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The rules that never were
Topic Started: May 16 2011, 12:14 PM (48 Views)
Dinah May Anderson
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I figured it might do no harm if I posted here the rules I intend to have on the site I am putting together. Perhaps we can actually discuss some of it and see if some of this might work on EoM.

Rule 1: Mature Topics - Mature topics (sex, drugs, violence) can and will be dealt with here. For now there is no "mature" section, as everyone who finds this place should already know what goes on in this forum. But whatever you do, try to do it with some style. There are better ways to describe things than resorting to the words "penis" or "pussy". Add a "mature" warning to a topic title when things get really intimate or violent.

Very much unchanged. I think the rules we now have are good enough when it comes to this, but perhaps they should be enforced a bit more.

Rule 2: Activity - Post as much or as little as necessary. There is no minimum word count or post length enforced here, but give your fellow posters something to work with. Try to post in-character at least two or three times a week. If you know in advance you can't make it, let us know. Accounts that see no activity - and no "away message" - in a month will be deleted.

This would be a major change, but I am not sure if it would actually make all that much of a difference aside from prompting people to post more 'away' messages.


Rule 3: Writing Standards - Write in third person and past tense when posting in-character, please. If you really insist on writing in first person, make sure your writing partner(s) is/are okay with it, but third person, past tense should be the norm, not the exception. The language of this forum is English. L33t spe4k isn't English. We all make a few mistakes in spelling and punctuation, but try to make an effort, please. Punctuation and paragraph breaks are not the enemy. Use quotation marks when your character speaks. Also do not force people to use a dictionary to understand what you write. If your character uses a foreign language state that he/she does so and write it out in English, or, alternatively, provide translations in footnotes.

Aside from the last two sentences very much what we have now, but I am not always convinced that people using foreign languages in their posts is a good idea for one reason: I feel it makes it more difficult for people to claim their character knows a foreign language, even if the player doesn't know that language. It sets a standard that not every player may be able or willing to match. To put it differently: It may be difficult to play a character who is supposed to be fluent in the souther dialect of North Norwegian (or whatever) vis-a-vis someone who has already demonstrated a fluency in said language. A few short words an phrases here and there are fine in my book, but more than that may be a bit too much.

Rule 4: Registration Policy - Play as many characters as you like - provided they all see some activity. One character per account, please. When you register, do it with an email you will check at least semi-regularly. I know some people want to keep their anonymity on the net, but if something important happens here your account email is how the staff will try to reach you. Alternatively PM the Site Mistress with your "real" email address right after registering.

Another change, but I think perhaps not an unreasonable request.

Rule 5: Threads - Unless you specify otherwise, threads you create will be considered open to replies from everyone. Once a thread is finished mark it as 'closed'. Also see rule #1 above. The moment someone complains about a thread not marked as "mature" it will be closed, pending further determination by the site staff.

The only change here is just a not-so-gentle reminder of forum rule #1, and I think it is an important rule.

Rule 6: Respect - Respect is earned, so treat people the way you want to be treated. If you don't want to be treated like an ass, don't treat other people that way either - and if you want to be treated like an ass, keep it to yourself and don't drag anyone else into it. This includes godmoding and railroading other characters, which are both a big NO.
We know not everyone gets along with everyone else all the time. Sometimes trying your best isn't enough when someone seriously rubs you the wrong way. Take those problems to PM or IM and solve them. Don't fight it out here on the site.
We also realize that sometimes people just have a very bad day that puts them in a foul mood. Don't take that out on other people here. If you want to rave and rant and vent, you are free to post something in the General Discussion board, but then leave it at that.

Here we have a pretty big change - or maybe not, as I think it only spells out what should be common sense. But I think it's worth putting into words.


Rule 7: Advertising - Do not advertise this site anywhere. Some of what is posted here might be in a gray zone when it comes to the hosting company of this forum - and some may go well beyond what they will tolerate - so lets keep things quiet and private. Bringing new people you trust to the site is fine, but word of mouth is as far as advertising should go.

Rule 8: The cbox - All forum rules apply to the cbox too. Treat the cbox as you would a face-to-face conversation with other people. Goofing around in-character a little bit is just fine, but don't overdo it. The moment someone posts OOC that takes precedent. People talking about their real life and trying to get in touch with other players is always more important than two (or more) characters engaging in flying tackle hugs.

This is about as close as I could bring myself to calling the cbox OOC territory. I was really tempted to do so, but I would have restricted myself too much. But I think it's clear enough, given forum rule #6 above.

Rule 9: Karma - Use the karma system to tell people something about their writing and posts. Many of us love a high karma count, but just that you think someone is sexy, or that someone is your best mate, isn't a good reason to hand out karma. Just let people know off-site and be done with it, instead of creating "karma clubs" where people constantly jug up each other's karma for "just because" reasons. That robs the whole thing of its meaning.

Now here is something that I think can only work with a new site. I love karma. I really do, but there has been an inflation of it that leaves some people with a very high count, and others who are just as good writers with very little. Sometimes karma can reinforce the image that there are small clubs and cliques operating on a site, and any new site I will create will try to break that pattern.
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Deveraux Dixon
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Love is cursed by Monogamy
I'm all for changes to rules 6 and 9, although those really should have been obvious from the beginning, I think it would help to have them put into words.

Of course, I'm against Rule 8's changes - not everyone comes in here to spill their RL issues to other people.

We have a pretty nice environment in the Cbox as of right now, with a few exceptions. If we're only allowed to do "a little" IC playing around in the Cbox, people would get bored and not say much. To be very honest with you, others sharing an abundance of RL details in the Cbox already does a good job of deterring people from posting in the Cbox because they don't want to have to deal with other people that closely. Not everyone comes to RP sites to get to know everyone they RP with intimately. If it happens, sure, but your forcing it doesn't encourage togetherness.

People usually get to know each other via RPing and then open up to sharing things in IM or PM, not the reverse--someone can correct me if I'm wrong, of course, but that's how I've gotten to know everyone that I do and how I've seen plenty of people getting to know each other.

Not to say that people expressing themselves and their RL issues isn't supposed to happen at all, but this site is primarily here for RP, not a therapy session, and that includes the Cbox because it's part of the site--in the same way that "mature" things are not allowed in the Cbox because it's concealed/labeled and sorted properly on the boards as well. There's no way to conceal or label things in the Cbox, so we just don't do it. In the same way, people don't interrupt in character RP to post about their lives in brackets, so we shouldn't allow RL things to automatically take over what's going on.

A good rule of thumb is to go with the flow of what's going on in the Cbox when you come to the site. It's unfair to just interrupt already progressing activity with "I'm so upset because..." It leaves people without a way to respond without seeming like jerks if they're not bawling over your misfortune. If the Cbox is lax, however, and no one's talking about anything really important, go ahead but don't be upset if people don't have too much to say. Small things, like "I had a crappy day or "Yuck, I feel sick" are met better than darker subjects, because well wishes can be made and then people can get back to what they were doing, instead of having a rap session concerning one individuals issues. Not everyone can relate to every problem. Lots of times, people in the Cbox are very adept at slipping from IC to OOC--so just let it happen, or PM or IM someone if you really need to talk RIGHT THEN. What's worse than interrupt the Cbox with terrible news and ruining the mood is to have people ignore you or stay silent because they don't know what to say, and you feel like you don't have support when you do--but you were just very sudden and destroyed the mood for others.

It's a very delicate issue, and there's not really a 100% great way to handle it because of all of the opinions and attitudes involved. I think that being aware of how you feel AND how your feelings, once typed out and submitted, affect others is very important as well. It's a 50-50 split in importance. RPing IC is just as important as the state of the player out of character. But people feel differently about it. Some people come here for an escape in the way of not having to talk about RL; others come here for an escape that includes getting support from other people about RL. It honestly depends on who is in the Cbox at the time to determine what the emphasis or ranking of each is in relation to the other. It's not fair to impose a "OOC is the focus" rule on people who don't feel that OOC is the focus.

If we need to have "Boiler Room" of sorts for people to express negative feelings instead of taking over the Cbox, then do it, but I would certainly not want to see that rule enforced on this site.
Edited by Deveraux Dixon, May 16 2011, 01:12 PM.
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Dinah May Anderson
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Well, I think it's maybe too late for any change to the karma system by now, and it's not like you or I have been entirely innocent of going against what might have been "obvious" from the start in this regard. ;)

As for the cbox... I doubt you and I will ever agree on this, but sometimes I find myself wondering if I should even ask people how they are doing when they are engaged in their IC acts, even I might well want to do so. Putting things in brackets sometimes makes me feel that what people have to say, me included, is but an insignificant footnote when it happens at the same time as IC actions being played out. You are right when you say it depends on when and who, but there have been times when the cbox felt to me like it was only for two or three people and not for everyone, that whoever comes first and speaks the loudest will take precedent, and I don't think that's entirely fair.

But no matter that, I have no intention to impose any rules on the cbox we have here. My personal thoughts on the subject should be clear enough by now. What people make of that is not for me to control, so I will not attempt to do so.
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Deveraux Dixon
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Putting things in brackets sometimes makes me feel that what people have to say, me included, is but an insignificant footnote when it happens at the same time as IC actions being played out. You are right when you say it depends on when and who, but there have been times when the cbox felt to me like it was only for two or three people and not for everyone, that whoever comes first and speaks the loudest will take precedent, and I don't think that's entirely fair.


I'm going to try to explain myself a bit further, despite the fact that I think it's obvious that we aren't ever going to agree on this subject.

The way I see it, I'm sure that everyone feels like that *sometimes*. It's definitely true that in some cases, it is first come first serve in terms of who is having a larger conversation, but that's not an issue that will change if you make the Cbox OOC. It just means that people will feel like others are focusing on another's personal problems instead of their own--do you see what I'm getting at? No matter what the subject, someone's always going to feel left out, whether or not it's because other people aren't acknowledging them enough in their opinion, or if they're just having a bad day and taking things personally--there's no way to avoid that.

I'm sure that there have been times where the Cbox really *is* just for two or three people--for example, if you and Modrid are having an in depth discussion there have been times where I don't post in the Cbox and simply RP instead. Other times, I'll say hello, ask how everyone is doing, get through the small talk and move on--sometimes I ignore the Cbox because I don't *want* to hash through small talk, and sometimes, when I'm not in a good mood, I really could give a rat's ass how anyone else is doing other than myself XD.

It happens, and that's not a bad thing. Everything can't always be equal all the time. It teeters, like a see-saw; sometimes IC interaction is a footnote; sometimes RL stuff is a footnote. The only difference, it seems to me, is that we never put IC stuff in brackets when it becomes a footnote, so it's harder to notice with the balance of conversation is not in its favor.
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