Linda Heil
Associate Professor of Communication Studies
Bel Air Hall, Room B124
401 Thomas Run Road
Bel Air, MD 21015
443-412-2106
lheil@harford.edu

Internet Etiquette

Netiquette

Netiquette is a guide to acceptable online communication behavior. The following information provides acceptable and unacceptable online manners:

Check your spelling and grammar.
- You've heard the expression, "You are what you eat?" Well, you are also what you write. Your communication recipients will form a picture of you based on your online messages. Your level of education will be evident, so always proofread.
Use business letter style.
- Address all email and discussion messages.
  - Online accounts may be shared by two or more people, and discussion groups include more than one person, so the intended recipient(s) should be clearly stated at the start of the message.
Include your name as the sender.
- For the same reasons as stated above, and
- Email and online monikers do not always make clear the name of the communication initiator. Don't make the reader look for the sender's name.
Write a concise and clear subject line.
Cite all quotes, references, and sources.
Don't forward someone's email without their permission.
Use humor carefully.

Never type in all capitals.
- Typing in all upper-case is viewed as screaming.
Never send any communication message you could not say face-to-face.
- If there is a chance the recipient might misunderstand your message, use another form of communication. Emotions do not translate well over the Internet, and emoticons and acronyms only go so far.