Frequently Asked Questions

Posting Policies

Why did you delete my post?

I take the free exchange of thoughts in the Forum very seriously and only delete something if it is completely offensive or without merit. If you feel that you've been slighted, tell me (indy@indyfan.com).
I'm not able to read every post, so offensive posts will probably slip by, however, we've got to remember when dealing with people like this that the best course of action is to ignore their posts. Following up the troublemaker's post with threats only serves to give them the attention they crave.

Can I talk about Star Wars, Adam Sandler, etc. in the Forum?

I won't stop you from discussing anything your heart desires in the Forum, but realize that we're joined together by a common interest, Indiana Jones. Other Forum participants may grow weary of your off-topic posts. If the "Indy to other stuff ratio" gets too low, we may lose some of our most valuable members to frustration. Anything to an extreme (except Indy, of course) is a bad thing, so let's practice moderation when it comes to off-topic posts. If things get out of hand, I may have to resort to deleting...

Why can't I use "bad words"?

I understand the necessity for harsh language in some circumstances to really drive home how angry you are, but the Indyfan Forum is intended for Indy fans of all ages. Before you cry, "Censorship!", realize that we are a part of a community and we don't want to lose our more sensitive members because of chronic foul language. Beware that the punishment for the most extreme "bad words" is rather harsh. The Forum script automatically bans the offender from posting for one week.

What other things are "frowned upon"?

Personal messages are the domain of email. If a Forum poster omits their address, a single request for an email is ok. If they don't respond, they don't want to talk to you. Drop it.
Posting whole paragraphs as subject lines. Don't force people to read your every word. You should be able to get their attention with a short subject line if they're interested.
Repeated posts of the same message. My observation is they don't get you any more attention than the original post. If the first fails, the second has even less of a chance.

Can I post a wanted or for sale message?

If you are looking for or selling Indy merchandise, in general, I think that's a suitable use of the Forum if you are an individual (not a company). However, if the same commercial messages are posted constantly they become an annoyance. No one will appreciate your persistence, and your hard-sell tactics will fail.

Security Issues

Why do I have to register?

Throughout the history of this Forum there have been several incidents where some attention-starved individual posted a message which appeared to be from a Forum regular. At first they were mostly harmless and easy to ignore but eventually the frequency increased and they became more and more slanderous, so action had to be taken. Now, posters must sign on to prevent impersonations.

What other methods do you use to stop troublemakers?

The most drastic action that I can take is an IP ban. This disallows any post from a certain IP or IP pattern. This can affect innocent people in some cases, because of the wide range of IPs available in public computer labs, for example. Usage of this option is rarely called upon, but I'm willing to use it in extreme circumstances. The Forum script also automatically bans users who use certain offensive words for a week.

Why do I sometimes get "ERROR: XX Second Post Rule" error messages?

There is mandated time delay between posts to prevent someone from filling the Forum with garbage by clicking the post button repeatedly. As a happy side effect, accidental double posts should be prevented as well.

Technical Topics

How do I post an image?

First, the image must exist on the web somewhere, usually through a free webhosting service. Then, you can use HTML code: <img src="http://www.indyfan.com/indyfan.gif"> in the body of your message or enter the web address in the Optional Image Link field.

Where's my post?

Sometimes people don't see their post right after they post it because their browser is still caching the old version. A reload (or refresh, if you're using IE) should give you the most up-to-date listing. If you want a more permanent solution, set your browser preferences to check the cached page against the online page "Every Time". This is under the Advanced options in Netscape. In Internet Explorer, set it to "Always" update the page, also under Advanced.

Where did my post from last week go?

See the sequence of numbers at the top of the Forum? Those correspond to past listings of the Indyfan Forum. The larger numbers are more recent. After the main Forum page gets too big, I run a script which moves all threads which haven't been posted to for over a week (sometimes less when the page is really big) to the next numbered page.

Why do I get a "Host not responding" error when I try to access The Vault?

Those files are served from my personal computer, which may be down from time to time.

WWWBoard Questions

Taken from the standard WWWBoard FAQ by Matt Wright

Can I put html tags anywhere in my posts?

No. You can not use HTML tags in any field except body of the message. The maintainer of the script has the option of allowing or disallowing any HTML in the Message part of your posting. If they disallow it, the script will just throw out everything in <>'s. If they allow it, your html markup will appear in the posting. It can't hurt to try. (Micah says: HTML is allowed in the Indyfan Forum)

Why are there colons in the message when I try to post a followup?

Colons appear in the message dialog box when you try to followup up on a message to indicate that those lines are quoting the previous document. The owner of the WWWBoard can decide whether they wish to enable or disable the quoting of previous messages. (Micah says: Quoting is enabled in the Indyfan Forum)

Why didn't my post show up?

Your post most likely did not show up, because your browser did not reload the page, it simply pulled it out of cache. Please reload your browser and it should then appear. (Micah says: I'm getting a sense of deja vu)

Where can I get the scripts for this program?

The scripts are written in Perl and created by Matt Wright. They are free to anyone who wishes to use them and you can get them as well as other scripts at: http://worldwidemart.com/scripts/. (Micah says: The security modifications and expiration features are a combination of my own and Cyberarmy and you won't find those at Matt's site)

Site Author: Micah Johnson
Created: Mar. 9, 1999
Last modified: August 29, 2001

	Can I post a wanted or for sale message?
	If you are looking for or selling Indy merchandise, in general, I think that's a suitable use of the Forum if you are an individual (not a company). However, if the same commercial messages are posted constantly they become an annoyance. No one will appreciate your persistence, and your hard-sell tactics will fail.

	Why do I have to register?
	Throughout the history of this Forum there have been several incidents where some attention-starved individual posted a message which appeared to be from a Forum regular. At first they were mostly harmless and easy to ignore but eventually the frequency increased and they became more and more slanderous, so action had to be taken. Now, posters must sign on to prevent impersonations.

	Why do I sometimes get "ERROR: XX Second Post Rule" error messages?
	There is mandated time delay between posts to prevent someone from filling the Forum with garbage by clicking the post button repeatedly. As a happy side effect, accidental double posts should be prevented as well.

	How do I post an image?
	First, the image must exist on the web somewhere, usually through a free webhosting service. Then, you can use HTML code: <img src="http://www.indyfan.com/indyfan.gif"> in the body of your message or enter the web address in the Optional Image Link field.

	Where did my post from last week go?
	See the sequence of numbers at the top of the Forum? Those correspond to past listings of the Indyfan Forum. The larger numbers are more recent. After the main Forum page gets too big, I run a script which moves all threads which haven't been posted to for over a week (sometimes less when the page is really big) to the next numbered page.

	Why do I get a "Host not responding" error when I try to access The Vault?
	Those files are served from my personal computer, which may be down from time to time.

	Can I put html tags anywhere in my posts?
	No. You can not use HTML tags in any field except body of the message. The maintainer of the script has the option of allowing or disallowing any HTML in the Message part of your posting. If they disallow it, the script will just throw out everything in <>'s. If they allow it, your html markup will appear in the posting. It can't hurt to try. (Micah says: HTML is allowed in the Indyfan Forum)

	Why are there colons in the message when I try to post a followup?
	Colons appear in the message dialog box when you try to followup up on a message to indicate that those lines are quoting the previous document. The owner of the WWWBoard can decide whether they wish to enable or disable the quoting of previous messages. (Micah says: Quoting is enabled in the Indyfan Forum)

	Why didn't my post show up?
	Your post most likely did not show up, because your browser did not reload the page, it simply pulled it out of cache. Please reload your browser and it should then appear. (Micah says: I'm getting a sense of deja vu)

	Where can I get the scripts for this program?
	The scripts are written in Perl and created by Matt Wright. They are free to anyone who wishes to use them and you can get them as well as other scripts at: http://worldwidemart.com/scripts/. (Micah says: The security modifications and expiration features are a combination of my own and Cyberarmy and you won't find those at Matt's site)