RHEA-L Archives

From: <>
Subject: Suggestions
Date: Wed, 26 Feb 1997 10:46:35 -0500 (EST)

SUGGESTED GUIDELINES to HELP GET ANSWERS

If I am going to be a writer and try to get your attention so that you will
help me. I must be courteous to you; I
must be thoughtful enough to present materials in such a manner as to get
and keep your attention; I must write my material in a way that makes it
fast, easy, and pleasant to read. With these thoughts in mind
consider that the following are NOT RULES, but they are
SUGGESTED GUIDELINES for use by genealogy re-searchers and others
using discussion lists.

1) Are you shouting at the reader? Generally, type everything in
lower case (small) letters. Typing everything in all CAPS is
considered SHOUTING at the reader.

2-6) Typing names so they are easy to read.

2. ALWAYS type SURNAMES in upper case (CAPITAL) letters.

3. When listing SURNAMES only, enter a comma and two spaces
between the names. This makes for faster, easier reading:
RHEA, LAWRENCE, HARVEY, CRAIG, BEARD, (PLEASE
do not space between letters of the name, and do not use special
characters within a name)

4) DO NOT use the asterisk * or the slash ? as a separator of SURNAMES.
Use this same rule for applying other special characters in your writings.
This is hard on the eyes, and some of us won't
read it. Therefore, you and I might miss a perfect
opportunity to find a connection to one of the names we are both
researching.

5) Generally, type names as follows:

SURNAME, First Second Third "Nickname" Title (Although it
won't always work out this way, try to make it a standard way
of writing names.) Example:
RHEA, Margaret Anna Clarissa "Maggie" Mrs.

6) When listing SURNAMES with locations, try to make the
listings as columns if possible. At least enter some
spaces to make for easier, faster reading.
RHEA > IR, VA, KY, IL, KS, MO

Realize that the progression of states is not meant to be
alphabetical, but represents the general movement
(migration) of the family the individual is researching
and therefore the locations being searched.

7) When you reply (respond) to someone's message or request,
if your message is personal or if you think it does not belong on the
discussion list, click on the REPLY or RESPOND button - this
will automatically send your message to the address of the originator.

8) If you wish your reply/response tobe read by all on the
discussion list, type in the e-mail address of the list you wish
it to be seen by.

9) Please, do not flame someone (put them down rather rudely)
for somethingthey have done. The individual may be new and
did not realize what was correct and proper.
Or, an individual can be in a hurry and just do things wrong.
)Personally, I do not wish to reduce <degrade> myself to the low
level of flaming someone. I have been flamed and know how bad
it made me feel, even though I had not intended to hurt or upset
anyone). Consider the fact that in most instances the act is not
onpurpose, but accidental. If you must reply, be courteous,
polite, and positive and send them a private note.

10) Above all, DO NOT flame somepublicly on one of the lists. It
is bad manners on the part of the person doing the flaming, and shows
disrespect toward all other members of the list. (They do not want
to hear the flamer's whining about what someone has supposedly
done to the flamer or to them. That is why ther are always so
many rude, ill-natured replies afterwards.)

11) Do you really want to flame someone? Go look in the mirror.
That person you are looking at knows exactly how you feel and what
you are thinking. Therefore, that person knows exactly how to take
what you are saying. Futhermore, if that person in the mirror smiles at you,
you are going to have to smile back. And, if you smile at the person in
the mirror and that person in the mirror does not smile back at you, you are
not ready to write to anyone yet.

Now, let's work together and find some genealogy and other subject answers.

Thank you.

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