Every City-Data forum has the requirement that posts within it be on-topic, meaning that the topic must fit within the subject matter of the forum. General US is considered a 'Local" forum and the requirements to stay on-topic in local forums are more stringent than they are in City-Data's general forums. The General US forum covers a wider range of local areas than other local forums at City-Data, so it may be confusing what should be posted here. To help you understand what should be discussed here, the moderator team would like to share the following guidelines.
What threads are On-Topic?
The General US forum is for questions that are both
not specific to any ONE state or city AND
not covered by the other City-Data forums. For instance, if you are looking for cities with sidewalks or cities that support artists, this is the place to post.
General US is the best place to post threads seeking
informational comparisons between
two or more areas within the U.S. and Canada. (Comparing North American to non-North American areas is not allowed in the General US forum.) If you are deciding between a move to Portland, Maine and a move to Portland, Oregon; General US is the one forum at City-Data where you can get feedback on both areas. (Since cross-posting the same thread in two or more forums is against City-Data's Terms of Service, that is your
only option within the rules for such comparison threads!)
The
City vs. City subforum of General US is the best place to post
competitive comparisons. If you want to enthusiastically tout the merits of your city in comparison with another city or cities, post it in the subforum. If you want to ask which cities are the best in some subjective category that
doesn't matter to folks who are relocating, ask it in City vs. City.
Threads that are negative in nature are not allowed, as by their very nature they invite posts that become argumentative and even hostile.
Thread titles should be descriptive. Titles that don't describe their thread's topic may be changed to match the messages in the thread. Please provide specific criteria; topics that are too vague (i.e., "Which state is best in your opinion?") are likely to be deleted.
What Threads are Off-Topic?
This forum is NOT the place to discuss
politics, transportation, automobiles, businesses, food and other topics covered by the General forums at City-Data. Many City-Data forums exist to discuss these issues, so any thread that covers those subject areas will be moved to the forum which covers that topic. To avoid having your thread moved unexpectedly, check out City-Data's extensive
list of general forums before starting a new thread in the General US forum. If a thread is not appropriate for
any C-D forum, it will be closed and/or deleted!
Skyline threads and discussions are not allowed.
Topics that deal with ONE location should be posted in the
local forum for that area. City-Data has forums for every state and many cities within states. If the section for a state doesn't include a forum for the city you wish to discuss, post in the forum for the state that the city is located in.
What are the Rules?
This is a moderated message board.
City-Data's Terms of Service apply to all posts here and it is the moderators' responsibility to make sure posts stay within the Terms.
If you see a post that violates the Terms,
use the Report Post () button to notify the moderator team. If you reply to trolls or insults with more of the same, you'll also be guilty of breaking the rules. Let the mods handle those problem posts.
When posting photos: Please do not post full resolution photos - resize them to around 800 pixels in size, more or less a few. Please do not post tons of photos in one post - try to limit them to around 5 or 6 so as not to bog down the thread for those with slower broadband.
Due to copyright issues, never post photos that you have not taken yourself. Copying pics to your own Photobucket account does not make them yours. When you post photos, please indicate that the photos belong to you. Photos from city-data.com and from wikimedia are allowed, but please indicate that's where you found them. If you want to post a photo that does not belong to you, you need to instead just post the link to that photo. Posts that are over saturated with too many and/or too large shots are subject to be deleted, and posts that contain photos that do not belong to the poster are also subject to be deleted and infractions given.
What makes a good thread title?
If you are looking to move to a new place, it is far more important to list the things you are looking for in the title of your thread than the place you are coming from. That helps members know whether they can answer your questions before they take the time to open your thread. Compare the following two example titles for the same hypothetical thread and decide which one tells you whether you can help before you open the thread.
"Looking to leave my state!"
"Moving from Idaho... Looking for a place with snowy winters, friendly people and good schools."
More detail makes a better title!