Whatever's going on in the software development industry, good or bad, I believe the best course of action is to be polite and do your best to deliver great stuff and share your passion for this industry we love.
Code is a way to change the World
This is one of my personal mottos and one of my core belief! I want you to embrace it while you are in this space.
Naturally, internet arguments happen and that's ok: that's communication at work. Having arguments doesn't mean you have to be mean (pun intended), but it means having constructive discussions where you have space to compare different points of view, respecting other people ideas.
Here's our site terms to keep everyone sane and the environment positive and constructive:
How is this site moderated?
Generally speaking, don't be unpolite or offensive.
I use this as a general guide to what is ok and isn't on our sites. It is not to be interpreted verbatim. Ultimately, it is at my discretion how these rules are enforced. Please don't get banned (or get your comments deleted) for something that could have easily been avoided.
Here's some examples of things I might not tolerate:
1. Hate speech will not be tolerated under any circumstances
If you can't imagine saying something out loud in the middle of a real-life coffee shop, you can't do that here. If you want to call somebody something but wouldn't wear that on your t-shirt to PAX, you can't do that here. We don't want to censor anybody, but using hate speech or hateful or victimizing terms, even as an innocent joke, are just not cool.
Examples: making rape jokes, using gay as a negative slur, being homo/transphobic, stigmatizing minority groups with pseudoscience, making fun of a new user's minor mistake to the point where they never come back. Please treat others with the same respect you were afforded when you joined us.
2. Don't post NSFW content, flame, troll readers, admins, or moderators
If you attack an individual you'll be asked to go. Fight topics, not people.
Of course, some content have NSFW elements and our editorial may contain some as well - just use common sense. Our sites are not for children but there may be some present.
Example: I am pretty tolerant about dark humor, but not if your boner jokes are making people cringe. If a mod decision is made and you continue to come back at them, mock them, make memes, create faux accounts, change your avatar, etc. You will be banned. In some cases your comments will be completely removed.
3. Don't post about illegal activities/content
I don't care how much money you're saving by denying income to our favorite content creators. It's sad, it gets you in trouble. It's not edgy to talk about piracy.
Example: How to get around copyrighted material, how to modify hardware, all that stuff is just too gray area or outright illegal. I will delete this type of comments without notice.
4. Don't represent yourself as staff or other living persons
While we appreciate people's enthusiasm, often times the 💩 hits the fan and people will come complaining to us about something we have no involvement in.
Example: Please do not post content and label it as "Official [WHATEVER] Whatever". You are welcome to run any type of event or contest on your personal blog that you would like, so long as it could not be mistaken for an editorial feature of the same type officially promoted by this website or other organisations.
5. Don't copy and paste other people's work and pass it off as your own content.
So tacky.
6. Don't post copyrighted work.
Examples: links with copyrighted content such as books, video courses, magazine scans, embargoed screenshots, and other stuff that isn't explicitly made available to the public. Every post containing this type of content or any reference that might easily lead to it will be immediately removed without notice.
7. Don't be a black hole of perpetual negativity and sorrow and avoid flame wars
Communities are a great place to vent and find like minded people. They are not places where you can come kick a dog to feel better about yourself or your decisions.
Example: Posting a comment saying "technology XYZ sucks" but not without enough context to to make sure people can understand your reasoning.
Be positive, if you don't like something, talk about possible alternatives, migration paths and compare things in a nice way. Avoid flame wars at all costs!
8. No advertising or unapproved charity/fundraising of any kind
If you're a developer and want to use a comment here to talk about your updates here, great! But only, and only if they are relevant to the topic being discussed in the specific page.
If you're posting what looks like a one time drive-by to make a quick sale, your comment will be deleted. This is a community, not a bulletin board. You can join us, but flyer posting is frowned upon.
Don't spam, take your shill elsewhere. If you want to raise money for charity reach me on Twitter with a private message before posting anything related these topic here, otherwise I might decide to delete your comments without notice.
Something I missed
Ask yourself: "Was I shutting the 💩 up and talking about software development, which is the point of this website?" If the answer is no, you've probably 💩-posted. Go back and try again.
These rules are a general guide I use to moderate the site. Ultimately, please respect my decisions.
What happens when you break a rule
Regularly checking back and considering these Terms of Service will surely mean you'll never have your comments deleted or your account banned. Please do check your email from time to time as email warnings will usually be sent before a critical mod decision is made.
Banning means you won't be able to use the site. In some extreme cases, your account and all of your posts may be deleted (in the case of an account full of hate speech, spam, etc)
Banned users may appeal the block by contacting me on Twitter.
REPORT AN INCIDENT
If you're reporting anything unsavory your confidentiality will of course be respected. Please do report incidents even if you're not directly involved and you will never be named for spotting the troublemaker.
Send me a link, preferably with a screenshot, to my X, Twitter account.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Basic self-preservation, folks. This keeps this sites out of hot water.
Help me keep this site open to all and we'll be here for years to come.
Help us keep these doors open by making this site safe and fun to read and use. Likewise, we hold ourselves up to these standards to make sure you enjoy the time you spend with the content provided here.
TLDR Don't suck!
(Note: This policy was heavily inspired by destructoid community blogs terms and conditions that was edited - and appreciated - by more than 10,000 people).