B.O.Y.S. General F.A.Q.

What Is the Purpose of This Site?

Boys On Your Screen is all about discussion and appreciation of "celebrity" boys. "Celebrity" means boys who have chosen to be in the public eye in some way. Self-promotion is desired and beneficial to them, or they willingly participate in some other public activity (but not solely on the Internet).

Please take note of the many useful resources here-–there’s much more to B.O.Y.S. than just the message forum!

This site is privately owned, free, and non-commercial and has no affiliation with any organization or commercial entity.

What Is the Definition of “Celebrity” Here?

“Celebrity” is defined here to include boys engaged in a broad spectrum of publicly accessible activities, including film, television, music, theater, dance, documentaries, fine art, sports, books, magazines, newspapers, and advertising. Generally, boys do not have to be entertainment professionals in order to be on-topic; for example, boys in the Little League World Series, on a television documentary, or in a historical photograph would all be appropriate.

Does the Message Forum Have Any Rules?

The message forum strives to be a safe and friendly place for all who share an interest in boys in entertainment. Therefore, participants are expected to refrain from any behavior that jeopardizes this atmosphere or diminishes the enjoyment of the site by others. More specifically:

• No abusive or harassing messages of any kind, whether directed at an individual or group. For example, hateful or intolerant messages dealing with sexual preference, political persuasion, or religious beliefs are not allowed.
• No requests for or offers of pornography or posting of web links to such images or sites. This is not that kind of message forum.
• No commercial spam of any kind.
• No offers or requests to copy, swap, trade, send, receive, borrow, lend, buy, or sell items of any kind. This includes requests for, or offers to provide, passwords to access-restricted websites.
• No requests that others send files (images or videos) to you via e-mail. It's okay to ask someone to post a particular image or provide a link to a video file on the message forum itself. It's also okay to privately send a request via e-mail.
• No links to individual webcams, amateur videos, or “family album type” photo accounts. Flooding those sites with visitors after publicizing them on B.O.Y.S. may cause them to be closed.
• No links or information about specific files available from file-sharing networks. It's okay to discuss the issue of file sharing in general, but please don't post information that promotes downloading.
• No posting of links to, or images from, on-line “modeling” sites or agencies. The owners of such sites are fiercely protective of their exclusive right to exploit their models commercially.

Is the Message Forum Moderated?

Yes. The hosts and several moderators keep a watchful eye on the message board. Participants are expected to use good judgment in the content of their messages in order to preserve the open nature of this board. If the moderators do take action, they will almost always explain the reason and make it clear that a post has been altered or removed. The moderators cannot always be present to deal with problems instantly, so it is helpful when other visitors post a warning if they see an inappropriate message.

Are There Guidelines With Respect to the "tone" of Comments?

Users are urged to please make an effort to tone down explicit or crude comments on the board. If unchecked those comments can adversely affect the enjoyment and security of others. There is no desire to stifle a general uninhibited spirit or prevent anyone from exercising their wit or behaving in a somewhat "naughty" manner. It's not possible to specifically define what comments are unacceptable, as that determination is a subjective one. We urge you to ask yourself what a person referred to in your post might think and act accordingly. More latitude will be granted with respect to comments regarding a late teen as opposed to, say, a six year old. Inappropriate comments may be edited or deleted at the discretion of the moderators.

Do I Have to Register in Order to Participate?

Yes. In order to participate you have to create a profile, which only requires a user name and a password. Creating a profile is easy, and no personal information is required or collected. View sample profiles. / Create a profile.

Posting under multiple user names is discouraged. Establish yourself and your personality, your likes, dislikes, etc. so that the other contributors will get to know you. Changing screen names frequently discourages the formation of your online identity and may confuse people.

What About My Security and Privacy?

Security and privacy must be taken very seriously by everyone: hosts, moderators, and participants. These are some guidelines to help you maintain your personal privacy:

• Your screen name should generally not be some form of your real name.
• If you choose to list an email address, you should use an anonymous mail service like Hotmail or Yahoo.
• Do not post revealing personal information or photographs of yourself or anyone else that you know.

In short: YOU are responsible for maintaining your privacy and security.

Please be aware that your IP address is logged everywhere you go on the Internet, including this website. The hosts and moderators have access to this information, but we only use it to help control spam and to deal with other disruptive posting behavior. We recognize the importance of keeping such information confidential. The Internet Service Provider hosting this site also separately logs the same information.

What About the Privacy of the Boys Discussed Here?

Do not ever post personal addresses, phone numbers, e-mail contacts, or any other private or identifying information that pertains to any boy appearing on this site.

What About Off-Topic Messages?

Off-topic posts are not entirely prohibited at B.O.Y.S. There may be special situations like major newsworthy events that some regular participants will want to discuss with other like-minded people. Please remember though, that many people enjoy B.O.Y.S. as an escape from the stresses of "real life" and may consider such topics to be an intrusion.

As a general rule, occasional off-topic posts are OK, as long as they don't cause lengthy and heated debates or insult-laden exchanges.

Note that any discussion pertaining to religion or politics is always considered off-topic. Posts having any political or religious implications will almost always be deleted by your hosts or a moderator.

Messages of intolerance and hatred are also always off-topic. Disagreements may be inevitable, but it is always possible to disagree in a civil and respectful manner.

Can I Display Pictures and Videos in My Messages?

Yes, the message forum script currently is set to permit embedded images or videos, linked from your own site or a file-hosting account.

However, please note the following:

• Images and videos are not hosted on the B.O.Y.S. server, except for one picture uploaded to your profile, if you choose to use one. See the B.O.Y.S. Technical F.A.Q. for information on how you can host images on other photo-hosting sites at little or no cost.
• Please don't "hotlink" to images on other web sites or albums. "Hotlinking" steals bandwidth, and may draw unnecessary attention if those sites are tracking who is using their bandwidth. It's usually OK to put a clickable link in your message, but "hotlinking" should not be used unless you're hotlinking to your own album or web site.

What Kinds of Pictures and Videos Can I Show Here?

As a general rule, current or vintage images from movies, television, books, magazines, newspapers, advertisements, and other public sources are welcome here, subject to the conditions outlined in the next section.

What Kinds of Pictures and Videos Are Not Allowed Here?

The B.O.Y.S. community reaches all over the world. Some countries have strict regulations prohibiting certain kinds of web site content. Because of that, we feel it is important to keep the forum as safe and "acceptable" as possible for everyone.

Therefore we do not permit images or videos that may be considered excessively sexual, obscene, or indecent. (It is possible to discuss such issues as nudity, but such discussions do not require sample illustrations.)

Images or videos with a political or religious message or context can run the risk of provoking an off-topic discussion. Such images or videos (including external links) may be deleted at a moderator's discretion.

Images or videos depicting violence directed at minors are also discouraged. Such images or videos should be accompanied by a clear warning in the subject line of the post so that those who don't wish to see such content can avoid it.

What Specific Pictures and Videos Are Not Allowed Here?

Photographs, screen captures, or videos showing explicit nudity of minors (front or rear) are not permitted. For boys, nudity is only an issue below the waist.

These are some examples of images or videos which are prohibited and will be removed:

• Images or videos depicting fully or partially visible genitalia (works of classical fine art such as paintings or sculptures are the only possible exceptions to this rule, at the moderator’s discretion).
• Images or videos depicting the subject posing in an overtly sexual manner, even if clothed.

Images and videos of non-celebrities are not allowed (see next section).

Finally, please be mindful of property rights when posting pictures or videos. Some sources have strong objections to having their proprietary images reproduced without permission.

What About Non-Celebrity Images and Videos?

Images or videos that do not meet the forum’s definition of “celebrity” are prohibited, for the following reasons:

• Non-celebrity photographs or videos might violate the subjects' rights to privacy. Just because the images or videos are available on the Internet doesn't mean the subjects have given their consent. "Celebrities" have given their consent to the distribution of their images.
• Seemingly innocent individual images are sometimes part of a series of photos that, if viewed together, would not be acceptable due to their source and content.
• Sometimes an image has been modified to add a sexual element, without the original subject's knowledge or consent.

Non-celebrity images or videos are usually not dangerous or inappropriate, but they often cause conflicts on the B.O.Y.S. message forum. They dilute the main purpose of this site, which is to focus on boys in entertainment. There are numerous other places on the Internet where non-celebrity photos and videos of boys can be readily found.

This rule of thumb can be helpful: If it is not possible to identify the person in a picture by name, that person is not a celebrity. When that is the case, consider the source of the image. If the image was publicly disseminated by some form of broadcast or publication, then the picture is potentially appropriate to share at B.O.Y.S. If it is merely a random image you found on the Internet, then it is probably not suitable. For example, an unidentified boy in an advertisement, televised in the audience of a sporting event, or depicted in a vintage or historical photograph could be acceptable to post. An unidentified boy in a speedo on a beach would not be suitable.

Are There Special Rules About Videos?

There has been a large increase in the number of videos posted recently. Because we want to maintain a clear and publicly visible distinction between those "celebrity" videos that are suitable for B.O.Y.S. and the amateur videos that are not suitable, a special requirement has been added. All videos, whether linked or posted instream, must be accompanied by text in the body of the message explaining how that video fits into the definition of "celebrity" as it appears in this FAQ. There are no exceptions; all messages with videos must contain some sort of celebrity definition. Some examples are the name of the featured actor or musician, the name of the TV show or (preferably original) film title, a suitable link to some outside reference source, or if none of these is possible, a brief indication of the source, such as a TV commercial. Even if the video includes an obvious celebrity, an explanation must be included. Downloading videos may be time consuming and providing extra information helps other visitors to determine whether they want to download a large video file.

When a video clip has been embedded within a post, posters are strongly encouraged also to provide an external link to the video file for visitors who prefer not to view the video in the embedded format.

How Can I Contact the Hosts and Moderators?

In an emergency situation or to contact everyone with a single e-mail, you can direct your e-mail to help@BoysOnYourScreen.org. A copy of your e-mail will automatically be forwarded to your hosts and to all of the current moderators.

You can send e-mail to your hosts at this address: admin@BoysOnYourScreenREMOVE.org.


Please note that e-mail sent to these addresses that pertain to the administration of the B.O.Y.S. site and message forum might be shared with the rest of the moderation team.

Please do not send us requests for pictures or links via e-mail. Any pictures or links that we are willing to share are included on this website. If you are seeking information about a particular movie, show, or performer, post your request on the message forum, since there are many knowledgeable people who may see it and respond.

If you are seeking for help with a technical issue, including such issues as how to post images on the message forum, consult the B.O.Y.S. Technical F.A.Q. first, and then post a general inquiry on the message forum. The regular participants are very happy to assist with these questions.

Can I Help to Run This Site?

If you have specific information to contribute, feel free to post it on the message forum. The success of the forum depends on open sharing of information, recommendations, reviews, alerts, and opinions.

Please contact the hosts if you have any suggestions for improving this site. Boys On Your Screen will be a continual work in progress until the day it closes.