*Site suggestion* Kinder staff messages

[ryomen]

the most i've received on cs in my few months here is a swap post removal with a message explaining the rule i broke. when i asked for clarification, i received a respectful response and i never broke the rule again. i was a little miffed originally because my intentions weren't to try and bend rules, but the interaction didn't feel cruel at all and it never hurt my love for the site. there is objective value in handling small situations at scale.

i have dealt with some aggression from other users in trade contexts, but none so bad i've felt the need to report, as i usually just try to find a way to make good with those folks without trouble... but this also might create a sense of power in which people feel their aggression will be rewarded. so perhaps it does feel a little scary to hear negative feedback about the ways those situations are handled when reported.
i don't have personal complaints at the moment on the topic but i've read the discussion and think everyone makes a great point about gentler communication for victimless infractions, and i definitely disagree with any user being discouraged from using the report function in situations where they felt they were being spoken to rudely.

[Zeena]

Also, thank you so much on the response for the warning system! I put questions in bullet points so it's easier to answer!
•Where is it that we can see our warning score?
•How high does it have to get until mods take action against the account in any way?
•When this happens, is it like an evaluation of why the warning rating is so high and if its just a lot of minor warnings, then the mods agree to just put a temporary ban on the account?
•Once a warning has been removed, is it always visible to mods, but not in an official way, just as an "fyi this player has done this a few years ago" kind of thing?
I've always applied to be a mod because im so passionate about keeping CS a nice, kind and safe space (which is what a lot of my arguments are about which ...doesnt help i know lol) but I know I did stupid stuff when I was younger and wondered if that will always hinder my chances !

Thank you in advance for your response !

Your warning level will only appear when you have warnings within the past 3 or so months. You can view this on your "My Account" page. We don't have a set number of warnings a user has to have in order for us to take further action. If you've received multiple warnings for the same thing then we will take further action faster than if someone was warned for multiple different things, but it typically depends on the specific situation. Nothing is really set in stone since every situation is unique which is why moderating can be difficult sometimes and why its so important we receive opinions from other staff and discuss things. As Celozon said previously, if you are worried about your account's status you can always send in a help ticket and ask.

Warnings are always visible to moderators, its just your warning level that will disappear after a few months.
When we review staff applications, we do take into account the user's history. If you were warned once years ago for something minor like bump spam then that won't really have much of an impact on your application. We're more concerned about users who have consistently shown that they do not understand our rules, since its obviously important that staff have knowledge of the rules since that's what we're enforcing as moderators. We do understand people change and grow, so if you were warned for something more severe in the past but have not done it again, then we do consider that.

Please keep in mind that warnings are just a way for staff to remind users of the rules. What I've talked about above is regarding board warnings where you receive a PM titled "Board warning issued" and you have a warning level appear on your "My Account" page. Staff sending you a PM reminder of the rules (typically used for minor rule breaks) is not considered a board warning.

(also, if a mod happens to see this, why is that the rule? why can oekaki shops take just usd but forum shops can't? i posed this question to a couple other mods but no one rly... knows??)

We don't allow only USD shops on the art/character sales shop forums since those are off-topic and have nothing to do with CS beyond someone advertising art/character sales here. That is why there has to be a CS-based payment option, to keep it on-topic and related to CS in some way. Use of the oekaki is considered on-topic since its utilising our program on CS, so we allow USD only shops on oekaki provided the oekaki is being used to produce the artwork.

[Audrey_Bee]

Thank you for the response, Zeena!
I ran to my account to see my warning level, I'm fairly happy with it hahahah

So I think I'm pretty happy with how the warning system sounds. I honestly thought it was like you get three warnings and you're banned no matter what the warnings are for

I've just never seen any account be temporarily banned or muted or anything like that and I've known people just suddenly be banned, so I suppose I assumed that at any moment a mod could decide to ban you just.. because

I'll aim the site suggestion to be more about trying to change the wording of warnings rather than changing the actual warning system.

[Night Raven]

Also, thank you so much on the response for the warning system! I put questions in bullet points so it's easier to answer!
•Where is it that we can see our warning score?
•How high does it have to get until mods take action against the account in any way?
•When this happens, is it like an evaluation of why the warning rating is so high and if its just a lot of minor warnings, then the mods agree to just put a temporary ban on the account?
•Once a warning has been removed, is it always visible to mods, but not in an official way, just as an "fyi this player has done this a few years ago" kind of thing?
I've always applied to be a mod because im so passionate about keeping CS a nice, kind and safe space (which is what a lot of my arguments are about which ...doesnt help i know lol) but I know I did stupid stuff when I was younger and wondered if that will always hinder my chances !

Thank you in advance for your response !

Your warning level will only appear when you have warnings within the past 3 or so months. You can view this on your "My Account" page. We don't have a set number of warnings a user has to have in order for us to take further action. If you've received multiple warnings for the same thing then we will take further action faster than if someone was warned for multiple different things, but it typically depends on the specific situation. Nothing is really set in stone since every situation is unique which is why moderating can be difficult sometimes and why its so important we receive opinions from other staff and discuss things. As Celozon said previously, if you are worried about your account's status you can always send in a help ticket and ask.

Warnings are always visible to moderators, its just your warning level that will disappear after a few months.
When we review staff applications, we do take into account the user's history. If you were warned once years ago for something minor like bump spam then that won't really have much of an impact on your application. We're more concerned about users who have consistently shown that they do not understand our rules, since its obviously important that staff have knowledge of the rules since that's what we're enforcing as moderators. We do understand people change and grow, so if you were warned for something more severe in the past but have not done it again, then we do consider that.

Please keep in mind that warnings are just a way for staff to remind users of the rules. What I've talked about above is regarding board warnings where you receive a PM titled "Board warning issued" and you have a warning level appear on your "My Account" page. Staff sending you a PM reminder of the rules (typically used for minor rule breaks) is not considered a board warning.

I'd love to see this written somewhere in Help section! I never knew where I could see my warning level and also I think that whenever a person receives a warning, they should get a message with something like "You have received a warning. You can do this and that. To see your warning level click here" to make it clearer.

It would also help to make rules clearer, for mods' sake too imo. Like, if a user receives 3 of the same warning, they get muted/banned for X amount of time. That would help a lot with people feeling like they are walking on eggshells, not knowing how many warnings and of what type is okay.

[Madel]

^^
I too would like to see this added to the help section. I looked in my settings but I don't see where it would be at all.
Im assuming "my account" means "account settings" ?

[Audrey_Bee]

^^
I too would like to see this added to the help section. I looked in my settings but I don't see where it would be at all.
Im assuming "my account" means "account settings" ?

So when you're on the home page, there's a tab with a few links, it's the first one on there should say "my account" right next to the trades button! It's on the first page when you click on it at the bottom of the page underneath where it has your start date, it says "Warning level [0]" for example ❤️

[imperfectforyou]

As someone who works in customer service at a car dealership, I deal with having to be sternly kind constantly.

If you have the inability to be kind while relaying negative information, you don't need to mod a website. Point blank. People shouldn't feel their stomach drop when they receive a DM from a mod.

It gets to the point where I see so many poor situations with them, that I tend to avoid interaction. Which, is sad.

I haven't had many bad experiences myself, it's just that.. if there's multiple places where I see people discussing this situation, it's real and it needs to be fixed.

TY for posting. Support.

[Madel]

^^
I too would like to see this added to the help section. I looked in my settings but I don't see where it would be at all.
Im assuming "my account" means "account settings" ?

So when you're on the home page, there's a tab with a few links, it's the first one on there should say "my account" right next to the trades button! It's on the first page when you click on it at the bottom of the page underneath where it has your start date, it says "Warning level [0]" for example ❤️

OHH thank you!! I'm not seeing a warning level for me, but I think I see where it would be now!

[tifa]

i think better clarification of rules would be an excellent start.

i recall on one occasion i got a board warning for something i previously cleared with another moderator. i asked for clarification on that and i was told they would speak to the team about it, and they ended up never following up with me. i know this is one situation but i cannot be alone considering the posts here.

on a different occasion i remember my friend was muted for something for 10 MONTHS. granted the offense did warrant some sanction, but it was extremely excessive and the mods did little to communicate to him while he was muted, even when he apologized and ensured it would not happen again. i have no doubt they would have forgotten about him if he hadn’t followed up with them.

so i support this, because clearer rules and kinder communication should be first and foremost in moderation.

[Squecca]

Wow I guess I've been lucky so far. Mods in my experience have been kind, understanding, and helpful, even if I didn't agree with them.
But I'll add my support for change here anyway, since there seems to be enough of a pattern to warrant it.