The General Rules, which take precedence over all Association Rules, have been updated for the first time in seven years. There are alterations within 35 rules, plus a dozen explanatory footnotes. To find the rules from SotaWatch, go to links, then home, then Joining In, then look for the rules tab.
Everyone on the MT invested many hours on this project, and VK3ARR did the final touches.
Elliott, K6EL
HI,
Is there an Opendocument version available for translation ?
73, Patrick TK5EP
Thanks for the heads up.
Is there a detailed diff / changelog available?
Thanks to everyone contributing 
73 Joe
Hi Joe there’s a change log for this update on pages 6 and 7 of the new rules document but it only references 12 changes, not the 35 alluded to by Elliot in the original post 
Thanks, Elliott, and others of the MT, for the work involved.
Good for all users to review the document from time to time.
All Best, Ken
Some of those 12 changes are several bundled into a single sentence or paragraph. The vast majority of the changes are spelling or grammar adjustments.
Send me a PM, and I can get a version to you for translation purposes.
Got it thanks Andrew… 35 changes but only 12 paragraphs affected. So the change control section is inclusive 
Hello,
thanks for reporting about the updated Rules.
I see that there is an indication of the current version number and date for the English version in the General rules section:
In the other hand there is a “uncontrolled document” message for the rest of the translated versions.
May I suggest to add and show for them their current version number?
In the other hand, I imagine that all translated versions should be updated to include the current rules accordingly?
I suppose you’d need volunteers…
73 de Ignacio
Was working on a shorter “Activator Rules” overview for those newer to SOTA, and glad to be able to look over the updated rules. Removal of “However, the use of a bike (non-motorized) or animals to enter the Activation Zone is permitted” from the motor vehicle statements was the main difference seen…
In researching, I was reminded that’s always good to review the Association Reference Manual as well…there may be minor clarifications or definitions to the main rules.
Hoping this video is helpful for those newer to SOTA! 73, James WA7JNJ
It’s important to remember that the General Rules always take precedence, so if an ARM says the activation zone is 80 feet because of 1776 or something, it’s wrong, the AZ is 25 metres. Likewise several may still say a prominence of 500ft when the actual prominence requirements are 150m (492 ft).
The MT is slowly correcting ARMs as required, but it is not always the quickest process.
Very true on general rules taking precedence, and thanks for sharing additional info. In the main rules section for activators, I was a little surprised the 25m does not seem as firm as I originally thought (activator section rule quote below) and mentions “typically 25m”. Other ARMS were more clear about “must be within 25m”, “82 feet”, etc.
“The Operating Position must be within the Activation Zone. The operating position
must lie within a closed contour line at the permitted maximum Vertical Distance
below the summit. (Typically the contour line is 25 metres below peak height of the
summit). The Operating Position is taken to be the position of the operator”
The earlier summit rules section is more clear, saying normally will be 25m…and other than 25m, “the AM must provide a justifiable case…”
“…Accordingly, each Association shall define the Vertical Distance from
the precise summit, within which a Summit operation will be considered valid. This Vertical
Distance will define a contour outlining an Activation Zone within which a Summit operation
will be considered valid. This Vertical Distance will normally be 25 metres. For other than
25m the AM must provide a justifiable case and also the MT may review this at any time,
based on experience.”
Thanks again… 73
Bear in mind that the recent revision is not the end of the story, other parts of the GR are also due for revision when time is found for the necessary discussions.
This section was left unchanged at the last revision in 2015 to accommodate the fact that some Associations still measured in feet instead of metres. Judging from some Prime-Ministerial utterances over here that might be the UK once again soon, funny how often politicians live in the remote past! 
Brian,
I think the British King-in-waiting would be highly amused if he were asked to decree a return to Imperial Measures. It would appeal to his sense of the ridiculous.
You could go back to measuring frequency in cps, power in horsepower, speed of light in miles per hour, and oh how wonderful to see force measured in slugs again.
73
Ron
VK3AFW
I’ve lived through Imperial, cgs, MKS, SI so a return to Imperial would not be difficult - OTOH it would be outrageous! It would be as if Wonderland had just popped out of the rabbit hole, as the Floyd put it, “Big man, pig man, ha ha charade you are…you’re nearly a laugh but you’re really a cry.”
You’re right Ron, he is old enough to have been taught LSD and lbs, oz, ft and in. The actually issue was an EU directive that prices had to be expressed in metric units first and anything else second and the printed size for metric could not be smaller than other sizes. So you could always have displayed “potatoes £1/kg 45p/lb” but not “potatoes 45p/lb” or “potatoes 45p/lb £1/kg”. This requirement caused a few idiots to be so principled they went to court and were fined. The actual change being discussed was to remove the requirement for having to display metric prices.
Globalisation means things are sold in g and L. No food canning company is going to start producing 8oz tins instead of 250g tins just for the tiny UK market.
It’s like the announcement the UK gov made regarding common phone charge connectors. The EU has mandated USB-C for charging devices from 2024. Most phones have USB micro-B or USB C with only Apple being “special”. Well no more “special” for Apple. I nearly wet myself laughing when I heard that the UK gov will not be implementing this rule. As if manufacturers will make special phones for the UK market of 55million when the rest of Europe is 500million people. In your dreams Brexiteers We’ll be getting the same phones as the rest of Europe.
Something which has annoyed those wishing to drag us back to the Fifties is the fact that people under 50 have never been taught imperial measurements and have no wish to use imperial as they will have to do the reverse of what people my age did, i.e. go through correlating what 250gm of ham is in oz.
A metric half pound according to my late mother
Seen the “consultation” they’ve launched?
Just one of Boris’s “dead cats”… when the PTB realised how laughable the suggestion was it was quickly suppressed - AFAIK it lasted one news broadcast
