Thread: Why Do We Have Introductions?

Not just anyone can join Torrent-Invites; we're picky. Or at least, we should be. The Introduction forum serves as a major security feature of T-I. Our admins have provided us with many features and rules to keep us secure; but there is no substitute for a human with a brain. No computer can tell you whether or not a person will be an asset to the community.



It is extremely good to see a large number of member willing to devote their time to the introductions section. Nowadays, there are even more members, just reaching their 33%, who want to help out. Although I don't work the Intros section regularly, I have received some good advice as to the workings of the section.

Posts do not add to your post count
None of the posts in the introductions forums count towards your post count. If you work in the Introductions forum, you're only doing it for the good of T-I. Those who do good and careful work in that forum receive recognition over time, though. Their work is greatly appreciated.

The Two Party System
One thing I've seen work very well in the Intros is the use of the "two-party" system to rep people in. Members who are unsure about an intro or are simply new to the rep process can make a post, basically stating why they would or would not rep this person in. A more experienced user could then make the decision whether or not to rep.

Ratio Proofs and Answers
Ratio Proofs must be perfect. Nothing more than the first digit, username completely covered, etc. If any of the OP's answers need correction or further explanation, ask for it. If you're replying to an intro, you're part of T-I's security; you should feel free to ask these questions.

Hazards of Repping
If you rep someone, you are responsible for their actions (to a certain degree). If someone you rep gets banned, you could be banned yourself. Be careful of who you rep, and use the Two-Party system if you are in any way unsure.

All of this is not intended to scare you away from repping people in. Rather, it's an attempt to better inform you of what goes on in the forum. By all means, bring people to the site. But do it in a responsible, safe, and educated way.

The Two Party System
One thing I've seen work very well in the Intros is the use of the "two-party" system to rep people in. Members who are unsure about an intro or are simply new to the rep process can make a post, basically stating why they would or would not rep this person in. A more experienced user could then make the decision whether or not to rep.

I think thats a good idea. It's sort of like having a seconding vote. Majority rules kind of thing.

It has nothing to do with majority rules. If majority rule had anything to do with it we'd put each proposed member up for a vote instead of letting one person rep them in.

I end up talking to most everybody when they start working in intros if they're interested in learning how to do it and I always give them the following advice:

If you're reading an intro and you aren't comfortable working on it, then don't. You're under no obligation to respond to every intro you read just because it hasn't been replied to yet. Feel free to leave it for someone else to do.

Know when you're qualified to work on an intro and when to turn it over to someone else. Not everyone is qualified to work on every intro and that includes me. For example, if you see an intro from someone who claims to be a tracker mod, tracker admin, or tracker owner, you have no business working on that intro - and neither do I or any other member. That is a situation in which you immediately PM one of our mods and let them know about it.

If you're ever unsure about something, please ask! We're a friendly group here and none of us learned how to rep in by osmosis or became automatically qualified to work in intros because we hit 33%. Every one of us had people who took time to instruct us, to correct us and offer advice, who gave us shoulders to cry on and a sympathetic ear when we needed to vent, who taught us how to be courteous and respectful towards our fellow intro workers as well as the applicants. Just scroll down to the bottom of the Intro forum and send a pm to whoever you see working in there. We haven't bitten anyone yet!

What i was thinking of (from my own experience) is to have a little guide for people to read before they start repping people in... it should be hidden so new users cannot see how and why we do and don't allow some people into the site. (maybe make it so you have to read and hit "ok" before you can post in the intro section, and you can't read it until you hit 33%)

I'll start with this (rough) template to demonstrate what i mean

Introduction post requirements

How long have you been in the torrent world?

Brief answer, Must be filled out and understandable

Tell us a bit about yourself

Must be more than 2 sentances.
Must be understandable and not confusing
Must not contain personally identifiable information

Why Do You Want To Be A Part Of Torrent-Invites, What Can You Contribute?

Must be more than two sentances
Must be understandable and not confusing
Must clearly answer both questions

What Private Trackers Are You A Part Of? What Private Trackers Would You Want To Be A Part Of Someday?

No requirements (user may be new to torrent community)

How Did You Find Us?

Must be understandable and not confusing

Where are you from?

Must be understandable and not confusing
Must not contain personally identifiable information

What's Your Favorite Torrent Tracker?

No requirements

What Do You Use Torrents For? (e.g Movies, Music, etc.)

No requirements

What are your views on trading invites?

Must be understandable and not confusing
Must clearly state they do not support trading of accounts/invites

Ratio Proofs

Proofs must be above 1.0 ratio or an explanation must be given.
Proofs must be correctly edited in accordance with http://www.torrent-invites.com/intro...f-editing.html
Obvious fake/photoshopped proofs must be immediately reported to a Mod for thread closure

Speed Tests

Must be a direct link to speedtest.net image

My username is unique to this site

Answer must always be in the positive (YES)

I have read the rules and the secret password is:

Answer must be exactly as it reads in the Master Sticky

There may be a few things that need adding/deleting/changing, but you get the rough idea

Originally Posted by AfterMidnight

Posts do not add to your post count

WHAT no wonder i still dont have 200+ posts :)

good thread after midnight perhaps this way people wont start blatantly repping people in.

I have a suggestion to make regarding the proofs. Lately, I've noticed a few instances where the ratio proofs that were presented were either borrowed or stolen from someone else. I have also noticed that some new members provide ratio proofs that are cropped and not fullscreen - the problem with this is that you cannot tell if the proof is unique to that prospective member.

I believe that the existing requirement is for a fullscreen proof and that we should attempt to enforce this policy at all times. My additional suggestion is to make the prospective member put the date in the search bar (in the form of yyyy-mm-dd) of the proof. This would greatly reduce the chance of anyone using someone else's proof since it would have to be from that same day and would stand out like a sore thumb.

Discussion.

The first member to post in a fresh intro must quote the thread opener. We do this to log and track the changes from the first post to the last edit. We can use these quotes to increase the chance of catching dupe accounts before they are activated. Take Revolver for example, we can use the quotes to examine similarities between his posts, even if he deletes his first post.

Sam

Quoting an intro if you're the first responder isn't a rule per se, but we prefer that you do it for the reasons Sam91 stated above. Plus quoting also allows everyone to see subsequent changes that are made during the course of the thread.

Many of us would like to see ratio proofs changed to require full-sized screenshots. The rules currently allow for cropped shots so long as they include the tracker name and required information; however, we can request full-size proofs and ask that the person write something specific in the searchbar if we're suspicious for some reason.

If you find an intro using stolen proofs please neg rep it. Make a short post on the thread stating you did so and are turning it over to the mods - you don't even have to say why. Then pm a link to the intro to one of our mods.

And coldflame, we have info on how to rep scattered all over. But your idea of one cohesive guide is great. +rep for you.