After a bullet game with someone, I won by a quarter of a second or so and said something like "Close! We played sh**ty, but it was close nonetheless! ;P". (without the stars)

I presume the word "sh**" triggered my automatic ban, but in this friendly context, I would say my punishment was a bit too much.

Is there any public list of what words one cannot use in Live chess?

I think the automatic ban function should be closed, as it always depends on the context that it was spoken. One can be just as offensive using words that are not in that list. A "report comment" function is ok, but I think I was incorrectly banned.

Oh, and to anyone whom wonders, you're let back in after 30 minutes... ;)

I've changed my mind about the filter. I think it's so important that the few mistakes it makes filtering, are negligible. At least it has triggered a nice discussion! Have a great time!

Why not just prevent the ban and say that we played "bad"..."horrible"...or some other word.  Personally im glad Erik and thr guys are cracking down on the language.  This is afterall a family site, and people need to keep that in mind.

Well, don't you think you've just compounded the problem by repeating it in the forums? (Where such words are also not allowed.)

Don't worry, a moderator will edit your post if you don't...

That would have been a great idea. I, however, did not know that the word was prohibited, so is there a public list of these words so that I can avoid future bans? :)

There is no list, because it is expected that people will then try to get around the banned formats.

However, it is simple to know which words are prohibited. Just don't say anything you wouldn't say to your 5-year-old cousin.

Oh, well... Our whole family sweares and think of it as a taboo to think of swearing as a taboo, but "shi**y" wouldn't have been on anybody's list, would it?

English is not my native language, but in Norway we wouldn't have thought of shi**y as anything bad... It's an adjective to describe something bad. I'll just have to guess it seems! ;P

You've just said it again... twice. Look, I've helpfully starred it out in my quote for you! Now you do it! And then we're getting somewhere.

Haha! Dang... (presuming that's not a swear-word) I'm going to have to learn myself the English speaking world's swearing norms!

To get you started: "My giddy aunt!" is generally acceptable.

There is no need for any type of abusive language in live chess at all, whether its game chat or main chatroom.

The private chat was unmoderated if members chose to use abusive language, but as that is temporarily offline, we don't wish members to start using game chat as an alternative therefore the live chess games are now auto moderated.

Also the level of abuse in live chess has risen dramatically and as this is a family site and we have a lot of parents and teachers who bring children into live chess to learn how to play, it isn't appropriate  for members to be using abusive language or language of an adult nature.

Just because its seen as acceptable language on or off the internet for some, its not acceptable for everyone.

Yes... It's just that defining what seems to be the acceptable language might be difficult. I think indeed it should be auto-moderated, and we language-inept people have to learn what's appropriate and what's not. I'm sorry for all the fuzz areound this, as auto-moderation is necessary. :)

The automatic ban is a terrible idea due to the poor filters and lack of context. A temporary muzzle or something similar is fine (if the filters became more intelligent). However, banning is very serious and should never be handled by a dumb automatic system. I remember once being pestered by the filters when using the word pornography while discussing censorship laws in Australia. It's completely absurd.

there are agreed-upon social norms around language. if you'd like to campaign to change those, you can do that somewhere. petition the FCC here: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/obscene.html

a line needs to be drawn somewhere, and since this is my website, i guess i make the rules. and those rules include not using vulgar, crass, offensive, or profane words.

from the FCC website:

"The FCC has defined profanity as “including language so grossly offensive to members of the public who actually hear it as to amount to a nuisance.”

Like indecency, profane speech is prohibited on broadcast radio and television between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m."

if you don't know what those words are and english is not your native language, i urge you to google for a list of vulgar/profane words. if english IS your native language and you don't know that these words are offensive, i invite you to ask your parents about why they chose to raise you the way they did.

 Well my parents never taught me swear words in serbian (or english.. they dont know alot of english but they sure know the swear words.. haha).. but yet i learned them from friends etc..

so as you can see, no matter how hard your parents try, you will learn swear words from friends, relatives, and just people around you, i know a 3 year old who always says stuff liek ***** you and ***** and all that stuff.. why? because her mom says it alot.. but still she will learn from people like.. FRIENDS when shes 6.., nothing is gonna stop a person from learning bad language.

Public acceptability in language evolves with time. For example, some words unacceptable 50 years ago are acceptable today, just as other acceptable words 50 years ago are unacceptable today. The debate seems to be about hypersensitivity in this grey area and I think you chose a reasonable place to draw the line.

Still, that last sentence you wrote, while taken in jest, seems careless.

my parents raised me to not use foul language, to use humor to diffuse confrontational situations, and to stand up for what i believe in.

it was a tongue-in-cheek jab at those who claim to not understand the cultural  norms around appropriate language. if you know the words "infantile" and "snide", then i'm pretty sure you know that there are words that are generally not appropriate for elementary schools, day-time television shows, and family-friendly websites.

and yes, trying to make me feel like i'm a backwards clown for maintaining well-established rules for decent language on my own website bugs me a little. so i use non-crass hopefully-humorous attempts to make my position known. :)

The list of words that are prohibited is a bit full on.  The word "****" is prohibited, I mean seriously that is just crazy.  What happens when some little girl gets on and starts talking about her cat and gets booted.  I have said **** cat a few times in my life and yes I do know the slang meaning of the word.  The problem is that it is as bad as changing the name of Fairy Penguins to Small Penguins as it is hurtful to the gay community.  If you are that thin skinned you should just go live in a hovel like a hermit coz it's a big bad world out there and you won't be able to handle it.  The bureaucracy of today is pathetic and so is the nature of people to sue and complain and cry over spilt milk.  Take a big deep breath and grow up! 

As a side note though, I know this is a family sight and the cracking down on profanity is good.  Everyone knows the meaning of the "F" word and the majority know what the slang term for faeces is so there should be no excuse.  1 warning per day or week should be sufficient to keep in people's minds that this is a G rated site.  People make mistakes.

go erik! I agree with you

you're doing a great job, both in this specifically, and all over the site! 

you've got to be kidding, froggybusiness. unless you're over 60 or a cat-species enthusiast, then you don't use that word in any other context other than the offensive one. and that word wasn't on the list until people started really abusing it.