Chat Rules.... A Guide. (in General)

At the risk of finding myself in FORS once again, I've decided to weigh in on another issue I think needs addressing. There don't seem to be a basic guide to chat rules around. It would be nice to have a quick link Ops could refer newbies to when they don't understand why they've been kicked or warned and it would save a lot of breath (and spam) of people trying to explain the same rule a thousand times over.

So, I've spent some time tonight drafting a copy of Need-To-Knows for chat conduct. I've probably forgotten quite a few things or gotten my facts mixed up, so feel free to weight in.
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Chat Rules v1.0

1. First and foremost, all chat should be kept PG.
     People of all ages participate in Carnage Blender and we like to keep a healthy environment for everyone. This means no swearing or inappropriate/unnecessarily graphic comments. This includes abbreviations and masked/censored words. We all know that s**t does not mean "seat", and you are certainly not laughing your apples off. If you have to go out of your way to make it acceptable for chat, don't say it at all. Words such as "hell" or "damn" are acceptable in extreme moderation, subject to judgement from Ops present. More info on the PG-only rules can be found in the FAQ.

2. Your advertisements should stay out of chat.
     Anything that can be put in auctions should NOT find its way into chat (e.g. "Selling an Adam for 2.7mil PM me!"). This INCLUDES wanting to buy items (e.g. " hey ne1 have a toj im payin 200k!") Only things such as currency exchange (particularly CB2D to USD/neopoints/game currencies) and tattoo renting are acceptable and again, these should be used in moderation and they should all include the phrase "Please PM me." Never carry out negotiations in chat. Do not spam chat with ads, even if it falls into one of the allowed categories. Once in ten minutes, maybe.

3. Stop refreshing!
     When you use the "refresh" button on your browser with chat enabled, those of us in chat get to see this:

NewUser01 left the room.
NewUser01 has joined the room.
- new players: Welcome again, NewUser01
NewUser01 left the room.
NewUser01 has joined the room.
- new players: Welcome again, NewUser01
NewUser01 left the room.
NewUser01 has joined the room.
- new players: Welcome again, NewUser01
NewUser01 left the room.
NewUser01 has joined the room.
- new players: Welcome again, NewUser01

     If you insist on using the refresh function, you can right click the frame you wish to refresh and hit 'R.'* There is also a refresh link located on the left navbar that will reload that section of your screen without interrupting anything else. In general, however, it is best to use the navigation links to refresh what you want to see--just click it again. (*This may not work with all browsers. On the Linux version of Firefox, Right Click + R will refresh the entire window, not a single frame.)

4. No spamming.
     In the same vein as #3, please do not spam the chat. If someone isn't answering your question, try repeating it once, or PMing someone who seems to know what they're talking. The best course of action is to ask politely and be patient. The "new players" chat is there to help new players after all, and most people there will be willing to do so.

5. Harassment
     Harassment is the act of 'picking on' any other player. This can include be verbally abusive, insulting, threatening, or repeatedly PMing or chatmailing a certain player. If you are having a problem with harassment, trying using the /ignore command. If you feel the offense is serious enough you should contact an admin.

6. Miscellaneous
     Not everything can be laid out in rules. A lot depends on you using your common sense. Be courteous to others. Being obnoxious, argumentative, stupid, or abusive can result in an Op taking action.

7. Punishments
     Warning -- With the exception of an extreme infraction of #1, you'll usually get a verbal warning for your actions. Most Ops will give you the benefit of the doubt when it comes to the chat rules. We were all unaware of them at some point, after all.
     /kicking -- If asking you to stop doesn't work, the next course of action is a /kick. This will remove you from chat, and you will not be able to re-enter for about 30 seconds or so. This is basically a more forceful warning. You're not actually punished in any way. If you've been kicked but don't know why, try politely PMing the Op and asking why, rather than making a scene about it in chat.
     Fines -- Fines are used most often against people using chat to advertise their auctions/items. Repeated breaking of the FS/WTB rule will result in fines starting at CB$5,000 (the cost of a FT/WTB forum post), up to CB$20,000 or higher, depending on how often the rule is broken.
     /killing -- The most extreme form of punishment in chat. A /kill will render you unable to log in to Carnage Blender for 60 minutes. This is reserved for repeated offenses or extreme infractions of any of the rules.
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What do you guys think?

Not bad, really. But /killing is not the most severe punishment. One can be 48!ed (999!) and/or banned for being a chatiot.

Very well done :)

May I suggest that you talk Max into putting this up on cbplayers.com though? It's worth keeping but it's a lot easier to give the link if it's easy to find whereas searching the forums for this thread will be a pain.

That was my intention. Someplace easy to reference so you can say "NewUser01, please stop refreshing. Check http://blahbedyblah.com/blahblah/ for fur the rules to this chat room" instead of having to argue with them for 10 minutes about what they can and can't do. :)

Nice post Iceman

First and foremost, all chat should be kept PG. ? Really?

I thought only Carnage and NewPlayers were. And we could be as lude as we want in the user made rooms (as long as no one minds.)

You forgot, don't go AFK in any room except carnage, so if you're making a cup of coffee, turn off CB, or join carnage.

Another thing you're not allowed to ignore chat ops, and in turn they are not allowed to ignore you (or anyone).

In user created rooms there are no rules, other than no talking about illegal stuff and you cant go afk.

If someone is swearing to you in pm there is nothing you can do but ignore them, people can not be fined for not being PG in pms.

There is already a Chat OP guide that was distributed top chat ops about 3 to 4 weeks ago. Now that I have access to all the chat ops email addresses I will make sure they all have a copy. Once I get feedback I planned on putting something up. Things just take time. Be aware that these things have been moving along.

i wasn't aware we couldn't go afk in NP.

/me looks around and whistles.

You can idle in new players. sigh

You cannot idle in user made rooms for the sake of being idle. Otherwise we get too many rooms with single users in it.