Some few ideas

1 - Write in EMOTICONS, we regret that not all visitors can read English, and fewer would rather read your verbose insane ramblings and foolish, wordy opinions, but everyone loves a smilie!  Avoid the use of text wherever possible, they will not do justice to the emoticons, but if you must use text, use MASSIVE FONT SIZE, BOLD, UNDERLINE and MULTI-FONT SUPER  FUN COLOURS (bonus points for ALL CAPITAL LETTERS for the sight impaired, and for the hearing impaired... haha i.e. SHOUT IT, SHOUT IT, SHOUT IT LOUD!) in your reviews. Remember to check your review for appropraite emoticon use -- a picture is worth a thousand words, so make sure you use the right smilie.  A poorly presented emoticon-based review can distract the reader from the smilie content. Reviews accepted should be a MINIMUM 100 emoticons, preferably substantially more, no maximum.

2 - While ratings without emoticon-based reviews are accepted, you are strongly encouraged to use emoticons to support your rating.

3 - Feel free to review as many discs as you like, and to construct your emoticon-based reviews in whatever way you wish . (Tip, try to vary your emoticon use as it makes your review much more interesting to read.)

4 - Use emoticons in an intelligent and considerate manner. Rude or insulting emoticons (including blatantly vulgar ones) will not be tolerated unless humorous and/ or artistic! Show respect for other reviewers emoticons. Do not belittle emoticon-based reviews posted by others, their emoticons are as welcome and valid as yours. It is generally best to avoid emoticon commenting on other emoticons altogether.

The following are examples of emoticons which should NOT appear in reviews: *EMOTICONS CENSORED FOR OBSCENITY* In this case it is better to use obscene words (in multi-coloured massive bold font of course) since words are much less offensive than emoticons such as the following {removed for explicit smilie content}.

5 - Do not voice general emoticons on matters such as whether a band/album/sub-genre should be included in the site, whether your emoticon agrees with the star rating system, etc.. Such matters should be smilie-discussed in the smilie forum. Keep the emoticon-based review pertinent to the specific album concerned. The reviews section is NOT the place for initiating or prolonging an emoticon flame-war.

6 - Try to post emoticon reviews that will be of real use and interest to other progressive music fans, who can benefit by finding new avenues for their musical exploration. Consider emoticons which will be of interest to the reader such as the style of emoticon, notable emoticons, similar emoticons, best emoticons (don’t just post a thumbs-up, or thumbs-down emoticon, explain with lots of emoticons what you like or dislike about it), production quality, musicians involved, album history, We suggest you listen to an album several times before writing an emoticon review. It can take a number of listens to Prog albums in particular to begin to appreciate the music and know what emoticons to use to describe the music in a reasonably objective manner.

7 - Remember that your emoticons will be on the relevant album’s page for all to see for many years to come. Do not therefore use emoticons with only the front page (which shows the latest reviews) in mind. Consider whether the emoticons will still make sense in 5 years time and more.

8 - Before assigning a star rating to an album, you should ensure you understand what the differing numbers of stars mean. Please use "one" and "five star" ratings very sparingly -- most albums you dislike will have at least some positive qualities, and not every album that you enjoy will be a perfect "masterpiece of prog".

9 - When quoting emoticons from elsewhere, ensure due credit is clearly given. Do not copy emoticons, or emoticon reviews, from other sources and attempt to pass them off as your own.

10 - Any impersonation of another reviewer will be treated as an abuse of the Prog Archives site, and the offender will be barred from further use of the site.

THESE GUIDELINES are designed to help you to help us build a comprehensive reference of progressive rock (and related) recordings. By posting an emotocon-based review, you are indicating your acceptance of the guidelines, and undertaking to abide by them.

A special THANKS from Prog Archives to all those who submit emoticons!

Useful links:

http://www.stupidsmilies.com
http://www.stupidersimilies.com

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http://www.progarchives.com/smilies.asp