| Frequently Asked Questions
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General Site Questions
 Is A-U an "Arwen site"? If not, why is it called "Arwen-Undomiel.com"?
No, this is not an "Arwen site". An "Arwen site" is a site dedicated almost completely to Arwen (all Arwen content), and this site is definitely not like that. It's called Arwen-Undomiel.com because a long time ago when I was young and stupid I thought I would call my personal LotR fan site "Arwen Undomiel". If I had thought the site would grow into anything big, I wouldn't have given it such a name...but I didn't thing along those lines, and by the time I bought my domain name (arwen-undomiel.com), people already knew the site by "Arwen Undomiel". Now it's widely known as "Arwen-Undomiel.com", because most of the big name sites (TheOneRing.net, LordoftheRings.net, WaroftheRing.net etc.) have the .something on the end of their titles.
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A-U used to have such frequent updates - what happened?
I'm a full-time college student at the moment, and while I've been trying to update A-U during breaks, sometimes I need a break from both college and updating A-U. I do my best, and I apologize for the lack of new stuff :(
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I need to contact you; how can I?
Visit the contact page. Anything relating to A-U's community (forum, tag, chat) should be directed to the moderating team (moderators [at] arwen-undomiel.com [replace the [at] and spaces with the @ symbol]).
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I e-mailed your arwen[at]arwen-undomiel.com e-mail address [insert time period here] ago and you never responded!
I no longer use that e-mail address. After having it for years, too many spammers had gotten ahold of it, and I don't have the time to respond to individual e-mails right now.
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Something's not working! I can't access a page/a picture's not showing up/something else has gone wrong! What can I do?
If the something not working was mentioned in a recent update, please use the comment system on the A-U index page to let me know. Otherwise, tell me about it in the Suggestions & Comments section of the forum, and I'll look into it.
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Who runs A-U? Are there multiple staff members?
I do! I'm not a particularly interesting person, but if you want to know a little about me, you can stalk read about me here. A-U has a moderating staff of over a dozen volunteers who keep the tag-board, chat room, and forum clean for all of you. The lovely Alatariel wrote the cast biographies, and fans around the world contributed to the work in the fan section.
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Who designs A-U's layouts?
I do! A-U wouldn't be as special to me if I had someone else designing the layouts :)
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Does A-U cost money to run?
Yes, quite a lot in fact. The domain name (arwen-undomiel.com) costs money, the server costs money, the tag-board costs money, and the chat room costs money. The forum, however, is a free service.
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Is A-U non-profit? If so, what's with the ads?
Yes, A-U is non-profit, but keeping it running costs a couple hundred dollars a year. The ads don't make a lot of money, and don't even let us break even, but they help.
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How do I become a member of A-U?
Unlike sites such as Council of Elrond, A-U doesn't have a site-wide member database. However, you can register separately to comment on updates, talk in the chat room, and post on the forum. Becoming a forum member is as official-member-ish as you can get.
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How often does A-U get a new layout?
It used to correspond to the Northern hemisphere seasons, but I no longer have time to change it that often. The best answer I can give at the moment is "whenever I have time and inspiration to come up with something new that I think A-Uers will approve of"!
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What happened to the A-U newsletter?
Like most of the answers to FAQs, it turns out I don't have time to send it out anymore. Plus, by the time I stopped sending it, there wasn't much news to send out in a letter anyway. The best way to stay on top of A-U updates is to subscribe to the A-U RSS feed (go to the index page and click the orange RSS button at the end of the updates).
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What happened to the Vanyara Awards?
The Vanyara Awards were my brief attempt to start an awards site where other webmasters could win awards for their work. Soon after starting it, however, I realized that I didn't have enough time to update A-U proper, and that adding more updating responsibilities was a bad decision. The Vanyara Awards are currently on an indefinite hiatus.
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Are there any contests I can enter, since there aren't any up-to-date ones listed on the A-U Contests page?
Ah yes, the abandoned contests page. If you'd like to enter a few contests, check out the Contests section of the forum. Most of them aren't official, but you'll get a large variety!
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What server is A-U hosted on?
Steadfast Networks. A-U has gone through several servers (Angelfire, Tripod, and PowWeb) and switched to Steadfast a few years ago. We've barely had any problems with them, and they offer lots of hosting features for a reasonable price. Highly recommended.
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Can I use A-U's content on my site?
Here and there, but please do not copy entire sections. And please do not try to copy images directly to your own site; you'll receive a "Hotlinking has been disabled; please save this image to your own server" message.
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Can my site be affiliates/sister sites with A-U?
Sorry, but no. A-U no longer accepts affiliates, and its only "sister site" is a Pirates of the Caribbean fan site that I also run.
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Is He's a Pirate part of A-U?
He's a Pirate is hosted on A-U and I run it, but it's mostly separate from A-U. The only overlap is that Pirates banner claims get posted on He's a Pirate instead of in the Non-LotR banners section.
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Tag-board/Chat/Forum Questions
I was banned on the tag-board/chat room. I didn't do anything wrong; how can I get unbanned?
Sometimes you and the moderators will have very different opinions as to whether you did anything wrong or not. If you were on the chat room and swore, it would look like %%%%%, so you might not think you did anything wrong. Nevertheless, that's still swearing and is a ban-able offense. However, if you are sure that you did nothing wrong, e-mail the A-U moderating team at moderators [at] arwen-undomiel.com (replace the [at] and spaces with an @ symbol), and include your usual screen name and your IP address (to find your IP, go to http://www.whatismyip.com and record the numbers under "Your IP Address"). We usually give people a second chance, but if you've been banned before and need to get unbanned again, we can't unban you, because getting banned multiple times means you're breaking the rules. When you e-mail, please do not tell us that everything was the fault of the moderators; this will not help you get unbanned! If you are an AOL user and you get messages saying you're banned, this is probably only an AOL malfunction. To attempt to fix it, clear out your temporary internet files and restart your computer.
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Someone was breaking the rules on the tag-board/chat room. Where/how can I report this?
E-mail moderators [at] arwen-undomiel.com (replace the [at] and spaces with @). Include as many details as possible, such as the name of the person breaking rules, what rules the person was breaking, and (if possible) other people who witnessed this happen. We'll put the person in question on a watch list and try to ban him or her the next chance we get.
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The box where you enter your name for the chat room doesn't load. What should I do?
Try downloading the newest version of your browser. Older browsers don't load the chat room applet very well. Also, try waiting at least two minutes--the chat room can take a while to load. If that doesn't work, make sure you have Java installed. If you don't, you can download it here.
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I tried to register for a password-protected username on the chat room and never received the password. What should I do?
Go to the A-U chat room, click on the link for registering/updating a username, click on the Forgot your password link, enter your username, and your password should be e-mailed to you.
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Can I be a moderator?
Sorry, but no. When A-U needs more moderators, I invite members whom the current mods and I think would do a great job. If you stay on A-U long enough and are an exemplary member, you may be asked to moderate, but it's an invitation-only position. Please do not try to contact the mods or me to ask to be "modded"; the odds are 100 to 1 that we'll have to turn you down.
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Graphics & Site Help Questions
How do I get a banner dedicated to me?
If you go to the graphics requests section of the forum, you can check and see if there's a current "Banner dedications for claiming" thread. Banners usually get snapped up within a week after the thread is posted, so watch the weekly updates to know when the current claiming thread is up. These are pre-made banners: I do NOT take custom requests. Please do NOT e-mail me about banners, because I only take claims via the claiming thread.
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How do you make your graphics?
What software do you use?
For graphics, I primarily use Paint Shop Pro 7. I now use Adobe Photoshop CS2 for some things, and occasionally use Photo Impact Pro 5. Originally, I used Microsoft Picture It! Publishing 2001, and most of the older graphics on A-U were made with Picture It. I use Jasc Animation Shop 3 to animate images. For writing my HTML codes, I use NoteTab, a Notepad-like text editor. I used to use SmartFTP for uploading files; after SmartFTP ceased being free, I have used Core FTP. EclipseCrossword is my crossword puzzle maker. For editing and coding music files, I use MPEGSuite and Audacity. To make screen captures of certain scenes from the LotR DVDs, I use Cyberlink PowerDVD 5.
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What site programs do you use?
How do you get music on your site? How do you get this web effect? How about that one?
Where do you find all the pictures you use in your galleries and graphics?
Please see the bottom of the gallery for picture credits. In addition to the sources listed, I also browse lots of LotR-related forums that have picture threads. I screen-captured all of the pictures in the screen caps gallery myself, though. For non-LotR graphics, I usually find that actor/actress fan sites have the best-quality pictures from movies/photoshoots.
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How do you make screen captures?
I use the program Cyberlink PowerDVD 5, which you can buy for a pretty good price from Amazon.com's alternate vendors ($15 is a normal price). Using the Print Screen key unfortunately won't work.
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Will you help me with my own site / be part of my site's managing team?
Will you make me a layout? An affiliate button? Any graphic?
Miscellaneous Questions
Do you have any personal interaction with the cast/crew of LotR?
Where did you get the idea for the Sanity Is Relative avatars?
Who knows? I have no idea where I originally heard the phrase "Sanity is relative", but apparently someone named B.J. Zanzibar said "Sanity is relative. For some of us, it's just a distant cousin." I'd never heard that quote before I googled it just now, but it fits the LotR actors ;)
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