~Be sure to check the bottom of this post for updates~

Forum Rules

Section I: The Staff - Administrators and Moderators

Also known as the "Protectors" of a forum, it is the staff's responsibilty to maintain
a healthy environment for all posters. Problems are not avoidable, and when they happen,
the new approach of eliminating the cause of the problem will be taken rather than
bannings if the problem becomes so severe.

Examples:

-Poster A, after being warned not to post explicit images, will have their image posting
privileges taken away.

-Poster B, after being warned not to include an avatar that is causing a disturbance on the board (nudity, etc), will have their avatar privileges taken away.

-Poster C, after being warned about Live Chat behavior, is banned from using the feature for two weeks.

The time frame for any situation will depend on that indivudual case, but it most cases,
will last for two weeks and double each time the same poster decides to break the rule
again in the future. 14 days > 30 days > 60 days > 120 days, etc.




Section II: Diciplinary Action - Warnings/Bannings

You see problems all the time on a forum. They will never go away, so the best way to
deal with these problems is to contain them.

-Each poster is allowed two warnings before any further action will take place.
-When a moderator warns a user, they must document the case in the specified locked thread within "The Site" explaining why the user was warned, and then create a public thread regarding the decision.
-When a user reaches two warnings, moderators must discuss within the staff forum what action must be taken depending on the indivudual circumstances. 1) Suspend the user for a specified time frame. 2) Disable the users ability to: A - Create threads, B - Use a signature, C - Use an avatar, D - Use of BBcodes, E - Post within a certain forum, or F - Ban the user.
-Bannings (1st Offense - 14 days), (2nd -30 days), (3rd - 60 days), (4th - 120 days), etc. Posters know what they are doing.
-All moderators must agree on the action taken.
-If a user has displayed fine behavoir for 60 days, their warnings will expire.

-The above will apply to the LIVE CHAT feature when/if we can add it to the forum.




Section III: Information for all Users

It is very imporant for a member to contact a moderator/adminstrator of their concerns.
Often times forum confrontation can be avoided if concerns are brought to the attention
of the staff early on.

-Users are encouraged to report issues they see on the forums.
-Users are also encouraged not to engage in conflict before contacting a staff member.
-Users are not permitted to release personal information about fellow members on the board
in public. Personal Issues have no place on a Public Forum and will not be tolerated.
-Users are allowed however to release personal information concerning themselves, but
will be held responsible of any circumstance that may arise from doing so
-Don't Spam. Basically posts or threads that contribute nothing that are in the wrong forum sections. Or multiple posts/threads about the same topic.
-Don't create multiple accounts. You have one. If you are banned and try to avoid the ban by creating or using another account, it will only result in further diciplinary action being taken.


Staff's Role:

-Each moderator will be required to be visible when they are online.
-Moderators will be required to handle complaints or questions sent to them unless they are unsure of what to do, in which case, they will go over the issue with the fellow moderators to reach a decision.
-Moderators are required to document user issues in the staff forum, explaining what the problem was, and how they corrected that problem.
-Moderators are NOT to reveal the names of those users for privacy reasons. They will be documented using a number system.
-Users will be encouraged to question all moderators, and it will be expected of the moderators to answer the concerned users in public.




Section IV: Behavoir and Attitude

Behavior includes personal attacks, language, and profanity.

It's very impotant to have an open environment on a forum, but somtimes action must be taken in abusive cases.

-Personal Attacks are strongly discouraged. They add little to nothing to the discussion
on the forum, and will be handled as soon as they become apparant rather than waiting to
see what turn the situation takes. Personal attacks unrelated to the topic of discussion
will not be tolerated and it's HIGHLY encouraged users contact a staff member about
them rather than engaging in the harmful discussion. Arguments will happen, and the
staff will try to discover a way for any posters involved to settle the disagreement.
The Staff will work with the users involved, not against them, and it's encouraged users
do the same.

-The Staff recognizes that certain language will be a part of the forum, but when that
language becomes a threat to the forum's environment, it's their duty to step in and resolve
the situation.

-Profanity is the same way, everyone is free to express themselves using profanity, but
if it's abused, and becomes a threat to the health of the forum (users complaints, arguments
becoming more heated, etc.) the staff will step in to resolve the situation.

A very easy way to avoid any of the above it to simply show respect towards your fellow
posters. Exercise allowing a user to lose your respect, rather than gaining it.




Section V: The Site


-When situations occur within "The Site", the moderators will be required to respond to the situation within 24 hours.
-If the situation is not handled by the moderator(s) involved within 48 hours, the thread will be locked temporarily for all moderators to discuss the solution to the problem and agree on an executive decision regarding the issue.
-That thread will then be reopened, with an official statement explaining the team decision.
-If the problem is still unresolved by the moderators, the team may choose to do one of two things. 1) Engage in a team discussion to reach a new solution, or 2) Agree on the previous decision and make it final.

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Also, I want to add user feedback on the above rules is very welcomed. I was even going to let the board itself modify them as long as they still fell under the KJ Site Rules, so suggest changes right away and I'll modify if need be.


EDIT 1: I agree about not having to look elsewhere for all the rules, so I added previous material I have already posted. Note however some details are soley detailed actions the staff takes in different situations.