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1.1 root 1: .ds .f manner.mn
2: .ds h0 "How to Use USENET Effectively
3: .ds h1
4: .ds h2 %
5: .ds f0 "\*(vr
6: .ds f1
7: .ds f2 "October 19, 1986
8: .mt
9: How to Use USENET Effectively
10: .au
11: Matt Bishop
12: .ai
13: Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science
14: Mail Stop 230-5
15: NASA Ames Research Center
16: Moffett Field, CA 94035
17: .bt
18: .hn
19: Introduction
20: .pg
21: USENET is a worldwide bulletin board system
22: in which thousands of computers pass articles back and forth.
23: Of necessity,
24: customs have sprung up enabling very diverse people and groups
25: to communicate peaceably and effectively using USENET.
26: These customs are for the most part written,
27: but are scattered over several documents
28: that can be difficult to find;
29: in any case,
30: even if a new user can find all the documents,
31: he most likely will have neither the time nor the inclination
32: to read them all.
33: This document is intended to collect all these conventions into one place,
34: thereby making it easy for new users
35: to learn about the world of USENET.
36: (Old-timers,
37: too,
38: will benefit from reading this.)
39: .pg
40: You should read this document and understand it thoroughly
41: before you even think about posting anything.
42: If you have questions,
43: please ask your USENET administrator (who
44: can usually be reached by sending mail to
45: .i usenet )
46: or a more knowledgeable USENET user.
47: Believe me,
48: you will save yourself a lot of grief.
49: .pg
50: The mechanics of posting an article to USENET are explained in
51: Mark Horton's excellent paper
52: .i "How to Read the Network News" ;
53: if you have not read that yet,
54: stop here and do so.
55: A lot of what follows depends on your knowing (at least vaguely)
56: the mechanics of posting news.
57: .pg
58: Before we discuss these customs,
59: we ought to look at the history of USENET,
60: what it is today,
61: and why we need these conventions.
62: .hn
63: All About USENET
64: .pg
65: USENET began on a set of computers in North Carolina's Research Triangle.
66: The programs involved
67: (known as \*(lqnetnews\*(rq then,
68: and \*(lqA news\*(rq now)
69: exchanged messages;
70: it was a small, multi-computer bulletin board system.
71: As time passed,
72: administrators of other systems began to connect their computers
73: to this bulletin board system.
74: The network grew.
75: Then,
76: at Berkeley, the news programs were rewritten
77: (this version became known as \*(lqB news\*(rq)
78: and the format changed to conform to ARPA standards
79: (again,
80: this became the \*(lqB protocol for news\*(rq.\*(dg)
81: .fn
82: .lp \*(dg \w'\*(dg\ 'u
83: See
84: .i
85: Standard for Interchange of USENET Messages
86: .r
87: for a description of the two formats.
88: .ef
89: This version of news was very widely distributed,
90: and at this point USENET began to take on its current shape.
91: .pg
92: USENET is a
93: .i logical
94: network
95: (as opposed to a
96: .i physical
97: network.)
98: It is also a very amorphous network,
99: in that there is no central administration or controlling site.
100: There is not even an official list of members,
101: although there is a very complete unofficial one.
102: A site gets access to USENET by finding some other site already on USENET
103: that it can connect to and exchange news articles.
104: So long as this second site (called a
105: .i neighbor
106: of the first site)
107: remains willing and able to pass articles to and from the first site,
108: the first site is on USENET.
109: A site leaves the USENET only when no one is willing or able
110: to pass articles to,
111: or accept articles from,
112: it.
113: .pg
114: As a result,
115: USENET has no equivalent of a \*(lqsysop\*(rq
116: or central authority controlling the bulletin board.
117: What little control is exercised is wielded by the person at each site
118: who is responsible for maintaining the USENET connections
119: (this person is called the \*(lqUSENET administrator.\*(rq)
120: Because most USENET administrators are (relatively) new to USENET,
121: and because administering USENET locally involves a great deal of work,
122: most USENET administrators tend to follow the lead of other,
123: more experienced,
124: administrators
125: (often known somewhat irreverently as \*(lqnet gurus.\*(rq)
126: This is not an abdication of responsibility,
127: but a means of keeping the amount of work little enough
128: so it can be done without interfering with the local USENET administrator's job.
129: An example of this is the list of currently active newsgroups
130: circulated every month or so.
131: It is not \*(lqofficial\*(rq \-
132: no one has that authority \-
133: but as the maintainer is doing the work that every other USENET administrator
134: would have to do otherwise,
135: it is accepted as a valid list.
136: If the maintainer changes the list in a way
137: another USENET administrator finds unacceptable,
138: that administrator can simply ignore the list.
139: (Incidentally, the \*(lqnet gurus\*(rq became known as such
140: because of the work they have contributed to USENET.
141: Their experience is a valuable resource for each USENET administrator.)
142: .pg
143: Because the USENET has grown so wildly,
144: a number of problems have appeared.
145: One of these problems is technical,
146: and a number of the conventions this document describes
147: spring from attempts to keep this problem under control.
148: .pg
149: The technical problem arises due to the transport mechanism used by most USENET sites.
150: Most computers on USENET do not have access to large-area networks like
151: ARPANET.
152: As a result the only viable transport mechanism these sites can use
153: is a set of programs collectively known as UUCP
154: and which communicate over dialup telephone lines.
155: Initially,
156: news programs generated one UUCP command per article.
157: With the explosion of the USENET,
158: the number of articles simply swamped many sites;
159: phone lines would be tied up all day transmitting news,
160: and many articles would be processed at the same time,
161: slowing down the computers noticeably.
162: .pg
163: The solution was to batch messages.
164: This way,
165: many articles are sent via UUCP with one command,
166: and the command on the receiving machine would split the file
167: into separate articles,
168: which could then be processed individually.
169: While this increased the size of the files being sent,
170: it cut down on the number of UUCP commands sent,
171: and since sending a command involves quite a bit of overhead,
172: this decreased the duration of phone calls,
173: and to a lesser degree the load on the computer.
174: At some sites,
175: such as Purdue,
176: this was not quite enough,
177: so a simple spooler was implemented to process the individual articles
178: one at a time.
179: This reduced the system load to a very acceptable amount.
180: .pg
181: However,
182: the problem has not gone away by any means.
183: In one sense it has become worse;
184: as more articles are posted to the network,
185: phone costs and system loads averages increase,
186: and system administrators require USENET administrators to cut back
187: or eliminate newsgroups and
188: to transmit news only at night
189: (which means long propagation delays).
190: In short,
191: everyone who has anything to do with administering any USENET site
192: is very concerned about the future of USENET,
193: both in general
194: and at his own site.
195: .pg
196: Many of the rules you will read address this concern.
197: The fear that USENET may collapse is not a bogeyman,
198: but very real.
199: We hope it will not collapse,
200: and the rules below outline some ways to prevent problems
201: and increase the likelihood
202: that enough sites will remain on USENET to keep it alive.
203: There is no central authority that can force you to follow them,
204: but by doing so you will help keep USENET a valuable resource
205: to the computer community.
206: .hn
207: Deciding to Post
208: .pg
209: Before you decide to post an article,
210: you should consider a few things.
211: .hn 2
212: Do not repeat postings
213: .pg
214: This applies even if you did not post the information the first time around.
215: If you know the answer to a question someone asked,
216: first read the follow-ups, and if you have something more to contribute,
217: mail it to the questioner;
218: if you think it should be seen by others,
219: ask the questioner to summarize the answers he receives in a subsequent article.
220: One of the biggest problems on USENET is that
221: many copies of the same answer to a simple question are posted.
222: .pg
223: If you want to repost something because you believe
224: it did not get to other USENET sites due to transmission problems
225: (this happens sometimes,
226: but a lot less often than commonly believed),
227: do some checking before you repost.
228: If you have a friend at another USENET site,
229: call him and ask if the article made it to his site.
230: Ask your USENET administrator if he knows of any problems in the USENET;
231: there are special newsgroups to which USENET administrators subscribe
232: in which problems are reported,
233: or he can contact his counterparts at other sites for information.
234: Finally,
235: if you decide you must repost it,
236: indicate in the article subject that it is a reposting,
237: and say why you are reposting it
238: (if you don't,
239: you'll undoubtedly get some very nasty mail.)
240: .pg
241: Reposting announcements of products or services is flatly forbidden.
242: Doing so may convince other sites to turn off your USENET access.
243: .pg
244: When school starts,
245: hoards of new users descend upon the USENET
246: asking questions.
247: Many of these questions have been asked,
248: and answered,
249: literally thousands of times since USENET began.
250: The most common of these questions,
251: and their answers,
252: have been collected in the hope that
253: the new users will read them and not re-post the same questions.
254: So,
255: if you want to ask a question,
256: check Appendix A
257: .b "Answers to Frequently Asked Questions" ) (
258: to be sure it isn't one that has been asked and answered
259: literally hundreds of times before you started reading the USENET.
260: .hn 2
261: Do not post anything when upset, angry, or intoxicated
262: .pg
263: Posting an article is a lot like driving a car \-
264: you have to be in control of yourself.
265: Postings which begin \*(lqJane,
266: you ignorant slut, ...\*(rq
267: are very definitely considered in poor taste\*(dg.
268: .fn
269: \*(dg Unless you are critiquing
270: .i "Saturday Night Live" .
271: .ef
272: Unfortunately,
273: they are also far too common.
274: .pg
275: The psychology of this is interesting.
276: One popular belief is that since we interact with USENET via computers,
277: we all often forget that a computer did not do the posting;
278: a human did.
279: A contributing factor is that you don't have to look the target of abuse
280: in the eye when you post an abusive message;
281: eye-to-eye contact has an amazing effect on inhibiting obnoxious behavior.
282: As a result,
283: discussions on the USENET often degenerate into a catfight
284: far more readily than would a face-to-face discussion.
285: .pg
286: Before you post an article,
287: think a minute;
288: decide whether or not you are upset,
289: angry,
290: or high.
291: If you are,
292: wait until you calm down (or come down) before deciding to post something.
293: Then think about whether or not you really want to post it.
294: You will be amazed what waiting a day or even a few hours can do
295: for your perspective.
296: .pg
297: Bear in mind that
298: shouting hasn't convinced anyone of anything
299: since the days of Charlemagne,
300: and being abusive makes people hold even more tenaciously
301: to their ideas or opinions.
302: Gentleness,
303: courtesy,
304: and eloquence are far more persuasive;
305: not only do they indicate you have enough confidence in your words
306: to allow them to speak for you,
307: but also they indicate a respect for your audience.
308: This in turn makes it easier for your audience to like or respect you \-
309: and people tend to be far more interested in,
310: and receptive to,
311: arguments advanced by those they like or respect
312: than by writers who are abusive.
313: Finally,
314: remember that some discussions or situations simply cannot be resolved.
315: Because people are different,
316: agreed-upon facts often lead to wildly different feelings and conclusions.
317: These differences are what makes life so wonderful;
318: were we all alike,
319: the world would be a very boring place.
320: So,
321: don't get frantic;
322: relax and enjoy the discussion.
323: Who knows,
324: you might even learn something!
325: .hn 2
326: Be sure your posting is appropriate to USENET
327: .pg
328: Some things are inappropriate to post to USENET.
329: Discussing whether or not some other discussion is appropriate,
330: or if it is in the right newsgroup,
331: is an example.
332: Invariably,
333: the \*(lqmeta-discussion\*(rq generates so many articles
334: that the discussion is simply overwhelmed and vanishes;
335: but the meta-discussion lingers on for several weeks,
336: driving most of the readers of that newsgroup
337: out of their collective minds.
338: Help preserve the sanity of your fellow USENET readers
339: by mailing such comments to the people involved,
340: rather than posting them.
341: .pg
342: Another example of inappropriate postings is the infamous
343: \*(lqspelling flame.\*(rq
344: Every few months someone takes another poster to task
345: for poor spelling or grammar.
346: Soon,
347: everyone jumps on the bandwagon,
348: tearing apart one another's postings for such errors.
349: To put it mildly,
350: this angers almost everyone involved
351: for no real reason.
352: Please remember that we all make mistakes,
353: and there are a lot of people for whom English is a second language.
354: So,
355: try to keep your spelling and grammar comments to yourself \-
356: but if you find you simply cannot,
357: mail them to the poster rather than posting them.
358: .pg
359: Far more insidious are requests similar to
360: \*(lqHow can I splice into the local cable TV transmission line?\*(rq
361: Posting to USENET is akin to publishing,
362: so don't ask for or post instructions on how to do something illegal.
363: And please don't quote the First Amendment,
364: or the laws allowing freedom of speech in your country;
365: while the posting programs will not stop you,
366: the aftermath could be very unpleasant \-
367: lawsuits and court trials usually are,
368: and the USENET would certainly collapse as sites dropped from it
369: to protect themselves from legal liability.
370: You wouldn't want that on your conscience,
371: would you?
372: Of course not.
373: .pg
374: Related to this is the next rule.
375: .hn 2
376: Do not post other people's work without permission
377: .pg
378: Posting something to USENET puts it in the public domain
379: for all practical purposes.
380: So,
381: be careful about posting things like
382: .ux -related
383: material (specifically source code) or company documents;
384: consider licensing and nondisclosure agreements first. Some people regard
385: the posting of \*(lqdiffs\*(rq based on licensed code to be a suitable
386: compromise, as they are only useful to those who have the base code already.
387: .pg
388: Copyrighted works are a separate problem.
389: Both United States and international law provide protection
390: for copyrighted works;
391: other than short extracts for purposes of criticism,
392: you cannot copy a copyrighted work in whole or in part
393: without permission of the copyright holder
394: (who may,
395: or may not,
396: be the author.)
397: Without this protection,
398: artists could not make any money and hence would have limited incentive
399: to make the fruits of their art available at all.
400: Posting a copyrighted work without permission is theft,
401: even though the property stolen is not tangible in most cases.
402: Hence,
403: posting movie and book reviews,
404: song lyrics,
405: or anything else which is copyrighted
406: without the permission of the copyright holder,
407: could cause you personally,
408: your company,
409: or the USENET itself
410: to be held liable for damages.
411: Please be very careful that you obey the law
412: when posting such material!
413: .hn 2
414: Don't forget that opinions are those of the poster and not his employer.
415: .pg
416: Every so often,
417: someone will post a particularly disgusting article,
418: and a number of responses will ask
419: if all employees of the original poster's company
420: share his (revolting) opinion,
421: or suggest that action be taken against that company.
422: Please remember that all opinions or statements in articles
423: are to be attributed to the poster
424: .i only ,
425: and in particular, do not necessarily represent the opinions
426: of the poster's employer,
427: the owner of the computer on which the article originated,
428: or anyone involved with any aspect of USENET \-
429: and consequently the responsibility for any USENET message
430: rests with the poster and with no one else.
431: The appropriate response is not to attack the company
432: or its other employees;
433: let the poster know what you think of his posting via mail.
434: If the postings continue,
435: take advantage of the news software's presenting you
436: with the author's name and the subject line
437: and then asking if you want to see the article;
438: start looking for the poster's name or the offensive subject
439: in the articles presented to you
440: and skip them. If you really get offended, you can unsubscribe from a newsgroup.
441: .pg
442: Part of the price of freedom is allowing others to make fools of themselves.
443: You wouldn't like to be censored,
444: so don't advocate censorship of others.
445: No one is forcing you to read the postings.
446: .pg
447: In some countries,
448: posting or receiving certain types of articles may be a criminal offense.
449: As a result,
450: certain newsgroups which circulate freely within the United States
451: may not be circulated in other nations
452: without risking civil or criminal liabilities.
453: In this case,
454: the appropriate action for sites in that country
455: is neither to accept nor to transmit the newsgroup.
456: No site is
457: .i ever
458: forced to accept or pass on
459: .i any
460: newsgroup.
461: .hn 1
462: Where to Post
463: .pg
464: The various newsgroups and distributions
465: have various rules associated with their use.
466: This section will describe these rules
467: and offer suggestions on which newsgroups to post your message.
468: .hn 2
469: Keep the distribution as limited as possible
470: .pg
471: A basic principle of posting is to keep the distribution of your article
472: as limited as possible.
473: Like our modern society,
474: USENET is suffering from both an information glut and information pollution.
475: It is widely believed that the USENET will cease to function
476: unless we are able to cut down the quantity of articles.
477: One step in this direction is not to post something to places
478: where it will be worthless.
479: For example,
480: if you live in Hackensack,
481: New Jersey,
482: the probability of anyone in Korea wanting to buy your
483: 1972 Toyota is about as close to zero as you can get.
484: So confine your posting to the New Jersey area.
485: .pg
486: To do this,
487: you can either post to a local group,
488: or post to a net-wide group and use the
489: .i distribution
490: feature to limit how widely your article will go.
491: When you give your posting program
492: (usually
493: .i postnews (1))
494: a distribution,
495: you are (in essence) saying that
496: machines which do not recognize that distribution
497: should not get the article.
498: (Think of it as a subgroup based on locality and you'll get the idea.)
499: For example,
500: if you are posting in the San Francisco Bay Area,
501: and you post your article to
502: .ng rec.auto
503: but give
504: .ng ba
505: as the distribution,
506: the article will not be sent beyond the San Francisco Bay Area
507: (to which the
508: .ng ba
509: distribution is local)
510: even though you put it in a net-wide newsgroup.
511: Had you given the distribution as
512: .ng ca
513: (the California distribution),
514: your article would have been sent to all Californian sites on USENET.
515: Had you given the distribution as
516: .ng world ,
517: your article would have been sent to all sites on USENET.
518: .hn 2
519: Do not post the same article twice to different groups
520: .pg
521: If you have an article that you want to post to more than one group,
522: post to both at the same time.
523: Newer versions of the news software will show an article only once
524: regardless of how many newsgroups it appears in.
525: But if you post it once to each different group,
526: all versions of news software will show it once for each newsgroup.
527: This angers a lot of people
528: and wastes everybody's time.
529: .hn 2
530: Do not post to moderated newsgroups.
531: .pg
532: You may not post directly to certain newsgroups;
533: you cannot post to some at all.
534: Newer versions of the news software will inform you
535: when either of these restrictions apply,
536: but older versions of news software will not.
537: .pg
538: If you want to have the appropriate moderator post something,
539: mail it to the moderator.
540: (If you do not know the address,
541: ask your USENET administrator.
542: In some cases,
543: the software will automatically mail,
544: rather than post,
545: your article to the moderator.)
546: .hn 2
547: Ask someone if you can't figure out where to post your article
548: .pg
549: If you cannot figure out where to post something,
550: look in
551: .ng news.announce.newusers
552: for the list of active newsgroups.
553: (This is posted biweekly.
554: If you can't find it,
555: look at the list in
556: .i "How to Read the Network News" ;
557: but be aware that list is undoubtedly out of date already.)
558: If your article does not seem to fit in any of the listed groups,
559: post it to
560: .ng misc.misc
561: or don't post it.
562: .pg
563: If you still are not sure which newsgroup to post your article to,
564: ask an old-timer.
565: If your site doesn't have any old-timers
566: (or none of the old-timers will admit to being old-timers),
567: contact any of the following people:
568: .sd
569: Gene Spafford ([email protected], [email protected])
570: Mark Horton ([email protected])
571: Rick Adams ([email protected], [email protected])
572: Chuq Von Rospach ([email protected])
573: Matt Bishop ([email protected], [email protected])
574: .ed
575: We will be happy to help you.
576: But,
577: please,
578: do not post the article to the net before you ask us!
579: .hn 2
580: Be sure there is a consensus before creating a new newsgroup
581: .pg
582: Creating a new newsgroup is,
583: in general,
584: a very bad idea.
585: Currently,
586: there are so many articles being posted that the USENET is in danger of collapse
587: as site after site decides to cease to accept and retransmit certain newsgroups.
588: Moreover,
589: there is no established procedure for deleting a newsgroup,
590: so once created,
591: newsgroups tend to stay around.
592: They also tend to encourage people to think up new newsgroups,
593: and the cycle repeats.
594: Try to avoid thinking up new newsgroups.
595: .pg
596: If,
597: however,
598: you believe a new group should be created,
599: be sure you have a consensus that the group is needed
600: (either a mailing list has enough traffic and readers
601: to justify turning it into a newsgroup,
602: or a discussion in a current newsgroup
603: becomes so large for a period of time long enough
604: to warrant splitting it into a newsgroup.)
605: Then post an article to
606: .ng news.group
607: as well as any other groups related to your proposed new group,
608: and discuss the topics you are proposing be covered in your new group,
609: what it should be called,
610: whether it is
611: .i really
612: needed,
613: and so forth.
614: Try to resolve all objections,
615: and take into account all suggestions and comments;
616: finally,
617: have everyone mail you a \*(lqyes\*(rq or \*(lqno\*(rq vote
618: on whether the group should be created.
619: Try to get at least 40 or 50 \*(lqyes\*(rq votes before creating the group;
620: if you want to be safe,
621: get around 100.
622: .hn 2
623: Watch out for newsgroups which have special rules about posting
624: .pg
625: Some newsgroups have special rules.
626: This section summarizes them.
627: .lp rec.arts.books 20
628: Do not post anything revealing a plot or a plot twist
629: without putting the word
630: .cf spoiler
631: somewhere in the
632: .hf Subject
633: field.
634: This will let those who do not wish to have a surprise spoiled
635: skip the article.
636: .lp rec.humor 20
637: If you want to post an offensive joke
638: (this includes racial,
639: religious,
640: sexual,
641: and scatological humor,
642: among other kinds)
643: rotate it.
644: (If you do not know what this means,
645: look in the section
646: .b "Writing Your Posting" .)
647: .lp rec.arts.movies 20
648: Do not post anything revealing a plot or a plot twist
649: without putting the word
650: .cf spoiler
651: in the
652: .hf Subject
653: field.
654: This will let those who do not wish to have a surprise spoiled
655: skip the article.
656: .lp news.group 20
657: Discussions about whether or not to create new groups,
658: and what to name them,
659: go here.
660: Please mail your votes to the proposer;
661: don't post them.
662: .lp comp.sources 20
663: Source code postings go here.
664: Discussions are not allowed.
665: Do not post bug fixes here.
666: .lp comp.sources.bugs 20
667: Bug reports and bug fixes to sources posted in
668: .ng comp.sources
669: go here.
670: .lp comp.sources.wanted 20
671: Requests for sources go here.
672: .lp misc.test 20
673: Use the smallest distribution possible.
674: In the body of the message,
675: say what you are testing.
676: .lp misc.wanted 20
677: Requests for things other than source code go here.
678: Please use the smallest distribution possible.
679: Post offers here,
680: too.
681: .hn 1
682: Writing the Article
683: .pg
684: Here are some suggestions to help you communicate effectively
685: with others on the USENET.
686: Perhaps the best advice is not to be afraid to consult a book on
687: writing style;
688: two of the best are
689: .i "How to Write for the World of Work"
690: by Cunningham and Pearsall,
691: and
692: .i "Elements of Style"
693: by Strunk and White.
694: .hn 2
695: Write for your audience
696: .pg
697: USENET is an international network,
698: and any article you post will be
699: .i very
700: widely read.
701: Even more importantly,
702: your future employers may be among the readers!
703: So,
704: try to make a good impression.
705: .pg
706: A basic principle of all writing is to write at your readers' reading level.
707: It is better to go below than above.
708: Aiming where \*(lqtheir heads ought to be\*(rq may be fine
709: if you are a college professor (and a lot of us would dispute even that),
710: but it is guaranteed to cause people to ignore your article.
711: Studies have shown that the average American reads at the fifth grade level
712: and the average professional reads at the twelfth grade level.
713: .hn 2
714: Be clear and concise
715: .pg
716: Remember that you are writing for a very busy audience;
717: your readers will not puzzle over your article.
718: So be very clear and very concise.
719: Be precise as well;
720: choose the least ambiguous word you can,
721: taking into account the context in which you are using the word.
722: Split your posting into sections and paragraphs as appropriate.
723: Use a descriptive title in the
724: .hf Subject
725: field,
726: and be sure that the title is related to the body of the article.
727: If the title is not related,
728: feel free to change it to a title that is.
729: .hn 2
730: Proofread your article
731: .pg
732: This is a matter of courtesy;
733: since you want others to read your article,
734: the least you can do is check that it says what you mean in a clear,
735: concise manner.
736: Check for typographical errors,
737: silly grammar errors,
738: and misspellings;
739: if you have a spelling checking program,
740: use it.
741: Also be sure the article is easy to read.
742: Use white space \- blanks, tabs, and newlines \-
743: and both upper and lower case letters.
744: Do not omit the definite and indefinite articles,
745: either;
746: not only do \*(lqa\*(rq,
747: \*(lqan\*(rq,
748: and \*(lqthe\*(rq make a posting much easier to read,
749: their omission can make a posting ambiguous.
750: .hn 2
751: Be extra careful with announcements of products or services
752: .pg
753: When writing a product or service announcement,
754: bear in mind that others will be paying most of the telephone bills.
755: So,
756: if you are announcing several things,
757: combine all the announcements into one article.
758: Mark the posting as a product or service announcement
759: in the title in the
760: .hf Subject
761: field.
762: Advertising hyperbole is not appropriate here;
763: remember that your audience is to a large degree technically literate,
764: and your product will stand or fall on its technical merits.
765: Be aware that posting obnoxious or inappropriate advertisements
766: is very serious and if you do it,
767: you may find your neighbors yanking your USENET access.
768: .hn 2
769: Indicate sarcasm and humor
770: .pg
771: Remember that people cannot see you when they read your posting;
772: hence,
773: all the subtle nuances of body and facial motion are hidden.
774: It can be quite difficult to tell when you are being sarcastic or humorous.
775: To deal with this problem,
776: the USENET readers and posters have developed a special sign.
777: Mark passages you intend to be taken as humorous with the
778: \*(lqsmiley face\*(rq,
779: while looks like this: \*(lq:\-)\*(rq.
780: (Think of a head facing you lying on its right side and look again
781: if you don't understand why that symbol was chosen.)
782: As for sarcasm,
783: there is no universal symbol for that
784: (unless the sarcasm is meant humorously,
785: in which case use the smiley face again.)
786: But mark your passage so everyone will realize you are being sarcastic.
787: .hn 2
788: Mark postings which spoil surprises
789: .pg
790: High on the list of obnoxious messages
791: are those that spoil the plot of a book or movie
792: by giving away an unexpected detail.
793: If you post such an article,
794: please put the word
795: .cf spoiler
796: in the
797: .hf Subject
798: field of your posting,
799: so people who do not wish to have a surprise ruined can skip the article.
800: .hn 2
801: Rotate offensive postings
802: .pg
803: If you feel you must post a message that may offend people,
804: you can take steps to be sure the message will only be read
805: by those who explicitly ask for it to be shown to them.
806: The USENET convention is to encrypt these messages
807: by shifting each letter 13 characters,
808: so that
809: (for example)
810: \*(lqa\*(rq becomes \*(lqn\*(rq.
811: (In more precise terms,
812: this is a Caesar cipher of shift 13;
813: on the USENET,
814: it is called
815: .i rot13 .)
816: When you do this,
817: put the word
818: .cf rot13
819: in the
820: .hf Subject
821: field.
822: The news reader you are using almost certainly has a command
823: to encrypt and decrypt such messages;
824: if not,
825: use the
826: .ux
827: command
828: .sd c
829: tr a\-zA\-Z n\-za\-mN\-ZA\-M
830: .ed
831: .hn 2
832: The shorter your signature, the better
833: .pg
834: Keep signatures concise;
835: 2 or 3 lines are usually plenty.
836: Include your name and addresses on any major networks
837: (such as ARPANET,
838: BITNET,
839: or CSNET).
840: This helps people contact you quickly and easily,
841: usually more so than by following the return path of the article.
842: Do not include pictures, graphics or clever quotations that make the
843: signature longer; this is not the appropriate place for them,
844: and many sites resent paying the phone bills for such signatures.
845: .hn 1
846: Conclusion and Summary
847: .pg
848: Here is a list of the rules given above:
849: .si
850: .lp \(rh \w'\(rh\ 'u
851: Deciding to post
852: .si
853: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
854: Do not repeat postings
855: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
856: Do not post anything when upset, angry, or intoxicated
857: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
858: Be sure your posting is appropriate to USENET
859: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
860: Do not post other people's work without permission
861: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
862: Don't forget that opinions are those of the poster and not his company
863: .ei
864: .lp \(rh \w'\(rh\ 'u
865: Where to Post
866: .si
867: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
868: Keep the distribution as limited as possible
869: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
870: Do not post the same article twice to different groups
871: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
872: Do not post to
873: .ng news.announce
874: newsgroups
875: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
876: Ask someone if you can't figure out where to post your article
877: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
878: Be sure there is a consensus before creating a new newsgroup
879: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
880: Watch out for newsgroups which have special rules about posting
881: .ei
882: .lp \(rh \w'\(rh\ 'u
883: Writing the Article
884: .si
885: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
886: Write for your audience
887: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
888: Be clear and concise
889: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
890: Proofread your article
891: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
892: Be extra careful with announcements of products or services
893: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
894: Indicate sarcasm and humor
895: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
896: Mark postings which spoil surprises
897: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
898: Rotate offensive postings
899: .lp \(bu \w'\(bu\ 'u
900: The shorter your signature, the better
901: .ei
902: .ei
903: .pg
904: The USENET can be a great place for us all.
905: Sadly,
906: not enough people are following the customs that have been established
907: to keep the USENET civilized.
908: This document was written to educate all users of the USENET
909: on their responsibilities.
910: Let's clean up the USENET,
911: and turn it into a friendly,
912: helpful community again!
913: .sp
914: .bi Acknowledgements:
915: The writing of this document was inspired by Chuq von Rospach's posting
916: on USENET etiquette,
917: and it draws on previous work by Mark Horton,
918: A. Jeff Offutt,
919: Gene Spafford,
920: and
921: Chuq von Rospach.
922: .bp
923: .hu 1
924: Appendix A. Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
925: .pg l
926: .i
927: originally from Jerry Schwarz ([email protected])
928: .br
929: modified by Gene Spafford ([email protected])
930: .br
931: modified by Matt Bishop ([email protected])
932: .r
933: .sp
934: .pg
935: This document discusses some items that occur repeatedly on USENET.
936: They frequently are submitted by new users,
937: and result in many follow-ups,
938: sometimes swamping groups for weeks.
939: The purpose of this note is to head off these annoying events
940: by answering some questions
941: and warning about the inevitable consequence of asking others.
942: If you don't like my answers,
943: let me know and I may include revisions in future versions of this note.
944: .nr Qs \w'\0\0.\ 'u
945: .de Lp
946: .lp "\\$1" \\n(Qsu
947: ..
948: .Lp \01.
949: What does
950: .ux
951: stand for?
952: .Lp
953: It is not an acronym,
954: but is a pun on \*(lqMULTICS.\*(rq
955: MULTICS is a large operating system that was being developed shortly before
956: .ux
957: was created.
958: .Lp \02.
959: What is the derivation of \*(lqfoo\*(rq as a filler word?
960: .Lp ""
961: The favorite story is that it comes from \*(lqfubar\*(rq
962: which is an acronym for \*(lqfouled up beyond all recognition,\*(rq
963: which is supposed to be a military term.
964: (Various forms of this exist,
965: \*(lqfouled\*(rq usually being replaced by a stronger word.)
966: \*(lqFoo\*(rq and \*(lqBar\*(rq have the same derivation.
967: .Lp \03.
968: Is a machine at \*(lqfoo\*(rq on the net?
969: .Lp
970: These questions belong in
971: .ng news.config
972: if anywhere,
973: but in fact your best bet is usually to phone somebody
974: at \*(lqfoo\*(rq to find out.
975: If you don't know anybody at \*(lqfoo\*(rq you can always try calling
976: and asking for the \*(lqcomputer center.\*(rq
977: Also,
978: see the newsgroup
979: .ng mod.map ,
980: where maps of USENET and the UUCP network are posted regularly.
981: .Lp \04.
982: What does \*(lqrc\*(rq at the end of files like
983: .i .newsrc
984: mean?
985: .Lp
986: According to Dennis Ritchie,
987: \*(lqThe name
988: .i rc
989: comes from RUNCOM, which was the rough equivalent
990: on the MIT CTSS system of what
991: .ux
992: calls shell scripts. Of course,
993: RUNCOM derives from
994: .i "run commands.\*(rq"
995: .Lp \05.
996: What do \*(lq- (nf)\*(rq and \*(lqOrphaned Response\*(rq in an item's title mean?
997: .Lp
998: It means that the item was created by \*(lqnotefiles,\*(rq
999: an alternative news handling interface that many people prefer.
1000: If you want to find out more you can read the
1001: .i \*(lqNotesfile
1002: System Reference Manual\*(rq or contact
1003: .cn uiucdcs!essick .
1004: .Lp \06.
1005: What does \*(lq:\-)\*(rq mean?
1006: .Lp
1007: This is the net convention for a \*(lqsmiley face.\*(rq
1008: It means that something is being said in jest.
1009: If it doesn't look like a smiley face to you,
1010: flop your head over to the left and look again.
1011: .Lp \07.
1012: How do I decrypt jokes in
1013: .ng rec.humor ?
1014: .Lp
1015: The standard cipher used in
1016: .ng rec.humor
1017: in called \*(lqrot13.\*(rq
1018: Each letter is replaced by the letter 13 further along in the alphabet
1019: (cycling around at the end).
1020: Most systems have a built in command to decrypt such articles;
1021: .i readnews (1)
1022: and
1023: .i vnews (1)
1024: have the
1025: .qp D
1026: command,
1027: .i rn (1)
1028: (another popular public-domain full screen news reader) has the
1029: .qp X
1030: or
1031: .qc CONTROL-X
1032: commands,
1033: .i notes (1)
1034: has
1035: .qp %
1036: or
1037: .qp R .
1038: If your system doesn't have a program to encrypt and decrypt these,
1039: you can quickly create a shell script using
1040: .i tr (1):
1041: .sd c
1042: tr A\-Za\-z N\-ZA\-Mn\-za\-m
1043: .ed
1044: On some versions of
1045: .ux ,
1046: the
1047: .i tr
1048: command should be written as:
1049: .sd c
1050: tr \*(lq[a\-m][n\-z][A\-M][N\-Z]\*(rq \*(lq[n\-z][a\-m][N\-Z][A\-M]\*(rq
1051: .ed
1052: .Lp \08.
1053: .ng soc.net-people :
1054: Is John Doe out there anywhere?
1055: .Lp
1056: I suspect that these items are people looking for freshman roommates
1057: that they haven't seen in ten years.
1058: If you have some idea where the person is
1059: you are usually better off calling the organization.
1060: For example,
1061: if you call any Bell Labs location and request John Doe's number.
1062: They can give it to you even if he works at a different location.
1063: .Lp \09.
1064: .ng sci.math :
1065: Proofs that 1 \(eq 0.
1066: .Lp
1067: Almost everyone has seen one or more of these in high school.
1068: They are almost always based on either division by 0
1069: or taking the square root of a negative number.
1070: .Lp 10.
1071: .ng rec.games :
1072: Where can I get the source for
1073: .i empire (6)
1074: or
1075: .i rogue (6)?
1076: .Lp
1077: You can't.
1078: The authors of these games,
1079: as is their right,
1080: have chosen not to make the sources available.
1081: .Lp 11.
1082: .ng comp.unix.wizards :
1083: How do I remove files with
1084: .sm ASCII "" non-
1085: characters in their names?
1086: .Lp
1087: You can try to find a pattern that uniquely identifies the file.
1088: This sometimes fails because a peculiarity of some shells is that
1089: they strip off the high-order bit of characters in command lines.
1090: Next,
1091: you can try an \*(lqrm \-i\*(rq, or \*(lqrm \-r\*(rq
1092: (see
1093: .i rm (1).)
1094: Finally,
1095: you can mess around with i-node numbers and
1096: .i find (1).
1097: .Lp 12.
1098: .ng comp.unix.wizards :
1099: There is a bug in the way
1100: .ux
1101: handles protection for programs that run setuid.
1102: .Lp
1103: There are indeed problems with the treatment of protection in setuid programs.
1104: When this is brought up,
1105: suggestions for changes range from implementing a full capability list
1106: arrangement to new kernel calls for allowing more control over when
1107: the effective id is used and when the real id is used to control accesses.
1108: Sooner or later you can expect this to be improved.
1109: For now you just have to live with it.
1110: .Lp 13.
1111: .ng soc.women :
1112: What do you think about abortion?
1113: .Lp
1114: Although abortion might appear to be an appropriate topic for
1115: .ng soc.women ,
1116: more heat than light is generated when it is brought up.
1117: Since the newsgroup
1118: .ng talk.abortion
1119: has been created,
1120: all abortion-related discussion should take place there.
1121: .Lp 14.
1122: .ng soc.singles :
1123: What do \*(lqMOTOS,\*(rq
1124: \*(lqMOTSS,\*(rq, \*(lqMOTAS\*(rq,
1125: and \*(lqSO\*(rq stand for?
1126: .Lp
1127: Member of the opposite sex,
1128: member of the same sex,
1129: member of the appropriate sex,
1130: and significant other,
1131: respectively.
1132: .Lp 15.
1133: How do I use the
1134: .hf Distribution
1135: feature?
1136: .Lp
1137: When
1138: .i postnews (1)
1139: prompts you for a distribution,
1140: it's asking how widely distributed you want your article.
1141: The set of possible replies is different,
1142: depending on where you are,
1143: but at Bell Labs in Murray Hill,
1144: New Jersey,
1145: possibilities include:
1146: .sd c
1147: \!.ta 8n
1148: local\tlocal to this machine
1149: mh\tBell Labs, Murray Hill Branch
1150: nj\tall sites in New Jersey
1151: btl\tAll Bell Labs machines
1152: att\tAll AT&T machines
1153: usa\tEverywhere in the USA
1154: na\tEverywhere in North America
1155: world\tEverywhere on USENET in the world
1156: .ed
1157: If you hit
1158: .qc RETURN ,
1159: you'll get the default,
1160: which is the first part of the newsgroup name.
1161: This default is often not appropriate \-
1162: .i please
1163: take a moment to think about how far away people are likely
1164: to be interested in what you have to say.
1165: Used car ads,
1166: housing wanted ads,
1167: and things for sale other than specialized equipment like computers
1168: certainly shouldn't be distributed to Europe and Korea,
1169: or even to the next state.
1170: .Lp
1171: The newsgroup
1172: .ng misc.forsale
1173: exists for postings of sale announcements.
1174: Its distribution is limited to North America;
1175: posters should restrict this distribution even further,
1176: if possible and appropriate.
1177: .Lp 16.
1178: Why do some people put funny lines
1179: (\*(lqbug killers\*(rq)
1180: at the beginning of their articles?
1181: .Lp
1182: Some earlier versions of news had a bug which would drop
1183: the first 512 or 1024 bytes of text of certain articles.
1184: The bug was triggered whenever the article started with white space
1185: (a blank or a tab).
1186: A fix many people adopted was to begin their articles
1187: with a line containing a character other than white space.
1188: This gradually evolved into the habit of including amusing first lines.
1189: .Lp
1190: The original bug has since been fixed in newer version of news,
1191: and sites running older versions of news have applied a patch
1192: to prevent articles from losing text.
1193: The \*(lqbug-killer\*(rq lines are therefore probably no longer needed,
1194: but they linger on.
1195: .Lp 17.
1196: What is the address or phone number of the \*(lqfoo\*(rq company?
1197: .Lp
1198: Try the white and yellow pages of your phone directory,
1199: first;
1200: a sales representative will surely know,
1201: and if you're a potential customer they will be who you're looking for.
1202: Phone books for other cities are usually available in libraries of any size.
1203: Whoever buys or recommends things for your company
1204: will probably have some buyer's guides or national company directories.
1205: Call or visit the reference desk of your library;
1206: they have several company and organization directories
1207: and many will answer questions like this over the phone.
1208: Remember if you only know the city where the company is,
1209: you can telephone to find out their full address or a dealer.
1210: The network is
1211: .i not
1212: a free resource,
1213: although it may look like that to some people.
1214: It is far better to spend a few minutes of your own time
1215: researching an answer rather than broadcast
1216: your laziness and/or ineptness to the net.
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