list etiquette

[talexb-SBdzbUvMQDunS0EtXVNi6w at public.gmane.org]

Hi Mel,

The most basic rules about list etiquette that I can think of are 1) you
should only send stuff that you think the whole list will be interested in
and 2) related to that, keep it on topic.

To state it plainly, that means don't post "Thanks!" or "Me, too!" posts
to the list. I'm on a couple of lists, and because my E-Mail address is
5-6 years old it is on several spammers lists, so I typically have to wade
through 50-100 E-Mails in a day. Anything that lowers the signal to noise
ratio is an irritant.

Thanks to an individual are no doubt greatly appreciated by the individual
(I can't tell you how many times my butt has been saved by something I
read on a list -- whether or not I started the discussion thread) but they
don't contain much information for the rest of us.

However (you knew there was going to eb a however, right?) a thank you
sent to the list is appropriate when it summarizes the discussion, perhaps
describing the original question, the various issues raised and the
solutions proposed, and finally describes your chosen approach .. and then
thanks the contributors for their assistance.

Alex

ps And, of course, there's Godwin's Law which states that mention of the
name of Germany's leader during WWII immediately ends the thread. And I've
heard similar corollaries for Iraq's ex-leader and the current U.S.
President.

On Wed, 31 Mar 2004, Mel Seder wrote:

> I read a internet page/posting that said a mailing list shouldn't
> contain thank you postings.  Those should be sent directly to the
> person you want to thank so as not to have everyone download posts that
> don't really have any interesting or informative content.
>
> I wanted to thank anton-F0u+EriZ6ihBDgjK7y7TUQ at public.gmane.org for posting the command to start
> Real Player but didn't want to add fluff to the list so I sent the
> thanks directly to Anton.
>
> Can I please have input as to what is the custom on this list?
>
> =====
> The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him
> absolutely no good. -Samuel Johnson, lexicographer (1709-1784)
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