YOUR GUIDE to the 15 golden rules of online etiquette
There are codes of conduct everywhere you go, and
the Internet is no different. Watching your manners online could win you
a whole lot of new friends.
With any culture there are certain rules and customs
that you should follow so you don't offend anyone. This is no different
for the culture that exists on the Internet, whether you are emailing,
chatting with other people, gaming or building your own Web site. There
is a list of golden rules you should live by to help make your online
experience as smooth as possible. This code is known as "Netiquette".
- Be polite
Some people think that being on the Internet means you are anonymous
and so they can get away with being rude and creating trouble in chat
rooms and on message boards. This is not true as most Web sites have
tracking features so they can tell who has been on their site. If you
cause trouble, you may end up being blocked from that site. The site
may even report you to your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and you
may get a warning phone call or email from them. If it continues to
happen, your ISP can disconnect your service.
- Be respectful
The Internet is a global community, and other people's values and outlooks
on life may be different to your own. Be tolerant and careful with slang
or phrases that may not be understood in another country.
- Don't shout
When you are chatting or emailing people, avoid using capital letters,
unless you want to really emphasise what you are saying. If you type
only in capital letters it means you are SHOUTING, and as you'd expect,
some other Internet users may not appreciate being shouted at.
- Size does matter
Sending pictures and other attachments with emails is great, but you
should be considerate with the files you send and make sure they are
fairly small in size, so people on slower Internet connections won't
get stuck downloading your images.
The maximum size of a file you send should be around 50Kb to 100Kb.
- Clean up your emails
Sometimes you may want to forward on a funny email you've received,
however forwarding emails that contain hundreds of addresses and lines
of text (because they've passed through so many other people's email
boxes before yours) before you get to the good part is bad Netiquette.
You may also find that such emails contain a lot of ">"
symbols, which usually appear in forwarded mail. If you really want
to send a joke on, then spend some time cleaning it up. Hit the Forward
button and go through and delete any extra text before you enter the
email addresses of those you want to pass it onto and hit Send.
- Don't join the chain
Be wary of forwarding on chain emails, particularly those ones that
threaten you with harm if you "don't send this email onto 50 people
in the next five minutes". Some people will be annoyed by receiving
them, so it's best not to send them on.
- Can the spam
Never send commercial or bulk email to anyone to try and solicit their
business without the recipient's permission. And if you do, make sure
you have a way they can tell you they do not want to get those emails
should they choose to. This practice, called "spamming", is
considered the worst breach of Netiquette and it can even get you banned
from your ISP. Most Internet users get very annoyed by spam.
- Ask questions later
If you find a Web site discussion forum or chat room you like, it's
best to look for an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section on the
site and read it before you go leaping in. By reading these FAQs, you
avoid being labelled a "n00b" (like being called a newbie,
but not so nice) by asking questions that have been asked so many times
that the people running the site built a whole FAQ section to answer
them!
- Get visual
Use "smilies" to describe your feelings. Since people
can't see you on the Internet, you can show you are smiling by simply
adding :) or :( to show you are sad. There are a lot of different smilies
in use on the Internet, you can learn more about them at www.smiliesunlimited.com.
- Lurk and learn
Look around before participating in the chat, Web forum or newsgroup
you want to join. Observing it will help you understand how things work
- just like in real life, there is often a pecking order in online communities,
which it's best to get a feel for.
- Protect the kids
Remember that the Internet is uncensored and it is up to you to what
content younger children view. If you find yourself on a site you object
to or find offensive, simply close the browser and don't visit that
site again. If you are worried about children accessing this material
you can block it by using software such as the one included in Norton
Internet Security www.symantec.com.au.
If you start sending abusive emails or start posting your objections
on the site you may end up getting some not-so-friendly messages back
from people involved with the site.
- Respect the authorities
Most chat and discussion sites have moderators and operators, who
oversee what people say and make sure visitors are abiding by the terms
and conditions of that site or chat. Often they have the right to ban
you from the site or chat if you start causing trouble. Respect the
moderators and operators as it is their site and they run it how they
see fit. If you don't agree with actions they take, ask them in a private
message why they did it or move to a new site. Never make it a big public
statement as this may get you banned from that service.
- Fight the flames
Avoid getting in a "flame war". This is basically an argument
in a chat or discussion forum that degenerates from an intelligent debate
to personal insults. If you do find yourself in one, simply ignore it
and move on.
- Be modest
If you play games online and are chatting with the other players, it's
nice to win but not nice to boast about it. Always play nice and give
encouragement to your fellow players and opposition. By being an "honorable"
player, you will find your gaming experience will be greatly improved.
- Encourage newbies
Once you have become comfortable and experienced in using the Internet
you will probably come across someone who is new and may break some
of the Netiquette codes. Don't be rude or flame them - remember you
were once like them, so politely point out what they did and correct
them nicely.
Useful tip
You shouldn't send on files larger than around 100Kb in emails (see point
four). To find out how large a file is before you email it, open up your
Windows Explorer by clicking on the Start button in the bottom left hand
corner of the screen, then go to Programs/Windows Explorer or Programs/Accessories/Windows
Explorer, depending on which version of Windows you are using. Navigate
through Windows Explorer to find the file you want to send. Right click
on it and select Properties from the menu that comes up with your left
mouse button. The window that comes up will tell you the size of the file.
Useful sites
Learn more about Netiquette.
www.fau.edu/netiquette/net/ten.html
www.onlinenetiquette.com
www.dtcc.edu/cs/rfc1855.html
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