Avatar & Signature Rules
The total width of images in your signature may not exceed 470 pixels. This may be comprised of one or more images.

The total height of images in your signature may not exceed 120 pixels. This may be comprised of one or more images.

Any images in a spoiler may not exceed 300 pixels high by 470 pixels wide.

Total height of your signature may not exceed 12 lines or equivalent. A smaller font may allow additional lines and a larger font will count against multiple lines. A 120 pixel high image is equivalent to 8 lines, a spoiler with no blank lines around it is equivalent to 2 lines. Please be aware of text wrapping as long lines will count as multiple lines at our discretion.

The maximum size for any avatar is 50kb.

The maximum total size for your avatar and every image in your signature, including those in spoilers cannot exceed 300kb.

Avatars and signature images must be static (ie. not animated). Animated avatars or signature images will be subject to immediate removal.

Animated images are still allowed as post content (preferably in a spoiler) but not in your signature or as an avatar as they detract from the rest of the forums when they are attached to every post.

Also, please note that if a change is made to your signature or avatar either directly by a moderator or by way of a moderator request, changing it back to something that does not comply with these rules would lead to an infraction. This falls under the existing rules regarding changing moderator made edits or ignoring/disregarding a moderator.

Object|Rule
Maximum Total Width of Images|470px
Maximum Total Height of Images|120px
Maximum Height of Images in Spoiler|300px
Maximum Total Height of Signature|12 lines or equivalent (ie. 4 lines + 120px high image)
Maximum Avatar Size|50kb
Maximum Total Image Size (Avatar and Sig)|300kb
Animated Signatures|Not allowed
Animated Avatars|Not Allowed

Copyrighted Material and OotS Images
Using copyrighted artwork as an avatar is technically illegal unless you have the permission of the copyright holder. Even if the art is modified in some way, the original copyright still stands and you can't use it as an avatar. Rich Burlew has specifically requested that people DO NOT use his OOTS art as avatar image, other than those he has specifically provided as the default message board avatars. Also, please do not take, alter, or use the provided avatar images, comic images, or other pieces of Rich's art without express consent. If you want an OOTS-style avatar, there are many burgeoning avatar artists hanging around the Arts and Crafts forum who might make one for you.

Any avatar image that is found to be used without the permission of the copyright holder will be removed. If the creator of an avatar personally approaches the GITP staff and claims that their creation is being used without permission by another poster--as might be the case if they requested credit for the avatar and then were denied such--the Moderators will remove the avatar immediately. The first instance of this will incur a Warning, but should the member reinstate his or her violating avatar or create another avatar that also violates the rules, he or she will be issued an Infraction.

The total width of images in your signature may not exceed 470 pixels. This may be comprised of one or more images.

The total height of images in your signature may not exceed 120 pixels. This may be comprised of one or more images.

animated avatars should be allowed

just look at van

[*]Decide on either adding definitions in a glossary or axing the section

Potential expansion in "Section Five" to provide more information about mod actions. We're not expecting to declare how many warnings result in a ban, when warnings will expire, etc; but I do think we can explain things like nudging, soft warning, and hard warning a bit here. the questions would be whether it's helpful and whether it's appropriate or a CoC document (though it could slide into the "appendix" or "glossary" section, too).

Otherwise, there shouldn't be a problem moving a thread from the main M:EM to the Archive, right?

I doubt we're going to need anything moved or deleted from the Archivist's native boards anytime soon. The major bone of contention is whether or not fanfiction in general can be posted at all in AF&S, and I frankly don't see that debate being resolved anytime soon, so I think Luna and I will be hesitant to move anything around between the two. Otherwise, there shouldn't be a problem moving a thread from the main M:EM to the Archive, right?

Any actual modding I'm happy to leave to Ravenclaw, because frankly the idea that I will ever have time to police thread content is ludicrously unlikely. I don't want to speak for Luna but I'm like 99% sure he feels the same way, since he's the one who's been actually slowly, painfully transferring information from the old archives to their new home.

Hotlinking can be bad, obviously. I recommend using an image storage site if you're going to do it. However, I'm not aware of any legal issues with doing it in most cases, so I'm not sure if we need a specific rule for it. If anyone has any feedback on that, I'm open to hearing it, of course.