Beth Martin
Administrator
Active Members
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Hi folks, please take a moment to peruse the following guidelines before you begin posting. Most of this is common sense, and everyone has been already doing all of this without having the guidelines, but it's something we need, just in case.
Don't Be Afraid To Post
If you're new to our community, taking the step for the first time to post publicly to a message board can sometimes seem intimidating. Don't be afraid to jump in a discussion. We have a very active membership that serves up heavy doses of support, encouragement and enthusiasm. Posting in the “Introductions” section is a great way to get started, and it gives us all a chance to get to know you better. The board is private in that ONLY members of Eastside Mothers & More are allowed to access it and create accounts for it.
Feel Free to "Lurk" & Listen
While we hope that you'll become an active participant and join in our discussions. You're welcome, of course, to simply hang out silently until you feel more comfortable posting a message. Whether perusing the message board or attending live group meetings, it's OK to do so silently.
We invite and encourage a healthy exchange of opinions and disagreement about the threads and topics posted on our message board. If you disagree with a person's post or opinion, by all means, challenge the opinion. "Flaming" and insults, however, will not be tolerated. Flaming and slamming is petty and childish. If you have a burning urge to pick a fight please organize it amongst yourselves at the local all-night café parking lot. Agree to disagree.
Divisive topics of discusson, as defined by national and local Mothers & More policies and by-laws may be moderated and inappropriate and/or volatile posts related to such topics may be removed by the board administrators without notice.
Don't attack individuals. Personal attacks on individuals will not be excused. Challenge others' points of view and opinions, but do so respectfully and thoughtfully ... without insult and personal attack.
Harassing, offensive, vulgar, abusive, hateful or bashing communications -- especially those aimed at sexual orientation, gender, race, color, religious views, national origin, or disability -- will not be permitted. BEFORE you post a message that is intended to embarrass, humiliate or harass another person or group of people, stop and THINK first! Harassing communications are considered to be those that may cause distress, embarrassment, unwanted attention or other discomfort.
Spam, flooding, chain letters, pyramid schemes, etc. are also inappropriate. If any user is found to be poaching email addresses or other personal member information for commercial use, that user will have their posting privileges restricted or revoked.
The board administrators reserve the right to remove or relocate a post which does not relate to the topic being discussed in the folder or starting post.
The board administrators also reserve the right to organize topical boards in order to best serve the majority of members. For example, narrow-interest or minimal activity topics maybe relocated or deleted entirely.
Please just post information once. Multiple posts copied over and over are annoying to folks reading the board
Capital Letters
On the Internet, anything that you type in ALL-CAPITAL letters is considered to be "spoken loudly" or shouted. While this is an appropriate way to emphasize a word or two (such as "I absolutely LOVE this forum!"), an entire message posted in all-caps is considered to be shouting and in bad taste. All-caps messages are also more difficult to read, and should also be avoided simply for reasons of comprehension.
Respect
Above all else, respect others and treat them as you yourself would like to be treated. Posting a thank-you to someone who has posted helpful information is a great way to encourage that person to continue posting.
If you do not like these rules, please do not post. If you break these rules, we reserve the right to restrict or revoke your posting privileges.
Topics and their Uses
So, now that you’ve got the basics, let’s cover the fun part: where do I post stuff????
The Eastside Mothers & More message board is broken down into three major categories for general member use: Chapter News & Events, Chapter Documents, and Discussion Forums. A fourth section is for Message Board Maintenance, is primarily used by the board administrators and moderators to address needs of the users regarding the board.
Each category is fairly self-explanatory, but here is a quick rundown for those of you who may still be a bit unsure of where to start:
Chapter News & Events
Anything posted here should be of interest or usefulness to the entire membership, for example, a playgroup change of hostess, requests for carpooling to a meeting/event, or news from the National leadership.
Chapter Documents
If you host/moderate a meeting and have handouts, please post them here.
Discussion Forums
These are a whole bunch of random chit-chat topics that are member-generated. Helpful hints for finding a nanny, restaurant recommendations, and talks about the latest episode of Desperate Housewives are all examples of what is appropriate to be posted in this section.
Cross-posting
Please avoid making multiple posts of the same topic to different forums. Just pick the best forum for your topic and make one post. People will find it, don't worry! Multiple postings will get merged or deleted.
To make a long story short, this message board has been a long time coming, and a lot of hard work has gone into making it a convenient, user-friendly, and most of all, FUN place of communications for our chapter’s use. If you have any questions about the board please please PLEASE email one of the chapter leaders or our web/message board goddess at any time, or just post your question in this forum! We’re here to serve you!
Cheers-
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