Original_To:  BITNET%"ALLMUSIC@AUVM"
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.allmusic
Date:         Tue, 15 Dec 1992 12:07:00 CST
From:         I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK <CV01@SWTEXAS.BITNET>
Subject:      Allmusic Guide to Netiquette

   I first posted this last year, but it seems like there's a need for me
to repost a slightly revised version for the benefit of the newbies and
other life forms who have joined the list.  Any plagiarism,
misrepresentations or outright lies are the responsibility of cv01@swtexas.
Please send any suggestions/comments/death threats to wert7176@snyplava.


      bye,
      cmv ("allmusic netiquette monitor chuck")


   WARNING: This is long -- proceed at your own risk.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

                   A Guide to Allmusic Netiquette

       This is intended for folks who are new to the Allmusic discussion
    list.  There is already a set of guidelines for BITNET etiquette, and
    while that is generally recognized, Allmusic has its own particular
    needs (as you will soon find out -- if you haven't already).  With this
    in mind, the following guidelines are offered.  They will consist of
    the rule for BITNET, followed by the modified version for Allmusic use.
    Please pay attention, as this will save you needless embarrassment and
    scorched knickers.


    BITNET:
    1.  Namecalling and profanity are not welcome.  Your eloquence and
    logic should be enough to convince people of your point of view; if
    not, perhaps it's your viewpoint that needs to be reconsidered.

    Allmusic:
    1.  Namecalling and profanity are art forms in-and-of themselves.
    While logic can be attempted, most of the people on the net are not
    nearly as intelligent as you, and will probably miss your point unless
    you call them dirty names.

    BITNET:
    2.  Be brief.  Longer posts are not as likely to get read as shorter
    posts.

    Allmusic:
    2.  Be brief -- do not combine several topics in one post, instead post
    several short messages in a row about the same topic.  Remember that
    list-members of Allmusic have a *very* short attention span.

    BITNET:
    3.  A spelling checker improves your argument.  The most reasonable
    post isn't nearly as convincing if there are misspellings.  (If you
    feel the need to comment on someone else's spelling, do so directly to
    them, rather than sending a message to the entire mailing list.)

    Allmusic:
    3.  Intentional misspellings can be an effective way to divert
    attention away from the obvious flaws in your argument, so be creative.
    Spelling flames are highly recommended, but only if done in an
    extremely condescending manner that contributes nothing else to the
    discussion at hand.

    BITNET:
    4.  Check your facts.  There may be thousands of people reading what
    you post; it's much less embarrassing to post correctly the first time,
    rather than having to make a correction later.

    Allmusic:
    4.  Facts? ... You want facts??!! ... We don't need no steenking
    facts!!!  This is *Allmusic*, not alt.science!!

    BITNET:
    5.  Descriptive titles and subject lines improve your chances of
    getting a reply.  Some mailing lists generate more than 100 responses
    per day; being able to find a post by its title makes it more likely to
    be read and get replies.

    Allmusic:
    5.  Subject lines such as "Planet of the nubile oversexed nymphs" will
    get people's attention, but should be avoided if your message is
    actually about Guns'n'Roses (exception -- if you are Libby Doe this is
    OK).

    BITNET:
    6.  Post to the proper list.

    Allmusic:
    6. Crosspost, crosspost, crosspost, crosspost.

    BITNET:
    7.  When replying to a post, check to see if someone else has already
    said what you want to say. Supporting opinions are good, but only if
    they introduce a new idea or make another point.

    Allmusic:
    7.  Think of Allmusic as a poll.  If a subject comes up that you have
    an opinion about -- post on it.  Even if you don't have an opinion --
    post.  Corollary: When introducing a new thread, make it broad enough
    so that any semi-cognizant being will have an opinion to post.  (I.e.,
    topics like "Songs about rain" and "Your favorite album of all-time".)

    BITNET:
    8.  When replying to a post, refresh people's memories by including
    part of the post to which you are replying. Don't include their entire
    post; a summary of their key points, or the point to which you are
    replying, is enough.

    Allmusic:
    8.  Remember, anything worth responding to is better when taken out of
    context.  Extract only those phrases that prove your point or make the
    original poster look stupid.  Alternatively, include the whole text of
    extremely long messages (be sure to include any long mailer info and
    all other message headers), and reply to one sentence that occurs in
    the middle of a completely different post.

    BITNET:
    9.  Some posts are better off being replied to directly, rather than
    being sent to the entire network.

    Allmusic:
    9.  Personal correspondence (especially flame-wars) should be avoided.
    People on this list basically lack a life, and want to know all the
    details about your personal flame-wars (especially who wins and loses,
    and who looks foolish).

    BITNET:
    10.  Always check the reply address before replying.  Your e-mail may
    be sent somewhere you never intended; make sure you know where it is
    going before you send it, to save yourself much embarrassment.

    Allmusic:
    10.  Don't bother to ascertain where your reply is going.  This makes
    for lively exchanges and a great deal of amusement for the rest of the
    list.  If a personal slam against someone accidentally gets sent to the
    list, you can just try to deny that you ever sent it.  Also, be sure to
    send your subscribe and unsubscribe requests to the list.  This
    invariably brings a chuckle and a gentle rebuke.

    BITNET:
    11.  Don't SHOUT; use CAPS only for emphasis.  A message typed in all
    caps is hard to read; if your terminal or computer can only type in
    caps, run your message through a conversion program before sending it.

    Allmusic:
    11.  Don't SHOUT; use CAPS only for emphasis.  Curse words and personal
    attacks are much more effective.

    BITNET:
    12.  Include your name and network address at the end of your post.

    Allmusic:
    12.  Obscure nicknames are sufficient -- you don't really want to be
    identified with your posts, and remember, personal correspondence is
    not in keeping with the true spirit of Allmusic.

      BITNET:
    13.  Long message signatures annoy many people.  A message signature is
    used primarily to identify you; cute signatures taking up more than two
    or three lines, created by making drawings out of letters or by
    surrounding your name in asterisks, become tired looking after they're
    seen for the third time.  A signature longer than a message is very
    excessive!

    Allmusic:
    13.  Long message signatures annoy many people -- but not on Allmusic.
    Even if they did, what do you care -- you're just showing everybody how
    outrageously creative you are.  Besides, people on this list are easily
    amused.

    BITNET:
    14.  Humor, wit, irony and sarcasm are often hard to detect in
    messages.  Pointing them out to people, since they can't see your face
    or body language, might prevent people from getting angry at what
    you've posted.  Smiley faces (turn your head sideways to view these)
    such as :-) and ;^) are often used in posts to indicate humor, or to
    make sure people don't take you too seriously.

    Allmusic:
    14.  Humor, wit, irony and sarcasm are normally not present in
    messages.  However, if you do attempt to include one of these, it might
    be useful to include a smiley face.  Also, smiley faces are a good way
    to get away with vicious personal attacks under the guise of "I was
    just kidding -- didn't you see the smiley?"  Following is an example of
    a smiley face (stand on your head to view this) and the context in
    which it might be used:
       "You f*ck-f*ce ... you c*ck-s*ck*ng m*th*er-f*ck*ng b*st*rd"  %-}

    BITNET:
    15.  It is customary to give warnings when something in one of your
    posts might alarm people.  *FLAME ON* and *FLAME OFF* are used to
    delimit angry tirades and *SPOILER* is common when a movie ending is
    about to be discussed.  On other newtorks, a simple form of encryption,
    rot13 [each letter in a message is rotated 13 characters, so that "a"
    becomes "m", "b" becomes "n", etc.), is used by some mailing lists to
    hide messages that people might consider offensive.  This requires a
    very descriptive title line that also includes rot13 to let people know
    the type of encryption.

    Allmusic:
    15.  It is immediately assumed that anything you post is a flame, and
    there is nothing you can do about it.  Allmusic uses a simple form of
    encryption which is used to hide messages that might be considered
    offensive. This is called backwards-masking.  It involves reversing the
    letters of a phrase, and thus converting them into an undetectable,
    sinister, subliminal message.  For example, the following sentence
    contains Satanic backwards-masking:  "Well, how <doG> about <si> the
    new Holdsworth <einniV> CD, anybody heard it?"
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU