Please do contribute to Cofactor. You can add pieces of information ad hoc, edit entries that are inaccurate or incomplete and participate in discussions.

Data guidelines

In general, any data that might be of interest to other people and that you have the right to use is appropriate for Cofactor. Examples of the kind of data that’s great to upload or add include information about people, locations, products, or organizations.

In addition, if you see an error or an omission, feel free to rectify the data. If you think a piece of information is possibly open to debate (for example, James Bond’s name pronunciation), start a discussion thread about it.

Of course, a few things aren’t cool. Mistakes are understood, but repeated violations can lead to having your account suspended. Examples of what not to add or upload include:

• Data that you know is inaccurate or false.
• Data that’s offensive. Cofactor doesn’t censor content. The system does, however, provide tools to help Cofactor members remove information that’s contextually inappropriate, including pornography (particularly in user photos), spam and other explicit content.

Discussion Guidelines

All of the topic pages on Cofactor have a place for you to start or join a discussion with other users, including Cofactor staffers. That’s no accident! Comments and discussion are encouraged. If you want to talk about the awesomeness of peanut butter or the history of the wheel or the causes of global warming, the topic pages are also the perfect place to do so.

No matter the discussion, please keep your comments respectful and thoughtful. In addition, in the discussions, a handful of the usual things are off-limits and may result in the removal of a comment or, for repeated offenses, the suspension of your account. Examples of what not to post include:

• Attacks on other Cofactor members. If you have an issue with something somebody said, keep the comments focused on the topic, not your fellow discusees.
• Inflammatory comments intended to bait others. Heated exchanges are great; arguing for the sake of provoking others is not. Trolls won’t be tolerated.
• Spam. A message filled with links and little comment tends to smell like spam—which will have a short shelf-life on Cofactor.
• Search-engine bait. Gratuitous external links often look like attempts to manipulate search engines. Link carefully and make sure your legitimate intent is clear.

If you have feedback for Cofactor that you don’t want to share with the general public, consider sending a message via the Feedback form. Those messages go directly to staffers.

Notes

As Cofactor evolves, these guidelines probably will, too. We reserve the right to make them more specific if necessary. If you’d like to see a change, start a discussion thread here or send feedback.