Code of conduct for HTC (draft)

Go to the discussion here.

Code of conduct

This document aims at defining and inspiring good behaviours, communication and cooperation among members of this community, as well as at increasing open [source/culture/tech] citizenship by encouraging members to recognize and strengthen the relationships between their actions and their effects on our community.

Some external contributions from:

Our Community

Our standards

  • Community moderators have special authority, but so do you. With your help, moderators can be community facilitators, not just janitors or police.

  • Always be civil, especially when you disagree with a post or comment.

  • Participate in an authentic and active way. In doing so, you contribute to the health and longevity of this community.

Our responsibilities

  • If you see a problem, flag it.

  • When you see bad behavior, don’t reply. It encourages the bad behavior by acknowledging it and consumes your energy and time. Just flag it. If enough flags accrue, action will be taken, either automatically or by moderator intervention.

  • Nothing sabotages a healthy conversation like rudeness or overstepping boundaries:

    • Be civil. Don’t post anything that a reasonable person would consider offensive, abusive, or hate speech.
    • Keep it clean. Don’t post anything obscene or sexually explicit.
    • Respect each other. Don’t harass or grief anyone, impersonate people, or expose their private information.
    • Keep in mind that private messages are designed to facilitate understanding of forum topics and not to compromise members in any way. If you aren’t sure if your message is appropriate, check with a moderator first.
  • Respect our forum.

    • Don’t post spam or otherwise vandalize the forum.
    • Don’t post political content. Bots and trolls look for political content on the Web and can cause harm to the forum. Instead, focus on the general issue or topic underneath that specific political event or process.
  • Any post or private message that represents a harm, harassment or any other damage for the recipients, any other member, or the whole forum will be removed and its author privately contacted, suspended, or blocked, depending on gravity and frequency of the posted content.

  • These are not concrete terms with precise definitions — avoid even the appearance of any of these things. If you’re unsure, ask yourself how you would feel if your post was featured on the front page of the New York Times.

  • Life priorities, interests, and passions can change. If you’re involved in the Community Team or other operative teams in the community, but you feel you must remove yourself from it, do so in a way that minimizes disruption. When we work together, our work and ideas are no longer just our own; they belong to the community as a whole. Inform other members of the team that you intend to step down, and if possible, help find someone to pick up your work. At the very least, ensure your work can be continued where you left off.

  • Our agreements with each other are the basis for trust, respect, and collegiality, so please be explicit about your intentions and expectations. Hidden agendas and expectations will be called out.

Scope

  • This Code of Conduct applies within all community spaces, and it also applies when an individual is representing the forum or its community in public spaces.

  • Examples of representing our forum or community include using an official forum e-mail address, posting via an official social media account, or acting as an appointed representative at an online or offline event.

  • Representation of our forum may be further defined and clarified by the Community Team.

Enforcement

  • In order to maintain our forum and community, moderators reserve the right to remove any content and any user account if content/account does not agree with this code of conduct.

  • All complaints will be reviewed and investigated and will result in a response that is deemed necessary and appropriate to the circumstances.

  • Community Team members who do not follow or enforce the Code of Conduct in good faith may face temporary or permanent repercussions as determined by other members of the Community Team.

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The Code of Conduct is now part of the Community Hub and can be found here. You can also find this page via the dropdown menu in the top-right corner of the forum.

For changes to the Code of Conduct the discussion thread is still open: Code of conduct for HTC

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