The communications in the Waze forums, live chat, wiki, and map editing are all managed in a similar way to Wikipedia:Etiquette with specific highlights and changes covered in this list below. These points are based on civility and respect for every Waze user.
Anyone who violates these points may be advised to receive formal mentoring. Any refusal to receive formal mentoring or if there are repeated violations will result in banning from the system for some period of time appropriate for the situation as defined by the Waze staff, forum administrators, or Waze Champs. Anyone who continues to violate these points after that may be subject to banning from the system forever.
If you feel that a Waze user or map editor is violating any of these etiquette points, please send a private message to any Waze Champ seen in the forums of your country or state. Explain the situation and the Waze Champ will consider the best next steps.
General guidelines
- Follow the Waze Community Communications Guidelines.
- Assume good faith. Editors are here to collaborate and improve Waze for everyone.
- Be civil, polite, and avoid offensive language. We define this the same way as Wikipedia.
- Although it is understandably difficult in an intense argument, if other editors are not as civil as you would like them to be, be more civil, not less. That way at least you are not moving towards open conflict and name-calling; by your own action you are actively doing something about it.
- Be courteous.
- Forgive and forget.
- Remember The Golden Rule: Treat others as you would have them treat you—even if they are new. We were all new once.
- Keep in mind that raw text may be ambiguous and often seems ruder than the same words coming from a person standing in front of you. Irony is not always obvious when written. Remember that text comes without facial expressions, vocal inflection, or body language. Be careful choosing the words you write: what you mean might not be what others understand. Likewise, be careful how you interpret what you read: what you understand might not be what others mean.
- Work towards agreement.
- Argue facts, not personalities.
- Do not make misrepresentations.
- Do not ignore reasonable questions.
- Concede a point when you have no response to it, or admit when you disagree.
- Do not hesitate to politely let the others know if you are not comfortable with their tone (e.g., "I feel that you have been sarcastic above, and I don't feel good about it. Let's try to resolve the issue").
- Be prepared to apologize. In animated discussions, we often say things we later wish we had not. Say so.
- Recognize your own biases, and keep them in check.
- Give praise when it's due. Everybody likes to feel appreciated, especially in an environment that often requires compromise.
- Help mediate disagreements between others.
- If you are arguing, take a break. If you are mediating, recommend a break.
- Take it slowly. If you are angry, spend time away from the forums instead of posting or editing. Come back in a day or a week. You may find that someone else made the desired change or comment for you. If you think mediation is needed, enlist someone.
- Remind yourself that these are people with whom you are dealing. They have feelings. Try to treat others with dignity. The world is a big place, with different cultures and conventions. Do not use jargon that others might not understand. Use acronyms carefully and clarify if there is the possibility of any doubt.
- The Waze community includes speakers of languages from around the world, so don't forget English proficiency varies and can be misunderstood both directions, and there are multiple English forms that include spelling variations, (colour/color, capitalise/capitalize, centre/center, etc.)
Waze champ advise
Waze is designed on an open editing community with editors set up with different ranks. More senior editors (experience, knowledge, etc.) will have a higher rank than entry and mid rank editors. The senior editors (rank 5 and 6) are present to help and direct all editors. Disrespect to any editor is a violation of the general etiquette and that includes senior editors. Instructions from senior editors are to be followed, unless it conflicts with this page or any editing guidelines in the Wiki or for the state in which the edits are being made. If you have any questions or issues, please feel free to PM one of the Rank 5 or 6 editors in the state list. If you are having a problem with one of those editors, contact one of the regional coordinators. The senior editors are committed to help resolve issues as quickly and confidentially as possible.
The following list of actions are considered violations of the general map integrity or overall Waze etiquette and are subject to the rules already discussed. This is not an exhaustive list:
- Any willful damage to the map: this will not be tolerated at all
- Deleting roads for no reason: this is considered willful damage
- Deleting and redrawing roads: modify the current road to save the underlying meta data associated with the segments, unless the new road is truly different
- Overdrawing parking lot roads: guidelines on parking lot roads are clear
- Creating roads on top of already existing roads: this creates routing nightmares
- Disrespecting higher ranking editors trying to help: violates basic etiquette guidelines
- Not cleaning up your own mess: this is considered disrespectful
- Not responding to private messages this is considered disrespectful