A How to Report in the GCD Guide:
Please note that this thread focuses on the GCD forum. Though most of these skills translate over to other forums, keep in mind that different forums have different rules of what is acceptable within them. This "guide" focuses on GCD's rules and guidelines.
General Rules:1. If you're not sure if it's bad or not, report it and let the moderator decide.
2. NEVER EVER EVER post in a misplaced thread or ToS violation thread. At no time is this acceptable. It is considered spam. Every time someone posts in a misplaced thread (even to redirect them to the correct forum) a moderator cries. For more information on why this is bad, click
here.
3. Along with number 2, never quote a ToS violation. It duplicates the violation and allows more users to see it. You can even get in trouble for quoting a ToS violation.
4. If you are reporting a specific post please report the post itself and not the entire thread. It makes it easier on the moderator to find the specific post rather than hunt for it.
5. Do not stalk one user to try to find every ToS violation they have committed in hopes that they will get in trouble. Though it’s good to report any ToS violation, no matter how small, it is better to not use the report system to harass someone. If someone is spamming, for example, only report one spam post they have made and make mention that they have done it in several areas. This one report is more effective than reporting every single spam post they made. Using the report system maliciously is considered Report System Abuse and can result in action against your account.
The Additional Information Section:1. The Additional Information Section is a great place for you to suggest where you think threads should be moved or if you know any other information about the thread that you want the moderator to see. For example, you sign onto Gaia and go into the GCD and see 12 threads by the same user and all of them are spam. You can report one thread and make mention about the other threads there.
2. Don't be rude in your reports. Someone DOES see the reports you make. Do not yell at the moderator who is handling the report or make snarky remarks about the user you are reporting.
3. It is okay to be wrong about which forum something belongs in. Do not take it to heart if the thread is moved elsewhere than you have suggested. Sometimes there are fine itty-gritty rules in a forum that keep it from being acceptable there. If a moderator corrects you, they most likely are doing it because they want you to continue to report, but want to help you report accurately.
Reporting Necro’d threads:(Threads that have been dead for a long time but someone posts in them to make them seem recent)
1. Please report the post that necro'd the thread, not the thread itself.
2. There is no set time for which a thread becomes a necro'd thread but they should be pretty obvious.
3. A thread is not considered a necro if it is bumped up after a few months with continued legitimate discussion content. However, if circumstances have changed drastically since the discussion was first created the topic is no longer current it can be considered a necro.
4. Once again if you're not sure if it's a necro or not, go ahead and report it and a moderator will decide.
If you have questions about something:1. You can always private message a moderator to ask about a question. That's what we're here for.
2. Never post questions in a public place like profile comments. You should respect your own privacy and PM them, instead.
3. Be patient with mods. We usually have a lot of pm's to handle and if we're swamped it might take awhile. We aren't ignoring you.
4. Only private message one moderator with an issue. Refrain from asking several mods because it can be considered spamming our inbox. Imagine the mod’s side of a situation if they received a pm that several mods received. We would then put our energy into helping the user over something that has already been taken care of a few seconds earlier by another mod. This can cause confusion and is not a beneficial use of our time. If for some reason your pm goes ignored for several days you can pm another or the same mod again, but try to be patient with us.
I would additionally like to suggest that everyone re-read the
Rules and Guidelines of the Gaia Community Discussion.
Also, thank you to all of you guys who have been reporting now. It really helps! Thank you SO much!
And a thanks to Nifi for going over this with me to work some of the kinks out. If you do have any questions about this guide feel free to ask a mod in pm's and if it seems like something good to add to the guide I will.
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