All about this forum - policies & use tips

[Forum Admin]

All forum users agreed to abide by this policy when they registered, but many have not read it, which can lead to problems. Posts and threads that violate the policy will be removed. To avoid that as much as possible, please take time to read it. Some points we would like to emphasize here are:

1) Courtesy & respect towards others, always.

2) No advertising or sales info for other sites is allowed - no site urls, 800#s, etc. Posts that ask "where can I buy" or "Where can I get the best price" or "where did you buy" will be deleted since no one can reply to them without breaking the rules.* And, no accounts for manufacturers or retailers.

3) This purpose of this forum is landlord education and community support. Discussion of other bird/nature-related topics is allowed, but the main focus is Purple Martins. Forum policy is not an acceptable topic. If you have questions about products in the PMCA store, email or phone the PMCA staff.

4) Using the forum, email, or private messages to recruit members to join other websites, groups, or forums is not allowed. [Board email and private messages are currently disabled.]

While we invite discussion of all types of martin housing and accessories, commercial sales information or advertisements from, or about, companies and their products (or hyperlinks to these companies) may not be shared on the Forum, or through the private message and e-mail services provided through the Forum.

Product promotion or hype (posting info about products that are not available to the public yet or repeated bumping of threads about products) are considered to be advertising and will not be allowed. Repeat offenders will be banned. Encouraging Forum users to bump such threads or post teasers about new products is not allowed.

*This policy does not preclude PMCA from posting its offerings, nor does it preclude Forum users from occasionally posting personal sales or exchanges of Purple Martin equipment. If personal sales postings get to be too much and detract from the main purposes of the Forum, we reserve the right to modify this policy.

As the season progresses and the Forum gets busier, please remember that there is a difference between discussing and arguing. The former is welcome, is conducted courteously, and with respect for others' opinions. The latter is not welcome and will not be tolerated. It includes disrespect for others' opinions, sarcasm, and personal attacks.

The purpose of this forum is landlord education and support - posts that get off that topic may be removed. Landlords are welcome to discuss or ask about management practices, types of housing or traps they are using, modifications they are trying, etc. Landlords with new ideas or designs to share are welcome to post about them.

Forum policy does not permit posts of a commercial nature or advertising, including shopping or "where to buy" [martin products], prices, or posts that 'hype' products, or repeated bumping of threads about products. Using the private message or email services of this Forum to provide product sales info is not permitted. Discussion of martin products in development is viewed as a form of advertising and therefore is not permitted.

Posts that applaud the destruction of protected wildlife, or suggest or hint at trapping or shooting protected wildlife (ie, hawks and owls) are NOT permitted. Posts about legal methods for controlling house sparrows and starlings are allowed and encouraged, but posts that focus on inhumane treatment of same are not permitted.

Photos on this site are the property of the photographer. If you post something that is not your property, be sure to include who does, or your post may be removed. We prefer a link to the site hosting the photo when possible. No one may use, copy, or share photos posted on this site without the permission of the owner.

We are not looking for you to obey the letter of this law but rather the spirit of it. Forum users who go looking for loopholes in order to bend these rules will be treated as if they had broken them outright. No swearing or bad language, keep your manners and posts polite, please. Posts that become argumentative in nature or that devolve into personal attacks will be removed. No solicitation, politics, or religion, please.

Please help keep things on the right track - Forum users, guest readers, landlords and ultimately the martins will all benefit. We feel it is in the best interest of the martin community for PMCA/forum admin to enforce the policy consistently.

We reserve the right to remove any posting deemed inappropriate.
This policy is subject to refinement and revision, as needed.

Thank you - Forum Admin