Her Domain of Austin: List Posting Etiquette

N E T I Q U E T T E

Simple posting etiquette on Her Domain:

1. USE PLAIN TEXT:

Set your email program preferences to send plain text only messages to the Herdomain list. Your message should not include special formatting like HTML

2. ALWAYS SNIP: (Delete extraneous text)

Many Her Domain members get their mail in digest format. Replying to a message intact (ie: without deleting parts of the original message on which you are not commenting) creates a long and confusing digest, which is a headache for digest subscribers. So please remember to only include a few lines of what you are replying to, just enough to let people know what you are talking about. Also please always delete the extraneous text in the headers and footers (ie: links about subscribing and unsubscribing that are included with each message, and the signature text added by other people's email programs.) They just clutter a message.

3. REPLY ALL WITH CAUTION:

The Her Domain list by default, is set to reply only to the sender, not the entire list. Please be careful about using the "reply-all" button. Always check to see who is in the "TO:" field and the "CC:" field before hitting Send. You may not want to send to all of those people. You might not even know them all and wind up annoying a bunch of strangers :) I know because I have done it! Most people are nice and let you know what you have done but some can be rude. So save yourself and others the trouble by double-checking who you are sending your mail to.

4. USE CAUTION WITH FORWARDS:

Use Discretion - Along with Reply All, it is considered bad "netiquette" to forward someone's private email without their permission - whether it is to you or the list*. It goes without saying that private emails to you should a;sp not be posted to the list*.
*Exception: Jokes and information meant to be circulated.

Edit - If forwarding posts from other lists, please replace the topic header with a standard Her Domain header. Summarize the information in 50 words or less, and either include a relevent URL or offer to send the complete post to interested individuals.

5. PAY ATTENTION TO SUBJECTS:

Subject Lines

Use descriptive subject lines.
If replying from Digest - edit the subject line to match the subject. Copy the subject line from the message to which you're replying and paste it into your reply's subject line, prefixing it with "Re:"

Topic Headers

In addition to technology and internet-related subjects, the members of Her Domain post on a variety topics that are considered OT or "off topic". These posts may not be of interest to some subscribers. To make it easier for members to direct certain types of posts to separate email folders, please remember to define the topic/subject of the message in the subject line of your email: i.e.
HOUSING: Wanted- non-smoking female roommate -South Austin.

Below is a list of the most common topic headers used on Her Domain:

ADMIN: Used by administrators only for announcements pertaining to HD administration. Please always read these messages.
POL: These posts should be informational in nature with only a short summary (50 words or less) and a url for info. Use the same format for announcements about political events, including only a brief description of the event with absolutely no personal commentary added. All items with any political content must have the POL label, regardless of their relevance to other topics.
ANNC: Announcement of activities outside HerDomain. Please include just the announcement with no lengthy discussion attached (50 words or less) and a url for info) Note: if you respond to these, remove the ANNC from the header.
BUS: General business questions like taxes, business plans, business software, etc.
DISCUSS: Raise a topic for discussion.
FS: Items for sale.
HOUSING: Related to real estate - rent, buy, sell, homes, apartments, find roomates.
HUMOR: Humorous postings; we all love a good joke.
INTRO: Self introductions to the newsgroup.
JOB: Job postings.
OT: Miscellaneous subjects that are not tech related or don't fall under any other header.
PETS: Anything pet related. [Fundraisers for animal causes can be considered announcements. (ANNC)] ** This header is often forgotten by pet posters which results in a flurry of complaints about using correct topic headers.
REC: Asking for or making recommendations about local businesses or services.
SALES: Sales or affiliate opportunities. Keep it very brief. Include only a SHORT paragraph and URL. BE ADVISED that sales solicitation of HD members (particularly wordy posts) is often viewed as unwelcome spam.
TECH: Often used for tech related topics even though the list's orientation is tech and doesn't really require a label.
VIRUS: Information or questions regarding computer viruses.
WTB: Wanted to buy

6. POSTS ARE MONITORED FOR COMPLIANCE WITH NETIQUETTE: Everyone forgets or has the rare accident so in the event that posting rules are breached, List Administrators will respond in this manner:

First two offences:

The List Administrator will send an email explaining the issue and netiquette rule that the poster should follow.
Subsequent offences:

The List Administrator will send a final notice and the offender's address will be moved to "moderated" status that will require that every email from that member be approved before it is posted on the Her Domain List. The length of moderation will continue until a history of proper posting netiquette has been established.

These measures will only be applied to those few who ignore repeated directives from the List Administrator.

6. WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE:

Using provocative language. Free speech doesn't need to be hurtful to others. Everyone use a swear word or two -(ok most everyone :) But be aware that some members allow their young daughters to join/read Herdomain mail so please just watch what you say.
Promotion of an ideal or product can/should be offered without putdown of differing ideals or products. When someone is asking for or discussing recommendations, it would be OK to say something like, "I really like x for all these reasons. I wasn't satisfied with my experience at x" or even "I had to wait an hour, the office was disorganized" (i.e., pure reporting on an experience vs. "You're taking your life in your hands if you use x's services.")
Positive endorsements are preferable to negative commentary. Negative commentary, besides being a destructive approach, also puts the malcontent at risk of defamation lawsuits.

7. DO NOT SEND ATTACHMENTS:

Attachments, including Vcards, images, documents etc,cannot be sent to the list. In addition to the threat of viruses, they wreak havoc with the digests or can get translated into a big mess at the bottom of the email that takes up several screens. Netscape users should be aware that they may be unknowingly sending VCard attachments. In Netscape Communicator, open the Preferences dialog box, switch to the Identity panel, and deselect "Attach my personal card to messages (as a VCard)" to avoid sending VCards with every message.

8. AVOID "ME TOOs":

Thank yous are greatly encouraged, but one line messages which do not contribute to furthering the discussion, like "me too" should be sent to the individual you are addressing, rather than the whole list.

9. WRITING AND LAYOUT SUGGESTIONS:

1) Don't use all capital letters for more than a word or two.
2) Insert blank lines between paragraphs.
3) Include full URL schemes, as in <http://www.tidbits.com/>.
4) Surrounding URLs with angle brackets < >keeps it from wrapping to the next line.
5) Use a short signature containing only essential data.

(*Some of the above was taken directly from the following article. The author gives permission to distribute info). This article on mailing list etiquette can be found at: http://db.tidbits.com/getbits.acgi?tbart=05386
A good article on listserv etiquette can be found at:
Mailing List Manners 101