A Little "Netiquette"

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A Little Netiquette

A LITTLE NETIQUETTE

The WWWomen's Community Hub is a place where all women are welcome to hang out, engage in debates, tell jokes, and share their thoughts in a safe, courteous atmosphere. To insure it's kept that way, here are some guidelines for posting messages in the discussion forum. Please be aware that this forum is moderated, meaning any post deemed "unacceptable" - for whatever reason - by the moderators, can and will be removed.

Some of the subjects covered on this page:

How to Post a Message
Terms You'll Encounter
Guidelines for "Acceptable Use"
What To Do About "Flames" and "Trolls"

How to Post A Message:

Screen shot
Type in your name in the "Name" text field

Specify an email address where you can be reached (optional)

Type your message or reply in the large text box under the header, "Message"

To specify an optional link, type in the URL in the Optional Link text field (after "http://...")

You can give the optional link a "name" in the Optional Link Title text field.

If you want the option of removing your post later, type in a password in the "Password" text field.

Click on either the Preview Message button (to "proofread" your message before sending), or the Post Message button to send it off.

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Terms You'll Encounter

IMO, IMHO: In my opinion; in my humble opinion.

LOL, ROFL, ROFLMAO: Laughing out loud; rolling on the floor laughing; rolling on the floor laughing my a** off.

BTW: By the way.

"Addy:" Short for "address;" can refer to email addresses or IP addresses.

IP address: Stands for "Internet Protocol address;" the number designated to your computer. It's more or less like your street address on the Information Superhighway. : ) Every computer has one, and each one is unique.

N/C, N/T: If you see these initials at the end of a subject header, that means the post contains "no content" or "no text." See more about these below.

"Trolls:" "Trolls" are individuals who post malicious or provocative messages, attempting to disrupt the "conversation" in a forum. See more about trolls below.

"Flames:" Flame posts are angry messages or angry responses to messages. These can lead to "flame wars," which you can also read more about below.

"Smileys:" Smileys are little text "faces" in a message that you have to turn your head sideways to read properly. Try it: :-D These are also sometimes called "emoticons (emotion icons)."

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Guidelines for "Acceptable Use"

Advertisements are NOT allowed, so please don't post them. They will be removed. If you'd like information on how to advertise with WWWomen, please read this page. (And you'll probably hear from the "Advertisement Police" too. : )

The discussion forums are not dating or personals boards. Please refrain from trying to use them for "pick-up" purposes. We like you, but not in "that" way. : )

Posting an optional URL as a reference to a matter discussed in your message is fine. Posting a URL to drive traffic to your site is not. Please bear that in mind when posting an optional URL. Inappropriate use will only result in your post being deleted.

Some do's and don'ts: If possible, when replying to a post, please delete the original text and type in your message. This saves bandwidth and time for everybody concerned, and makes it easier for others to read your reply. Otherwise, we'll have to scroll through a bunch of repeated text to read your message!

No content posts: If you want to post one of these, you'll need to make sure there's something in the "Message" text box. It need only be an exclaimation point, but if you don't type in something, you'll get an error message saying your post was either a double submission or incomplete.

Also, when replying to posts marked "n/c," if you plan to type any kind of message in, try to remember to remove the "n/c" from the subject header first! Otherwise, we'll think your post contains "no content," and we might not read it!

Most importantly, please remember that this is a women's site. Messages that are disrespectful or hurtful to women are NOT welcome and will be deleted. If you must say things of this nature, there are any number of discussion sites on the Web where you might get away with it.

It's just not gonna happen here. : )

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What To Do About "Flames" and "Trolls"

Flames

As mentioned above, a "flame" is an angry message, or an angry response to a message. Occasionally, these can invoke even more angry messages, until a "flame war" erupts. Lots of people can get hurt feelings when this happens, and you could be one of them.

Here's a given: Not everybody likes or agrees with everything that's posted in a discussion forum. But responding to a post angrily generally doesn't do much except give you a little short-term relief. After you've cooled off and thought about it, you'll probably be a bit embarrassed that you let something on the Internet upset you like that. You also run the risk of having your post deleted by the moderator, if it's deemed sufficiently "inflammatory." Then they'll feel bad, and you'll feel bad...it's a no-win situation.

If you feel you can't respond to a post in a civil manner, please consider taking the matter "private," and responding to the individual who "made you mad" by email. The matter will probably be resolved much more quickly, and won't be disruptive to other members of the community.

Sometimes, people don't post an email addy. Then we have a problem, Houston. : )

If you can't take it private, and you still feel you need to respond, ask yourself a couple of questions: is it critical that I respond to this post? Will anything be served by responding angrily, other than that I'll feel good for about an hour? Could it start a flame war? Will it make more work for the moderators?

Flames and misunderstandings are an inevitable part of an online community, just like disagreements in real life are inevitable. But that doesn't mean every flame is necessary. So choose your battles carefully. : )

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Trolls

"Trolls" are people (or posts) that make use of a discussion forum the same way public bathroom walls are used for graffiti. These posts are sometimes malicious and inflammatory, racist, sexist, insulting - anything than can disrupt a discussion thread and turn attention to the troll.

If you are new to these forums, and you should happen on a post that fits this description (believe me, they'll be quite obvious), the safest thing for you to do is to wait and see how more experienced posters respond. Chances are good that someone will leave a little "no content" message saying "troll," or something like that. And that will be the sum total of the response.

The reason we don't let ourselves get baited into responding is because that's exactly what the troll wants. The entire purpose of these posts is to cause a maximum amount of mischief, and turn people away from the flow of normal dialog (and sometimes turn one person against another).

If you don't feel compelled to respond to the scribblings you see in public bathrooms, then you should feel equally at ease about ignoring this type of post, too. The moderators will delete it as quickly as possible, so don't let it worry you. Just ignore it, and go about your business having fun talking to everybody. : )

Any other questions you might have about the discussion forums that aren't covered here, don't hesitate to email us. We'll be happy to help you out. : )

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