| Netiquette Essay, Research Paper
WHAT IS NETIQUETTE
Every culture or society has its own codes of behavioural rules called “etiquette”. The definition of “etiquette in the “Colins” Dictionary reads as follows-”conversational code of conduct or behaviour”. Thus the rules of the Internet where christened Netiquette.
THE RULES OF NETIQUETTE
Don’t Shout
Use mixed case. UPPER CASE LOOKS AS IF YOU’RE SHOUTING.
Use Symbols
Use symbols for emphasis. That *is* what I meant. Use underscores for underlining. _War and Peace_ is my favourite book. Use smileys to indicate tone of voice, but use them sparingly.  is an example of a smiley (Look sideways). Don’t assume that the inclusion of a smiley will make the recipient happy with what you say or wipe out an otherwise insulting comment.
Watch It Postie
The cost of delivering an e-mail message is, on the average, paid about equally by the sender and the recipient (or their organisations). This is unlike other media such as physical mail, telephone, TV, or radio. Sending someone mail may also cost them in other specific ways like network bandwidth, disk space or CPU usage. This is a fundamental economic reason why unsolicited e-mail advertising is unwelcome (and is forbidden in many contexts).
Never forget that the person on the other side is a human being.
Even though you are using a computer to communicate don’t forget that other people are on the receiving end. Millions of people all over the world are reading your words. Avoid personal attacks. Don’t speak (type) hastily — try not to say anything to others that you would not say to them in a room full of people. Remember that you are playing an important role in building an online community — and we all want this community to be a good, friendly place.
Be brief.
With millions of people participating, you’ll find that Newsgroups generate LOTS and LOTS of words. Other participants will appreciate your ability to stay on topic. If you say what you want to say succinctly, it will have greater impact.
Your messages reflect on YOU — be proud of them.
Although you will meet thousands of people through the Internet, chances are you won’t meet many of them in person. Most people will only know you by what you say, and how well you say it. Take time to make sure that you are proud of the messages you send. Take time to make sure your messages are easy to read and understand.
Use descriptive Subject headings in your messages.
The subject line of your message is there to help people decide whether or not they want to read it. Use the subject line to tell people what your message is about. For example, if you are sending a message to an Automobiles Newsgroup, a subject like “66 MG Midget for Sale: Oregon”is much more informative than “Car for Sale.”
Be careful with humour and sarcasm.
Without the voice inflections and body language of personal communications, it is easy for a remark meant to be funny to be misinterpreted. You can convey the emotions that words alone cannot express by using such online conventions as “smileys.” :- )
Watch How You use It
Unless you have your own Internet access through an Internet provider, be sure to check with your employer about ownership of electronic mail. Laws about the ownership of electronic mail vary from place to place. Unless you are using an encryption device (hardware or software), you should assume that mail on the Internet is not secure. Never put in a mail message anything you would not put on a postcard.
Never send chain letters via electronic mail. Chain letters are forbidden on the Internet. Your network privileges will be revoked. Notify your local system administrator if you ever receive one. A good rule of thumb: Be conservative in what you send and liberal in what you receive. You should not send heated messages (we call these “flames”) even if you are provoked. On the other hand, you shouldn’t be surprised if you get flamed and it’s prudent not to respond to flames.
Verify all addresses before initiating long or personal discourse. It’s also a good practice to include the word “Long” in the subject header so the recipient knows the message will take time to read and respond to. Over 100 lines are considered “long”.
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