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Email Etiquette Guidelines

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New email users need to be aware of common network etiquette (netiquette) that email users expect from one another. 

  • Writing email messages.
    • Be Polite!!!
      • Don't forget common courtesy. *Please* and *Thank You* should always be used when asking and receiving help.
    • Use mixed case letters. 
      • It makes your message easier to read.
      • Typing an email message in all capital letters is hard to read and is viewed as shouting.
    • Use underscore, capital letters  and * for emphasis.
      • This_is_an_important_statement.
      • This is an *important* word.
      • This is an IMPORTANT word.
    • Use emoticons (emotional icons), commonly referred to as "smileys", to add a tone of voice or facial expression to your message. Smileys are used to soften those "tongue in cheek comments" meant to be funny but easily misinterpreted. Use them sparingly.
      • Turn your head counterclockwise to view the smiley.
        • :)    smile
        • :-)   happy
        • ;-)   wink
        • :-(   sad
    • Separate paragraphs with blank lines.
    • Do not use special formatting like font colors, sizes, centering, etc.
      • Many email software programs do not allow text formatting.
      • Content is more important then format.
      • Turn off the HTML settings if your email program supports them. There are many email programs in use that do not support HTML. Sending HTML emails to these users waste bandwidth and tends to irritate them.
  • Email messages that are not sent encrypted are as private as a postcard. 
    • Do not put anything in an email you do not want the world to read. Remember an email message can easily be forwarded to others.
  • Never leave the email subject line blank.
    • The subject line is the only label you have to identify the messages in your mailbox. 
    • Make the subject as brief and descriptive as possible. Many email programs only show the first 20 to 30 characters of the subject line.
    • The subject line should reflect the subject matter of the message. 
  • Proofread your email messages before sending them.
    • Grammar and spelling always count.
  • Don't send attachments without getting permission from your recipient first.
    • Some email programs cannot handle attached files. 
    • Large attached files can fill someone's email mailbox making it impossible for them to receive any more email. 
    • Because of viruses many users delete email attachments without opening them. 
  • Always include the "http://" in any web site address (URL) you send. Many email programs recognize this as a web address and will allow the user to click on the URL and bring up the web page in the users web browser.
  • Replying to an email message
    • Make sure the subject line has a Re: in front of the original  subject line. This is termed a "thread". Threads are the responses to an email message. 
    • Place your response at the top of the message.
    • Many email programs automatically mark each line of the original message with the greater than symbol (>). This is termed "quoting". If you are responding to a portion of an email message, be sure to delete the excess text of the message and see that the greater than symbol (>) precedes each original line of text. The following are examples of replying to an email using quoting.

The original email message.

Hi Jane,

How are you?
I am looking forward to Friday's assembly.
Maybe I will see you there.

Joan

Quoted version responding to entire email message.

Hi Joan,

I will see you there.

Jane

>How are you?
>I am looking forward to Friday's assembly.
>Maybe I will see you there.

>Joan

Quoted version responding to a portion of the email message.

Hi Joan,

>How are you?
I am fine.

>I am looking forward to Friday's assembly.
I will be on a field trip Friday.

Jane

  • Don't overuse acronyms and expressions. Not everyone is familiar with the meanings.

    Here are the more commonly used ones:

    • Acronyms
      • AFAIK - As Far As I Know
      • BTW - By The Way
      • BRB - Be Right Back
      • FWIW - For What It's Worth
      • HTH - Hope This Helps
      • IMHO - In My Humble Opinion
      • IMO - In My Opinion
      • IOW - In Other Words
      • LOL - Laughing Out Loud
      • NRN - No Reply Necessary
      • OTOH - On The Other Hand
      • ROTFL - Rolling On The Floor Laughing
      • TIA - Thanks In Advance
      • TTFN - Ta-Ta For Now
      • VBG - Very Big Grin
    • Expressions
      • <g> - grin
      • <grin> - grin
      • <vbg> - very big grin
      • <lol> - laughing out loud
      • <jk> - just kidding
      • <> - no comment

Netiquette Resources

Next Section - Acceptable Use Policy - Newsgroup Etiquette



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