On messages that mention spelling or typing errors
Hi,
I'd like to share my irritation about messages that deal with spelling
or typing errors on this list. I think this is a matter that has
been dealt before in various online communities. The following
is an excerpt from "RFC 1855 Netiquette Guidelines" in "Section 3.1.1
General Guidelines for mailing lists and NetNews". It is available
in the doc-rfc package.
- 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.
While this is by no means a rule or a standard, I think it's an
appropriate behavior on a "technical" list. Although many people
wander off-topic from time to time, they do indicate it with [OT]
subjects or by using smileys when they're joking. People who post
messages check the text of their mails if they wish to; it is nobody's job
to correct them unless the meaning cannot be extracted from the text.
Posting a message exclusively about spelling/typing mistakes is very
rude. Also don't forget that this is an international community and some
people may have absolutely no interest in the conventions of a particular
language such as English; they may just want to get their ideas across. [1]
Anyway, I request people who have a ... penchant for spell checking
to invest their time in more fruitful activities such as discussing
real problems or writing useful software/documentation.
Thanks for your attention,
[1] For instance, I'm not a native speaker but I wouldn't be interested
in taking English lessons on this list. I've had enough of that.
--
Eray (exa) Ozkural
Comp. Sci. Dept., Bilkent University, Ankara
e-mail: erayo@cs.bilkent.edu.tr
www: http://www.cs.bilkent.edu.tr/~erayo
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