Hi all,
After a recent request from management to educate me on the rules of FOC, i have not received any response so I’m asking other members of the site both paying and non paying members who have read the rules of FOC listed on the site.

Are you aware of the 3 strike rule?

Are you aware of how long a strike stays against you on your profile?

Are you aware that Management can periodically monitor your PM Section?

Are you aware that you will receive a strike against you for swearing on the site even if you swear once you receive a strike?

I’m after reading the rules 3 times and I haven’t seen any of this but yet I have been subjected to all of the above Disciplinary action by a member of the management team, who has yet to clarify why the 3 strike rule is in operation on the site and not listed in the rules of FOC.

Or given me a definition as to how long a strike lasts whether it be 6months or 12months perhaps indefinitely, all I know is I have two strikes against me and a particular member of management will be monitoring my PM Folder and if I get a third strike I’m gone, despite my reputation of +72 or my level of pinned guides on the site.
Does anyone have any answers to the above questions or feel that is fair to use a 3 strike rule particularly when it is not listed in the rules of FOC for all members to be aware of.

im not disputing the fact i did swear once around 9 months ago and i did offer an item for sale via e-mailing members of foc which leaves me with 2 strikes however i do have a reputation of +72 and around six of my guides pinned on the site, so im hardly a scammer

Your response would be much appreciated

I sent you a long response at 4pm this afternoon - I will post exactly what it said at the end of this post.

A couple of things from the management's side...

1. You have been offering to sell software using unsolicited private messages. This was brought to our attention through a complaint from one of those who was messaged. A check on your PMs (not done by me, only one person has access to the PMs of other members) showed that it was one of several.

2. Your warning for swearing was placed on your account after several informal warnings on the board - I know, because it was me who gave you the warning. Personally, I never give a warning at the first use of swearing - hundreds of members would carry warnings and in reality very few do.

3. I have updated the rules this afternoon in response to your e-mail - noting all all the points you raised and responding to all of them. Several lines have been added to the rules based entirely on this situation.

4. The rules did and do give a clear indication of the order of things when it comes to issuing sanctions. Thanks to your suggestions they are now clearer.

5. Warnings are not removed from profiles for the simple reason that they cannot be monitored after they are removed, so they stay in place indefinitely unless a majority decision from the mod team removes them if we feel they have been granted unfairly. The addition of further warnings and sanctions are at the discretion of the mods - so if you have been clean for 6 months and then commit a minor breach of the rules you may not necessarily receive a warning that results in a ban or suspension.

6. Your PMs ARE NOT being monitored - my words were that we would monitor the situation, i.e. we would monitor your status on the board and go from there.

7. I have no idea where three strikes and your out has come from - a third warning usually results in a suspension, i.e. a TEMPORARY disabling of your posting ability, or we also have the option setting your posts to only be visible to members after they have been approved by members.

8. You are right - you have an excellent reputation and carry contributor stars, if you didn't your account would probably have been labelled as a spam account and disabled immediately.

Just so we're clear, here is the PM I sent you this afternoon. You have my personal e-mail address, if you didn't receive a response from me in time frame you were happy with, you should have e-mailed me directly saying so. This is a voluntary position and the mods cannot be expected to be on the boards all the time. Airing this in public is really not helping anyone.

"Hi Lenny,

The rules announcement states that the warning system on FOC works like this:

1. Informal warning by private message or on the board if appropriate

2. Formal warning through FOC's built warning system (enough of these results in an automatic suspension/ban)

3. Suspension of account/posting ability

4. Ban

I conceded that these relate specifically to abusive posts - however applying the same procedure to all breaches of the rules seems logical to me. I will clarify 'enough of these' to 3 within the text, it seems a fair number to me.

As regards your PM capability - this decision was taken by the forum owner. There is no section of the rules that applies here, as we have never had a regular contributor who has felt the need to send spam PM.s to members who have then complained. Your PMs are not being monitored - I said that the situation is being monitored. Your PMs will be restored when you have shown to the mod team through a change of attitude that you accept and can abide by the forum rules. I will add another line with regard to spam PMs.

Regarding your last message to me asking for your account to be deleted - I did not respond at the time (nor did I action it) as I wanted to make sure that my response was considered and fair. There is no need to delete your account - we DO value the contribution that you make to the forum and want you to stay. However - the rules of FOC are there because the vast majority of members want them to be. Many moons ago there was a vote on the swearing situation and the swearing rules were put in place as a result. Thanks to these rules, FOC is one of the cleanest forums on the internet and can be read by anyone, at any time without any offence being caused. You are an FOC supporter, so you will be aware that the supporters' forum is not moderated in the same way.

Our selling rules are also to keep the forum presentable and in line with the law. Spam is acted upon quickly and not tolerated, this keeps the majority of members happy. Members get cross when they receive spam from a long standing member - and it reflects badly on the forum. Then there is the forum owner - it must be remembered that FOC is run as a business and has paid-up traders using the site as a business tool. You sending spam PM is unfair to them.

To answer your other question - warnings stay on your account indefinitely unless they are overturned by a majority decision from the other mods. This has only happened once while I have been on the boards - and it was I who suggested they be deleted. The warnings are logged by date and there is a note from the mod who gave the warning - if they are removed we lose this information. It should be noted that mods use discretion in all disciplinary matters on FOC, we aim to be fair and impartial in all matters - and we don't go out of our way to get heavy.

Hope that clears things up.

Dan"

[quote name='DanGull' timestamp='1319408202' post='149726']
I sent you a long response at 4pm this afternoon

Hope that clears things up.

Dan"
[/quote]

Thanks Dan,
sorry i didnt bother checking my PM inbox as i assumed i couldnt access it,
thanks for that

I don't really see where else this can go. Anyone with a question about the rules, please feel free to PM me.