Hi Craig Cousins, Thought these articles might be of interest to some. Please note that this message is OFF TOPIC (as referenced by the "OT" in the Subject Line.) If you are only interested in reading messages specifically about CRAIG genealogy, please feel free to hit the delete key NOW. HOWEVER, while this message isn't directly related to our research of our CRAIG lines, I thought it might be helpful to read two well regarded sources for tips on etiquette in mailing groups. You will note by the copyright dates that these guidelines have been long standing. Please know that when someone posts a "suggestion" to our CRAIG list, that it is usually not meant as a personal attack on anyone and should not be read as such. We are a very friendly group and when people post suggestions, it is normally not a situation of having "rules for rules' sake" but an attempt to help you help yourself (or better find others to help you.) These sources were found through Cyndi's List. (If you are new to genealogy and haven't visited that site, check it out. Many, many helpful links...... http://www.cyndislist.com) Direct links to the exact articles are listed below. I've belonged to many newsgroups and mailing lists and I'd have to say that I think they have all used guidelines along these lines. Again, sorry for the Off Topic post but I hope that some of you find this helpful. Happy CRAIG Hunting! Beth Shields, CRAIG Team 18 Leader, Samuel Craig, Pioneer of Western PA ********************************** LISTSERVS/MAILING LISTS/ DISCUSSION GROUPS (Abridged) Some mailing lists have low rates of traffic, others can flood your mailbox with several hundred mail messages per day. Numerous incoming messages from various listservers or mailing lists by multiple users, requires extensive system processing which can tie up valuable resources. Subscription to Interest Groups or Discussion Lists should be kept to a minimum and should not exceed what your disk quota can handle, or you for that matter. When you join a list, monitor the messages for a few days to get a feel for what common questions are asked, and what topics are deemed off-limits. This is commonly referred to as lurking. When you feel comfortable with the group, then start posting. See if there is a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) for a group that you are interested in joining. Veteran members get annoyed when they see the same questions every few weeks, or at the start of each semester. Follow any and all guidelines that the listowner has posted; the listowner establishes the local "netiquette" standards for her/his list. Keep in mind that some discussion lists or Usenet groups have members from many countries. Don't assume that they will understand a reference to TV, movies, pop culture, or current events in your country. If you must use the reference, please explain it. Don't assume that they understand geographical references that are local or national. [This includes providing a state if you are referencing say, Washington County. BMS] Keep your questions and comments relevant to the focus of the discussion group. If another person posts a comment or question that is off the subject, do NOT reply to the list and keep the off- subject conversation going publicly. When someone posts an off-subject note, and someone else criticizes that posting, you should NOT submit a gratuitous note saying "well, I liked it and lots of people probably did as well and you guys ought to lighten up and not tell us to stick to the subject". When quoting another person, edit out whatever isn't directly applicable to your reply. Don't let your mailing or Usenet software automatically quote the entire body of messages you are replying to when it's not necessary. Take the time to edit any quotations down to the minimum necessary to provide context for your reply. Nobody likes reading a long message in quotes for the third or fourth time, only to be followed by a one line response: "Yeah, me too." Use discretion when forwarding a long mail message to group addresses or distribution lists. It's preferable to reference the source of a document and provide instructions on how to obtain a copy. If you must post a long message, warn the readers with a statement at the top of the mail message. Example: WARNING: LONG MESSAGE Resist the temptation to "flame" others on the list. Remember that these discussions are "public" and meant for constructive exchanges. Treat the others on the list as you would want them to treat you. When replying to a message posted to a discussion group, check the address to be certain it's going to the intended location (person or group). It can be very embarrassing if they reply incorrectly and post a personal message to the entire discussion group that was intended for an individual. When signing up for a group it is important to save your subscription confirmation letter for reference. That way if you go on vacation you will have the subscription address for suspending mail. Occasionally subscribers to the list who are not familiar with proper netiquette will submit requests to SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE directly to the list itself. Be tolerant of this activity, and possibly provide some useful advice as opposed to being critical. Other people on the list are not interested in your desire to be added or deleted. Any requests regarding administrative tasks such as being added or removed from a list should be made to the appropriate area, not the list itself. For full list, please visit http://www.fau.edu/netiquette/net/dis.html © Copyright 1998, Arlene Rinaldi + Florida Atlantic University Also: Q: I posted a message and nobody responded. Now what? A: There are a couple of common reasons why people may not be responding. Maybe your question was too specific. (For example, you probably won't find anyone who has personal knowledge about your parents unless your siblings are reading the groups.) Maybe your "Subject:" line didn't attract attention. Maybe you asked about a name but didn't include any places or dates. Maybe you are being a bit too impatient. Try reframing the question and post it again in a few weeks. However, don't post identical messages over and over again, or you're likely to get "flamed" for it. Q: I was flamed by an unpleasant sort of character. How should I reply? A: Maybe you shouldn't reply at all. There are too many helpful pleasant people out there to spend any time worrying about the unpleasant ones. Starting an online fight wastes the time of thousands of people and won't endear EITHER of you to the rest of the newsgroup readers. If you want to fight it out in email, that's your business, but it's probably better just to forget it. Q: How reliable is the information people are posting? A: You won't know how reliable the information is until you check sources, but you will find good ideas and pointers to good information, and you will find some pretty bad information, too. Newsgroups are great for reading and exchanging ideas, but for doing good research, you need to follow up critically on the ideas you get. You'll meet some pretty terrific and helpful people, though. Newsgroup Participation and Citizenship: Some Basic Information by Margaret Olson Copyright © 1996 by Margaret Olson For full article, please see http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~socgen/jogart.htm