Our Terms of Service (TOS) is designed to keep our electronic community safe, informative, and fun for all members.  Your membership on this board is bound by these terms of service.  Violations of our TOS are reviewed and enforced by our Message Board Staff.  Actions include Public and Private warnings, Moderation Queues, Suspension, and Banning.  It is your responsibility to make sure you are familiar with our Terms of Service.  Changes made to the TOS will be posted in the News and Announcements forum.  The Board Management staff reserves the right to change the Terms of Service at any time, and for any reason.

Warnings will be given for anyone that breaks the TOS (below).  If you get 3 warnings, you get a 7 day vacation.  The 4th warning will result in permanent ban from this board.  We also reserve the right to ban someone without warnings if we deem it necessary.

SECTION 1
User Accounts

1. All accounts are free.  No member of the Network Staff will EVER ask you for your credit card or checking information.  If you are asked, please report it at ONCE to a member of the board staff.

2. No user may register more than one user account.  Any accounts created after the first, without the explicit approval of the board staff, will be deleted without notice. You may be given a Warning.

2a. If you register a new account while on a ban, you will be permanently banned.

3. Account names may not contain profanity, or be obviously offensive.  The board staff will give 24 hours for the user to give change of account name to a moderator.  If request is ignored, then the Board Staff reserves the right to change any vulgar or offensive name to whatever name they deem fit without notice to offending violator. Violation will result in a Warning.

4. You MUST maintain a valid email address.  If it is discovered that the address stored in your profile is not valid, your user account will be suspended until a valid email address has been entered in association with your account.

5. By creating your user account, you agree to our Terms Of Service (TOS).  Your membership is bound to these terms, and any and all changes that should occur to the Terms Of Service.

6. There is no age minimum to be a member of this board.  

SECTION 2
Topics, Posts, and Polls

1. There will be no racial, ethnic, gender, or religious based insults in public posts or PM.   There will be no posts meant to offend or hurt any other member. Debates and civilized discussions that argue points of view are to be kept free from insults, threats, violence, and rudeness. There will be no topics regarding politics or religion. Violation will result in a Warning.

2.  There will be no excessive profanity or obscenity in any public topic, post, link, or poll. If you must use curse words, please use an * to spell the curse word, i.e. sh*t.

3. Spamming is not permitted; neither are non-constructive posts.  Please keep all your posts as constructive as possible.  Bumping or throwing topics off subject is considered spamming.  Topics that are being spammed will be closed or deleted. Violation will result in a Warning.

4. Pornography, pirated software, or any other illegal transactions may NOT be posted or linked in any way or by any means.  Violation will result in a Warning, suspension, or expulsion.

5. All posts are property of the Apparitions/Star Mountain Studios boards. Our network staff has the right to request alteration or deletion of any offensive or inappropriate posts; this includes disgusting or vulgar topics. Posts may be deleted or edited for any reason or reasons that a forum moderator or administrator deems necessary. Star Mountain Studios cannot be responsible for the content of posts until it is reported, or noticed by a staff member.

6. Signatures and Avatars may contain images and must be submitted for approval before uploading for use in the forums.

6b. No signature or Avatar may contain a Star Mountain Studios logo of any kind...this is only allowed by Star Mountain Studios members themselves. Violation will result in a Warning and removal of the image.

6c. Due to links of blogging journals, such as LiveJournal, MySpace, Yahoo 360, ect. in signatures, avatars, posts, and / or profiles using foul language and to explicit in sexual nature and would be deemed rated R or even Rated X, moderators will edit it out without notification.  This is to protect you and your children the best we can. NO BLOGGING LINKS WILL BE ALLOWED!!  Violation will result in a Warning.

7.  Do not advertise products or services in posts, avatars, profiles, or signatures without explicit permission from the network staff members.  A moderator or administrator, without notification, will edit out advertising.  Violation will result in a Warning.

8. If a topic is locked, please do not start a new one on the same subject. A HOST will post why the thread was locked.  You may start another upon a HOST's permission.  Ignoring this request may result in a Warning.

9. No member will post any subject matter or links to anything regarding illegal drugs...period. Nor underage drinking! Violation will result in a Warning.

10. Please remember this is a PG board and sexual references and innuendo will NOT be tolerated at any point. Violation will result in a Warning.

11. This forum cannot be held responsible for the actions of others at separate and/or unrelated forums. This also includes Apparitions members and employees.

12.  Depending on the severity of the issue and the degree to which the TOS is violated, this is our disciplinary action policy:

First offense---------- Warning
Second Offense-------Warning
Third Offense----------7 day ban
Fourth Offense--------- BANNED
Please just follow the TOS and you will be fine.

Star Mountain Studios also reserves the right to accelerate this discipline scale and/or ban someone without warnings if we deem it necessary.

13. If Warnings are issued as a result of public fighting, please do not contact or ask a MOD or ADMIN as to whether or not a poster, other than yourself, received disciplinary actions. All Administrative relations with forum members are deemed confidential, and will not be shared with other forum members, unless we receive consent to do so. Additionally, any threats made against the Administrative Staff with respect to discipline may result in further warnings, and/or bannings.

SECTION 3
Private Messages, Email

1. Star Mountain Studios Network Staff cannot be held responsible for the contents of an E-Mail message sent through this board and cannot be responsible for the content of a Private Message unless it is reported.  If reporting it, please copy and paste the offending PM in the report.  These reported PMs and emails through this board will be treated as if they were a public post.  We will deal with these privately.

2. Unsolicited Private Messages are strictly prohibited. Violation will result in a Warning.

3. Using our E-Mail or PM system to advertise or request personal information of any kind, without the approval of the recipient, is strictly prohibited. Violation will result in an Immediate Ban.

SECTION 4
Star Mountain Studios Staff

1. Moderators have the right to impose forum-specific rules for the areas in which they host. Should a host decide to post additional rules, please read, understand, and follow them. If you have any questions about these additional rules, please direct your questions to the moderator of that forum.

1a. Forum-Specific rules may not negate, override, or violate the Terms Of service.

2. Users may not argue a moderator’s decision publicly. Any and all complaints directed at a moderator must first address the moderator in question via email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Violation will result in a Warning.  If you have any questions or problems, please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

3. Impersonating a member of the board staff, or impersonating a member of Star Mountain Studios is strictly prohibited.  User created names and posts that hint impersonation are grounds for banning.  The usage of a prefix that is very similar to a staff prefix in a screen name, or is very official looking, which is clearly designed to fool members is also prohibited.  Violators will be Banned.

4. Star Mountain Studios Board Staff reserves the right to edit, remove, or close any topic, poll, or post for a violation of our rules.  Also, members who break the rules are subject to official friendly reminders, warnings, post suspension, queue moderation, and permanent banning.

5. Apparitions members’ private information, i.e. instant messenger names, email addresses, Myspace, phone numbers, etc. will NOT be shared on this board. Violators will be given a Warning.

SECTION 5
Privacy Policy

1. All registered information collected from your account, including E-Mail address and IP address is strictly confidential to the board administrative staff, and will not be distributed or sold.

1b. No member of this board is ever required to divulge personal information to any other member should they choose not to.  No member of Star Mountain Studios will ever ask you for any private information.  No member or staff is authorized to share personal information with other members of staff or other members of the message board with any other member, for any reason, without explicit consent.

2. Personal information, which is private to the general public message board, is collected and used by Star Mountain Studios Network Staff for internal security reasons only.  If you feel that your private information has become compromised, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it at once.

3. While there is no age requirement to be a member of this message board, we encourage those members under the age of 18 to give out no personal information to anyone.  Should you be asked, please DO NOT respond; report the request immediately to a member of the network staff.  Parents of those members under the age of 18 are encouraged to contact a member of the board staff, or send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if they have any questions, problems, or concerns.

SECTION 6
File Uploads (Gallery & Archive Forums)

1. ONLY Pictures and Sound files may be uploaded to the appropriate forums.  A moderator will move it to the correct forum.  Moderators have the right to remove any uploaded file that does not comply with the Terms Of Service, either with or without notifying the member who uploaded it.  Any member who attempts to upload anything else will be given a Warning.

2. The ONLY acceptable picture files that may be uploaded must end with one of the following extensions: *.GIF, *.JPG, *.JPEG, and *.PNG

3. The ONLY acceptable sound files that may be uploaded must end with one of the following extensions: *.WAV

4. No uploaded files may contain any form or pornography, vulgar/sexual explicit images or sounds, advertisements, offensive images, or any form of controlled substance or paraphernalia of a controlled substance, (Obvious and blatant vulgarity/pornography).  Violation will result in a Warning.

5. There is a limit of 250Kb on any uploaded file per post.

6. Do not upload a copyrighted picture OR a link to that picture without the consent of the owner or site owner.  Failure to do so may result in a Warning.

7. Posting files of paranormal activity is bound to spark debates.  This is not only understandable, but also encouraged!  Skepticism is natural and healthy, and it fuels our scientific pursuit of the truth about the paranormal.  However, these debates and opinions can be shared without personal insults, flaming, and general rudeness.  All debates about posted images must comply with section 2 of the Terms Of Service.

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Questions, complaints, and Moderator Action appeals may be filed with the message board staff.  The Board Administrators will review these; the final decisions will be permanent.  Please email all inquiries to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it