NET-etiquette - Quick reference to some basic etiquette on Net/Email use

NET-etiquette

NET-Etiquette! Or How to be Email friendly with little effort!

NET-Etiquette! So few have it, so let’s cover some…

– Remember – you may NOT be taking (inferring) something in the manner it was intended. If you feel offended, DO NOT over-react. Remember that you do not know the mood of the person when the Email  or Social-Media comments/posts was created, and likewise, your mood effects the manner in which you interpret Emails. If there is the chance you might not understand a persons intent, write them directly and iron out your concerns, DO NOT start a flaming War over a possible miss-interpretation.

– Symbols!! We use all kinds of symbols – such as the smile-face or the like and the like. When joking, it doesn’t hurt to put that to ensure someone, who might not share your same sense of humor, will understand you are joking and/or just poking fun at them not trying to start an argument.

– While we’re still on this courtesy thing, I try (and sometimes forget myself) to put the list identifier (if posting from/to a list – such as AFL, NFL, GOVT, POLITICS, etc…) at the beginning of the subject. Many people subscribe to SEVERAL ListServers and this helps sort things out. So, if you (we, anyone, everyone) can think of it, it would ALSO be a nice courtesy. This helps distinguish what is from where.

– IS THIS TRULY THE SUBJECT. If something is to become a different thread, or is a response to something unrelated, CHANGE THE SUBJECT. So if you, or anyone, get tired of the thread you/they can just hit DELETE without reading. If I’m not interested in a thread, I hit DELETE on those messages with that in the Subject. Sometimes I come into a thread late, because someone started a conversation, or made a reply, with completely unrelated Subject matter line.

– When replying to an Email  or Social-Media comments/posts, consider incorporating terms/verbiage from the post (or posts) you are responding to, rather than attaching many pages of an original post (or posts of a thread) in your Email. For example, state “I disagree with the contention that __________ for the following reasons…” then post your message. Some people do still pay for Email by the Kilobyte and/or have slower connections and lengthy (repeated) information can be time consuming and expensive when retrieving their mail. There is simply know reason, other than laziness to hit reply and leave 5, 10, 25 paragraphs of previous Email text as a Quote at the bottom of your response!

Alternately, if you do wish to quote directly from an original post, select only partial passages relevant to the matter you will be commenting on. In other words, edit the original text. For example, (XXX your initials)

>> persons_name_you_are_quoting wrote: >> this is the >> original text XXX: your text here

Mix and match methods as appropriate.

– What else is missing, add to the comments section.

IN CLOSING….
The Ten Commandments of E-mail (and I’ll add Social-Media posts)(Author unknown)
— Thou shalt include a clear and specific subject line.
— Thou shalt edit any quoted text down to the minimum thou needest.
— Thou shalt read thine own message thrice before thou sendest it.
— Thou shalt ponder how thy recipient might react to thy message.
— Thou shalt check thy spelling and thy grammar.
— Thou shalt not curse, flame, spam or USE ALL CAPS.
— Thou shalt not forward any chain letter.
— Thou shalt not use e-mail for any illegal or unethical purpose.
— Thou shalt not rely on the privacy of e-mail, especially from work.
— When in doubt, save thy message overnight and reread it in the light of the dawn.
— And, here’s the “Golden Rule” of E-Mail:
— That which thou findest hateful to receive, sendest thou not unto others.