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10. UK Moderators Manual
    
    

Moderated/Not Moderated vs. Unmoderated

Properly Changing Member Settings:

The three Posting Options available for Moderation are "Moderated", "Unmoderated" and "New Members". When a group is initially set up, New Members are placed on moderation. When you click "New Members", it means that all new members will be moderated until you change that group settings option. The default, or flipside of this Group Setting is an implied "Not Moderated", which often gets confused with Unmoderated.

Think of your group as being in a giant sandbox. When new members join the sandbox we like to keep an eye on them to make sure they are playing nice with others. Once we find that they are following the rules, we can click on "Use Group Posting Setting" which takes them off moderation (the flipside of moderated for group settings) but still keeps them within the confines of the sandbox and its rules.

If you choose to "Override your group posting setting" by clicking "Messages posted by this member are not moderated", you are putting those members on separate rules that do not follow sandbox guidelines. While it's true you no longer have to watch these members, if an emergency ever came up where you have to put all your members back on moderation, those who you have allowed to stray outside of Group Settings cannot be brought back into the group without having to track each one down separately and manually changing their settings back to "Group Posting Settings". This can be an extremely time consuming task depending on the size of your group.

If you take a look at a new member on your list under "Members", their status shows [Moderated]. This is located on the same page to the right of their name and appears under their email address, and above their method of delivery. If you click on "Use Group Settings" to change their moderation, you will see nothing for status unless you export your member list. In the exported member list their status shows up as "Normal". If you "Override your group posting setting" and click "messages posted by this member are not moderated" you will see their status as "Unmoderated" which falls outside the boundaries of Group Settings.

Hopefully that clarifies the difference between using the "Group Settings" Moderated option versus the "Override your group posting setting" unmoderated option. It can be a little on the confusing side at first but you should see the practical application of Group Settings as a benefit to your group as a whole.