Anything which is unlawful must certainly be met with an IP ban, and a DDoS attack fits that bill.
So far as cheating is concerned; I've previously moderated an anti-cheat community and I found that it really comes down to the response from the accused. It's usually fairly obvious if they'll be persistent in causing trouble by the manner in which they handle evidence being presented to them. Honestly, the amount of times I've heard idiots say they didn't cheat when the game code does NOT lie, is ridiculous. If they argue the toss when it's 100% conclusive that they cheated then they're as good as gone. Suspensions are the best way to go, and for general cheating 6 months might be appropriate. If somebody accepts the given punishment then there's the chance that they'll be able to come back as a responsible gamer. If a further serious offence is made then things change.
I myself think that it is not a matter of what you do but a matter of who you are during the time you did it, how you feel after it and who you are after experiencing the initial punishments.
I know many people who have cheated, hacked, trolled, flamed, done everything negative in a community, but when you actually learn about the person and become friends, they're very different. Many times it stems from the real life, wanting to somehow "free the pressure" or to uphold a strong and alpha-type role. Those, however, who have an openmindness and caring attitude in them, are able to bring forth the truer self of people. In my own opinion, I think that resolving bans should revolve more around having a chat with the "sinful" player to see how said person feels about what he/she has done. Lying is possible, but it's easy to spot those who try to do it carelessly. A chat is a more closer approach than a forum post, you can see much more. Perhaps one thing we should look for is not the assurance to not doing it again, but to understand why the person committed a bad action in the first place and make him/her understand it. Those who truly care for Discovery, will understand while those who don't, won't.
TL;DR: I think there are no unforgivable sins because people change and the community can influence that change for the better. ^^
Every Saint has a past & Every Sinner has a future Oscar Wilde
Providing they seek to redeem themselves, I don't find much things unforgivable. The only 'sin' would be on that's permanent that cant be mended, that would be the only case I would think that Permanently banned status would be effective, if without question they would not be productive and only destructive to the community. People change, forgive what can be forgiven but never forget it. If you cant forgive it,then try at least be civil about it. but if its all justified and they have no redeeming qualities over an extended time. cut 'em loose.
I would say that if they have caused 3 instances where they are seriously banned/Sanctioned and they have provided nothing productive to the community, then it would be good to cut them loose.
The last thing I'd want to see is a page-long diatribe of Psychology 101 rolled out as justification for unbanning someone like Doj.
If you've ever approached the server with a view to willfully cheating & taking a dump on those who play here - whether that be by DDoSing it into the ground, flying 16.67 refire Starfliers which do 99999 damage per shot, or editing your shiparch to turret steer a bomber - you should be gone and gone forever, without appeal.
The usual apologies get rolled out every time, but if someone like me (competitive and impulsive to a fault) can keep his hands off trying to cheat for over 7 years now, then I don't think it's too much to expect others to do the same.
Slap them with a permanent (not 'indefinite') ban and have done with it, no matter what Oscar Wilde said. Sinners can take their future elsewhere.
(02-03-2015, 02:45 PM)Omicega Wrote: Slap them with a permanent (not 'indefinite') ban and have done with it, no matter what Oscar Wilde said. Sinners can take their future elsewhere.
Say goodbye to half of the server then.
When I was working with Cannon to uncover current cheats we built up a HUGE list of players that had at one time or another cheated.
You don't want to know how many players here have done at least SOMETHING that would constitute infi-ban under your rules. At least 5 people in this very thread that I know of wouldn't be here.
I think trolling and harassing should be the one, besides hacking/ddos'ing the server. We know of several cases of good players that left the server because of that.