candybrowneyes
Active Member
- Joined
- Oct 5, 2008
- Messages
- 1,357
- Reaction score
- 4
Let me first say this is addressed to everyone who participates in the AD forum. However not every statement is directed at each of you. I posted this on TD's forum as well and I think it just helps as a little reminder the things that are alright and not alright. I have received pm's and emails about certain subjects, things people do in the forum and I am thinking that this might clear this up a little for some people. So with that being said, take this as something that will help this site to be better for many many years to come.
Thanks,
CBE
Be civil. No personal attacks. Do not feel compelled to defend your honor in public. Posts containing personal attacks may be removed and you may get an email from any of the moderators, it is possible to have conversations where you do not lash out on each other
Stay on topic. The AD forum is a busy place and it is very easy to get side tracked in a conversation, so please pay attention to the topic of your messages, and check that it still relates to the charter of the forum to which you are posting. Please take Off-topic discussions to email or IM or VP. This is probably the biggest complaint I get from people on this site.
Be kind to newcomers. Newcomers may be annoying. They ask the wrong questions, including ones that seem obvious (or whose answers seem easy to find). But lots of valued contributors started out this way, and treating newcomers kindly makes them more likely to turn into the valuable community members we all know and love (and cut some slack when they mess up). So while you don't have to humor them or suffer them gladly, and it's fine to point out when they make mistakes, point newcomers in the right direction in addition to turning them away from the wrong ones, and be kind to them in the process of correcting their transgressions.
Let sleeping dogs lie. It's tempting to revisit controversial decisions you disagree with, but it's rarely productive to do so, since it almost always results in the same heated, lengthy, and time/energy draining discussions leading to the same conclusion that was reached in the last round. Therefore, for issues already raised, discussed, and decided upon, reopen the discussion only if you have significant new information that would reasonably prompt reconsideration of the original decision.
Ignore spammers/scammers. Spam is all over the net and so are scammers. Nobody likes it. However, it is hard to avoid. Despite our best efforts, you will occasionally see spam and most certainly will see a scammer on AD. Please just ignore them and their emails and report them to myself, or any of the other mods (you all do a great job of this btw.) Complaining about spam in public increases noise, but not signal. It may make you feel better, but it doesn't help.
Trim your follow-ups. Do not quote the entire content of the message to which you are replying. Include only as much as is necessary for context. Remember that if someone wants to read the original message, they can; it is easily accessible. A good rule of thumb is, don't include more quoted text than new text. There is always a need for some trimming - either a salutation, a signature, some blank lines or whatever. If you are doing no trimming whatsoever of the quoted text, then you aren't trimming enough.
Leave grudges alone. It is very common here on AD where I see members who have issues from the past with another member or even in the present time. The cool thing about being online is YOU CAN IGNORE them. If you do not like something that someone is posting its easy, don't read it or reply. If you do not like someone do not make it known to the whole site. Leave it alone and the person you have issues with.
Thanks everyone and I hope this clears up some things for people. So if you say "I WAS NEVER TOLD THAT!" well now you have been lol
Thanks,
CBE
Be civil. No personal attacks. Do not feel compelled to defend your honor in public. Posts containing personal attacks may be removed and you may get an email from any of the moderators, it is possible to have conversations where you do not lash out on each other
Stay on topic. The AD forum is a busy place and it is very easy to get side tracked in a conversation, so please pay attention to the topic of your messages, and check that it still relates to the charter of the forum to which you are posting. Please take Off-topic discussions to email or IM or VP. This is probably the biggest complaint I get from people on this site.
Be kind to newcomers. Newcomers may be annoying. They ask the wrong questions, including ones that seem obvious (or whose answers seem easy to find). But lots of valued contributors started out this way, and treating newcomers kindly makes them more likely to turn into the valuable community members we all know and love (and cut some slack when they mess up). So while you don't have to humor them or suffer them gladly, and it's fine to point out when they make mistakes, point newcomers in the right direction in addition to turning them away from the wrong ones, and be kind to them in the process of correcting their transgressions.
Let sleeping dogs lie. It's tempting to revisit controversial decisions you disagree with, but it's rarely productive to do so, since it almost always results in the same heated, lengthy, and time/energy draining discussions leading to the same conclusion that was reached in the last round. Therefore, for issues already raised, discussed, and decided upon, reopen the discussion only if you have significant new information that would reasonably prompt reconsideration of the original decision.
Ignore spammers/scammers. Spam is all over the net and so are scammers. Nobody likes it. However, it is hard to avoid. Despite our best efforts, you will occasionally see spam and most certainly will see a scammer on AD. Please just ignore them and their emails and report them to myself, or any of the other mods (you all do a great job of this btw.) Complaining about spam in public increases noise, but not signal. It may make you feel better, but it doesn't help.
Trim your follow-ups. Do not quote the entire content of the message to which you are replying. Include only as much as is necessary for context. Remember that if someone wants to read the original message, they can; it is easily accessible. A good rule of thumb is, don't include more quoted text than new text. There is always a need for some trimming - either a salutation, a signature, some blank lines or whatever. If you are doing no trimming whatsoever of the quoted text, then you aren't trimming enough.
Leave grudges alone. It is very common here on AD where I see members who have issues from the past with another member or even in the present time. The cool thing about being online is YOU CAN IGNORE them. If you do not like something that someone is posting its easy, don't read it or reply. If you do not like someone do not make it known to the whole site. Leave it alone and the person you have issues with.
Thanks everyone and I hope this clears up some things for people. So if you say "I WAS NEVER TOLD THAT!" well now you have been lol