NOTE ABOUT DUPLICATE POSTINGS, FREE MAGAZINE POSTINGS AND ETC!

[verwon]

I know for a brief period, the search feature was not working, but I did notify out site programmer, and he cleaned it out completely and rebuilt the search archive, so it is, once again, working properly! So...

Please, when posting, use the Advanced Search feature to check and see if the items is a duplicate to something already posted.

If it is, rather than posting it again, you can simply bump the original post back to the top of the forums by making a reply and noting that it is still a valid and available offer.

Some tips for more accurate search results:

Use the Advanced Search Feature, you will see the link for this under the initial search box that pops open when you click the search link at the top of any forum page. The Advanced Search will open in a new browser page.

On the Advanced search page, use as few terms as possible, for instance: instead of searching for Free Swiffer sample and/or a website link, just use Swiffer.

Otherwise, with the way this search works, you will get results including ANY post that has the words swiffer, free, sample, and various parts of the link as well! Using fewer terms will enable you to pull up more relevant results that pertain just to that specific free item.

Also, on the Advanced Search page, you can set preferences to check for a certain time period, say for the last year, otherwise, you will get ALL results from posts way back to when the boards first launched in 1999!

Also, on the right side of the page, select the appropriate forum that you want to search, this will also make the results more relevant, so you can choose to search just the FREE forum and its sub-forums, rather than the entire site.

If you have difficulty opening the Advanced Search page, here's the direct link:

[Only registered and activated users can see links. Either login above or Register Now]

Anyone who deliberately continues to ignore this rule, will run the risk of having their posts deleted. Our Moderators have many duties here, they are all volunteers who also have lives and jobs OFF of DOD, so they cannot always be expected to take the time to do a search and merge posts for you!

I understand mistakes happen, we all make them, so no need to panic if you forget to check or just miss finding a duplicate post, I am making this section of the post for those who deliberately think they do not need to worry about such things and do it repeatedly ALL the time!

FREE MAGAZINE POSTINGS and OTHER FREEBIE POSTS!

The free magazine forum is for only magazines that are entirely FREE! Nothing with a catch, just like postings for the regular freebie board!

That means, if you get one magazine to try, and then have to cancel to avoid getting more, then the post DOES NOT BELONG in the free forum! Please place it in the Internet and Retail Deals forum.

The same goes for other free items; except for the site owner, who has his own sub-forum called "Mostly Free" where he posts items that sometimes have other criteria involved, but which benefit DOD and our sister sites in the World Village family; if there are any catches, such as postage, cancellations required, SASE's and etc. then they belong in the Internet and Retail Deals forum.

SUB-FORUMS

The sub-forums are also here for a reason, if we simply make all freebie posts in one forum, then it gets too cluttered and confusing, making it hard for members to find those items which they are interested in.

Thus, if a freebie belongs in the Baby/Toddler forum, the business forum, free magazines, or religious freebies & bargains, please place them in the appropriate forum.

I understand that some of them do not require a company name, child's birthdate, or whatever, but if they are still intended for a business or whatever, then they belong in the relative forum.

PRIVATE MESSAGES

And, as our esteemed and beloved Moderator coffeebeaned has already posted, please check your private message regularly!

If you are new, and not familar with how to do this, she has instructions in her post, and I will include them here as well.

You can find your private messages, as long as you have them enabled, very easily, just by glancing towards the top right of any forum page when you are logged in. You will see "Welcome username," then beneath this the date that you were last logged on, beneath that you will see the words "Private Messages" then the number unread, so you know immediately if you have new ones to read, as well as the total in your box.

If your box is getting full, since members have a limit of 50 pms, you will see a notice in red warning you that you're message box is almost as capacity.

So you don't actually have to open the box to see if you have new messages or not, the site will tell right away, the number of new messages also shows up in bold text, so it is very easily noticeable.

But, if there was an error or problem with one of your posts, and a moderator had to take some action on it, such as deletion, moving it, closing it, editing it, or what have you, in most cases, as long as they have the time, they will send you a pm to explain why.


I am very sorry to those who are reading this as I know I sometimes seem like a nag and a lot of this stuff seems redundant, but the truth is, our site has been growing by leaps and bounds, we are getting new members EVERY day. Common sense tells me that most people DO NOT stop to read the TOS, Site Rules, and the Forum rules when they join. Most people just do jump in and hope for the best, so sometimes we do have to make these posts as a reminder.

I do want to welcome everyone and say thanks for joining us and I am sorry if some of our rules seem harsh, but we are just trying to keep the boards running nice and smooth for all members to enjoy.

Above all, remember, NO SPAM!

We let you put your website or referral programs in your signature lines, plus once you have been an active member for awhile, with 25 quality posts, you can post in the Affiliate forum. For those who have their own websites, we provide the Merchant's Mouth forum, where you can post deals and special offers for your site for FREE! So please place things in the correct place on the boards.

Now, for those who have already read all this stuff before, just ignore this and try to keep it bumped for the newbies!

Thanks
--verwon

[munchkin_momma]

Once again I do apologize as I didn't realize there was a search feature at first, and then had some trouble with it once I did find it... but thanks to Coffeebeaned I got it now and try to use it as much as I can.

Oh and I don't think you are preachy... LOL I actually purposefully read the mods posts because they have helped me a lot in understanding how to use the site and I have also found some wonderful tips in them so... Keep up the good work guys! And I am sure I'm not alone in saying thanks for all of the time that you all dedicate to this site!

[verwon]

No need to apologize, we do understand, like I said, when you are new somewhere, even online, you are just learning and we all make mistakes. I am not directing this at all to people who just make mistakes once in awhile or have to learn about something, though I do appreciate your reading and willingness to learn how things work, it does make it a lot easier on us.

I am mainly directing this towards people who can't be bothered to pay attention to the rules, or who don't think they should apply to them. Some people seem to think that mods have nothing better to do than clean up after them, so they can do whatever they want.

You are a great asset to the boards munchkin_momma and I am glad you have joined us.

[LesliM4]

Bump

[munchkin_momma]

Thanks Verwon!

[sunlover5]

Thanks for posting this, verwon

I had actually avoiding the freebie board lately because I was sick of all those duplicate postings...ggrrrr....

[verwon]

Sorry about those, we do try to take care of them as soon as we can, but none of us can be on 24/7!

[jgirl106]

Im sorry too... I admit I didnt take the time to read the forum rules and do a search.. It wont happen again,,, intentionally anyways!!

[verwon]

LOL! I didn't mean to start a confessional!

But thanks everyone, for paying attention and doing your best!

[coffeebeaned]

BUMP

[munchkin_momma]

bump, sorry was a perpetrator of the duplicate post today! I did search, though I think search hates me!!!!!

[munchkin_momma]

*bump.... maybe this should be a sticky or an announcement post

[BALLETRINA2007]

Do repeat offenders get their account suspended? We are all guilty of posting a duplicate every once in a while when the search function fails us, but it seems like it's been the same 2-3 people lately.

[coffeebeaned]

BALLETRINA2007, you have been a wonderful contributing member of DOD. I'm glad you asked this question, because this provided an additional opportunity for us Moderators, to clarify the matter of concern and to keep everyone thoroughly informed.

Yes, repeat offenders will find themselves suspended. Foremost and as Verwon has made clear, we really try to give every newbie the benefit of the doubt, prior to taking such action. In recognizing that mistakes do happen, Moderators will send PM's (private messages) as an advisory to an individual(s), bequesting that they take the time to read forum rules and use the Advanced Search Tool, prior to posting any new thread. In the heat of finding our site, many newbies want to 'jump right in' and contribute from get-go, never taking the time to read rules or policies.

The rules and policies of each individual DOD forum are always 'Stickied' at top, along with other helpful forum tips or matters of concern. If PM advisories go unheeded by an individual, that member may become temporarily suspended, as a minimum. Repeat offenders who try to 're-create' themselves under another User ID(s), will find themselves permanently banned.

DOD has ZERO tolerance for SPAM! So, those who come along and try to ride the coat tails of DOD with their sites OR try to get referrals from/use our members via 'hidden' referral credit links, will be permanantly banned w/out PM advisory! DOD is very generous in allowing signature advatages to post your preferred sites, even your own website(s) ...But these are ONLY allowed w/in your signature field. We also have two forums, which specifically allow for members to advertise their wares, so long as the individual meets ALL qualifications to do so. See specific forum rules in both "From The Merchant's Mouth" and "Affiliate Referral Center" forums. These are two separate forums. ALL rules stated therein, for each of these individual forums, appear as 'Stickies' at the top.

As always, members are welcomed and encouraged to utilize the "Ask The Moderator" forum, for any questions or concerns.

[verwon]

Thanks for covering that coffee beaned.

So in other words, an honest, contributing an active member who makes the occasional mistake, because you didn't find it in the search or whatever has NOTHING to worry about. It happens to all of us now and then.

We are mainly concerned with those who don't give a flip about the forum rules and who repeatedly just do what they want, when they want, and think we should always just fix it for them.

Like you said in your post Balletrina, you start to notice it after awhile when it is always the same people doing the same thing. There comes a point where enough is enough and they will not listen to reason, so we have no choice but to bar them from using the boards.