Euroslavia
15-08-2005, 23:22
The One-Stop Rules Shop (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=416023)
The thread to answer all of your questions about the rules, in just one stop!
Check this out too: Frequently Asked Questions (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/page=faq)
You've come to the Moderation forum, and you wonder, what exactly goes here? Is there any sort of thread that tells me what I should post here, and what I should type into the Getting Help Page? Well, you've come to the right thread. In this post, I will tell you the most appropriate place to place certain requests, whether it should be posted here or in the Getting Help Page.
Previous threads
Getting Help from the Mods (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=354790)
The Moderation Forum (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=390152)
Important Threads
Guideline for Scripts (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=302815)
Ejected from the UN? Here's Why! (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=274575)
How to Correctly Appeal a Moderator's Decision (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=440491)
An explination of what PG-13 means. (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=482181)
Nation Restoration Haiku (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=455461)
All About The Moderators, Plus How To Become One (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=438230)
The Moderation Forum
1st Note: When putting a request in the Moderation forum, patience is expected out of everyone. If a thread isn't replied to immediately, the moderators will get to it when they can. Remember, we all have lives outside of NS, and can't check it 24/7. A big no-no is to post in a thread ten minutes later, demanding an answer. This will only aggrivate the situation. If we don't get to it, and it falls off of the first page, feel free to politely 'bump' it back to the front, so that we will see it.
2nd Note: Believe it or not, the moderators are not all-seeing. If there is a thread that has been locked, and a similar one left open, there's the possibility that we haven't seen that one yet. Claiming 'moderator bias' will do nothing for the situation. In the same manner, if someone has broken a rule, and not been punished, instead of claiming mod bias, report it here, and we will do what we can do resolve that situation.
1. Archive Question
-The Archive sticky was removed quite some time ago, because of the move to Jolt. We no longer need to worry about purging threads here, because Jolt is able to maintain them all, unlike our previous home. Archive requests are still granted in the same aspect, because threads here represent the best of NationStates.
2. Thread Change (Lock, Split, Delete, Merge, Title Change, Thread Move, Post Removal)
-All requests for changing threads go into the Moderation forum.
Lock: In any of the roleplaying forums, a lock request will be granted, because of the fact that ownership within these forums is different than in General. This thread (in the RP forums) is your thread, and your RP, so you may request it to be locked at any time if you feel like the RP is not salvageable. In the General forum; however, a request for the thread to be locked will be looked into, more so than in any of the RP forums. If you wish to lock it just because of the fact that someone disagrees with you in the thread, your request will be denied, and your thread will not be locked.
Split: Splitting a thread is a bit harder for the moderators to do; however, a logical request for a split can be done. For example, the "Ejected from the UN? Here's Why!" sticky was split because of the discussions that followed, and is now part of a seperate thread.
Delete: Requests for deleting threads is more leaning towards a moderators judgement. There are a few examples of what threads can be deleted. 1) Duplicate threads may be either locked or deleted, depending on how many threads are duplicated. For example, if five threads are created, due to the creators' impatience, the four threads are likely to be deleted as to prevent the spamming of that forum. 2) Also, threads that can be construed as breaking game rules, such as creating a threatening/malicious title for a thread will be subject to deletion. 3) In the RP forums, again, thread ownership comes into play. You may wish to delete a thread if it turns into an ignore-fest.
Merge: When breaking news happens, people get excited and rush to be the first to create a thread for that specific topic. Back when Bush won the election, threads were merged because multiple people started a topic on the same thing.
Title Change: Only the thread owner may request a title change for their thread. If you spelled a word wrong in the title, or you just have a better title for it, you may ask the moderators to change it.
Thread Move: If you, the thread creator, or someone else notices that a thread is in the wrong forum, they can put a request in here and ask for it to be moved to the correct forum.
Post Removal: The RP'ing forums, for the most part, are subject to more post removal requests, since thread ownership allows the thread creator to remove a player from a thread in which he/she doesn't belong in. In General, you may not request a post to be removed just because someone disagrees with you. The forum is full of people with completely different beliefs, so it should be expected that someone will disagree with you over your beliefs.
3. Perceived Rule-Breaking (Flaming, Flamebaiting, Trolling, Trollbaiting, Spam, Gravedigging)
For definitions, see The One-Stop Rules Shop (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=416023)
-If you believe that a post/thread can be considered breaking the rules of this forum, you can post a thread here, with a link to the specific post(s) (if its all in one or more posts) or to the thread (if the actual thread is the rule-breaking) and ask a moderator to look over it. At that point, it's ok for players to state their opinions on if it is breaking the rules or not, but debating the topic is not allowed in Moderation, and a non-moderator's response is in no way an official ruling. Ultimately, a moderators opinion on whether the post(s)/thread is breaking the rules is final, no matter how convinced a non-moderator is.
Getting Help Page
Getting Help Page: http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/page=help/pin=-1/target=help/
How to Write an Efficient GHP Report (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=7711144&postcount=11)
1. Questions about a Deleted UN Proposal
-If your proposal is deleted, you may request that a moderator review it, and respond as to why it was deleted in the first place. Use the Getting Help Page for this.
2. In-Game Spam
Spam Telegrams
-When you decide to create a new nation, and you arrive in one of the founder regions, receiving telegrams from recruiters is not illegal. This is what you need to expect when started anew; however, when you move out into another region (that isn't a feeder of lazarus), receiving recruitment telegrams is illegal, as is region recruitment in a regions' Message Board. This needs to be reported in the Getting Help page, and if it is a telegram, it needs to be saved so that the evidence is kept. If you delete the telegram, there is no way for us to prove that they did send you a spam telegram.
Spamming on the Regional Messageboard
-When it comes to posting on the regional messageboard, only the founder may 'clear' the board himself by posting anything appropriate to get rid of information that may have been leaked about your region. Any other nation that does it will be considered spamming the messageboard.
Abusive Messages
-If you receive a telegram that is abusive, save the evidence and report it to the Getting Help page.
3. Nation Deletion Questions
-If your nation was deleted, and you want to question exactly why it was deleted, you may submit a Getting Help Request to find your answer. If you disagree with the ruling, you may make an appeal to the Getting Help Page as well, and another moderator will take a look at it.
4. Nation Revival Requests
-All requests to revive your old nations that have died of inactivity must be submitted to the Getting Help Page. If you post it in the forums, someone is going to post a link to the GHP and let you know that you need to put it in there anyways. Also, we do not need your password. All you need to do is say "Please revive "AnyNation". A thank you would be appreciated too. :)
Note: If your nation was deleted for rule-breaking, it will not be restored.
Another Note: If your nation ceased to exist, and was created before the restriction on nation names was implemented (Wanking Baboons), we aren't going to revive it. This would be seen as making exceptions for certain players by reviving it, and letting it live.
5. Regarding Forum-Bans
-If your forum ban has not expired when it was supposed to, you may request that a moderator look into it.
Note: If your nation has been forum-banned temporarily, you may not post through the ban with another nation. This is strictly against the rules, and you will be punished for it. Another nation also may not post for you, because they will be subject to punishment as well.
6. Reporting Rule-Breaking (In-Game, not forums)
Bad Nation Names/Motto/Flag
-If you see a nation with a name that could be considered against the rules of NationStates, a motto that is considered offensive, or a flag that isn't allowed, it can be reported into the Getting Help Page. Here is the new acceptance policy for flags: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=438053
UN Multi's
If you suspect UN Multi's, please to not request that an entire region be swept. Checking for UN Multi's is very time consuming, so limit it to a list of nations that you may suspect.
Nation Hacking
If you suspect that your nation has been hacked, report it through the GHP and the moderators will look into it.
Griefing
If your nation has been griefed, immediately report it to the GHP, and the moderators will take care of the situation.
Final Note: You will not always receive a response if you have submitted a Getting Help Request. If a UN Multi check goes clean, and none are detected, there's the possibility that you may not receive an answer. The same may go for if UN Multi's are detected and the appropriate nations punished. You still may not receive a response, but the offenders will be punished if they are found to be breaking the rules (for any rule).
Telegramming the Mods? Bad Idea.
**While sending mods TMs may seem like it would get the job done faster [since its a direct line of communication with the mod, instead of a request form which can take a while to get to], this isn't the case. I can't speak for everyone else, but I tend to completely ignore TM requests for moderator intervention. ~ Melkor Unchained
Contacting the Moderators via IRC
As with all things IRC, you'll need an IRC client such as mIRC to connect to it. You'll need to enter irc.esper.net as the server, and type /join #themodcave to get in. Or click here: irc://irc.gamesurge.net/themodcave
Once you're in, you'll be greeted with a message informing you of the rules.
For those of you who use Espernet, you'll recognise the system as being identical to that used by the IRCops in #dragonweyr.
Make your request for NationStates Moderator intervention there, and link to the appropriate thread if applicable. Forum and game moderation requests are welcome. Wait for a moderator to respond, and then please /part the channel when it's been dealt with.
Please don't chat or idle in the channel, mod requests only.
If a moderator does not respond, state your request and leave. A moderator will get to it as soon as they receive it.
The thread to answer all of your questions about the rules, in just one stop!
Check this out too: Frequently Asked Questions (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/page=faq)
You've come to the Moderation forum, and you wonder, what exactly goes here? Is there any sort of thread that tells me what I should post here, and what I should type into the Getting Help Page? Well, you've come to the right thread. In this post, I will tell you the most appropriate place to place certain requests, whether it should be posted here or in the Getting Help Page.
Previous threads
Getting Help from the Mods (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=354790)
The Moderation Forum (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=390152)
Important Threads
Guideline for Scripts (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=302815)
Ejected from the UN? Here's Why! (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=274575)
How to Correctly Appeal a Moderator's Decision (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=440491)
An explination of what PG-13 means. (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=482181)
Nation Restoration Haiku (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=455461)
All About The Moderators, Plus How To Become One (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=438230)
The Moderation Forum
1st Note: When putting a request in the Moderation forum, patience is expected out of everyone. If a thread isn't replied to immediately, the moderators will get to it when they can. Remember, we all have lives outside of NS, and can't check it 24/7. A big no-no is to post in a thread ten minutes later, demanding an answer. This will only aggrivate the situation. If we don't get to it, and it falls off of the first page, feel free to politely 'bump' it back to the front, so that we will see it.
2nd Note: Believe it or not, the moderators are not all-seeing. If there is a thread that has been locked, and a similar one left open, there's the possibility that we haven't seen that one yet. Claiming 'moderator bias' will do nothing for the situation. In the same manner, if someone has broken a rule, and not been punished, instead of claiming mod bias, report it here, and we will do what we can do resolve that situation.
1. Archive Question
-The Archive sticky was removed quite some time ago, because of the move to Jolt. We no longer need to worry about purging threads here, because Jolt is able to maintain them all, unlike our previous home. Archive requests are still granted in the same aspect, because threads here represent the best of NationStates.
2. Thread Change (Lock, Split, Delete, Merge, Title Change, Thread Move, Post Removal)
-All requests for changing threads go into the Moderation forum.
Lock: In any of the roleplaying forums, a lock request will be granted, because of the fact that ownership within these forums is different than in General. This thread (in the RP forums) is your thread, and your RP, so you may request it to be locked at any time if you feel like the RP is not salvageable. In the General forum; however, a request for the thread to be locked will be looked into, more so than in any of the RP forums. If you wish to lock it just because of the fact that someone disagrees with you in the thread, your request will be denied, and your thread will not be locked.
Split: Splitting a thread is a bit harder for the moderators to do; however, a logical request for a split can be done. For example, the "Ejected from the UN? Here's Why!" sticky was split because of the discussions that followed, and is now part of a seperate thread.
Delete: Requests for deleting threads is more leaning towards a moderators judgement. There are a few examples of what threads can be deleted. 1) Duplicate threads may be either locked or deleted, depending on how many threads are duplicated. For example, if five threads are created, due to the creators' impatience, the four threads are likely to be deleted as to prevent the spamming of that forum. 2) Also, threads that can be construed as breaking game rules, such as creating a threatening/malicious title for a thread will be subject to deletion. 3) In the RP forums, again, thread ownership comes into play. You may wish to delete a thread if it turns into an ignore-fest.
Merge: When breaking news happens, people get excited and rush to be the first to create a thread for that specific topic. Back when Bush won the election, threads were merged because multiple people started a topic on the same thing.
Title Change: Only the thread owner may request a title change for their thread. If you spelled a word wrong in the title, or you just have a better title for it, you may ask the moderators to change it.
Thread Move: If you, the thread creator, or someone else notices that a thread is in the wrong forum, they can put a request in here and ask for it to be moved to the correct forum.
Post Removal: The RP'ing forums, for the most part, are subject to more post removal requests, since thread ownership allows the thread creator to remove a player from a thread in which he/she doesn't belong in. In General, you may not request a post to be removed just because someone disagrees with you. The forum is full of people with completely different beliefs, so it should be expected that someone will disagree with you over your beliefs.
3. Perceived Rule-Breaking (Flaming, Flamebaiting, Trolling, Trollbaiting, Spam, Gravedigging)
For definitions, see The One-Stop Rules Shop (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=416023)
-If you believe that a post/thread can be considered breaking the rules of this forum, you can post a thread here, with a link to the specific post(s) (if its all in one or more posts) or to the thread (if the actual thread is the rule-breaking) and ask a moderator to look over it. At that point, it's ok for players to state their opinions on if it is breaking the rules or not, but debating the topic is not allowed in Moderation, and a non-moderator's response is in no way an official ruling. Ultimately, a moderators opinion on whether the post(s)/thread is breaking the rules is final, no matter how convinced a non-moderator is.
Getting Help Page
Getting Help Page: http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/page=help/pin=-1/target=help/
How to Write an Efficient GHP Report (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=7711144&postcount=11)
1. Questions about a Deleted UN Proposal
-If your proposal is deleted, you may request that a moderator review it, and respond as to why it was deleted in the first place. Use the Getting Help Page for this.
2. In-Game Spam
Spam Telegrams
-When you decide to create a new nation, and you arrive in one of the founder regions, receiving telegrams from recruiters is not illegal. This is what you need to expect when started anew; however, when you move out into another region (that isn't a feeder of lazarus), receiving recruitment telegrams is illegal, as is region recruitment in a regions' Message Board. This needs to be reported in the Getting Help page, and if it is a telegram, it needs to be saved so that the evidence is kept. If you delete the telegram, there is no way for us to prove that they did send you a spam telegram.
Spamming on the Regional Messageboard
-When it comes to posting on the regional messageboard, only the founder may 'clear' the board himself by posting anything appropriate to get rid of information that may have been leaked about your region. Any other nation that does it will be considered spamming the messageboard.
Abusive Messages
-If you receive a telegram that is abusive, save the evidence and report it to the Getting Help page.
3. Nation Deletion Questions
-If your nation was deleted, and you want to question exactly why it was deleted, you may submit a Getting Help Request to find your answer. If you disagree with the ruling, you may make an appeal to the Getting Help Page as well, and another moderator will take a look at it.
4. Nation Revival Requests
-All requests to revive your old nations that have died of inactivity must be submitted to the Getting Help Page. If you post it in the forums, someone is going to post a link to the GHP and let you know that you need to put it in there anyways. Also, we do not need your password. All you need to do is say "Please revive "AnyNation". A thank you would be appreciated too. :)
Note: If your nation was deleted for rule-breaking, it will not be restored.
Another Note: If your nation ceased to exist, and was created before the restriction on nation names was implemented (Wanking Baboons), we aren't going to revive it. This would be seen as making exceptions for certain players by reviving it, and letting it live.
5. Regarding Forum-Bans
-If your forum ban has not expired when it was supposed to, you may request that a moderator look into it.
Note: If your nation has been forum-banned temporarily, you may not post through the ban with another nation. This is strictly against the rules, and you will be punished for it. Another nation also may not post for you, because they will be subject to punishment as well.
6. Reporting Rule-Breaking (In-Game, not forums)
Bad Nation Names/Motto/Flag
-If you see a nation with a name that could be considered against the rules of NationStates, a motto that is considered offensive, or a flag that isn't allowed, it can be reported into the Getting Help Page. Here is the new acceptance policy for flags: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=438053
UN Multi's
If you suspect UN Multi's, please to not request that an entire region be swept. Checking for UN Multi's is very time consuming, so limit it to a list of nations that you may suspect.
Nation Hacking
If you suspect that your nation has been hacked, report it through the GHP and the moderators will look into it.
Griefing
If your nation has been griefed, immediately report it to the GHP, and the moderators will take care of the situation.
Final Note: You will not always receive a response if you have submitted a Getting Help Request. If a UN Multi check goes clean, and none are detected, there's the possibility that you may not receive an answer. The same may go for if UN Multi's are detected and the appropriate nations punished. You still may not receive a response, but the offenders will be punished if they are found to be breaking the rules (for any rule).
Telegramming the Mods? Bad Idea.
**While sending mods TMs may seem like it would get the job done faster [since its a direct line of communication with the mod, instead of a request form which can take a while to get to], this isn't the case. I can't speak for everyone else, but I tend to completely ignore TM requests for moderator intervention. ~ Melkor Unchained
Contacting the Moderators via IRC
As with all things IRC, you'll need an IRC client such as mIRC to connect to it. You'll need to enter irc.esper.net as the server, and type /join #themodcave to get in. Or click here: irc://irc.gamesurge.net/themodcave
Once you're in, you'll be greeted with a message informing you of the rules.
For those of you who use Espernet, you'll recognise the system as being identical to that used by the IRCops in #dragonweyr.
Make your request for NationStates Moderator intervention there, and link to the appropriate thread if applicable. Forum and game moderation requests are welcome. Wait for a moderator to respond, and then please /part the channel when it's been dealt with.
Please don't chat or idle in the channel, mod requests only.
If a moderator does not respond, state your request and leave. A moderator will get to it as soon as they receive it.