a few words about irc
Feb. 20th, 2012 12:09 am![[staff profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user_staff.png){kind=small}
denise posting in ![[site community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/comm_staff.png){kind=small}
dw_volunteersI've had a few people approach me over the past month or so regarding a few misunderstandings and missteps in irc, coming from several directions, so I thought it would be a good time to reiterate the Basic Operating Principles of #dreamwidth and ask for a renewed commitment to those principles. (If you don't visit irc, you can stop reading here! And participating in #dreamwidth is not a prerequisite for volunteering for Dreamwidth. This was just the closest official comm where I could put a post like this.)
#dreamwidth-the-irc-channel is an outpost of Dreamwidth-the-website, and specifically of Dreamwidth-the-project-team. It is governed by the channel rules, and, more broadly, by the Guiding Principles and Diversity Statement of dreamwidth.org. It is intended as a space where every individual is treated with respect and accorded equal dignity.
The channel is highly social and freewheeling in nature, and at any given time there may be a discussion going on about just about any topic you can imagine; however, the primary purpose of the channel is to conduct business related to dreamwidth.org and a discussion about a Dreamwidth-related project is always more on topic than any other discussion. This doesn't mean that you can't keep a non-DW-related conversation going while others are talking about Dreamwidth -- nor does it mean that you have to be a Dreamwidth volunteer in some way to participate in the channel -- but it does mean that if a major DW-related conversation is going on, or a group is troubleshooting a DW-related problem or brainstorming a new DW feature, you should probably think about moving your non-DW-related conversation to an auxiliary channel.
We recognize that everyone has different levels of comfort with a number of different topics. If at any time you're feeling uncomfortable about any discussion that's happening in-channel, you can either ask people to move it to another channel, or ask a channel operator to ask people to move it to another channel. (For a list of operators, check the channel membership; anyone with a /dreamwidth/staff or /dreamwidth/delegate hostname mask is a channel operator. Ops do not generally stay opped in channel unless their ops are needed.) If someone does ask you to move a discussion to another channel because they feel uncomfortable with it happening in #dreamwidth, you should treat that request with good faith.
In recognition of the channel's status as an outpost of Dreamwidth-the-project-team, the channel culture is, and should remain, one of curiosity and knowledge acquisition. Impromptu lectures on any one of a hundred different topics are quite frequent. A sincere question from someone wishing to expand their knowledge is always appropriate; questions of a more personal nature should also be construed as an attempt to expand knowledge. (Caveat: if you're asking someone a question of a more personal nature, it's often a good idea to check in first, even if the person being asked has offered personal details unprompted already: "if you don't mind me asking" or "is it okay if I ask" goes a long way in the direction of social lubricant.) You are under no obligation to respond to any question at any time, whether that question is personal or technical in nature.
However, if someone is asking a non-personal question -- whether technical or general-knowledge -- or asking for advice on how to accomplish something in particular (whether technical or more general-life-skills related) it is never appropriate to respond in a condescending or derogatory fashion. One of the most important things about Dreamwidth's project culture is that everyone should feel comfortable asking questions about any aspect of the project at any time, no matter how basic the question may seem to someone else: everyone starts somewhere and the ability to ask those basic questions (and get helpful answers) is critical to encouraging people who are just starting out. If you feel a question is too basic for you to be interested in answering it for someone, you don't have to answer it, but any derogatory response -- anything that could make someone feel like they're being mocked for having asked -- is not appropriate.
Racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, classist, ageist, sizeist, ableist, and other forms of -ist language is not appropriate in channel. Because everyone has different lived experiences and different levels of sensitivity, it is entirely possible that what one person intends as a completely neutral statement can be taken by another person as having problematic connotations. If someone points out that something you just said is problematic, they are not calling you a bad person, or accusing you of holding -ist opinions; language is hard and there are -isms and -ist assumptions baked deeply into much of the way we communicate. If someone points out a problematic phrasing or statement, apologize and move on. (And if someone uses problematic phrasing or makes a problematic statement, and you point it out and they apologize, accept the apology and move on; don't dwell on the matter. If you and a third party -- not the original speaker -- are interested in discussing why the language was problematic, take the discussion to another channel or to private message; otherwise the original speaker can feel ganged-up-on.)
If there's a problem going on, and you want to talk to me about it: if I am not actively speaking in-channel I almost certainly have irc hidden. (I have to keep it hidden if I want to get anything done!) Poke me on AIM (if you're already on my contact list -- I am always logged in but always invisible and have messages blocked from people not on my contact list) or in email. If you're reporting a particular problem, please include logs of the parts of the discussion that illustrate the problem. I need to see the problem before I can act on the problem.
These rules apply to both #dreamwidth and #dreamwidth-dev, along with any project-team-specific channels (such as #dreamwidth-support, #dreamwidth-antispam, etc). #dreamwidth-bitch (the channel for way offtopic discussions, TMI of an exceedingly personal nature, botspam, and discussion topics that are banned from #dreamwidth such as politics) is not an official channel and you participate "at your own risk"; I won't step in to resolve situations there.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled program!
#dreamwidth-the-irc-channel is an outpost of Dreamwidth-the-website, and specifically of Dreamwidth-the-project-team. It is governed by the channel rules, and, more broadly, by the Guiding Principles and Diversity Statement of dreamwidth.org. It is intended as a space where every individual is treated with respect and accorded equal dignity.
The channel is highly social and freewheeling in nature, and at any given time there may be a discussion going on about just about any topic you can imagine; however, the primary purpose of the channel is to conduct business related to dreamwidth.org and a discussion about a Dreamwidth-related project is always more on topic than any other discussion. This doesn't mean that you can't keep a non-DW-related conversation going while others are talking about Dreamwidth -- nor does it mean that you have to be a Dreamwidth volunteer in some way to participate in the channel -- but it does mean that if a major DW-related conversation is going on, or a group is troubleshooting a DW-related problem or brainstorming a new DW feature, you should probably think about moving your non-DW-related conversation to an auxiliary channel.
We recognize that everyone has different levels of comfort with a number of different topics. If at any time you're feeling uncomfortable about any discussion that's happening in-channel, you can either ask people to move it to another channel, or ask a channel operator to ask people to move it to another channel. (For a list of operators, check the channel membership; anyone with a /dreamwidth/staff or /dreamwidth/delegate hostname mask is a channel operator. Ops do not generally stay opped in channel unless their ops are needed.) If someone does ask you to move a discussion to another channel because they feel uncomfortable with it happening in #dreamwidth, you should treat that request with good faith.
In recognition of the channel's status as an outpost of Dreamwidth-the-project-team, the channel culture is, and should remain, one of curiosity and knowledge acquisition. Impromptu lectures on any one of a hundred different topics are quite frequent. A sincere question from someone wishing to expand their knowledge is always appropriate; questions of a more personal nature should also be construed as an attempt to expand knowledge. (Caveat: if you're asking someone a question of a more personal nature, it's often a good idea to check in first, even if the person being asked has offered personal details unprompted already: "if you don't mind me asking" or "is it okay if I ask" goes a long way in the direction of social lubricant.) You are under no obligation to respond to any question at any time, whether that question is personal or technical in nature.
However, if someone is asking a non-personal question -- whether technical or general-knowledge -- or asking for advice on how to accomplish something in particular (whether technical or more general-life-skills related) it is never appropriate to respond in a condescending or derogatory fashion. One of the most important things about Dreamwidth's project culture is that everyone should feel comfortable asking questions about any aspect of the project at any time, no matter how basic the question may seem to someone else: everyone starts somewhere and the ability to ask those basic questions (and get helpful answers) is critical to encouraging people who are just starting out. If you feel a question is too basic for you to be interested in answering it for someone, you don't have to answer it, but any derogatory response -- anything that could make someone feel like they're being mocked for having asked -- is not appropriate.
Racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, classist, ageist, sizeist, ableist, and other forms of -ist language is not appropriate in channel. Because everyone has different lived experiences and different levels of sensitivity, it is entirely possible that what one person intends as a completely neutral statement can be taken by another person as having problematic connotations. If someone points out that something you just said is problematic, they are not calling you a bad person, or accusing you of holding -ist opinions; language is hard and there are -isms and -ist assumptions baked deeply into much of the way we communicate. If someone points out a problematic phrasing or statement, apologize and move on. (And if someone uses problematic phrasing or makes a problematic statement, and you point it out and they apologize, accept the apology and move on; don't dwell on the matter. If you and a third party -- not the original speaker -- are interested in discussing why the language was problematic, take the discussion to another channel or to private message; otherwise the original speaker can feel ganged-up-on.)
If there's a problem going on, and you want to talk to me about it: if I am not actively speaking in-channel I almost certainly have irc hidden. (I have to keep it hidden if I want to get anything done!) Poke me on AIM (if you're already on my contact list -- I am always logged in but always invisible and have messages blocked from people not on my contact list) or in email. If you're reporting a particular problem, please include logs of the parts of the discussion that illustrate the problem. I need to see the problem before I can act on the problem.
These rules apply to both #dreamwidth and #dreamwidth-dev, along with any project-team-specific channels (such as #dreamwidth-support, #dreamwidth-antispam, etc). #dreamwidth-bitch (the channel for way offtopic discussions, TMI of an exceedingly personal nature, botspam, and discussion topics that are banned from #dreamwidth such as politics) is not an official channel and you participate "at your own risk"; I won't step in to resolve situations there.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled program!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2012-02-27 08:00 pm (UTC)1) /delegate/ hostmasks don't strongly relate to operator privileges. While many of our ops have them, it's not required and not all do. (E.g., skud is an op, but she doesn't use our hostmask. Drew has the mask, but is not an op.)
2) Per Freenode policies, anything with "#dreamwidth" at the front is owned by our organization. They're ours and we're responsible for them. #dreamwidth-bitch may be mostly ignored, but we do have the rights/ownership of it. (Or can reclaim it at any time.)