e-Mail List Etiquette

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MacLaw User Group

Obviously, one of the easiest ways to determine the conventions of etiquette on our list or any list is to subscribe and follow the posts of the other list members. For those more concerned about specific "rules of decorum," we offer the following:

Mail List Etiquette

There are a number of things we can do to improve the quality of mailing lists for the benefit of all. Most of these recommendations are simple and require little extra work. If you'd like to read a more detailed rationale for these suggestions, check out the Mailing List Manners 101 and 102 articles published by TidBITS at: http://db.tidbits.com/getbits.acgi?tbser=1141

Email Program Settings Suggestions:

* Turn off features (like VCards) that create attachments.

* Avoid sending HTML-formatted messages to lists.

* Send replies either to the sender or the list, but not both.

* Make sure the time is set properly on your computer.

Writing and Layout Suggestions:

* Don't use all capital letters for more than a word or two.

* Insert blank lines between paragraphs.

* Include full URL schemes, as in <http://www.tidbits.com> (If you include the "http://www." part, most email programs will automatically create a link to that site.)

* Surround URLs with angle brackets "<>" (as above.)

* Try to use proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation--and forgive others for failing this.

Message Content Suggestions:

* Never send unsubscribe commands to the list.

* Create and maintain descriptive subject lines.

* Quote original text sparingly in your replies.

* Don't include email attachments unless explicitly allowed.

* Use a short signature containing only essential data. See, for example, the "McQuary limit" described at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sig_block

* Send welcome or congratulation messages via private email.

* Respect other people's views.

* Civility is always worthwhile.

Thanks for helping to keep mailing lists useful and pleasant places!
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