Postcrossing Forum Guidelines

Welcome to the Postcrossing forum! :postcrossing:

The forum is a civilized place for discussion, as well as a shared community platform — a place to share our common interests through ongoing conversation. Think of it like a public park: a space that belongs to the community, and that we can all take care of together.

The guidelines below, together with Postcrossing’s Community Guidelines, aim to keep our forum a nice place to be.

The rules

  • Be friendly and respectful of other members. Always try to improve the conversation and set a good example for newcomers.
  • Be agreeable even when you disagree. Remember to criticize ideas, not people.
  • English is the official language of the forum, and this language should be used throughout the forum — except on the Language and Geographical communities, and on the Meetups sections.
  • The forum includes a messaging system for members to use. The messages are private, but please note that they can be seen by staff members for moderation purposes (for instance, when they are reported by a member).
  • You must comply with the admins and moderators’ requests. The forum staff team has the right to edit, move or remove any content that they find objectionable.

Keeping it tidy and friendly

  • Don’t post spam or otherwise vandalize the forum.
  • Don’t engage or reply to bad behavior – just flag it.
  • Don’t divert a topic by changing it in the middle of the conversation.
  • Don’t engage in country bashing, nor in religious or political wars.
  • Don’t post no-content replies (like “up” or “bump”).
  • Don’t create lists of good/bad members.
  • Don’t sign your posts — every post has your profile information attached to it.
  • Don’t use the forum to advertise a business or anything commercial. If you own a business or a shop, you can leave one link to it on the Elsewhere on the web section.

Forum games

There are many games and activities on the forum, like tags, swaps, round robins, etc. These are not official Postcrossing activities.

Before participating in any games on the forum, please be aware of the following:

  • Always read the games rules first (they’re posted in each game section), and make sure you understand them. When in doubt, ask questions first. Do not participate if you are unsure of how the game works.
  • New members may be stopped from participating in games if they are excessively signing up for them, until recipients receive your items. Start slow, to make sure you understand how things work.
  • Do not create new topics for games that are similar to games that already exist. Look for support from other interested members before you create any new games.
  • If you maintain a game yourself, do it in a responsible way. You are expected to update it regularly (at least every two weeks).
  • No discrimination of any kind is allowed — everyone who follows the rules of the game should be allowed to participate. Forum games may be based upon exchanging postcards or other items from specific countries or regions, or maintaining a diversity of participants, but they may not exclude participants or countries in a biased manner. The only exception to this is that you may exclude your own country/territory (as defined by the 2-letter ISO code) to protect your privacy. If you see any discrimination, you should report it to the moderators.
  • Be mindful of the private information, including addresses, that others entrust with you. Use it only for the purposes for which it was given to you. If you’re not sure whether someone is OK with having their information shared with another person, ask them first.
  • Be honest and honor your promises — if you say you are going to send something, then do it promptly.
  • These games and activities are done at your own risk. The forum staff won’t be able to help you if you don’t receive something that was promised to you. Postcrossing reserves the right, but has no obligation, to monitor disputes between you and other members.

Legal notes

Yes, legalese is boring, but we must protect ourselves – and by extension, you and your data – against unfriendly folks. Postcrossing has a Terms Of Service and Privacy Policy pages, describing your (and our) behavior and rights related to content, privacy, and laws. To use this forum, you must agree to both Postcrossing’s Terms Of Service and Privacy Policy.

We may amend the rules on this page occasionally. Please check this page now and then, to make sure you’re up-to-date on any changes. Last updated: 12 Dec 2020.

Have fun and Happy Postcrossing!