Code Of Conduct Updated 7 Dec. 2007

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Code of Conduct

This Code of Conduct outlines the general policies used in moderating Peak Oil News and Message Boards. Our COC tries to promote the best quality discussions possible, while maintaining the least restrictive environment we can. We reserve the right to remove any post that we consider disruptive or inappropriate, even if that post is not specifically forbidden by our published rules. All of our moderators are unpaid volunteers and are chosen from the board membership.

Moderators have a responsibility to:

Encourage posters to stay on-topic

Treat all posters equally and with respect

Try to leave as much of the original post in place as possible when editing content

Be cautious, think first, then delete later if certain

Leave a comment in the post to explain what was removed/edited, why, and by whom

If a member has been affected, send them a Private Message to inform them of the situation

Edit, split, merge, or rename a post or thread when they deem that the overall usability of the forum is improved

Board Members have a responsibility to:

Be aware of the policies of the Code of Conduct and the Terms of Use

Watch for Forum Specific Announcements and Stickies: If special rules apply to a particular forum, they will be posted in an Announcement or Sticky at the top of that forum. You are responsible for looking for, reading and abiding by those notices. Please read our Forum Tutorial to familarize yourself with our posting options and functions.

Select the most appropriate Forum in which to post your message. Try to make sure someone else has not already started a discussion on the same subject before you post. If someone has already started a discussion/topic on a particular subject or article, please post your information in a reply instead of starting a new topic. Make sure that your subject line is clear and will help others understand what your topic is about without requiring it be opened and read.

Avoid flaming and ad hominem attacks within the regular forums. If you have some complaint about a particular thread and wish to flame the object of your derision, please do so in the Hall of Flames. One intent defined by our conduct policies tries to limit "off-topic" posts as much as possible so that the threads stay informative and clear. Flaming and ad hominem attacks are most definitely off-topic. While a certain amount of “off-topic” posting is tolerated, we try hard to manage the most excessive cases for the benefit of the whole forum.

The following post content is subject to edit/deletion:

Nudity, partial nudity, or adult content: This includes any explicit images as well as language describing sex acts or erotica.

Graphic content: Images which depict graphic violence or illness should not be used. Graphic detail in text is also discouraged. Do not post linked in graphics/photos more than 450 pixels wide or long URL’s that cause the page view to widen and necessitates the reader to scroll.

Unnecessary text quotation: If you wish to quote a post or article, do not quote the entire post/article. Only include the part of the post text to which you are responding. With articles, post a short paragraph and provide a link.

Copyrighted material: All comments are the responsibility of the poster. Posters have a responsibly to obey copyright laws for their home nation and state. Please do not post entire copyrighted articles. If you wish to reference an article, provide a short, quoted excerpt with a link back to the original source.

Repetitive messages: This includes cross-posting, flooding, and spamming

Unsolicited advertisements: This includes offering goods, services, employment (except within the Jobs forum), or soliciting donations. This also includes advertising for a website. If you have something to sell, please contact an administrator and buy a banner.

Messages devoid of content: This includes posts with nonsense characters (ie. flksdhf). This also includes posts with a single word or only containing emoticons. This includes posts on "why was my post deleted", off-topic posts, threadjacking, complaining about links, unedited reposts, repeated mod evasion, and trolling.

Messages exhorting others to commit illegal acts: Murder, extortion, and any other felony are expressly forbidden. Threads and posts advocating suicide will be edited or deleted without notice. DOS attacks, hacking, flooding, and all other related computer crimes are also unacceptable. Also included in this is harassment -- for example, encouraging people to call someone on the phone, flood a website/mailbox, etc because they were mentioned in a linked article.

Messages containing only broken links or broken images

Repeatedly reposting something that was deleted by a moderator

Response to violations of the Code of Conduct:

Violations of the Code of Conduct will be addressed by either a Courtesy Warning or a Formal Warning through our Private Message system.

Violators of the CoC that have been issued two Formal Warnings will be followed by a temporary ban of at least 1 week for a third offense. Continued violations following a temporary ban will receive similar warnings, followed by a permanent ban from the site for a third offense. Whether a violation warrants a Courtesy or Formal Warning will be at the discretion of the Moderators. Temporary bans are final. Permanent bans may be appealed to the site owner and administrator.

Moderator warnings:

Moderator warnings are to be respected. Members who choose not to acknowledge moderator warnings, or who show lack of respect for the moderators regarding their moderation duties and decisions, will be banned for 2 weeks for Moderator Evasion.

Please do not publicly accuse the moderators or administrators of bias, complain about moderation decisions, or post correspondence you receive from moderators and administrators. If you have an issue regarding moderation that needs to be addressed, please contact any moderator or website administrator by sending a private message or e-mail.