The chatbox is a great way to communicate with other members here. It allows a much simpler form of discussion with quicker results and ease of use. However, a chatbox can be even harder to moderate than a forum. Unlike forums, messages posted in chats can be easily buried under other posts and hidden well, which is why we need your cooperation to keep our chatbox in control so our members can continue to have the opportunity to use it.
1. Don't post overly large images in the chat. It can cause lag for some people and also some scrolling problems, which is just plain obnoxious. Be sure not to overdo smiles or stuff like "<3" either.
2. Don't be a jerk. In other words, don't be: rude, cruel, angry without reason, insulting, so forth. If you act like this to other members (especially staff members) you'll get kicked, suspended, and banned in that order. Just be a nice person and not some kind of angry mope who bothers other people and spreads his/her depression like a virus.
3. No drama, please. Whether it be about your girlfriend/boyfriend in the realm outside of the internet, or something some member on SSMB said about you, it really ends nowhere. It can also start harsh conflict with other folks on the chat, and that's not something we particularly want to deal with.
4. Alternate accounts are a pain to deal with. Most of the time, unless you've pulled some kind of major offense, there's no reason for us to permanently ban you from chat, so we'll just suspend you. Know what really peeves us though, and makes us WANT to ban you? When you make some alternate account just to get back into our chatbox. If we haven't already unbanned you a day after what's happened, just PM whoever did it and make a sincere, real apology and don't do the same goof up again. Easy problem, easy solution.
5. Always be respectful to other members and especially chatbox moderators. If you insult one of us or any regular member, we have every right to kick you out of our discussion and lock the door. The chatbox is (like the forum) a special something we allow our members to use, and not a guaranteed right you deserve.
