Welcome to the Synthetic Folk Web Ring

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Criteria for Joining

Because Rings are part of the Web, there are certain standard rules of "netiquette" that members are expected to stick to, which are summed up by the attitude "be excellent to one another". However, the rules for this particular Ring aren't quite the same as those on other "non-Adult" sites, because it is a fact of folk art forms, old and new, that they often deal with adult themes which some people find unsuitable for certain age-groups. You must remember that the Ring can be accessed from any of its member sites, which means that content should be generally suitable for users of all ages, and exceptional material should be clearly marked.

In addition, your site should have appropriate content. Possibilities include, but are not limited to,

• folk and/or techno archives
• folk/roots (or simply very old) material interpreted with advanced production technologies
• techno material interpreted in folk-traditional ways
• fusions of ancient and modern material and/or performance techniques
• discussion of relevant issues, e.g., traditional vs. synthetic instrumentation
• information about synthetic folk artists, concerts, etc.
• details of relevant audio-visual instruments and processing equipment

Note: Traditional Folk/Roots sites are acceptable. However you may like to know that there is an established Folk Music Web Ring. You can, of course, apply to both Rings if you feel you have something to offer to both debates.

In order to join the Ring, you must first set up your own version of the control panel (the box you saw towards the top of the index page). This goes on the page you want people to visit when they jump to your site from another Ring member. This is not a difficult procedure. Nonetheless, it is absolutely essential that the controls are configured correctly if you want to join the Ring, because errors can cause the Ring to break. Don't lose sleep over this. Before you can be admitted to the Ring, the Ringmaster will personally inspect your control panel to make sure it's set up properly, and follow-up checks are performed automatically every week or so.

Note: The RingMaster reserves the right to refuse membership if he considers a site to be inappropriate, or if he believes the controls to be incorrectly configured. He similarly reserves the right to remove existing members from the Ring if he believes their content or configuration to have become inappropriate.

Note: The RingMaster has no control over the content or structure of member sites. If you consider a member site to be offensive, please take this matter up with the owner of the site itself.