For those who may be interested in tips on how to be a good member of this board, we would suggest the following:
1. Since you're anonymous, always keep in mind that your integrity here is EVERYTHING.
2. Refrain from posting something that you're not prepared to back up or defend.
3. Before posting something that's emotionally charged, stop a moment and consider any possible consequences arising from that post...don't post something that you might regret later.
4. *Trolls will have to be dealt with as you see fit, but keep from castigating others on how this issue should be handled.
5. Never criticize someone on their subjective opinion of something on X:WP or any show, whether it is a like or dislike.
6. Deletions and non-grammatical/typographical edits should be minimized to avoid accusations of altering the record.
7. Be a good neighbor...if you can, welcome newbies, post helpful information, etc.
8. Try not to post something in a tone that you are not yourself prepared to receive.
9. If you are a newbie, a little perusal of threads is a wise investment of time...get to know your fellow posters.
10. Civility, whether demonstrated warmly or coldly, is a good style to adopt. If you feel that a poster has become unforgivably trollish, well, refer to rules 3 and 4. If a fellow poster resorts to **flames, by staying cool you will usually make the flamer look foolish.
11. Try not to step on threads, i.e. enter into a conversation and introduce an extraneous matter, or try to pull posters over to your message boards.
12. Don't abuse the personal e-mail courtesy.
13. It's poor etiquette to quote an excerpt from a third party's post unbidden, unless you are confident that the author of that excerpt would approve of its usage.
14. It's very bad form to call a poster out, and then refuse to acknowledge the reply (aka post-and-run).
15. Try not to include the nicks of posters in threads that they haven't participated in, unless you're confident that they would approve.
16. It's no shame to honestly apologize for an error, or at least regret the creation of a possible offense.
17. You may adopt as many different handles as you like, but if it is a new or rarely used one, a quick ID (at least once per thread) is good form.
18. Discretion is sometimes the better part of valor. Remember rules 2 and 3.
19. Acknowledgements are always appreciated.
20. Respect your fellows and they will respect you (if they're not trolls!).
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*trolls are people who delibertly engage in fighting, name calling, homophobia slurs, etc.
**flames are the result of arguing between posters.
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These tips were written by Batrochides, a long standing and respected member of the SUSA Xena board, and are being used with his permission. Many thanks {{{{{ Bat}}}}}
