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Simple reminders about posting on the Burg
A few simple reminders on posts material to the Burg, which we review here from time to time:
Check for duplicates before you post. We've had a number of these lately, so please check on the Burg, particularly if it looks like 'breaking news'.
Provide a source URL for your post. If you don't your post will be deleted. None of the moderators have enough time to look for the source of your post. And do not, repeat, do not, bury the URL in the text of the post with an [h ref] tag.
Shorter, not longer, titles. Remember, the http:// source does NOT go into the title. Snarky and catchy titles are fine.
| But make them explain what the article's about, please! |
File it in the right place. If it's about Burma, don't file it under 'Great White North'.
We focus on the WoT and matters related to the WoT. That includes general thuggery around the world such as Zim-bob-we, and the politics surrounding the WoT. The farther away it is from that, the less likely people here want to read it here on Rantburg. We assume y'all read other weblogs for the other news. Weird animal stories, of course, are always welcome: they go into the SAST as a 'non-WoT' item. But domestic issues in Australia, surface crawlers on Mars, and the general skankery regarding Paris Hilton shouldn't be posted here. Fred gets all the Brittany posts.
Opinion pieces go into the 'Opinion' category. Tricky, eh? This includes blog pieces. Some exceptions exist: VDH, Lileks, and Marc Steyn can go into any appropriate category. All the rest go into Opinion. And that's not an invitation for other blog-owners to post stuff in Opinion just to advertise their own blog.
| Opinion is also for your own original articles, for everyone, but especially for Rantburg regulars. If you have an opinion, post it there. And don't forget your byline. |
Please format the post. That means, help us make the post readable. Think of it as a chance to teach English composition to the MSM. Delete the fluff and the stuff we already know. If there are no line breaks, put them in. If there are too many line breaks, take some out. Some sources (e.g., BBC) think that each and every sentence should be a new paragraph. Other sources (e.g., myway.ap.news) think that an entire story is a single paragraph, three pages long. Some gentle editing to make a post readable really helps all of us, especially the moderators who then don't have to go back and re-edit stuff.
Your comments are in highlight (yellow) text. Start your comments on a separate line. Don't put a leading line space before or after.
Strikout text can be placed in-line in the text. Some here complain when we use too much of it. Unless you've got a sure-fire 'mad-libs' winner, use strikeout text sparingly.
Images: 250 pixels width for portrait, 300 for landscape or square.
Please compress. I know it's not always possible, but images should be under 20k. It's not the single image we have to worry about, but 80 articles x 20k. Too many images will slow page load dramatically.
On a case-by-case basis, max 600 pixels (width of the yellow comments box) wide for charts, diagrams, and maps.
I'd love to allow users to upload images, but if I did we'd be dumping 100k erectile dysfunction ads and pictures of nekkid 40-year-old teen hotties all day and not have time for any posting of our own. |
And as always, thanks for all your support. You make Rantburg a special place.
Posted by: Steve White 2007-09-29 |
