Documentation

Small F.A.Q

How can I be adviced when new material is published?
How can use styles with my writings
What does mean 3rd Theorem ?
What is a (good) DYK?
How can I share some DYK on my website?
How many are you behind spontex.org?
Can I copy stuff from spontex.org to my blog?

Guidelines about moderation

Three words about Spontex.org

Spontex.org started back in 2001 as a web community. Within the deep will to spread culture around the world, we supported DYK in the fight agains stupidity and ignorance. Please, fellow readers willing to share your thought with us, please do not rush on your keyboard. We have some weird habbits here, and it's quite vain to tell us what's right or wrong ! So let's groove together, have a large bath within Bidim and let your eyebrows lift!

How can I be adviced when new material is published?

Spontex on your iGoogle page	Follow spontexorg on Twitter	Become a DYK fan on facebook

Spontex on your android phone	QRcode to scan with your Andoid phone	RSS Feed of spontex

How can use styles with my writings

Nearly everywhere on this website, you can use "Textile" for the layout of your posts. This tool is brought in to help you to improve the global readability of your writings, but NOT to make your messages look like a Christmas tree. For example, it is still "forbidden" to use colours and in a general way to abuse of the layout possibilities. However, here are some tips on how to use it.

Write	Result
Quotes
bq. Cité blah blah blah blahhh blahhh blahh	Cité blah blah blah blahhh blahhh blahh
Code
bc. #include <stdio.h> int main(void) { printf ("hello world\n"); }	`#include <stdio.h> int main(void) { printf ("hello world\n"); }`
Layout
bold _italic_ -striekthrough- +underlined+	<bold italic ~~strikethrough~~ underlined
Links
"spontex("secret")":http://www.spontex.org "Must read":amazon:Yasmina+Reza "Super bouquin":isbn:2253147923 "à table !":imdb:Silence+of+the+lambs	spontex Must read Super bouquin à table !

Did you know?

A DYK is a true (thus verified) information which allows you to say something interesting in society. Therefore, the DYK has a visible effect on the eyebrow of the reader or listener by pulling it vertically with the lever "surprise".

There is no perfect rule to define what makes or makes not a "good" DYK. Generally, a good DYK dements a bias, brings a strange link to light, adds an odd information to a well-known fact, etc. But there are exceptions to this too !

You'd like to participate? You have the idea of the century and you really want to submit a DYK? Then it might be a wise decision to read the below documentation first. It will help you to better understand our editorial policy.

Below theorems are pseudo-guidelines which are meant to help newcomers to avoid making blunders. It isn't a strict obligation to follow these tips, however, do not be surprised if you get whipped because you didn't follow them or if they are used against your DYK.

Theorem 1 A "specialist" is not a smart talker : he is just boring. The information provided on spontex does not require particular knowledge in a specific domain to be understood.
Theorem 2 It is possible to deliver some information with a simple catchphrase, but for which the explanation is more complicated. Such DYKs may have their place on Spontex. When you want to be smart and repeat such information, there is no need to prove your case as long as the information you deliver is clearly stated. However, the Spontex team will always ask for an explanation of the DYK, so the details may sometimes seem obscure to the layman.
Theorem 3 On n'énonce pas d'évidences. Qui brillerait en société en disant que la glace fond, ou que l'eau bout ? Non, nous voulons une information qu'au moins 76,31 % (à peu près) des gens ne connaissent pas. Bien sûr, une information connue de tous les physiciens, mais d'eux seulement, pourra trouver sa place !
Theorem 4 Do not give the news. A DYK should be perennial, timeless, and will not give the time of the latest 100 m sprint world record, however impressive it might be. Something like that changes all the time, but Spontex remains.
Theorem 5 No unverified information is accepted. This means all information requires sources. Any subject, how twisted it might be, must be demonstrated. In some rare cases, the demonstration of the DYK can be left to the reader, as done for the "DYK about the feet", for example.
Theorem 6 If there is an issue with a DYK, i.e. when the moderators cannot come to an agreement on whether to validate or not a DYK, the decision to validate might be taken by the site administrator on an imperative and certainly unpleasant way for those who defended the opposite view. The management apologises in advance to those who this theorem applies to and hopes this will not happen too often.
Theorem 7 We can make fun of everything. Spontex not affiliated with any known religious, Nazi, economic, literary, political, anarchic or Holocaust denying movement at all. We always allow us to quote something as long as the other theorems are respected. Our DYK may shock sometimes, but as far as possible, they will be tagged as such. We apologise in advance to the tight asses and fanatics of all stripes: go to hell.
Theorem 8 The law applies. No DYK shall incite to racial hatred, to take drugs known as such, to commit a crime or to watch some private television channels with a name in three letters. All comments are property of the poster until Spontex sells them to the government. So thank you for sparing us any unfounded complaint!
Theorem 9 Everyone is entitled to make mistakes and you can always criticise us. To do so, leave your remarks and/or complaints by posting a comment on the concerned DYK. Our team of volunteer moderators will take time to read and give feedback to your message if necessary.
Theorem 10 Allthough true, all theorems cited are subject to the principles of general relativity. Therefore, if moderators inflict you a DYK that seems to violate some points mentioned in the present policy, consider this as a normal thing. This makes also part of the Spontex spirit.
Theorem 11 A DYK must be a coherent whole. The formulation of its detail should not imply that the reader will have to read this or that comment to understand it. This rule is essential for the distribution media that we do not control and which display DYKs at random.
Theorem 12 Moderators do not and can not know who submitted a DYK. It is originally an oversight, but we consider it better that way and it will not be corrected. The owner can choose whether to reveal his authorship during the moderation/validation phase or to remain anonymous. However, in some cases (well written duplicates, specific question to the author who does not appear, etc.), an administrator may call the author in order to give him a "good mark" or something equivalent.
Do not be paranoïd, we are not united AGAINST you!
Theorem 13 One source is the minimum required (with very rare exceptions). When one of your sources comes from Wikipedia, consider looking up if the references to which the Wikipedia article refers to are pertinent for the debate. Depening of the case your source is wikipedia, consider watching if references bring to the debate. Where appropriate, citing this source in addition to (or instead of) the Wikipedia source can be a good option!

In order to know more about moderation, permissions and moderators consult: Guidelines about moderation

Can I copy stuff from spontex.org to my blog?

Gather those informations took us a long time. Please do NOT copy this website : you can make quotes as long as you provide a link to the website doing so.