Portal-Moderation

[Hausigel]

Hello,

as hinted in the other thread about labels/tags, the Puzzle Portal will be moderated in the future. The moderate will span the following:

• If labels or tags are not used as provided, the moderator can change them directly (with a brief comment).
  
• If the moderator becomes aware of a broken puzzle, he can modify the faulty contents - usually the solution code - or deactivate the puzzle (in case a straightforward repair is not possible). This will only happen if it is apparent that a mistake has been mode; if there are doubts regarding the author's intent, the moderator will not take such measures. If the author is still active in the portal, the moderator will not intervene directly, but he might leave a comment and act only if the author does not respond after a reasonable amount of time (perhaps 7 days).
  
• If a puzzle is found to violate the Terms of Use, the moderator can either notify the author, deactivate the puzzle or alter the critical contents. The latter is only supposed to happen if the author does not respond in time (see above) or if the violation is clear. In soft cases, we prefer that the author gets a chance to make the changes himself.
  
• If a puzzle contains severe violations (or the author is repeatedly uncooperative), the moderator can have the puzzle disabled in consultation with another person in charge (admin or board).
  
• The above are puzzle-related actions. If an author violates the Portal provisions repeatedly, the moderator can pass on his findings to admins or board members. In that case, a decision concerning further sanctions may be made, e.g. restrictions on puzzle creation privileges or even deletion of the user in extreme cases.
  

Before you get scared: The moderation is planned to start on a low level. We expect that hardly anything beyond the first measure is taken in the beginning. The main purpose of the moderation is to keep the Portal "sorted", not to hassle or bully the puzzle authors. In particular the last of the listed actions will presumably only be taken in exceptional situations.

The moderators have special accounts, recognizable by the addition "_mod" to the username. We are asking that normal users do not register such names. The moderation comments are marked with a green bar.

Best regards
Roland