------------------------------------------------------------------------ Charter: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A moderated newsgroup dedicated to the discussion of all the past Transformer cartoons, comics, toys, and other media. The group recognizes that the current Beast Wars line is separate from the classic Transformer lines, in the same way that the Next Generation Star Trek show is separate from Classic Star Trek. Beast Wars posts are not completely forbidden - an occasional post with some classic content (a comparision between classic and Beast Wars, citing similarities or tie-ins, convention reports, and others) will be acceptable. Comments without Classic content will not be acceptable, including flames and other negative comments about Beast Wars. The group further recognizes that it is impossible to tell how long Beast Wars will remain active, or what new spin-offs of the Transformers will be created in the future. Altering the acceptable posting parameters of this group to reflect such changes will be discussed in the group as such changes arise. No marketplace-style postings will be acceptable, considering the fact that there are two existing groups, alt.toys.transformers.marketplace, and rec.toys.transformers.marketplace, specifically for such posts. Fanfic is welcome, and is encouraged to be crossposted to alt.toys.transformers.fanfic as well. All Fanfic and other creative efforts are of course subject to the moderation policy. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Moderation policy summary: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ATTCM will accept all articles that are on-topic as defined by the charter, provided they do not contain personal attacks, or unprotected spoilers. ATTCM supports an "all or nothing" policy for posting articles. An article is either posted in its entirety, or a rejection letter is sent back to the poster. Short, non-editorial comments may be added, such as pointers to information sources and administrative notes. Such comments will be clearly labeled. ATTCM supports a swift resolution process for complaints against specific moderators or instances of rejection. Each complaint shall be forwarded to all active moderators, and a consensus will be reached. ATTCM currently uses a robomoderation program that has several features that make the moderation process smoother. The proponents of the group wish to extend their thanks to Igor Chudov, author of the STUMP program, and the staff at panix.com for their help. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The alt.toys.transformers.classic.moderated FAQ by Burt Ward (Skyflight@Decepticon-Empire.org) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Table of Contents 0.1 Introduction - Welcome to ATTCM 0.2 What's new this version 1.0 What does 'classic' mean exactly? 1.1 What isn't considered classic? 1.2 Why not Beast Wars/Machines and the others? 1.3 Is this an anti Beast Wars/Machines group? 1.4 When is Beast Wars/Machines going to be on-topic? 2.0 It says this group is moderated. What does that mean exactly? 2.1 What are the posting guidelines? 2.2 Who are the moderators? 2.3 I can't find the newsgroup. What should I do? 2.4 Is there any other way to read ATTCM? 2.5 Is there an archive of articles? 2.6 How do I post to the newsgroup? 2.7 Are there any reasons my posts wouldn't show up? 2.8 When I posted, I got an e-mail saying my post was rejected. Why? 2.9 How do I contact the moderation team? 3.0 What's this whole Viewing Club thing about? 3.1 How do you decide what to review? 3.2 How do I write a review? 3.3 Where can I find past reviews? 4.0 How did this group get started? 5.0 Isn't there a whole lot of other Transformer-related stuff on the Net? 0.1 Introduction - Welcome to ATTCM Welcome to alt.toys.transformers.classic.moderated. This newsgroup's goal is to provide a spam-free, flame-free place to talk about the classic aspects of the Transformer universe. This document exists to answer questions that those new to the group might have. The FAQ is posted on a somewhat random basis to the group. The latest version of this FAQ can also be found on the ATTCM homepage located at the following URL - http://www.panix.com/~attcm/ 0.2 What's new this version Small clarifications about what is and is not ontopic have been added. 1.0 What does 'classic' mean exactly? Classic refers to all the aspects of Transformers that are related directly to the original Transformers line created by Hasbro and Takara and are considered similar in genre. This includes Generation 1 and Generation 2 toys, the G1 and G2 cartoon and comic books, the G1 Japanese cartoons and toys, Machine Wars, the reproduction G1 toys and PVCs, plus the Dreamwave comics. Also included is discussion of toys from other lines that are remolds of classic toys. For example discussion of the Gigastorm toy from Beast Wars Second is acceptable, since the toy is a remold of the classic Trypticon toy. Only discussion of the toys as toys and how they relate to the originals will be considered on-topic. 1.1 What isn't considered classic? Anything not related to the original run of the Transformers franchise. Currently this includes Beast Wars, Beast Machines, Beast Wars Second, Beast Wars Neo, Car Robots, Robots in Disguise, and Armada 1.2 Why not all the other lines? There are two reasons - First, the currently active lines generate a considerably higher amount of traffic than do the lines which are out of production. Discussions of classic topics tend to get drowned out. Second, the original proponents of the group feel there is a logical division of theme between classic Transformers and the lines that have followed, much as there is a division between the original Star Trek series and the Next Generation, DS9, and the rest. Some names and even some characters carry over from one to the other, but the original proponents feel they are separate entities. Some other aspects of the Transformer universe undoubtedly are also different enough to count as separate (the Japanese Masterforce series for example), but they are included as classic because they are no longer in production, are fairly unknown to the general fan population (and thus unlikely to produce much traffic), and were considered part of the original run of Transformers. 1.3 Is this an anti Beast Wars/Machines/RiD/Armada group? Emphatically no. This newsgroups is meant to celebrate the classic aspects of the Transformer universe, not to tear down the current incarnation. Some members of the group may in fact dislike the newer lines, and may make that known in other forums. But any strictly negative posts about those lines will in fact be considered off-topic. Some minor comparison posts are allowed, be they positive or negative. (See section 2.1 for more info) 1.4 Will Beast Wars/Machines/RiD/Armada and future lines ever be on-topic? The issue have been brought up a few times on the group and the moderators have considered the issue carefully. We feel that there remains a logical division both in theme and timeframe from the classic material and the post-G2 lines. It's also worth pointing out that as the new lines are introduced they attract new fans who may themselves not feel a particular attachment to the lines that came before. Finally, the most current line always produces a large number of posts that drowns out the discussion of past lines. For all of these reasons, the original distinction of classic and post-classic has remained and will likely continue. 2.0 It says this group is moderated. What does that mean exactly? Moderation means that instead of an article being posted directly to Usenet, it is instead e-mailed to a person (the moderator) who will review the post to make sure that it follows the posting guidelines. The moderator will then approve the article and post it to Usenet, or reject the article. ATTCM uses a program called STUMP to make the process easier. This program is also referred to as a robomoderator, and helps to filter out spam and binary posts, as well as making our lives much easier. The moderators wish to extend their thanks to Igor Chudov for the program. Also, we should thank the whole staff at panix.com for the account and help they have provided. 2.1 What are the posting guidelines? Only articles that are relevant to the classic aspects of the Transformers universe will be approved. This covers a wide variety of subjects, including comics, cartoon, the movie, toys and many others. See section 1.0 for more details. We invite questions, commentary, essays, reviews, reports, and just about anything else with a classic topic. Other kinds of articles are not completely forbidden - an occasional post that contains non-classic content as well as considerable classic content (for instance a comparison between classic and Beast Wars, citing similarities or tie-ins, convention reports, and others) will be acceptable. The line of just what is acceptable is very hard to draw and can't be stated in absolute terms. As a general rule, consider whether non-classic content could be removed from the article and not diminish the classic content. For example, a comparison of writing styles would be inseparable, whereas a list of favorite toys could easily include only classic toys. Common sense, logic and the best efforts of the moderators to follow the spirit of the charter apply. We welcome fan fiction with classic content, and we encourage crossposting to alt.toys.transformers.fanfic. Discussion of fanfic is encouraged, and critiques will be acceptable, provided they are not hostile. Personal attacks of any kind will not be approved. The moderators have final say on what does and does not constitute a personal attack, though of course the poster may appeal a decision to the moderator board. Repeat offenders will be suspended from posting to the group. [Additional note] The moderators wish to avoid flame wars or hurt feelings whenever possible. And we tend to be overcautious in rejecting articles directed at a specific individual if there's any question as to the intent of the article. If you get a rejection notice that indicates the article is questionable or borderline, we do hope you'll reword it a bit and resubmit it. Forging approval headers or issuing false cancel messages will result in suspension and a report will be issued to the individual's ISP. No marketplace-style articles will be approved, considering the fact that there are two existing groups, alt.toys.transformers.marketplace, and rec.toys.transformers.marketplace, specifically for such articles. Marketplace topics include: advertising items for sale or desire to buy items, auction notices or updates (including pointers to auctions), and trader alerts. Topics that are related to transactions but which only seek information will be accecptable. For example, appraisal requests and querries on where to buy Transformer merchandise. We classify these as information requests and not marketplace posts. Binaries (such as pictures or sound files) will not be approved for the newsgroup. Please post any binaries in one of the appropriate binary groups, and then submit an article that tells people where to find them (name the group and subject line). Also, any articles that include binary encoding like MIME will be rejected. Some newsreaders will attach signatures in MIME format, and it can cause the article to be rejected. We currently accept crossposts to rec.toys.transformers.moderated. We have a policy worked out with them, and crossposts are allowed to that group. We also allow crossposts to any on-topic unmoderated newsgroups like alt.toys.transformers and alt.toys.transformers.fanfic. Provided these posting guidelines are followed, a submission will be approved. No article will be rejected because it expresses views contrary to the views of active moderator(s) or the moderation team. The moderators will often approve articles they disagree with, and then post a reply to it. (Reading the group will make it obvious that articles contrary to our views are approved without problems.) Given the flexible nature of the Internet and the Transformer franchise as a whole, these posting guidelines are subject to revision. Discussion is welcome in the group about changes that could or should be made. If there is a sizable percentage of individuals who wish revisions, the moderating team will call for a formal discussion and voting process. 2.2 Who are the moderators? Currently the active moderating team consists of Charlotte Brogden, Scylla, Raksha, John Runski, and Burt Ward. Lorax is a backup moderator. Possibly there will be moderator bios up on the ATTCM homepage soon. The homepage is located at http://www.panix.com/~attcm/. 2.3 I can't find the newsgroup. What should I do? If you can't access ATTCM from your normal news reader, it's likely your Internet service provider does not carry it. Some ISPs only choose to carry a limited number of groups or only add groups with a certain amount of traffic. The thing to do is e-mail the people in charge of adding newsgroups at the ISP you use. The people to e-mail are postmaster@ and news@. Put whatever comes after the @ symbol in your e-mail address after postmaster@ and news@. Thus, if your address is joe@aol.com, you should e-mail postmaster@aol.com and news@aol.com. If you have more than one account, make sure you're e-mailing the same ISP that you use to read news. It is recommended you send a short, polite e-mail similar to the following example: Dear Postmaster and/or News admin : I would like to request that you add the newsgroup alt.toys.transformers.classic.moderated to the active list. The group is of great interest to me, and I'd like to be able to access it. It's moderated, and thus there won't be any spam or binary posts to worry about. Thanks for your time. Some larger ISPs like AOL or Compuserve may not respond personally. 2.4 Is there any other way to read ATTCM? Currently the most accessible and least complicated way to read ATTCM beyond the conventional news feeds seems to be the successor to Deja News, Google. They allow reading and posting to the group via a Web interface and don't charge a fee for this. Check http://groups.google.com for more info. 2.5 Is there an archive of articles? Currently the archive is not being updated, although it's possible this project will be revived in the future. Since Google took over Deja they've put all the old Deja News archives online, and it's now possible to view just about every article ever posted to ATTCM there. Just head to http://groups.google.com and search. 2.6 How do I post to the newsgroup? You can post in one of two ways. First is to simply post to the group with your news reader, just like you normally would. The second is to e-mail your article to us directly at attcm@panix.com. Both methods have advantages and disadvantages. With direct e-mail, your article is guaranteed to reach us (see section 2.7) and is also the fastest method. However, e-mail isn't quite the same as a newsgroup post because of the headers. Usenet articles use headers that e-mail doesn't, like the Newsgroups: and Followups-To: headers. In general, this doesn't cause any problems. However, if you want your article to be posted to ATTCM and another group, this becomes important. To help our users out with posting via e-mail and to aid AOL users, we've introduced a new feature called the X-Control header. You just add this as the first line of your article and fill in a command. Right now the only command is to crosspost your article to another group, even if your ISP doesn't allow it or you're sending an article via e-mail. All you do is add the X-Control at the top of your article, something like this: X-Control: crosspost to ATT We acccept crossposts to any on-topic newsgroup. The abbreviations are: ATT : alt.toys.transformers ATTF : alt.toys.transformers.fanfic RTTM : rec.toys.transformers.moderated You can use the short or long versions, it doesn't matter. Note that we don't accept crossposts to the marketplace newsgroups except in those cases where the article is ontopic (see section 2.1 above). If you're going to crosspost to a non-TF group, please provide the full name. The direct e-mail address for ATTCM is attcm@panix.com 2.7 Are there any reasons my articles wouldn't show up? Unfortunately yes. When you post with your news reader, your ISP e-mails your article to the moderator relay system at isc.org. This is not a fool-proof system unfortunately, and it's possible for articles to get lost before they can reach us. This is almost always caused by a local ISP not having ATTCM set up right on their end. If you submit an article to ATTCM and it doesn't show up and you don't get a rejection e-mail from us, please please let us know. We have no way to know which ISPs may be dropping articles unless we hear directly from you. Please send any reports or mail additional questions to attcm-request@panix.com. 2.8 When I posted, I got an e-mail saying my article was rejected. Why? If your article doesn't follow the posting guidelines, it will be rejected. That means your article will not be posted to the group, and you will receive an automated rejection letter. Hopefully the letter will explain the problem adequately. If not, typically the moderator will send a follow-up letter explaining the exact problem with the article. We always encourage people to reformat and resubmit the article so we can approve it. The moderators are always willing to hear your side, and any comment or question about a rejection can be sent to our mailing list. (see next section) 2.9 How do I contact the moderation team? For technical matters, please e-mail attcm-request@panix.com. For policy comments, questions about a rejection e-mail, or to reach the whole staff on a matter that is really important, e-mail attcm-admin@panix.com. Please do not e-mail attcm@panix.com unless you want to submit your e-mail as an article to the newsgroup. Our door is always open, and we want everyone to feel like they're a part of the group. So feel free to e-mail us; we're here to help. 3.0 What's this whole Viewing Club thing about? The Cartoon Viewing Club was first proposed by Scylla and has since generated a lot of discussion and interest. Every month we select an episode of the classic cartoon series to watch and post reviews at the end of the month. 3.1 How do you decide what to review? Currently we're following the recent video releases from Kid Rhino. We want everyone to have as much access to the episode for review as possible. If we outpace Kid Rhino's releases, we'll likely go with episodes that are easily obtained. Hopefully, though, Kid Rhino will release the entire series as has been rumored. 3.2 How do I write a review? There really are no set guidelines. Any format you want to use, feel free to submit. Some people choose overall thoughts about the episode, others do a chronological scene-by-scene review, others separate the episode into different aspects and review those. So long as the review complies with the general posting guidelines, we'll approve it. If you're looking for inspiration for your review, you can look up past reviews. 3.3 Where can I find past reviews? Currently all the past reviews are on the main ATTCM page at http://www.panix.com/~attcm/. It's possible that a separate subpage may be made for the reviews archive in the future. There will still be a link to that page from the main page, of course. 4.0 How did this group get started? The concept for this group had been discussed in alt.toys.transformers a few times without seeming to catch on with many people. However, the idea began to generate interest as the traffic on ATT increased rapidly. Also, a number of people began to feel classic posts were being overwhelmed and didn't have the time or inclination to go through it all. Finally, there were a number of ugly flame wars and personal attacks on ATT at that time. Raksha contacted the people who seemed interested in the idea of a new group: Charlotte Brogden, Lorax, John Runski and Burt Ward. A mailing list was formed, and from the discussions grew the concept of ATTCM. Later, Overlord, Scylla and Steve Stonebraker joined the list, and provided valuable input as well. The details were gradually ironed out as the search for an ISP began. The robomoderator we wanted to use had very specific requirements, and we had a hard time finding an ISP that could provide what we needed. Also, the actual details of newsgroup moderation had to be investigated and some sort of picture of how the process actually worked was needed. The details of our posting policy and even which hierarchy to put the group in were discussed at length. It wasn't always easy finding a middle ground that made everyone happy, but we managed to do so. Finally panix.com told us that they could provide the account we were looking for, for which we thank them. Once the account was ready, installing and debugging the robomoderator took several days, and the moderation team wishes to extend thanks to Igor Chudov for his program and help. Eventually all was in readiness, and on May 10, 1998, the creation message was posted to alt.config. 5.0 Isn't there a whole lot of other Transformer-related stuff on the Net? Yes, there is an enormous amount of material. I recommend the Transformers FAQ by Steve Stonebraker, which has a great deal of information about TransFandom in general. That FAQ can be found at this URL: http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~sstoneb/tf/index.html This document (c)opyright 2002 by Burt Ward. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Permission is granted to copy and distribute this text provided it is kept intact and unaltered, and no fee is charged.