In ☼ ≈ BLUE BAY LAGOON ≈ ☼, we try to maintain a drama-free, laid-back environment where fun times are to be had and an occasional prank is executed. Because we feel that rules can be stifling to one's creativity, humor, and lively conversation, we try to maintain a rule-free neighborhood until things "hit the fan," so to speak. Below are the list of hood policies we enforce. Because there are things that we do allow and are often asked about (such as decorating theme, etc), we have included those issues here as well. It is our hood policy to give residents more freedom than most by allowing them to try and govern themselves through common sense, reciprocation, and friendship.
Also, for those times when issues arise among residents that cannot be resolved amongst themselves, or when one's definition of things do not coincide with another, a policy will be created and imposed on everyone to alleviate future problems. FYI - These hood policies are (very) briefly posted in a theredoc in-game, usually within the hood's entry point so that guests can have access to them. These policies are subject to change at any time and without advanced notice.
Please note that joining the hood's residential group will be taken as your agreement to comply
with these policies, whether or not you have read them in full!
Hood Policies as of: Feb 27, 2010
There's TOS & other Policies: Do not do anything that violates There.com's Terms of Service (TOS) and its Behavior Guidelines, as they can ban or remove your account from the game permanently; the hood owner will not be able to bail you out on this one! This includes the display of décor in a manner that does not comply with There's PG13 rating. Please note that some of our residents share their homes with their children, and that the hood may have a few minors lurk around the hood from time to time, so please maintain those PG13 standards! For those who need further clarification about There's TOS, you can view the detailed forum post .
Residential Applicants/Approvals:
Because
the hood is advertised as a drama-free, the hood owner intends to protect it from
anything that disrupts these ideals
and will NOT auto-approve every applicant who wishes to move in! Don't be surprised if at times, the hood owner consults with current residents before deciding to approve or deny your application. It is assumed that those who are approved to live in the hood, will be able to govern themselves through common sense, reciprocation ("do onto others..."), and neighborly friendship. In
the end, the hood owner reserves the right to
pick and choose who will be allowed to live in the hood and which rentals to terminate, whether or not advance notice (if any) is given.
Primary & Additional Lots:
All residents are approved to drop 1 Lot when they first move in.
This Lot is considered to be your primary Lot and should not be moved
to another location within the hood without prior approval from the
hood owner. If you wish to drop additional Lots, or if you wish to stack Lots, please contact the hood owner for
approval of each Lot first! There.com currently has a "rendering bug" where, if several Lots or PAZes are dropped within a specific area, all Lots/PAZes vanish. This can affect not only your own Lots, but also the entire neighborhood and any passersby (who will end up seeing an empty location). Not only that, but residents should also adhere to There.com's real estate placement policy by ensuring that their Lot is roughly 20 meters away from neighboring Lots when possible, whether community or residential. This will also allow the hood to maintain its spacious look and feel, while giving residents some privacy from neighbors.
Keep the hood owner informed: If you're not sure whether it's something the hood owner needs to be aware of, then please err on the side of caution and keep her informed, such as any intent to move out or move in, if someone has inquired about moving into the hood and who may want more info, any drama or debate that arises with a neighbor, etc.
Paintguns/Shooting: We do allow paintguns in the neighborhood, but you will find that most times, the Forcefield (FF) is turned on by default. This is because we do not wish to have guests shot at upon entering the hood, and because some of our residents access There through a laptop, making the loading (and sometimes ghosting or lagging) issues more relentless for them. When a hood-wide paintball event is in progress, guests who would prefer to watch the antics from the sidelines rather than participate, can take shelter from the gunfire by hiding in a community or resident Lot that disallows paintguns. When other events are ongoing within any of the Lots (whether residential or community), shooting guests from those events is strictly forbidden unless they shoot you first! If you're unsure as to whether they are guests or wannabe paintballers, it's better to be safe than sorry and holster your weapon! LOL
Drama-Free Zone: We all inevitably become afflicted with real-life drama, but please don't allow it to consume you or your neighbors' lives in There! Please try to leave the drama behind when you log into There; most of those who come into the virtual world do so as an escape from their own drama, not so they can be dragged into yours. Also, please remember that neighbors are not psychic; they cannot know what you're experiencing, why you're feeling down or moody -- unless you respectfully voice it. If you'd like, the hood owner can schedule a quick buggy bash or paintball event for you to vent or destress with!
Rent, Relinquishing Lots, Eviction: All residents are free to relinquish their Lots at any time, although we ask that a heads up be given to the hood owner. Please note that rental funds are tied up in a hood Escrow account through There.com and are not available to the hood owner for 30 days; because of this, Lot rent is nonrefundable. The hood owner will not do refunds! If you do not comply with hood policies, the hood owner reserves the right to have your lot removed and ban you from future hood entry.
Invited or Known Guests: Please do not turn your neighbors into babysitters. Police your guests (especially repeat/returning guests) & inform them of the hood's policies, or else they risk being kicked out or banned. If necessary, they may be reported to There.com, especially if they are harassing or griefing others in the hood. Guests and especially minors, should always be respectful towards hood residents and the hood owner! If you make no attempt at controlling or removing your unruly guests when asked, it will be assumed that you condone the behavior and/or that you are an accomplice, and you too, may find yourself joining your guests outside of the hood's borders. We often hear people say that they have no control over their guests; however, we do know that as a resident, you do have control over who you choose to invite or bring into the hood. Just keep in mind that the hood owner has control over who is allowed to stay, whether they are a guest or a resident, and therefore reserves the right to temporarily remove or permanently ban any avatar in order to preserve the hood's drama-free atmosphere.
Decorating Theme: Although the hood may be decorated in a particular theme from time to time (such as winter or Halloween decor), we do not expect our residents to do the same, as long as their Lot abides by the following: There's real estate policies; it does not obstruct their neighbors' view of the ocean/horizon; it cannot be perceived as adult in nature due to There's PG13 rating. We know that "perception" varies between people, but the perception of the hood owner is what's most important. If you prefer having a goth-like dungeon or a redneck trailer, you are, for the most part, welcome to decorate your lot however you choose. Although it would be nice to have the hood's beauty recognized by winning the WoW Award, it is not something the hood owner strives for. If the hood does win anything, we would be prefer if it were for having the most-satisfied residents in all of There!
Teleport Lots/Links: One thing we do not allow in the hood are teleport-only lots, such as a lot with a stargate on it for the purpose of teleporting guests out of the hood and into another one. Our goal is to make guests feel welcomed and hopefully convince them to become residents; sending them off to another location does not help us accomplish this goal! We ask that any theredocs you drop or display does not contain links to other hoods, even if you own those hoods. Acceptable links are those pointing to non-hood related websites; to other Lots, PAZes, or Therehouses you own; to reputable or known Funzones such as Loaners4U, the Village Marketplace, etc.; and to There-owned public places such as Club Makena or Fisher Island.
Privacy: Some residents are shy by nature or tend to have adult conversations and prefer to have some privacy. We understand this completely, and this is one of the perks of living in a hood such as ours, especially if you were once a paz resident, as most of us were. Residents are allowed to set their Lot's privacy settings to whatever they choose, including locking the place down from anyone but themselves. Residents can keep these settings in place even when they go offline, without fear of receiving hate-mail from the hood owner. As for hate-mail from other residents and guests... Well, you're on your own with that one! ;-) The hood owner may attempt to place a few trees, public seating, and other decor between Lots in order to provide some privacy and coziness between homes when space allows it. The type or number of trees used between Lots will be at the hood owner's discretion, based on availability of such within their current inventory.
Lot Borders: If you are in the process of decorating (or redecorating) your lot, or if you're in the process of moving into the hood, we highly recommend that you put your lot borders up and perhaps set the Lot permissions to allow only you on the premises. This is so that you can complete your task with little disruption. Unlike most hoods, we do not have a problem with you leaving the borders up overnight even when you're offline, as long as you remember to hide the borders once you've completed your latest decorating masterpiece. For some, decorating is a weekly ritual, and if you fall in this category -- then please don't put your borders up for every time you change one wall hanging! ;-) Use sound judgment! When having a yard sale event or when a hood-wide yard sale is in progress, we highly recommend that you put your lot borders up so that people do not mistake our hood decor as sale items and vice versa.
Hosting in Community Lots: Residents are allowed to host events in any of the community lots, as long as events are not more than 4 hours in length and are not back-to-back so that other residents can have a turn. As a courtesy, we ask that you extend an invitation to all hood residents through the use of the hood's residential group. Not only is this a polite and neighborly thing to do, but it also encourages camaraderie among residents, and if for some reason, your neighbor does not wish to attend, they will at least know to expect a few stragglers in the hood who may wander into their homes unannounced. If you wish to have the other hood residents cohost an event (such as hood-wide yard sales, Lot parties, etc.) or in case you do need to step away during an event you're hosting (such as when you've got a slow internet, are AFK, etc.), feel free to list the neighborhood's residential group as cohosts. Please note that the hood group, VIPs_of_BLUE_BAY_LAGOON, was created specifically for non-residents who wish to participate in hood-related events and not as a cohost group! This is to avoid having "power-hungry" guests from griefing others by kicking people out of the hood when thah power-hungry guest does not even reside here. Feel free to invite your guests and friends to this VIP group so that they may join us in our shenanigans!
Events: We currently have no restrictions on the type of events you can host in your own home, as long as it complies with our hood policies and you continue to police your guests. As a benefit of living within the hood, you will be able to schedule multiple/repeating events for your Lot ahead of time (and in one swoop) by using SteveMack's event generator. If you wish to host a yard sale event that requires the use of a paz alongside the hood's borders, please contact the hood owner for approval prior to dropping the PAZ. We highly recommend that you put up your Lot's borders when hosting any yard sale event, so that your guests will not assume that our hood decor is also for sale. As for events held in community lots, please see the previous paragraph (Hosting in Community Lots) for details. Note that if you are given permission to drop a PAZ, it will not be seen from inside the hood borders due to the neighborhood's current settings, and so your guests may need you to guide them.
PAZ: Although the hood is surrounded by the ocean, being a resident does not mean that you or your guests can drop a PAZ within the hood's borders above, below, or around it automatically. After all, There.com is an immense virtual world with plenty of room for you to drop a PAZ elsewhere. If you wish to temporarily put a PAZ nearby (such as when doing yard sales), you must first contact the hood owner and obtain approval, as they get real cranky and claustrophobic when a PAZ appears along the sacred hood borders. ;-) There.com has a "rendering" bug/glitch that occurs when someone drops an additional Lot or PAZ, and so the hood owner would like to prevent that from affecting you, the entire hood, and any passersby. Not only that, but dropping a PAZ nearby may violate There's real estate placement policy, and the hood owner reserves the right to report the incident to There for further action. Note that if you are given permission to drop a PAZ, it will not be seen from inside the hood borders due to the neighborhood's current settings.
ThereDocs: Hood residents are allowed to drop/display theredocs they've written at the hood's nightclub in order to skill up as an Author, whether or not the resident has an ongoing event. Please keep the hood looking neat & tidy by dropping your Theredocs only on the oval display table found on the first floor of the hood's nightclub and nowhere else (other than your own Lot). Displaying theredocs in the nightclub is on a first-come, first-served basis - and only if there is space available on the display table without blocking or stacking onto other displayed theredocs. Don't forget: Any theredocs you drop or display must not contain links to other hoods, even if you own those hoods. An exception with theredocs is when hosting an event in a community lot other than the nightclub; the event host may then display their authored theredocs at that community lot (such as the arena or dog park), as long as the theredoc is immediately removed at the end of the event! Note that your Author skill does not necessarily increase based on the amount of people who have read your theredocs; it is mainly based on how many "Take a Copy" of the theredoc! This is so that readers are not tricked into reading a theredoc or paying to read a theredoc that contains little useful info.
Uninvited Guests and Griefers: Occasionally, a stranger (and sometimes a whole group of them) will come along to explore and take a peek into people's homes. Most are newbies who will inevitably learn the hard way about practicing manners and courtesies when in another person's home... Usually they'll come, take a look around without saying a word unless begging for items, and then they leave just as suddenly.
For those who stick around and mouth off or go beyond the typical innocent-but-annoying actions, there are ways for you to protect yourself and gain some entertainment in one sitting. Please read There's help topic on what to do about griefers and see if you can apply its suggestions to your current situation. The griefer help topic can be found here: http://www.fuzeqna.com/makenasupport/consumer/kbdetail.asp?kbid=744
The most important thing to do first is to enable your chatlogs, as There will ask for this and any screenshots you may have taken as proof of the incident. Your Lot's privacy settings is normally set to let anyone in except your ignores by default, so that anyone you choose to ignore will not be able to enter, although those people you've ignored will still be able to go into other Lots and wander within the hood.
If the unwanted guest is on a community lot with you (or is disrupting your event), you can schedule an event in that lot and have it start immediately. Ensure that you list the hood's residential group as a cohost so that all of the neighbors can "defend" themselves from that unwanted guest too. As the event host/cohost, you can remove or ban those who attempt to enter or use the community lot in question. Unwanted guests/griefers within the hood should to be reported to the hood manager immediately. Please make sure you write down the names of the avies/griefers and pass it on to Xara_Zane whether she's on or offline, so that she can add them to the hood's ban list to keep those folks from entering the hood and its community lots in the future.
All Thereians have a right to report griefers and abuse related issues to There, no matter where it occurs. If you need immediate results, you can use your There menu to contact Live Help, or you can access it through this URL: http://live.there.com/ Otherwise, you can send an email to abuse@there.com.
ChangeLog for Hood Policies
Feb 27, 2010:
- SteveMack's event generator info and link has been added above and is available to residents for use on their own Lots only.
- Please note that this event generator service is not automatic; the hood owner has to have the Lot included -- and so if you find that your Lot has not been activated for this service, please let the hood owner know ASAP.
- Residents can now drop/display theredocs in other community lots besides the nightclub, but only during an event that the resident is hosting on that Lot!
- The hood owner's private contact info, ban list, and other items of interest have been posted in the residential group's forum and are not to be shared with the public or with non-residents! The info is for the benefit of current residents only!
Jan 18, 2010:
- Hood residents' capability to remove and ban guests in all community lots and in the hood itself (without the use of event hosting) was made possible through Ceashure's DwellThere.com hood management. Unfortunately, Makena/There.com has recently forced Ceashure to shut down this free service, and so our residents no longer have this capability available to them. Residents can still make use of the "old fashioned" way of booting people from the community lots by simply setting an event in that location, and as hosts/cohosts to that event, remove or ban people through the event itself.
