OpenSUSE mailing list netiquette

From openSUSE

Why we need netiquette

Old-timers and real experts - the ones who can really give good advice - read a lot of emails every day and don't have time to reorder messages in order to read them. So, if you want timely advice, please adjust your posting style to the customs of the openSUSE mailing lists. We don't ask that you do anything unusual; please just be a good guest. Below is a collection of our customs and the reasons why we do it that way. If you have an emergency, we understand. You may read the netiquette section after you post your initial question.

Use a descriptive subject

The openSUSE mailing lists receive hundreds of emails every day. So, if you have a question or a problem to solve, please use a subject that summarizes your issue and also gives some details about the body of the message. Here are some good examples of subjects from real messages to openSUSE mailing lists:

Much more about good and bad subjects:

• Help written by Linux veterans Eric Raymond and Rick Moen to computer users that have a problem, yet don't know how to ask right question and get straight answer.

Quoting

When you reply to a message, please quote only the relevant passages to which you are replying. Indeed, you can quote only a few words that are essential to identifying the passages to which you are replying. Everyone on a mailing list is served by one mail list server and receives all messages quickly. That means there is no need to repost the whole message, like on Usenet (newsgroups) where readers often see an answer hours before the relevant question.

• The quoting HOWTO gives a nice introduction to the art of mail quoting.

Use bottom-posting or interleaved style to answer

Common to both styles is that you quote relevant sentences from the previous message and give your answers under the quote. These are the styles that are commonly used in the mailing lists - first the question (quoted) and then the answer.

Bottom-posting

The bottom-posting style is used when an answer relates to a single question or statement in the previous message.

This means that you reply underneath the quoted text. It leads to a natural flow in messages that have quotes from previous posts.

Interleaved style

The interleaved style is used when you answer multiple statements from a previous message. That way, the reader first reads the question and then the answer.

Why we prefer these two styles

We are often discussing topics that include comments to:

• the output of a command, configuration files, or program code that contains multiple lines, and multiple comments are interleaved with original text
• groups of tests performed to troubleshoot a problem, and we need to use a style that will allow us to insert comments between quotes of the original message, with a summary or another proposal at the end of message.

The fact is, we live in different time zones, so giving one option, then waiting another day for the answer to give another proposal, would be a waste of time. The discussion would stretch over days. So, we are trying to avoid this by offering more options at once with answers that are interleaved with the original proposals.

Time and practice brought the general consensus that this is a better way to communicate on the lists. However, lists can have different operating conditions and they can consider some other posting style as appropriate.

Changing the subject without opening a new thread

Very often a long thread splits into several topics (for example if there are several answers to the same problem). In this case changing the subject may be necessary. One widely accepted method for this is a subject like

Re: kde icon blinks (was: is that an Xfree problem?)

Later reply posts usually remove the (was: ...) part. This allows to change a subject, but keep thread structure intact. If the discussion led to a totally different subject, you may stop, open a new thread and go on. On the other side usually others wont follow you and still discuss in old thread, so use thread splitting wisely.

Also, do not simply hit Reply to a message and change the subject to start a new discussion. When you do so you break the thread that was in progress making it hard to follow in the archives.

Don't be aggressive

This applies to new and old openSUSE mail list users.

Most of the people on the list are friendly and helpful. They use their free time to help others, so even if you are angry because you can't solve some problem, please, calm down and then post your question. It will help you to tell what is the problem without aggressive and abusive language, and it will help readers to understand what is the problem.

To answer the question one has to know a few details about the problem. Don't be upset because there is a question asking for more information. We would like to help, but not everybody has a good crystal ball to see the things that are not written in email, so we have to ask.

Understand that the audience is passionate about SUSE and openSUSE, posting that you hate SUSE, Linux, the mailing list, or other closely related things, will most likely get passionate responses, don't take things too personally.

Mail lists are used by a lot of people who's first language is not English, nor they know computer related terms. This sometimes leads to misunderstandings in excess of the normal misunderstandings that can happen in email exchanges.

Don't be aggressive to new posters, but instead help them on their way to become a part of our community, sometimes a private email may be appropriate, to explain something, but mainly it is not wanted and if it has answer it is interesting not only for poster, but also for many that read the list archives, for instance after looking for answer on Google.

Personal attacks are not wanted on any openSUSE mail list.

Don't use a long signature block

Most people on the list genuinely want to help people out in solving any issues they may have. Very large signature blocks at the bottom of emails can hinder this as they often swamp the actual body of the email. Reference on your system properties, address, web page, etc, has just opposite effect than you may want if it is too long.

A good guideline is a maximum of four lines with not more than 80 characters of plain text.

For reference read Jargon File: McQuary Limit

Don't post Off Topic emails to the mail lists

Each list is created to discuss one part of the openSUSE activity. The topic is posted on Communicate/Mailinglists page next right to the links for subscription and help. Please stay within this realm and help reduce the volume of unrelated posts to any list.

It may seem interesting to discuss topics not related to openSUSE as listed on Communicate/Mailinglists page and for that purpose is created opensuse-offtopic@opensuse.org list, so be kind and use it for any topic you like.
P.S.
It has to be off topic otherwise it is off topic for this list :-)
Use common sense when posting article, it is openSUSE list, not misc-current-politics. Not every topic is wanted.

Do not use HTML

Most of openSUSE mail lists users have HTML turned off for many reasons (1). HTML message looks strange as a plain text and it is hard to read. People will avoid it if possible, or complain asking you to post in plain text if they can't skip it.

(1) Believe it or not there are still many people who are forced to use metered dialup connections to the internet and posting to the list using html adds considerably to their costs. So please show consideration to _all_ list members and post using plain text email only. (2) Some properties of HTML are misused by spammers to harvest email addresses and good email client programs are set not to use HTML, except by user request. That makes HTML post unreadable and people just skip them.