Thank you for your input!

[Leslie]

I want to start off by really thanking those of you who took the time to send me PM's or emails to let me know what you did or did not like about the updated rules and announcement. We take our members opinions and suggestions to heart, and this is no exception. While all decisions come from me they have been extensively discussed and debated with the entire team. I'm grateful to have a very diverse team with different strengths and opinions, it helps ensure all aspects of a situation are considered. Even with the 9 of us working to make decisions for the site, there are times when members are able to raise issues that we haven't considered yet and we truly appreciate the feedback.

From the PM's and emails we have decided to clarify a few points. It was suggested that we should implement a grace period to give people a chance to adjust to the changes, and we think this is a great idea. Members will now have the rest of the week (until Sunday August 28/11) to make changes to their accounts. Here are the areas that will be included in this grace period....

Signatures - please make sure you have read the rules about signatures and adjusted yours accordingly. Any signatures not corrected during this period will be deleted without further warning. You are welcome to add your signature again following the current rules at any time.

PM's - please delete old PM's so you are below the new limit of 500. You can store them on your own computer if you choose to keep them. Any member with more than 500 messages will have all their messages deleted to comply with the new rules. If you can't figure out how to delete your messages please ask for help. If you just want them all deleted for you just leave them and I will take care of it.

Usernames - you will need to decide if you are happy with your username or if you would like to changed it to something new. You will still need to include your previous username in your signature for one month to assist in the transition. It is time consuming to constantly have requests from people asking to change their username. As always we will use our discretion, if you have a particular situation that requires some leniency please feel free to contact me.

Editing of posts - while we think that changing the forum to allow editing of posts for 24 hours will be a positive change, it was brought to our attention that some members would like to have a period of time during which they could edit out things like their children's names or other identifying information. We hadn't considered this, so we really appreciate having this perspective shared and agree that it would fair to allow members to do this before the change becomes final. Please note: if members are editing posts in a manner that disrupts the flow of the conversation for others trying to read in the future, we will unedit the posts and return them to their original wording.

Moderators/Super Moderators/Admin - We did a lot of research on other forums to see what rules were in place about public criticism of the mod team and to be honest we couldn't find any that didn't have similiar rules. For your reference go ahead and check out the following sites rules if you would like to compare...

MotheringDotCommunity User Agreement | mothering

CrossFit Discussion Board - CrossFit Site Rules

http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum...em#faq_infract

http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum...q_new_ot_rules

Cloth Diapers & Parenting Community - DiaperSwappers.com - FAQ: Diaper Swappers FAQs

http://www.diaperswappers.com/forum/...ction_offenses

Rules and Guidelines


Rep Comments - I have been unable to find a way to allow the Super Mods to have all their abilities minus the ability to read rep comments. I will be returning their Super Mod abilities at the end of this week. We have been very clear about the intent of rep and caution people against using it to send private information. If you need any particular rep comments deleted, please contact me before Sunday so I can delete the comment for you.

As always, we welcome your suggestions and criticisms. Everyone deserves to have a voice and the only way to hear them all is to make it fair for everyone, not just those willing to post it publicly and take the heat if people disagree. We are asking everyone to follow the same course of action so we are able to hear all sides when making decisions. We know if we get 10 emails about the same topic, that it's one requiring clarification on the board and we will take appropriate action. I want a LondonMoms where all members feel they can bring their issues to me. Even if we don't agree with the resolution, we are listening and trying to balance everyone's input.

This site has evolved from less than a 1000 members to over 5000 in a few short years. We need to change how we do things to recognize this increase. Hopefully these changes will allow everyone to feel comfortable posting on LondonMoms.ca

This doesn't change how you are able to post 99% of the time. You can still debate respectfully, you can still share your opinion regardless of whether or not it's popular, and you can still learn a great deal from your fellow LondonMoms. We are simply asking for the courtesy of an email or PM to discuss any concerns about decisions made by any of the admin/mod team so that we may address it personally. They all volunteer their time to help make this place better, and they deserve that respect.

Respectfully yours,

Leslie and the Mod Team

[Leslie]

Clarification regarding rep:

I can read all incoming and outgoing rep comments that have been recorded since the system was cleared and started over. I can not see anything from the old rep system as it no longer exists. I can also see which thread the rep is in response to.

The supermods will only be able to see the rep you received, they can not even see what thread it's in response to so if someone writes ITA, they have no idea what it's about. This is precisly why we have warned you not to share anything personal in rep because in the rare event that a supermod did have to look up rep they can't control who else has sent rep to a paticular user and may see yours inadvertently.

[Leslie]

As a member of the LondonMoms.ca team I agree to follow the code of conduct and confidentiality agreement as outlined below. I understand that in order to be a member of this team I agree to be bound by the terms and conditions as they are presented.

I understand and agree that anything I learn while in my position as a LondonMoms.ca team member that could breech the privacy/confidentiality of the board, it's members or the administration will not be shared outside the LondonMoms.ca team.
This includes but is not limited to:
- personal information such as IP address, home address, real names, etc. of both LondonMoms.ca team members and general members
- personal information about general members or LondonMoms.ca team members that is disclosed in confidence or under the assumption of anonymity such as (but not limited to) when someone intended to post Anonymously but did not, or in the rare case when an Anonymous poster's identity is made known by Admin.

I agree that if I ever discover the ability to see any information that I was not previously privy to I will disclose this ability to Admin immediately.

I agree that if it comes to my attention that someone else on the LondonMoms.ca team is not acting in manner that meets the requirements of this position that it is my responsibility and duty to bring this to the attention of the Administration in a timely manner.

I understand and agree that the Moderator section of the forum is a place for discussion of issues relevant to the LondonMoms.ca team and is not to be used as a place to gossip about members. I agree that I will keep any such discussions confidential and will not discuss them with or in the presence of anyone who is not currently a member of the LondonMoms.ca team. I further understand that if I resign or I am relieved from my duties that I will no longer be privy to any information.

I understand and agree that this confidentiality extends indefinitely and remains in place even after I leave the LondonMoms.ca team and/or LondonMoms.ca.

Any breech of the above either during or after your role will result in consequences that may include a warning, a removal of some or all abilities, a demodding, and in severe cases a ban from the site and/or legal action; all of which are left up to the discretion of the Administration based on the severity of the situation.



Please Note: We put together an agreement that we felt represented the needs of the site however it may be changed at any time as we continue to research. We wanted to have something sooner rather than later so this is what we are working with right now. As we research what other companies/agencies use this may change. We will not be posting further changes on the open forum. We have posted this current version in an effort to allievate concerns and show that we are working very hard to make positive changes going forward. If you have a copy of an agreement that you feel would be helpful please email it to Leslie@londonmoms.ca. We appreciate any efforts to help us develop a suitable policy.

Please forward any questions or concerns about this agreement to Leslie@londonmoms.ca