Want hosting... Read this.

Due to recieving an email on the matter of hosting, I just thought I'd post a little rant / advice / guidelines on applying for hosting.

First of all, I'd like to point out that BONG / OzLPN / FragFest providing you with hosting is a PRIVILEGE and not a right. There is a big difference. When we host you, it costs us time, and our sponsors money. The people who run BONG / OzLPN / FragFest give up their own time and effort in order to do these things. And surprisingly enough, we do have lives. We have education, work, leisure, jobs, family and what not to consider. We do not sit around at our computers 24/7 waiting on your beck and call to host you. If we do not get back to you, chances are we are busy. If you have waited a long time (Say... 2 weeks) send us another polite email. Don't demand that we reply, or host you this instant. Right now I should be doing assignments, but I'm taking time out to do this, in the hope it'll save time later. (Yes, I goto University and work, and about a bajillion other things, like all the other helpers and staff). So, when you would like to be hosted with us, here are some guidelines for asking;

a) Be patient. As you may have guessed from the previous paragraph, we do get busy. Right now I have an assignment due every few days. Also, we are providing a free service, so don't expect 24 / 7 tech support.
b) Use correct English. Okay, maybe I'm just an asshole on this manner, but I do not consider a request along the lines of "can u plz host us? thx" a valid one. Yes, everyone makes spelling and grammatical mistake... but if we have to decode your email prior to considering your request, it's going to take us longer to reply.
c) Try to acknowledge the fact that being hosted is not a god given right. There is no need to beg for hosting, but demanding hosting will get yourself a one way ticket to no-host city.
d) Be polite. This is probably a culmination of the prior 3. As I said, demanding a host is not a good idea. Nor is whinging something doesn't work. If we haven't responded to an email in a reasonable amount of time (Say... 2 weeks), send us another polite email and include the original.

Yes, I am an anal bastard however do not take this as a sign that we do not want to host you. Just have some respect for what we provide and for the people that provide it. I understand that we have been a little slow to respond to requests of late, but I have been busy, and so has the rest of the staff. After all... we have a LAN to plan.