hi everyone! this is something that’s been on the website for a while. should we have principles (a la indieweb) that we try to uphold for ourselves and promote to others on this side of the web? what might those principles look like?
while i don’t think it’s a bad idea at all, i’m not sure i understand how it would be different from the code of conduct and the “10 rules for the personal web” already laid out! like, what would it be for? would it be more informative/descriptive (ie: “we are an 18+ community”) or more aspirational (ie: “embrace the things you’re interested in”)? those are a little different and serve different purposes, i think. one would be more useful for people considering signing up for the forum to get an idea of what the place is like and the other would be more like goals to keep in mind while participating.
since the “10 rules” were collaboratively put together by members of the community already, that seems like a good starting point at least! i definitely agree with @Jay that a point about good faith discussion and collaboration would be a nice addition.
possibly replacing some of the less “principle” ish points with broader wording would be good rather than copying it over as-is? “don’t hotlink” is more like a specific best-practice kind of a thing to me than a community principle, for example. (it’s good advice for the page it’s on! but for a Principle i think something talking about the value of communal archiving efforts would be more appropriate.)
What’s the context here? Are these supposed to be rules for webmasters? Or are these rules for people who want to explore this corner of the web even if they don’t have a site themselves?
Ok then I think there should be something said about allowing people to contact you if you have a site. Becuase nothing makes me angrier than stumbling on something awesome online and having no way to connect with the person who made it.
So “let people connect with you” should be in my personal list of principles.
Another one is “support the things you find enjoyable”. Because we all need to do our part to keep this whole thing alive.
agree!! maybe something about valuing connection over numbers, followers, etc. and i love the second one too! participation is the thing that keeps us going, and helping each other with projects is how we thrive, imo!
engaging in community is def a good principal, tho idk if i would go so far as to say you Must let people contact you. some people may not have the time/energy to moderate comments or respond to every email/comment. or maybe while they are putting their thoughts or work out in the open for others to see, they may not necessarily want other peoples thoughts on it. It does take energy to socialize and put yourself out there open to contact.
I have a comment box and guestbook and am active on discord, but I wouldn’t want someone who is shyer to open up to strangers to feel like the 32-bit Cafe does not want them
I had a whole long thing written up, but I’ve deleted it as I was missing some context.
What is the purpose or intent of the principals page? Will it be able to fulfill the purpose or intent as just a list of virtues?
One difference to keep in mind is the IndieWeb was explicitly founded to push specific and actionable goals around creating, maintaining, and publishing websites.
i got carried away
I think we should lean into the connotations. We should create thousands of copies of The Principals out of cutup bits of magazines and other text, and anonymously mail them to influential people online with locks of human hair in the envelope. Perhaps even find some land in Oregon, build a compound, get a charismatic leader, and die in glorious combat with the FDA agents after they discover we’ve been building websites that are advertised as treating peoples aliments.
I, for one, want to die in a firefight with a battlecry of “FUCK THE FDA” escaping my lips as I get riddled with bullets by at least a dozen agents.
