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Computing codes of conduct
Introduction
This document draws your attention to the following computing codes of conduct:
- student computing codes of conduct (including use of copyright databases)
- online communications systems guidelines
- online systems complaints procedures
All these documents are part of the OU rules and regulations and should be adhered to.
Summary of the student computing code of conduct
This section summarises the guidelines in the student computing code of conduct. You can find the complete version from the Student Policies and Regulations section of the Help Centre.
https://help.open.ac.uk/ documents/ policies/ computing
At the time this document was last updated, it is titled "The Open University Student Computing Policy".
This code of conduct applies to student and affiliate users of all OU computing systems. There is a separate computing code of conduct for staff. By accessing the OU's computing systems, you agree to abide by this code. People who break this code of conduct may face OU disciplinary procedures, criminal procedures, or both.
The code can be summarised as follows:
- The OU's computing resources are provided for educational, training and research purposes. You must not use them for any business or significant personal purposes.
- You are responsible for all activities carried out under your username.
- Your password must be in line with accepted good practice.
- You must not jeopardise the integrity, performance or reliability of the OU's computing resources.
- When you use the OU's computing resources you are expected to follow the same standards of behaviour that apply to more traditional media.
- You must not interfere with information that belongs to another user.
- You should not assume that any online or phone communications using the OU's resources are private. We may record these in case there is a complaint or a legal inquiry.
- You must not copy software or information that does not belong to you without permission.
- You must not use the OU's computing resources to create or distribute obscene, libellous, defamatory, malicious or illegal material.
You should read the full code to ensure that you understand the conditions that apply to you.
Computing code of conduct for Associate Lecturers (ALs)
Policies relating to ALs are available from:
http://www2.open.ac.uk/ tutors/ employment/ computing-code-of-conduct.
It is only available to ALs and other OU staff.
Online communications systems guidelines
These computing guidelines apply to the use of all online communication systems in use at the OU, and are provided in addition to the student and staff computing codes of conduct. The OU reserves the right to exclude from these systems anyone who fails to comply with the computing code of conduct.
When communicating on OU systems do:
- Remember that you are conversing with real people so the normal rules of social interaction apply.
- Give proper acknowledgement when using quotations:
- either in a publication (electronic or printed) from contributions to conferences, as these are regarded as the intellectual property of the authors
- or where the user incorporates material into a contribution where that user is not the author.
- Direct personal exchanges to a user's mailbox (i.e. an email), not to a public forum.
- Ensure that any contributions made further the aims of the forum and are appropriate to the discussion.
When communicating on OU systems don't:
- Contribute illegal or offensive material. Any material which is considered to be illegal or offensive may be removed from the system.
- Use the remoteness of the recipients as an excuse to communicate in an anti-social manner. Examples of such anti-social behaviour are:
- harassment or intimidation of another user
- person-to-person aggression within conferences
- deviation from the spirit of a conference
- excessive or inappropriate use of jargon, banter or graffiti.
- Make contributions containing personal comments about other users and their views in public forums.
- Copy or forward private messages to another person without the author's explicit permission. This is a breach of confidentiality.
Complaints
If you feel that other users are not following the code of conduct, please follow the Online learning system complaints procedure.
The primary responsibility for the management of any conference lies with its moderator. The moderator must ensure that the conference meets the above guidelines and the OU computing code of conduct.