From 8774a56971d1d6d97718ab55b0ee316c72fc681d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Art Cancro Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2016 11:49:05 -0400 Subject: [PATCH] Remove the "nice" help file. Seriously, it's 2016. --- citadel/help/nice | 128 ---------------------------------------------- 1 file changed, 128 deletions(-) delete mode 100644 citadel/help/nice diff --git a/citadel/help/nice b/citadel/help/nice deleted file mode 100644 index 2e5411442..000000000 --- a/citadel/help/nice +++ /dev/null @@ -1,128 +0,0 @@ - The following are a few points of general BBS etiquette. If you wish -to maintain your welcome on whatever system you happen to call, it -would be to your advantage to observe these few rules. Feel free to -download this and display spread it around. - - 1. Don't habitually hang up on a system. Every Sysop is aware that -accidental disconnections happen once in a while but we do tend to -get annoyed with people who hang up every single time they call -because they are either too lazy to terminate properly or they labor -under the mistaken assumption that the 10 seconds they save online is -going to significantly alter their phone bill. "Call Waiting" is not -an acceptable excuse for long. If you have it and intend to use the -line to call BBS's you should either have it disconnected or find -some other way to circumvent it. - - 2. Don't do dumb things like leave yourself a message that says -"Just testing to see if this thing works". Where do you think all -those other messages came from if it didn't work? Also, don't leave -whiney messages that say "Please leave me a message". If ever there -was a person to ignore, it is the one who begs someone to leave him a -message. If you want to get messages, start by reading the ones that -are already online and getting involved in the conversations that -exist. - - 3. Don't use the local equivalent of a chat command unless you -really have some clear cut notion of what you want to say and why. -Almost any Sysop is more than happy to answer questions or offer help -concerning his system. Unfortunately, because about 85% of the -people who call want to chat and about 99% of those people have -absolutely nothing to say besides "How old are you?" or something -equally irrelevant, fewer Sysops even bother answering their pagers -every day. - - 4. When you are offered a place to leave comments when exiting a -system, don't try to use this area to ask the Sysop questions. It is -very rude to the other callers to expect the Sysop to carry on a half -visible conversation with someone. If you have a question or -statement to make and expect the Sysop to respond to it, it should -always be made in the section where all the other messages are kept. -This allows the Sysop to help many people with the same problem with -the least amount of effort on his part. - - 5. Before you log on with your favorite pseudonym, make sure that -handles are allowed. Some Sysops do not want people using handles on -the system. The reasons vary, but everyone should still be willing to -take full responsibility for his actions or comments instead of -slinging mud from behind a phoney name. - - Also when signing on, why not sign on just like you would introduce -yourself in your own society? How many of you usually introduce -yourselves as Joe W Smutz the 3rd or 4th? - - 6. Take the time to log on properly. If the BBS asks you the city -where you are calling from, remember that there is no such place as -RIV, HB, ANA or any of a thousand other abbreviations people use -instead of their proper city. You may think that everyone knows what -RIV is supposed to mean, but every BBS has people calling from all -around the country and I assure you that someone from Podunk, Iowa -has no idea what you are talking about. - - 7. Don't go out of your way to make rude observations like "Gee, -this system is slow". Every BBS is a tradeoff of features. You can -generally assume that if someone is running a particular brand of -software, that he is either happy with it or he will decide to find -another system he likes better. It does nobody any good when you -make comments about something that you perceive to be a flaw when it -is running the way the Sysop wants it to. Constructive criticism is -somewhat more welcome. If you have an alternative method that seems -to make good sense then run it up the flagpole. - - 8. When leaving messages, stop and ask yourself whether it is -necessary to make it private. Unless there is some particular reason -that everyone should not know what you are saying, do not make it -private. We do not call them PUBLIC bulletin boards for nothing, -folks. It is very irritating to other callers when there are huge -blank spots in the messages that they can not read and it stifles -interaction between callers. - - 9. If your favorite BBS has a time limit, observe it. If it -doesn't, set a limit for yourself and abide by it instead. Do not -tie up a system as a new user and run right to the other numbers -list. There is probably very little that is more annoying to any -Sysop than to have his board completely passed over by you on your -way to another board. - - 10. Have the common courtesy to pay attention to what passes in -front of your face. When a BBS displays your name and asks "Is this -you?", don't say yes when you can see perfectly well that it is -misspelled. Also, do not start asking questions about simple -operation of a system until you have thoroughly read all of the -instructions that are available to you. I assure you that it is not -any fun to answer a question for the thousandth time when the answer -is prominently displayed in the system bulletins or instructions. Use -some common sense when you ask your questions. The person who said -"There is no such thing as a stupid question" obviously never -operated a BBS. - - 11. Don't be personally abusive. It does not matter whether you -like a Sysop or think he/she is a jerk. The fact remains that he/she -has a large investment in making his computer available, usually out -of the goodness of his/her heart. If you don't like a Sysop or -his/her system, just remember that you can change the channel any -time you want. Besides, whether you are aware of it or not, if you -make yourself enough of an annoyance to any Sysop, he/she can take -the time to trace you down and make your life, or that of your -parents, miserable. - - Along those lines, don't be abusive of other users on the system. -It doesn't matter what you think of him/her/them, but "If you don't -have something nice to say, don't say it." If you think someone is -being too abusive/whatever, let the Sysop know. It is his/her -system, and upon him/her lies the responsibilty of dealing with -problem users. If you think that he/she is not doing a good enough -job, do not call back. - - 12. Lastly and ****** MOST IMPORTANTLY ****** keep firmly in mind -that you are a *** GUEST *** on any BBS you happen to call. Do not -think of logging on as one of your basic human rights. Every person -that has ever put a computer system online for the use of other -people has spent a lot of time and money to do so. While he/she does -not expect nonstop pats on the back, it seems reasonable that he/she -should at least be able to expect fair treatment from his/her -callers. This includes following any of the rules for system use -he/she has laid out without grumping about it. Every Sysop has -his/her own idea of how he/she wants his/her system to be run. It is -really none of your business why he/she wants to run it the way -he/she does. Your business is to either abide by what he says, or -call some other BBS where you feel that you can obey the rules. -- 2.30.2