Administrative Ethics
From Tazlure Gaming System Wiki
Contents |
[edit] Introduction
Administrative Ethics are important to the Tazlure Game System. It shows an intent to deal with players honestly and remove a bull shit factor from the way games are run. They are an extension of the in game rules. These Administrative Ethics have developed through trial and error. We do not claim that we have always been perfect, but we do want to share lessons learned.
[edit] Being Honest
Honesty includes:
- You do not pretend to be bigger than you are. This includes maintenance of the membershiplist; a membershiplist of actually active people, not random people who once upon a time signed up for your game.
- You take your players seriously. This includes informing the community of issues and asking their advice.. and then heeding that advice.
- Being forthright what kind of input and consensus decisions you will allow and when you want to stick with your own thing.
- Recognizing the contributions of other people, as well as other sites.
[edit] Being Open About Finances
How simple can it be? Do you have extra ordinary high costs so that you can no longer pay the game out of pocket? Tell us why, how and what and perhaps you'll find help. To do anything else is to invite questions. For strategic reasons game management sometimes chooses not to reveal details, while still asking for money or imposing measures (like advertisements) that garner money. However, those strategic reasons are often to deal with how attractive they are with advertisers and other income sources. In other words, sometimes game management likes to fudge their traffic numbers, the amount of donators, the number of members etc. They would like to pretend they are something they are not, because not to do so might only cause a downward spiral in their income.
No doubt there is a high price to pay for traffic, if you indeed generate such high traffic. There are things a site can do to combat those costs which includes:
- Shopping wisely. Don't get servers that surpass your means. Shop around. Use free resources if they are available.
- Accept sponsorship. At the cost of a free advertisement, internet hosts or other companies might offer resources.
- Keep your site low on graphics and programmed smartly. For instance maintaining a wiki is far less traffic intensive than other solutions of providing information.
- Accept donations. If you do, be honest about how much you need, how much was donated and what part you had to pay for yourself. Remember that donators may demand quality and sometimes perks. Determine if you want to deal with that.
[edit] The tricky business of giving IC perks to donators
There can't be a hotter debate than that in the free online RPG community. It sounds whole unethical, yet at the same time offering advantages and new content that is limited to donators only is a commercial principle that makes sense. It entices people to fork out money, not relying solely on their good will.
The TGS is on the standpoint that either a game is commercial, in which case offering extra content and other perks is perfectly fine, or it is not, in which case donations should not give access to IC perks (but OOC perks are acceptable). This ensures that all players are equal, no matter the content of their purse.
[edit] Not Making Promises You Can't Keep
It slips so easily. You have visions of the future. You want to share them with other people. You paint a fantastic picture for the community. New graphics, new features. Fantastic new plotlines. Or just the fact you will post soon... honestly!
However, such visions often do not come true, even though they constitute a promise. It breeds frustration each time promises are not kept. You can do this once, you can do this twice, but you cannot do this trice. The community will grow weary and you will loose all good will you have. In the end at best you will gain indifference and at worst aggression. Do not fall into this trap!
[edit] Not Sounding Like A Large Corporate Company
This is a side effect of sounding bigger than you are, but it also has to do with ego and being overly impressed with some form of hierarchy, such as having an entire board of directors, with middle management positions under them etc. etc. This means an entire community can become focused on these elements, rather than what they joined the community for in the first place, which is playing a game.
To be taken seriously you do not need to claim contact with other big companies, the government and anything else on a big scale. In fact, doing so might make you look ridiculous. Likewise the claim to have one or more lawyers working for you is at best pretentious. Nearly all communities, Tazlure included, will have one or more lawyers in their community, playing like everybody else. Legal advice is therefore easily obtained, but that is not to say that they will go to court for you, or that others should fear being dragged into a court of law. For one thing, a court order would have to be delivered in person to you, which is rather complex in a virtual word that is truly international, and therefore expensive. Usually the issue is not worth the effort.
Try to avoid big speeches and big words. Just say what you mean and keep it simple.
[edit] Copyrights
If you want your own copyrights to be respected, there is only one ethical thing you can do and that is to respect the copyrights of other people too. Not respecting copyrights on the internet means that people will be weary of exposing their material there and so the internet becomes a lesser place. Be protective of artists on the net!
There are plenty of alternatives to getting material without resorting to theft:
- Use sites for art and avatars that offer their material for free. Be careful however that these sites didn't rip off artists in the first place. Always check who owns the art.
- Use material that was distributed deliberately for use by fans or other artists, like stock photo's, movie stills etc. Check before you do if that is within the fair use clause of the company that owns the copyrights. We know for instance that Paramount allows it while Warner Brothers (Harry Potter) does not.
- Use material in the Public Domain, aka from artists that are dead for more than 70 years.
- Ask an artist if you may use his material, and respect his answer even if it is no.
- Ask members of the community to create original art specific for your setting.
- Create original material yourself.
Write down your approach to the use of material created by others as part of your copyright clause in your Terms of Service or in a separate policy. Be sure to check with the members of your community if they are compliant with your policy, especially regarding avatars.
[edit] Setting forth Ethics for Staff
See Also Mod Charter
Your staff reflects your own standards. Some principles:
- No to godmodding (forcing things on players, taking away their freedoms)
- No to other control issues (intimidation of newbies through use of titles, leading the story without allowing input from players, punishing players who take initiative, playing favourites)
- Supporting the team (not attacking team members in public, supporting team decisions)
- Being communicative about what you as a staffer can and cannot commit to
- Stating expectations for what a staffer should produce at a minimum and at which rate
- Do as you say and say as you do
[edit] A Complaint Procedure
A complaint procedure, both for members in the community and for staff, and of course sticking to that procedure, will make everybody feel safer from abuse. It should include
- a contact address
- a term during which you will provide an answer to the complaint
- an explanation on how you will deal with complaints and the scope on which you will allow complaints
[edit] Dealing with Fans
It is in your best interest to deal with your fans fondly. After all they enjoy the product you are providing and they can be a great resource to your community. By create a clause in your Terms of Service, or by providing a separate policy, how you will deal with material created by fans (for instance giving them leave to create or use derivative material) you will encourage rather than disappoint and traumatize them, while still upholding your copyright.
[edit] Dealing with Competitors
Incredibly, a war between sites can be born in a minute, with mudslinging going on at both sides. It can include so called "Big Foot" letters between sites to cease and desist using material, or other threats. This legal pretension is as cheap as the paper it is written on (see above under pretending to be a large corporate company) and it really sours up relationships between communities. It feeds into common negative behaviour inherent to humans, but it is something you can rise above.
- If you want to use material of a competitor, ask before you steal. Yes, nearly everything falls under the "generic" description, but don't just copy material that others put hard work in.
- Show courtesy. Do not allow other communities to be badmouthed on your resources.
- Seek cooperation between sites where you can. Share links. Discuss common issues which might help both sites gain a new perspective.
