Google Groups Acceptable Use Policy – MOCA

MOCA maintains an open Google Group “Maine Ocean Acidification”. As of 12/18/17, there are 209 members. The address is maineoceanacidification@googlegroups.com

This google group is maintained by MOCA can be joined by anyone who is interested in receiving updates and information about ocean acidification in Maine. Subscription to the Google Group is managed by the MOCA Steering Committee Member in charge of External Communications, who can be contacted by email obtainable on the MOCA webpage. The External Communications lead for MOCA can add new members to the google group.

By subscribing to the google group, users agree to follow the following guidelines. These guidelines may be modified from time to time. Any revisions to these guidelines will be sent to the Google Group and announced at the next MOCA meeting to take place.

1. 1. Messages posted to the google group must be related in some manner. The MOCA Steering Committee reserves the right to remove any individual from the group who is violating these guidelines or the spirit of the MOCA google group. (Removal procedures are indicated below).
   2. Users of the google group agree not to post:
      1. advertisements of commercial products or services. (Notices regarding programs or events organized by universities, governments, NGOs and similar organizations may be posted to the group).
      2. commercial messages, including, but not limited to, messages offering or seeking any kind of business relationship (including employment), soliciting contributions or soliciting membership or subscription to any resource without prior approval from the MOCA Steering Committee.
      3. any message, data, information, text or other material is unlawful, libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, indecent, lewd, harassing, harmful, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, abusive, inflammatory, threatening, offensive, vulgar or otherwise injurious to third parties, or that would constitute or encourage a criminal offense, create any liability or violate any local, state, national, or international law or regulation.
      4. any harmful content including without limitation, viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, zombies, cancel bots, or any other computer programming routines that may damage, interfere with, surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, program, data or personal information.
      5. any message including any personal information such as bank account information, social security numbers, medical records, etc.Users of the google group agree not to post:
   3. • Users of the google group agree not to impersonate any person or entity or otherwise misrepresent their affiliation with a person or entity or interfere with the use of the group by others.
   4. Netiquette for Google Group Users
      The following guidelines are intended to make our use of the MOCA google group valuable and productive as possible, for all subscribers.
      1. Be germane. Messages posted to the group must related to the issues of ocean and coastal acidification. Tailor your message to the issue being addressed, since that will tend to produce the most focused and valuable responses from your colleagues. If another person posts a comment or question that is off the subject, do NOT reply to the list and keep the off-subject conversation going publicly.
      2. Be extremely judicious in your use of the “reply to all” button. If you are replying with a message that just says “thanks for the information,” to an email sent from an individual to a set of individuals AND the google group, do not reply to the entire group simply to acknowledge the email. Instead, send your response directly to the e-mail address of the person who posted the message. When at all possible, be sure to avoid replies that include prior correspondence, since this tends to slow down the discussion process.
      3. Be polite. We are all volunteers, and humans. Don’t post something to the google group that you wouldn’t say to a friend. Do not forward a personal email to the google group without the express permission of the original email’s author. Do not make ad hominem attacks or call out the actions of particular individuals.
      4. Ask questions. Offer answers. Share your knowledge.
      5. Know your audience. It is important to recognize that your audience may have varying degrees of knowledge and experience.
      6. Brevity is important. Please keep your messages as short and to the point as is consistent with conveying the substance of your thoughts.
      7. Identify yourself. Please sign your message with your full name. Among other things, this gives your colleagues the opportunity to consult directly with you on questions or issues that may have come up in discussion.
      8. Provide a useful subject line. Posting a subject line that reflects your message’s contents affords your colleagues the ability to prioritize their reading. This is a significant consideration particularly when the list of subscribers is large and there is a high volume of transmissions. Please also modify the subject line as the subject evolves.
   5. Any requests regarding administrative tasks such as being added or removed from a list should be made directly to the External Communication Steering Committee Member, not the list itself.
   6. Remember that all google group exchanges are public domain, and archived.
   7. MOCA reserves but does not assume the obligation to monitor discussions taking place on the google group. MOCA reserves the right, but does not assume the obligation, to investigate any violation of these guidelines. MOCA may remove any user for violation of these guidelines. Further, MOCA reserves the right, but does not assume the obligation, to temporarily suspend the google group in circumstances where, inter alia, a “flame war” is emerging. Procedures for user removal: If a user of the google group is found to violate any of the above guidelines by any member of the MOCA Steering Committee or Advisory Council, the user will receive a written notification that their behavior does not confirm to the acceptable use of the google group. A second violation will be deemed as immediate grounds for removal from the list. Depending on the severity of the violation, MOCA reserves the right to remove any user from the group without a written notification or warning.

MOCA AND THE MOCA STEERING COMMITTEE ACCEPT NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE OPINIONS AND/OR INFORMATION POSTED ON OR THROUGH THE GOOGLE GROUP.