Cramsession Discussion Board Rules

For the most part, we try to accord as much respect to our users as possible and do our best to avoid interfering in conversations they are having. Unfortunately, there are situations where we are forced to step in and get involved with a developing thread on our message boards…

1. Warez trading. 'Warez' is a slang word used to describe illegal and unauthorized copies of copyrighted, commercial software (also known as bootleg software). Offering, asking for, or posting links to bootleg software on our discussion boards is not allowed. We will edit offending posts or delete them entirely if necessary to keep this type of activity out of our message forums.
   
   
2. Braindumps. We define 'braindumps' as the practice of copying and sharing actual certification exam questions in violation of copyright law and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). Posting braindumps, links to them, or asking for them in our discussion forums is expressly forbidden. Messages involving braindumps will be edited or deleted as necessary. Our formal braindump policy is located HERE.
   
   
3. Copyright Violation. Please do not post copyrighted text or material on our discussion boards. We are required by law to remove it immediately. Because of recent legal precedents in the United States where we are headquartered, we are also required by U.S. law to remove links to material on other sites that violate copyright.
   
   
4. Flaming. We respect the fact that all conversations tend to get heated from time to time. Indeed, a witty exchange of flames can add some zip to an otherwise dull discussion. However, unreasonably abusive and threatening messages or "flames" (slang) will be deleted. Please keep your flames light-hearted and within reason.
   
   
5. Trolling. A reference to the creatures of Scandinavian folklore. Trolls inhabit dark, damp places, such as caves. Although variously portrayed in folklore as friendly, mischievous, or malevolent, a troll in a discussion board is usually not interested in posting constructive information or commentary and is usually anything but friendly or well intentioned. Trolls craft and post messages into discussion forums as 'bait' for the express purpose of upsetting everyone else and provoking a flame war. In most cases, we will delete troll posts as soon as we find them. If the troll post in question is actually very funny and original, we might let it live for a while. Then again, we might not.
   
   
6. Advertising. We tolerate advertising of other sites and services only if they are relevant to the discussion at hand. For example, if people are asking for free study guides for a particular exam and you are giving away a free study guide for this exam on your site, by all means, please post a link to it - we think this is wonderful. However, if we catch you littering our boards with off-topic posts intended to promote your Web site or product, we will simply delete them and block you from posting again in the future. We encourage those looking to advertise on our site to contact us at sales@cramsession.com - we're pretty reasonable and can probably work something out together with you. :-)
   
   
7. Headhunting. We maintain a separate area for posting job opportunities through our parent company, BrainBuzz.com. We consider postings by professional headhunters and recruiters in our discussion boards attempting to solicit clients to be off-topic and will delete them immediately. If you are a professional recruiter, we would like to work with you and have services you will probably be very interested in. Please e-mail our parent company at sales@brainbuzz.com or phone 1-888-431-4981 toll-free and a BrainBuzz representative will see to your needs.
   
   
8. Respect for Moderators and Site Cops. Moderators and Site Cops (Super Moderators) are here to help answer your questions, direct you to resources, and remove garbage posts from the forums they are responsible for. They may be an overworked BrainBuzz employee or a regular user of the site who is pitching in on a volunteer basis. In either case, our moderators are working very hard to make these discussion boards a great place for everyone and deserve your respect. Users who abuse moderators will find themselves banned from our boards in short order.
   
   
9. Off-topic Community Boards. All community boards must fall under the categories of Certification, Networking, and Programming. Off-topic boards such as those dealing with religion, multi-level marketing, the promotion of commercial products, etc., will be deleted immediately.

Actions Taken by Moderators and Site Cops

Moderators have the ability to inactivate posts, lock threads, and temporarily ban users from posting in the forums they have been assigned rights to. Site Cops are basically Super Moderators with the ability to delete posts, lock threads and permanently ban users across all forums. In addition to this, Site Cops can also edit posts to remove offending content that is in violation of our Board Rules. Moderators will call in a Site Cop for any problem that is outside the scope of their abilities.

Problem posts will either be locked or inactivated depending on how the Moderator feels about the situation. In some cases, a moderator may ask a Site Cop to edit content out of a thread, reply to it to indicate the nature of the problem, and then lock it. Both Moderators and Site Cops lock problem threads that they do not want to delete because they contain useful information, but which are deteriorating and can no longer be allowed to continue.

In some cases, Moderators and Site Cops can ban a particular account or block the IP address being used by a troublesome user. In extreme cases of abuse, we have found it very effective to contact the user's ISP and explain the problem as the nuisance posts are usually in violation of their "terms of service" (we'll leave what happens next up to your imagination).

Moderation Disputes

Everyone is entitled to a second chance. If you're a regular user of the boards that doesn't usually get into fights or break the rules, yet you have a moderator come down on you like a ton of bricks, you can make a case to a higher authority. Send an e-mail explaining the details of your situation to sitecop@cramsession.com and wait for a response (it may take a few days). Maybe things will get worked out, maybe they won't. We promise we'll do our best to be fair.

Please note that while we think most people deserve a second chance, we're not so charitable with people looking for their fifth, sixth, or seventh chances. If you're finding yourself in trouble that often, it's probably because you've been looking for it.