I really, REALLY don't like it when people hide "hot dog" somewhere in paragraph 130 of their 627 post rules supertopic, then require you to include it in your registration to bee accepted. I've never actually been stung by it, considering I read other regs (and notice it) and generally make a point of reading every rule carefully, but I've seen people get burned by it and the admins go to town on them. What the hell? Susy Q didn't find two hidden words in your supersized rules, so -despite- the fact that she knows all the REAL rules and submitted a better reg than half of the current roleplayers coul;d hope to aspire to, you're going to boot her for not noticing that stupid little thing?

...

I also just got the idea of making people write "I fail" in their regs so I can agree with them, so while I'm giggling in girlish glee at my own douchebaggery, you lot can yell at me for missing the deep intricacies of the system or agree with me or choke on your tongue and perform a chainsaw lobotomy on yourself for all I care. I am curious to hear the reasoning behind the idea if anyone uses the system, though, because about the best I can think of is that it's a way to make sure people read all the rules... that, or that you love Hitler. I'd accept either answer.

{Mockery aside, I actually am curious}

I have a little password in my rules but it is not hidden and easy to find at the end of each rule. No one has ever had a problem with it. If people don't spot it when they post their application I simply ask them to read the rules and basically tell them there is something they need to include. I just like to know at least they have glanced over the rules, then if one is broken, they cannot claim they did not know.

I put on some of my apps "read the rules?" But then I don't put anything in the rules. So that people can't just ctrl + F it. :] People will actually read it, and if they PM me about it, they'll know that there is no password. xD

Oooorrrr. I put a password near the start. And then near the end I put "You don't need to put the previous phrase into your app, really; it's just to make sure you've read the rules."

Hey I like that. =P

In my site, at the last rule I said welcome and told them to introduce themselves after accepted, and I mentioned who I think is the greatest musician. And then I have a question at the end of the application that who's my favourite singer. haha xD

I know in some site they have some words that's so called out of the place in the rules. About four or five words and they're in different places... no any quotation mark " ", and sometimes those words are not in bold... I think that's the most different way I have seen. I just wouldn't join...

Or I would try my luck to see if there's any application that hadn't been accepted, see if the other had found those words. ;)

I do the same thing as Kwentra. I have a phrase, it's easy to find, and if someone misses it I'll gently remind them, and I have it there for the same reason. It's certainly not an automatic OMG YOU FAIL if an app doesn't have it. I just want to be sure people have at least had a look at the rules.

I just go the 'mean' route and say, "Too bad. Rules are there, you should have read 'em."

Hear hear.

I used to have a word in my rules. That was before I tried to join a site with the same thing and read the rules.. and read them again.. and again.. and then ctrl+F'd for the thing.
I'm blind xD I skim even without realizing it, so I pick up on everything but can't find things like hidden words very easily even if they're obvious (unless they're bold). So really it just drives me crazy, especially if I can't ctrl+F D:

Agreed.
That is why I have words "hidden" in the rules. Actually it is not hiding. If you can read through the rule you shouldn't have an issue finding the word. And since it's an RP board...you should be able to read well enough to spot things like

So really, I've not had issues with such. I just wanna know you read the rules like you are supposed to.

But at some places where rules are sooo long and with small font, there it might take me a few reading times till I find the word. However I'm willing to go through the trouble.

It's just annoying that people don't read the rules and then make mistakes because they presume something and then you have to tell them to read the rules ( which they most likely won't even do hence they make more mistakes...my god I'm cynical!). Amusing is that above the app code, at one of the forums I go to, there says "Do not post work in progress sheets! Only post when you are completely done!" I really mean in huge letters. And they still fail to obey this rule! It's impossible to miss that text. So there I am wondering what's wrong with them?

Amen!

I am not a fan of babysitting members, and I'm not going to play any games with them to see if they're paying attention. Most of the time it's painfully obvious that a member hasn't read the rules. I have the entire registration process outlined, including links to important topics, I have all the posting regulations and general information, everything is in there...so when someone sends me a PM saying "I need help getting started!" I just reply with "Read the Rules." Many boards have similar rules and processes, but they can't assume that for my board.

Keywords hidden in the rules is one of my RP pet peeves. When admin play those games with me I don't even read the rules, I hunt for the key phrase and that's it. I'm not a freaking four year old and this is not an Easter egg hunt! I just want to get my profile posted! :angry:

Something like that I wouldn't see xD; Not 'cause I don't read the rules. But basically I would 'You may not kill another player's character' 'expressly asks' 'kill' 'character' 'disappeared'. Then I'd move on to the next rule. It's really not something I do on purpose. I just totally ignore some words. But I would be able to see it if I ran through a second time actually looking for the codewords, which is 10x better than some sites. They're just way too hidden in the middle of big long rules that have more explanation than they really need.

That is understandable. I usually just look over the rules like that the first time too. Then I look through them again. And I don't feel it's a biggy. But yeah I've come across places with long long rules with the word hidden inside them and it is harder to find them.
I find it more annoying when people post odd riddles and then you have to answer that riddle and the answer is the codeword. :sweat:

If the rules are friggin' huge, forget it. I'm not reading them. I'll read the important ones such as posting rules and conduct, and I will skim for the password. But it's stupid. I agree. If people don't read the rules and do something wrong...they have to pay the consequences. That is their fault. I don't wanna sit around and read EVERY SINGLE LITTLE RULE to find that one friggin' word to finish my application.

Dude, me too -.- And I read the rules where there's a secret application or not. In fact, when I'm checking out a site, that's the first thing I read. No joke, I'll read the plot second. It's annoying, none of my applications have ever had the rules- I just wait until someone breaks them to inform them of whatever they need to be informed of. I understand why people would have a phrase however. I guess I've been lucky and graced with members that are decent.

I used to be one of those annoying types who had the secret password buried in rule number 12 and if you couldn't find it, it delayed your app's acceptance. With the opening of Owen's revival, however, we made a staff decision to edit that out and just have it as a separate rule. Rule number 13, the last one on the site, was to put the "secret password" in the Other section of your app.

Reading this thread though, I actually quite like Seanu's idea. With his permission, of course (check your PM box) I think I may just do that instead. It saves us admins from having to edit the password out of approved apps and stuff.

But why do we have one? The same reason everyone else does. We want you to read our rules! It takes only a few minutes and then you won't be constantly getting yelled at by staffers on the site. In fact, we very well may use you as an example to other members if you're good enough. :)

I should specify that IN MODERATION the idea could potentially be useful - it's more when abused and buried in a wall of text that I have serious problems. I detest the concept, butwhen done well at least I can see the reasoning.

Fact of the matter is, though, that you'll always have someone who didn't read the rules or claims to be ignorant. The only real difference between having used a password or not is more trouble on the way there.

I don't have that phrase because (personally) I don't find a reason to have it. If people haven't read the rules, it'll show when they begin to play. I tell my members up front that there is no secret phrase.

Oh, and secret shhh: I don't read the rules; I skim them. I look for important words and hidden phrases.

I was actually on the site where they had these incredibly hard phrases to find and it would take people days to get their application passes just because of the secret phrase. There were two parts: the phrase and some adendum and people could find the former but not the latter.

Me, it took me awhile, but then again I cheat and I see what other people are doing when all else fails. I don't recall them making fun of people for not finding it, but then again, I probably didn't care if the admin said something to me. Needless to say, I'm not on that site anymore.

*clears throat* *wise zen master voice*
Hidden codewords are a great power and with great power comes great responsibility...of making it reasonable. Without pissing off people enough for them to send ninjas after you. Which would be a Matrix scene waiting to happen.

That's where we differ greatly. I don't really care if people read my rules. Couldn't care less. I care if they break them. Having them actually written down where people can see them is just a safety net for me, so that I can reasonably enforce the rules I use to run my forum. You can never even glance at the rules and still not break them.

Long as everyone behaves, I'm a happy admin ^^;;

May I engage in consensual sex with you in the missionary position?

Failing that, may I please mother or father your babies and/or buy you a house in Hawaii or something?

Amen.

I think a codeword in the rules is useless. It doesn't make me pay anymore attention to your rules, just look for the word. Or if that fails, steal it from accepted apps.

In fact, if your app asks for a code word from the rules I probably wont join.

Just because a person read your rules enough to find a code does not mean they will actually follow them.

I have rules, as we all do. But mine are guidelines for what's expected of players and the very first rule is to have fun and let the admins know if there's something stopping the players having fun.

I haven't got a code word or phrase. I played for a brief time on a forum that did have that, and it's just so easy to skim the rules simply to find the code words... maybe easier to skim the rules to prove you've read them than to actually read them. And my rule page ends with my pledge as an admin: that I will try to be fair and impartial and will do my best to help my members.

I used to but not so much anymore. I only think it's worth using this technique if your rules are different from every other game out there. I don't mean one or two rules, but the majority. However, I do expect people to be kept abreast of our rules and breaking them, I'll directly quote. We don't have great variation but we do have some but I don't like having my time wasted by being given slews of information to read that is no different to any other game I've been on.

What I don't agree with is that whole deal about putting secret words into game information--whether it's species specific or plot specific or history or whatever. It will be very obvious if people don't read those sections and then apply for that character.

Honestly, I would be one to use a code word or secret sentence if I knew that it would really work. As someone above me mentioned, a potential player could just look at previously accepted applications and find the code word there. I've run two Star Wars games in the last two years or so, and I can't tell you how many (really bad at times) applications we had where it was blatantly obvious they hadn't bothered to read the rules. It's frustrating and more stressful for me and any co-mods to have to deal with when people fill out an application, only to have it turn out that they didn't read the rules.

And then when their applications are rejected, they have the gall to freak out and wonder why. x.x

I really don't care if the sites I join have a squillion code words or not. Being a good skim reader, I know that at most sites the words are either at the beginning or end of the post and then beginning or end of their rule. If I find one that's in the middle (which I personally prefer, because it's so easy to see when the flow of a sentence has been broken up. You don't even have to read the words, just see which one doesn't fit) then I know that's the pattern and follow that. So easy.

If I wasn't a good girl who enjoyed reading rules, I'd be able to get all the codewords from the rules of a place without actually reading a single rule. However, I do read the rules.

As an admin, I think I have just proved to myself that code words are pretty useless. I don't bother with those. I can't tell whether people break my rules or not anyway, because I don't know what they are. I can never remember them. I just bomp people if they do stuff I don't like.

Although Much put it in a very crude and inappropriate way, he's right in agreeing with Clipsed. Who cares if people read the rules? It's breaking them that we care about.

The words within my rules are highlighted on bold so you could actually pick them out without reading the rules, it is for my own peace of mind, at least it tells me they know where the rules are.

Then I can be tough on them if I need to be.

I love this idea.

I hate when an RPG is ~*OMG ADVANCED/INTERMEDIATE1!!!!1! and puts a secret password in their rules. IF YOUR RPG IS SO ADVANCED, SHOULDN'T YOUR ROLE-PLAYERS ALREADY KNOW THE RIDICULOUSLY BASIC RULES YOU'VE POSTED?!?!?!!

One would think that if the roleplay is advanced, the members would be competant enough to read the rules for themselves.

^_^ I agree. I would rather have people not read and not break than read and still break.

Right ... which further backs up my point?

If a roleplay is "advanced," members should be trusted not to be idiots. I understand an RP that operates different from your typical game wanting people to read the rules, but when I'm confronted with a set of rules that have become commonplace (no mary-sues ... blah blah) and the owner still wants to slip in a little password to make sure I've read something that (as an advanced role-player and not a beginner) I've read a thousand times -- well, it starts to seem pointless.

I don't care for secret words, my personal opinion. I don't like to take the time to think up some ridiculous phrase and then take the time to edit applications to make sure people don't just check those. Honestly I can't tell you if anyone's ever read any rule thread I've ever had. I can tell you I've never had to yell at anyone for breaking them. If you think about it, the rules on most forums are pretty basic and reading the same set over and over just gets tiresome. Don't be rude, don't curse all over the place, don't insult the members, listen to your admins, use proper grammar, etc.

I never liked reading them and so sometimes I do, if it's a site I know nothing about, and sometimes I don't until something comes up I don't know. Before PMing the admin, I'll read over the rules and the FAQ's and the other thirty thousand "required reading" threads. Come on, they all say the same basic things. Usually all I check for are character limits and cursing restrictions.

Although, I do have to admit, soemtimes I do enjoy "secret words". Sometimes admins misspell them after telling you to use proper grammar and that's just funny.