[dang]

A couple reposts or so are ok, if the article hasn't yet received significant attention. That's one reason the dupe detector is deliberately left porous: to give good stories multiple cracks at the bat.

(Please don't abuse this, though; accounts that repost too much lose their submission privileges.)

[mquander]

This is some refreshingly pleasant transparency as to the spirit of the rules. Thanks!

[dang]

Clerical staff at your service. While I'm at it: please don't delete and then repost a story. That's an abuse of deletion and we penalize accounts that do much of it. Instead, use a different URL.

[sp332]

Would you mind writing these down somewhere? I've done that a few times and now I have no idea if my account is penalized.

[dang]

What do you mean by "writing these down somewhere"?

I took a quick look at your account and it's fine.

[sirsar]

Your "while I'm at it" comment contained one rather specific rule that can penalize accounts. I (and presumably the parent) would much prefer a centralized list of guidelines, rather than trying to remember tidbits of advice sprinkled throughout threads.

[brudgers]

Striving to behave well is pretty much the best guideline, and if you incur some punishment unjustly or accidently, then contact the HN moderators.

HN is not a "whatever isn't explicitly prohibited is allowed" system. Instead it flows from general principles, and one of those principles appears to be that if you're caught abusing the system, there might be negative consequences because abusing the system is detrimental to its integrity and probably creates more work for somebody.

[eof]

I'm sure sp332 meant having a centralized place to understand the intricacies of HN mechanics.

[dang]

We'll certainly add to the HN guidelines over time—and "please don't delete and repost" is the sort of thing we'll add. We probably won't try to make a complete list, though; I doubt that's even possible.

In the short run, we're trying to answer specific questions with more transparency. Baby steps!