Recommended Stories...Part 2

In further news, it would appear that there was some forewarning and a substantial (possibly all) of the material was saved in time.

The community there seems to have migrated to an IRC channel.

#beastslair@irc.irchighway.net
#BLRefugees

These are the IRC channels that have been mentioned concerning this. Hope this helps.

Adult content isn't against the ToS. They used the following (incredibly arbitrary) clause:

There was adult content on that forum? Why wasn't I aware of this?

No, seriously, what kind of adult content got them killed?

oh dear Haruhi-chan. That's in their ToS? That's frakking carte-blanche to shut you down at any time for any reason - or no reason at all! Who would (knowingly) sign up under one of those?

Don't all ToS have somthing like that?

Yeah, I know, right? It'd be like posting on a forum where the owners

Apparently, The Beast's Lair.

Ah, but SB doesn't reserve the right to close "For no reason". If SB shuts you down, they are still required to say 'why'.

"Because we can" is a reason.

It's not a good reason, but it's still a reason.

As that comes from a Moderator (of a different forum), I'll beleive you. But we're all mature people here, aren't we?

Hrm, suppose I should recommend a fic....

A Study in Rum, a crossover written not only in the form and structure of the original works, but one that also checks so many facts that it makes my head spin. One example, the fact that while nowadays we know of 23 breeds of crocodile, however at the time of the original written series, only 21 were known, is not only noted, but correct. The stories so crossing? Sherlock Holmes (original Doyle mind you) and Pirates of the Caribbean.

No.

YAY! Now if he'd just update the jurassic park crossover....

Oh, that was delightfully fun, especially if you play the right musical accompaniment during the action sequences.

I kinda wish you'd not spoiled the crossover, since it's not revealed in the story until halfway through.

Holy shit. This is a hilarious fic. I'm laughing so hard that I've had trouble breathing after reading this.

Opening the Closet Door a Crack

Teen Titans/Lovecraft crossover

Requested to find a missing professor of anthropology, the Titans begin a descent into the darkness where dwell madness and evil. Mystery and horror await our intrepid heroes. As for survival, that remains to be seen.

I can't get onto the IRC website. My computer doesn't recognize it as a valid URL.

Anyone have any idea why?

I have to thank you quite profusely for this gem. I've had something of dry spell lately in updates for the fics I'm interested in so this was a nice way to pass to pass the evening, and its reignited my love of the tales of Sherlock Holmes to boot!

Because it's not a website. It's an irc channel. You'll need an IRC client.

They're handling distribution much like anyone does with IRC- they've probably got a bot you can query that'll DCC you the files you request. Or just a user that does it.

When they said 'moved the website to irc'- they were talking about the contents. There's not really any such thing as an 'irc website'

There's a difference between a Mod being able to close/delete/whatever a thread, and a web host being able to close an entire site though.

In theory, yes. In actual practice, not so much.

People can do whatever they think they're big enough to get away with. The only people who can essentially say no to that is those with the money to fight them (and the government). As most people don't have the money or sheer dedication/rage to fight things like that, people DO end up getting away with whatever they think they're big enough to do (provided it doesn't draw the eye of the criminal/justice system).

No, I mean, literally there's a difference. If a mod deletes a thread, most forum architectures save a copy of that to restore it, and in most cases the forum owner and other operators can do something. In the case of a webhost receiving a takedown request, there's usually very little recourse, and outside of other archiving services, very slim chances of any data being saved.

Yes, for most intents and purposes all ToS agreements have such a clause; either directly, via the "unbecoming" argument, or finally via the "we reserve the right to unilaterally make changes to the ToS and not warn you" portion of the standard boilerplate.

To get Terms of Service that do not include the third item you need the sort of contract a large business can get, which is expensive.

The first two are much harder to avoid and will cost a lot extra if you can get them at all - you will be paying the "he totally has to be doing something illegal" fee.

HOLY SHIT IS THAT A REC? I THINK IT MIGHT BE A REC!

We can still blame it all on Admiral Janeway: Let's Play Star Trek Online

Ensign Isshan Korvat is the first Cardassian in Starfleet, and almost definitely not a spy. Join him and his highly-trained crew of misfits and fuckups as they careen across the Alpha Quadrant, getting into trouble and saving the Federation.

Yeah, okay, kind of a weird choice I know. Still, as ST fanfic goes this solo-missions playthrough of the Star Trek MMORPG is... actually one of the better ones I've seen in a very long time.

I second that, it actually takes the missions and weaves a good narrative out of them, and it has a cardission trying to figure out if his roumlun underling is trying to deceive him.