Chatop Guide
UNDERSTANDING YOUR JOB
ASSORTED POINTS OF ORDER
CHAT POSITIONS
User Intent
As a note, a lot of things on this page will be dealing with one, specific concept: intent. Understanding and reading intent is the most important and difficult thing for an op to learn to do. Let's take an example from logs:
<User> all da gays is satans peepee buddies
Now comes the question: what was this user's intent? Obviously, this is some form of hyperbole and overstatement. It appears that this person could be joking. But what if they've just joined chat and this is the first thing that they said? Obviously, this quote (which was, hilariously enough, actually said by our very own DrMann circa 2009) needs some form of context to figure out what is going on. It's further worth noting that this quote took place during a conversation concerning redneck stereotypes. Obviously, no harm was intended here. There was an ongoing, humorous conversation to which many people were contributing.
Welcome to the mire of intent. This is the most shallow section of it.
Understanding Intent
Understanding a user's intent means understanding a user themselves. It's one of the reasons why newbies are the most targeted people when it comes to discipline. They don't understand the site culture; ops don't understand them. They're unknown quantities, and we often assume the worst.
There are two extremes of intent, and most ops fall somewhere between the two of them.
The first: always assume the worst. People are horrible, and if someone makes a comment which could be read in a negative way, then it should be interpreted in that way. This leads to users believing that you overreact often, don't have a sense of humor, or are overly sensitive, and OPs who tend to lean in this direction are often called these things.
The second: always assume the best. People are just having a good time, and if someone makes a comment which seemed negative, then they probably didn't mean it. This leads to users believing that you are a pushover, unwilling to stand up to people, or even contemptible because of your lackadaisicality, and ops who tend to lean in this direct are often called these things.
Of course, both extremes are wrong, but overreactions and underreactions are basically the source of most people's complaints about ops. The most difficult part about your job is finding a happy medium between these two extremes. In the end, no one is perfect, and you'll almost certainly screw up from time to time. That's fine. Learning from your mistakes always makes you a better op in the end.
For now, keep in mind the following ideas while you're reading the next few tabs to help understand your job here:
Is the user's intent to do something shitty? This calls for discipline: warning, kicking, banning, etc.
Is the user not intending to do something shitty, but something shitty is still happening? This calls for you to step in and stop the action as soon as possible: mute the channel, announce a change in conversation topic, ask people to move on, etc.
Obviously, this is flexible. Someone may not be intending to be shitty, yet still spouting racism or similar, in which case discipline is appropriate.
These two situations are why you're here.
Chat Op Guidelines
Chat ops should be familiar with the points presented in this guide, and failure/refusal to abide by them can be grounds for disciplinary action. That said: there's plenty of room for ambiguity here, and there's no need to nail people down for minor violations. These are "guidelines" instead of "hard and fast rules" for a reason.
Everything on this page has wiggle room depending on context! Use your judgement when necessary.
We're here to serve the users, not the other way around. This goes up front because it's probably the most important guideline.
As a quick guideline to the op position and something to remember… Never forget that the position of operator does not place you 'above' other users. You are not inherently better than someone without operator status, nor are you suddenly more special. You've been given the job because you've been trusted with the ability to remove threats and address problems. You're not an elite, god-like user. You're a deputy. And acting like you're better than the people you're interacting with is just a good way to encourage them to regard you with contempt (and thereby, all other people in your position). Doing this is the fast track to removal, regardless of how effective you are as an OP.
We aren't here to treat people harshly. Yes, definitely, treat people harshly when it's merited. However, it is not a plus to treat people harshly by default, or to treat them harshly unless given a reason not to. If you have a short fuse, learn to step back. Rule of thumb: We don't want to terrify users. Harshness is not always a particularly clear concept. Does the punishment disrupt chat more than the misdemeanor itself? If so, you're probably being too harsh.
Examples of meriting harsh treatment: Being an asshole to other users; being creepy; directly refusing to comply with rules or op orders; trolling.
Examples of not meriting harsh treatment: Asking silly questions; being underage; having a name that violates the rules; trying to roleplay.
We have an obligation to moderate the channel. This means stepping in when a rule is being violated or ending conversations that just overwhelm the channel for hours on end.
Avoid dog-piling. There's usually no need for more than one or two people to handle someone. Don't chime in when another op has a situation under control. However, it is usually accepted that when one op is handling an issue,another op runs 'crowd control'. Any more than that and it becomes overwhelming.
Try not to undercut or otherwise obstruct each other. If an incident is being incorrectly handled, tell the op in question… but tell them in a PM or Op Chat. To get their attention, you can say "Hey <op>, check op chat / PM" or whatnot.
Additionally: When an op sets a channel to +m, don't use your op to continue screwing around, mocking or talking down to users, etc.
Be as clear as possible. When making official decisions or performing disciplinary actions within the chat, the operator's actions and intentions should be clear. For example, if an op wants to officially call for a stop to a particular conversation, the op should announce that their decision is an official stop order. By doing so, there is less risk of misinterpretation by users, other ops, and outside observers. In addition, ops should specify the topic of conversation that has been stopped.
Related: No lulzkicks. Don't kick as a joke. Only use kicks as a method of issuing a warning (or getting someone's attention — do this rarely, though, and be super clear about it when you do) or otherwise enforcing the rules of the room.
Further: Do not use stop orders or kicks to get the 'last word.' This is highly unprofessional. If you're ending a conversation, don't use that as an opportunity to 'win the argument' or dump on people. You can (and should) state what behavior was inappropriate, if any (including if that behavior was involved in the debate, such as people advocating for offensive personal points of view, like "trans people aren't real" or "black people are inferior" or "men are better drivers than women"). But even then, don't use that as an opportunity to snark at people. Just end the conversation. (See the first note about "Recognition of Duty over Eliteness"). If possible, an operator not involved in a given conversation should be the one to stop it.
Treat all community members in the chat fairly… …even if you hate them. Don't get into petty character attacks with someone just because they have an opinion different from your opinion.
Related: Be careful about badmouthing users. This is again a question of professionalism. If you want to talk shit, take it to PMs or other channels. And even then, don't.
Please don't deliberately instigate excessively disruptive discussion. All ops should strive to avoid chat disruption. Especially inflammatory content can be discussed in any number of side channels. Dog-piling, overwhelming the chat, and devolving actual discussions into petty arguments and accusations are all things operators should work to stop instead of participate in.
#Site19's main purpose is general SCP chat. Try and avoid letting SCP-related discussion being drowned out constantly.
Set up a ping list. If their client allows it, chatops should set it up so that they are pinged by "ops" and, optionally, other similar variations.1 Otherwise, things get missed because nobody pinged the specific op who was online when shenanigans were going on.
Do not abuse the op power for personal reasons. This should go without saying.
Assume good faith unless you have a reason not to. This applies especially when dealing with other ops. It's really hard to work in an environment where everyone is on edge or worried about others secretly trying to undercut them.
This list is not and cannot be complete. The nature of living groups is that things change, including thoughts, public opinion, and feelings on a variety of subjects. Chat has and always will be a living thing. These points have changed over time. Even "Be Tolerant With Newbies" wasn't something that we felt was necessary at the beginning of the site.
These points are all subject to change as needed.
This comes first because you're likely going to be their first interaction with an authority figure on staff. Try not to make it an incredibly shitty experience for them.
Be Tolerant With Newbies: Unless they really cross the line, like going on about rape/creeper shit/etc, try to be more tolerant with newbies as they try to acclimate to chat. If they roleplay a bit, be gentle. If they ask is scp real, don't call them morons.
Roleplaying: When possible, try to direct people to #Origins-OOC instead of just telling them to stop roleplaying.
Handling Bad Newbie Names: Don't kick them before they start talking unless they have an obviously trolling user name. If they actively refuse to change their name and act stupid, then you can kick them. Cut them a little slack at first. Make sure you tell them how to change their name if they seem confused. If they don't understand what you're asking, don't kick them for that.
If they're extremely clueless, then that tends to be a maturity issue, which overrides the name issue anyway, because being excessively immature is banworthy.
What Names Do We Disallow?
Obviously, anything with slurs.
Names with SPC, SCP, D-Class, anything that's the name of an established character or SCP, unless ops approve it. Basically, no one should be roleplaying. Agent and Doctor names are okay. Something like "SCPfan101" is probably fine, too, these days.
Anything that's a constantly used word, because it fucks up clients with all the pings ("a", "and", and "the", for example).
People with excessively long names can also be asked to change at op discretion.
Note that any non-terrible names can be used on a temporary basis if people are just having fun, and it's not becoming excessively disruptive.
General Discipline
Dealing With Trolls: Many of our op behavioral guidelines do not apply to people who are unambiguously trolling. If you have a troll in the dungeon, and messing with them isn't being excessively disruptive, then go for it. Ban when you're finished.
Note: This is typically more okay in #Site17, because 17 is a help channel and very often devoid of conversation. Messing with trolls in 19 is usually disruptive, so try not to do it too much, and certainly not to the extent that you ignore people who need actual help.
Backseat Modding: You can let this slide if you think it's helpful; your call. If it's not being helpful or undercutting us in some way, or otherwise being irritating, feel free to smack it down. People aren't supposed to do this unless they can both know what they're talking about and not be messing with ops doing their jobs; otherwise, it's subject to discipline.
Sassing ops: Sassing or arguing with ops isn't automatically against the rules. It's not always a good idea, but it's not against the rules.
Side-channels: If someone uses 19 as a base for bothering or trolling other people (such as going and bothering people in a side chat because they can't in 19), they are potentially subject to punishment in 19 too, at our discretion.
Otherwise, violations in side channels aren't grounds for 19 bans unless harassment or excess creepiness is going on. If it's ambiguous, discuss with other ops.
General foul language is not a problem.
Anything that can be considered a slur might be a problem; operators are welcome to use their best judgement on whether the use of a slur is disruptive or deliberately meant to be hurtful or insulting, then act accordingly.
Try to reflect general community consensus on whether people should stop using a certain word overall, as well as the general opinion of the group targeted by the word. You don't necessarily need to reflect the opinion of individual users, unless that's all you have to go on.
Remember that people coming from other internet communities may genuinely not initially realize that what they're saying is a problem. So warn them first. Don't ban immediately. If they're gonna be an ass about it intentionally, they'll usually demonstrate that ASAP.
But if they suddenly drop obvious slurs that everyone already knows are a problem, then feel free to ban up-front.
Maturity: Usually, actual age isn't the problem, but immature behavior is. If someone is acting immature, feel free to discipline as necessary.
Operator Judgement: Operators in chat are required to have a lot of free rein, and should use their judgment when deciding the sincerity and intent behind a users actions. If you're unsure, consult another op.
Bans, Banning, and Discipline
Ban implementation: Any op has the freedom to decide that a ban is necessary and the power to determine the ban's length. Defer to the op or ops who handled the situation directly; don't jump in and override the ban unless you're a chat admin (and even then, consider carefully before doing so). A vote on a ban is ONLY necessary if there is some disagreement about how to handle the situation.
ALL bans (with the exclusion of generic spambots or when agreed upon by operators) should be logged, and all should be clearly communicated with other operators.
Non-Disciplinary Bans:
These last a minimum of one week and may not be lifted before a week is out, unless an admin steps in, which should not happen without special reason.
We may choose whether or not to implement a non-disciplinary ban at our sole discretion and for any reason. However, the default is to just say "yes".
A non-disciplinary ban can't be used to avoid a disciplinary ban. The disciplinary ban must take place, either in addition to the non-disciplinary ban, or in replacement of it (our choice).
ChatOps should be the primary posters in chat threads.
In chatban threads, the only posters should be chatops. If someone or something is important enough that it merits discussion from other staff members or there's something specific the other staff member has to add, they are permitted to post.
This is especially important if a chatop vote is necessary on a subject. If someone keeps posting in chatop threads or trying to vote as a chatop, then please ask them to stop.
Standard Ban Escalation
Standard Disciplinary Acceleration
Warning. A warning may involve:
Asking a person officially to stop doing something
A kick, upon which the user may immediately rejoin, accompanied by an explanation from the op
A short warning ban of any length between 5 minutes and 2 days (48 hours)- though only in more serious cases.
Week Ban ("Standard Ban").
Month Ban ("Long Ban").
Year Ban.
Permanent Ban.
Deviating From The Standard Disciplinary Acceleration
You can always deviate from this as chat ops deem appropriate. Do not 'bargain' with users on their punishment type.
People can ask for a shorter ban in their appeal, however. This should not be granted unless they have a good reason. Rule of thumb: Don't commute controversial bans without approval from at least as many people as voted on the original ban.
Good reasons to be more lenient, even after the fact: the user's violation was out of character; the user regrets their behavior / apologizes; or you feel you were overly harsh when executing the ban. You're human, and you can always look back and regret a situation.
Good reasons to be more harsh, even after the fact: the user is consistently disruptive (line-toeing) or excessively disruptive (flamboyant assholery, trolling); the user has received multiple warnings and isn't improving.
Appeals Process for Bans and Discipline
How To Handle Appeals:
Be professional, assuming the user isn't trolling (see elsewhere). Don't assume a user is trolling only because they're saying things that are wrong or upsetting. Cut people more slack for being abusive in their appeal in terms of discipline… but not infinite slack, especially if it's personal abuse. (Note that being accused of holding a bigoted opinion, however unfair, is not personal abuse, even if it feels like it.)
Usually, no one should have their ban extended for something they do in their appeal, unless it's an extreme, obvious rules violation, such as throwing around slurs.
Especially never extend someone's appeal because they gave an explanation for their behavior, or because they questioned operator behavior. This can easily amount to an abuse of power.
Do not automatically grant or deny appeals; you should look for whether you think the person will actually improve.
In order to prevent peanut-gallerying or users trying to offer their two cents, chat operators may, at their discretion, voice the user making an appeal and mute #site17 for the duration of the appeal. If at least two other operators feel a mute is unnecessary, they can undo it. This power should be used sparingly, and operators should be extra vigilant for new users joining while the channel is muted.
Who Handles Appeals: The person who handles an appeal should not be the person who implemented the ban in the first place. If no one is available, direct them to PM another chat operator and provide a link to the chat guide.
Here's how appeals should work in practice:
Appeal to an operator or chat admin (who is not the operator who handled the ban).
If there's no other op around, link them to the Chat Guide and tell them they can send a Wikidot PM to any other operator.
Appeal to another chat admin, if required.
Appeal to the whole "supreme court" of chat admins, who will consider and privately vote on the person's situation. This should usually never need to happen.
Appealing Permabans: By default, we allow a user to appeal a permanent ban in one year. However, we aren't bound to this. We aren't obligated to allow a user to appeal ever, nor are we obligated to accept an appeal if one is given.
A user can always request for their appeal to be voted on by all operators in public on O5. This request can be denied if it's trivial.
Site17
#site17 is the help chat for the entire SCP Foundation community. It is not to be used for critique.
Co-run by all staff members in the community. Admins get admin/super-op status; moderators get operator status; operational staff and chat operators/admins get half-op status.
What's this mean for chat ops? Chat staff has a say in how the help chat is run, but wiki admins and moderators have more say. That is, unless 17 is currently being used for a chat-related matter… in which case chat staff has final say.
Voice status in 17 doesn't have serious meaning, and is handed out to whoever staff wishes to give it.
For instance, Sophos has voice status at time of writing due to helping staff set up the chat room in the first place.
People can chit-chat in 17, but one or more staff members should always be involved in the chit-chat. It should be kept to a minimum, however, and stopped if 17 is needed for staff activity.
Users should only be banned from #site17 for the following reasons:
Abuse of #site17 (such as trolling, abusive language, etc).
Interfering with the function of the help chat, such as giving people bad advice, misleading them, getting in the way of staff helping people, etc.
Extremely serious permanent bans (from both chat and wiki) with no possibility of appeal.
Users should not be banned from #site17 simply because they are banned from #site19 or the wiki. Users who have been banned from #site19 are not allowed to lurk in #site17.
Other users may be asked not to lurk in 17 at staff discretion (aka, to stay out unless they genuinely need help from staff).
This may apply to long-term problematic users who still should not be permanently banned from 17 because they may be able to appeal a ban eventually, or may have questions about whichever side of wiki/chat they're not banned from.
Discussion of the password is discouraged in 17 (other than mentioning it exists), and explicitly barred in 19. Give leeway to newbies asking if they did their app right.
Standard underage bans: For a 14 year old, 6 months; for a 13 year old, 1 year 6 months; for a 12 year old, 2 years 6 months, etc. Present this as a policy rather than a punishment. These people are fans, and there's a chance that they will come back.
Questioning Age:
Don't do this unless people are especially immature. If you do, avoid any arguments about how old they are. Instead, tell them what immature thing they're doing and ask them to stop.
Be clear that people need to behave as if they are adults. To quote Bouncl: "It's not about being literally over 12. It's about not acting like a fucking 12 year old."
Remember, users are only obligated to answer ops about their age, and they can PM us if they wish. There is no reason any user should have to tell a non-op member of chat their age.
This is just a quick guide to the chat authority structure, who to refer to people to, and where to direct problems.
Admin: Have final say on chat issues. While ops keep the peace directly, admins serve as the highest court / executives.
Admins suggest, assist in the creation of, and execute new chat policies and initiative.
Admins deal with issues involve chat operators and other admins (including abuses of power).
Admins have a fiat to promote half-ops and put them through a review process, usually at their leisure. Ops should feel free to suggest new half-ops to admins often.
Admins will take higher-level appeals for serious or ambiguous chat issues. If it's clear-cut and an appeal is obviously not warranted, it should not be referred to admins.
If chat policy needs adjudication on the fly, please go to admins first. Admins will let other admins know. It's still perfectly valid to simply discuss among two or three chatops and come to a situational consensus.
Admins can make final determinations on any controversial chat issues via an internal vote.
Primarily responsible for handling chat issues. The assumed default audience for this guide. Read the rest of the guide to get an idea about what you can/should do.
Half-Operator:
Either an op in training, or someone who consistently and reliably helps out and is therefore granted power. Half-ops don't directly determine chat policy and can be overridden if necessary. If you're a half-op, you're learning. It's fine.
Half-ops need their bans confirmed by full ops.
Half-ops do not automatically have access to O5 Command. There will usually be a person or persons who can be asked to grant O5 access for logging purposes. Currently this position is open; chat admins may decide to add half-operators to O5 if they deem it neccessary.
Temporary "Deputy" Half-Operator:
Any op can temporarily deputize a half-operator. These deputizations can be as short as 'until an op gets active again', and shouldn't be left in place for more than a day on the outside.
A necessary technical position, like the site owner on the wiki. The owner presently exists largely to ensure that the system doesn't fall apart, and otherwise has no special power beyond being a chat admin. Admins have the ability to vote to replace the chat owner if the current chat owner is unable to carry out their duties.
Activity Requirements
Op Activity Requirements: If you can't be active as an op, you will likely be removed. Hopefully with no hard feelings. This doesn't disqualify you from holding an op position afterward.
Exceptions: A very small number of ops aren't required to do anything directly with their op while they are online. These operators hold advisory roles, and are usually wiki admins who also weigh in a lot on chat. This is always a small group.
This guide was created by TroyL, thedeadlymoose, and EldritchCadence with editing by LilyFlower and input from the op team.
1. It's a good idea to avoid adding 'op', since it's internet shorthand these days and will get you pinged in the face over and over again.