The alt.comics.batman FAQ

This FAQ is meant to generate comment, so comment away! Please e-mail bbb@inverty.com or, better yet, post your comments to the newsgroup. (This FAQ is archived at http://www.inverty.com/bbb/faqs/acbfaq.htm.)

This faq consists of answers to several questions about the newsgroup alt.comics.batman. It's a great way to get to know what the group's about, if you've never visited before, and would like to get involved. If you have any comments or can think of any questions that should be added here, post away. The faq is archived at http://www.inverty.com/bbb/faqs/acbfaq.htm

1. What is alt.comics.batman?
2. How can I talk about a new comic without spoiling it?
3. Can I post pictures and sounds here?
4. I'm new here and a little nervous about posting. Should I be worried?
5. What do all those short forms stand for?
6. Can I post about Robin or Superboy here?
7. Can I post about my auctions, or items I'm selling?
8. How much is this comic worth?
9. Can I advertise my Batman web page?
10. Can I post fan-fiction?
11. What are all the GCPD posts about?
12. Are off-topic posts allowed?
13. Where can I find more information about Batman?

1. What is alt.comics.batman?

alt.comics.batman is a newsgroup for the discussion of Batman and related characters. Named ACB for short, the group was created in Usenet on June 19, 1993. Anything that concerns Batman is on-topic, with emphasis on the comics. Most of all, have fun!

2. How can I talk about a new comic without spoiling it?

When you'd like to talk about a recent or upcoming story, it's polite to warn people before doing so, so that you don't spoil key parts of the plot for them. Revealing info like this, large or small, is called a spoiler. Many people don't receive their comics right away, and they'd rather not hear about what's going on in them until they read it themselves. The way to prevent these spoilers from occurring is to include spoiler space in your post. To create spoiler space, follow these steps:
1. Indicate the name of the issue in the subject line.
2. At the start of the message, write "Spoilers for" and then include the name of the issue again.
3. On the next line, type one symbol (usually a period) then move to the next line, repeating the process for around 15-20 lines.
The following is a short example of spoiler space:
Spoilers for Batman #600
.
.
.
.
.
.
(etc.)
Once you have produced spoiler space, continue with your post as you normally would. Simply leaving a number of blank lines as your spoiler space isn't enough, because some newsreaders gloss over the empty space, pushing the body of your message to the top.

3. Can I post pictures and sounds here?

No, please don't. Image and sound files, also called binaries, are very large compared to text messages and take a lot of time to download. Because of this, many internet service providers will drop the group from their server, preventing people from posting here. If you would like to share your binary with the group, you have two options:
1. Post a weblink to the binary, so that those people who are interested can find your file elsewhere.
2. If the file is a graphic, you may post it in alt.binaries.pictures.comics, and inform people in ACB that you've posted images there.
Either of these options will enable you to distribute the binary, while ensuring that this newsgroup lives on as a forum for discussion.

4. I'm new here and a little nervous about posting. Should I be worried?

No! Though Usenet has the reputation of being somewhat of a nasty realm, ACB is a great, friendly community. We're relatively troll-free, and flamers seldom appear. If you've got something to say, please feel welcome to say it! Lurk for a little while, to get a feel for the place, then jump into a discussion. Introduce yourself, if you like.

5. What do all those short forms stand for?

A number of acronyms find their way into people's posts, here in ACB. If you see one you're unfamiliar with, don't be afraid to ask. Here are some of the regular ones:
ACB alt.comics.batman. People who post here are known as ACBers.
BB Batman Beyond (or Batman Of The Future)
BBB The Better Batman Bureau, the official website of ACB: http://www.inverty.com/bbb/Default.htm
BoP Birds of Prey
BTAS Batman: The Animated Series
CW Catwoman
DCU The DC Universe, where Batman and company exist.
DV Dark Victory, the sequel to The Long Halloween.
EW Elseworlds stories, which take place outside of regular continuity.
GA Gotham Adventures
GCPD Gotham City Police Department
GK Gotham Knights
HC A hardcover comic.
HQ Harley Quinn
JLA The Justice League
LotDK Legends Of The Dark Knight
MotP Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm, the animated movie.
NML No Man's Land, the epic Bat-story from 1999.
NW Nightwing
PF A Prestige Format comic.
RotJ The Batman Beyond: Return Of The Joker movie.
SC A comic reprinted in softcover format.
SotB Shadow Of The Bat, a cancelled Batman monthly.
TBC The Batman Chronicles, a cancelled Batman quarterly.
TDKR The Dark Knight Returns
Tec Detective Comics
TGBSET The Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told
TKJ The Killing Joke
TLH The Long Halloween, a 13 issue murder mystery.
TPB Trade paperback, a bound collection of comics.
WF The World's Finest duo, Batman and Superman.
Y1 Batman's first year or the comic that relates it.
YJ Young Justice
ZH Zero Hour, a continuity-altering event in the DCU. A list of general Usenet acronyms can be found at http://members.aol.com/nigthomas/asiindex.html

6. Can I post about Robin or Superboy here?

Robin is a member of the Bat-family and is on-topic. Basically, you can post about any character that is featured regularly in any of the Bat-books. Unless Superboy, or any other character who's not part of the Bat-crew shows up in a Bat-book, he is not on-topic in ACB. Posts dealing with other DCU characters should be posted in rec.arts.comics.dc.universe.

7. Can I post about my auctions, or items I'm selling?

If you have an item for sale, or up on the auction block, put an FS or FA tag in your subject line, along with a brief description of the item, so that people will know your post is an ad. Please don't post images of your item, but instead provide links to them. Posting the same ad for your item every day or two is inconsiderate. Servers don't delete posts every day, so there's no reason to put up repeat ads within a short period time. Please wait at least a week, before reposting the ad. Most importantly, if you have a number of auctions, please don't make one post for each item. Instead, list the links to all of your auctions in one post.

8. How much is this comic worth?

If you're wondering how much a certain comic is valued at, http://www.comicspriceguide.com has a searchable index that will give you an approximate figure. Most importantly though, the entertainment one receives from reading a comic is worth more than any dollar can deal.

9. Can I advertise my Batman web page?

Whether it's your Bat-site, or a place you've found that's really neat, feel free to include a link and let us know.

10. Can I post fan-fiction?

If you've written a story about Batman or any related character, you can share it with us, if you like. There are three options available to you:
1. Divide lengthy stories into smaller parts, so that when you post them here, they will be easier to read.
2. Post your story in alt.comics.fan-fiction, the home of comic book fanfic in Usenet, and inform us you've put it up there. Erotica is allowed there (not here), as long as it's properly marked.
3. You can post it on a webpage, and provide the link for it here. Stories are meant to be related, so don't be afraid to share what you've wrote!

11. What are all the GCPD posts about?

A few years ago, two ACBers created a fictional Gotham where they starred as police officers in the GCPD. They made posts of serial fiction back and forth, similar in style to the way campfire stories are told in groups. Since then, other posters have joined in the fun, creating characters for themselves, to produce an ongoing tale of the perils, pleasures, and people who make living in Gotham an exciting experience. If you'd like to read the previous GCPD threads, or are thinking of joining yourself, head to the GCPD Archive at http://www.inverty.com/bbb/gcpd/Default.htm

12. Are off-topic posts allowed?

ACB is a low-traffic group, so it's okay when a thread occasionally moves away from Batman. But please don't let it get out of hand. If your off-topic post veers out of control, just stop, move the discussion to a group where it's on-topic, or return the thread to a Batman discussion.

13. Where can I find more information about Batman? You're always welcome to post your questions to the newsgroup, but if you'd like to find some Batman sites on the net, here's a few to start you off:

ACB's Better Batman Bureau http://www.inverty.com/bbb/Default.htm
Warlord's Collected Issues Of The Dark Knight http://www.rasalghul.co.uk/
Patrick Furlong's The Dark Knight http://www.darkknight.ca/
Aaron Severson's Golden Age Batman Chronology http://ourworld-top.cs.com/argentprime/batman.htm
Jay Allman's Animated Batman - An Unofficial Guide http://www.scrye.com/~jallman/anbat/anbatndx.html

Home Page FAQs GCPD Archive Fan-Fiction Archive Links

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