First Stop for the General Forum

[Neutraligon]

Since this was somehow deleted

AKA the "We've got too many stickies thread".

It's been brought to our attention that General is feeling a bit cluttered as of late. In order to minimize the number of stickies, we are creating this holding pen for links to most of them.

For posters new to General who would like to say "Hi!", please go to: Posters: Introduce Yourselves Here
For information on current NS posters, please go here to: Compendium of Player Info
For information on the rules of NationStates, please see the One-Stop Rules Shop
For information about various IRC channels to continue the NS experience, please see: A list of (perhaps) helpful IRC Channels
For what another player means when he writes, "No True Scotsman!", please see Logical fallacies

~NS Moderation Staff

[Neutraligon]

Ok folks I know this is the latest bandwagon, but they're starting to fill up the screen.

We're not going to stop them, but we are asking that OPs put more work into them, so please be aware of the following:

Threads that consist of something akin to "This thread is for X people/country/ideology, discuss." will be locked. OPs need to expand. Tell us about X people/country/ideology. What issues do you current face as a member of X people/country/ideology? What triumphs, what's life like, etc. In other words, put some work into it.

Threads cannot be limited to just one group. If you want a thread talking about life as a Moonie, you cannot state that ONLY those who are members of the Church of Serenity can be there. This is General, debate and discussion happen.

Threads cannot be just chat threads. If they start straying from the topic, they will be closed and a link to TET posted.

Edit: In addition, language threads for speakers of languages other than English are fine. However, the above apply. Threads that have ONE line stating they are for speakers of X language and that's it will be locked. Also, language threads need to have an English translation posted in the OP.

Thank you, Keep Calm and Write Better OPs.

[Neutraligon]

There's been a slew of these lately, so as a reminder:

Threads whose opening posts consist of nothing more than a single question/line of text, OR a link (or C&P'ed text), OR just directs to a poll question are considered spam. This being a discussion forum and to prevent directionless threads from developing more spam than my supermarket's shelves, we ask that OPs put a wee bit more work into their OPs.

Please tell us what YOU think, and why.

For example:

Which is better, squirrels or llamas?

No.

Which is better, squirrels or llamas? I like llamas.

Still no.

Which is better, squirrels or llamas? I like llamas because they are just so fuzzy and silly looking. While squirrels have been known to take on motorcycle riders and even the police, you cannot state that a squirrel is in any way better than the joy that is a llama.

Much better, this passes muster.

[Neutraligon]

Gravedigging:

Please do not delve down into the depths to revive the lurching discussions of eld. If it's been a good couple of weeks, for this forum in any case, let it rest in peace rather than dredging up its bones for another shake.

Other forums may vary in length according to their content, their purpose, and their overall rate of posting. Thanks!

Topics and Trends:

There are a number of topics that get discussed here, on a regular basis, often that come in waves of relateds even, simply due to the nature of the forum. And I can guarantee that there is inevitably someone out there whose jimmies are duly rustled in seeing that topic.

To be blunt? Deal with it. If you don't want to contribute or discuss, or if you only want to post to splurge the usual 'this is bullshit' responses for that extra-cool internet edgy feel? Don't. If it's trolling - which happens now and then - again, don't post. Report it. If you're not sure - do as you will and let us know if problems develop.

And there we go. Helpful clarification and suggestions on How to Participate and Possibly Enjoy the General Forum on NationStates.