aup.html

---
title: Acceptable Use Policy
layout: page
---

  <p>AuckLUG being an informal entity does not have rules of
  association or similar. The Acceptable Use Policy outlined in
  this document therefore reflects commonsense. Its also open to
  feedback, critique and modification from AuckLUG members. Get
  in touch with the List Admins per details provided below.</p>

  <p>General Acceptable Use policies for Mailing Lists worldwide
  are based on <a href=
  "http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc1855.html">RFC1855</a>. However
  AuckLUG conceeds that much of the information in RFC1855 is out
  of date and doesn't represent the realities of todays Internet.
  (But it was a lovely thought.)</p>

  <p>As such whilst we encourage participants to read the above
  RFC it should be treated as largely educational and serve as a
  guide to the intention behind these policies.</p>

  <p><em>The overriding consideration behind this policy
  document is 'consideration for others'. If in doubt, use this
  as your primary concern.</em></p>

  <h1>Subject Guidelines</h1>

  <ul>
    <li>Discussion on Linux and Linux Related topics is
    appropriate.</li>

    <li>Discussion of things completely unrelated to Linux is
    inappropriate.</li>

    <li>Subjects with a vague or passing relationship to Linux
    are appropriate in moderation and subject to the general mood
    of the list at the time.</li>

    <li>Requests to move off-topic conversations off-list should
    generally be honoured depending on circumstance.</li>

    <li>Posts of a blatantly commercial nature are not permitted.
    Posts advising of new linux related products are acceptable,
    but should try to remain objective. Links to vendors
    websites, etc, are appropriate.</li>
  </ul>

  <h1>Posting Guidelines</h1>

  <ul>
    <li>Posts to the list are only accepted from subscribed
    addresses.

      <ul>
        <li>If you need to post from a non-subscribed address,
        alternate addresses can be subscribed with no delivery as
        an option.</li>
      </ul>
    </li>

    <li>Crossposting to multiple lists is discouraged but not
    disallowed. Persons doing so should carefully consider the
    audience and whether the post having its multiple recipients
    visible for eternity is appropriate or not. Also consider the
    proportion of recipients likely to receive multiple copies as
    a result.</li>

    <li>Post in Plain Text. Using HTML or Rich Text formatting
    explodes the size of a message and for people who still use
    low bandwidth links, this is disruptive and unnecessary.</li>

    <li>When responding to messages, quote relevant portions of
    the text such that the conversation can be followed.</li>

    <li>Do NOT overquote. Usually 2 levels of quoting above your
    own is sufficient.</li>

    <li>Do NOT quote irrelevant material*.</li>

    <li>Top-Posting is generally frowned upon. Replies should be
    added below the quoted text not above, unless this is
    particularly suitable for the message in question.</li>

    <li>Additional responses should continue to adhere to the
    quote method (top or bottom post) of previous messages.
    Mixing quote types can rapidly make a thread very confusing
    to follow.</li>

    <li>Add a double-carrier-return between quoted material and
    your new text. This helps differentiation. It also helps
    compensate for some mailers which may lose a carrier return
    during processing.</li>

    <li>If you wish to start a new conversation (on a new
    subject), create a new message (as opposed to replying to an
    existing mail thread). By replying to an existing thread and
    simply changing the subject line (usually performed in order
    to save having to manually type the list address into the To:
    Box), your message will be automatically threaded by the
    mailing list software archive (and many mail clients) as a
    part of the previous conversation. If the material being
    posted is irrelevant to that conversation, this will not be
    appreciated by participants of said thread - who may be
    confused as to the relevance. It may also cause your message
    to be overlooked, filtered incorrectly, or to simply be
    ignored.</li>
  </ul>

  <p><em>* Useful keystrokes include Ctrl-Shift-End
  (Highlight All and Jump to end of Document). Allows you to
  delete all remaining text in a window in about 1 second. This
  applies to most GUI interfaces including most web-based mail
  systems.</em></p>

  <h1>Content Guidelines</h1>

  <ul>
    <li>Postings that include Foul Language, Character or Company
    assassination, or show a lack of respect for other
    participants , are unacceptable.</li>

    <li>Deliberate flaming and abuse is not tolerated.</li>

    <li>Participants are advised not to post email addresses into
    the body of their messages, to reduce the risk of the address
    being harvested for spam purposes.</li>

    <li>Use appropriate case, punctuation and paragraph
    formatting. Please try to maintain a reasonable level of
    spelling and grammar.</li>

    <li>Posting File attatchments to the list is discouraged (and
    infact, depending on the situation, these may simply be
    stripped from your message). If you need to refer to a
    document/image please provide a suitable URL. The use of
    propriatory file formats is discouraged.</li>

    <li>Reproducing copyright material without permission is
    unacceptable.</li>

    <li>Job Advertisements specifically relating to Linux are
    welcome, but these should be focussed and not full of
    'marketing-speak'. They should also only be posted once.
    Ideally, a brief precis could be posted, perhaps with a
    suitable URL containing more complete information.</li>

    <li>Advertising of Linux related events in the region is
    generally OK. Events not directly related to Linux but
    otherwise of interest to the community may be acceptable,
    however please contact the Mailing List maintainers to
    clarify and gain permission first. Advertising of a
    commercial nature is not permitted.<br>
    <br></li>
  </ul>

  <div class="warning">
    Posters who consistently violate these policies will be dealt
    with at the discretion of the List Administrators.
  </div>

  <p>Remember, all posts are archived. Think before you post.
  Some comments may come back to haunt you or may even bring harm
  to the GNU/Linux and/or Free Software/Open Source Movement.</p>

  <p>If you are new to the mailing list or have any questions you
  may also like to review the mailing list etiquette FAQ
  (Frequently Asked Questions) document which can be found at
  <a href=
  "http://www.gweep.ca/~edmonds/usenet/ml-etiquette.html">http://www.gweep.ca/~edmonds/usenet/ml-etiquette.html</a>.</p>

  <p>Complaints about any aspect of AuckLUG or its members should
  in the first instance be directed to the List Admins (Currently
  Mark Foster and Scott Newton). The List Administrators are
  contactable via the link provided on the <a href=
  "http://www.linux.net.nz/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aucklug">Mailing
  List Members Info Page</a>.</p>Thanks -<br>
  The AuckLUG Admin Team.<br>
  Last Update 19 August 2009.
  <br><br>