Rules of Participation

Welcome to the community of HP Developers. We are glad you are here, and we appreciate your thoughtful approach to the portal. 

We actually worked really hard to ensure that these rules say what they need to say, but in a way that everyone can understand. We want you to understand that when you create your account and accept the Terms & Conditions, you also agree to follow the rules below. (They apply not only to your posts, but also your profile, avatars, signatures, and participation in general.) The purpose of the Forums is to provide a community space to You, the Developer, to ask questions, get answers, and to share your own knowledge with others using HP's APIs and SDKs. We do not impose an age restriction on this community, so it is imperative that you understand the guidelines and commit to keeping this a safe and welcoming space for all. Thank you! 

The Rules

You already know The Big Three:

  1. No insulting or offensive words
    Remember, it is easy to be misunderstood in text messages. Biting sarcasm, joking jibes, innuendos, and exaggeration may not be received in the way that you intended.
     
  2. No personal attacks or derogatory criticism
    Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, was famous for saying, “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.” But he didn’t call the person “stupid.”
     
  3. Keep the forum "family friendly"
    We welcome developers of all ages, including pre-teen geniuses. Keep that in mind as you post and link. (Please do not link to adult content, even if the code is brilliant.)

​We also ask that you observe the following rules to ensure a safe and harmonious community:

  • Be respectful
    Respect your fellow users by keeping your tone positive and your comments constructive. Good or bad, your experiences are always welcome as long as they are offered in a courteous way. Respect people's time and attention by providing complete information about your question or problem. People like helping those who ask good questions.
     
  • Be relevant
    Make sure your contributions are relevant to this community and to the specific category or board where you post. If you have a new question, start a new thread rather than interrupting a conversation. Solicitations inviting members to join, participate in, or buy something are never relevant.
     
  • Obey the law and keep your word
    Don't post anything that would violate any law, or any contractual agreement that you have made.
     
  • Protect the privacy of yourself and others
    Don't share anything about yourself that you would not want to see on a road-side billboard. Don't post contact or other personal information (your own or anyone else's) or any content that you receive in one-to-one communications without the author's consent. For example, don’t post your computer’s serial # or contact information publically, and do not allow someone you don’t know to remotely take control of your computer.
     
  • Remember this is user-generated content
    You'll find plenty of good advice here, but remember that your situation, configuration, or use may vary from that of the individual sharing a solution. Some advice you find here may even be wrong. Apply the same good judgment here that you would apply to information anywhere on the Internet.
     
  • Think before you post
    You may not use (or allow others to use) your registration membership to post or transmit the following:
    • "Rants", "slams", or legal threats against HP, another company or any person.
    • Political statements or commentary.
    • Off-topic comments not related to a technical or usage issue regarding HP products and services.
    • Language that promotes illegal activity or discusses illegal activities with the intent to commit them.
    • Duplicate posts.
    • Hyperlinks that lead to sites that violate any of the community guidelines.
    • Any message that solicits or promotes the use of an illegal substance.
    • If you are an HP employee you must identify yourself as one. You must always be clear that you speak for yourself only and not for HP, and follow HP policy.
       
  • Do no harm
    You may not interfere in any way with the operations in the community or with a fellow user's message box, including, but not limited to, mail or "post" bombing, news bombing, other flooding techniques, deliberate attempts to overload a system, broadcast attacks, or attempts to avoid messaging blocking.
     
  • Do not artificially inflate community statistics
    There are several statistics in place that are used to measure the performance and overall health of the community. You may not purposely attempt to inflate a particular statistic in order to promote yourself in the community. For example, creating a duplicate account in order to acquire more kudos is prohibited.
     
  • Cooperate with site moderators and administrators
    You may not evade bans or suspensions or otherwise disregard directions from HP Developer Community moderators or administrators.

If you encounter violations of these rules, please notify us at hpdevelopers@hp.com.  

Our response to violations

Our moderators will enforce the Rules of Participation at their discretion. When the rules or other site terms are violated, HP may at any time and without prior notice:

  • Remove any posted message or thread
  • Delete words from posted messages
  • Ban the user’s account

HP may (at its sole discretion) modify these Rules of Participation.

Keep in mind…

  • Participants speak for themselves
    The content found in the HP Developer Community comes from a variety of sources, mostly from you – our community members. The opinions expressed in the HP Developer Community are those of their authors and not of HP or its subsidiaries and affiliates. HP makes no claims or representations as to the accuracy, completeness, or truth of any material submitted or found in the discussion areas. HP is not liable for any website links posted within the discussion areas. Website links posted in the discussion areas may link to sites not administered or under the control of HP so users open such links at their own risk. HP is not liable for any errors or delays in the content or transmission of postings on the site. Remember that you are responsible for your own decisions to act upon the information provided by community members.
     
  • Don’t share your user name and password
    We can’t tell the difference between you and someone else who is using your user name and password. Consequently, you are responsible for all statements made and acts that occur through the use of your user name and password. If your user identification or password(s) is compromised, or if you become aware of any unauthorized use of your account or other breach of security, you are responsible for promptly notifying us via email at hpdevelopers@hp.com.
     
  • HP employees hangout here too
    HP employees who participate in the community will identify themselves in their posts. They strive to help as many people as they can. However, due to the 24-hour nature of a global user-to-user community, HP does not guarantee that questions will get an immediate response.

Thank you for reading all the way to the end. For some personal appreciation of your thorough and thoughtful engagement, send an email to hpdevelopers@hp.com with the subject line: I read The Rules to the very end.

Return to the Terms & Conditions.