Title says it all.

"I check up on the site regularly for a few weeks, making my decision slowly, and eventually sign up."
That's me!

The options are either too extreme, or not me at all.

I just read up on the site a bit, more then a couple posts, I just read up on the whole thing. Look around. See what I can in the forums/site hosting the forums before I consider signing up. If I find that I like the forums after a couple days, and the site has something beneficial to my existence/attempts at taking over the world innocently selling cookies... I'll sign up.

Nothing there really encompasses me.
-Edit-
Besides 'Other.'

I usually come across a forum while looking for a tutorial, if the forum looks interesting and active I join.

Edit: Actually "I immediately send an email/PM to the administration asking to be a moderator/Admin."

I knew of SEN for about 8 months or so before I registered, and then I didn't post for another 2 months. It took me awhile to get active on maplantis as well.

But there have been a couple of forums that I registered for right away and became active on.

Usually I join, lurk for awhile, occasionally post, and then forget about the forum. SEN, Maplantis, and a private forum for some friends of mine are the only ones I've remained active on.

Following that, I mostly lurk or just disappear. ;o

Generally, I wait around for quite a long time before joining anything. If I go to forum quite often for more than a few months, then I might consider signing on. Either that or hang around unnoticed for months... before beginning my reign of terror.

Me be active on SEN, but maplantis never really caught my interest. I just download things there, I never even signed up. Though it came to my attention that there is a second Darkangel123 over there, I want to meet him. I might sign up for that.

Well.. I'm pretty active. Maybe read a topic or two to see the posting standards (SEN has the highest posting standards of any forum I've ever seen. It's frankly amazing. Maybe some political forum has higher standards.. but I doubt it.), check what kind of topics are common, and I usually have just about everything I need by then. I don't feel at home yet, but I feel safe to post freely.

Do I contribute to those standards?

I make an account straight away, but lurk silently for a while before I begin my reign of terror.

Now that you don't have fifty girls dancing in your signature, yes .

"I make an account straight away, but lurk silently for a while before I begin my reign of terror."
That's what I chose, I like how you worded it .

LURK MOAR is always a good idea.

Other-I usualy only sign up if I need something from the forum and I cant get it if I dont sign up.

*cough cough*

I only visit forums that I get information from, generally. I lurk a bit reading what I need to, when I need to. And/or when I have something to ask/contribute regarding the general forums purpose, I sign up. I won't sign up just to sign up, I won't sign up just to talk in random bs forums, etc. Not really an option for what I do (edit: I just now saw the other option... wtf ;o).

The only forums I've ever really been active at are Staredit and Maplantis. With SEN, I came to learn how to Mod, and ended up noticing something (I think it was an EUD topic) that I wanted to comment on, and thusly, I registered. After that, I just became more and more active. Maplantis just sort of came naturally when SEN went down, and I've been there ever since.

I've been active on others to different degrees. I have no idea why I even joined some of them - I think I was lonely at the time or something. Or drunk.

I don't know why someone would even want to be a mod/admin straight away... too much responsibility :S

I joined a bunch of forums but never actually are active 24/7.

Maybe you've guys have seen me dissapear on SEN/Maplantis at times, for a month or two. Then I get back into coming and posting. I don't know, I just go through phases. I do that a lot with StarCraft.

The only forums I've never stopped going to for like months are SEN, Maplantis, and NSider. Then NSider shut down, what a sad day that was...