WHAT IS NETIQUETTE?

Internet etiquette

 E-mail and mailing lists

 Usenet newsgroups

 Telnet

 FTP (File Transfer Protocol)

There are netiquette guidelines for most Internet resources, including e-mail mailing lists, newsgroups, telnet and FTP. Some Internet resources share netiquette rules, for example the accepted guidelines for e-mail and mailing lists are also used in newsgroups.

• Use normal upper and lower case letters. Avoid using all capital letters in a message; this is known as SHOUTING and is generally frowned upon.
•  Don't assume that your intentions will be understood - remember that there is no body language or facial expression to indicate your intentions. Careful use of "emoticons" can help.   For example:

Avoid "flaming" (inflammatory or antagonistic criticism), or sending insulting, abusive or threatening remarks. A "flame war" is the back-and-forth volley of insulting e-mail and is considered a waste of network resources.

• Remember that e-mail is not necessarily private. Your message can be forwarded to many people without your knowledge. In addition, most e-mail servers have programs that archive the e-mail messages that they handle.
• Before sending a message, read it over, make sure it's what you want to say, and double check the recipient(s).
• Always identify yourself and keep messages as brief and to the point as possible.

In Summary:

Netiquette rules apply chiefly to electronic mail, mailing lists and Usenet newsgroups, however, there are also netiquette guidelines for using telnet and FTP. In addition to netiquette, many organizations have their own "Acceptable Use Policies" (AUPs) - a set of rules specifically for an organization's network.