A c t i o n f o r L i b r a r i e s — O c t o b e r 2 0 0 0

The Internet Connection

Michael Sauers

Electronic Mailing List Netiquette
This columnist has participated in more than 100 different mailing lists over the past several years and currently subscribes to more than two dozen. Recently, I have started running two lists myself and consequently am having to deal with list-wide problems, mainly between individual subscribers and the rest of the list's participants. So I am taking this opportunity to send out a few reminders of what to do and not do when participating in an online discussion.

Send text-only, no HTML or RTF-based e-mail. Although most current e-mail programs allow users to create highly formatted and great-looking e-mail messages, these messages can become unreadable when opened in older, text-only e-mail clients. Stick to text-only e-mail when posting to a list, since you cannot know what programs people are using to read your e- mail.
ALL CAPS IS SHOUTING. Do not type everything in all capital letters. Messages written in all caps also are difficult to read.
Don't request return receipts. Today's e-mail clients allow you to request return receipts. Don't use this feature. The recipient can always ignore your request and, when sending a message to a mailing list, you risk receiving hundreds of receipts.
No attachments, please. In these days of attachment viruses, you only make yourself suspect by sending e-mail attachments. Also people with slow connections should not be forced to download an attached file. Make the file available via FTP or a Web site and post the URL to the list.
Do not send virus warnings unless you are participating in a virus discussion list. There are many resources for this information. Those interested can find it for themselves. Besides, many are fakes and do not need to be spread any further.
Quote the original message in your reply. When replying to another message, always include a part of that message so that others can follow along and know the message to which you are replying.
Quote only the relevant text in your reply. When following the previous rule, don't quote the entire previous message. Just quote the relevant sections. This saves on bandwidth and prevents the need to reread pages full of text just for your one- or two-sentence reply.
Keep your subject line accurate. Conversations on lists evolve over time. Make sure that the subject line reflects the message's content. There's nothing like reading an e-mail with the subject line RE: OCLC FirstSearch and having the message itself discuss OVID.
No "me too" messages. This is a waste of bandwidth. If you don't have anything to add to the conversation, don't bother posting to the group. If you want to just agree without additional comment, send a message to the individual instead.
Keep it relevant. The key to a successful list is the subscribers' staying on topic. If you feel you must stray from the list's topic, signal it to the other subscribers by prefacing your subject with [OT].
Get permission to repost third-party text. Most authors do not appreciate others violating their copyright. Ask first.
Link and summarize online material. If you find online material that you feel the group can benefit from reading, there is no reason to send the full text to the list. Summarize the article and post the URL of the original article for those interested in reading the full text.
Double-check the To: field when replying. The horror stories that exist about private responses to list mail being sent accidently to the whole list are too numerous to share here. Double check where your mail is going before clicking on Send.
Summarize offline replies on-list. If you request that people reply to you off-list about a topic that is relevant to the list, post a summary of the replies back to the list. Be sure you have permission to do so from those who responded to your request and edit judiciously before posting.

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