Quote - First off, Nothing has changed about the freestuff area here...any free item that is posted to the freestuff area has always been tested before being released to the member base..its not just about testing for trojans and viruses..its about trademarked items, copyrighted items, etc

As I said before, what's to stop the person from uploading the content of 1 file to the free stuff area, waiting for it to be approved and posted, and then creating a whole new file and uploading it under the same name? Until Renderosity starts hosting the free stuff files on their server, that will always be a possibility.

Quote - The freestuff forum was created for our freestuff providers to get more recognition, ask for feedback on items they are thinking of offering, have the ability of hearing requests from the memberbase of items they would like to see, etc. etc...

Members can still let others know about where cool freebies can be found..we just are not allowing direct dl links to be posted in the forums that have not went thru the normal testing protocols. I do not see the harm in this?

By the sounds of the FAQ even when the item is in free stuff you can't post a direct link to the item either. You have to post the link to your free stuff area here.  Which again....is redundant.  The file is in free stuff so why do we need a separate forum when the item is already in free stuff and readily visible if you go and look at recent uploads?

From the FAQ:

Q: Can I advertise/link to my free items I have on other sites here on the Renderosity Freestuff Forum?A: No, The Freestuff Forum is for our members to advertise their freestuff items offered only at Renderosity.

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Q**: Can I link directly to my free items that are hosted elsewhere in the forum?

A: No, members are required to upload their free items to the Renderosity Freestuff area so they can go through the proper testing protocol before being released to the member-base. Links found in the forum that go directly to the free item DL will be removed, and the member will be requested to place the item into the freestuff area before being allowed to link to it from the forum.

I fail to see the purpose behind a free stuff forum if you can't post direct links to your items and all items have to be in the free stuff area, even if the link is off site.  What's the difference if you point someone to your free stuff area and download from an off site link, or you post a direct link to the download? Same thing in my books.

"It is good to see ourselves as others see us. Try as we may, we are never
able to know ourselves fully as we are, especially the evil side of us.
This we can do only if we are not angry with our critics but will take in good
heart whatever they might have to say." - Ghandi