FOSD-0.1 Guidelines

I apologize that the outline formatting got a bit messed up as I copied and pasted from Word. If you want the real correct formatting because you want to use it somewhere, email me at webmaster@the(RemoveBeforeSending)technicalgeekery.com.

EDIT: My outline uses the following headings, in descending order, if you can't figure out because of the tab order:
I, II, III...
A, B, C...
1, 2, 3...
a, b, c...
i, ii, iii...
--End EDIT--

FOSD-0.1 Guidelines

I. Purpose of Free & Open Speech & Debate

A. FOSD is designed to attempt to regulate crazy discussions on the Internet. There is too much off-topicness, useless flames, and more out there right now.

B. In addition, with administration tools like ban and delete, some administrators go crazy, deleting and/or banning anybody who has differing opinions from theirs.

C. Finally, we need a set of rules to go to in the case of a dispute between administrator and user over whether an action was justified. With nothing, the administrator becomes too powerful and can destroy the spirit of debate and respectful disagreement.

II. Reuse

A. If you like and agree with these guidelines, you may use them anywhere.

B. Conditions:

1. Be sure to include the text “Conforms to FOSD Version X.x” somewhere accessible to users, and provide a link to a full copy of the text.

2. You must actually conform to FOSD to claim that you do.

III. Allowed Topics/Posts

A. Terminology

1. The term “topic” will refer to:

a. Any single thread-starter post in a forum

b. Any status update to a social networking website

c. Any blog post

d. Any website update

e. Or anything else similar to this

2. The term “post” will refer to:

a. Any reply to a topic in a forum

b. Any comment on a website, blog, or anywhere else

3. The term “flames” will refer to personal attacks on another user.

B. Topics

1. You may post anything you desire, with the exception of:

a. Any topic that is clearly intended to be offensive to a certain group of people (jokes are certainly allowed).

b. Any topic that is located in an inappropriate spot for said topic (for example, a post about video games on a network administration forum). If there is a “general” section in a forum, follow rules about acceptable posts in that section.

c. Advertisements that are not posted with approval from a forum administrator (or unless you own the site)

d. Random content or randomly typed letters that have no good purpose and will only annoy people without providing any benefit to anyone

e. Profanity where it does not belong. If it is made clear that your website contains such content and you have a decent reason to post it, it is okay.

f. Plagiarized content. Sources must always be included when applicable.

g. Flames.

2. Topics that do not meet these guidelines may be deleted by an administrator. If you claim to conform to FOSD, post topics in violation of one of these, and a user calls you out on it, you must immediately remove said topic or your FOSD compliance notice.

C. Posts

1. For the purpose of this discussion, a post is a reply to a topic.

2. You are free to post anything except:

a. Anything that is clearly intended to be offensive to a certain group of people (jokes are certainly allowed).

b. Off-topic replies. Posts must have a direct and obvious connection to the topic they are associated with.

c. Advertisements of any kind.

d. Profanity, except where it is in response to a topic where profanity has been okayed.

e. Plagiarized content. Sources must always be included when applicable.

f. Flames.

3. In addition, posts must:

a. Have something meaningful to add to the topic. Posts stating simply “I agree” may be included, with the following constraints:

i. A debate must be close or tipped in favor of the other side.

ii. Signatures should be removed unless absolutely necessary.

iii. You must include who you agree with in the topic, or your post will be meaningless if there are lots of replies.

iv. You must not post things like this simply to increase your post count.

b. Include the name of the person you are replying to, and, if it requires scrolling to find the original post, a quote, if posts do not “stack”, or become indented based on who you are replying to.

c. Be understandable. If you include terms that some people may not know, be prepared to explain them.

d. Follow any and all rules set out on the forum or website you are posting on.

4. Posts that do not meet these guidelines may be deleted. Offenses in section 3, above, are not serious and merit the user receiving a warning or polite notice and only being deleted for repeated and annoying offenses.

IV. Administration

A. Terminology

1. The term “delete” refers to the removal of a post or topic due to it not meeting FOSD guidelines or the rules of the forum/website.

2. The term “ban” refers to the semi-permanent removal of a user's ability to access and/or post to the site.

3. The term “warning” refers to the administrator informing the user that he/she has done something wrong and should fix it, without taking disciplinary action.

4. The term “modify” refers to changing the content of a post, with or without record that such has been done.

B. Deletion

1. Topics or posts may be deleted only because they did not meet FOSD guidelines or the forum/website's rules.

2. Topics or posts may NOT be deleted for the following reasons:

a. The administrator disagrees with the personal opinion of the poster or the opinion stated in the topic/post.

b. The information in the topic is incorrect. A post should be added stating this, or an email sent to the poster informing them of the misinformation.

c. You're tired of debating something.

d. You don't want to get into an argument. State that and stay out of it.

e. It serves your purposes conveniently.

f. Any other reason not included in the guidelines.

3. Users who have had their posts deleted without a good reason should contact the administrator. They also have the right to repeatedly repost the topic/post, since it should not be deleted.

4. Users may delete their own posts at any time.

C. Modification

1. Users may modify their own posts at any time. Add what was changed and the reason for changing it at the bottom of the post after the word “EDIT:”. Fixing typos or grammatical errors that you notice later, as long as they don't change the meaning of the post, is encouraged and does not require adding the EDIT information. If you were unclear, fix it, then state what it said before and the fact that you fixed it after “EDIT.”

2. Users may NOT modify their posts because they were on the losing side of a debate and want to make it look like they were right and others were stupid. Users that do this may be banned immediately with no warning.

3. Administrators may not modify other users' posts for any reason.

D. Warnings

1. Administrators may give warnings at any time to any user for any reason. Before being banned, a user must usually be warned at least once; see the “banning” section below.

2. If a user has done something that merits having their post/topic deleted, the administrator should also send a message to the user stating the reason why their topic was deleted, so that the user does not believe he/she has the right to keep reposting his/her topic.

E. Banning

1. A user may be banned only under the following circumstances:

a. The user has been warned at least once, excluding insta-bans (see below)

b. The user has broken FOSD guidelines or forum/website rules and knows that he/she has done so.

c. The problem cannot easily be resolved any other way.

2. Provided that the above guidelines are met, the user can be banned at any time. The administrator should send an email or message, if possible, stating that the user has been banned and giving a reason for the ban.

3. Insta-Bans

a. A user may be banned without warning under the following conditions:

i. The user is attempting to crack, hack, or damage the site.

ii. The user is making it difficult for other users to use the forum by posting many posts of flames or random text in a very short amount of time.

iii. The user has previously been banned for another offense and has returned.

b. For all other offenses, the administrator must provide a warning before banning.

V. Flaming and Useless Discussion

A. Flaming is insulting personal attacks that generally have nothing to do with the discussion.

B. Users that are engaged in flamewars may be banned after a single warning. If a user wants to flame someone else, he/she is encouraged to take it up via email or a different mode of communication, rather than on the forum. Nobody needs to see that, and it just clogs up the forum for everyone else.

VI. Conclusion

A. Version Number: FOSD 0.1

B. Licensing: Free to reuse with listing of version

C. Next Update: Unknown

D. Enters effect: Upon adoption

--
Soren "scorchgeek" Bjornstad
http://www.thetechnicalgeekery.com

Microsoft is not the answer.
Microsoft is the question.
The answer is "No."