[pct-l] Admin Note: Netiquette

[scourtway at bpa-arch.com (Steve Courtway)]

>the pouting face which indicates, well.. pouting :-P

I thought that was the "sticking your tongue out" emoticon


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "PCT-L Admin" <pct-l-adms@backcountry.net>
To: <pct-l@backcountry.net>
Sent: Tuesday, June 07, 2005 11:50 PM
Subject: [pct-l] Admin Note: Netiquette


> There have been some comments about how rude and overbearing PCT-L can be. 
> While some people may find it that way, especially when compared to the 
> comraderie of the face to face trail community, I think you will find 
> PCT-L to be pretty friendly when compared to other online forums. Email is 
> known for this kind of problem.
>
> Here are some good rules, written for another list, that I suggest all 
> follow. Please read and remember them.
>
> ===========================================================
>
> The Eight Commandments of Netiquette
>
> 1. Thou Shalt Remember the Human
> The first commandment is the most important and determines all of the 
> others. While
> electronic communication is a wonderful tool, the most important part of 
> the equation
> is always the people. Every message that you type should recognize the 
> importance
> of the other members of your community. If you are replying to another 
> person's
> thoughts you should first validate that the person and their words are an 
> important
> part of the community, before putting forth your own ideas.
>
> 2. Thou Shalt Not Type Anything That You Would Not Say in Person.
> Following directly from point 1, above, it is all too easy to hide behind 
> your keyboard
> and send messages that are inflammatory or derogatory, when you would not 
> have
> spoken such harsh words to the recipient in person.
>
> The tone of electronic messages is an easily overlooked factor. Your 
> message may
> sound harmless when you type it, since you know what the tone and 
> inflection is.
> Remember that your audience's only view of your message is a series of 
> words on a
> screen; careful selection of wording and the addition of appropriate 
> emoticons and
> emphasis are essential to making sure that your audience will hear the 
> message that
> you intend.
>
> Emoticons are small symbols which add indications of facial expressions to 
> your
> messages. Common emoticons are:
> the smiley face to indicate humor or good news :-)
> the frowning face to indicate sad news :-(
> the winking smiley which indicates a joke or a pun ;-)
> the pouting face which indicates, well.. pouting :-P
>
> In addition to emoticons, asterisks can be used to indicate which words 
> are
> *important* in a sentence. You can type a word in all capital letters, as 
> a means of
> emphasis, but if used for more than one or two words, it is called 
> 'Shouting' which is
> considered to be VERY RUDE.
>
> With any form of style and tone, a little goes a long way. More than one 
> or two
> emoticons in a message may be excessive. Do use them wherever you feel
> someone may misinterpret your intention. :-)
>
> Of course, swearing and making comments, which will incite anger (being 
> 'flamebait')
> are with a few exceptions, always bad form.
>
> There are electronic discussion groups where people purposely gather to 
> exchange
> personal insults with other people on the Internet. Go Figure!
>
>
> 3. Thou Shalt Compose Messages That People Want to Read.
> A little speel cheking and using your goodest grammar go a long way in 
> electronic
> communication. Remember that your message represents your ideas and to
> a larger extent yourself to the audience; sloppy messages reflect on the 
> author.
>
> Always ask yourself if you are using the most appropriate forum for your
> message. If you want to communicate with one of your classmates on a topic
> that concerns only the two of you, consider sending a private email to 
> that
> person only.
>
> Speaking of sending messages that people want to read, sending bulk email 
> to a
> wide audience or posting to inappropriate groups in the hopes of reaching 
> a small
> number of interested parties is considered very poor Netiquette. Always 
> remember
> that your message is using computer resources and the time and effort of 
> the people
> you've sent it to.
>
>
> 4. Thou Shalt Act by the Same Rules Which Govern the Rest of Your Life.
> Lying, cheating and stealing are probably not part of your everyday life. 
> The
> anonymity of electronic communication can encourage people to put away 
> their
> personal sense of ethics. Reading other people's email, pretending to be 
> something
> or someone that you are not and using your work or school Internet account 
> for
> personal economic gain are common places where Internet users are known to 
> put
> away their personal ethics.
>
>
> 5. Thou Shalt Lurk Before You Leap.
> Although these commandments will get you a long way in communicating in an
> appropriate manner, each electronic group will have subtle nuances. You 
> should lurk
> for a week or two before participating in an established electronic 
> conversation or
> else risk standing out as a 'newbie' and inciting the wrath of the group. 
> Remember
> that an electronic group can easily have tens of thousands of people in 
> it. That's a lot
> of wrath!
>
> Another important aspect of lurking is locating and reading the 'FAQ' for 
> any given
> group. This will ensure that you understand the common issues and group 
> dynamics
> before participating.
>
>
> 6. Thou Shalt Build Learning Communities.
> All too often, Internet users become focused on what they can 'get' from 
> the Internet
> rather than what they can give. Sharing information, breaking up a flame 
> war and
> encouraging participation from new members are all ways of helping to 
> build and
> maintain learning communities.
>
>
> 7. Thou Shalt Consider All Messages to be Part of Your Portfolio
> An extension of not saying anything that you wouldn't say in person, is 
> not saying
> anything that you wouldn't want a potential employer to know, five years 
> from now.
> When you send a message off into cyberspace, you no longer control it. It 
> may be
> forwarded to people other than the intended recipient or even archived in 
> a
> database. If you are feeling the need to leap into a flame war, stop and 
> think if you
> would want a potential employer to use your comments as a representation 
> of
> yourself five years from now. If the answer is no, the message probably 
> isn't worth
> sending.
>
>
> 8. Thou Shalt Forgive Transgressions.
> As an effective, proactive, well adjusted member of an electronic learning
> community, you should encourage Netiquette among other members by setting 
> a
> good example and pointing out errors in a private and friendly manner for 
> the goal of
> helping the other person to avoid the wrath of less generous group 
> members.
> As you become a seasoned 'Net user, you should remember that we have all 
> been
> the 'newbie' in the group at some point. Fostering appropriate 
> participation from all of
> your electronic community can add richness to our learning community.
>
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