Logo Savoynet Online Etiquette

On-line etiquette is a recurring issue in many forums. Although some baseline standards of behavior are widely accepted, these are subject to interpretation. The following guidelines are an attempt to summarize what the listowner believes to be a consensus of Savoynet members, though it should be understood that there is invariably some disagreement at the margins.

  1. Stay on-topic. The field of Gilbert & Sullivan is amazingly broad and encompasses many cognate subjects. Posts can be humorous, light and entertaining; or, they may be deep, serious and scholarly. But, whatever else they may be, each posting should have a bearing, however tenuous, on the topic of G&S.

  2. Keep quoted material to a minimum. You can generally assume that subscribers have read earlier posts. Therefore, you need not quote extensively in your reply. Quote only as much as needed to establish the context for what you want to say. At the very least, edit out saluation and signature lines. Often, you can get along without quoting at all.

  3. Eschew frivolous posts. A frivolous post is one which says little more than "I agree" or "Me too." Remember, your post is going to hundreds of people. Many of them have significant limitations on the amount of email they can keep up with. While this should not deter you from making a contribution that you consider meaningful, you should avoid posts that make no perceptible contribution to a discussion, other than indicating agreement with what has already been said. On a list Savoynet's size, somebody probably agrees with practically any statement. Indicating agreement, and nothing else, is not helpful.

  4. Do not make ad hominem attacks. An ad hominem attack is criticism directed at a person rather than an idea. By all means feel free to disagree with any comment posted on Savoynet. But, direct your response to the comment itself, not the person who made it.

  5. Do not Violate Copyright. Do not post copyrighted material to Savoynet without the copyright owner's permission. Newspaper and magazine articles that you find on the web, for example, are almost surely copyrighted. Feel free to post a brief excerpt, with a link, which others may follow to the source.

  6. Read your inbox before replying. If you are behind on your mail, there's a good chance that the comment you're about to make, or the answer you're about to supply, has already been posted by someone else. Discussion threads take many twists and turns, and it is better to post one contribution to the thread after you've fully caught up, than to reply individually to each message.

  7. Use private email. Not all replies are of general interest. Use private email if your reply is directed at an individual, rather than the entire list.

Other netiquette resources include:

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Last Modified: 7-Aug-16
This page maintained by Marc Shepherd
URL: http://savoynet.oakapplepress.com/manners.html