Hey chat,

Reputation System
After a discussion with various staff members about recent events and the overall state of the forum's environment, I decided to remove the reputation system from appearing on "serious" forum sections, which are the Appeals, Donor/Staff Abuse, and Unban Requests sections (The discord report and strike appeals sections count too). Huge thanks to @Ryan722 for his work on the backend for setting this up. This means that rep cannot be given, added, or even shown in these sections. I am not including the staff applications sections (for now) because I believe rep can still be helpful there. But, if it becomes an issue there I will remove that too.

For context, I have said multiple times (and Battons has too in the past) that if the reputation system becomes a nuisance, such as becoming a vehicle for toxicity or is detrimental to fostering a positive environment on the forums, the system will be changed. 

Rep gets taken too seriously sometimes, that is a fact. They are fake internet points and nothing else. If anyone was afraid to comment because of caring too much about rep or losing rep, then I believe that is their own fault. But If it's creating an environment where it's becoming a problem and defeats the purpose of why the forums is used then it's not worth keeping rep around in those areas if it's doing that. It is probably better for all of us to have civil engagement if reputation is just taken out of the equation for these sections so we do not have to worry about being repbombed for posting an opinion or addressing a situation.


Personal Thoughts on Using "Serious" Sections
Now on a more general note, I'd like to paraphrase (and plagiarize) some words from @EpicGuy in 2018: The forums have been a dumpster fire. This needs to be addressed and it needs to be fixed immediately. Nicky said it the best, this isn't high school. You may be in high school, but this is a GMod community. Stop screwing around in serious areas on the forums. Stop brigading and derailing threads. Stop mass-downvoting. Just stop. No one is better than anyone else. You don't have to like everyone. You don't have to respect everyone's opinion. But you have to respect people. Start treating people like you want to be treated. Get a grip, and get a grip quickly.

As someone who has been an Admin in this community on and off since 2019, I have seen countless forum dumpster fires and dragged-out drama. Please, please, please, stop adding fuel to existing fires if everything has been addressed or is going to. I am not calling anyone out specifically, this is just a general sentiment. Creating new threads to fan the flames becomes mentally exhausting and people get tired of rehashing the same arguments and debates. As a consequence, people stop taking threads seriously and they either become shitpost fests or the actual context of the incident becomes distorted. If someone says it is a serious thread and tells people not to shitpost, the opposite happens. Threads like this are not productive and lead nowhere. I suggest we take advantage of reaching out to Admins (or a trusted staff member who can relay it to the admins, if you wish) to report any subsequent issues that do not need to turn into public dumpster fires. A lot of admins say "If you have any other concerns, reach out to me/us" and we say that for a reason. That way, there could be proper actions or public/staff discussions to implement changes. Then, once those changes or actions are done, suggestions to improve them could take place on the forums. Again, just personal thoughts. 

Thankes

this is what I do instead of my actual job all day


https://www.canva.com/design/DAF_mof3olc...esignpanel


:3 congrats to all the winners :3

The TTT staff guidelines revision is officially live! This update includes some clearer wording improvements, extra clarifications, point adjustments for some warns, a couple new warns, and adjustments to the point thresholds with a new 4 week ban threshold. Below is a summary of the major changes:

• Warn point thresholds adjusted (check the guidelines for the full breakdown)
  
• Targeted RDM (previously Revenge RDM) reduced to a separate 2 point warn
  
• Derogatory Language/Slurs increased to 6 points, and extra clarifications added
  
• Severe Ghosting/Teaming reduced to 8 points
  
• Overly Offensive Topics (formerly mentioned in derogatory language) combined with Overly Sexual Topics, reduced to 6 points
  
• Donor Abuse increased to 4 points
  
• Harassment increased to 10 points
  
• Sexual Harassment increased to 12 points
  
• Bounties and Prop Interference reduced to 2 points
  
• Server Lagging/Crashing Exploits increased to 12 points
  
• New warn for NSFW profile pictures added for 6 points after verbal warnings and kick
  
• New warn for suspicious links added for 10 points, with permaban for links leading to malicious content
  
• 8 point warn expiration increased to 9 months