Well, not really this week, more like this month but after a deep conversation about online courtesy, decency and communication standards with Anna this morning, I was reminded that I've been holding on to some interesting things that I've been meaning to share.

• Make your emails CLEAR compliant.  CLEAR is an acronym for a method of writing emails that will make them shorter and to the point and reduce the number you receive if you and your colleagues follow its simple guidelines
• Write like Lincoln - Just send the nasty grams to yourself
• How to master the subject line to get your email read
• Don't say no in an email.  Tim includes a video clip where he explains the limitations of email in conveying true meaning and intent and why you shouldn't say no via email

- Making your Email More Effective; A Lesson from Lincoln, Beyond Blinking Lights and Acronyms, 03.16.07

I'm a big stickler for good email communication, particularly at work. We even recently had compliance training about proper email etiquette.

Author Vladimir Nabokov said in a 1969 New York Times interview that "there should exist a special typographical sign for a smile--some sort of concave mark, a supine round bracket."

Now, nearly four decades later, there is just such a typographical symbol-- :-), or :) for the minimalists, and it'd be tough to find a tech-savvy person who hasn't leaned on it. There's also a special typographical symbol for a frown-- :-( -- and one for a cool dude in sunglasses -- B-) -- and one for a wink -- ;-). There's even a typographical sign for wearing a baseball cap-- d=D.

- The Web Smiley's motto: Grin and Bear It, C|Net, 03.13.07

I over-use emoticons in IM (where I'm less sure about people getting the nuance of my writing) and probably under-use them in conversational emails.

The subject of online courtesy or "netiquette" (what an outdated word) is frequently discussed in old media. Some blame the impersonality of the media itself. Others say that people haven't changed at all "" the Internet is just another venue in which people can malign and mistreat each other. On some level this is true. It's an extension of the playground, where adults can pick on one another without a teacher's watchful eyes upon them.

Younger Internet users are the ones who actually seem to be using the Web to form online communities, make friends and promote their art via sites like Facebook, Myspace, Bored At and Second Life. It's the so-called grown-ups pulling each others pigtails and bullying the meek.

- Bad Behavior 2.0, Portsmouth Herald, 03.30.07

I won't really get into how sweeping (and sweepingly wrong) the second paragraphs generalization is. What I found most interesting is her thought that netiquette is an outdated word. I'm inclined to agree but have no idea what should take it's place. Any thoughts?

This post's soundtrack:

1. Dora by Kyoto
2. That Easy by Clara Hill
3. Soon by Jazzanova
4. I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free by Nina Simone
   

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There's still more to talk about about SxSW but, for now, let's link to some things we've discussed before:

I love twitter, but this is some nerdy shit:

Interest in the messaging service Twitter is clearly on the rise (see this Wall Street Journal article if you’re not already familiar with it), and while most people are figuring out how to use Twitter for its intended purpose–social networking–I’d like to share a few notes on my more prosaic experiment of using it as part of my home automation system.

- Twittering Your Home by Gordon Mayer,  O'Reilly MacDevCenter Blog,  03.16.17

That we're not playing by the same rules (like these) is why I like namespaces/content places like VOX:

I won’t engage with persons that post inflammatory off-topic messages. I alone am responsible for wasting my time. Besides, I could be encouraging the continued posting of said comments.

-NETIQUETTE (jt. - although, damn, can't we turn the caps lock off?), Dead Men Don't Rape, 02.17.07

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So, earlier this week I wrote about my struggles with the photographing of strangers and friends in public and without permission. Then Anna sent me this:

The first day I came home with a digital audio recorder hanging around my neck, along with a sign that said "Warning: This conversation may be recorded," my wife shook her head in a way that conveyed deep embarrassment. Then she said: "Have you ever heard of Nixon?"

On the train to work, my fellow commuters did double takes and snickered. People sat down next to me, then got up and moved to another seat. One woman saw my sign and hushed her friends: "Look, he's recording." Another fellow told me that someone was going to beat me up over my little stunt. Once a conductor gave me such a severe look that I thought he would throw me off the train at the next stop.

In the grocery store, clerks asked me if I was doing some kind of crazy university study. Sort of, I replied. "You're recording your life all the time?" people said. "Why would anyone want to do that?"

On The Record, All The Time by Scot Carlson, The Chronicle (subscription required), 02.09.07

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So for the photo-freaks among us: what responsibility does (or should) the camera-holder have to (a) respect the request not to be photographed in semi-public or semi-private spaces (i.e. at a bar or friend’s house party); and (b) not to post potentially embarrassing photos and videos of their friends and acquaintances (or hell, even strangers) online, especially with a name attached? (Actually, in some cases that can be grounds for legal action, so watch what you publish).

And for those who are camera shy: Do you find yourself self-censoring your behavior in public or avoiding events with your shutterbug friends?

- Ethics, Friendships and Flickr (or "Why I don't Drink Around Some Folks"), Tiffany B Brown, 12.07.06

Moo

One of the reasons I bought Moo Cards is because I'm uncomfortable taking pictures of strangers without their permission. With the moo card, I can ask a person for their permission to photograph them, show them where it may be displayed, and give them the opportunity to decline. I take pictures of friends regularly but respect their desires for photos to not be taken or for them not to be posted. I live a whole lot of my life online but I'm incredibly aware of the public private and the need to not let it all hang out. I would never want anybody who I spend time with to have to worry about how their actions might come back to haunt them digitally.

On a selfish level, I also worry that constant picture taking detracts from the moment (much the same way that my constant email checking detracts, I'm working on that, though. It's just...I'm internet addicted). If we're always recording the moment, we're not experiencing the moment. Moreover, It feels like we're planning how we'll remember the moment instead. There's a time and place for pictures and video.

It's not all the time and every place.

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“So many people are not clear communicators,” said Judith Kallos, creator of NetManners.com, a site dedicated to online etiquette, and author of “Because Netiquette Matters.” To be clear about what an e-mail message is trying to say, and about what is implied as well as what is stated, “the reader is left looking at everything from the greeting to the closing for clues,” she said.

- 'Yours Truly,' the E-Variations, NY Times, 11.25.06

Since starting work at the Mouse, almost all my e-communications end in 'Thanks,' unless I'm sending an intentionally curt response. At that point, I drop the salutation and just use my initials (ooooh, burn!).

I have much more trouble with the greeting in an email. I have a tendency to use "Hi [name]," or the over-exclamatory "Hi!" or the, perhaps, too open to interpretation of intent "Hey."

How do you say hello and goodbye in your emails?

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