Acceptable Use
Ownership
All materials appearing within Taos-Telecommunity service are property of the original creator of that property and cannot be used without permission from the owner.
Guidelines
Communications are important to all of us and E-mail is one of our most valuable tools - but we sometimes tend to take it for granted.
The following steps can help us to communicate better and enjoy this relatively new medium. The steps are guidelines - there will be exceptions. We are all knowledge workers who can make intelligent choices.
1. Keep replies short and to the point. After you have answered key points, delete the original lines. People do not need their own memo sent back to them: it ties up expensive disk space on the servers - not to mention the tedium of re-reading one's own message, and the cost to those who pay character rates for their messages.
2. Reply ONLY to the original sender unless you are POSITIVE that the others are interested in your response and that it will not cause harm or embarrassment to the sender.
3. Take care with distribution lists. Privacy is especially important if you are responding to a "LIST". This is easy to do. When reading the original message, copy the address of the sender. Then, when in reply
mode, delete the reply address (TO LIST) and paste in the sender's address.
4. Personal congratulations and kudos: If you wish to thank, encourage, or congratulate someone on a good posting or particularly helpful comment, do it in private. It's OK to tell Harry or Alice that you liked their comment on the Z-104 Laser Project, but chances are, not everyone wants to read your laudatory comment.
5. Don't tie up bandwidth. If you and another person wish to discuss the details of a multi-person posting or enumerate test results at length, do it OFF-LINE. Don't fire dozens of messages back and forth while copying others. If you are knowledgeable, they'll think you're showing off and if you are not an expert on the subject, you will be waving the
red flag of ignorance at the same time that you are "SPAMMING" a lot of in-boxes.
6. Do the 3-question test:
a. Is it necessary? If not, why tie up bandwidth and others' time.
b. Is it kind? If not, don't send it via E-mail. Deliver it in person (Good courage test).
c. Is it true? If you don't know, don't put it in print.
Remember: Assume that EVERYTHING you say on E-mail is stored on non-secure servers, is kept in others' in boxes and is available to come back and haunt you! (BYITA)
7. Don't hog the system. Think through your comments and responses before sending them. It is most disconcerting to see 6 or 7 E-mail messages from the same person on the same day - often 2nd and 3rd thoughts on the same subject!
Tips:
If a reply is really important, don't shoot from the hip! Copy the original message into your word processor, go through it point by point, spell check it, then copy it into your new outgoing E-mail message to the person who needs it - and MAYBE - after lots of consideration, copy it to those who really need and want to know. Important: Triple check the address.
If you are upset with a posting, cool off for 24 hours. Ask yourself why you are upset. Go through all the things you would normally consider. Back when you had to write a note, put it in an envelope and mail it, you had time to reconsider. (Remember when you'd go out and grab back that inter-departmental mail envelope (Yes - the one with the holes in it) so you could burn your earlier note which was witten in anger?) Harry Truman used to vent his spleen by writing angry letters, then he would give them to his secretary to type and mail. They would be held (usually for a day or two) until he came in and asked for them back. Very few were actually mailed.
Technology is a two-edged sword. With E-mail, it's possible to burn bridges in seconds. It's kind of like borrowing Darth Vader's Light Sword when we're angry and seeing red. In seconds, we're knee-deep in decimated egos and we don't have the Re-Assembler Module to put them back together once we cool off.
Summary
E-mail is a wonderful thing. It saves us lots of time and effort and thousands of dollars every month. It makes it easier for us and our friends. It makes our lives better. Please use it wisely so we can all continue to enjoy the benefits and ease of instant communications.
-- from John Shuler (with permission)
Rules of participation
Each member is trusted and respected for his or her views. We may all assume that we are "here" to carefully discuss content without fear of personal attacks, attacks on our belief system, that this service is free from spamming, and that our privacy is protected.
However, abuses do occur. If this happens then the following rules of participation, apply:
Participation in "Taos-Telecommunity" is both voluntary and a privilege. Membership comes with the implied trust that each member agrees to participate in a way that respects other members and their work.
In many areas, "flaming" and personal attacks have become an acceptable practice .. This is not the case here.
"Flaming, " personal attacks and forms of disrespect shown to members, Themes and Theme Mentors will not be tolerated.
Members who engage in "flaming" or personal attacks will be removed from participating in all Taos-Telecommunity services, immediately -- without notice. In some mild cases, a warning notice will be given, first, when the intent is not clear.
In addition:
Taos-Telecommunity is non-commercial, non-political, and without a social, racial, or religious agenda. Members who are judged by their Theme Mentor to exceed acceptable Theme bounds or who cannot stick to the point of the Theme .. then they will be removed, as described above.
A former member can negotiate with a Theme Mentor for reinstatement. However if the "flaming," personal attacks or other issues mentioned, above, continues, removal will be permanent.
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