Netiquette

[Tim]

From the For-What-It's-Worth Department, the following is a collection from various forums of Netiquette guidelines for posting. "Take what works and leave the rest"

Lurk before you leap Get a sense of what is being posted and who the participants are before you participate.

Be tolerant, accepting, and forgiving of other forum participants Everyone is at a different place in her/his recovery. Give others the benefit of the doubt.

Respond rather than react when replying to messages Give yourself time to think about your response before responding if you are upset or angry

DON'T USE ALL CAPITAL LETTERS It appears to readers that you are shouting and is difficult to read

Use white space frequently This breaks up your message and makes it easier to read

Is offensive language acceptable? Only in those areas where sewage is considered an art form

Don't post flame bait Be civil and polite. Don't be confrontational for the sake of being confrontational

Take advantage of your anonymity On the internet you can reach out to people you'll never meet and none of them can see you. You won't be judged by your skin color, your looks, your weight, your age or your clothing (or lack of clothing)

Treat others the way you would like to be treated

Respect other people's time Keep your messages simple and direct.

You are not the center of cyberspace It is easy to forget that other people have concerns other than yours. Don't expect instant responses or responses from everyone. Don't assume all readers will agree with you or care about what you have posted.

Stick to the purpose of the forum Frequent off-topic posts are disruptive and can negatively affect the board

No flaming, trolling, discriminatory posts, advertising, spam, chain letters, solicitation, harrassment or obscene jokes

Don't make false representations of yourself or create multiple user names

If you are having trouble conveying your feelings, use an emoticon (Smilies)

Write a meaningful subject line

Don't be an ass