Hey, this is the discussion topic regarding our Friend Chat: Zchat. If you've not tried it out before, you should definitely stop by for a chat with fellow Runescapers! There's a guide at the bottom of this post if you're not sure how to get there.
Below are our rules and guides on how users should conduct themselves in the chat. These rules are for members and moderators and are designed to promote a good atmosphere in the chat. We don't want to crush conversation but we don't want people to feel uneasy. Please remember, that the rules are (but not limited to):
1. That repeatedly spamming the chat will earn you a kick. The same applies to "flooding" (the mass posting of messages). This also applies to website advertising, account selling, password scamming or any blatant black market activity. You will be kicked.
2. That racism, sexism, homophobia or excessive flaming will earn you a kick without warning. It is the ranked person's discretion of what is considered kick-able or not.
3. For any other offensives (one-off spam, objectionable discussion (including, but not limited to, the discussion botting, hacking & of drugs/illegal substances)) you may receive a warning. If you ignore this warning and continue with this behavior, you will be kicked. It is the ranked person's discretion of what is considered warnable or not.
4. Treat other users with the same courtesy as you would expect. If someone asks a question, try to answer clearly and concisely. If someone is chatting, do not shout them down. Users who persistently attempt to bully, harass or "troll" other users will be kicked.
5. That players who circumvent their kick will be banned from the Chat for a minimum of one week. Players who persistently break the rules may be subject to longer bans within the chat.
6. The language of the chat is English. This is for the convenience of everyone. Any discussion in anything but English will earn a warning.
7. Do not impersonate other individuals by using similar names as ranked users. Individuals who do so to insult or defame others will be kicked without warning.
8. Do not advertise other chats within the Zchat. Your forum signature and "About Me" are there for you to use. We cannot guarantee the content of other chats.
9. Do not fill the chat with questions about a moderator's actions. Take it to private messages or, if you feel the moderator has been unjust then message me with the relevant information.
Bans and Appeals
As part of our mission to ensure Zchat is as great as possible, we've changed the way Appeals work. If you're banned from the chat and wish to appeal, you should use this form and be as detailed as possible. The chat moderators will discuss your appeal and then get back to you as soon as possible. This may take several days.
Two things to consider. The minimum ban is 1 month. If whatever you've done is particularly bad, that could be extended from 1 month to forever or somewhere in-between. We won't consider appeals from anyone who has been banned for less than this. Secondly, if your appeal is rejected for whatever reason, you may not appeal again for 3 months. Any appeals before that deadline will reset the timer (so you'll have to wait 3 months from that point).
FAQ
Below are some of the questions often asked. If you have a question about something not covered, feel free to message me!
I've been banned from the chat, can you unban me?
If you have been kicked from the chat, your ban will expire in an hour. If you have been permanently banned from the chat and you feel this was a mistake or you wish to appeal the ban, please use the Appeals form located here.
What do the stars mean?
The stars are chat ranks. Bronze is Lieutenant, Silver is Captain, Gold is General. A more detailed breakdown can be found here.
Can I have a rank?
Nope, we don't just give ranks out. Ranks are determined by the moderators for those who we deem suitable. If/when you're promoted, your clan chat rank will be adjusted. The General rank (Gold star) is awarded to Moderators, Senior Moderators and Kings. The smiley face rank is awarded to our Veterans of Zchat, people whom the moderating team feels have been in the chat for a large amount of time. It cannot kick.
Is W13 'Zchat'?
No.
The chat's name is Zchat but in the chat it says RSC?
This is intended.
What level combat is Zchat?
4
Can I buy/sell stuff in the chat?
Yes, but please do not spam it up. A simple "buying/selling X" will do, we don't need the same message 50 times.
Updates to Zchat
Below is a list of updates that've occured to the Friend's Chat.
Spoiler
Update 10th September, 2010.
Clarify that sexism and homophobia are no more welcome than racism. These things will not be tolerated.
Update 13th September, 2010.
Updated the rules to clarify a few points.
Update 26th September, 2010.
Updated Rule #4 to clarify that we won't accept harassment, bullying or belittment of users from any person or group.
Update 16th February, 2011.
Updated to reflect changes to the filter:
Any offensives directed at a person will still be grounds for a kick.
Any racist/homphobic/sexist/or otherwise degrogatory remarks are still grounds for an immediate kick.
Any non-specific use of swearing is down to each individual to filter / not filter with the ingame option. Excessive swearing will not be tolerated
Whilst we realise the filter is a step towards self-moderation which we welcome; we do not want Zchat to become too filled with curse words and expletives. We want it to retain its friendly atmosphere. As always, what constitutes "excessive" will be at the moderator's discretion.
Update 16th Octover, 2011.
Minor update to wording and pictures to emphasis it is no longer a Clan chat.
Update 29th January, 2012.
Update to the way Appeals are processed. Information in the spoiler:
Spoiler
After some discussion, we're going to make changes to the way bans and appeals work. Currently, bans and appeals revolve a lot around myself. However, as chat moderators do a lot of the chat work and are instrumental in banning people who disrupt the chat, it's only fair they have a say in the appeals too. Hopefully, this will give the appeals process a much more democratic overview and allow people who deserve a second chance to get it.
The way we're going to do it is with Google Docs, specifically this form. If you wish to appeal your ban, you fill that in with all the details. The chat moderators discuss it, reach a consensus then we feedback to you via your preferred method (on the forums or via email).
We know this may lengthen the time between appeal and response; we've just gone from 1 person deciding to 60~. But we genuinely believe that it'll be worth it and it'll better the chat.
Two points. The minimum ban is 1 month. If whatever you've done is particularly bad, that could be extended from 1 month to forever or somewhere in-between. We won't consider appeals from anyone who has been banned for less than this. Secondly, if your appeal is rejected for whatever reason, you may not appeal again for 3 months. Any appeals before that deadline will reset the timer (so you'll have to wait 3 months from that point).
As always, many thanks to the chat moderators who've worked tirelessly to ensure Zchat's a brilliant place to hang out in. The main post will be updated to reflect all this very shortly.
Update 29th April, 2012.
Updated our ranks to now include the Veterans rank. More information on the spoiler:
Spoiler
It's been awhile since the last update. We've decided to make use of some of the other ranks available in Zchat. From today, you may see some people with the smiley face symbol, like this:
these people are our Veterans of Zchat. It's a rank given to those whom the moderating team feel have been with us for awhile. I should stress the rank holds no moderating powers at all. It is intended purely to recognise those members who've stuck with Zchat through time. They given Zchat their dedication, we'd like to give a little something back.
As the years go on, more people will naturally call themselves Veterans. We will of course be periodically re-evaluating and adding in more as necessary.
Update 3rd August, 2012.
Updated the ranks, information in the spoiler:
Spoiler
Hello, a few months ago we updated our rank system to include our Veterans of Zchat; you can find more on that in the updates section below. First, let me go through the ranks.
Friends: Our smiley faces.
Recruit: Any new members to the mod team go in here. These people cannot kick. It's intended as a training rank.
Corporal: Where recruits end up after their training period. These people can kick.
Sergeant: The 'three bananas' that most people are familiar with. These people have likey been around for quite awhile. Senior Members from the forums will go in at this rank.
Lieutenant: The bronze stars. Promoted from Sergeants, these guys and girls will have been in the chat for at least a year, most likely two. This rank is invite only, anyone wanting to attain this will have had to show dedication, commitment and helpfulness in the chat.
Captain: The silver stars. Requires a minimum two years in the chat. S/he will have been an integral part of the Zchat community. This position requries the concensus of the moderation team.
General: The gold stars. Reserved for forum moderators and administrators.
At first, it may not look like much has changed. But, the old system was heavily based on the forum ranks. This meant that anyone selected from the chat to moderate (as opposed to the forums) would find it difficult to move up the ranks. Hopefully, under the new system, ranks from the chat will have a fluidity; people within the chat get rewarded for their conduct there.
This is probably the largest reshuffle we've done. Though it might be initially confusing to see old faces at new ranks, we hope you'll bear with us and understand the reasons it was done.
Also, reworded the rules slightly. The old version is in the spoiler:
Spoiler
1. That spamming the chat will earn you a kick. The same applies to "flooding" (mass posting of messages). This also applies to website advertising, account selling, password scamming or any blatant black market activity. You will be kicked.
2. That racism, sexism, homophobia or excessive flaming earns you a kick without warning. It is the ranked person's discretion of what is considered kick-able or not.
3. For any other offensives (mild spam, objectionable discussion (including the discussion of drugs/illegal substances)) you will receive a warning. If you continue with this behavior, you will be kicked. It is the ranked person's discretion of what is considered warnable or not.
4. Treat other users with the same courtesy as you would expect. If someone asks a question, try to answer clearly concisely. If someone is chatting, do not shout them down. Users who persistently attempt to bully, harass or "troll" other users will be kicked.
5. That players who circumvent their kick will be banned from the Chat for a minimum of one week. Players who persistently break the rules may be subject to longer bans within the chat.
6. The language of the chat is English. This is for the convenience of everyone. Any discussion in anything but English will earn a warning.
7. Do not impersonate other individuals with similar names as ranked users. Individuals who do so to insult or defame others will be kicked without warning.
8. Do not advertise other chats within the Zchat. Your signature and "About Me" are there for you to use. We cannot guarantee the content of other chats.
9. Do not fill the chat with questions about a moderator's actions. Take it to private messages or, if you feel the moderator has been unjust then message me with the relevant information.
Guide To using the Chat.
Lastly, a simple guide of how to access our chat:
Firstly, click on the third tab along, this one:
You'll be presented with a screen and two small icons. You want to click on the Green Man holding a "+" sign, like this:
Type in the name "Zchat" within the box and hit Enter.
You are then within the Chat! To type to anyone else in the Chat, type your message like this:
Which will produce this:
If any of the pictures don't work, please contact me.
Original RSC Member Number: 1191. Official Zybez Chat:ZChat - details here.
Hello, a few months ago we updated our rank system to include our Veterans of Zchat; you can find more on that in the updates section above. First, let me go through the ranks.
Friends: Our smiley faces.
Recruit: Any new members to the mod team go in here. These people cannot kick. It's intended as a training rank.
Corporal: Where recruits end up after their training period. These people can kick.
Sergeant: The 'three bananas' that most people are familiar with. These people have likey been around for quite awhile. Senior Members from the forums will go in at this rank.
Lieutenant: The bronze stars. Promoted from Sergeants, these guys and girls will have been in the chat for at least a year, most likely two. This rank is invite only, anyone wanting to attain this will have had to show dedication, commitment and helpfulness in the chat.
Captain: The silver stars. Requires a minimum two years in the chat. S/he will have been an integral part of the Zchat community. This position requries the concensus of the Zchat moderation team.
General: The gold stars. Reserved for forum moderators and administrators.
At first, it may not look like much has changed. But, the old system was heavily based on the forum ranks. This meant that anyone selected from the chat to moderate (as opposed to the forums) would find it difficult to move up the ranks. Hopefully, under the new system, ranks from the chat will have a fluidity; people within the chat get rewarded for their conduct there.
This is probably the largest reshuffle we've done. Though it might be initially confusing to see old faces at new ranks, we hope you'll bear with us and understand the reasons it was done.
Matchu
Original RSC Member Number: 1191. Official Zybez Chat:ZChat - details here.
Feel free to leave comments and provide feedback as to how the ranks can make Zchat a better place to hang out in, guys and girls. After all we are all in this together.
“People are continually pointing out to me the wretchedness of white people in order to console me for the wretchedness of blacks. But an itemized account of the American failure does not console me and it should not console anyone else. That hundreds of thousands of white people are living, in effect, no better than the "African Americans" is not a fact to be regarded with complacency. The social and moral bankruptcy suggested by this fact is of the bitterest, most terrifying kind.”
I really like this idea, and am glad to see it implemented :D I have spent just about the last 2 years of playing in this friends chat and i must say it is my favorite thing that i got out of from joining the Zybez Community.
This is good to hear, but a bit strange... Some of the people now ranked in chat are people I've never seen or heard speak before. I guess they're just new to the team. Should be interesting to see how the new system works out!
Very good update. Nice to see that all the ranks are actually being used now. I hope to see some more new faces in zchat soon. Good chat to hang around in with very nice people
Some of the people now ranked in chat are people I've never seen or heard speak before. I guess they're just new to the team.
Dakk changed his name to Zoomeneering, if that's what confused you, nothing else has actually happened.
Edited by Murdoc, 03 August 2012 - 12:09 PM.
“People are continually pointing out to me the wretchedness of white people in order to console me for the wretchedness of blacks. But an itemized account of the American failure does not console me and it should not console anyone else. That hundreds of thousands of white people are living, in effect, no better than the "African Americans" is not a fact to be regarded with complacency. The social and moral bankruptcy suggested by this fact is of the bitterest, most terrifying kind.”
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