RFC 1855

Netiquette Guidelines

📅 published October 1995, from ietf

Netiquette Guidelines 🎀

okay bestie, this is RFC 1855: Netiquette Guidelines 🌈✨. It's FYI 28 in the FYI series, written by S. Hambridge of Intel Corp. 💖 It's dated October 1995 and comes from the Network Working Group 🧚. The category is Informational, so it's giving info, not a standard 🦋. The title block doesn't list anything it obsoletes or updates, so no drama there 💅.

Status of This Memo 📜

This memo provides information for the Internet community 🌸. It does not specify an Internet standard of any kind 🙈. Distribution of this memo is unlimited 🫶.

Abstract 🧚

This document gives a minimum set of guidelines for Network Etiquette (Netiquette) that organizations may take and adapt for their own use 🏢. It's deliberately written as bullets so adapting it is easier, and so any single item is easy (or easier) to find 🔍. It also works as a minimum set of guidelines for individuals, both users and administrators 👩‍💻. This memo is the product of the Responsible Use of the Network (RUN) Working Group of the IETF 🎉.

Table of Contents 📚

   1.0 Introduction                                                 1
   2.0 One-to-One Communication                                     2
   3.0 One-to-Many Communication                                    7
   4.0 Information Services                                        14
   5.0 Selected Bibliography                                       18
   6.0 Security Considerations                                     21
   7.0 Author's Address                                            21

1.0 Introduction ✨

okay so back in the day, the people using the Internet had basically grown up with it 🕰️. They were technically minded and got how the transport and the protocols worked 🤓. Today the community includes people who are brand new to all this, the so-called "Newbies" 🍓. They're unfamiliar with the culture and don't need to know about transport and protocols 💅. To bring these new users into Internet culture quickly, this Guide offers a minimum set of behaviors that organizations and individuals may take and adapt for their own use 💖.

Individuals should be aware that no matter who supplies their Internet access 🌈, whether that's an Internet Service Provider through a private account, a student account at a University, or an account through a corporation, those organizations have regulations about ownership of mail and files 📂. They also have rules about what's proper to post or send, and how to present yourself 💼. Be sure to check with the local authority for specific guidelines 🙈.

We've organized this material into three sections 🗂️. First is One-to-One communication, which includes mail and talk 💌. Next is One-to-Many communications, which includes mailing lists and NetNews 📣. Last is Information Services, which includes ftp, WWW, Wais, Gopher, MUDs and MOOs 🌐. Finally, there's a Selected Bibliography, which may be used for reference 📖.

2.0 One-to-One Communication (electronic mail, talk) 💌

okay so one-to-one communication is when you're talking to another person as if you're face-to-face, like a dialog 👯. In general, the rules of common courtesy for interacting with people should be in force in any situation 🫶. On the Internet that's doubly important, because body language and tone of voice have to be inferred 🙈. For more on Netiquette for email and talk, check references [1,23,25,27] in the Selected Bibliography 📚.

2.1 User Guidelines 🎀

2.1.1 For mail: 📬

✨ Unless you have your own Internet access through an Internet provider, be sure to check with your employer about who owns your electronic mail 💼. Laws about ownership of electronic mail vary from place to place 🌍.
🔐 Unless you're using an encryption device (hardware or software), you should assume that mail on the Internet is not secure 🙈. Never put anything in a mail message that you wouldn't put on a postcard 💌.
🎨 Respect the copyright on material you reproduce 🖼️. Almost every country has copyright laws ⚖️.
🔁 If you're forwarding or re-posting a message you've received, don't change the wording 💅. If the message was a personal one sent to you and you're re-posting it to a group, you should ask permission first 🙏. You can shorten the message and quote only the relevant parts, but be sure you give proper attribution 🫶.
🚫 Never send chain letters via electronic mail 🙅. Chain letters are forbidden on the Internet, and your network privileges will be revoked 💀. If you ever receive one, notify your local system administrator 📢.
⚖️ A good rule of thumb: be conservative in what you send and liberal in what you receive 🧚. You should not send heated messages (we call these "flames") even if you're provoked 🔥. On the other hand, you shouldn't be surprised if you get flamed, and it's prudent not to respond to flames 🙈.
👀 In general, it's a good idea to at least check all your mail subjects before responding to a message 💌. Sometimes a person who asks you for help (or clarification) will send another message which effectively says "Never Mind" 🙃. Also make sure that any message you respond to was directed to you 🎯, since you might be cc:ed rather than the primary recipient 📭.
🎀 Make things easy for the recipient 💖. Many mailers strip header information, which includes your return address 📨. To make sure people know who you are, add a line or two at the end of your message with contact information 📇. You can create this file ahead of time and add it to the end of your messages 🗂️. Some mailers do this automatically 🤖. In Internet parlance, this is known as a .sig or signature file ✍️. Your .sig file takes the place of your business card 💳, and you can have more than one to apply in different circumstances 🦋.
📬 Be careful when addressing mail 🧐. There are addresses that may go to a group but look like they're just one person 👥. Know who you're sending to 🫣.
🔚 Watch your cc's when replying 👀. Don't keep including people once the messages have become a 2-way conversation 🙅‍♀️.
🙋 In general, most people who use the Internet don't have time to answer general questions about the Internet and how it works ⏰. Don't send unsolicited mail asking for information to people whose names you might have seen in RFCs or on mailing lists 📜.
🌍 People you talk to are located all across the globe 🌏. If you send a message you want an immediate response to, the person receiving it might be at home asleep when it arrives 😴. Give them a chance to wake up, come to work, and log in before assuming the mail didn't arrive or that they don't care 💤.
✅ Verify all addresses before starting long or personal discourse 🔍. It's also a good practice to include the word "Long" in the subject header, so the recipient knows the message will take time to read and respond to ⏳. Over 100 lines is considered "long" 📏.
🆘 Know whom to contact for help 🙋. Usually you'll have resources close at hand, so check locally for people who can help with software and system problems 🛠️. Also know whom to go to if you receive anything questionable or illegal 🚨. Most sites have "Postmaster" aliased to a knowledgeable user, so you can send mail to this address to get help with mail 📮.
🧠 Remember that the recipient is a human being whose culture, language, and humor have different points of reference from your own 🌸. Date formats, measurements, and idioms may not travel well 📏. Be especially careful with sarcasm 🙃.
🔠 Use mixed case. UPPER CASE LOOKS AS IF YOU'RE SHOUTING 📣.
💪 Use symbols for emphasis. That *is* what I meant ✨. Use underscores for underlining. _War and Peace_ is my favorite book 📚.
😊 Use smileys to indicate tone of voice, but use them sparingly 🥰. :-) is an example of a smiley (look sideways) 🙃. Don't assume that the inclusion of a smiley will make the recipient happy with what you say, or wipe out an otherwise insulting comment 🚫.
😤 Wait overnight to send emotional responses to messages 🌙. If you have really strong feelings about a subject, indicate it via FLAME ON/OFF enclosures. For example 🔥:

FLAME ON:  This type of argument is not worth the bandwidth
           it takes to send it.  It's illogical and poorly
           reasoned.  The rest of the world agrees with me.
FLAME OFF

🧩 Do not include control characters or non-ASCII attachments in messages unless they are MIME attachments or unless your mailer encodes these 📎. If you send encoded messages, make sure the recipient can decode them 🔓.
✂️ Be brief without being overly terse ⏱️. When replying to a message, include enough original material to be understood but no more 🎯. It is extremely bad form to simply reply to a message by including all the previous message, so edit out all the irrelevant material 🙅.
↩️ Limit line length to fewer than 65 characters and end a line with a carriage return 📏.
🏷️ Mail should have a subject heading which reflects the content of the message ✨.
🤏 If you include a signature, keep it short 💅. The rule of thumb is no longer than 4 lines 📏. Remember that many people pay for connectivity by the minute, and the longer your message is, the more they pay 💸.
🕵️ Just as mail (today) may not be private, mail (and news) are (today) subject to forgery and spoofing of various degrees of detectability 🎭. Apply common sense "reality checks" before assuming a message is valid ✅.
🫡 If you think the importance of a message justifies it, immediately reply briefly to an e-mail message to let the sender know you got it, even if you'll send a longer reply later 📩.
🤝 "Reasonable" expectations for conduct via e-mail depend on your relationship to a person and the context of the communication 🧑‍🤝‍🧑. Norms learned in a particular e-mail environment may not apply in general to your e-mail communication with people across the Internet 🌐. Be careful with slang or local acronyms 🔤.
💸 The cost of delivering an e-mail message is, on the average, paid about equally by the sender and the recipient (or their organizations) ⚖️. This is unlike other media such as physical mail, telephone, TV, or radio 📺. Sending someone mail may also cost them in other specific ways, like network bandwidth, disk space or CPU usage 💻. This is a fundamental economic reason why unsolicited e-mail advertising is unwelcome (and is forbidden in many contexts) 🚫.
🐘 Know how large a message you are sending 📦. Including large files such as Postscript files or programs may make your message so large that it cannot be delivered, or at least consumes excessive resources 🥵. A good rule of thumb would be not to send a file larger than 50 Kilobytes 📉. Consider file transfer as an alternative, or cutting the file into smaller chunks and sending each as a separate message ✂️.
📢 Don't send large amounts of unsolicited information to people 🙅.
🌀 If your mail system allows you to forward mail, beware the dreaded forwarding loop 😱. Be sure you haven't set up forwarding on several hosts so that a message sent to you gets into an endless loop from one computer to the next to the next 🔁.

To be continued in part 2 💖🦋

2.1.2 For talk: 💬

okay so talk is a set of protocols that lets two people have a live back-and-forth chat through the computer ✨

Use mixed case and proper punctuation, like you're writing a letter or sending mail 💌
Don't just let your terminal wrap a line when it runs off the end 🙅‍♀️ Use a Carriage Return (CR) at the end of the line instead. Also, don't assume everyone's screen is the same size as yours, bestie 📱 A good rule of thumb is to write no more than 70 characters, and no more than 12 lines (since you're using a split screen) 🎀
Leave some margin, and don't type right up to the edge of the screen 🌸
Use two CRs to show you're done and the other person can start typing (blank line) 💬
Always say goodbye, or some other farewell, and wait to see a farewell from the other person before you kill the session 👋 This is especially important when you're talking to someone a long way away 🌍 Remember that your communication relies on both bandwidth (the size of the pipe) and latency (the speed of light) 🚀
Remember that talk is an interruption to the other person 😳 Only use it when it's appropriate. And never talk to strangers 🚫
There are lots of reasons you might not get a reply, so don't assume everything is working correctly 🙃 Not all versions of talk are compatible with each other 💀
If left on its own, talk re-rings the recipient 🔔 Let it ring one or two times, then kill it
If a person doesn't respond, you might try another tty 📟 Use finger to figure out which ones are open 👀 If the person still doesn't respond, do not continue to send
Talk shows off your typing ability 💅 If you type slowly and make mistakes, it's often not worth the time to correct them, since the other person can usually see what you meant 🫶
Be careful if you have more than one talk session going! 🤹‍♀️

bestie, the goodbye is non-negotiable 👋 Wait for the farewell before you hang up. Iconic behavior only 💖

2.2 Administrator Issues 👩‍💻

Make sure you have established written guidelines for dealing with situations, especially illegal, improper, or forged traffic 📜
Handle requests in a timely fashion, by the next business day ⏰
Respond promptly to people who have concerns about receiving improper or illegal messages 🚨 Requests concerning chain letters should be handled immediately
Explain any system rules, such as disk quotas, to your users 💾 Make sure they understand the implications of requesting files by mail, such as: filling up disks; running up phone bills, delaying mail, etc. 💸
Make sure you have "Postmaster" aliased. Make sure you have "Root" aliased. Make sure someone reads that mail 📬
Investigate complaints about your users with an open mind. Remember that addresses may be forged and spoofed 🕵️‍♀️

3.0 One-to-Many Communication (Mailing Lists, NetNews) 📣

Any time you engage in One-to-Many communications, all the rules for mail should also apply. After all, communicating with many people via one mail message or post is quite analogous to communicating with one person, with the exception of possibly offending a great many more people than in one-to-one communication. Therefore, it's quite important to know as much as you can about the audience of your message 🎯

3.1 User Guidelines 🧑‍🤝‍🧑

3.1.1 General Guidelines for mailing lists and NetNews ✨

Read both mailing lists and newsgroups for one to two months before you post anything 👀 This helps you get a feel for the culture of the group
Do not blame the system administrator for the behavior of the system users 🙅‍♀️
Consider that a large audience will see your posts. That may include your present or your next boss 👔 Take care in what you write. Remember too that mailing lists and newsgroups are frequently archived, and that your words may be stored for a very long time in a place to which many people have access 📚⏳
Assume that individuals speak for themselves, and that what they say does not represent their organization (unless stated explicitly) 🗣️
Remember that both mail and news take system resources. Pay attention to any specific rules covering their use that your organization may have 💾
Messages and articles should be brief and to the point. Don't wander off-topic, don't ramble, and don't send mail or post messages solely to point out other people's errors in typing or spelling. These, more than any other behavior, mark you as an immature beginner 💀
Subject lines should follow the conventions of the group 🏷️
Forgeries and spoofing are not approved behavior 🚫
Advertising is welcomed on some lists and newsgroups, and abhorred on others! This is another example of knowing your audience before you post. Unsolicited advertising which is completely off-topic will most certainly guarantee that you get a lot of hate mail 📉
If you're sending a reply to a message or posting, be sure you summarize the original at the top of the message, or include just enough text of the original to give context. This makes sure readers understand what they're reading when they get to your response. NetNews especially is spread by passing postings from one host to another, so it's possible to see a response to a message before seeing the original. Giving context helps everyone. But do not include the entire original! ✂️
Again, be sure to have a signature which you attach to your message ✍️ This guarantees that any peculiarities of mailers or newsreaders which strip header information will not delete the only reference in the message of how people may reach you
Be careful when you reply to messages or postings. Frequently replies are sent back to the address which originated the post, which in many cases is the address of a list or group! You may accidentally send a personal response to a great many people, embarrassing all involved 😬 It's best to type in the address instead of relying on "reply."
Delivery receipts, non-delivery notices, and vacation programs are neither totally standardized nor totally reliable across the range of systems connected to Internet mail. They are invasive when sent to mailing lists, and some people consider delivery receipts an invasion of privacy. In short, do not use them 🙅‍♀️📭
If you find a personal message has gone to a list or group, send an apology to the person and to the group 🙏
If you find yourself in a disagreement with one person, make your responses to each other via mail rather than continuing to send messages to the list or the group 🤝 If you're debating a point the group might have some interest in, you may summarize for them later
Don't get involved in flame wars. Neither post nor respond to incendiary material 🔥🚫
Avoid sending messages or posting articles which are no more than gratuitous replies to replies 🙄
Be careful with monospacing fonts and diagrams. These will display differently on different systems, and with different mailers on the same system 📐
There are newsgroups and mailing lists which discuss a wide variety of interests. These represent a diversity of lifestyles, religions, and cultures 🌈 Posting articles or sending messages to a group whose point of view is offensive to you, simply to tell them they are offensive, is not acceptable. Sexually and racially harassing messages may also have legal implications. There is software available to filter items you might find objectionable 🛡️

3.1.2 Mailing List Guidelines 📋

There are several ways to find information about what mailing lists exist on the Internet and how to join them. Make sure you understand your organization's policy about joining these lists and posting to them. In general, it is always better to check local resources first before trying to find information via the Internet. Nevertheless, there is a set of files posted periodically to news.answers which lists the Internet mailing lists and how to subscribe to them. This is an invaluable resource for finding lists on any topic. See also references [9,13,15] in the Selected Bibliography 📚

Send subscribe and unsubscribe messages to the appropriate address 📨 Although some mailing list software is smart enough to catch these, not all can ferret them out. It is your responsibility to learn how the lists work, and to send the correct mail to the correct place. Although many, many mailing lists adhere to the convention of having a "-request" alias for sending subscribe and unsubscribe messages, not all do. Be sure you know the conventions used by the lists you subscribe to
Save the subscription messages for any lists you join. These usually tell you how to unsubscribe as well 💾
In general, it's not possible to retrieve messages once you have sent them. Even your system administrator will not be able to get a message back once you've sent it. This means you must make sure you really want the message to go out as you've written it 😱
The auto-reply feature of many mailers is useful for in-house communication, but quite annoying when sent to entire mailing lists 🤖 Examine "Reply-To" addresses when replying to messages from lists. Most auto-replies will go to all members of the list
Don't send large files to mailing lists when Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) or pointers to ftp-able versions will do 📎 If you want to send it as multiple files, be sure to follow the culture of the group. If you don't know what that is, ask
Consider unsubscribing or setting a "nomail" option (when it's available) when you cannot check your mail for an extended period 🏖️
When sending a message to more than one mailing list, especially if the lists are closely related, apologize for cross-posting 🙇‍♀️
If you ask a question, be sure to post a summary. When doing so, truly summarize rather than sending a cumulation of the messages you receive 📝
Some mailing lists are private. Do not send mail to these lists uninvited. Do not report mail from these lists to a wider audience 🤫🔒
If you are caught in an argument, keep the discussion focused on issues rather than the personalities involved 🫶

3.1.3 NetNews Guidelines 📰✨

okay so NetNews is this globally distributed system where people chat about topics they're obsessed with 🌍💬. It's split into hierarchies (think big folders for topics), and the major ones are: sci - science stuff 🔬; comp - computer stuff 💻; news - all about NetNews itself 📰; rec - recreational activities 🎨; soc - social issues 🫶; talk - long-winded never-ending discussions 😭 (the name says it all); biz - business postings 💼; and alt - the alternate hierarchy 🦋. Alt is so named because making an alt group doesn't go through the same process as making a group in the other parts of the hierarchy, iykyk 💅. There are also regional hierarchies, widely distributed ones like Bionet, and your workplace might have its own groups too 🏢. Recently a "humanities" hierarchy got added, and it's likely more will be added as time goes on 📚. For longer deep dives on News, check references [2,8,22,23] in the Selected Bibliography 🫶.

In NetNews lingo, "Posting" means posting a new article to a group, or replying to a post someone else already put up 📝. "Cross-Posting" means posting a message to more than one group. If you introduce Cross-Posting to a group, or if you use Followup-To: in the header of your posting, warn readers! 🚨 People will usually assume your message was posted to one specific group and that followups will go to that group. Headers change this behavior 🙃.
Read all of a discussion in progress (we call this a thread 🧵) before posting replies. Avoid "Me Too" messages, where all you're saying is you agree with previous posts 🙄. The content of a follow-up post should exceed the quoted content 💅.
Send mail when an answer to a question is for one person only 📩. Remember that News has global distribution, and the whole world probably is not interested in a personal response 🌏🙅. However, don't hesitate to post when something will be of general interest to the Newsgroup participants 📣.
Check the "Distribution" section of the header, but don't depend on it 🤷. Because of the complex way News gets delivered, Distribution headers are unreliable 😵. But if you're posting something that will only interest a limited number of readers, use a distribution line that tries to limit your article's distribution to those people 🎯. For example, set the Distribution to be nj if you're posting an article that will only interest New Jersey readers 🗽.
If you feel an article will interest more than one Newsgroup, be sure to CROSSPOST the article instead of individually posting it to those groups 🔁. In general, probably only five-to-six groups will have interests similar enough to warrant this 🤏.
Consider using reference sources (computer manuals, newspapers, help files) before posting a question 📚. Asking a Newsgroup where answers are readily available elsewhere gets you grumpy "RTFM" messages (read the fine manual, although a more vulgar meaning of the word beginning with "f" is usually implied) 😤💀.
Although there are Newsgroups that welcome advertising, in general it is considered nothing less than criminal to advertise off-topic products 🚫. Sending an advertisement to each and every group will pretty much guarantee you lose connectivity 📵.
If you discover an error in your post, cancel it as soon as possible 🙏.
Do not try to cancel any articles but your own 🙅‍♀️. Contact your administrator if you don't know how to cancel your post, or if some other post, such as a chain letter, needs canceling 📞.
If you've posted something and don't see it immediately, don't assume it failed and re-post it ⏳.
Some groups allow (and some welcome) posts that would otherwise be considered in questionable taste 🌶️. Still, there's no guarantee that everyone reading the group will appreciate the material as much as you do 🥲. Use the Rotate utility (which rotates all the characters in your post by 13 positions in the alphabet) to avoid giving offense 🔄. The Rot13 utility for Unix is an example 🐧.
In groups that discuss movies or books, it's considered essential to mark posts that disclose significant content as "Spoilers" 🎬🍿. Put this word in your Subject: line. You may add blank lines to the beginning of your post to keep content out of sight, or you may Rotate it 🙈.
Forging news articles is generally censured 🚨. You can protect yourself from forgeries by using software that generates a manipulation detection "fingerprint", such as PGP (in the US) 🔐.
Postings via anonymous servers are accepted in some Newsgroups and disliked in others 🎭. Material that's inappropriate when posted under one's own name is still inappropriate when posted anonymously 👀.
Expect a slight delay in seeing your post when posting to a moderated group ⏰. The moderator may change your subject line so your post conforms to a particular thread 🧵.
Don't get involved in flame wars 🔥🙅. Neither post nor respond to incendiary material 🧯.

3.2 Administrator Guidelines 🛠️

3.2.1 General Issues

Clarify any policies your site has regarding its subscription to NetNews groups and about subscribing to mailing lists 📋.
Clarify any policies your site has about posting to NetNews groups or to mailing lists, including use of disclaimers in .sigs 📝.
Clarify and publicize archive policy. (How long are articles kept? 🗄️)
Investigate accusations about your users promptly and with an open mind 🔍.
Be sure to monitor the health of your system 🩺.
Consider how long to archive system logs, and publicize your policy on logging 🪵.

3.2.2 Mailing Lists 📮

Keep mailing lists up to date to avoid the "bouncing mail" problem 📬.
Help list owners when problems arise 🫶.
Inform list owners of any maintenance windows or planned downtime 🛠️.
Be sure to have "-request" aliases for list subscription and administration 🔑.
Make sure all mail gateways operate smoothly 🌉.

3.2.3. NetNews 📡

Publicize the nature of the feed you receive. If you do not get a full feed, people may want to know why not 🤔.
Be aware that the multiplicity of News Reader clients may cause the News Server to be blamed for problems in the clients 🤦.
Honor requests from users immediately if they request cancellation of their own posts or invalid posts, such as chain letters 🫡.
Have "Usenet", "Netnews" and "News" aliased and make sure someone reads the mail 📥.

3.3 Moderator Guidelines 👑

3.3.1 General Guidelines

Make sure your Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) is posted at regular intervals. Include your guidelines for articles/messages. If you are not the FAQ maintainer, make sure they do so 📌.
Make sure you maintain a good welcome message, which contains subscribe and unsubscribe information 👋.
Newsgroups should have their charter/guidelines posted regularly 📜.
Keep mailing lists and Newsgroups up to date. Post messages in a timely fashion. Designate a substitute when you go on vacation or out of town 🏖️.

4.0 Information Services (Gopher, Wais, WWW, ftp, telnet) 🌐

In recent Internet history, the 'Net has exploded with new and varied information services 💥. Gopher, Wais, World Wide Web (WWW), Multi-User Dimensions (MUDs), and Multi-User Dimensions which are Object Oriented (MOOs) are a few of these new areas 🧚. Although the ability to find information is exploding, "Caveat Emptor" remains constant 🛒. For more information on these services, check references [14,28] in the Selected Bibliography 📖.

4.1 User Guidelines 🎀

4.1.1. General guidelines

Remember that all these services belong to someone else 🏠. The people who pay the bills get to make the rules governing usage 💸. Information may be free, or it may not be! Be sure you check 🕵️.
If you have problems with any form of information service, start problem solving by checking locally 🔧: check file configurations, software setup, network connections, etc. Do this before assuming the problem is at the provider's end and/or is the provider's fault 🙅.
Although there are naming conventions for file types, don't depend on those file naming conventions to be enforced 📁. For example, a .doc file is not always a Word file 📄.
Information services also use conventions, such as www.xyz.com. While it's useful to know these conventions, again, don't necessarily rely on them 🌐.
Know how file names work on your own system 🗂️.
Be aware of conventions used for providing information during sessions 💬. FTP sites usually have files named README in a top level directory which have information about the files available 📂. But don't assume that these files are necessarily up-to-date and/or accurate 🫠.
Do not assume that ANY information you find is up-to-date and/or accurate 🚨. Remember that new technologies allow just about anyone to be a publisher, but not all people have discovered the responsibilities which accompany publishing 📰.
Remember that unless you are sure that security and authentication technology is in use, any information you submit to a system is being transmitted over the Internet "in the clear", with no protection from "sniffers" or forgers 🕵️‍♀️🔓.
Since the Internet spans the globe, remember that Information Services might reflect culture and lifestyles markedly different from your own community 🌍. Materials you find offensive may originate in a geography which finds them acceptable 🫶. Keep an open mind 🧠.
When wanting information from a popular server, be sure to use a mirror server that's close if a list is provided 🪞.
Do not use someone else's FTP site to deposit materials you wish other people to pick up 🚫. This is called "dumping" and is not generally acceptable behavior 🗑️.
When you have trouble with a site and ask for help, be sure to provide as much information as possible in order to help debug the problem 🐛.
When bringing up your own information service, such as a homepage, be sure to check with your local system administrator to find out what the local guidelines in effect are 🏡.
Consider spreading out the system load on popular sites by avoiding "rush hour" and logging in during off-peak times ⏰💖.

4.1.2 Real Time Interactive Services Guidelines (MUDs MOOs IRC) 💬

okay so, same as everywhere else, it's wise to "listen" first and get a feel for the group's culture 👂✨
you do NOT need to greet everyone in a channel or room personally 🙈 one "Hello" (or the equivalent) is usually plenty. Using your client's automation features to greet people is not acceptable behavior 💀
warn people first if you're about to ship large amounts of info 📦 if everyone consents to receiving it, you're good to send. But dumping unwanted info without a warning is considered bad form, just like in mail 🙅‍♀️
don't assume strangers want to chat with you 🫣 if you feel compelled to send private messages to people you don't know, be ready to accept gracefully that they might be busy or just not in the mood to talk 🌸
respect the group's guidelines 📖 look for intro materials for the group, which may be on a related ftp site 🧚
don't badger people for personal info like sex, age, or location 🚫 after you've built a real acquaintance, those questions may be more appropriate, but lots of people hesitate to share this stuff with people they don't know yet 🥺
if someone is using a nickname alias or pseudonym, respect their desire for anonymity 🎭 even if you two are close friends, it's more courteous to use their nickname. Do not use their real name online without permission 🔒

4.2 Administrator Guidelines 🛠️

4.2.1 General Guidelines ✨

make it crystal clear what's available for copying and what isn't 📋
describe what's available on your site, and about your organization 🏢 make sure any general policies are super clear
keep info up to date, especially READMEs 📝 and provide READMEs in plain ascii text 🔤
present a list of mirrors of your site if you know them 🪞 make sure you include a copyright statement that applies to your mirrors ©️ and list their update schedule if you can 🗓️
make sure popular (and massive) info has the bandwidth to support it 🚀
use file extension conventions 🗂️
- .txt for ascii text
- .html or .htm for HTML
- .ps for Postscript
- .pdf for Portable Document Format
- .sgml or .sgm for SGML
- .exe for non-Unix executables, etc.
for files being transferred, try to make filenames unique in the first eight characters 🎀
when providing info, make sure your site has something unique to offer 👑 avoid setting up an info service that just points to other services on the Internet 🙅‍♀️
don't point to other sites without asking first 🙏
setting up an info service is more than design and implementation 🧹 it's also maintenance, and it's the part people forget (lowkey the most important part)
make sure your posted materials are appropriate for the supporting organization 💼
test applications with a variety of tools. Don't assume everything works if you've only tested with one client 🧪 also assume the low end of technology for clients, and don't create applications that can only be used with Graphical User Interfaces 🥹
have a consistent view of your info 🎨 the look and feel should stay the same throughout your applications
be sensitive to how long your info lasts 🕰️ date your time-sensitive materials, and be vigilant about keeping this info well maintained 💅
export restrictions vary from country to country 🌍 be sure you understand their implications when you post
tell users what you plan to do with any info you collect, like WWW feedback 💌 you need to warn people if you plan to publish any of their statements, even passively, by just making them available to other users 👀
make sure your policy on user information services, like homepages, is well known 🏠

5.0 Selected Bibliography 📚

Here's the bibliography. It was used to gather most of the info in the sections above, plus it's great for general reference. Anything not specifically found in these works came from the experience of the IETF-RUN Working Group 🫶

[1] Angell, D., and B. Heslop, "The Elements of E-mail Style", New York: Addison-Wesley, 1994.
[2] "Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Usenet"
- Original author: jerry@eagle.UUCP (Jerry Schwarz)
- Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
- Archive-name: usenet-faq/part1
[3] Cerf, V., "Guidelines for Conduct on and Use of Internet", at: <URL://http://www.isoc.org/proceedings/conduct/cerf-Aug-draft.html>
[4] Dern, D., "The Internet Guide for New Users", New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994.
[5] "Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette"
- Original author: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton)
- Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
- Archive-name: emily-postnews/part1
[6] Gaffin, A., "Everybody's Guide to the Internet", Cambridge, Mass., MIT Press, 1994.
[7] "Guidelines for Responsible Use of the Internet" from the US house of Representatives gopher, at: <URL:gopher://gopher.house.gov:70/OF-1%3a208%3aInternet%20Etiquette>
[8] How to find the right place to post (FAQ)
- by buglady@bronze.lcs.mit.edu (Aliza R. Panitz)
- Archive-name: finding-groups/general
[9] Hambridge, S., and J. Sedayao, "Horses and Barn Doors: Evolution of Corporate Guidelines for Internet Usage", LISA VII, Usenix, November 1-5, 1993, pp. 9-16. <URL: ftp://ftp.intel.com/pub/papers/horses.ps or horses.ascii>
[10] Heslop, B., and D. Angell, "The Instant Internet guide : Hands-on Global Networking", Reading, Mass., Addison-Wesley, 1994.
[11] Horwitz, S., "Internet Etiquette Tips", <ftp://ftp.temple.edu/pub/info/help-net/netiquette.infohn>
[12] Internet Activities Board, "Ethics and the Internet", RFC 1087, IAB, January 1989. <URL: ftp://ds.internic.net/rfc/rfc1087.txt>
[13] Kehoe, B., "Zen and the Art of the Internet: A Beginner's Guide", Netiquette information is spread through the chapters of this work. 3rd ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ., Prentice-Hall, 1994.
[14] Kochmer, J., "Internet Passport: NorthWestNet's Guide to our World Online", 4th ed. Bellevue, Wash., NorthWestNet, Northwest Academic Computing Consortium, 1993.
[15] Krol, Ed, "The Whole Internet: User's Guide and Catalog", Sebastopol, CA, O'Reilly & Associates, 1992.
[16] Lane, E. and C. Summerhill, "Internet Primer for Information Professionals: a basic guide to Internet networking technology", Westport, CT, Meckler, 1993.
[17] LaQuey, T., and J. Ryer, "The Internet Companion", Chapter 3 "Communicating with People", pp 41-74. Reading, MA, Addison-Wesley, 1993.
[18] Mandel, T., "Surfing the Wild Internet", SRI International Business Intelligence Program, Scan No. 2109. March, 1993. <URL: gopher://gopher.well.sf.ca.us:70/00/Communications/surf-wild>
[19] Martin, J., "There's Gold in them thar Networks! or Searching for Treasure in all the Wrong Places", FYI 10, RFC 1402, January 1993. <URL: ftp://ds.internic.net/rfc/rfc1402.txt>
[20] Pioch, N., "A Short IRC Primer", Text conversion by Owe Rasmussen. Edition 1.1b, February 28, 1993. <URL: http://www.kei.com/irc/IRCprimer1.1.txt>
[21] Polly, J., "Surfing the Internet: an Introduction", Version 2.0.3. Revised May 15, 1993.
- <URL: gopher://nysernet.org:70/00/ftp%20archives/pub/resources/guides/surfing.2.0.3.txt>
- <URL: ftp://ftp.nysernet.org/pub/resources/guides/surfing.2.0.3.txt>
[22] "A Primer on How to Work With the Usenet Community"
- Original author: chuq@apple.com (Chuq Von Rospach)
- Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
- Archive-name: usenet-primer/part1
[23] Rinaldi, A., "The Net: User Guidelines and Netiquette", September 3, 1992. <URL: http://www.fau.edu/rinaldi/net/index.htm>
[24] "Rules for posting to Usenet"
- Original author: spaf@cs.purdue.edu (Gene Spafford)
- Maintained by: netannounce@deshaw.com (Mark Moraes)
- Archive-name: posting-rules/part1
[25] Shea, V., "Netiquette", San Francisco: Albion Books, 1994?.
[26] Strangelove, M., with A. Bosley, "How to Advertise on the Internet", ISSN 1201-0758.
[27] Tenant, R., "Internet Basics", ERIC Clearinghouse of Information Resources, EDO-IR-92-7. September, 1992.
- <URL: gopher://nic.merit.edu:7043/00/introducing.the.internet/internet.basics.eric-digest>
- <URL: gopher://vega.lib.ncsu.edu:70/00/library/reference/guides/tennet>
[28] Wiggins, R., "The Internet for everyone: a guide for users and providers", New York, McGraw-Hill, 1995.

6.0 Security Considerations 🚨

Plot twist, and it's a big one: security issues are not discussed in this memo. 😬 If you're looking for security guidance, you'll need to look somewhere else. Don't skip this part!

7.0 Author's Address 💌

Sally Hambridge
Intel Corporation
2880 Northwestern Parkway
SC3-15
Santa Clara, CA   95052

Phone: 408-765-2931
Fax:   408-765-3679
EMail: sallyh@ludwig.sc.intel.com

the end, bestie 🌈💖 that's the whole RFC, and you're officially a netiquette queen 👑✨

📦 where this page comes from

ietf: rfc1855 1995-10
💖 girlified by claude-haiku-5-5 on 2026-10-15: a language model's rewrite of the original, under its terms