Blue Green Grey Orange Pink Purple Red Red

Updates

May 21, 2007

Notice to all Hotmail users

Posted by Senior Staff [11:58 am] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

As you may know, TFL has been having a number of problems with sending e-mail to Hotmail.com addresses. After further investigation of this problem we have decided to ban the use of Hotmail.com addresses (and its sub-services, hotmail.co.uk; msn.com; live.com). This will affect all applications sent after Sunday May 20, 2007, and all future forms sent by Hotmail users.

Our issues with Hotmail are long-standing and no satisfactory resolution is currently in sight. Since we can not guarantee that TFL e-mails will reach our visitors, and because we have tried all viable solutions to fix this problem, we feel that banning Hotmail addresses is the only solution available to us.

We are in the process of informing fanlisting owners with Hotmail.com e-mail addresses of our problems with the service and how this will affect future interaction with TFL. If you do have a Hotmail.com e-mail address we request that you update your e-mail address at the Network as quickly as possible and supply us with a valid, working non-Hotmail address to list your current and upcoming fanlistings under.

To do this, please e-mail us at emailchanges@thefanlistings.org FROM your current Hotmail.com account, and include your new e-mail address in the body of your e-mail. Please do not use the Change E-mail forms — there is no guarantee that they will send you the appropriate verification e-mail. Please e-mail us directly from your TFL Hotmail account.

If you choose to keep your fanlistings under your Hotmail.com address:

  • You risk not receiving important network notices regarding your fanlisting and network changes.
  • You will not be able to apply for new fanlistings. Hotmail.com addresses will be rejected by our application form.
  • TFL will not take responsibility for non-delivery of TFL e-mail to your inbox. For example, if your fanlistings are troubled and the troubles notice does not arrive in your inbox due to our problems with Hotmail, TFL will not be held responsible if your fanlistings are removed from the network when no troubles response is received from you.

Please Note: We have done our best to contact the 890 Hotmail users listed in our database. If you have not received an urgent notice from TFL regarding Hotmail usage, then your e-mail address bounced for reasons related to: account inactivity, full mailbox, or invalid address.

We have included a full text copy of the e-mail behind the cut for those of you who have not received this message.

(more…)

March 21, 2007

Approval process

Posted by Senior Staff [2:05 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

We have recently noticed that approving more popular subjects can take a longer period of time than other applications, especially when staff members require other staff members helping out. This can take a few days to decide and may mean that applications are sent in when the ‘approval process’ has begun.

To ensure that applications are not sent in when the staffer is already deciding an approval, staff members will now list the subject in the database (as an upcoming fanlisting) as follows:

Subject – Approval in Process

So, it would appear: “Winchester, Dean – Approval in Process”. This will make things easier for you, our visitors, to see what is available, rather than spending time on your application if it is already being decided.

Please note: This does not mean we are limiting the time a subject is open. Applications for popular topics will be available for at least a week, if not longer. All we are doing is ensuring that applications are not sent in when subjects are already in the process of being approved.

December 12, 2006

Reminder: Number on upcoming

Posted by Senior Staff [2:13 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

We are wanting to remind applicants that TFL limits the number of fanlistings an owner can have on upcoming at any one time. The limits are:

– 6 fanlistings per category
– 20 fanlistings across the Network

These limits are to ensure that owners will finish their fanlistings in the alloted time, and to make life easier for everyone at the Network. Please remember that these limits exist and it is smart not to apply for more than 7 fanlistings at once, or more fanlistings when you already know you have reached the upcoming limit.

Also, if you apply for more fanlistings when you are at your limit the staffer may hold you applications until a later date (meaning you may not be approved at all if it is a popular subject) or ask you to chose which applications you want first.

The best thing to do is be aware of your number of fanlistings on upcoming. It will make it a lot easier for both the staffer and you.

March 23, 2006

Visitor Harassment Policy

Posted by Senior Staff [2:15 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

Staffers have always been expected to treat visitors politely. Visitors, for their part, are expected to treat the staff politely in return. However, although visitors can contact the senior staff with concerns about staffers, including inappropriate staffer behavior, until now, there hasn’t been any formal policy regarding visitor conduct towards staffers. As such, we have implemented the following guidelines:

If a visitor is harassing or abusive towards a staffer, the senior staff will be notified. “Harassing” or “abusive” mean something beyond snippiness or annoyed, even rude, tones. Generally, this means insults, foul language, or deliberate, stubborn refusals to listen to staffer requests. It can also mean repeated negative e-mails to staffers, either over a specific matter or over a longer period of time.

The senior staff will then determine whether the visitor has gone beyond mere rudeness. If this is the case, then the senior staff will formally warn the visitor about the incident and inform her that her behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the future. She will be told that if she has future problems with a staffer to contact the senior staff directly. Finally, the e-mail will also include what will occur to her if another incident occurs. However, if anything about the situation is unclear, we will contact the visitor and staffer(s) first and inquire about the situation before sending any warnings.

If a second incident happens, the senior staff will temporarily ban the visitor from applying for new fanlistings. The ban’s length will depend on how severe the two incidents were, when they occurred, and other relevant factors. The visitor will be informed of the length of the ban. She will also be warned that if she attempts to circumvent the ban (such as by applying under aliases), the fanlistings approved during the ban will be removed from the network. Furthermore, attempts to circumvent the ban may result in the ban being extended, or, if the circumstances are severe enough, the person’s current fanlistings may be removed from the network.

Any further incidents of abuse or harassment towards staffers will result in permanent bans and/or removal of current fanlistings from the network.

Although this policy may seem harsh, we don’t anticipate it being used often. It will be applied only in extreme circumstances. The majority of TFL visitors are polite, and even those who are not always polite rarely rise to the level of “abuse” or “harassing.” One warning will likely be sufficient to correct any visitor behavior. Once visitors have already been warned of the consequences, there isn’t any excuse for further harassment/abuse. We believe that though staffers are expected to deal with visitors maturely and politely, there are limits to what staffers must tolerate – even when the customer is always right, there is a point when managers step in and firmly tell abusive customers to leave the store.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this, please feel free to get in touch with the senior staff either on the board or via the contact form on the main site.

February 19, 2006

General Reminder

Posted by Senior Staff [2:17 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

This is a general reminder to all visitors that sometimes forms do not reach their intended recipients (the category staffer), through no fault of the staffer’s. If you believe that your form was not received (i.e., a category did a complete Finished form update but your Finished form was not processed), please submit a contact form to that staffer or post in the appropriate category forum.

Also, staffers are required to reply to all forms they receive. If you sent a contact form (not an application, finished/update/closed form, or a troubles report form) and do not receive a reply after 1-2 weeks, please resubmit your form.

Finally, please remember that there are often multiple staffers running a single category. They each have different jobs and do not have access to each other’s e-mail, so they may have no way of knowing that you sent a form/e-mail to a different staffer within that category.

January 17, 2006

Controversial Topics

Posted by Senior Staff [2:18 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

TFL has decided to monitor more closely subjects that may be of a ‘controversial’ nature. Subjects such as ‘Adolf Hitler’ and ‘Nazi Germany’ in History/Royalty and ‘Mein Kampf’ in Books are approvable topics; however, we feel that these should be carefully watched by staffers and trouble checkers.

From now on:
– Controversial fanlistings in the History/Royalty section will be labeled with ‘study of’ next to their name. e.g., ‘Hitler, Adolf’ will be renamed ‘Hitler, Adolf (Study of)’.
– Applications staffers will send a set of guidelines to owners who apply for subjects of a controversial nature outlining that fanlistings must be worded that they are only for the subject in a historical/academic sense, and not for the person etc themselves.
– Troubles staffers and trouble checkers will review these fanlistings to make sure they are not breaking these guidelines.

We feel that these are small steps that TFL can take that will allow us to calm some of the concerns of our visitors but still allow TFL to approve fanlistings for more controversial topics.

January 16, 2006

Reminder: Using domain emails

Posted by Senior Staff [2:26 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

We have noticed that many people have their fanlistings listed at TFL under domain e-mails rather than free services (e.g., gmail.com, hotmail.com, etc) or your ISP-given e-mail address. While this is perfectly fine with us, it can cause problems if your domain goes down, meaning that e-mails from TFL can go missing and create huge problems if you are placed on troubles.

If you want to update your e-mail to a non-domain account, please feel free to send in a Change of E-mail form: http://www.thefanlistings.org/changeemail.php or if you want to see which fanlistings are listed under which address, use our Your FLs List: http://www.thefanlistings.org/yourfls.php.

It’s your choice which e-mail you have it under, but we feel that having it under a free e-mail service (or your ISP-given e-mail address) could prevent you a lot of hassle in the event your domain unexpectedly goes down. Please also keep in mind that some free e-mail services may label e-mail from TFL as spam or junk, so regularly check your spam/junk boxes if you use free services.

September 30, 2005

Use of Aliases/Fake Identities

Posted by Senior Staff [2:27 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

For some time now, TFL has had concerns about applicants using ‘alias’ identities, submitting false information, and using other people’s URLs to apply for fanlistings. We feel that they do this because of fears of ‘staff bias’ towards them, or they have a large number of fanlistings (or fanlistings on troubles or upcoming) and this will enable them to get more fanlistings.

We are aware of several cases and have followed these up with the owners. However, we feel our concerns on this need to be made known to you.

If an owner is found to be using multiple aliases or another person’s information on their applications, their alias identity’s fanlistings may be unlisted from TFL. Repeated use may result in a temporary or permanent ban from TFL.

In order to avoid this situation, please stick to one name and e-mail address and only submit your own URL when applying for fanlistings at TFL. If you need to update your e-mail addresses, please send in an E-mail Change request form, and we will update those addresses as soon as possible.

We feel that submitting false information is unfair to other visitors and applicants and it is something that needs to be taken seriously (especially the use of another person’s URL or name). In all circumstances where this happens, action will be taken.

August 22, 2005

Inactivity rule clarification

Posted by Senior Staff [2:28 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

We have had a few complaints that our troubles e-mails were unclear for the ‘inactivity’ rule (updating once every 2 months). Currently there is no requirement in the e-mail to add ALL pending members. TFL.org feels that if you have 20 members pending then you need to add all of those pending members if you are on trouble for not updating. We have had a few occassions where owners have just added a few members without adding the rest.

Due to this, and a few complaints from owners saying that the troubles e-mail is unclear on this issue, we’ve updated the e-mail.

The Inactivity troubles e-mail now reads:

We found that you had not updated in over two months. We require that all fanlistings are updated at least every two months. To be removed from the troubles list, all pending members must be added to the fanlisting, and all update forms must be processed. Even if no new members have joined recently, you must still post an update every so often to say that nobody has joined. Something like this will do: “DATE: No new members have joined recently!”

Again, this isn’t a rule change – you have always been troubled for not updating a fanlisting in 2 months. This is just a clarification from member suggestions. 🙂

June 28, 2005

Double Approvals

Posted by Senior Staff [2:30 pm] (link)

This is a update of for the General category.

For several months now, TFL has discussed creating a rule on how we handle ‘double approvals.’ We have found that handling this has been quite difficult as it is often a mistake, but in some cases, applicants have tried to circumvent the rules.

However, we have decided that we need a definitive rule on what to do in these cases. From today onwards, this is our policy on double approvals:

If a double approval occurs at the network and the second approval is less than 2 months old, the second approval will be removed from the network. Both owners will be contacted regarding this. If the second approval is older than 2 months, it will remain listed, along with the first approval.

We feel that after two months, it would be unfair of us to remove the second listing, so have created this rule to cover those fanlistings that just slip under the radar.

Please note: This rule only is for double approvals that happen from TODAY onwards. Previous double approvals will remain listed and are NOT affected by this rule.

We encourage ALL owners to be careful of how their fanlisting’s name is listed at TFL, especially those of you that have fanlistings for musicians who may have separate stage names and real names. We often find that double approvals happen for subjects that have more than one name and when names aren’t spelt correctly. Please give our staffers ALL names for your subject, along with any useful information about a subject that can help us prevent double approvals.

Please give us an e-mail or post at the boards if you have any questions or comments! 🙂

TFL Network News Mailing List: Want these announcements posted to you? Join the Network News mailing list! All major changes to TFL will be posted there!

NULL

Support Us

TFL relies on donations and advertising to keep running. There are several ways you can help! Make a donation and get access to the TFL donators package or visit our advertisers. We also have a banner rotation for fanlistings and fansites. Every bit helps! More information can be found on the Support page.

Did You Know?

If you want your fanlisting to be listed in multiple categories (and it isn't already listed), then send in a fanlisting application form to each category. In the comments box on your application forms, please note that you are applying to cross-list your fanlisting in another category (include the category's name). Please keep in mind that you are not guaranteed approval in all categories.