When do forum 'guidelines' become 'rules' and is it bad if they do so?
The application of rule breaking accusations in the wake of several posters asking about how a certain member has become banned has raised an interesting question in my head.
So, as it stands, the moderators provide 'guidelines' about how we conduct ourselves within the forum.
However, breaking said guidelines can and will get you banned: these hence seem more like forum 'rules' (a preferable term to 'laws' for an informal web forum, but of the same sentiment) than 'guidelines', which exist to advise rather than to instruct.
Do you regard the term 'guidelines' as a misnomer? Would it be a bad thing if we were provided with a set of rules rather than 'advice'?
I'm interested to hear what people think about this.
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Comments
Guidelines is a more political term but good idea actually.
Yeah, I'm just assuming of what they're thinking.
While it is a political term, I feel that more harm is done by the rules not being absolute enough than them being regarded as too absolute would.
I don't see why calling them rules or guidelines make any difference, either way they are meant to be followed and we all know the consequences for not following them.
Uhh, so what? If you don't follow them you get banned correct? I don't see why this is even a discussion right now, if you want you can contact a mod and tell them to change it to "rules" instead if it's that important. :P
Exactly
But guidelines doesn't mean things that have to be followed for fear of punishment.
A guideline of society is not skipping a queue, or being faithful to your partner/partners. A rule of society is not to steal.
Uhh, so what? If you don't follow them you get banned correct? I don't see why this is even a discussion right now, if you want you can contact a mod and tell them to change it to "rules" instead if it's that important. :P
Alright, whatever floats your boat.
It's a discussion because, as I said in my original post, I want to hear about the opinions of others on the issue.
I'll also not be 'telling' the mods to do anything.
It should be changed to rules.
Bump; I'd be interested to hear what the mods think of this.
Where I live skipping a queue is not a guideline. Apparently you don't count as being in line unless you're crawling up the ass of the person in front of you. Unfortunately though, when they do jump ahead, there is a rule against punching them in the face. It's political correctness gone mad.
..sarcasm, I hope? :P
Bump.
They're more or less just loosely enforced rules.
Don't be a douchebag and you're fine.
Well, everyone has different definitions of what a douchebag is.
Well...
Nevermind. I wanted to say something, but it be a staright rude. Let just say it involves....definitions.
True, though I guess I was thinking of the particular "guidelines" in the respect and civility department. Breaking those rules is primarily what earns people bans around here, in my opinion.
Well this is my point: if breaking them earns people bans than they are very much not 'guidelines' and very much 'rules'.
That's what the thread is about.
Feel free, I can handle it
What I was trying to say in my original message is that these guidelines are pretty much loosely enforced rules, with the exception of the treatment of others (and spamming/ advertising, but that doesn't really apply to actual members of this community). As a community we're expected to follow these guidelines, so I suppose you could call them rules if you really wanted to.
Its more guidellines, most users get warnings etc for the first few times in a discussions they dont realise.