1 - Forum backgroundThe forum was started on the 6th May 2002. I had no great purpose in mind other than to see if the people visiting the main site at
www.golfgti.co.uk wanted to chat about their shared dub interest. Over the years it has been amazing to see the forum membership and usage expand. I have made a lot of friends and contacts through the site and met a lot of people at shows and events. One of the things people have always commented on with this forum is how friendly it all is. The main thing I want to keep going as the forum gets bigger is the cheerful, positive attitude. In order to keep things on track it has been highlighted that we should have some 'guidelines' so that people know what to expect. So.....
2 - New user informationUse the search functionThere is a huge amount of information stored in this forum so before you ask your first few questions, do some research. It's not that people won't respond, it's just that if the same things get repeatedly asked, people grow tired of answering.
The private message systemThis doesn't become active until you have made 10 posts. This is primarily aimed at people who just use the site to sell their car/car parts and never put anything back. 10 posts isn't a lot, so just start by putting an introduction in the new members section and go from there.
Signature pics/avatar picsMost forum users chose to add a 'signature' picture that gets displayed underneath their posts. In order to make the site read-able, the picture should obviously be tasteful but also be no bigger than 700 pixels wide by 150 pixels high.
You are only able to run a trade related signature if you have joined one of the forum's trading or sponsorship schemes. More details are available here:
www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=156930.0As part of your forum profile you can choose to display an 'avatar' picture that gets displayed under your username at the left side of all your posts. There are a couple of standard ones included but you can also link to your own. The size limit for these is 65 by 65 pixels.
Posting imagesWe don't host images here but do provide an option to host with
https://postimages.org/ by using the "Add image to post" feature. You can of course also link to your own choice of image hosting service.
3 - Moderation of postsIn an ideal world post moderation would never be required. However, to think that an open forum should allow people to say anything they like is just wrong. For that reason, there are a group of users who are able to modify and delete messages. Often this is just a case of keeping the forum tidy by deleting duplicate posts, moving topics to a more sensible section - that sort of thing. However, it also involves deleting 'junk', that is posts that are thought to be unacceptable. These could be anything from personal insults, bad language, questionable links etc etc. If you have had a post deleted and you are not happy about it, feel free to contact an admin and/or global moderator to ask why. Do not start another topic to complain as that will clearly get removed as well.
4 - Fake accounts/abusive behaviour etcYes this forum has a very social side to it but remember it is ultimately about a shared interest in VW group cars. To bring 'playground' type behaviour onto the site is not acceptable and a waste of people's time. Pointless fake accounts will get deleted. Posts containing content deemed abusive will get deleted. Have respect for other forum users.
5 - The management of this forumThe administrators and moderators of this forum put in the time and effort for something they believe in - this site and the VW scene as a whole. You are welcome to make suggestions about improvements to the site and forum but always remember that this is not a public service. You don't pay anything for it, so don't make demands of it.
6 - Trade usage of the siteIt's good to have reliable, relevant trade users on the forum. In fact we have a great history of supporting start-up businesses here. Please don't expect to just turn up and start pimping your products though. Join in, in a sensible way, give something back in terms of knowledge etc and consider supporting our Forum Supporter scheme. Trade signatures will be removed from accounts that aren't putting anything back - that being either knowledge/help or forum charity donation.
The classifieds section of the site is meant for genuine private sales of VW group cars and related spare parts. Blatant trade abuse of this is not acceptable and adverts will be deleted. If you want to do large scale promotion, get in touch, do not take advantage of the forum facility.
The 'deals, discounts and promotions' section is for pre-arranged GolfGTI.co.uk specific offers, again, get in touch if you wish to offer a genuine deal to our forum members.
Forum Supporter option:
www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=156930.07 - Classifieds sectionDon't get scammed!Unfortunately there are a number of low life out there who like to take your money and never deliver the suggested car parts. Sure, every now and then a sale may go wrong, bits get lost etc but there have been a number of times on here where a user deliberately sets out to scam as many people as possible before disappearing.
So, please - use your brain.
- If a part is way too cheap, it is 99% going to be dodgy.
- Bank transfer? Really? Why the need for this?
- Postal order? Again, is this really required these days?
- Look carefully at the seller's account on here before agreeing a deal. Have they only recently joined? Are they only selling parts? Neither thing mark them as overly suspicious in themselves but you need to be careful.
- Why will the seller only post and not let you collect?
- Paypal payments marked as 'gift' have no way of being recovered so unless you actually trust the trader I would never suggest using this option.
- If you are in any way suspicious of the seller, just don't bother! There will always be more VW parts out there.
Read the bad experiences people have had as a warning:
http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=144593.0http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=108160.0http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=151522.0Thanks for reading