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| 1 | + |
| 2 | +**This list of recommendations was provided to volunteers for the |
| 3 | +NumFOCUS booth at AAS 235.** |
| 4 | + |
| 5 | +The Astropy code of conduct (CoC) seeks to create a welcoming |
| 6 | +environment for all. This short guide focuses on common missteps |
| 7 | +in user interaction that can lead to a poor user experience. The |
| 8 | +example cases and their complementary responses are meant to train effective |
| 9 | +and respectful communication that adheres to the spirit of the Astropy CoC. |
| 10 | + |
| 11 | +1. No code bashing, directly or indirectly. No scoffing, rolling your |
| 12 | +eyes, or questioning users' choices. Everyone chooses different tools |
| 13 | +for a reason. If they are not using the same tool you would, use "I" |
| 14 | +statements to tell them: |
| 15 | + |
| 16 | +DO NOT SAY: |
| 17 | +> "Well, this is a photutils session so you should be using Astropy." |
| 18 | +
|
| 19 | +DO SAY: |
| 20 | +> "I don’t know how to do that task with IDL, but I can show you how to do it with Astropy photutils." |
| 21 | +
|
| 22 | + |
| 23 | +2. Don’t make assumptions about users' competence or familiarity with |
| 24 | +various tools or concepts. Investigate their familiarity by utilizing |
| 25 | +a top-down approach. Direct them to perform a task, and if they are |
| 26 | +stumped, go one level deeper. |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +DO NOT SAY: |
| 29 | +> "Do you know how to use a terminal?" |
| 30 | +
|
| 31 | +DO SAY: |
| 32 | +> "Can you open a jupyter notebook session for me?" ... "Okay, open a terminal and type in `jupyter notebook`, then press enter." |
| 33 | +
|
| 34 | +3. Do not use the word "actually" |
| 35 | + |
| 36 | +DO NOT SAY: |
| 37 | +> "Actually, that’s a good point." |
| 38 | +
|
| 39 | +DO SAY: |
| 40 | +> "That’s a good point." |
| 41 | +
|
| 42 | +The word "actually," in the first sentence, is "used to emphasize that |
| 43 | +something someone has said or done is surprising" (Apple |
| 44 | +Dictionary). This means you did not expect the person who was talking |
| 45 | +to have a good point, which conveys an underlying assumption about |
| 46 | +their competence. Eliminate the word "actually" from your vocabulary. |
| 47 | + |
| 48 | + |
| 49 | +4. If you cannot directly answer someone’s question, direct them to |
| 50 | +the appropriate online resource. If they still want your help, assist |
| 51 | +them with interpreting the documentation. If there are other people |
| 52 | +waiting, respectfully disengage. |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +DO NOT SAY: |
| 55 | +> "Just read the documentation." |
| 56 | +
|
| 57 | +DO SAY: |
| 58 | +> "Okay, here’s the documentation. There are some people waiting |
| 59 | +to be helped. Why don’t you take some time to read this, and when I’m |
| 60 | +done helping this other person, let me know if you still have |
| 61 | +questions." |
| 62 | + |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +5. If a user insists that you help them in a way that you are unable |
| 65 | +to, find a respectful way to disengage. |
| 66 | + |
| 67 | +DO NOT SAY: |
| 68 | +> "Well, you should be using Anaconda." |
| 69 | +
|
| 70 | +DO SAY: |
| 71 | +> "I’m sorry, I don’t know how to help you without using |
| 72 | +Anaconda." ... "Maybe some one else can help you with that task. How |
| 73 | +about asking the question on the #general Astropy Slack channel to see |
| 74 | +if anyone else can do it that way?" |
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