| Why is it that I can see the threads in the vines forum but I cannot post in them? |
| You must be a member to participate or post in the TTD Vines forum. To become a member, you must request a membership and be approved by the moderators. |
| Why do I need a moderator’s approval before I can participate in the vines forum? |
| We have had many problems with vines in the past: constant stalling & delays, rampant lack of communication, and numerous vines killed by irresponsible participants. In order to create a more efficient and enjoyable forum, for both the seeders & those passing along the shows, we have decided to implement a definitive set of rules, and require that anyone wishing to participate read & follow those rules. Those who can't keep up will be removed, and the rest of us will enjoy a more positive vine community. |
| I want to participate in vines. How do I get approval to join? |
Begin by reading the rules. Even if you have participated in vines before, PLEASE READ THE VINE RULES. Much like our bit torrent forums, the TTD Vines forum has a simple but specific set of guidelines: Vine Rules
If you can follow those guidelines, feel free to sign up...a moderator will process your request for membership shortly: Request Membership |
| What is a… |
- vine -- A vine is a growing chain of people that receive and send shows using snail mail. The only cost to participants is the price of postage (and perhaps a new bubble mailer if needed). It all starts with a Vine Seeder.
- seeder -- This is a generous person who wants to share a show with others without getting anything in return other than good karma. Anyone can seed a vine, just be sure to follow the format and rules for seeding below.
- tree -- A Tree is a way to spread a show to a large group of people using a structured B&P method. This was very popular before downloading to spread audio shows on DAT tapes and cassettes. Now it is more commonly used to spread DVD’s. It consists of a Seeder, branches, and leafs.
- branch -- A branch is someone willing to do a decent amount of B&P’s for the seeder. They will send out a B&P package for themselves to the seeder and when they receive it, they will ‘turn it around’. Meaning they will do several B&P’s for their assigned leafs. Anyone can sign up to be a branch, just keep in mind that this requires a timely commitment to turn around the show quickly. Please do not sign up to be a branch unless you are sure that you can do the B&P’s for your leafs quickly. It is a vital part of the tree. When a branch becomes broken a lot of time invested by the seeder is wasted and many leafs end up stranded without the show. There is no rule that you must branch to participate in a Tree. So if you are unsure about it. Just sign up to be a leaf. You can always offer up a few B&P’s right after you receive it to test the waters of doing several B&P’s at once and get on as a branch on a later tree if you find you have the time.
- leaf -- A leaf is someone who wants the show but perhaps does not have the time to ‘turn around’ many B&P’s after. They send out a B&P to their assigned branch for themselves. Many times during the branch requests there will be more than enough branches to run the tree and commonly the seeder will put you down as a leaf in they do not need you as a branch. Once again if this happens you can always offer up a few B&P’s after you receive the show.
- the process -- Someone will seed and set up a tree. They will usually post in the Tree forum a request for ‘branches’ first, and then later have sign ups for leafs. After this is all done they will post the tree structure and the tree will begin to ‘grow’ The seeder will contact the branches and give them B&P instructions. The branches will contact the leafs and give them B&P instructions. Seeders will vary on how they do this. When I seed I usually will get the show to branches before posting the structure. I have also branched on a tree before where the structure is posted before I had been notified to send my package. Either way will work, but if you decide on seeding a tree I highly recommend waiting to post the structure until the branches have the show in hands. This streamlines the process and eliminates the barrage of emails about it taking too long
side note: do not send multiple emails to the seeder or your branch, once the structure has been posted. Let the branch contact you. If you do not hear from them for a week or 2, maybe reply in the tree thread that you haven’t heard from your branch
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| How many vines can I sign up for? |
| There is no “maximum” to the number of vines you may sign up for. However, do not take on more than you can handle. Stalling a vine will result in a temporary ban [permanently if it becomes a reoccurring issue]. |
| Do I need to seed a vine before I can participate? |
| No. We all have something in our collection that others might want, so why not contribute to the community by seeding a vine occasionally. |
| How do I sign up for a vine? |
First, you must be approved by a moderator and added to the TTD Vines usergroup. Once you're approved and added:
- Go to the *last post* in the thread, which should contain the most current version of the list. If it does not, continue going back post by post until you fine the most recently posted list.
- Copy/paste the *whole* list [both N America & Int'l], adding your info to the bottom of the appropriate list based on your location.
- You MUST include your "TTD login name - real first name - valid email address - state/country"
A detailed explanation can also be found in the Vine Rules |
| I just got a vine in the mail. Now what? |
Update the thread by copying/pasting the most current list, and adding the "DATE IN" next to your name. Once you've copied the disc(s) to your computer, send the original discs to the next person in the vine. Again update the list as you did earlier, but with the "DATE OUT". Remember to always copy/paste from the last list in the thread, or you will be cutting people off!
A detailed explanation can also be found in the Vine Rules. |
| How do I seed a vine? |
To seed a vine, you will post a New Thread in the appropriate Vine sub-forum [Audio or Video]. All seeds MUST adhere to the rules, as defined in the Vine Rules. This includes:
- proper source/lineage info
- checksums
- extraction log [if ripped using EAC or xACT]
- both a N. American & an International seed must be offered
If you need help generating text files or the necessary checksums and logs, please email a moderator. |
| What are the Vine-killers/Vine-stallers lists? |
The Vine Killers List includes those users who, for one reason or another, have been deemed "bad viners" and been banned from the TTD Vines Forum permanently. The Vine Stallers List are for those have been put in "time out" and temporarily suspended.
A more detailed explanation can be found in the Vine Killers/Vine Stallers List. |
| My name is on the Vine Killers/Vine Stallers list. How do I make things right so that I may participate in vines again? |
Vine Stallers will be contacted when they're put on suspension, as well as when that suspension is lifted. If you feel that you have been put on this list unfairly, contact a moderator and we will be more than happy to discuss the situation with you.
Vine Killers are banned permanently. You may email the mods and explain the situation if you feel it's unwarranted however, there are always plenty of ways to avoid killing a vine, regardless of the situation. We have no tolerance for vinekillers and there will be no second and third chances.
With good communication, honesty, and a little bit of responsibility, you should have no problems staying a member of the Vines forum and you should never find yourself on the VK/VS list. |
| Is there a "good viners" list? |
| No. The point of the Moderator-approved forum is that everyone involved be considered a "good viner". Those who are not will be removed from the forum. |
| My computer died, I lost my job, my wife just had a baby and I cannot fulfill my vine obligations. What should I do? |
| Contact a moderator immediately via email. You will also need to update each vine you are signed up for by copying the *most recent list*, and removing yourself from it. If you receive discs in the mail and are unable to deal with them, send them on and ask someone else in the vine for a B&P. Failure to take these steps could result in your being removed from the TTD Vines forum. |
| What is re-seeding? |
On occasion, a vine might get lost in the mail, or the discs may become damaged or unreadable. In this case, the last person to have the vine will be contacted and asked to re-burn & send again. Anytime a re-seed is needed, please contact the previous person, as well as email the mods regarding the situation.
Note: if reseeding a vine, always use QUALITY neamebrand media. If you don't, someone *will* point it out in the forum, and you will be ridicualed, laughed at, and possibly reprimanded! |
| Why do I have to keep the original files until two people after me receive them? |
By participating in the TTD Vines forum, you are EXPECTED to re-seed a vine if needed. If you've contacted the person above you, and they can't re-seed it [or fail to reply within a few days], email the mods with the situation, and then contact the previous person on the list for a re-seed.
We encourage anyone who seeds a vine at TTD to also send a copy of the discs to the Vine moderators. This will speed up the process of re-seeding if the previous person(s) fail to, as well as takes some the pressure off the original Viner to "babysit" the vine. This, of course, is totally up to the Viner and is not required. |
| I am from not from the United States. Can I still participate in vines? |
| YES! Every vine will have two lists--a N. American list [USA & Canada] and an International list. For those not located in N. America, simply sign up under the Int'l list. There will be no Open list. |
| I am ready to send out the discs but I haven’t heard from the person below me yet. What should I do? |
| All TTD Viners are EXPECTED to contact the person above them *when they sign up for the vine*. If you haven't been contacted with an address by the time you receive the disc(s), contact the following person for an addy. There should be no "waiting for an addy" stalls...period! |
| The thread indicates that the discs were sent to me but I haven’t gotten them. What should I do? |
| Sometimes, a package can take a couple of weeks to arrive [depending on the distance, time of year, etc.] If after two weeks you haven't gotten the vine, contact the sender through both email & PM, as well as email the mods regarding the situation. If you still haven't received a vine after 3 weeks, its safe to say the vine has been lost and needs to be re-seeded. Contact the sender for a re-seed, and update the thread about the delay. |
| What if there is a problem with the discs when I get them? |
| Contact the previous person for a re-seed [both email & PM]. In addition, email the mods regarding the situation and update the thread about the delay. |
| A vine I seeded has died. What should I do? |
| Contact the mods via email. A re-seed will be worked out, and the vine will be promptly revived. If needed, the user who killed the vine will be put on the Vine Killers list, and removed from the forum. |
| I am the last person on the list for a vine. What next? |
Like some other vine communities, we have added a "No Wait Vines" sub-forum. This is for vines which are at the "end of the list", and therefore have no wait for them. This allows "late comers" a chance to continue the vine.
When you are the last person on a vine and have no one to send to, email the mods. Include:
- "No Wait Vine" in the subject
- a link to the thread
- whether you're the N. American or International list
Please be willing to hold on to a vine for a few weeks in order to give members some time to sign up. If no one has responded after a few weeks, and you need to close the vine down, give us another email to let us know to pull the vine and close it.
[email protected] |
| Is there some sort of contingency plan for keeping the vines moving if TTD should go off-line? |
| When you sign up for the forum, you are required to input your actual mailing address. This is not only to weed out vinekillers with multiple aliases but also to help keep people in contact with each other in case something should happen to the site. In the highly unlikely event that TTD were to go offline for more than a brief interruption, you can contact us at the vine email address for information. |
| I have a question that is not on this list. Who can I contact for help? |
Feel free to email the vine moderators whenever you have a question or concern. Please include all information and a link to the thread [if applicable]. We are here to help: [email protected]
You may also start a new thread, with whatever questions you may have, in the main vines forum (where the FAQs, rules, and lists are posted). |
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