Poll: New forum rules - Yay or Nay?

[awesomeClaw]

So, there´s been an update to the rules. If you haven´t seen it, it´ll come up when you try to post.

So anyway, what does the Escapist think of this new set of rules? Yay? Nay? Don´t care?!

Personally, i think the rules are just as good as usual, but the whole forum health meter thing sounds a little unfair. I mean, you can NEVER get strikes back? That sounds kinda impractical.

Let´s be hypothetical here: Let´s say a poster reaches the last zone before a ban, but decides he/she doesn´t like to be banned and stops acting like a twat. 9 months pass with plenty of posts and not a single infraction, but then, this poster makes one post that could be classified as offensive/jerkish etc. And they´re banned. I dunno. Just doesn´t sound fair to me.

I voted "Some yay". If they got rid of the "Forum health meter" i´d be good. I don´t think infractions should be measured in this way.

 

[staika]

Oh that's what that was, I didn't read it I just signed it just like everything else that pops up on this site. But I don't hate the idea of a forum health meter since I never get in trouble and always make sure to keep my jerkish meter to a minimum while on this site.

 

[dfcrackhead]

New rules eh, I shall look over them and edit this

EDIT: Yeah I don't really care for the whole "Permanent probation" thing... It sounds really harsh. If you can duck and hide in CoD to regain health from a bullet wound, you should be able to act nice and regain your forum health. Like if you only have a warning or two, and you go a couple weeks, they should expire, or if you're on probation and go a month, you should go back to the end of the warning stage and then wait a week or two for each warning to expire, if you've received suspensions the time it takes to go back to probation, and then to warnings, etc should increase, but never be permanent. I've been on sites where it took me awhile to get a good grasp of the rules and I would screw up occasionally, or feed the trolls by accident and get a penalty, but I doubt if I did something now, that they would hold an infraction from 2 years ago against me.

tldr; The rules are good, but the new system of punishment is a bit too unforgiving.


EDIT 2: Just looked at my forum health and it's still holding a charge against me for something I did March of 2010(which I received a 3 day probation for and haven't gotten anything since, to the best of my knowledge)

 

[Vie]

I'm just wondering why ad-blockers are now rated at the same level as child porn.

I get that they fuck up the business model, but seriously?



And to clarify, I'm not advocating their use ok?

 

[Phishfood]

I must admit, its unsettling to think that simple slipups months appart can result in a permanent ban. Even points on your driving license aren't that harsh.

 

[MasterOfWorlds]

I don't think that you're allowed to post if you don't agree to the new rules.

Now that I have read them and agreed to them, I'm kind of wondering what constitutes "Perverted Remarks" because I'm screwed if you can't make those, most of my thread revolve around sex. XD

I also find it amusing that you're not allowed to call trolls out for being trolls.

I also wonder if, when it talked about subjects not allowed to be spoken of, when it said, "subjects including" if it meant that you can't talk about them at all, or if they just meant posts including the list thy provided afterwords. That would be useful to know, Escapist staff. If you don't clarify some of the wording, I suspect you'll see quite a few people breaking rules without realizing it.

Also, I wonder if warnings go away if you behave and promise to subscribe to the pub club.

 

[BreakfastMan]

I dunno, sounds pretty good to me. It will be interesting to see how it works out, but hopefully it will keep the trolls and flamers at bay.

 

[EvilPicnic]

I believe I have the same position on them that most people have:

tl;dr

 

[Canid117]

So wait? I am never going to go from yellow to green again? Or was that just poorly written?

 

[Woodsey]

"You farted too loudly last year and received a warning! And now you're about to be banned because that heinous act pushes you over the edge of your bar!"

Yeah, its quite stupid.

I am a fan of my rather hilarious situation concerning my FHM though.

And really, the mods aren't perfect. If one gives you a stupid sentencing that they then refuse to revoke even though you see it as unfair, as does everyone else in the thread, then that gets counted against you forever.

These all seem to be carrying over from a few months ago too where - if people remember - the rules went completely insane and people were getting probated left, right and centre. Even after acknowledgement from the mods that they were pretty unclear.

So wait? I am never going to go from yellow to green again? Or was that just poorly written?

Very much seems that way.

 

[Lopsided Weener]

Huh what's this? *quickly scrolls to bottom* I AGREE. Now I can post again. Yay.

I generally don't bother looking at forum rules, since I don't post much and don't consider myself posting anything controversial. If something that I'm about to post feels like it's heading into a greyer area then I usually take a brief look over the forum rules.

 

[GeorgW]

I like it, it'll make my job a bit easier cuz less people will complain about inconsistency. If you have any questions about the new rules, please address them here [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/chat/Moderation-Team].

 

[Small Waves]

What annoys me the most is that the strikes are permanent and several of mine came from misunderstandings. The health meter system is trash. Penalties should be determined by the content of the post itself and NOT the past actions of the poster, unless they have a long and recent history of rule-breaking. I think after several months of posting with no warning would indicate they have learned what is and isn't okay, but even the best posters will slip now and then. They should retract over time.

I have other issues:

posts written with the sole intention of irritating people

This could apply to exactly the type of content you would expect, but it could also apply to posts that mean no ill intention. I remember getting an infraction for a post back during the 2010 Super Bowl for posting the THUPER BOWL THUNDAY lol_comic for "flaming". I appealed and never heard back, so now I'm one step closer to a ban for posting something that I thought was amusing that also expressed my indifference for the Super Bowl, because a joke is now apparently as heinous as someone actually trying to start shit.

Pictures, Links and Videos
These will all be considered low content posts if not accompanied by a well thought out opinion, debate or reasoning. Pics, links and videos should help to strengthen your stance or opinion, not the other way around.

What about desktop threads, or music sharing threads? Those topics are driven more by links that discussion.

Our forums are a place to talk with like-minded people, not a place to advertise your blog, webpage, YouTube channel or commercial enterprise. Your profile has a place for such things, and that is where it should stay. If you fail to do this, you will automatically get a 1 month suspension.

Similarly, posts including, advocating, or linking to illegal or adult material are a very quick way to end your time as part of The Escapist community. An example of these are:

* Piracy
* Ad Blockers
* Illegal Drugs in the United States
* Illegal Acts in the United States
* Pedophilia
* Pornography
* Sexist, Racist or Perverted Remarks

Putting ad filters on the same level as piracy and CP is asinine. CP and pirating should NOT be put on the same level as racism (which is redundant to list since flaming has been explained earlier in the post) and adblock.

 

[DanielPowell33]

They seem a bit unforgiving, but like the first rule says, don't be a jerk, and you shouldn't have any problems.

Now, off to check my health bar!

EDIT: So it counts past probations. Oh well, that just one green for a low content probation I got a long time ago. But what if someone was already "in the red" before the new rules came about?

 

[Canid117]

So wait? I am never going to go from yellow to green again? Or was that just poorly written?

I don't think you will. The warnings that stack are permanent, it seems :/

Then I am probably going to be banned sometime in the next three months or so because I have a lot of minor infractions under my belt. I see much use of the ban hammer under this policy.

So I am now on 'yellow' for accruing far less probations than most users manage in a year?

Oh fuck this noise, way to completely neuter debate! Why should I debate a point when I can be probated for holding a contrary opinion if enough people report me? basically this "forum" is now an agreement machine!

I can force you to agree with me now? FUCK YES!! ABUSE OF TEH SEESTEM FTW!!! <---- Joke

 

[Daveman]

tbh other than this health system thing I think things will still be the same as they'll still have the same team of mods so you're still going to get in trouble for the same stuff as before. Just don't be a prick basically. At least not all the time. I act a prick a fair bit and I still haven't had anything happen since I was suspended fucking AGES ago.

 

[Sehnsucht Engel]

I do not like the new forum rules or the health bar system. A strong nay from me. I think the old rules was good enough. The new ones seems a little too much, maybe.