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- Guidlines for Community Oriented Behavior
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- WorldsAway Guidelines for Community Oriented Behavior
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- INTRODUCTION TO OUR GUIDELINES
- These Guidelines are provided to help make usage of the WorldsAway
- communities a positive experience for all members. The WorldsAway
- Dreamscape and the WorldsAway Community Forum are communities presented
- by Fujitsu Cultural Technologies and made available on CompuServe. The
- WorldsAway Guidelines for Community Oriented Behavior are Fujitsu
- Cultural Technologies supplement to the CompuServe Operating Rules and
- Service Agreement Terms as they apply to the WorldsAway communities.
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- Fujitsu Cultural Technologies retains the right to modify these
- Guidelines at any time, without prior notice. Interpretation of the
- Guidelines are at the discretion of Fujitsu Cultural Technologies. We
- reserve the right to revoke access to the WorldsAway services at any time
- without prior notice. By choosing the proceed button at the bottom of
- this document you agree to follow these Guidelines.
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- INTRODUCTION TO THE WORLDSAWAY DREAMSCAPE
- AND THE WORLDSAWAY COMMUNITY FORUM
- WorldsAway is not a game, it is real life, lived through your avatars in
- a virtual on-line community. The avatars you will meet in the Dreamscape
- are real people, not programmed game opponents. The Dreamscape and the
- Community Forum provide an opportunity to explore and experiment with our
- social skills while enjoying the community found there. This exploration,
- however, should not come at the cost of the other community members
- enjoyment.
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- WorldsAway provides you with on-line virtual worlds which are much more
- than a collection of people or a virtual chat room. The Dreamscape and
- the WorldsAway Community Forum are a living and growing community. The
- Dreamscape has its own culture, stories and taboos. The WorldsAway
- Community Forum provides the members with means of text based
- communications and technical support relating to the Dreamscape. The
- Dreamscape and the Community Forum are under separate management,
- interpretation and application of any Guidelines or rules may be
- different in each.
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- As with any visit to a new community, on-line or real-world, we suggest
- you proceed cautiously as you become familiar with your surroundings, the
- communitys societal and cultural aspects, and specific to the Dreamscape
- - your new self. We offer you these Guidelines to help ease your move to
- this new on-line home, and to help current community members to welcome
- new residents. We hope that each new member will learn from their
- mistakes and share their knowledge with others.
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- ON BEING A VALUED MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY
- WorldsAway offers its Dreamscape and Community Forum residents an
- opportunity to be a valued member of a thriving community. Your
- individual voices and diverse backgrounds from around the world meld
- together to form a unique cultural blend.
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- Like anyones participation in their community, each members experience
- can be very different. The citizens of the Dreamscape and the Community
- Forum strive to provide a friendly, supportive atmosphere where avatars
- may comfortably explore unfamiliar roles and expand their circle of
- friends. WorldsAway is a place for everyone to enjoy. We promote an
- atmosphere of genuine concern for our members, where open, honest
- exchange is encouraged. Like any community, you will find that the
- residents will do whats necessary to make their home comfortable to the
- majority of the residents and visitors.
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- REMEMBER, WERE ALL HUMAN
- The most important thing to remember at all times in this or any on-line
- community is the person behind the machine. Just as you sit at your
- keyboard, communicating with other community residents through your
- on-line persona, there are real human beings all over the world
- communicating in the same manner. Approach others on-line with the same
- courtesy and respect that would be expected in real life. Always remember
- that on-line actions can have real world effects, so think for a moment,
- What would I do if we were face to face?
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- Consider the feelings of those other people in all you say and do.
- Respect others requests to refrain from behavior they or others may find
- offensive, and be forgiving of others mistakes. Take care to show
- consideration and respect and treat others as you would have them treat
- you. Think before you speak or act, or you may make mistakes that will
- prevent you from making friends and becoming a part of the community
- After all, being a part of the community is what this world is all about.
- Just because you *can* do something, doesnt mean you *should*.
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- COMMUNICATIONS
- The majority of human communications are non-verbal. Remember that
- through this electronic medium much of what you wish to communicate may
- not come across through words alone. Very often a different life or a
- different language can add a different meaning to the words or
- expressions you use or hear. Make the extra effort to understand one
- anothers meaning or point of view.
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- Before you speak, think, and refrain from obscene or offensive language.
- This applies to any public situation, on the streets or in the shops of
- the Dreamscape, in conference rooms, in a public message or the name you
- choose in any location. Remember that typing in all caps is SHOUTING,
- use *asterisks* or _underlines_ to emphasize a word or your words alone
- to convey the emotions.
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- Avoid unsolicited or repetitive attempts to communicate, especially
- should the receiver not respond or request that you cease. In person, you
- might say Excuse me or some appropriate introduction before interrupting
- or before speaking to a stranger; consider the same in on-line email and
- conversations. Disturbance of the general peace and public slander
- (insults or attacks) are inappropriate. Remember, the community will find
- ways to condemn actions they feel inappropriate; they may work to
- assimilate you if they feel you have potential, but you may be ostracized
- if not. For more information on what you can do to make your and others
- on-line experience more positive and suggestions on what you can do to
- counteract offending behavior, please see the file Dealing with On-Line
- Harassment in the WorldsAway Community Forum Help Desk Library (#1).
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- ADULTS AND MINORS
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- Recognize that the WorldsAway Communities bring together people of all
- ages. Follow traditionally accepted rules governing contact between
- peers, and between adults and minors (anyone under 18). These include
- restraints on language and behavior, and respect for privacy.
- Traditionally accepted rules prohibit improper overtures, sexual
- activity, and prying questions in exchanges between adults and minors.
- With on-line interactions, it is difficult to know with whom you are
- truly interacting.
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- Recognize too, that you may encounter sexually explicit language and
- conduct. For more information on what you can do to make your, and others
- on-line experience more positive, and suggestions on what you can do to
- counteract offending behavior, please see the file Dealing with On-Line
- Harassment in the WorldsAway Community Forum Help Desk Library (#1).
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- If there are minors who have access to your account, we strongly suggest
- that you and your family read Child Safety on the Information Highway
- available in the WorldsAway Community Forum Help Desk Library (#1). This
- article was jointly produced by the National Center for Missing and
- Exploited Children and the Interactive Services Association. Written by
- Lawrence J. Magid, Child Safety on the Information Highway provides many
- helpful ideas for assisting young adults in having a positive on-line
- experience.
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- You may wish to make access to the WorldsAway Dreamscape or Community
- Forum impossible for anyone using your account, including members of
- your household. CompuServe offers a Parental Control Center where you can
- learn how to set password-protected controls for CIS and the Internet. GO
- CONTROL for more information.
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- RESPECT ONE ANOTHER AND RESPECT THE SERVICE
- Please respect the rules, others with whom you share the service, and the
- staff members who work hard to improve upon and provide you these
- services. Adherence to these guidelines will help to make your and others
- use of the service a positive experience.
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- PERSONAL ACCOUNTABILITY
- You must recognize your own responsibility in having access, and allowing
- others access to your accounts. The person to whom the account is
- registered is ultimately responsible for any actions from their account.
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- USE OF THIS SERVICE IS PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT
- Ultimately, use of the service is a privilege, not a right, and those
- privileges can be revoked at the service providers discretion. Failure to
- comply with the guidelines detailed herein can lead to warnings or your
- account(s) being denied access to (locked out of) the WorldsAway
- service(s) temporarily or permanently.
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- AGREEMENT
- By choosing the proceed button at the bottom of this document you agree
- to follow these Guidelines.
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- WHERE TO GO FOR MORE INFORMATION
- - Dealing with On-Line Harassment, available in the WorldsAway Community
- Forum Help Desk Library (#1)
- - Child Safety on the Information Highway by Lawrence J. Magid, available
- in the WorldsAway Community Forum Help Desk Library (#1)
- - CompuServe Parental Control Center: GO CONTROL
- - _Netiquette_ by Virginia Shea, Albion Books, San Francisco, 1994.
- ISBN: 0-9637025-1-3.
- - _The Magic of Conflict: Turning a Life of Work into a Work of Art_ by
- Thomas F. Crum, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1987. ISBN: 0-671-66836-6
- - _Pooh's Little Etiquette Book_ by A.A. Milne, Dutton Books, New York, 1995.
- ISBN: 0-525-45501-9
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- Copyright ⌐ 1996 Fujitsu Cultural Technologies,
- a division of Fujitsu Open Systems Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.
- WorldsAway is a trademark of Fujitsu Open Systems Solutions, Inc.
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