The internet is now a medium of communication for most people nowadays. Everything from business transactions, buying and selling, socializing or simply blogging your thoughts are conducted over the internet. Net etiquette is a fusion of the internet and good manners in cyberspace. Though nothing is really concrete in cyberspace it is important to bear in mind that the internet involves millions of people. It is like a world in a gadget, but the people you are dealing with on the other end are real and not mere avatars.
Our generation now lives on the internet; there are formalities and guidelines to follow to render professionalism, courtesy, and order making the internet more useful and effective as possible.
Using good manners online is critical. This means everything from forum posts to blogs, social networking and e-mail all needs to exercise proper netiquette. Because online communication is all non-verbal, there is no way for someone to see your facial expressions or ready your body language. They also cannot hear the intonation in your voice. This means what you type can easily be misinterpreted. If you type something wrong, it could cause others to think that you are criticizing them or talking down to them when in fact you aren’t.
The very basic rule in Netiquette is thinking before posting.
- Be careful with any personal, confidential or legal matters sent through email messages. Remember, emails can be forwarded to anyone.
- Unsolicited messages are spam and detested by everyone. Chain letters can be one example; it would be best to delete it and not forward it.
- Be careful when spreading warnings about Internet viruses sometimes it may just be a hoax. Many get fooled by this and immediately copy paste and send it to everyone in their mail list. You may end up getting a lot of junk mail or spam in the process.
- DO NOT CAPITALIZE TOO MUCH or it may seem like you are shouting and this is rude.
- Lessen the use of acronyms, BRB for ‘be right back, and etc. Not everyone is familiar with this internet lingo. Acronyms may be ideal in the chat room but unprofessional in the email.
Make use of the FAQ, Frequently Asked Questions, it is a form of orientation for newsgroups and social networks.
Small Things Count More Than You Realize
Even the smallest of things in a message can make a world of difference.
- Poor spelling, grammar, and incorrect punctuation can end up causing an entire message to come across differently than what the sender intended.
- What you might think conveys excitement and joy could come off as anger to someone reading the message online.
- Not only that, but you want to make sure the message sounds professional when dealing with business to business communications.
- When it comes to netiquette online, you can also use emoticons to help convey your emotions and try to clarify the message further. This can help let others know you are happy, :), sad, 🙁 or just making a joke, :P.
Regardless of how you look at it, you have to watch everything you do online. Proper netiquette also means not sending a ton of messages through to someone’s email and spamming them. You want to establish a positive line of communication with others. Online communication is everywhere. It is up to you to determine how to best use it to your advantage and avoid offending anyone else along the way. Spend some time honing your skills to see how much of a difference it can make for your online communication.
Bear in mind that everything has consequences anything you do will affect you.
December 4, 2010 3:04 am
Great article. I agree that netiquette is important. For a comprehensive list of netiquette rules you can visit NetworkEtiquette.net.