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MegaDisc 34 (1993-06)(MegaDisc Digital Publishing)(AU)(Disk 1 of 2)[WB].zip
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MegaDisc 34 (1993-06)(MegaDisc Digital Publishing)(AU)(Disk 1 of 2)[WB].adf
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BBS_ethics
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BBS_ethics
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1993-06-22
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169 lines
> BBS ETHICS STR InfoFile
A good rule of thumb for all....
"""""""""""""""""""""""
Ethics For BBS Users
(Source Unknown)
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The following are a few points of general BBS etiquette. If you
wish to maintain your welcome on whatever system you happen to
call, it would be to your advantage to observe these few rules.
1.
Don't habitually hang up on a system. Every SysOp is aware
that accidental disconnections happen once in a while but we
do tend to get annoyed with people who hang up every single
time they call because they are either too lazy to terminate
properly or they labor under the mistaken assumption that
the 10 seconds they save online is going to significantly
alter their phone bill. "Call Waiting" is not an acceptable
excuse for long. If you have it and intend to use the line
to call BBS systems, you should either have it disconnected
or find some other way to circumvent it. In some areas a *70
before dialing, will disable call waiting for that call!
2.
Don't do dumb things like leave yourself a message that says
"Just testing to see if this thing works". Where do you
think all those other messages came from if it didn't work?
Also, don't leave whiney messages that say "Please leave me
a message". If ever there was a person to ignore, it's the
one who begs someone to leave him a message. If you want to
get messages, start by reading the ones that are already
online and getting involved in the conversations that exist.
3.
Don't use the local equivalent of a chat command unless you
really have some clear cut notion of what you want to say
and why. Almost any SysOp is more than happy to answer
questions or offer help concerning his system. Unfortunately,
because about 85% of the people who call want to chat and
about 99% of those people have absolutely nothing to say
besides "How old are you?" or something equally irrelevant,
fewer SysOps even bother answering their pagers every day.
4.
When you are offered a place to leave comments when exiting
a system, don't try to use this area to ask the SysOp
questions. It is very rude to the other callers to expect
the SysOp to carry on a half visible conversation with
someone. If you have a question or statement to make and
expect the SysOp to respond to it, it should always be made
in the section where all the other messages are kept. This
allows the SysOp to help many people with the same problem
with the least amount of effort on his part.
5.
Before you log on with your favorite pseudonym, make sure
that handles are allowed. Most SysOps don't want people
using handles on the system. There is not enough room for
them, they get silly games of one-upmanship started, it is
much nicer to deal with a person on a personal basis, and
last but not least, everyone should be willing to take full
responsibility for his actions or comments instead of
slinging mud from behind a phoney name.
6.
Take the time to log on properly. There is no such place as
RIV, HB,ANA or any of a thousand other abbreviations people
use instead of their proper city. You may think that
everyone knows what RIV is supposed to mean, but every BBS
has people calling from all around the country and I assure
you that someone from Podunk Iowa has no idea what you're
talking about.
7.
Don't go out of your way to make rude observations like
"Gee, this system is slow". Every BBS is a trade off of
features. You can generally assume that if someone is
running a particular brand of software, that he is either
happy with it or he'll decide to find another system he
likes better. It does nobody any good when you make
comments about something that you perceive to be a flaw
when it's running the way the SysOp wants. Constructive
criticism is somewhat more welcome. If you have an alter-
native method that seems to make good sense then run it up
the flagpole.
8.
When leaving messages, stop and ask yourself whether it is
necessary to make it private. Unless there might be some
particular reason that everyone shouldn't know what you're
saying, don't make it private. We don't call them PUBLIC
bulletin boards for nothing, folks. It's very irritating to
other callers when there are blank spots in the messages
that they can't read and it stifles interaction between
callers.
9.
If your favorite BBS has a time limit, observe it. If it
doesn't, set a limit for yourself and abide by it instead.
Don't tie up a system until it finally kicks you off and
then call back with another name. This same rule applies to
downloading or playing games. Only one person at a time can
be logged on to a BBS and it isn't fair to everyone else if
you overstay your welcome. Remember, a BBS is best when it
can be left wide open. If you try and cheat the rules you
just hurt everybody by forcing the SysOp to adopt more
stringent policies. I can't count the number of BBS's that
are now locked tighter than a drum because of people who
cheat and abuse.
10.
Don't call a BBS just to look at the list of other BBS
numbers. Most especially don't call a system as a new user
and run right to the other numbers list. There is probably
very little that's more annoying to any SysOp than to have
his board completely passed over by you on your way to
another board.
11.
HAVE THE COMMON COURTESY TO PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT PASSES IN
FRONT OF YOUR FACE. When a BBS displays your name and asks
"Is this you?", don't say yes when you can see perfectly
well that it is mispelled. Also, don't start asking
questions about simple operation of a system until you have
thoroughly read all of the instructions that are available
to you. I assure you that it isn't any fun to answer a
question for the thousandth time when the answer is
prominently displayed in a system bulletin or instructions.
Use some common sense when you ask your questions. The
person who said "There's no such thing as a stupid question"
obviously never operated a BBS.
12.
If by some chance you should encounter an error while you
are online (Heaven forbid!), ALWAYS take the time to leave
the SysOp a message describing the circumstance. Don't just
say "There was an error". That is not helpful in the least.
Chances are that he knows there was an error. What he needs
to know is what you were doing when the error occurred so
that he can have some chance of finding and correcting it.
If the error happened after you input something, tell him
what it was. Remember that a BBS can't improve unless
you're willing to help.
13.
Don't be personally abusive. It doesn't matter whether you
like a SysOp or think he's a jerk. The fact remains that he
has a large investment in making his computer available,
usually out of the goodness of his heart. If you don't like
a SysOp or his system, just remember that you can change
the channel any time you want. Calling a SysOp names or
making uninformed comments about his lifestyle only shows
you for the child you really are.
14.
Keep firmly in mind that you are a guest on any BBS you
happen to call. Don't think of logging on as one of your
basic human rights. Every person that has ever put a
computer system online for the use of other people has
spent a lot of time and money to do so. While he doesn't
expect non stop pats on the back, it seems reasonable that
he should at least be able to expect fair treatment from
his callers. This includes following any of the rules for
system use he has laid out without grumping about it. Every
SysOp has his own idea of how he wants his system to be run.
It is really none of your business why he wants to run it
the way he does. Your business is to either abide by what
he says, or call some other BBS where you feel that you can
obey the rules.
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