tatus
of This Memo
This memo
provides information for the Internet community. This memo does not specify an
Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of this memo is unlimited.
Abstract
This document
provides a minimum set of guidelines for Network Etiquette (Netiquette) which
organizations may take and adapt for their own use. As such, it is deliberately
written in a bulleted format to make adaptation easier and to make any particular
item easy (or easier) to find. It also functions as a minimum set of guidelines
for individuals, both users and administrators. This memo is the product of the
Responsible Use of the Network (RUN) Working Group of the IETF.
Table of Contents
In the past,
the population of people using the Internet had "grown up" with the Internet,
were technically minded, and understood the nature of the transport and the protocols.
Today, the community of Internet users includes people who are new to the environment.
These "Newbies" are unfamiliar with the culture and don't need to know about transport
and protocols. In order to bring these new users into the Internet culture quickly,
this Guide offers a minimum set of behaviors which organizations and individuals
may take and adapt for their own use. Individuals should be aware that no matter
who supplies their Internet access, be it an Internet Service Provider through
a private account, or a student account at a University, or an account through
a corporation, that those organizations have regulations about ownership of mail
and files, about what is proper to post or send, and how to present yourself.
Be sure to check with the local authority for specific guidelines.
We've organized
this material into three sections: One-to-one communication, which includes mail
and talk; One-to-many communications, which includes mailing lists and NetNews;
and Information Services, which includes ftp, WWW, Wais, Gopher, MUDs and MOOs.
Finally, we have a Selected Bibliography, which may be used for reference.
We define
one-to-one communications as those in which a person is communicating with another
person as if face-to-face: a dialog. In general, rules of common courtesy for
interaction with people should be in force for any situation and on the Internet
it's doubly important where, for example, body language and tone of voice must
be inferred. For more information on Netiquette for communicating via electronic
mail and talk, check references [1,23,25,27] in the Selected Bibliography.
2.1 User
Guidelines
2.1.1
For mail:
- 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.
- Respect
the copyright on material that you reproduce. Almost every country has copyright
laws.
- If you
are forwarding or re-posting a message you've received, do not change the wording.
If the message was a personal message to you and you are re-posting to a group,
you should ask permission first. You may shorten the message and quote only relevant
parts, but be sure you give proper attribution.
- 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 your 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.
- In general,
it's a good idea to at least check all your mail subjects before responding to
a message. Sometimes a person who asks you for help (or clarification) will send
another message which effectively says "Never Mind". Also make sure that any message
you respond to was directed to you. You might be cc:ed rather than the primary
recipient.
- Make things
easy for the recipient. Many mailers strip header information which includes your
return address. In order to ensure that people know who you are, be sure to include
a line or two at the end of your message with contact information. You can create
this file ahead of time and add it to the end of your messages. (Some mailers
do this automatically.) In Internet parlance, this is known as a ".sig" or "signature"
file. Your .sig file takes the place of your business card. (And you can have
more than one to apply in different circumstances.)
- Be careful
when addressing mail. There are addresses which may go to a group but the address
looks like it is just one person. Know to whom you are sending.
- Watch
cc's when replying. Don't continue to include people if the messages have become
a 2-way conversation.
- In general,
most people who use the Internet don't have time to answer general questions about
the Internet and its workings. Don't send unsolicited mail asking for information
to people whose names you might have seen in RFCs or on mailing lists.
- Remember
that people with whom you communicate are located across the globe. If you send
a message to which you want an immediate response, the person receiving it might
be at home asleep when it arrives. Give them a chance to wake up, come to work,
and login before assuming the mail didn't arrive or that they don't care.
- 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 is considered "long".
- Know whom
to contact for help. Usually you will have resources close at hand. Check locally
for people who can help you with software and system problems. Also, know whom
to go to if you receive anything questionable or illegal. Most sites also have
"Postmaster" aliased to a knowledgeable user, so you can send mail to this address
to get help with mail.
- Remember
that the recipient is a human being whose culture, language, and humor have different
points of reference from your own. Remember that date formats, measurements, and
idioms may not travel well. Be especially careful with sarcasm.
- Use mixed
case. UPPER CASE LOOKS AS IF YOU'RE SHOUTING.
- Use symbols
for emphasis. That *is* what I meant. Use underscores for underlining. _War and
Peace_ is my favorite 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.
- Wait overnight
to send emotional responses to messages. If you have really strong feelings about
a subject, indicate it via FLAME ON/OFF enclosures. For example:
FLAME ON:
This type of argument is not worth the bandwidth it takes to send it. It's illogical
and poorly reasoned. The rest of the world agrees with me.
FLAME OFF
- Do not
include control characters or non-ASCII attachments in messages unless they are
MIME attachments or unless your mailer encodes these. If you send encoded messages
make sure the recipient can decode them.
- Be brief
without being overly terse. When replying to a message, include enough original
material to be understood but no more. It is extremely bad form to simply reply
to a message by including all the previous message: edit out all the irrelevant
material.
- Limit
line length to fewer than 65 characters and end a line with a carriage return.
- Mail should
have a subject heading which reflects the content of the message.
- If you
include a signature keep it short. Rule of thumb is no longer than 4 lines. Remember
that many people pay for connectivity by the minute, and the longer your message
is, the more they pay.
- Just as
mail (today) may not be private, mail (and news) are (today) subject to forgery
and spoofing of various degrees of detectability. Apply common sense "reality
checks" before assuming a message is valid.
- If you
think the importance of a message justifies it, immediately reply briefly to an
e-mail message to let the sender know you got it, even if you will send a longer
reply later.
- "Reasonable"
expectations for conduct via e-mail depend on your relationship to a person and
the context of the communication. Norms learned in a particular e-mail environment
may not apply in general to your e-mail communication with people across the Internet.
Be careful with slang or local acronyms.
- The cost
of delivering an e-mail message is, on the average, paid about equally by the
sender and the recipient (or their organizations). 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).
- Know how
large a message you are sending. Including large files such as Postscript files
or programs may make your message so large that it cannot be delivered or at least
consumes excessive resources. A good rule of thumb would be not to send a file
larger than 50 Kilobytes. Consider file transfer as an alternative, or cutting
the file into smaller chunks and sending each as a separate message.
- Don't
send large amounts of unsolicited information to people.
- If your
mail system allows you to forward mail, beware the dreaded forwarding loop. Be
sure you haven't set up forwarding on several hosts so that a message sent to
you gets into an endless loop from one computer to the next to the next.
2.1.2
For talk:
Talk is a
set of protocols which allow two people to have an interactive dialogue via computer.
- Use mixed
case and proper punctuation, as though you were typing a letter or sending mail.
- Don't
run off the end of a line and simply let the terminal wrap; use a Carriage Return
(CR) at the end of the line. Also, don't assume your screen size is the same as
everyone else's. A good rule of thumb is to write out no more than 70 characters,
and no more than 12 lines (since you're using a split screen).
- Leave
some margin; don't write to the edge of the screen.
- Use two
CRs to indicate that you are done and the other person may start typing. (blank
line).
- Always
say goodbye, or some other farewell, and wait to see a farewell from the other
person before killing the session. This is especially important when you are communicating
with someone a long way away. Remember that your communication relies on both
bandwidth (the size of the pipe) and latency (the speed of light).
- Remember
that talk is an interruption to the other person. Only use as appropriate. And
never talk to strangers.
- The reasons
for not getting a reply are many. Don't assume that everything is working correctly.
Not all versions of talk are compatible.
- If left
on its own, talk re-rings the recipient. Let it ring one or two times, then kill
it.
- If a person
doesn't respond you might try another tty. Use finger to determine which are open.
If the person still doesn't respond, do not continue to send.
- Talk shows
your typing ability. If you type slowly and make mistakes when typing it is often
not worth the time of trying to correct, as the other person can usually see what
you meant.
- Be careful
if you have more than one talk session going!
2.2 Administrator
Issues
- Be sure
you have established written guidelines for dealing with situations especially
illegal, improper, or forged traffic.
- Handle
requests in a timely fashion - by the next business day.
- Respond
promptly to people who have concerns about receiving improper or illegal messages.
Requests concerning chain letters should be handled immediately.
- Explain
any system rules, such as disk quotas, to your users. Make sure they understand
implications of requesting files by mail such as: Filling up disks; running up
phone bills, delaying mail, etc.
- Make sure
you have "Postmaster" aliased. Make sure you have "Root" aliased. Make sure someone
reads that mail.
- Investigate
complaints about your users with an open mind. Remember that addresses may be
forged and spoofed.
Any time you
engage in One-to-Many communications, all the rules for mail should also apply.
After all, communicating with many people via one mail message or post is quite
analogous to communicating with one person with the exception of possibly offending
a great many more people than in one-to-one communication. Therefore, it's quite
important to know as much as you can about the audience of your message.
3.1 User
Guidelines
3.1.1
General Guidelines for mailing lists and NetNews
- Read both
mailing lists and newsgroups for one to two months before you post anything. This
helps you to get an understanding of the culture of the group.
- Do not
blame the system administrator for the behavior of the system users.
- Consider
that a large audience will see your posts. That may include your present or your
next boss. Take care in what you write. Remember too, that mailing lists and Newsgroups
are frequently archived, and that your words may be stored for a very long time
in a place to which many people have access.
- Assume
that individuals speak for themselves, and what they say does not represent their
organization (unless stated explicitly).
- Remember
that both mail and news take system resources. Pay attention to any specific rules
covering their uses your organization may have.
- Messages
and articles should be brief and to the point. Don't wander off-topic, don't ramble
and don't send mail or post messages solely to point out other people's errors
in typing or spelling. These, more than any other behavior, mark you as an immature
beginner.
- Subject
lines should follow the conventions of the group.
- Forgeries
and spoofing are not approved behavior.
- Advertising
is welcomed on some lists and Newsgroups, and abhorred on others! This is another
example of knowing your audience before you post. Unsolicited advertising which
is completely off-topic will most certainly guarantee that you get a lot of hate
mail.
- If you
are sending a reply to a message or a posting be sure you summarize the original
at the top of the message, or include just enough text of the original to give
a context. This will make sure readers understand when they start to read your
response. Since NetNews, especially, is proliferated by distributing the postings
from one host to another, it is possible to see a response to a message before
seeing the original. Giving context helps everyone. But do not include the entire
original!
- Again,
be sure to have a signature which you attach to your message. This will guarantee
that any peculiarities of mailers or newsreaders which strip header information
will not delete the only reference in the message of how people may reach you.
- Be careful
when you reply to messages or postings. Frequently replies are sent back to the
address which originated the post - which in many cases is the address of a list
or group! You may accidentally send a personal response to a great many people,
embarrassing all involved. It's best to type in the address instead of relying
on "reply."
- Delivery
receipts, non-delivery notices, and vacation programs are neither totally standardized
nor totally reliable across the range of systems connected to Internet mail. They
are invasive when sent to mailing lists, and some people consider delivery receipts
an invasion of privacy. In short, do not use them.
- If you
find a personal message has gone to a list or group, send an apology to the person
and to the group.
- If you
should find yourself in a disagreement with one person, make your responses to
each other via mail rather than continue to send messages to the list or the group.
If you are debating a point on which the group might have some interest, you may
summarize for them later.
- Don't
get involved in flame wars. Neither post nor respond to incendiary material.
- Avoid
sending messages or posting articles which are no more than gratuitous replies
to replies.
- Be careful
with monospacing fonts and diagrams. These will display differently on different
systems, and with different mailers on the same system.
- There
are Newsgroups and Mailing Lists which discuss topics of wide varieties of interests.
These represent a diversity of lifestyles, religions, and cultures. Posting articles
or sending messages to a group whose point of view is offensive to you simply
to tell them they are offensive is not acceptable. Sexually and racially harassing
messages may also have legal implications. There is software available to filter
items you might find objectionable.
3.1.2
Mailing List Guidelines
There are
several ways to find information about what mailing lists exist on the Internet
and how to join them. Make sure you understand your organization's policy about
joining these lists and posting to them. In general it is always better to check
local resources first before trying to find information via the Internet. Nevertheless,
there are a set of files posted periodically to news.answers which list the Internet
mailing lists and how to subscribe to them. This is an invaluable resource for
finding lists on any topic. See also references [9,13,15] in the Selected Bibliography.
- Send subscribe
and unsubscribe messages to the appropriate address. Although some mailing list
software is smart enough to catch these, not all can ferret these out. It is your
responsibility to learn how the lists work, and to send the correct mail to the
correct place. Although many many mailing lists adhere to the convention of having
a "-request" alias for sending subscribe and unsubscribe messages, not all do.
Be sure you know the conventions used by the lists to which you subscribe.
- Save the
subscription messages for any lists you join. These usually tell you how to unsubscribe
as well.
- In general,
it's not possible to retrieve messages once you have sent them. Even your system
administrator will not be able to get a message back once you have sent it. This
means you must make sure you really want the message to go as you have written
it.
- The auto-reply
feature of many mailers is useful for in-house communication, but quite annoying
when sent to entire mailing lists. Examine "Reply-To" addresses when replying
to messages from lists. Most auto-replys will go to all members of the list.
- Don't
send large files to mailing lists when Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) or pointers
to ftp-able versions will do. If you want to send it as multiple files, be sure
to follow the culture of the group. If you don't know what that is, ask.
- Consider
unsubscribing or setting a "nomail" option (when it's available) when you cannot
check your mail for an extended period.
- When sending
a message to more than one mailing list, especially if the lists are closely related,
apologize for cross-posting.
- If you
ask a question, be sure to post a summary. When doing so, truly summarize rather
than send a cumulation of the messages you receive.
- Some mailing
lists are private. Do not send mail to these lists uninvited. Do not report mail
from these lists to a wider audience.
- If you
are caught in an argument, keep the discussion focused on issues rather than the
personalities involved.
3.1.3
NetNews Guidelines
NetNews is
a globally distributed system which allows people to communicate on topics of
specific interest. It is divided into hierarchies, with the major divisions being:
sci - science related discussions; comp - computer related discussions; news -
for discussions which center around NetNews itself; rec - recreational activities;
soc - social issues; talk - long-winded never-ending discussions; biz - business
related postings; and alt - the alternate hierarchy. Alt is so named because creating
an alt group does not go through the same process as creating a group in the other
parts of the hierarchy. There are also regional hierarchies, hierarchies which
are widely distributed such as Bionet, and your place of business may have its
own groups as well. Recently, a "humanities" hierarchy was added, and as time
goes on its likely more will be added. For longer discussions on News see references
[2,8,22,23] in the Selected Bibliography.
- In NetNews
parlance, "Posting" refers to posting a new article to a group, or responding
to a post someone else has posted. "Cross-Posting" refers to posting a message
to more than one group. If you introduce Cross-Posting to a group, or if you direct
"Followup-To:" in the header of your posting, warn readers! Readers will usually
assume that the message was posted to a specific group and that followups will
go to that group. Headers change this behavior.
- Read all
of a discussion in progress (we call this a thread) before posting replies. Avoid
posting "Me Too" messages, where content is limited to agreement with previous
posts. Content of a follow-up post should exceed quoted content.
- Send mail
when an answer to a question is for one person only. Remember that News has global
distribution and the whole world probably is NOT interested in a personal response.
However, don't hesitate to post when something will be of general interest to
the Newsgroup participants.
- Check
the "Distribution" section of the header, but don't depend on it. Due to the complex
method by which News is delivered, Distribution headers are unreliable. But, if
you are posting something which will be of interest to a limited number or readers,
use a distribution line that attempts to limit the distribution of your article
to those people. For example, set the Distribution to be "nj" if you are posting
an article that will be of interest only to New Jersey readers.
- If you
feel an article will be of interest to more than one Newsgroup, be sure to CROSSPOST
the article rather than individually post it to those groups. In general, probably
only five-to-six groups will have similar enough interests to warrant this.
- Consider
using Reference sources (Computer Manuals, Newspapers, help files) before posting
a question. Asking a Newsgroup where answers are readily available elsewhere generates
grumpy "RTFM" (read the fine manual - although a more vulgar meaning of the word
beginning with "f" is usually implied) messages.
- Although
there are Newsgroups which welcome advertising, in general it is considered nothing
less than criminal to advertise off-topic products. Sending an advertisement to
each and every group will pretty much guarantee your loss of connectivity.
- If you
discover an error in your post, cancel it as soon as possible.
- DO NOT
attempt to cancel any articles but your own. Contact your administrator if you
don't know how to cancel your post, or if some other post, such as a chain letter,
needs canceling.
- If you've
posted something and don't see it immediately, don't assume it's failed and re-post
it.
- Some groups
permit (and some welcome) posts which in other circumstances would be considered
to be in questionable taste. Still, there is no guarantee that all people reading
the group will appreciate the material as much as you do. Use the Rotate utility
(which rotates all the characters in your post by 13 positions in the alphabet)
to avoid giving offense. The Rot13 utility for Unix is an example.
- In groups
which discuss movies or books it is considered essential to mark posts which disclose
significant content as "Spoilers". Put this word in your Subject: line. You may
add blank lines to the beginning of your post to keep content out of sight, or
you may Rotate it.
- Forging
of news articles is generally censured. You can protect yourself from forgeries
by using software which generates a manipulation detection "fingerprint", such
as PGP (in the US).
- Postings
via anonymous servers are accepted in some Newsgroups and disliked in others.
Material which is inappropriate when posted under one's own name is still inappropriate
when posted anonymously.
- Expect
a slight delay in seeing your post when posting to a moderated group. The moderator
may change your subject line to have your post conform to a particular thread.
- Don't
get involved in flame wars. Neither post nor respond to incendiary material.
3.2 Administrator
Guidelines
3.2.1
General Issues
- Clarify
any policies your site has regarding its subscription to NetNews groups and about
subscribing to mailing lists.
- Clarify
any policies your site has about posting to NetNews groups or to mailing lists,
including use of disclaimers in .sigs.
- Clarify
and publicize archive policy. (How long are articles kept?)
- Investigate
accusations about your users promptly and with an open mind.
- Be sure
to monitor the health of your system.
- Consider
how long to archive system logs, and publicize your policy on logging.
3.2.2
Mailing Lists
- Keep mailing
lists up to date to avoid the "bouncing mail" problem.
- Help list
owners when problems arise.
- Inform
list owners of any maintenance windows or planned downtime.
- Be sure
to have "-request" aliases for list subscription and administration.
- Make sure
all mail gateways operate smoothly.
3.2.3.
NetNews
- Publicize
the nature of the feed you receive. If you do not get a full feed, people may
want to know why not.
- Be aware
that the multiplicity of News Reader clients may cause the News Server being blamed
for problems in the clients.
- Honor
requests from users immediately if they request cancellation of their own posts
or invalid posts, such as chain letters.
- Have "Usenet",
"Netnews" and "News" aliased and make sure someone reads the mail.
3.3 Moderator
Guidelines
3.3.1
General Guidelines
- Make sure
your Frequestly Asked Questions (FAQ) is posted at regular intervals. Include
your guidelines for articles/messages. If you are not the FAQ maintainer, make
sure they do so.
- Make sure
you maintain a good welcome message, which contains subscribe and unsubscribe
information.
- Newsgroups
should have their charter/guidelines posted regularly.
- Keep mailing
lists and Newsgroups up to date. Post messages in a timely fashion. Designate
a substitute when you go on vacation or out of town.
In recent
Internet history, the 'Net has exploded with new and varied Information services.
Gopher, Wais, World Wide Web (WWW), Multi-User Dimensions (MUDs) Multi-User Dimensions
which are Object Oriented (MOOs) are a few of these new areas. Although the ability
to find information is exploding, "Caveat Emptor" remains constant. For more information
on these services, check references [14,28] in the Selected Bibliography.
4.1 User
Guidelines
4.1.1.
General guidelines
- Remember
that all these services belong to someone else. The people who pay the bills get
to make the rules governing usage. Information may be free - or it may not be!
Be sure you check.
- If you
have problems with any form of information service, start problem solving by checking
locally: Check file configurations, software setup, network connections, etc.
Do this before assuming the problem is at the provider's end and/or is the provider's
fault.
- Although
there are naming conventions for file-types used, don't depend on these file naming
conventions to be enforced. For example, a ".doc" file is not always a Word file.
- Information
services also use conventions, such as www.xyz.com. While it is useful to know
these conventions, again, don't necessarily rely on them.
- Know how
file names work on your own system.
- Be aware
of conventions used for providing information during sessions. FTP sites usually
have files named README in a top level directory which have information about
the files available. But, don't assume that these files are necessarily up-to-date
and/or accurate.
- Do NOT
assume that ANY information you find is up-to-date and/or accurate. Remember that
new technologies allow just about anyone to be a publisher, but not all people
have discovered the responsibilities which accompany publishing.
- Remember
that unless you are sure that security and authentication technology is in use,
that any information you submit to a system is being transmitted over the Internet
"in the clear", with no protection from "sniffers" or forgers.
- Since
the Internet spans the globe, remember that Information Services might reflect
culture and life-style markedly different from your own community. Materials you
find offensive may originate in a geography which finds them acceptable. Keep
an open mind.
- When wanting
information from a popular server, be sure to use a mirror server that's close
if a list is provided.
- Do not
use someone else's FTP site to deposit materials you wish other people to pick
up. This is called "dumping" and is not generally acceptable behavior.
- When you
have trouble with a site and ask for help, be sure to provide as much information
as possible in order to help debug the problem.
- When bringing
up your own information service, such as a homepage, be sure to check with your
local system administrator to find what the local guidelines are in affect.
- Consider
spreading out the system load on popular sites by avoiding "rush hour" and logging
in during off-peak times.
4.1.2
Real Time Interactive Services Guidelines (MUDs MOOs IRC)
- As in
other environments, it is wise to "listen" first to get to know the culture of
the group.
- It's not
necessary to greet everyone on a channel or room personally. Usually one "Hello"
or the equivalent is enough. Using the automation features of your client to greet
people is not acceptable behavior.
- Warn the
participants if you intend to ship large quantities of information. If all consent
to receiving it, you may send, but sending unwanted information without a warning
is considered bad form just as it is in mail.
- Don't
assume that people who you don't know will want to talk to you. If you feel compelled
to send private messages to people you don't know, then be willing to accept gracefully
the fact that they might be busy or simply not want to chat with you.
- Respect
the guidelines of the group. Look for introductory materials for the group. These
may be on a related ftp site.
- Don't
badger other users for personal information such as sex, age, or location. After
you have built an acquaintance with another user, these questions may be more
appropriate, but many people hesitate to give this information to people with
whom they are not familiar.
- If a user
is using a nickname alias or pseudonym, respect that user's desire for anonymity.
Even if you and that person are close friends, it is more courteous to use his
nickname. Do not use that person's real name online without permission.
4.2 Administrator
Guidelines
4.2.1
General Guidelines
- Make clear
what's available for copying and what is not.
- Describe
what's available on your site, and your organization. Be sure any general policies
are clear.
- Keep information,
especially READMEs, up-to-date. Provide READMEs in plain ascii text.
- Present
a list of mirrors of your site if you know them. Make sure you include a statement
of copyright applicable to your mirrors. List their update schedule if possible.
- Make sure
that popular (and massive) information has the bandwidth to support it.
- Use conventions
for file extensions - .txt for ascii text; .html or .htm for HTML; .ps for Postscript;
.pdf for Portable Document Format; .sgml or .sgm for SGML; .exe for non-Unix executables,
etc.
- For files
being transferred, try to make filenames unique in the first eight characters.
- When providing
information, make sure your site has something unique to offer. Avoid bringing
up an information service which simply points to other services on the Internet.
- Don't
point to other sites without asking first.
- Remember
that setting up an information service is more than just design and implementation.
It's also maintenance.
- Make sure
your posted materials are appropriate for the supporting organization.
- Test applications
with a variety of tools. Don't assume everything works if you've tested with only
one client. Also, assume the low end of technology for clients and don't create
applications which can only be used by Graphical User Interfaces.
- Have a
consistent view of your information. Make sure the look and feel stays the same
throughout your applications.
- Be sensitive
to the longevity of your information. Be sure to date time-sensitive materials,
and be vigilant about keeping this information well maintained.
- Export
restrictions vary from country to country. Be sure you understand the implications
of export restrictions when you post.
- Tell users
what you plan to do with any information you collect, such as WWW feedback. You
need to warn people if you plan to publish any of their statements, even passively
by just making it available to other users.
- Make sure
your policy on user information services, such as homepages, is well known.
This bibliography
was used to gather most of the information in the sections above as well as for
general reference. Items not specifically found in these works were gathered from
the IETF-RUN Working Group's experience.
[1] Angell, D., and B. Heslop, "The Elements of E-mail Style",
New York: Addison-Wesley, 1994.
[2] "Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Usenet"
Original author: jerry@eagle.UUCP (Jerry Schwarz)
Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
Archive-name: usenet-faq/part1
[3] Cerf, V., "Guidelines for Conduct on and Use of
Internet", at:
http://www.isoc.org/policy/conduct/conduct.html
[4] Dern, D., "The Internet Guide for New Users", New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1994.
[5] "Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette"
Original author: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton)
Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
Archive-name: emily-postnews/part1
[6] Gaffin, A., "Everybody's Guide to the Internet", Cambridge,
Mass., MIT Press, 1994.
[7] "Guidelines for Responsible Use of the Internet"
from the US house of Representatives gopher, at:
gopher://gopher.house.gov:70/OF-1%3a208%3aInternet%20Etiquette
[8] How to find the right place to post (FAQ)
by buglady@bronze.lcs.mit.edu (Aliza R. Panitz)
Archive-name: finding-groups/general
[9] Hambridge, S., and J. Sedayao, "Horses and Barn Doors:
Evolution of Corporate Guidelines for Internet Usage",
LISA VII, Usenix, November 1-5, 1993, pp. 9-16.
ftp://ftp.intel.com/pub/papers/horses.ps or horses.ascii>
[10] Heslop, B., and D. Angell, "The Instant Internet guide :
Hands-on Global Networking", Reading, Mass., Addison-Wesley,
1994.
[11] Horwitz, S., "Internet Etiquette Tips",
ftp://ftp.temple.edu/pub/info/help-net/netiquette.infohn
[12] Internet Activities Board, "Ethics and the Internet", RFC 1087,
IAB, January 1989.
ftp://ds.internic.net/rfc/rfc1087.txt
[13] Kehoe, B., "Zen and the Art of the Internet: A Beginner's
Guide", Netiquette information is spread through the chapters
of this work. 3rd ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ., Prentice-Hall,
1994.
[14] Kochmer, J., "Internet Passport: NorthWestNet's Guide
to our World Online", 4th ed. Bellevue, Wash.,
NorthWestNet, Northwest Academic Computing Consortium, 1993.
[15] Krol, Ed, "The Whole Internet: User's Guide and
Catalog", Sebastopol, CA, O'Reilly & Associates,
1992.
[16] Lane, E. and C. Summerhill, "Internet Primer for
Information Professionals: a basic guide to Internet networking
technology", Westport, CT, Meckler, 1993.
[17] LaQuey, T., and J. Ryer, "The Internet Companion",
Chapter 3 "Communicating with People", pp 41-74. Reading,
MA, Addison-Wesley, 1993.
[18] Mandel, T., "Surfing the Wild Internet", SRI International
Business Intelligence Program, Scan No. 2109. March, 1993.
gopher://gopher.well.sf.ca.us:70/00/Communications/surf-wild
[19] Martin, J., "There's Gold in them thar Networks! or Searching for
Treasure in all the Wrong Places", FYI 10, RFC 1402,
January 1993. ftp://ds.internic.net/rfc/rfc1402.txt
[20] Pioch, N., "A Short IRC Primer", Text conversion
by Owe Rasmussen. Edition 1.1b, February 28, 1993.
http://www.kei.com/irc/IRCprimer1.1.txt
[21] Polly, J., "Surfing the Internet: an Introduction",
Version 2.0.3. Revised May 15, 1993.
ftp://ftp.nysernet.org/pub/resources/guides/surfing.2.0.3.txt
[22] "A Primer on How to Work With the Usenet Community"
Original author: chuq@apple.com (Chuq Von Rospach)
Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
Archive-name: usenet-primer/part1
[23] Rinaldi, A., "The Net: User Guidelines and Netiquette",
September 3, 1992.
http://www.fau.edu/rinaldi/net/index.htm
[24] "Rules for posting to Usenet"
Original author: spaf@cs.purdue.edu (Gene Spafford)
Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
Archive-name: posting-rules/part1
[25] Shea, V., "Netiquette", San Francisco: Albion Books,
1994?.
[26] Strangelove, M., with A. Bosley, "How to Advertise
on the Internet", ISSN 1201-0758.
[27] Tenant, R., "Internet Basics", ERIC Clearinghouse of Information
Resources, EDO-IR-92-7. September, 1992.
gopher://nic.merit.edu:7043/00/introducing.the.internet/internet.basics.eric-digest
gopher://vega.lib.ncsu.edu:70/00/library/reference/guides/tennet
[28] Wiggins, R., "The Internet for everyone: a guide for
users and providers", New York, McGraw-Hill, 1995.
Security issues
are not discussed in this memo.
Sally Hambridge
Intel Corporation
2880 Northwestern Parkway
SC3-15
Santa Clara, CA 95052
Phone: 408-765-2931
Fax: 408-765-3679
EMail: sallyh@ludwig.sc.intel.com
|