I have noticed alot of of TMI threads lately which I don’t have a problem with it just got me thinking how far can I go without getting my topic locked or being banned from the board.
I don’t think we can discuss downloading music from Kazaa but could I compare Kazaa to burning CD’s for your friends and distributing it and ask what the difference is?
I am the under the impression we can discuss all the x-rated material we want but of course no porno links, right?
I was wondering about a link I was going to provide showing a criminal that had been crushed by a truck…could I include that graphic link if I give a warning about it first?
The line is here: _________________________________ Don’t cross it.
OK, seriously, there’s no real “line” – it’s mostly common sense. We can’t tell you to go this far but no farther, for several reasons: (a) Life’s not like that, many things are infintely divisible; and (b) we don’t have the time, energy, or desire to create a “law code” that spells out the details of where the line is.
On Kazaa, you can discuss the law (or the Straight Dope Policies that might be more strict than the law), but you can’t discuss how to evade the law. This also applies to topics like illegal (in the U.S.) drugs, taxes, immigration, etc. You can discuss the law, but not how to evade it.
In terms of copyright, the Straight Dope is more conservative (read: stricter) than the law. We want to avoid problems altogether, not simply be able to win the lawsuit in the long run. And, as a matter of principle, the Chicago READER wants others to respect their authorship, and therefore goes above and beyond to respect the authorship of others.
In terms of links, we have people who read the SDMB while at work, or at home with children running about, or in other places where someone might walk by and see whatever is on the screen. Someone reading the boards might inadvertently click on a link, and we don’t want an inappropriate picture flashing up on the screen. We therefore have a two-link rule. You can link to a neutral page which has a link to your overly graphic picture, but you can’t link directly. And yes, provide a warning. Our idea is that someone might accidentally click on one link and have an inappropriate picture on the screen when their boss (or child) wanders by, but a second accidental click is unlikely – they’re doing it deliberately at that point, and can bear the consequences (if any, or at all.)
Also, Dex forgot to mention this, but if you ever have doubts about any specific thread or post, you can always e-mail the moderators to ask their permission. They really don’t mind getting e-mails from the members, and they would much prefer to be asked about things before they appear on the board.