A note about banned users, banning policy, etc.

Due to some recent posts, I thought I'd better spell out the board policy on banning, just so no one is in the dark!

1. I am not a "ban-happy" administrator, as any long-time board user can attest. I do not ban users or IPs on a whim, and I am always more than ready to give someone the beneift of the doubt.

2. When I started this new board (on my own server instead of EzBoard), I automatically banned all of the banned IPs from the old board, since we did have a scammer who kept coming in under new usernames every few months to start the same old scams over again. Unfortunately, some of the IP numbers were from AOL, and AOL randomly assigns an IP number each time a user logs in. If you are an AOL user who has received a "you are banned" notice, it's probably because you got a "bad" IP during a login. I've since been able to identify and cull out the AOL IP #s, so this shouldn't happen any longer. If you do receive a banned message and are an AOL user, let me know!

3. If you steal someone else's work (photographs, text, etc.) and attempt to pass it off as your own, you are violating copyright and the eighth commandment. You will be immediately removed from the board, no ifs, ands, or buts. Internet fraud is a federal offense, and I have on one occasion had to report a user to to FTC for repeated fraud. It is not slander or "hate" to eject anyone who violates this rule and to warn others away from her; it is common sense.

4. The historic costuming community is large and very friendly. We are always delighted to see new seamstresses coming in and like to encourage newbies and see them develop their own businesses. However, we are also very protective of one another's work and keep an eye out for fraudsters who attempt to steal work and pass it off as their own. This is not done hastily or without careful checking and double-checking. We prefer to give people the benefit of the doubt every time. But when someone repeatedly violates the principles of honesty and hard work, we do warn the community and urge customers to take care and only shop trusted links (this is why I have a fairly strict linking policy on my website). It is certainly our hope that such people will think twice and reform their behavior so they can be admitted to the community again. However, repeated violations of trust (in the form of constant new usernames and manufactured bios or addresses) does not promote confidence!

Please always feel free to drop a U2U to me if you have questions. While I am a busy mother of five, I do try to check the board regularly and am now installing some trusted moderators to help with things. This has been a very wonderful online community and so helpful and cheerful. We want to keep it that way!

Thank you very much for your patience and your understanding.

All the best,
Jennie Chancey