According to Webster dictionary, the official definition of the term “netiquette” is etiquette that governs communication on the Internet. In other words, netiquette is essentially the “do’s and don’ts” of the Internet and in a sense rules to which to abide by when communicating in cyberspace.
Before about two weeks ago, I had no idea that such rules existed, and unbeknownst to me have been breaking these simple guidelines for quite a while now. In retrospect, now that I have had time to think about this concept of rules for the Internet, I was ignorant to ignore their existence. In every other sector of society we have rules, regulations, and socially acceptable standards by which me must adhere to. The Internet, a growing source of endless resources is certainly no exception and has an extensive set of guidelines for which all users should follow. The core rules of netiquette are as follows:
- “Remember the Human”
- When holding a conversation in cyberspace you are communicating through a computer screen.
- Remember that there is no opportunity to use body language or facial expressions to get your point across so it is important to treat others the way you would like to be treated.
- Avoid being rude, impolite, and only say something that you would say to the person’s face.
- Follow Real-Life Behavior
· Although there is less opportunity to get “caught” or to get in trouble in cyberspace, that is not an excuse to lower your moral and ethical behavior
· Be ethical and follow two internet laws that apply to copyright and rights to privacy
- Know where you are in Cyberspace
· Be aware of different sets of netiquette relevant to which domain you are in
· Netiquette on a dating website may vary from the netiquette you are expected to abide by on a scholarly discussion board
- Respect other people’s time and bandwidth
· Do not send unnecessary emails or post questions in a discussion board that could be answered by a simple search to answer the question yourself
· Don’t post things more than once because it becomes repetitive and waste’s people’s time and bandwidth (information carrying-capacity)
- Good self-representation
· Make yourself look good on-line, reach out to people you would not otherwise necessarily meet
· Avoid spelling and grammatical mistakes in anything you publish
· Know what you are talking about and present information in a clear manner
· Avoid cursing or “SHOUTING” (writing in all capital letters)
- Share expert knowledge
· Share what you know, make an effort to teach people things and offer what you have to say to the best of your ability
· If people have questions about what you have posted it is polite to reply via personal email and then to inform the rest of the viewers the answers to those questions
· However, avoid any copyright issues that could be cause for problem
- Control “flame” wars
· Flaming is the act of someone expressing their true feelings without holding anything back
· Although this is totally allowed on the internet, flames can often times turn into a gang-up on a particular group or person
· Flame wars can be interesting at first but after a while may become boring to those not involved and become a waste of bandwidth
- Respect other’s privacy
· Do not read other people’s emails
· Keep your passwords private
- Do not abuse your power
· Some internet users may have superior knowledge/power to others
· Do not take advantage of people that may not be as knowledgeable or may be knew to the forum
· Help out new-comers
- Be forgiving of people’s mistakes
· Remember that everyone is knew at some point and if a mistake is made either ignore it or correct it politely
All cultures have different sets of rules and guidelines to abide by and the world of the Internet is no different. Although I never knew that netiquette even existed, and I am sure there are many others that unlike me were unaware, I feel it is very important to know and abide by them. Being aware of netiquette and learning to apply the simple rules to your everyday internet use will help you to integrate in to the culture as well as make cyberspace a better, safer, and friendlier place for all! I hope that this tutorial has taught you a little bit more about Netiquette and will encourage you all to use it in your internet endeavors! =)
