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Sections
on this page:
Things to Keep in Mind | Good
Practices | E-mail Abuse
Addresses & Personal Names | Subject
Lines | Message Length, Content, Format
Replies | Forwarding
| Signatures | Mail Management
| Courtesy | Smiley Faces
Introduction
The following guidelines are derived from those in use at many locations
on the Internet and is an attempt to highlight important issues affecting
the electronic mail we send. Information Technology Services recommends
these guidelines be adopted by all users of email at MSU-Northern.
In the more
established communication media (e.g. mail and telephone) certain widely
observed conventions have emerged. Such courtesies as when to use "yours
sincerely" in a letter, or announcing your name and/or number when
you answer the telephone, are not just pointless conventions, but help
promote a sound basis for communication between the relevant parties.
Electronic
mail, however, is a relatively new form of communication, and the number
of new users is increasing dramatically. As a consequence, few people
are aware of appropriate conventions to use. These are gradually emerging,
and the following set is based on advice being provided to email users
at many sites around the world.
These conventions
(often called "network etiquette", or "netiquette")
recognize that it is very easy to dispatch email messages very quickly,
and often little thought is given as to how the message will be received.
This leads to the following code of good practice for email.
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Things
to Keep in Mind
- Never
send anything you would not want to see become public. There are no
security guarantees with electronic mail. Avoid sending ANY confidential
or sensitive information via email. Remember, it's very easy for
someone else to forward messages you thought
were confidential.
- It is
possible to forge e mail. You should not necessarily assume that a message
is valid.
- Remember
that sending email from your MSU-Northern account is similar to sending
a letter on MSUN letterhead, so don't say anything that might bring
discredit or embarrassment to the University.
- Be very
careful how you express yourself, especially if you feel heated about
the subject. Email lacks the other cues and clues that convey the sense
in which what you say is to be taken, and you can easily convey the
wrong impression. If you meant something in jest, use a "smiley"
:-) to convey that. Take time to consider you message before sending
it. Do not reply "in the heat of the moment", even if you
are provoked, messages cannot be recalled.
- Remember
that electronic mail is about communication with other people. When
you compose an e-mail message, read it over before sending it and ask
yourself what your reaction would be if you received it. Any time spent
on making our e-mail clearer is time well spent.
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Good
Practices
- Check
your mail regularly. Ignoring a mail message is discourteous and confusing
to the sender.
- Don't
leave your email account open when you leave your computer. Anyone could
sit down at your keyboard and send out libelous/offensive/embarrassing
messages under your name. And don't give another person access to your
e-mail account.
- Don't
send message or replies to "all users" unless there is a very
specific need for everyone to receive the message. It wastes storage
space, clutters up inboxes and can be very annoying. See also: Guidelines
for appropriate use of "all campus" electronic mail messages
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E-mail
Abuse
- Don't
extract and use text from someone else's message without
acknowledgment. This is plagiarism.
- Don't
make changes to someone else's message and pass it on without making
it clear where you have made the changes. This would be misrepresentation.
- Don't
pretend you are someone else when sending mail, e.g. by using someone
else's account to send it. (Note that it is not advisable that people
lend accounts in the first place!)
- Don't
broadcast email messages unnecessarily. It's very easy to send "junk
mail", but it can be very annoying to recipients and it wastes
resources. In particular, do not send or forward chain email
- it offends some people and wastes network resources.
- Don't
send frivolous, abusive or defamatory messages. Apart from being discourteous
or offensive, they may break the law.
- Remember
that the various Laws of the land relating to written communication
apply equally to email messages, including the laws relating to defamation,
copyright, obscenity, fraudulent misrepresentation, freedom of information,
and wrongful discrimination.
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Addresses
& Personal Names
- Always
provide a personal name if your mail system can use it. A personal name
identifies you better than your address can on it's own.
- Use a
sensible personal name. First names, initials or phrases are annoying
and hinder the recipient's quick identification of you and your message.
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Subject
Lines
- ALWAYS
include a subject line in your message
- Make the
subject line meaningful!
- If you
are replying to a message but are changing the subject of the conversation,
change the subject too.
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Message
Length, Content, Format
- Try to
match your message length to the tenor of the conversation: if you are
only making a quick query, then keep it short and to the point
- In general,
keep to the subject as much as possible.
- Don't
type your message in all uppercase - It's extremely difficult to read
and is generally regarded as SHOUTING. Use uppercase only for emphasis.
Another way to emphasize words is to bracket them with *asterisks*.
- Along
the same lines, do not use bolding, italics, backgrounds, etc. as the
mail may wind up being read on a system which cannot display them and
will simply show up as "garbage".
- Use correct
grammar and spelling. Poorly worded and misspelled messages are hard
to read and potentially confusing. However, do try to be tolerant of
other peoples mistakes.
- Avoid
public "flames" - messages sent in anger.
- If you
are including an attachment, be aware of how large it is. Most systems
will have limits on how much space a users mail message can take up
and your one attachment may totally fill their mailbox!
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Replies
- Always
reply, even if a brief acknowledgment is all you can manage. There is
still sufficient unreliability about email transmissions to create doubt
in the mind of the sender that you ever received it.
- Include
enough of the original message to provide a context. The recipient may
not recall the contents of the original message.
- Use some
kind of visual indication to distinguish between text quoted from the
original message and your new text.
- Pay careful
attention to where your reply is going: you wouldn't want a personal
message to end up on a mailing list.
- Ask yourself
if your reply is really warranted.
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Forwarding
Messages
- THINK
before you forward any message. If you had sent it, would you want
it forwarded without your knowledge? If you have any doubt, ASK
the original sender if it is ok to forward.
- If you
are forwarding a message with an attachment, ask your self if they need
the attachment or do you just want them to see the message. Attachments
are particularly space consuming.
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Signatures
A "Signature" is a small block of text appended to the end of
your messages, which usually contains your contact information.
- Always
use a signature if you can: make sure it identifies who you are and
includes alternative means of contacting you (phone and fax are usual).
- Keep your
signature short. 4 to 6 lines is a handy guideline. Long signatures
waste bandwidth, storage space and can be annoying.
- If you
include a quote in your signature file:
- Definitions
of "offensive" vary widely, but try to avoid quotes which
might offend people on the grounds of religion, politics or sexuality.
- Try
to avoid topical or local quotes, they may be meaningless to recipients
out of your area or culture.
- Quotations
or "tag lines" are usually best if they're amusing, a
one liner that brings a smile can make someone's day.
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Mail
Management
- Save
your messages to a local disk to keep a record without cluttering up
your mailbox.
- Develop
an orderly filing system for those email messages you do wish to keep.
- Delete
unwanted messages to conserve disk space.
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Courtesy
- If you're
asking for something, don't forget to say "please". Similarly,
if someone does something for you, it never hurts to say "thank
you".
- Don't
expect an immediate answer.
- Always
remember there is no such thing as secure email. Remember the recipient
- you are not the only one who could be embarrassed if a delicate message
falls into the wrong hands.
- Include
enough information. If you are sending a question to which you expect
a response, make sure you include enough information to make a response
possible.
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Smiley
Faces (also known as "emoticons")
"Smiley faces" are groups of characters that are meant to look
like a face turned on its side. The most common smiley faces are probably
these:
:-)
or :) A smiling face - generally
used to indicate amusement or a comment that is intended to be funny
or ironic.
:-( or :(
An unhappy face - disappointment or sorrow.
;-) A winking smiley face - usually
indicates that something should be taken "with a grain of salt".
;-> A mischievous smiley face
- usually indicates that a comment is intended to be provocative or
racy
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