Rules & Spoiler Guidelines

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Welcome to LOST Community Forums - the dedicated spoiler-free LOST fan-forum. This is the best place for you to discuss Lost episodes, theories, characters and anything else connected with the show in a safe Spoiler-Free environment.

We would like to welcome all LOST fans to our forum, wherever you are in the world we hope that you enjoy sharing your love for the greatest show on earth with our community

We believe that this show is a once in a life-time experience and that more is gained from being Spoiler-free. It sucks when you get spoiled - it's happened to all of us at one point or another, however our anti-spoiler philosophy make the LC the safest, and in our opinion, the BEST place to discuss, share and enjoy the show with others from around the world.

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To help the forum be the best that it can be and to ensure a thriving community, we ask that you read the following forum rules and guidelines:

1). Do not post or link to ANYTHING obscene, vulgar, hateful, racially, ethnically, sexually or otherwise unsuitable material of ANY KIND. We embrace peoples differences - LOST has surely taught us that, as such we hard-line on all of the above. This is one of our core rules - and yes, you will be banned for "ignorance" in this area - We make no apologies for you if you divulge in 'any' of the above at any time.

Do not use any explicit language in your posts or signatures. Moderators have the right to edit and delete any such content deemed offensive on a case by case basis. Keep in mind that this is a family forum frequented by people of many different ages and backgrounds. If you disagree with or wish to have a Moderators decision reviewed then either contact that Moderator individually or if necessary contact the Administrator. All such matters will be dealt with privately between the respective parties.

Update: You run the risk of being suspended/banned if you use sexual innuendo.

2). Respect your fellow posters. We encourage heartfelt debate and interaction, however, please ensure that you attack the post and not the poster if you disagree with someone. Also try not to use gang mentality when in a heated debate. If you feel an argument about to break out then try taking a break or moving on to another thread/section. If anything on the forums give you cause for concern, please contact a Moderator or, if necessary, the Admin who will assist you. Remember, you can use the report button to alert a Moderator to a post/thread, alternatively you can use Private Messaging to contact a moderator.

3). Do not post of link to Spoiler material of ANYKIND. We're the Internet's only safe place to discuss LOST, we aim to keep it this way and as such we require that members do not post, allude or link to spoilers. Spoiler images in signatures or avatars are also not allowed. If you are uncertain about what defines a 'Spoiler' then please see here for more information - as a general rule of thumb, if information/content has not been aired on an episode of LOST, then it is considered a spoiler. Note Theories and speculations are of course encouraged - however they must not be based upon spoiler 'knowledge'. This is why we recommend keeping spoiler-free if you decide to post here.

Note. Mobisodes are OK to be discussed - they are mobile phone episodes of LOST crafted by the creators themselves. Trailers and 'Next on LOST' are NOT allowed to be discussed or linked to, as they are not controlled or presented by the creators, rather the networks marketing department who reveal plotlines and spoilers in their trailers/promos.

Note: This forum has Spoiler-tags, but these are only for non-LOST areas, such as the Movie sections. Since this is a Spoiler-free LOST site, spoiler-tags are not necessary for Lost sections.

4). Do not post or link to illegal material - this includes but is not limited to illegal download links/sites, Torrents, Warez, streaming and other illegal content. This also includes but is not limited to, the discussion (and comments) about where to unlawfully download such material and the support of downloading such material.

5). Unlike some LOST forums, we don't hard-line on double posting (making one post and then making another post before someone else has replied), but ensure that you consider editing your current post instead, or that your subsequent post (if no reply has been made since your last post in that thread) is not simply repeating the above post. Try to progress the discussion where necessary. Please keep chit-chat and irrelevant/personal discussions to either the Community Forum (e.g. Hi/Bye thread) or PM's. Moderators have the authority to moderate using their discretion - this includes but is not limited to merging, removing double posts / posts which are irrelevant to the thread subject or posts/threads which are not posted in the appropriate areas.

6). A troll is someone who comes into an established community such as ours, and posts inflammatory, rude or offensive messages designed to annoy and antagonize the existing members or disrupt the flow of discussion.

If you see these types of posts, the two best ways to make sure it gets taken care of quickly by a mod without encouraging attention to trolls are as follows:

*Private Message a Member of Staff:
A message will immediately be sent to a moderator, who can deal with the action appropriately.

The following links will take you straight to a blank PM for you to fill out.
Kiowa Warrior
The_Other_Other

If you message a member of staff about a concern with a post, please send the post/thread link in your message.

*Report Post Function:
Another way to take action is to use the report post icon located in the upper right hand corner of a post.
You can then write the reason for reporting it in the "Message" field.

Do not continue the cycle by flaming them back with rebuke and offensive language, as this usually feeds the fire, and makes things worse; it's also the kind of reaction they are looking for. Trolls love attention, and usually go away eventually when ignored.

Trolls will be dealt with accordingly, perhaps ending with a ban.

7). We operate on a one account is allowed per person policy. This means that you’re allowed to register one account on the forum. There are reasons why one would look to make multiple accounts, often it is to gain attention, harass other members under a secret alias etc. In some cases members create multiple accounts because they are having problems accessing their current account – if this is the case please contact the Admin who will assist you, rather than creating another account. In certain circumstances the Admin will allow you to create another account in favour of your old one, however there must be legitimate reasons.

In most cases we find that multiple accounts are made by members who use them to cheat in polls or return from a ban. We will deal with these accounts appropriately.

*Please note you are not allowed to swap accounts with other members. Your member account is your own and you should never give your login details to anyone. There are security and user managerment reasons as to why this rule is in place.

8). Text speak - don't use it here, this isn't MSN or your mobile phone. You are allowed to abbreviate certain common words ('lol', 'imo', for example), but if your post looks like it's come straight out of MSN it will either be deleted, or you will be reminded of our posting policies..or if you continue to disregard this rule, you'll receive an infraction and possibly suspended or banned.

Staff will use discreation when dealing with the above.

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SPOILER GUIDELINES

UPDATED SPOILER RULES & GUIDELINES 2008

Please take a moment to read and familiarise yourself with our Spoiler rules and guidelines:

Discussion, theories, speculation, interaction, creativity, fan-art, fan design etc are all welcome on our board. However please ensure that everything you post or allude to is SPOILER-FREE. We are a spoiler-free Lost fansite, as a result we have many members who prefer their LOST unspoiled. That means that we do not allow spoilers or hinting of spoilers on our board. These bullet points will hopefully clarify our guidelines further.

Q. So what exactly is a Spoiler?
A. A spoiler is a fact related to LOST which has not yet aired on SKYONE. This includes spoiler rumours and links/quotes from spoiler sites.

Overview:

• NO SPOILERS allowed.
• We are celebrating the return of LOST on ABC on 31 January, however we will be operating at UK PACE. The current UK air-date for season 4 is believed to be February 3rd. Please ensure that your content is not ahead nor alluding to events that you have already seen/heard of from the ABC showing.
• Please do not allude to things that you know are going to happen in future episodes which haven't been aired on SKYONE.
• Please do not discuss the trailers/promos or "next on Lost" advertisements as they are considered spoilers and known to have revealed spoilers in the past.
• Please do not discuss the Official LOST Podcast, as Damon and Carlton are famous for leaking spoilers. Don't believe me? Go back and listen to some of the Season 3 podcasts! We still love them, but we don't condone how much they spoon-feed the fans with spoilers and hints in their podcasts.
• Please do not use spoiler images in your sigs, avatars or anywhere on the forum.
• If you're unsure about whether something may be deemed a spoiler then PLEASE ASK A MEMBER OF STAFF. You can PM a member of staff by clicking on their name and following the 'send private message' option. "If in doubt, keep it out..until you get staff clearance".

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If you're still unsure of our anti-spoiler policy then please read on..

Q. What Happens if I post a Spoiler?
A. Everyone makes mistakes, if you genuinely posted a spoiler unwittingly then we will issue you with a reminder and a link to these spoiler rules, which you should have already familiarised yourself with. You may also receive an infraction, depending on the size of the spoiler.

If it is a repeat offense then you can expect to be issue with a warning and an infraction.

If you have maliciously posted spoiler content then you can expect a suspension or a ban - again, it depends on the individual circumstances. Staff will use our discretion when dealing with spoilers.

Q. What should I do if I see a Spoiler posted by another member?
A. You should inform a member of staff by reporting the spoiler post/content. If the spoiler is in a specific post/thread then you should click on the small triangle underneath one of that members posts and fill in the comments box which will appear. Click send and this reported post will be sent to a member of staff who will then act upon it appropriately - i.e. the spoiler post/thread will be deleted asap etc.

In the event of you being spoiled, you should know that by reporting spoiler you're not only helping to keep others spoiler-free but you're helping the forum to live up to it's excellent spoiler-free reputation.

Q. So What ISN'T A Spoiler?
Don't be alarmed by these Spoiler rules - they're merely there so that everyone has absolute clarity on what we define as a 'spoiler'. Each forum is different, it's just that we prefer to follow the show and be surprised and challenged by the events which unfold. If you want to be spoon-fed and told key plot devices 5 months ahead of time, then you wont find that here.

You are allowed to discuss ANYTHING..absolutely ANYTHING as long as it is not a spoiler. Many forums have spoiler sections (which consequently leak over into their 'non-spoiler' sections, whether you know it or not), however we do not encourage spoilers as we do not want to be intentionally or unwittingly spoiled. 'Spoiler sections' just do not work effectively, and any forum which tells you otherwise is lying.

Q. What about Mobisodes?
A. Mobisodes are ALLOWED to be discussed here - they are "Missing pieces" from past moments in LOST, and are creatively 'controlled' by the creators of the show themselves (unlike the 'next on Lost'/trailers)

Q. What about Lost Experience?
A. Yes, that's fine - you may discuss/refer to the Lost Experience.

Q. What about Find815?
A. For now, that is allowed to be discussed since it is an 'alternate reality game' which does not spill over into the main show. However we are constantly observing this and if it does overlap into the main show then we will chance our stance accordingly.



These rules are liable to be updated - please ensure that you revisit them every now and then to familiarise yourself with any updates.

Now go out there into the big wide forum and have FUN discussing the show and interacting with fellow fans..go for it!:thmbup