da Vinci Concept:Guidelines
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Guidelines for Content and Interactions
These guidelines were created from observations made during the formation of this site and through the observation of and interaction with its members. Guidelines are not 'rules'. Rules are laid out within the 'Copyright' page of this website and MUST be followed. Guidelines provide an approach to maintaining rich discussions and to maintaining the quality of content that is key to the success of this website and more broadly, the success of the internet. These guidelines are related to the rules of this site and blatantly ignoring important guidelines will result in an individuals suspension or removal from the community.
As new issues arise and new observations are made, these guidelines will be updated. Please keep them in mind when composing discussion threads and interacting with your peers. These guidelines represent the basic philosophies at the core of the da Vinci Concept and were written by its founder and maintainer. Their implementation by members is greatly appreciated.
As this site develops, these guidelines will develop. These guidelines are open to critique and review and moderated addition by all members.
Posted by sunny Modified: December 24, 2004
Keeping Content Rich
In general: The content carried over a medium of communication IS the value of that medium. The medium itself has value as a medium only in-as-much-as it is given value by the content it carries. A medium of communication, like any human tool, can be misused, trivialized, and taken for granted. It is a necessity that in our posts we maintain a high value of communication. This ensures the integrity and value of this website and its purpose.
In the particular: When posting replies and questions make sure that your writing pertains to the content of the posts to which you are replying and not just the title of the post. In this way you may enrich the discussion instead of dragging it into the ground. A question or statement like, "I've never heard of that before, could you provide more information?" is only appropriate when insufficient information was provided in the initial posting, when the post itself is as brief and as context-less as a simple title or fragment of jargon.
Do your own background research. New posts are usually meant as springboards for others. Your individual effort in this regard, is paramount.
If you find that you don't have enough time to immediately research the material or provide content and context for your questions, let your reader and collaborators know that you are 'in the process of researching', and provide a timeline for your return.
It is sometimes helpful to 'think aloud' in a forum or collaborative writing environment. Put your thoughts down so that the context of your statements and question is clear.
It is of minimal importance that you have never heard of the material or science described in a post. It is of great importance that you take it upon yourself to fill out the details for your own understanding. This will enable you to pose much more articulated questions and to pose possible uses and relevant problems associated with the material described.
We are content rich. So should be our communication.
Nitpicky Nuances
There are occasions when the site moderators pick out a specific technical, writing, or personal nuance that they feel needs addressed within the scope of the writing forums or community. This is often an oberservation made by a member, moderator, or administrator, that if addressed would significantly improve the quality of the material or communication methods and modes. Most of these observations are focused on practical writing methods and have little to do with a particular individual.
However, we are very wary of perfuse postings, seemingly flamboyant posting technique, or flippant commentary. Therefore a more careful scrutiny is made of such material. Seemingly trivial technical considerations become more apparent to other members and the site moderators as an individual's style and writing technique becomes visible.
If you are moderated for technical, personal, or for interpersonal reasons, you should not take offense. Moderation is almost always meant to guide members and are usually not a sign of dissatisfaction or a lack of appreciation for posted material.
When an observation is made, a moderator entry is made within the discussion or through a person-to-person communications medium. The moderator expects some form of rational response from the member or community, either directly in discussing the rationale for the moderator's comments or changes, or indirectly through the implementation of the moderator's suggestions.
Please give the site moderators the benefit of the doubt regarding what is appropriate for moderation. Keep in mind that the good form of your participation and your rational cooperation is paramount and provides an excellent example for new members as they become involved in the community. We know this and we appreciate it when members work toward furthering the vision and goals of this site.
<section inserted: 2004/12/24>
Outside Collaboration
You must give credit to outside authors and editors Only 1 person is allowed to write through 1 account. If your post is the sythesis of more than just your own thought and has been modified or edited by a 2nd party, it is your responsibility to disclose that there was another writer or editor involved.
You must cite outside authorship. If the source wishes to be anonymous, then you must cite the section(s) added or edited as anonymous.
If someone is consistenly authoring or collaborating within this forum they should hold their own account.
Bridging the Communications Gap
"It would help if you clarified what you mean."
Read background information Before posting in a topic forum do the necessary background reading. This might mean reading some material that is already posted on the site in a FAQ or discussion thread. It should be the general practice of members and moderators to include links to expanatory material. The writers provide context and the readers use it. It might also mean finding a good reference on the subject and immersing yourself for a few days. You may quickly find that your knowledge surpasses that of the discussion originators.
Pre-qualify your posts Before posting, ask yourself what you mean to say or ask. It will help to take a careful look at the things that were said in the thread and to try to understand them within the context of the concepts that are discussed. This may very well mean doing some looking up of ideas and concepts that are not be perfectly clear to you. If you are not certain what is meant, then you either need to do some background reading (if it is a common concept) or to open it up for discussion (if the concept is new or the discussion seems to use it differently).
Write for the layperson You are communicating with intelligent, but perhaps uninitiated individuals. Since each field has its own special lingo to describe its set of specialized concepts it is important to use jargon sparingly. It is also important that important concepts are used in the discussion. This increases everyone's overall knowledge and empowers each with concepts that were previously unknown to them. Hyperlink jargon to good explanations, or to glossaries. Make use of the incredible knowledge base available through the internet. We don't want to alienate our discussion partners.
For quick and dirty background research I suggest using [[http://www.google.com/search?q=research+search+engines|>Google</A>.
Editing threads and keeping context
Editing of thread posts is a feature that is enabled for the benefit of the members on this site. It enables us to correct errors in our language and writing verbalizations. It allows us to add new content to important posts. Editing enables trivial squabling to develop into meaningful discussion. But it must be used responsibly.
Editing should only be used to clarify content, correct gramatical and conceptual mistakes, and in special cases, rewrite thread content.
Do not ever delete all of the content from your posting. This is a violation of the meaning and purpose of this site. Doing so is an act of blatant destruction. By removing all content from a thread you are dropping the context of the discussion and the discussion loses all and any meaning. Destruction of context is a violation of this site's copyrights. Members that are not conscientious of this guideline may be banned from the site.
Deletion is reserved for the moderator Editing is enabled. If you remove all content from a posting this is not an edit. This is a deletion. Post editing must be used responsibly. Deletion and relocation of posts is reserved for the conscientious discretion of the forum moderator. Usually it will be a relocation of content and not an outright deletion.
Complete post re-writes are equivalent to post deletion An example of this would be posting a question: "What do you mean by statementX?" and then replacing this question with another: "Why is statementX correct?"
When you are editing a post, completely rewriting the post is the same as deleting it entirely if it removes the context of the original discussion. Unless all forum participants agree to modify their respective posts regarding this type of change it is expressly forbidden.
Substantial post editing is allowed, but context needs to be retained Even substantial editing of your posts is allowed, but you are violating the rights of others on the site if you make other people's posts irrelevant by dropping your half of the discussion. When you make changes that would alter another person's response, be sure to let them know that a change was made that will affect their response. Post edits that change the context can cause cascades through the site content and should therefore only be used when they will only affect a small number of threads.
It would be very bad for a major discussion to have forced upon it by the early discussion proponents a change that would cascade through dozens or even hundreds of responses.
A discussion post should follow from the previous posts, not subsequent posts When modifying old material, keep in mind that you should not make forward conceptual references. If you refer to material that was posted after the initial post that you are editing you make it very difficult for a reader to understand what is being said. Because the discussion threads are, in general, linear in time, it is necessary that you only make references to posts that are dated prior to the initial posting date and not afterward. If changes are necessary and would be difficult to correlate with the subsequent posts do something to demarcate the new material and date its insertion, like:
<inserted 01/31/2004> New internet link to outside source. New text describing arguments occuring after this post. Similar conceptual references.
Creative Writing of any Kind
General guidelines: Posting creative writing within these forums is for the purpose of getting critique and peer review of your writing.
In general, a single thread does not mean a single composition.
Threads can be collaborative writing pieces.
Keep in mind that these posts are viewable by all members. A more private mechanism for online collaboration is available by using the PhpCollab tool.
Title your threads relevant to the underlying content:
- the title of your single creative piece or collection
- a title specifying topic/genre/classifying information
- the name of the writing group that is composing
Clearly identify who the authors are if there are multiple writers involved or if the composition is open to all members or specific groups. Do this by including a author line at the top of your post. (ie: "Authors: name1, name2, name3" or "Open for composition by all members" or "Open to composition by GroupName"
It is also sometimes necessary to explain your work, or to explain what the rules are for your specific collaboration effort.
How and what to post: Post single compositions that are works in progress. Use a ". . .work in progress. . ." line at the bottom of your post so that others know it is unfinished.
Post significant and finished compositions for the purpose of getting peer reviews and critical critiques of your writing.
Post your work as a collection that fits your chosen theme, topic, speculation, classification, grouping, etc. . . Expect user comments and critiques to intersperce your work when the collection is a work-in-progress.
Discussion, Exposition, Rants
Forum guideline posts and threads apply to all forums. The divisions used in the forum guidelines are based upon a conceptual division between fictional and non-fictional writing. There are other division that will be made throughout the development of da Vinci Concept. However, in general, all forum guidelines are equally valid in all forums.
Post in every forum that interests you. The forums are for the elucidation of philosophical, economic, cultural, political, scientific, artistic, and other conceptual viewpoints. These forums are also for sharing and developing art and for the use of art in content-rich communication. You can make best use of da Vinci Concept by writing in a variety of environments. This broadens your ability to communicate, provides self-training in communication with diverse individuals, and identifies areas in which you may need further development.
Think carefully about your posts and responses. Your writing is most valuable when it is well thought out and coherent. The only meaning that exists throughout our medium of communication is the meaning that we as individuals provide.
- Be descriptive.
- Be thorough when practicable.
- Be responsive, not reactive.
- Bring in outside sources.
- Define complex concepts.
- Use language properly.
- Enjoy yourself.
Cynicism, in general, is not the best means of expressing your disagreement. Cynicism: An attitude of scornful or jaded negativity, especially a general distrust of the integrity or professed motives of others. [1]
Editing your posts is a good practice. Sloppy writing is sloppy thinking and inconsiderate to your readers. You may argue that there is a time and place for it, but not within communication that you care about. If you find that you might have stated something clearer or see major additions edit it carefully to retain as much of its original meaning as possible. If your post changes so drastically to have been its own post or thread, make it so.
In order to make this site as rich and meaningfull as possible, sloppy thinking will be moderated by the moderators.
Point of argument or contention should not derive from a form or stereotype. Religion qua religion, race qua race, gender qua gender, etc. are rarely valid arguments nor are they formulations of rich content. The 'fact of' is an empty statement. The 'details why' that are the reason for the stereotype are much richer content for discussion. This guideline helps prevent featureless conversations that rely on 'borrowed concepts' that are often neither understood nor valid.
Submitting and uploading copyrighted material
When you post any form of original work to this website that is your own you are using the website within the scope of its copyright mandate. That is, the submitting author owns the copyright to the work and retains that right when posting it to da Vinci Concept.
When posting work of any kind that is not your own you must abide by the copyright as per the owner's instructions. It is important that we protect the copyrighted work of others so that we may protect our own work and to protect ourselves from lawsuit due fo infringement.
When posting the work of others it is important to cite the original author/artist. Be careful of possible copyright restrictions on material produced by your instructors, classmates, and colleagues. When possible, get their written permission to post the work on the site or have them post the material themselves (either on da Vinci Concept or their own website). Be sure that you know who owns the copyright, what their wishes are, and if there are any potential confiicts with existing publications. It is also good practice to caveat the material that you upload with a short copyright blurb that identifies the author and any governing body as the copyright owners of the material. A good document format for copyrighted material is PDF as it is more difficult to edit by a third party.
Make sure that you have the author's consent for dissemination through the medium of da Vinci Concept. The original author always retain copyright of their original material, but always obtaining consent will prevent the potential conflict of interest between da Vinci Concept, its members, and outside authors.
