Forgefriends Code of Conduct

January 10, 2021

The forgefriends community strive to:

  • Be friendly, patient and welcoming. We strive to be a community that welcomes and supports people of all backgrounds and identities. This includes, but is not limited to, members of any race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, colour, immigration status, social and economic class, educational level, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, size, family status, political belief, religion and mental and physical ability.
  • Be considerate. Our work will be used by other people, and we in turn will depend on the work of others. Any decision we take will affect users and colleagues, and we should take those consequences into account when making decisions. Remember that we’re a world-wide community and we have a global base of users and of contributors. Even if it’s not obvious at the time, our contributions to projects managed by the forgefriends community will impact the work of others.
  • Be respectful. Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behavior and poor manners. We might all experience some frustration now and then, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into a personal attack. It’s important to remember that a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. Members of the community should be respectful when dealing with other contributors as well as with people outside of the community and with users of the projects managed by the forgefriends community.
  • Collaborate openly. Collaboration is central to projects managed by the forgefriends community and to the larger free software community. This collaboration involves individuals working within teams, cross-project collaboration within the forgefriends community and working with other projects outside of the forgefriends community. This collaboration reduces redundancy, and improves the quality of our work. Internally and externally, we should always be open to collaboration. Wherever possible, we should work closely with upstream and downstream projects and others in the free software community to coordinate our technical, advocacy, documentation and other work. Our work should be done transparently and we should involve as many interested parties as early as possible. If we decide to take a different approach than others, we will let them know early, document our work and inform others regularly of our progress. We do not create private forms of communication that take away transparency or exclude other contributors and collaborators.
  • When we disagree, try to understand why. Disagreements, both social and technical, happen all the time and the forgefriends community is no exception. It is important that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively. Remember that we’re different. The strength of the forgefriends community comes from people with a wide range of backgrounds. Different people have different perspectives on issues. Being unable to understand why someone holds a viewpoint doesn’t mean that they’re wrong. Focus on helping to resolve issues and learning from mistakes. It is important that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively and with the help of the community and community processes. When our goals differ dramatically, we encourage the creation of alternative implementations, so that the community can test new ideas and contribute to the discussion.
  • When we are unsure, we ask for help. Nobody knows everything, and nobody is expected to be perfect in the forgefriends community. Asking questions avoids many problems down the road, and so questions are encouraged. Those who are asked questions should be responsive and helpful. However, when asking a question, care must be taken to do so in an appropriate forum.

We take the following very seriously, and any violations may impact your ability to participate in the forgefriends community

  • Be careful with your words and actions. Do not insult or put down other participants. Harassment and other exclusionary behavior is not acceptable and should be reported. This includes but is not limited to:
    • Violent threats or language directed against another person.
    • Discriminatory jokes and language.
    • Posting sexually suggestive, explicit or violent material.
    • Posting (or threatening to post) other people’s personally identifying information (“doxing”).
    • Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms.
    • Unwelcome sexual attention.
    • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.
    • Repeated harassment of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop, then stop.
  • Respect the decision process. Members of the forgefriends community should not attempt to manipulate decisons based on consensus or election results. Open debate is welcome, but vote trading, ballot stuffing and other forms of abuse are not acceptable.