unambiguous contact with the freenode project volunteers and group registration
represents an official relationship with freenode.
+### On-topic groups
+
+Groups considered to be on-topic for freenode are primarily free and open-source
+software projects, and other peer-directed projects, for instance Linux User
+Groups (LUGs), student societies, and other collaborative efforts, or projects/companies
+of general interest to our user base.
### Group registration:
#### The secondary contact.
-Secondary (or approved) contacts are appointed by the primary contact. A
+Secondary (or alternate) contacts are appointed by the primary contact. A
secondary contact may be assigned limited access and/or privileges. They need
no special level of authority; delegate whatever level of authority seems
appropriate. We will not expect them to make policy decisions, just to find out
to your group contact.
We aim for a reasonable degree of flexibility where we deal with groups. If you
-mention any particular needs your project might have, we'll try to accomodate
+mention any particular needs your project might have, we'll try to accommodate
you.
question about your project or organisational policies as they pertain to
participation in the network.
+## Group Registration and Channel Ownership
+
+Channels on freenode are owned and operated by the groups which register them.
+No minimum level of activity or moderation is expected or required of channel owners.
+The network exists to further on-topic use, as explained in our [policies](http://freenode.net/policies)
+and channels or groups may be removed from freenode for activity which is considered
+to be off-topic.
+
+Groups using freenode are strongly encouraged to adopt the [channel guidelines](http://freenode.net/changuide).
+
+Primary channels are reserved based on a formal or informal claim, external to IRC, to a specific project group, or
+trademarked name. Topical or reference channels are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis by groups wishing to
+discuss a project, group or topic.
+
+
+### Free and Open Source Software (FOSS).
+Project coordination, support, discussion or contact channels associated with software projects which are licensed under terms consistent with the [Debian Free Software Guidelines](http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines), Free Software Foundation's [Free Software Definition](http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html) or the Open Source Initiative's [Open Source Definition](http://www.opensource.org/docs/definition.php) (preferably all three) are considered to be on-topic.
+
+
+### Non-Software-Related Peer-Directed Project.
+Channels which serve projects combining open, informal participation and broadly-licensed, widely-disseminated creative output are considered to be on-topic. If you believe your non-software project may meet the criteria for a non-software peer-directed project, please consult a staffer or email support at freenode dot net.
+
+### Non-Governmental Organization (NGO).
+Coordination, support, discussion or contact channels run by educational institutions, registered not-for-profit entities and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and their related consortia are considered to be on-topic. Be sure to register your group or organisation.
+
+### Governmental Entity.
+Coordination, support, discussion or contact channels run by local, national or international governmental entities are considered to be on-topic. Don't forget to register your group.
+
+### News Media.
+Formal news organizations with an interest in our target communities are encouraged to create contact channels on freenode.
+
+### Corporate.
+Contact channels for registered corporate or business entities or consortia with an interest in our target communities are considered to be on-topic.
+
+### Standards.
+Discussion channels associated with official standards committees or with informal standards groups are considered to be on-topic.
+
+### Geographically-Based Interest Group.
+Channels associated with formal or informal geographically-based interest groups are considered to be on-topic. These include local
+Linux and FreeBSD user groups (LUGs and FUGs) and community wireless groups. If your group doesn't fall into one of those categories, but you think it might meet the criteria, please consult a staffer or email support at freenode dot net.
+
+### Other groups.
+Other groups not covered by the above examples may be suitable for the network. Please drop an e-mail to groups@freenode.net if you want to find out if your group/project is a good fit for freenode.
+
## freenode Group Advisory Board
## Group Management & Community Team
-The Group Management & Community Team comprises **nhandler**, **e**, **tomaw**
-and **christel**; together they will act as your liaisons during the group
-registration process and throughout your tenure on the freenode network. If you
-wish to discuss the group registration process, find out if freenode could be a
-good fit for your project or register your project as a group, please feel free
-to drop any of the team members a line on IRC.
+The Group Management & Community Team comprises, among others, **christel**, **e**,
+**Fuchs**, **glguy**, **Swant** and **tomaw**; together they will act as your
+liaisons during the group registration process and throughout your tenure on the
+freenode network. If you wish to discuss the group registration process, find out
+if freenode could be a good fit for your project or register your project as
+a group, please feel free to drop any of the team members a line on IRC.
+If none are online, feel free to reach out to staff in general and they will
+forward your request to the team, which will get back to you as soon as possible.
Once you have discussed your project with a staff member, you'll be asked to
email <projects@freenode.net> with the details of your request, including any
projects / irc / freenode / web-7.0.git / blobdiff