Teen Hut Forum Rules and Guidelines Version 2.5.0 | Last Update: April, 2022 Introduction In order to use our community forums, you must agree to and abide by our Forum Rules and Guidelines and Privacy Policy. Keeping this community clean is one of our top priorities, and all we ask is for you to follow these simple rules. Our forums have grown dramatically over the past few years and we would like to thank everyone for being a part of this. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact an administrator. Violations of the Rules These rules and guidelines are set so that this forum can be enjoyed by all our members. The rules listed below will provide a basic understanding of prohibited materials and the use of common sense is recommended. The following rules apply to all posts, signatures, wall comments, conversations, custom user titles, avatars, album comments, reputation comments, emails sent from Teen Hut. Actions taken for any violations include issuing a warning , lowering your post count, banning your account(s) and/or IP addresses, deleting/editing your post(s)/thread(s), and/or disqualification from a public forum event. The action(s) taken will depend on the seriousness of the violation and previous account records. Our failure to enforce these rules shall not lead to the conclusion that they are no longer effective. Throughout this article, moderators, super moderators and administrators will be referred to as “staff member(s)”. Rules marked with an asterisk (*) indicate that violations of this rule will result in especially serious consequences. Insulting Members* (Rule #1) Insulting and attacking other members of the forum will not be tolerated. Teen Hut is an international forum with members from many different cultures, backgrounds and sexual orientations. While we respect your opinion on these subjects, you must be aware that if you choose to bash or insult other members, the staff will take action against you, and this can include an immediate ban without any warning. Members should avoid continuously harassing another member based on his/her background or sexual orientation, discriminating against a member/group, and/or making threads or posts solely for the purpose of attacking or making rude/hateful comments about a member. Account Age (Rule #2) In order to have an account at TeenHut, you must be at least 13 years of age, and under 20 years of age. Members who register with an overage account will be permanently banned. Those who register with an account under the age of 13 will have their account temporarily banned until they reach 13 years of age as shown in their account. If no age is shown, then they will be banned for 1 year. As long as a member has registered within these rules, they are welcome to stay past 20 years of age. This is in order to protect all members from potential harm. Multiple Accounts (Rule #3) All members are allowed only one account, and creating additional (or “alt”) accounts will not be tolerated. If an alternate account is discovered, it will be banned immediately and you will receive an infraction on your main account. Banned users who create alt accounts in an attempt to return to the forum during their ban may also receive a ban extension in addition to an infraction. Advertising (Rule #4) Advertising is only allowed in your Signature. You cannot make posts or spam everywhere with links, you will be warned and your posts will be deleted. Feel free to post a link to your website in the signature, no restrictions there. Spamming (Rule #5) Spamming wastes forum resources and will not be tolerated unless an administrator gives written permission. Spamming includes, but is not limited to: • Cross-posting • Posting the same message in multiple threads or in the same thread, except for cases of forum games. • Backseat moderating • Acting like or pretending to be a moderator without actually having the powers. • Recreating a post/thread that was originally deleted, edited or locked by a staff member • The post(s)/thread(s) were deleted for a reason. If you feel that your post or thread was deleted unfairly, please PM a Super Moderator or Administrator (do not abuse this feature, or such appeals from you in the future may be ignored). • Creating threads or posts complaining about actions taken by a staff member • Please do not make threads or posts to complain about or argue with a staff member and/or actions taken by them (this includes but is not limited to: infractions, warnings, bans, post/thread deletions, edits, locks, etc.) in an attempt to stir drama and/or attention. If you legitimately feel than an action taken by a staff member was unjustified or in violation of the forum rules, you should send a private message to an administrator with your concerns. • Remember: A great deal of the staff members’ decisions take place “behind the scenes”, and as a regular member, you might not be able to see all sides of a situation like the staff can. Moderators are privy to a lot of confidential information that they use in their decision-making, which is never shared with non-staff members. For this reason, actions taken by staff members can sometimes appear to be biased or “for no reason” when in fact they aren’t. • Blank messages (unless used to reply to a quote) • Examples include messages created from using a transparent or white image. Posts consisting of a single character, usually “.” or “ ” for the purpose of implying “this” or “I agree” with a quoted post are allowed, although overuse of this may be considered spam. • Triple posting (or higher) • This is usually done for the purpose of increasing post count or bringing your thread up to the top of the page. Double posting is allowed under most circumstances, but do not abuse this privilege or it will be taken away. • Using our messaging system for advertising purposes • This includes private messaging (conversations) and visitor messaging. Violating this rule may result in an immediate ban. • Purposely reporting posts that you know do not violate any rules • Reports directed at staff members that are rude/insulting • Purposely reporting the same post again within a time frame of two (2) hours • Re-reporting the same post is permitted only if more information is provided in the second report. • Creating threads/posts threatening to leave the forum • This causes unnecessary drama and will not be permitted. Instead of creating such a thread (if you have 1,000 posts or fewer) you should ask a staff member to close your account. Members who blatantly violate this rule to seek attention and create drama may be placed in the moderation queue. Inappropriate Material* (Rule #6) Teen Hut, as the name implies, is a forum for teenagers, and as such, inappropriate material will not be allowed or tolerated. Inappropriate material includes but is not limited to: • Posting images containing nudity, or posts describing nudity in extreme graphic detail • Graphic nudity will not be tolerated anywhere on the forum. This means any nudity posted or sent via forum posts, visitor/private messages, photo albums, photo comments, avatars, signatures, profile pictures, social group albums, etc. is not allowed. • Posts/PMs inviting members to send or trade nude photos, or looking for cam partners. • As mentioned above, Teen Hut is not an adult or porn site, and violations of this rule will result in an infraction or ban. • Making threads/posts asking members to meet up with you in real life • We cannot allow this due to safety concerns. • Posting personally identifiable information such as social media accounts, phone numbers, street addresses, the name of your school, license plate numbers, social security numbers, etc. • We cannot allow this due to safety and privacy concerns. Even if the information belongs to you and you do not mind posting it publicly, there is still no practical way to prove that it in fact belongs to you and not someone else. For your safety, you should never disclose this type of information over the Internet, no matter how harmless it may seem. • Members who are in college/university may post their college/university name, although caution is still recommended. • Posting extremely disgusting, vile, or blatantly offensive material • This includes gore, bloody violence/death, scatological images, racist or racially-bigoted comments/material, etc. The post will be deleted, and you will be punished for it. • Posting private messages, instant messaging logs, or emails without permission from all participating parties who are members of Teen Hut. • This means that if you receive an email from or have an instant message conversation with a friend who is not a member of Teen Hut, you may post it without their permission, however if he/she is a member of Teen Hut, permission is required. • Posting photos of other members without their permission • We will not tolerate any member posting another member’s photo anywhere on the forum without their permission, especially with the intent to harass them. If you would like to post a member’s photo, please send the member a private message first, with a link to the photo you would like to post, asking for permission and request them to PM an Administrator or Moderator saying that they have allowed you to post their photo. Once they have replied to your PM confirming that they have sent a PM to a staff member, you are granted permission to post the photo (providing it does not conflict with any other guidelines on pictures and appropriate material.) Failure to obtain permission in this manner could result in an infraction, depending on the severity of the situation. Abusive and Intolerant Behavior* (Rule #7) Being abusive and intolerant on Teen Hut will not be permitted. The following is a short list of a few things not tolerated on Teen Hut and may result in a permanent ban: • Unfriendly attitudes (such as harassment) and/or looking to start fights with other members • Any posts or threads that include another member’s personal history will not be tolerated, unless you have consent from him or her to allow a mature discussion about the matter. • Impersonating another member • Promoting any kind of illegal activity, such as illegal drugs/substances • This rule also applies to promoting the misuse or abuse of legal drugs such as prescription medications. Misuse of prescription drugs is still illegal, and therefore this will not be tolerated on Teen Hut. • This rule also applies to posting or requesting direct links to illegal material such as pirated/cracked software, serial keys, keygens, pirated music tracks/albums, movies, TV shows, etc. This includes all forms of software/media piracy, whether in the form of a torrent (ThePirateBay, etc.) or as a direct download such as MegaUpload. Members may discuss software/media piracy if it is in a constructive context (such as in a debate) and provided the above guidelines are not violated.[/font] • Threatening or promoting harm to a forum member • This includes threatening physical/bodily injury or death, and encouraging or promoting suicide. The latter is considered especially severe and may result in your access to the Teen Life support forums being revoked, as well as an infraction. Very blatant violations may result in a permanent ban. • This also includes threatening to reveal personal information about a member that he/she has divulged on Teen Hut but has not revealed to real life friends/family members. Any details such as a secret sexual orientation/preferences, events from a member’s past (such as stories shared in the support sections) or any other potentially embarrassing personal information about a member that he/she would not want revealed must never be shared to those around them without their consent. Threatening/blackmailing a member in this way will absolutely not be tolerated. • This also includes threatening to inflict or inflicting harm to a member’s personal property, such as their computer. Examples of this include threatening to infect a member’s computer with a virus, or instructing them to enter commands into their computer’s Command Prompt or Terminal that delete files or erase the contents of their hard drive, or otherwise cause irrecoverable damage. • Suggestive sexual storytelling, or encouraging/asking for users to share sexual story’s, is not allowed. • These include (but not confined just to) detailed descriptions of sexual acts with other people or detailed descriptions of masturbation. Warnings will be issued to anyone who does so, and persistent breaking of this rule in a thread will result in said thread being closed. Users who receive multiple warnings could receive a temporary ban. If still persist after the temporary ban expires, this could be upgraded to a permanent ban Official Languages (Rule #8) Teen Hut is a diverse community with members from all regions of the world. However, due to limited languages known by staff members, languages allowed are limited to the following: • English • Spanish • Hindi • French • Chinese All posts using any language other than the ones specified above will be considered spam unless written permission from an administrator is given. Note: Members who have more than 1,000 posts and less than two (2) active warning points are exempt from the language rule. Signatures (Rule #9) After you have set a signature, it is displayed at the end of each of your posts. Signature formatting must adhere to the following guidelines: • Signature images may not be larger than 640 × 480 (i.e. 640 pixels wide and 480 pixels high) • A maximum of 2 images (excluding smilies/emoticons) and 2 links are allowed in signatures • A maximum of 6 smilies are allowed in signatures • The maximum length, in characters, is 50 • The maximum font size allowed is 24 Advertising is allowed, however you must have a minimum of 50 posts or it will be removed. Custom Usertitles (Rule #10) Usertitles are displayed under your username in each of your posts. Only VIP member and staff members may set a custom usertitle. Custom usertitles cannot: • Contain links • Contain any inappropriate material (i.e. anything that violates the usual guidelines for inappropriate material will not be allowed). • This includes impersonating a staff member Avatar Picture* (Rule #11) • Avatar picture must be of yourself, a celebrity, or other drawing/photo where it is obvious it is not you • nothing that would be seen as overly sexual (such as sexual poses or underwear that can be seen through), nudity, or anything that could cause offence to others • Use of images from porn or image sharing sites, where the image is not of yourself, with the intent to mislead that the image is of yourself will not be tolerated Forum Guidelines The following guidelines have been written to help answer some questions you may have about certain features on Teen Hut. Boys and Girls Privacy Access (Guideline #1) Teen Hut has two gender-based private sections. One section is for males, while the other section is for females. These sections are for guys and girls to discuss things in private exclusively between their own gender. In order to gain access to Girls and Boys Privacy, you must have at least 50 posts and have been a member of the forums for at least 15 days. If you meet these requirements, please contact an administrator to request access. Once you are approved, you will be able to automatically view the section. Access to the Boys and Girls Privacy is a privilege and not a right. If any member is caught swapping or sharing accounts with another member of the opposite sex in order to view the opposite sex’s privacy section, or leaks information from the private section, the following punishments may be issued against both accounts: • 5-Point Infraction (2 months in length) • 14-Day Temporary Ban • VIP privileges removed for a minimum of 3 months • Permanent Removal From Boy’s/Girl’s Privacy Forum Rights of a Staff Member (Guideline #3) • Administrators have the final say in interpreting whether not a post or action is in violation of the forum rules, not members. If no administrators are present, super moderators will temporarily have the final say. • The staff of Teen Hut may close, move, edit, or delete any threads or posts which appear to violate the rules with or without any reason. • The staff of Teen Hut may ban an account/IP address with or without any reason provided. • The moderators and administrators are volunteers, and do not receive any type of salary or compensation. They dedicate their free time to help make sure the forum remains as clean and orderly as possible. Staff members can make mistakes, but this does not necessarily mean they are abusing their powers or being biased. If you legitimately believe that a moderator is in any severe violation of the forum rules, do not hesitate to contact an administrator with your concerns. • Staff members reserve the right to modify these rules (this page) without prior notice. • Administrators have the right to remove users from any VIP usergroup at any time for any reason. Privileges: Administrators and Super Moderators are exempt from rule two (multiple accounts), seven (official languages), eight (signatures), and nine (custom usertitles)

I didn’t know they were so many rules on the old TH

I’ve read through the rule and offer the following thoughts: - "• Creating threads or posts complaining about actions taken by a staff member • Please do not make threads or posts to complain about or argue with a staff member and/or actions taken by them (this includes but is not limited to: infractions, warnings, bans, post/thread deletions, edits, locks, etc.) in an attempt to stir drama and/or attention. If you legitimately feel than an action taken by a staff member was unjustified or in violation of the forum rules, you should send a private message to an administrator with your concerns." Certainly staff should not be harassed for doing their job, however it seems an open discussion about action taken is valid. Not only can it clarify a situation, but it provides a check and balance on the objectivity and consistency of moderators’ actions. I’ve seen it on other sites and it can be very useful. One site had a “Member to Moderator” section where not only could a mod be asked a question, but issues of actions taken could be discussed. Many moderators who were open found it helpful. Mods who were autocratic, played favorites and unaccountable did not like it. Overall, it improved the moderation of the site. No one, not even a moderator is machine-like and spits out decisions without imposing their personal feelings/experiences/biases on their actions (there is a site which uses bots and it’s horrible). Without public discussion, there is no accountability for moderators, especially in an organization with a short hierarchy. As for messaging the Administrator, does he really want that? My understanding is he does not desire to have a daily hands-on role in the operation of the site. - Insulting Members (Rule #1) Insulting and attacking other members of the forum will not be tolerated.* Certainly posts like ’you’re a fucking asshole’ should not be allowed. But it should also not be allowed to make unsubstantiated claims of illegal activity for the sole purpose of insulting someone. For example, “pedophile,” “rapist,” “predator,” etc. Citing someone’s actions as being predatory should not be prohibited. Similarly, referring to someone as racist or homophobic, based on their post should be allowed. But using actual criminal labels simply as an insult is defamatory and libelous and always escalates the interaction. - Age This probably needs to take into account members who were under 20 when they joined the original TH. It then raises the question of if it’s wrong to prohibit others of that age to join. - “Infraction,” “moderation que,” “5 point infraction” What do these mean? - “• Purposely reporting posts that you know do not violate any rules” This is a really important rule. On another site, there was an attempt by a member to get her friends to overwhelm the moderators with empty complaints about another member. This was an immature high schoolish action which caused the moderators undue hardship and ultimately made the mods look bad. - • Creating threads/posts threatening to leave the forum" Why can’t people openly discuss their thoughts about leaving the forum? - “looking to start fights with other members” In general, I agree with this, however it’s important to keep in mind that what might begin as a comment on a thread, becomes a personal attack through the course of several exchanges. What one person considers ‘snarky,’ another considers simply an observation, albeit one with which others may disagree. “Who started the fight” is the bane of every school teachers’ or police officers’ existence. - “Rule 8: Official languages” This really doesn’t make much difference to me, but what is the reason for it? I imagine it’s to prevent inappropriate messages being posted. With Google Translate we can translate almost anything. -Why is advertising allowed in sigs? -What are “VIP Members?” - “• 5-Point Infraction (2 months in length)” Again, what is an infraction? How many point leads to what length of infraction and what happens during that 2 months? - “• The staff of Teen Hut may ban an account/IP address with or without any reason provided. ” To be sure, a site like this cannot be run as a democracy, however respectable organizations do not operate under rules which allow arbitrary and capricious actions with no accountability. What is the justification for taking action without any reason provided? Providing a reason does not necessarily open the door to disputing the action, which is another matter all together. But this idea of not providing a reason, while permissible on a private site, does not seem to exude good faith. Again, this is especially an issue where there is no real appeal process. -*“• Staff members reserve the right to modify these rules (this page) without prior notice.” The ‘without prior notice’ part is troubling. It would allow staff to change the rules after an action has been taken by a member, and apply the new rule to an earlier action. Certainly staff needs to be able to modify rules, but those changes should be prominently posted before being implemented. I hope these observations are of some value. I look forward to others’ thoughts on them.

Thanks for putting this together, Jade. ❤️

Forum rules 📚

BJade

Sapio

😂 they’re the rules, I didn’t write them (not the parts youve noted anyway), and they worked for 10+ years (so some are probably outdated or been ignored anyway)

When/if there’s someone to implement the rules then thay can be changed and looked into

I was just sharing them as currently anyone could do anything

Sapio

BJade So why did you ask if we should keep the same rules? I was simply providing feedback on the question you asked.🙄

BJade

Sapio

Sorry for trying to help 😥 but I haven’t seen anyone else offer a full alternative option

I probably should have said “keep the rules we had and then we can tailor them to the new site”

But as I’m only the mod of the old site the admin is the only one that can do anything really

BlackParadePixie

Halt yonder moor

Pultost

BJade We all appreciate what you’re doing, with or without your “badge”. 😉 Think nothing of it! 🙂 I think having some rules is a good idea, however some of them might be a challenge to follow, like displaying your age, for example, as it isn’t possible yet. xD

Sapio

BJade No, no. I’m sorry 😢 for putting effort into trying to improve the site. When you asked "should we keep the same rules, I inferred you were interested in thoughts on changing the rules. My mistake.

For anyone interested in reading my thoughts, they’re there. For others, it’s easy to ignore.
I’m open to any constructive thoughts on my comments.

I do wonder how many of those who voted ‘yes’ have aged out, based on the posted rules.

KaraZor-El

Awww it’s okay, @BJade. hugs
Yea things were kinda phrased confusingly. So far according to the results, it looks like almost everyone is all in for continuing with the rules for the old site. Even the admin. it’s still early yet so we’ll see where it goes. 🙂

Sapio

KaraZor-El Even the admin.

How do you know the admin is for keeping the same rules?

KaraZor-El

Sapio How do you know the admin is for keeping the same rules?

There is an option to click and see who voted yes and who voted no up in the poll. 🙂

Sapio

KaraZor-El Thank you. I didn’t realize that. I thought polls were anon.

BJade

😂 Nice to see you haven’t changed

Not surprised you’d vote no when I’ve previously banned you (at least twice 😮)

Sapio

BJade Disappointing, though not surprising to see you haven’t changed either. How ignorant of you to comment on my voting no, when it was in the context of my having put thought and time into a review of the rules and making valid suggestions for consideration. I do understand you feel threatened by my comments, as it mentioned accountability on the part of moderators. 🤨

And no, you didn’t.

BJade

Sapio

Oh I thought being accountable meant I had to explain why I was reporting someone.

It say that vote no, 50/50 it meant you I guess, but that person also had. And being banned multiple times, maybe gives the idea it wasn’t you (unless you are??? Seems a little paranoid if you weren’t)

It says

BJade Not surprised you’d vote no when I’ve previously banned you (at least twice 😮)

Nothing about you arguments or anything else. They were banned so they don’t follow rules

And they haven’t made a post on this thread so how can I identify them?

BJade

Sapio

Are you saying you’ve been banned before?

As Fiona says its not about you. Try asking the admin (who I’ve reported this person to)

BlackParadePixie

She wasn’t even talking about you, you pompous ass. Jesus christ, get over yourself.

Sapio

BJade Ah, the problem with spinelessly taking a swing at someone without identifying who they are. That’s fine for the “Say what’s on your mind” thread. Not a good idea for this thread, especially when you posted right below someone who voted no and whose input you summarily dismissed. This is supposed to be a discussion. Difficult to have when you make comments without identifying the target.

And no, I’m not saying that. Reread what I wrote.

BlackParadePixie

THEY’RE NOT POSTING THE WAY I WANT!!!

WAAAAHHH WAAAHHH WAAAHHHH

You sound like a bitch.

Sapio

BlackParadePixie Another one too spineless to identify to whom they’re posting.
Nothing new there.

Do you need to take your meds or something? You’re making more of a fool of yourself than normally.

Silly little girl.

BlackParadePixie

Little baby needs help figuring out who the post is about.

You need help wiping your ass too? Baby need a dipey change??

Sapio

BlackParadePixie Honey, you need to take some Midol, curl up in bed with a pint of Haagen Daz and watch Netflix. In a couple days you might be a bit more rational…we hope.
In the meantime, keep making a fool of yourself, but try and keep your diaper fetish more private.

Sapio

BJade @fitandgreen That is how you identify them if they haven’t posted in the thread.

As for “having been banned at least twice,” people spew all kinds of bullshit lies on here, and other sites as well.

But thank you for tagging me on this one. It avoids ambiguity, and really is quite easy to do, isn’t it?

fitandgreen

Sapio This seems like a very toxic thread. I don’t need to be dragged into it.

Also, probably not a good idea to be calling people out for whom or what they voted for, and it’s also not a good idea to even let that be viewable. Imagine the problems THAT could cause in many countries!

For everyone’s information, I voted the way I did because the rules seem a bit outdated and shortsighted in some ways. It can be a very bad thing to have one person have unlimited, unchecked power, in which other people’s fate lie solely in their hands, and they don’t have to explain or justify their actions. Absolute power leads to absolute corruption.

That’s all.