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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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Pointing out the obvious

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  • #76
    Re: Pointing out the obvious

    Jon's ban is 2 weeks, btw.

    Comment


    • #77
      Re: Pointing out the obvious

      Originally posted by Bball
      You are really hammering the issue home. I think moreso than saying that we need to play JO in a system more suited for him is finding out why we have continued to use him in the way that we have for as long as we have.

      That answer is probably the key to unlocking a lot of the questions and answers that have been asked in this and LA's thread.

      I'm not convinced JO is a "stat mongering whore" nor am I totally close-minded to the idea that JO 'requires' all these touches to keep him 'happy'.

      It's time for Mike Wells to do some investigative reportering for us and ask TPTB just why it is we "continually use JO like Shaq" and all the related questions about whether he'd be better off at a lighter weight and why we don't try/do something different with him.

      Mike, are you listening? Or if that is someplace he'd rather not go then maybe Kravitz can go there for us.

      -Bball
      I think the big disconnect is between TBTP and Rick. The players Bird has been after don't fit the grind it out style (Peja and Saras + all the Euro scouting), almost every player has complained about the offence (including JO), and we know Rick is a control freak. Bird's support of Ron's desire for more offensive freedom just sealed it for me.

      Of course I'm not the biggest Rick fan. Maybe I'd rather believe we have a stubborn, slow to change coach rather than an overpaid Prima-Donna as the franchise cornerstone.

      I'm really surprised we haven't heard more from Artest. If any answers come soon it will probably be from him.

      Comment


      • #78
        Re: Pointing out the obvious

        Originally posted by Eindar
        I'd like to point something out, here. Jon Theodore is probably one of my least favorite posters at the moment, and this thread did nothing to help his reputation with me. However, this post by Able was completely out of line. Were this anyone not named Able, UncleBuck, Hicks, Shade, or Magic Rat, that individual would be getting a warning. Believe me, I've been "threatened" by the Digest's "inner circle" once or twice for saying something they felt to be out of line.

        It's a private message board, you guys can do whatever you want, but there's definitely a double standard in place, and the fact that Able only received one reply of "Ouch" confirms it. Plain and simple, it's a personal attack, and as I understand it, that's a bannable offense...
        Ditto.
        Don't thank me, I'll kill ya.

        Comment


        • #79
          Re: Pointing out the obvious

          Originally posted by Ultimate Frisbee
          Chris Bosh
          Rasheed Wallace
          Ben Wallace
          Andrew Bogut
          Dwight Howard
          Dirk Nowitski
          Tim Duncan
          Kevin Garnett
          Andrei Kirilenko
          Elton Brand
          Shawn Marion
          Brad Miller
          I am not a big JO fan, but he is a better fit with this team than half the players listed. The problem is less JO and more the style of offense RC plays. ...but I would take the following straight up for JO based on our needs:

          Chris Bosh
          Dwight Howard
          Dirk Nowitski
          Tim Duncan
          Kevin Garnett
          Elton Brand

          All of those players are as good or better than JO and are far more durable. My favorite on the list would be Bosh who is a young Garnett IMO.

          Comment


          • #80
            Re: Pointing out the obvious

            Originally posted by Jon Theodore
            Not to brag, but I easily have a higher IQ than most people here. I have a 3.7 GPA in college right now and I don't even try. It's just funny that you people sit there and think i'm stupid because I don't like Jermaine. Get over your elitist attitude and realize people are different.
            That's probably a community college, if that.

            Anyway, I might trade JO for Nowitzki but thats it. JO's a great player and a great person though.

            Comment


            • #81
              Re: Pointing out the obvious

              Originally posted by able
              Let me say this in the most clear terms I can think of:

              Jon Theodore, you are a disgrace for a human being.

              And I will celebrate the day you stop posting
              Wow. This coming from the host of the site, PD? Ridiculous.

              I seriously hope one of the administrators of this website pm'ed you about this message, because I do not see any public mention of it from one of them.

              Now, what Jon Theodore said after your post was assinine and wrong, but what he said pre-your post was his OPINION.

              Comment


              • #82
                Re: Pointing out the obvious

                Originally posted by Jon Theodore
                Not to brag, but I easily have a higher IQ than most people here. I have a 3.7 GPA in college right now and I don't even try.
                "Not to brag, but..." (insert brag here)

                Hehehehehe.

                At this point this is way off-topic, but I gotta chime in here.

                As a graduate student who regularly grades papers and exams from undergrads, I have some depressing news to report to you all:

                These days, a 3.7 GPA (even in college) is nothing to brag about. It certainly doesn't make you a genius. The grading standards at many universities have unfortunately gone wayyyyy downhill over the past several years.

                I've seen students who have 3.8/3.9 averages write papers that were so bad I felt embarassed to read them. I've seen newly-graduated professors come in, teach their first three or four weeks of class, and throw their hands up in surrender once they see what the actual education/skill level is of most of their students. Most of the time these professors will lower their standards of grading rather than take the difficult step of demanding more from students. Depressing I know, but it's just human nature.

                IMO, if you're a freshman or sophmore, and you have a GPA lower than 3.5 (unless you're in a very challenging program/major, like nuclear physics or pre-law or something), you're simply not working hard enough.

                The sad fact is that schools like Purdue and IU have lowered their admissions standards over the past few years in order to increase enrollment and revenue. IIRC you can have a C average in high school, score about 800 on your SAT and still squeak in to most of the programs at either of these schools, which is pretty outrageous IMO (no offense to people with that score).

                Sorry this is long-winded but I just have to vent. Come back and talk to me when you have a 3.9 or better GPA, or a 3.3 or better at an Ivy League school. Then maybe you'll have something to brag about. But at the moment, unfortunately, our schools are so bad that getting good grades in them doesn't necessarily prove anything to me.

                Comment


                • #83
                  Re: Pointing out the obvious

                  Originally posted by 18to88
                  That's probably a community college, if that.

                  Anyway, I might trade JO for Nowitzki but thats it. JO's a great player and a great person though.
                  OMG LMFAO At that kid in your sig. He kicked him in the penis.

                  Comment


                  • #84
                    Re: Pointing out the obvious

                    Originally posted by rabidpacersfan
                    "Not to brag, but..." (insert brag here)

                    Hehehehehe.

                    At this point this is way off-topic, but I gotta chime in here.

                    As a graduate student who regularly grades papers and exams from undergrads, I have some depressing news to report to you all:

                    These days, a 3.7 GPA (even in college) is nothing to brag about. It certainly doesn't make you a genius. The grading standards at many universities have unfortunately gone wayyyyy downhill over the past several years.

                    I've seen students who have 3.8/3.9 averages write papers that were so bad I felt embarassed to read them. I've seen newly-graduated professors come in, teach their first three or four weeks of class, and throw their hands up in surrender once they see what the actual education/skill level is of most of their students. Most of the time these professors will lower their standards of grading rather than take the difficult step of demanding more from students. Depressing I know, but it's just human nature.

                    IMO, if you're a freshman or sophmore, and you have a GPA lower than 3.5 (unless you're in a very challenging program/major, like nuclear physics or pre-law or something), you're simply not working hard enough.

                    The sad fact is that schools like Purdue and IU have lowered their admissions standards over the past few years in order to increase enrollment and revenue. IIRC you can have a C average in high school, score about 800 on your SAT and still squeak in to most of the programs at either of these schools, which is pretty outrageous IMO (no offense to people with that score).

                    Sorry this is long-winded but I just have to vent. Come back and talk to me when you have a 3.9 or better GPA, or a 3.3 or better at an Ivy League school. Then maybe you'll have something to brag about. But at the moment, unfortunately, our schools are so bad that getting good grades in them doesn't necessarily prove anything to me.
                    No, you can't get a C average in HS and 800 on your SAT and get in to Purdue or IU. I think a 3.7 is good if its in a good school. Unfortunately, I don't have a GPA that high.

                    Comment


                    • #85
                      Re: Pointing out the obvious

                      Originally posted by 18to88
                      No, you can't get a C average in HS and 800 on your SAT and get in to Purdue or IU. I think a 3.7 is good if its in a good school. Unfortunately, I don't have a GPA that high.
                      Sorry, maybe I was exaggerating a bit (but not by much I don't think). My point was not that you're "dumb" if you don't have a 3.7 gpa (sorry if I came off that way), but that bragging about your GPA in an undergrad program these days is pretty rich.

                      Comment


                      • #86
                        Re: Pointing out the obvious

                        I believe you can have probably a C+ average in high school, though I'm not sure about the 800 on the SAT, especially since they've changed to a 2400 point SAT, and make Purdue or IU. I know, for me, a 3.7 GPA and 1800 SAT (it converts to a 1220 out of 1600) was good enough to get into Huntington, a private liberal arts college, and 3.7 is hardly something to prove that you're more intelligent than the general population, though it is decent.
                        It's a new day for Pacers Basketball.

                        Comment


                        • #87
                          Re: Pointing out the obvious

                          Someone should do a what's your intelligence level thread, just like we did with the basketball background. ;-)
                          2010 IKL Fantasy Basketball Champion Baltimore Bulldogs

                          Comment


                          • #88
                            Re: Pointing out the obvious

                            Originally posted by Hicks
                            Jon's ban is 2 weeks, btw.
                            Okay, what about able? His comments were totally uncalled for.

                            Comment


                            • #89
                              Re: Pointing out the obvious

                              Originally posted by Tom White
                              Okay, what about able? His comments were totally uncalled for.
                              Rules don't apply to like 8 people on here. Didn't you see the one guy's post.

                              Comment


                              • #90
                                Re: Pointing out the obvious

                                Originally posted by 18to88
                                Rules don't apply to like 8 people on here. Didn't you see the one guy's post.

                                Able slipped -one- time, and apologized.
                                You, Never? Did the Kenosha Kid?

                                Comment

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