough “other guys” to go with the stars.


    * Those wanting some more info on running back DeDe Dorsey, he impressed Addai from the beginning of training camp … last year.
    “DeDe’s a mastermind,” Addai said. “He picked up the offense fast last year even though he wasn’t playing. He understood what was going on, asking a lot of questions, and that’s the same thing I did when I came in.”
    Addai, like Dungy, expects the smaller, quicker Dorsey to deliver a dynamic change of pace when spelling the starter. Not saying Dorsey has nailed that job down yet, he still has to prove himself in the preseason games, but he appears to have a leg up on the others.


    * I’ll pass this along once then let it go, but recently retired left tackle Tarik Glenn is missed. Rookie Tony Ugoh can be the greatest left tackle to ever play the game, but the Glenn sentiment is not a knock on him. Glenn was this gentle giant and such a fixture. Big guy, but always approachable. Always soft spoken. When I told center Jeff Saturday I missed seeing “T” out there, he said, “Tell me about it.” Added Peyton Manning, “We will definitely miss Tarik. He is my friend, he is all of our friends.”


    * One more perspective quote, in case anyone makes the mistake

    thinking the Colts are living in the past. I’ve been impressed with how hard the Colts have worked. They don’t look like a bunch of guys with rings. They look hungry again. Manning has said nobody had better break out those rings, either. It’s a new season. When a reporter tried to get cute, asking Manning what was more fun, doing Saturday Night Live, visiting the President at the White House or training camp, the two-time MVP didn’t hesitate to set the record straight. “The offseason is over with and we are glad to be back,” he said. The Saints season opener will be here before we know it. So, we are here to get ready for that and looking forward to working hard. We have some new players here, that, it’s always a little different when you put the shoulder pads on and you go full speed. We are looking forward to getting some good evaluations of our young players.” Notice he didn’t mention anything about SNL or the White House.
    Turns out, tire was under warranty, so I got a new one. Just $28. And all finished in the time it took to write the blog. Life could be worse.

    • User comments (5) | TrackBack (0)

    July 31, 2007 Camp quickies

    Opinions subject to change, here's what has made its way onto my reporter notebook in a day and a half of camp in Terre Haute, Ind.


    * CoreyGate and the case of the missing Pitcock are unresolved. Nothing new. No Corey Simon. No rookie Quinn Pitcock. We're told neither has passed a physical. Pitcock is signed, but that contract is contingent on passing the physical. Haven't seen either guy. What would life be like without the unexpected?


    * Marlin Jackson and Kelvin Hayden look ready to step in as starting corners. It's early yet, but both have looked decent.


    * First day of camp had predictable results for rookies, who learn immediately this isn't college anymore.


    -- Exhibit A: I enjoy watching the towel drill, where an offensive lineman tries to defend a towel on the ground against a pass rusher. Colts all-time leading sack machine Dwight Freeney introduced second-round rookie left tackle Tony Ugoh to the speed of the NFL. Don't feel bad, Tony. Freeney does that to guys who have been around a while. I remember watching Freeney as a rookie. He beat Tarik Glenn on back-to-back speed rushes. Anyway, Freeney did the same to Ugoh, who one time just grabbed the back of No. 93's jersey. Then came Freeney's spin move inside. Ugoh was reaching out at nothing but air. No cause for panic. This is how new guys learn.


    -- Exhibit B: Same with third-round corner Dante Hughes. Even when he had decent coverage on Marvin Harrison, No. 88 inspired oohs and aahs from fans with the catch. If there's an exception to this steep learning curve, it may be first-round pick Anthony Gonzalez. He runs such precise routes, has great hands. He was getting the best of defenders, including Hughes, in one-on-one drills.


    * More on Ugoh. I can see why the Colts liked him. Great size and width. Just a matter of how quickly he can move his feet.


    * DeDe Dorsey is fast and I could see how his size - he looks smaller than 5-11 - would make him hard to catch. Too early to say he's the guy to lighten Joseph Addai's carry load, but the kid has got some burst.
    * Overheard a photographer from a national publication talking about the precision and organization to detail of Colts camp practices. Nothing like his previous NFL stops, he said.


    * Next time someone mentions death and taxes, add Harrison to the sentence about life certainties. First day of camp and he's showing why he's one of the greatest to play the position.


    * ESPN made light of Peyton Manning changing roommates now that Brandon Stokley is gone. His new roomie, Dallas Clark, is one of the more affable guys on the team. Manning made it a point to single out Clark for how the tight end came back last year from a knee injury - he was that close to going on IR, I'm told. "There is no doubt in my mind, if he doesn't get himself healthy, take it upon himself to not have surgery on his potentially season-ending knee injury, rehab, get back for the game against Miami where he gets the four-week rust off, and get back for the playoffs, I don't think we win the championship," Manning said.


    * Have yet to assess the kid's ability, but say this for fourth-round rookie Brannon Condren, the safety from Troy: The kid has got Bob Sanders-like guns. Big arms. And he's humble. Condren set a camp record for saying "Yes, sir" in our first interview. I obviously promoted Antoine Bethea last camp and Bethea had a solid rookie year, so don't take this the wrong way. I'm not lobbying for a new starter. For as much as these guys savagely throw their bodies into people, you can't have enough depth at safety. But I won't be surprised if Condren blows up some guys in preseason games.
    Blog ya later.
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: Phil B.Wilson Colt's Blog

    So far I am liking what I here, but I will believe that they are still hungry once the season starts. The Steelers were hungry last offseason too, look what happened.

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    • #3
      Re: Phil B.Wilson Colt's Blog

      Nice blog and very good read. Hope to read more of those.

      Comment

      • #4
        Re: Phil B.Wilson Colt's Blog

        MS, thanks for the link as that is a pretty good read.



        One thing the writer may have to update is the ring part. While no players have been seen wearing their bling there were at least three support staff showing proudly during the night practice. Maybe broke them out since Jim Irsay paid a visit in his version of the Madden mobile.

        Seen a few strange things but today was boderline scary. Saw a lady in her late 40s early 50s retrieve a half bottle of Gatorade Peyton had been drinking. If I see it for sale on Ebay at least it would make sense. However her darting off giggling like a little school girl makes me think it will be placed on a shelf of it's own. A plaque proclaiming Peyton's Gatorade and spittle, yeeha.
        You know how hippos are made out to be sweet and silly, like big cows, but are actually extremely dangerous and can kill you with stunning brutality? The Pacers are the NBA's hippos....Matt Moore CBS Sports....

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