Forum Rules

This Forum is part of uboat.net, the most comprehensive web site in existence on the topic of U-boats. Please note that uboat.net is an apolitical site.

Things considered off-topic are:

Being polite isn't considered off-topic. If you wish to thank someone for helping you that is fine.

Off-topic posts will be deleted by the forum moderators. Persistent offenders will be barred from the forum.

Troll posts - From time to time a Troll shows up on the forum. Their intent is to cause trouble, not to ask a legitimate question or provide an answer but to get forum visitors to squabble amongst themselves. Please do not reply to posts that you suspect are Troll posts. The forum moderators will delete them as soon as possible. If you reply to them the Troll wins. If their posts never get replied to and are then deleted there is no reason for them to hang around and continue doing it and most Trolls will just go away. Also note that there is one whose agenda is to discredit this site including the forum so he continues to post under various names. The forum moderators are on the lookout for his posts and they are deleted as soon as possible.

Troll posts aren't unique to this forum however this is an open forum and that makes us appear to be an easy target. We choose to be an open forum in order to help the largest number of people. A new visitor is more likely to post a question if they don't have to register first and questions and answers are the lifeblood of the forum.

Advertising - The main intent of the forum is to provide information on the U-boat war. In that light it is Ok to announce books, TV shows, articles, web sites, etc. (within the bounds of things not considered off-topic) that are relevant to the site. Persistent advertising or deceptive advertising is not allowed and will be treated as troll posts. None of us wants to wade through a bunch of advertisements but we all want to hear about that new book or TV special etc that is coming out to help answer our questions and that is the spirit that should govern any advertising posted on the forum. It needs to be relevant and it may be removed by the forum moderators if it is not.

As the forum grows with new posts the cost to maintain it and back it up increase too. Additionally nobody wants to find a bunch of personal communications or off-topic information while using the forum search engine. Those types of posts also slow down the search.

We all make mistakes and break rules occasionally and that will be tolerated (the offending post might be deleted though) but persistent offenders will have all of their posts deleted by the moderators regardless of content, i.e., they will be barred from posting on the forum as will all who are suspected of being a Troll.

This is a serious history forum and it needs to be perceived that way by new visitors and old hands alike. It isn't for socializing. If you want to discuss personal things or events not relative to this site then please do it by e-mail, not by posts on the forum. If the other person doesn't have e-mail and you need to contact them off-line you can make a post asking them to contact you. If you don't choose to give them your contact information or if they don't choose to do it off-line that is to be the end of it.

Additionally the only really stupid question is the one you have that you don't ask so please don't hesitate to ask your questions and please don't make fun of those that ask questions you think aren't up to snuff. If you can educate them - do so in a friendly way. Also keep in mind that our children are our future and make a special effort to help them when you can.

This forum is free and open to all who are willing to avoid obnoxious conduct and follow the forum rules, however it is not a chat room. Please try to be polite to all even if you don't agree with someone. Use common sense and try not to use offensive language. Also if you answer a question or supply information please try to name your source when it is practical to do so. Many times knowing the source is as important as the information itself. Share your information and your sources as you would like others to share theirs with you.

Before you post:
Please use the forum search engine before you post a question you think might have been discussed previously. If it is an old topic you may get a lot more information on it that way and not have to wait for someone to come up with the answer again.

Information on the site:
The information on this site has been carefully researched however due to the massive amount of information here errors and typos will occur and new information will be discovered as time goes by.

From time to time it is called to our attention that a piece of information on the site is thought to be incorrect. Please notify Gummi by e-mail and include your source if you think there is a discrepancy. If it is only discussed on the forum without also notifying us it might get overlooked by those responsible for updating the site.

It is one of the strengths of this site that it can be updated when necessary. However, any proposed changes also have to be researched and verified before a change is made to the site and that might take some time. I think you will agree that we would be remiss if we just made changes without verifying them properly. Please be patient. It is our intent that this site contain the most accurate information possible and thousands of hours have already been spent toward that end. Your input is vital in that regard so please help us accomplish our goal.

Instructions:
Click "New Topic" to start a new thread. Click on an existing link to view a discussion in progress. To reply, simply type your name, email address (optional) and message into the box below. Then click "Post" to submit your posting. To receive notification that another post has been added to the discussion, check the box for "Email replies to this thread, to the address above."

If you have any questions please reach us at forum@uboat.net