New Member Restrictions

To cut down on some of the mess that some unsavory people have created in the past, we have created two new member groups.

To more clearly define these groups, here is a list of the user titles, a description of the usergroup in general, the restrictions placed on those groups, and the conditions for automatic upgrade to the next group:

1. 1st Stop Member
   • This is the default, just joined, group.
   • Starting members cannot send Private Messages nor can they post in the Classifieds sections.
   • Members in this group will be automatically upgraded to the 'New Member' group after they have made 2 or more posts AND have been a member for 2 or more days
2. 2nd Stop Member
   • This is the next step in membership.
   • New Members in this group still cannot post in the Classifieds sections, but can send Private Messages.
   • Members in this group will be automatically upgraded to the 'Beginning Member' group after they have made 10 or more posts AND have been a member for 10 or more days.
3. Beginning Member
   • This group has all of the privileges of any other member of the forum besides the forum staff (moderators & administrators).
   • There are further usergroups that are based on post count/reputations, but they do not bring any other privileges with them concerning the forum use, only user title changes.

Please note that the 'Forum Notice', 'Tech Articles (DIY)' & 'Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs)' sections are closed to everyone but the staff of the forum. Posts to the last two of these sections should be submitted to the 'Article Submissions/Discussions' section. Also, the 'General Tech Help' section is closed in order to push members to utilize one of the generation specific subsections for better organization of information. Also, posts in 'The Lounge' section do not add to your post count.

Please use this time to make a positive impact on the forum. DO NOT use this time to spam the forum or in some other way violate the rules of the forum. Useless bumping of old posts and/or random posts will be removed at the discretion of the staff and infractions may be given which may include a prolonged stay in a restricted usergroup. If violation of the rules is done in flagrant enough fashion, you may be removed from the forum all together.

It may take up to 24 hours after you have met the requirements above for the promotion request to take affect. If that time has elapsed and you still do not have the privileges noted above, please first try to log off and back on again as sometimes the permissions will only refresh after you have logged off of the forum. If you continue to have problems, please PM myself or any other member of the staff and they will look into it for you. If you are having trouble that you feel is outside these restrictions and do not yet have access to private messaging, you can email me via 'bf.com.admin' at g mail dot com and I will do my best to get back to you by the end of the day.

We are sorry for any inconvenience this causes you.

*EDIT - 06MAY09*
After a recent exchange with someone finding this rule to be a waste, I feel compelled to explain. While I understand that this can be a hindrance to both dishonest and honest alike and that it is not a sure fire way to dissuade the dishonest people, it still is a stop gap measure to try to get to know those people that are attempting to sell items on our site.

Over the years that I have been a member here, there have been more than a few people separated from their money by dishonest people. While this site does not maintain any responsibility for items sold here, it reflects poorly on the site when such an event happens. Personally, I would rather see new people looking to sell items make themselves known than to have one more member swindled.

Other sites may not be as strict about this, but that is besides the point. The policy in place here is that new members must meet the above requirements before they are allowed to post in the classifieds section. In time, this may change, but at this point in time, it is the consensus of the staff that this is the appropriate measure to take.

*EDIT 04MAR10*

Due to the increase in forum PM spam/scams, we are putting further restrictions on new member accounts. New members will find that not only can they not post into the classifieds section until they meet the requirements given above, but they will not be able to send PM's to others until they have posted 2 or more posts and have been a member for 2 or more days.

This will allow sufficient time to discourage the ill willed folks as well as give the staff time to catch and ban those people meeting the profile of a spammer.

*EDIT 25MAR19*
Added member group titles, descriptions, restrictions, & upgrade criteria to help clarify what group each step represents, how to identify your group (user title is under your username), and what the criteria are for upgrade.

Any questions feel free to PM me privately or email me at bf.com.admin at gmail.com.