On Wed, 7 Nov 2012, Klaus Herrmanns wrote: > So what was the consensus at the time about this message?
At the time, I believe it was found that, if the code was not public, the content of the message was not public, so it wasn't a clear public vote. I don't remember if that meant the vote completely failed, or if it was decided that it be interpreted as a typo. > [CFJ 1460 (called 4 April 2003): If a message is in a language other > than English, and its intended audience does not understand the > language, this constitutes gross unclarity that makes the message > ineffective.] CFJ 1460 is one of the two most important precedents on of the issue and clarity of communication in general; the other is CFJ 1361. > I would argue that a secret code constitutes (if considered a language > at all) a "language other than English, and its intended audience does not > understand the language". Or are we saying that the Assessor is the only > "intended audience" of such a message? I absolutely agree, if the code is secret. For any message that is required to be a public message, it must be a message that the "typical, reasonable Agoran player" could understand without too much effort (not just one officer). 'Public message' implies 'understandable to the Agoran public without unreasonable effort', not just the targeted officer. But CFJ 1361 makes the important point that it's possible, in context, to use a 'code', if the context is clear or reasonably interpreted. Rather than a 'code', think of it as a 'lingo' or 'slang'. So for AGAINT in particular, most current active players who have around in the last year or two recognize it as a "Vote Unclear" joke. If anyone new (like you) asks, it's usually explained quickly and publicly. Does that make it enough of a "common Agoran slang" to be generally understandable as a purposefully unclear vote or joke rather than a typo? > How much intellectual effort do we expect from an "audience" like an > Agora officer to understand non-English messages? No more than a "reasonable" amount :) -G.
