Enough already!!!!!!!

Although it's not 'required' we push pretty hard to encourage an introduction as a first thread when members first sign up.

Is it possible for us to require an introduction thread before a new member can post anywhere else? Yes. But there are also pros and cons to that.

One of the cons being, some new members do join and immediately provide value in some way without first introducing themselves.

Another reason being, by forcing a member to post a thread that they don't want to post, that could result in introductions that are no good and do nothing but take up space. For example, "Hi I'm Jim, and I just posted this thread so I can post somewhere else". I would just delete that if I saw it.

So we do make it clear upon registration that an introduction is preferred/suggested, but we do not force it. More rules, even with good intentions, isn't necessarily always better.

In regards to picture posting and links...

To be specific, URLs in general (not just links) cannot be posted by new members. So this includes links AND images hosted at external sites like photobucket or imageshack or wherever, since both are URLs. The only difference between a link to a "webpage" and a link to an "image" is a different URL, there's really no way to differentiate between the two.

This is obviously to prevent spam and people who sign up just to advertise their websites.

This is one of the reasons why almost zero spam makes it to the forum for members to report and wait for an admin or a moderator to delete. Or worse, get fooled and accidentally click on a spam IMAGE posted by a sly spammer and end up on an untrusted website.

After a member has 2 posts, and has been registered for a full day, they will be able to use URLs (post links and images) in their posts. Assuming the member's first posts weren't deleted or removed for being spammy or irrelevant before then.

Although I certainly understand this frustration for new members, measures like this are in place to keep this community clean and healthy and valuable for everyone.