Hi everyone,
My one year anniversary on the forum is coming up (March 24), and I wanted to come up with some way to thank the community for an awesome year, and maybe help new users. When I first started on this forum, it was a lot of information to take in. I learned eventually, but it did take awhile. What to post what and were to post it got a little confusing at times. Now a year later, with 20,000 users and counting, I’ve seen an influx of new users who create threads in the wrong category, aren’t in the know with current events relating to Infinite Flight, etc.
I noticed when I joined, the automatic system message was very basic and only included information about the default discourse forum set up. I think we should have a new system message along with the default message that is specifically tailored to our community forum.
So, what’s been the point of all of my rambling on?
I went ahead and created a mock message, and now I would like to hear what you think:
Welcome to the Infinite Flight Community!
As you can see, we have a great resource to collaborate, connect with, and learn new information about a variety of topics. This is a space to meet the users and the staff of Infinite Flight Let’s get started with some basic information that we think you should be aware of.
Trust Levels
Right now, you are a new user, which means you are a brand new user in the forum. By interacting with the community, you’ll work your way up the ranks. Note that certain rankings have different priveliges. Here are the trust levels featured in the community, and we’ll explain the privileges of each.
*I know the feature requests are slightly different, but we can work with that if needed.
#New User (TL 0)
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Users at trust level 0 cannot…
Send private messages to other users
“Reply as new topic” via Link button (UI removed)
Flag posts
Post more than 1 image
Post any attachments
Post more than 2 hyperlinks in a post
Have actual links in the ‘about me’ field of their profile (will be silently and temporarily converted to plain text)
Mention more than 2 users in a post
#Basic User (TL 1)
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They can get to trust level 1 by…
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- entering at least 5 topics
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- reading at least 30 posts
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- spend a total of 10 minutes reading posts
Users at trust level 1 can…
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- use all core Discourse functions
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- Upload images and attachments if enabled
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- Flag posts
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- have all new user restrictions removed
#Member (TL 2)
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They can get to trust level 2 by…
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- visiting at least 15 days, not sequentially
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- casting at least 1 like
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- receiving at least 1 like
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- replying to at least 3 different topics
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- entering at least 20 topics
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- reading at least 100 posts
Users at trust level 2 can…
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- Use the “Invite others to this topic” button for one-click onboarding of new users to participate in topics
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- Invite outside users to PMs making a group PM
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- Daily like limit increased by 1.5 ×
#Regular (TL 3)
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They can get to trust level 3 by…
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This is time and activity based, unlike the previous levels. In the last 100 days... -
must have visited at least 50% of days -
must have replied to at least 10 different topics -
of topics created in the last 100 days, must have viewed 25% (capped at 500) -
of posts created in the last 100 days, must have read 25% (capped at 20k) -
must have received 20 likes, and given 30 likes.* -
must not have received more than 5 spam or offensive flags (with unique posts and unique users for each, confirmed by a moderator) -
must not have been suspended
*These likes must be across a minimum number of different users (1/5 the number), across a minimum number of different days (1/4 the number). Likes cannot be from PMs.
Unlike other trust levels, you can lose trust level 3 status. If you dip below these requirements, whether from flagging or the passage of time, you will be demoted to Member. However, in order to avoid constant promotion/demotion situations, there is a 2-week grace period immediately after gaining Trust Level 3 during which you will not be demoted.
Users at trust level 3 can…
- recategorize and rename topics
- access a private “frequent flier’s lounge” category only visible to users at trust level 3 and higher
- have all their links followed (we remove automatic nofollow992)
- spam flags cast on TL0 user posts immediately hide the post
- flags cast on TL0 user posts in sufficient diversity will auto-block the user and hide all their posts
- make their own posts wiki (that is, editable by any TL1+ users)
- Daily like limit increased by 2 ×
Categories
There are a variety of categories to create or contribute to in the community. From Real World Aviation to the Features category, there are plenty of updated topics to contribute to. Below are the listed categories in the community.
Please be careful when posting a new thread. If it isn’t in the correct category, it will likely be moved. There are certain requirements when creating some of these threads. You can find that information below, including a template as an example.
#Feature Requests
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When creating a feature request, be sure to provide some form of substance in your thread. Draw attention to what you’d like to see in Infinite Flight.
The typical format for feature requests are as followed:
What you want, why you want it. Any other information you have relating to the requested feature.
Image (Optional)
Image Source (Mandatory if you use an image that’s not yours.)
#Events on Live
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Topic titles must include start location and time of the event in the following format:
Event Title @ ICAO - DDHHMMZMONYY
Event Title: The title of your event. Keep it short and original!
ICAO: The 4-letter airport code the event’s significant location. (e.g. KDEN)
This can either be your starting location or your fly-in/arrival location.
DD: Day of the month (e.g. 18th of June = 18)
HHMM: Time of your event in Zulu time (e.g. 1pm CST (UTC -6) = 1900)
Z: Simply the letter ‘Z’ to indicate the time is in Zulu time
MON: 3-letter abbreviation for the month of your event (e.g. January = JAN)
YY: Last 2 digits of the year of your event (e.g. 2015 = 15)
##Cite Your Images!!
When creating a feature request, it’s not only important to search the forum for a duplicate thread, but it’s also important to cite the image should you choose to use one. Images aren’t required when creating a feature request, but it’s important to give credit to the owner and avoid copyright infringement. If it’s your own image, then you’re free to use it at your discretion.
An example of citing an image would be:
Image Credit:
Sam S.
Link: linkgoeshere.com
The Moderators
On the forum, we have a great moderation team that helps ensure the quality of our forum. They may do anything from moving threads to dealing with private user issues. Please be mindful about what you post, how you interact with others, and the nature of your topics. If not, some moderation requirement may be required.
Being Mindful of Others
Here on the community, we have a variety of users with different opinions, and sometimes those opinions clash. It’s important that all of us do our part in being courteous to other opinions and viewpoints. The Flagging system is a useful tool that ties into this. If you see a post or topic by a user that you find offensive or violates the Terms of Service, flag it for a moderator to examine it.
That being said, the flagging tool is not meant for all topics. Be wise when flagging a topic. Does it really offend you or the Terms of Service? Does it violate the Community Guidelines?
Enjoy the Forum!
Thanks for becoming a part of this community. Please be mindful of others on this forum. Our 20,000 users (and counting) provide a great space to meet with other fans of Infinite Flight. Thank you for taking the time to read this message, and we look forward to interacting with you!
