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Forums FAQ
Login and Registration Issues
Why can't I login?
Why do I get logged off automatically?
How come I keep getting logged out of the forums even though I'm checking "Log me in automatically"?
How do I prevent my username appearing in the online user listings?
I've lost my password!
I registered but cannot login!
I registered in the past but cannot login any more?!

Things Not To Do On The Forums
Piracy or discussion thereof
Flames and Flamebaiting
Advertising
Postwhoring
Forgetting how to read
Needlessly starting new threads
Netiquette violations
Attempting to anger the moderators/administrators
Making a new account after you've been banned

The Warning System
What's this about 'getting points'?
How do I get rid of points?
What happens if I get 9 points?
How do I know how many points I have?
I think I unfairly got points!

Other Common Questions
Why am I a Beginner member? I've been playing DDR for years!
So now I'm a Basic member?
All right, I'm a Trick member! Now what do I need to do to become Maniac?
But I'm special! I'm better than Trick!
What's an Administrator?
You've left out Vivid Members.
And Konami Staff?
Can you switch my ranking? I don't like my rank!
Can I have a custom title?
Can you host my avatar?
How big can my signature/avatar be?
Are we there yet?
Hey, don't I have free speech? FIRST AMENDMENT, MAN!

The Contributor System
So, what's a Contributor?
So, how do I become a Contributor?
What do I get for being a Contributor?

User Preferences and Settings
How do I change my settings?
I get 'Sorry, but this e-mail address cannot be verified' when I try to register or change my email address
I get 'Could not connect to the mail server' when I try to register/change my email address
The times are not correct!
I changed the timezone and the time is still wrong!
My language is not in the list!
How do I show an image below my username?
How do I change my rank?

Posting Issues
How do I post a topic in a forum?
How do I edit or delete a post?
How do I add a signature to my post?
Why can't I vote in polls?
Why can't I post a poll?

Formatting and Topic Types
What is BBCode?
Can I use HTML?
What are Smileys?
Can I post Images?
What are Announcements?
What are Sticky topics?
So what about those `official' threads?
What are Locked topics?

User Levels and Groups
What are Administrators?
What are Moderators?
What are Usergroups?
How do I join a Usergroup?
How do I become a Usergroup Moderator?

Private Messaging
I cannot send private messages!
I have received a spamming or abusive email from someone on this board!

phpBB 2 Issues
Who wrote this bulletin board?
Why isn't X feature available?
Who do I contact about abusive and/or legal matters related to this board?

 

Login and Registration Issues
Why can't I login?
Have you registered? Seriously, you must register in order to login. Have you been banned from the board (a message will be displayed if you have)? If you have registered and are not banned and you still cannot login then check and double check your username and password. Usually this is the problem, if not then contact the board administrator they may have incorrect configuration settings for the board.
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Why do I get logged off automatically?
If you do not check the Log me in automatically box when you login the board will only keep you logged in for a preset time. This prevents misuse of your account by anyone else. To stay logged in check the box during login, this is not recommended if you access the board from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university cluster, etc.
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How come I keep getting logged out of the forums even though I'm checking "Log me in automatically"?
Delete all your DDR Freak cookies from your browser. Visit the website of your internet browser for more information on how to delete cookies.
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How do I prevent my username appearing in the online user listings?
In your profile you will find an option Hide your online status, if you switch this on you'll only appear to board administrators or to yourself. You will be counted as a hidden user.
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I've lost my password!
Don't panic! While your password cannot be retrieved it can be reset. To do this go to the login page and click I've forgotten my password, follow the instructions and you should be back online in no time
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I registered but cannot login!
Firstly check your are entering the correct username and password. Does your account need activating? You were sent an email and told to follow the instructions. if you did not receive the email then are you sure your email address is valid? One reason activation is used is to reduce the possibility of rogue users abusing the board anonymously. If you are sure the email address you used is valid then try contacting the board administrator. If the link in the email is more than one line long, be sure to copy both lines to the address bar.
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I registered in the past but cannot login any more?!
The most likely reasons for this are; you entered an incorrect username or password (check the email you were sent when you first registered) or the administrator has deleted your account for some reason. If it is the later case then perhaps you did not post anything? It is usual for boards to periodically remove users who have not posted anything so as to reduce the size of the database. Try registering again and get involved in discussions.
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Things Not To Do On The Forums
Piracy or discussion thereof
Don't ask where to find mp3s - if you want to listen to the music, buy the soundtracks or listen to DDR Freak Radio. Don't ask where to download ISOs - you should be buying the games. Piracy is bad, and we will not tolerate illegal activity here.
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Flames and Flamebaiting
There are a lot of people on our boards, many of which will have opinions that differ from yours. While we don't expect everyone to get along 24/7, we do expect people to be civil on the boards. Flaming is the act of directly attacking another user or group of users. Flamebaiting is the act of posting to illicit flames from other users. Please see these examples if you're still confused. Note that flaming IS allowed in private messages, but if a lot of complaints are made about you doing so, you may be warned.
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Advertising
Do not start a new thread or hijack another thread to advertise your site, team, or whatever else you may want to promote. Put a link in your signature and people will find it.
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Postwhoring
One word, smiley-only, or even on occasion one sentence posts don't add anything to the discussion. It's a waste of bandwidth, a waste of disk space, and a waste of everyone's time. If you're going to post a message and you know it's not going to add anything to the discussion, consider not posting it, especially if it's a popular topic.
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Forgetting how to read
Despite the fact that much of our site revolves around the forums, there are plenty of other resources that are often overlooked. If you want to know what a certain word means, read the Dictionary. If you want to know if there's a machine near a town you're going to, use the Machine Locations. If you need to know what songs are on what mix, use the Songs Listing. Most importantly, if you're posting a reply in a thread and there's even the slightest possibility the question has been asked before, read the thread - if not the whole thing, than at least the first few pages.
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Needlessly starting new threads
There are a few easy steps you can take to avoid ending up with a locked thread. Before you start a new thread, click back a page or two and make sure there isn't a current topic for what you want to talk about. Make sure you're posting on the proper forum - generalized discussion of DDR and introductions belong in DDR Chit-Chat, anything relating to simulators belong in DDR Simulators, anything relating to home versions go into DDR Console Games, etc. Be aware of any forum-specific rules that apply for where you're posting to, such as the Marketplace. Finally, avoid the urge to start topics just for the sake of starting them - we reserve the right to lock threads that we consider worthless.
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Netiquette violations
DON'T TYPE IN ALL CAPS. DoN't TyPe liKe tHiS eItHeR. iT's aNnOyInG. try 2 use punctuation proper speling n gud grammer. Don't excessively swear. Don't abuse the smilies or the formatting options. Don't list the number of catas you've passed in your signature - no one cares. Make sure your signature is less than 150 pixels tall and 500 pixels wide with a total file size under 35k, and your avatar is no bigger than 100 x 100 and no larger than 35000 bytes in size. Don't embed huge images in a thread - link any image greater than 300px x 300px in size if you want people to look at them (Unless you are in the Imaging Forum). Don't bump really old topics unless you have something insanely important to add. Keep quotes to a reasonable length. Above all else, try to use common sense.
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Attempting to anger the moderators/administrators
Our moderators and administrators devote a lot of time and energy into the boards to keep them sane and running smoothly. If one locks your thread, starting a 'soandso is a nazi' thread is not only going to rack you up some points, but make you very unpopular in a few circles. The moderators and administrators are the final authority for any and all problems, questions, and policies relating to this forum. This is non-negotiable.
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Making a new account after you've been banned
If you do end up getting banned, try to remain calm. If you truly think it is unfair and should be contested, please politely email forums@ddrfreak.com and let us know. If you just make another account, you'll just get banned again and again.
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The Warning System
What's this about 'getting points'?
If you violate the above rules, or do anything else that may be considered a violation of the ethics of the board, a moderator may issue you a warning for a number of points. You will be given a private message detailing what the violation was, the number of points, and a link to the post in question. Here is a list of offenses you might be warned for. Also, please remember that by posting on these forums, you are subject to the Member Agreement as well.
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How do I get rid of points?
Every month you go without receiving any points will lead to a one point deduction.
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What happens if I get 9 points?
You are automatically banned.
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How do I know how many points I have?
Go find any post you've made, then click the `profile' button at the end of the post to see your profile. It will list the number of points you have right under `Occupation' and `Interests'.
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I think I unfairly got points!
First, make sure you've read the forum FAQ in full and are aware of what the rules are. Next, PM the moderator who gave you the point(s) and explain the situation calmly. Most moderators will either give you a better explanation of what you did wrong or will retract the points. If you are still unsatisfied, appeal to forums@ddrfreak.com.
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Other Common Questions
Why am I a Beginner member? I've been playing DDR for years!
To discourage trolling and general craziness, all new members start as Beginners. Beginner Members can create up to 1 thread(s) per day and make 10 post(s) total per day. Beginner Members are automatically promoted to Basic Members after 14 days.
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So now I'm a Basic member?
Basic members have regular posting privileges, but are still new to the boards in general. Basic Members are promoted to Trick status once they have made 25 posts and have been Basic Members for 30 days.

Please note that the 30-days-to-Trick does not include the 14 days you spend as a Beginner Member. In total, Trick Members require 44 days on the boards.
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All right, I'm a Trick member! Now what do I need to do to become Maniac?
You can't. Maniac Members are our forums moderators. If you want to be a moderator, don't call us - we'll call you.
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But I'm special! I'm better than Trick!
Prove it by becoming a Contributor. See the Contributor section for details.
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What's an Administrator?
Administrators operate and maintain the site and the forums, and carry the blue Oni foot. They're assisted by the Maniac Members and also by Staff Members, who help out with various things pertaining to operating the site.
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You've left out Vivid Members.
I'm getting there. Vivid Members are those select few people who bring us Bemani games, whether they're arcade operators or other people in the industry.
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And Konami Staff?
What, are you in preschool? Konami Staff (and other professional representatives labelled as __ Staff) are officially-recognized employees of their respective businesses. Treat them with kindness and respect, as they're the people who give DDR Freak its purpose in life.
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Can you switch my ranking? I don't like my rank!
No.
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Can I have a custom title?
No.
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Can you host my avatar?
No.
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How big can my signature/avatar be?
Your signature must be less than 150 pixels tall and 500 pixels wide, with a total file size under 35k. Your avatar should be no bigger than 100 x 100 pixels and no larger than 35000 bytes in size.
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Are we there yet?
No, and if you ask me again, I swear I'm going to turn this car around...
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Hey, don't I have free speech? FIRST AMENDMENT, MAN!
No, you're on a private system. The 1st Amendment only prevents you from the government trampling on your rights, not the people who run a message board. Sorry.
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The Contributor System
So, what's a Contributor?
Contributors are DDR Freak members that have gone the extra mile to assist development of DDR Freak. Contributors create FAQs for other members to read and use to develop their Bemani knowledge and skill.
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So, how do I become a Contributor?
The first step is to write something! Contributors can submit FAQs, tip guides, tournament guides/rulesets, and after becoming a contributor, event/game reviews. Before submitting a document for approval, check our Tips & Guides section to see if someone has already covered your topic. Once you've got something together, contact one of the people in the Contributors Group and submit your document to them. They will post it for review, and if your document is approved, you'll be promoted to the Contributor rank.
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What do I get for being a Contributor?
Satisfaction of a job well done? Our contributors are volunteers and are thus rewarded with the added responsibility of representing DDR Freak.
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User Preferences and Settings
How do I change my settings?
All your settings (if you are registered) are stored in the database. To alter them click the Profile link (generally shown at the top of pages but this may not be the case). This will allow you to change all your settings
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I get 'Sorry, but this e-mail address cannot be verified' when I try to register or change my email address
The email address you enter is validated live over the internet, if this does not succeed you get this message. Usual reasons : you have mis-spelled the address, the user account does not exist, the mail server is over quota (mailbox full) or otherwise not responding properly.
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I get 'Could not connect to the mail server' when I try to register/change my email address
There could be several reasons why you get this message, possibly there is a DNS failure (cannot get the IP address of the mail server from the hostname), or the host doesn't exist, or is offline.
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The times are not correct!
The times are almost certainly correct, however what you may be seeing are times displayed in a timezone different from the one you are in. If this is the case you should change your profile setting for the timezone to match your particular area, e.g. London, Paris, New York, Sydney, etc. Please note that changing the timezone, like most settings can only be done by registered users. So if you are not registered this is a good time to do so, if you pardon the pun!
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I changed the timezone and the time is still wrong!
If you are sure you have set the timezone correctly and the time is still different the most likely answer is daylight savings time (or summer time as it is known in the UK and other places). The board is not designed to handle the changeovers between standard and daylight time so during summer months the time may be an hour different from the real local time.
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My language is not in the list!
The most likely reasons for this are either the administrator did not install your language or someone has not translated this board into your language. Try asking the board administrator if they can install the language pack you need, if it does not exist then please feel free to create a new translation. More information can be found at the phpBB Group website (see link at bottom of pages)
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How do I show an image below my username?
There may be two images below a username when viewing posts. The first is an image associated with your rank, generally these take the form of stars or blocks indicating how many posts you have made or your status on the forums. Below this may be a larger image known as an avatar, this is generally unique or personal to each user. You must upload your image to a website and link to it.
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How do I change my rank?
You cannot. Please stop asking.
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Posting Issues
How do I post a topic in a forum?
Easy, click the relevant button on either the forum or topic screens. You must be registered before you can post a message, the facilities available to you are listed at the bottom of the forum and topic screens (the You can post new topics, You can vote in polls, etc. list)
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How do I edit or delete a post?
Unless you are the board admin or forum moderator you can only edit or delete your own posts. You can edit a post (sometimes for only a limited time after it was made) by clicking the edit button for the relevant post. If someone has already replied to the post you will find a small piece of text output below the post when you return to the topic, this lists the number of times you edited it. This will only appear if no one has replied, it also will not appear if moderators or administrators edit the post (they should leave a message saying what they altered and why). Please note that normal users cannot delete a post once someone has replied.
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How do I add a signature to my post?
To add a signature to a post you must first create one, this is done via your profile. Once created you can check the Add Signature box on the posting form to add your signature. You can also add a signature by default to all your posts by checking the appropriate radio box in your profile (you can still prevent a signature being added to individual posts by un-checking the add signature box on the posting form). Keep in mind that there are size restrictions to all signature files. These are listed in the `Common Questions' section of this FAQ.
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Why can't I vote in polls?
Only registered users can vote in polls (so as to prevent spoofing of results). If you have registered and still cannot vote then you probably do not have appropriate access rights.
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Why can't I post a poll?
Sorry, but only moderators and administrators are allowed to make a poll.
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Formatting and Topic Types
What is BBCode?
BBCode is a special implementation of HTML, whether you can use BBCode is determined by the administrator (you can also disable it on a per post basis from the posting form). BBCode itself is similar in style to HTML, tags are enclosed in square braces [ and ] rather than < and > and it offers greater control over what and how something is displayed. For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from the posting page.
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Can I use HTML?
No. Please use BBCode.
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What are Smileys?
Smileys, or Emoticons are small graphical images which can be used to express some feeling using a short code, e.g. :) means happy, :( means sad. The full list of emoticons can be seen via the posting form. Do not overuse them, however, as they can quickly render a post unreadable and a moderator may decide to edit them out or remove the post altogether.
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Can I post Images?
Images can indeed be shown in your posts. You must link to an image stored on a publicly accessible web server, e.g. http://www.some-unknown-place.net/my-picture.gif. You cannot link to pictures stored on your own PC (unless it is a publicly accessible server) nor images stored behind authentication mechanisms, e.g. Hotmail or yahoo mailboxes, password protected sites, etc. To display the image use the BB code [img]. However, it is generally preferable to link to large images than to display them directly.
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What are Announcements?
Announcements often contain important information such as specific rules for the particular forum where they appear. You MUST read them before using the forum and whenever their title reflects recent changes; many announcements will have the date they were last modified in their title. Announcements appear at the top of every page in the forum to which they are posted.
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What are Sticky topics?
Sticky topics appear below any announcements in viewforum and only on the first page. They are used for at least two purposes on our forums: Less important announcements, and the `official' threads. You can tell which thread belongs to which case by its title, and announcement stickies are often locked too. If you see an announcement sticky, you should read it where possible.
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So what about those `official' threads?
They serve as the `master' thread for a specific topic, such as an upcoming release of DDR, common threads, or a tournament. Any and all discussions about the topic should go into the official thread; if you make a new topic instead of posting in the official thread, a moderator will lock the topic (and point you to the official thread) in many cases. Note that many official threads have their own rules stated in their first post, so make sure to check the first post before posting in them.
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What are Locked topics?
Locked topics are set this way by either the forum moderator or board administrator. You cannot reply to locked topics and any poll it contained is automatically ended. Topics may be locked for many reasons.
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User Levels and Groups
What are Administrators?
Administrators are people assigned the highest level of control over the entire board. These people can control all facets of board operation which includes setting permissions, banning users, creating usergroups or moderators, etc. They also have full moderator capabilities in all the forums.
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What are Moderators?
Moderators are individuals (or groups of individuals) whose job it is to look after the running of the forums from day to day. They have the power to edit or delete posts and lock, unlock, move, delete and split topics in the forum they moderate. Generally moderators are there to prevent people going off-topic or posting abusive or offensive material.
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What are Usergroups?
Usergroups are a way in which board administrators can group users. Each user can belong to several groups (this differs from most other boards) and each group can be assigned individual access rights. This makes it easy for administrators to set up several users as moderators of a forum, or to give them access to a private forum, etc. Usergroups are typically not used on DDR Freak forums.
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How do I join a Usergroup?
To join a usergroup click the usergroup link on the page header (dependent on template design), you can then view all usergroups. Not all groups are open access, some are closed and some may even have hidden memberships. If the board is open then you can request to join it by clicking the appropriate button. The user group moderator will need to approve your request, they may ask why you want to join the group. Please do not pester a group moderator if they turn your request down, they will have their reasons.
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How do I become a Usergroup Moderator?
Usergroups are initially created by the board admin, they also assign a board moderator. If you are interested in creating a usergroup then your first point of contact should be the admin, try dropping them a private message.
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Private Messaging
I cannot send private messages!
There are three reasons for this; you are not registered and/or not logged on, the board administrator has disabled private messaging for the entire board or the board administrator has prevented you from sending messages. If it is the later case you should try asking the administrator why.
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I have received a spamming or abusive email from someone on this board!
We are sorry to hear that. The email form feature of this board includes safeguards to try and track users who send such posts. You should email the board administrator with a full copy of the email you received, it is very important this include the headers (these list details of the user that sent the email). They can then take action.
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phpBB 2 Issues
Who wrote this bulletin board?
This software (in its unmodified form) is produced, released and is copyright phpBB Group. It is made available under the GNU General Public Licence and may be freely distributed, see link for more details
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Why isn't X feature available?
This software was written by and licensed through phpBB Group. If you believe a feature needs to be added then please visit the phpbb.com website and see what phpBB Group have to say. Please do not post feature requests to the board at phpbb.com, the Group uses sourceforge to handle tasking of new features. Please read through the forums and see what, if any, our position may already be for a feature and then follow the procedure given there.
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Who do I contact about abusive and/or legal matters related to this board?
You should contact the administrator of this board. If you cannot find who this you should first contact one of the forum moderators and ask them who you should in turn contact. If still get no response you should contact the owner of the domain (do a whois lookup) or, if this is running on a free service (e.g. yahoo, free.fr, f2s.com, etc.), the management or abuse department of that service. Please note that phpBB Group has absolutely no control and cannot in any way be held liable over how, where or by whom this board is used. It is absolutely pointless contacting phpBB Group in relation to any legal (cease and desist, liable, defamatory comment, etc.) matter not directly related to the phpbb.com website or the discrete software of phpBB itself. If you do email phpBB Group about any third party use of this software then you should expect a terse response or no response at all.
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