Good Evening. The UnderNet User Committee brings this instructional script to you. Please send comments, suggestions or ideas to class@undernet.org. Our Webpage is http://www.user-com.undernet.org/class/ -- We'd like to welcome you all to the Netiquette Class. [INT1] Etiquette is defined as rules governing socially acceptable behavior. Netiquette refers to those etiquette rules for people.s online behavior. [INT2] Keep in mind that manners online are no different from manners in real life. This class will discuss online netiquette issues for both general chat channels and help channels. [INT3] Now for the rules of the class. These are to your benefit to prevent disruption. [R1] The teaching staff is divided up alphabetically. Each tutor will answer questions for the nickname group they are assigned to: For example, A-G_Tutor handles nicks starting with A through G, and so on. If your nickname starts with anything else, don't sweat it. Just use the tutor with -A- included in their nickname group. [R2] Please ask any questions you have about IRC or this class to your tutor. To do this, type /msg . Please do not /notice me, your tutor, or the channel. [R3] The channel is also set to +m. This means only the teacher and tutors will be able to talk. This is set to prevent disruptions of the class. [R4] To get rid of interruptions of people joining the channel, we also set it to +D. This means that you won't see join/parts or too many nicknames in the nicklist. For more info about this mode ask your tutor. [R5] I'd ask that you please do not message me. I have the job of keeping the lesson flowing. Pose all questions to your tutor. [R6] If you plan to stay for the class, you may wish to log the session - please turn on your logging now (type: /log on ). If you need help with this, please /msg your tutor. [R7] The numbers and letters you see at the end of these lines are reference marks. They help me and the tutors to find where they are during the class. You do not need to pay attention to these. [R8] Part I: General Chat Channel Etiquette: [A1] What are the secrets of online communication success in chat channels? [A2] It is unfortunate that, these days, people tend not to pay much attention to (or ignore altogether) good manners. If you intend to meet new people and begin the basics of a long-term relationship, do not underestimate the importance of first impressions. [A3] People will first make an impression regarding your nickname. Choose a nick that represents you well and does not offend people. The same goes for a username if you register one. Second, people will judge you by your words. The first rule here is "Be polite". [A4] Being polite is the best way to get along with people in the channels you frequent. [A5] To help in creating good conversation and to make a good impression, here are some suggestions about online communication: [A6] Online communication does not offer the advantage of observing the reaction of your partner. You sometimes cannot know that your message is read the way you intended it to be. Make yourself clear, be sincere and use emoticons to show emotion. [A7] They help people communicate when written lines cannot allow one to hear voice inflections or see facial expressions and gestures, as in normal face-to-face communication. [A8] When you are talking about you, think about the sort of impression you are conveying about you. That is why the information should be as real as possible, because it is not fair to anyone to try to make a false image of yourself. Be as honest as possible. [A9] Try to stimulate the conversation, ask questions that show your interest in the other person; so between lines, insert some information about yourself. [A10] Cultivate a sense of humor in online conversations to help create a nice, friendly atmosphere. [A11] All of us have the right to converse with more than one person at one time. This does not show lack of loyalty or sincerity; it is just a way to search and discover interesting people. [A12] Answer the ones who try to communicate with you. Even if you are not interested in talking with them, show respect and send them a message, informing them of your decision. [A13] If, at any time, you reach the conclusion that you do not match with one person and that you want to quit talking with him, inform him and say thanks for the conversation. [A14] If someone does not want to talk with you, do not force him to change his decision. If you still want him to have a good impression about you, you can send a nice "bye" message. [A15] There is no point in starting contradictory discussions, threatening, or being impolite. The fact that person thinks you are not the right one for him, does not give you the right to be impolite or blame him. [A16] Treat private conversations as private. It is rude and there could be copyright issues if you share private logs with others. Never post them on the Internet without the other person.s permission. Treat others as you would like to be treated and you will almost never go wrong. [A17] Be sure to read the topic when you join a channel. The rules or the channel.s URL are often displayed there. Read them and obey them. That is just common courtesy when in someone.s channel. [A18] Take the time to watch the channel a bit, get an idea what the channel is for and how people behave there. Speak the language others are speaking in the channel. If uncertain of particular rules in the channel, ask. [A19] Some IRC clients allow a person to create an auto-greet command that greets people as they enter a channel you are in, whether you are idling or not. These commands are considered insincere and a nuisance. Please do not use them. [A20] We address each other by nicks on IRC. If you happen to know someone.s real name, ask permission from them to use it instead of their nick. It is both confusing to the other people in a channel when you use a real name to speak to someone instead of their nick, and it may upset the person.s whose name you are exposing. [A21] Join in, become an asset to the channel, and have fun. ;-) [A22] We'll now pause briefly in case you have any questions that you need to ask your tutor. We will do this during and after every session to allow you to ask questions. Remember, /MSG the tutor with your nickname group. [AP] Part II: Help Channels: How to Behave in a Help Channel to Get the Help you Need: [B1] Be aware that help channels are staffed by volunteers, they give freely of their time, resources and expertise; no one pays them to help you, so treat them with respect and courtesy. [B2] First, consider your nick. If you go into a help channel with an obscene or offensive nick, you will probably not be helped, and may very well earn a ban. Help channels help people of all ages and cultures and using a nick that is offensive is just plain dumb. This goes for offensive language as well. Do not use foul or offensive language. [B3] Read the topic of the channel when you enter. It often has the rules posted in it. If it is in English, use English, if in French, use French or ask what languages are allowed in the channel. [B4] Ask your question. Ask it in the channel. Do not message ops or other people in the channel. One big no-no is asking to ask a question. This will only annoy the helpers in there who are already waiting to answer questions quickly so they can move on to the next person. [B5] If after you ask your question and there is no immediate reply, wait. Ops are often busy and they may be helping someone else first - it does not mean they did not see your question or that they are ignoring you. Lag may be a factor too, and it may take quite a few seconds for them to even see the question you posted. [B6] Do not repeat your question over and over again; that will be considered abuse in the channel and result in a kick or ban. Repeatedly asking the same question only makes you irritating and it will not speed up the response. Check the buffer, scroll up and be sure your question was not answered before you decide to ask one more time. [B7] Do not use colors, bold text or other formatting to draw attention to yourself. That kind of attention is not the kind you are looking for. Many IRC clients cannot process your client's text formatting and others may not be able to read what you ask. [B8] It is advised that you generally keep one nickname, and do not change it while in a help channel. This allows helpers to keep up with the person asking the question. [B9] Do not type in capital letters. This method of typing is considered YELLING and it is considered bad manners to type everything in caps. Some people do this because they think they'll get noticed more if they use caps. They're right, but that extra attention usually comes with a kick. [B10] Keep in mind that a help channel is a help channel, not a chat channel. People are there to get help, not to chat and get to know you. Keep chat to a bare minimum in a help channel. [B11] Do not ask for ops, access or voice in a help channel. If the administrators of that channel want you to have access, be assured, they will let you know. [B12] When you ask your question or post any follow-ups to your question, please try to type it all on one line, without hitting the Enter key after every other word. You do not want to flood the channel; you want help, remember? It makes it very difficult to follow your question if you keep entering a few words at a time. [B13] Do not ask about anything illegal in a help channel. You will not get help on it. [B14] Do not use a help channel as a testing ground. Test elsewhere, and never bring a bot into a help channel. [B15] Don't play sounds in a help channel, and be sure you have turned off any auto greets and disruptive remote commands you may have running before going into the channel. [B16] Do not use any channel to spam. Spam is unsolicited advertising. Do not advertise your channel and do not ask for supporters for your channel! [B17] Always ask your questions in the channel and do not message an op or helper for help in a help channel. [B18] Remember ops are the rulers of the channel and what they say goes. Do not argue with an op. Ops are always right! ;-) [B19] Do not idle in a help channel, unless told you may do so. Many help channels do not allow idling. Ask your question and leave. In general, treat people the way you would like to be treated. IRC is for fun, show your best side and you will attract others who are fun to be with. [B20] It is always nice to thank people for helping you. [B21] We'll now pause briefly in case you have any questions that you need to ask your tutor. We will do this during and after every session to allow you to ask questions. Remember, /MSG the tutor with your nickname group. [BP] [19:16] <+]Class[> Part III: Help Channels: How to Be an Effective Helper in a Help Channel: [C1] The most important thing to remember when helping someone is, "Remember when you were new". We all are new to IRC and Undernet once. Try to remember what that felt like when you help people. [C2] Each help channel has its own rules and policies. Be sure you know and understand them before you offer help. [C3] Give help publicly on the channel, since the help may apply to other users, and so that we may monitor who is getting help and if that help is accurate. Your helping them in the channel will likely answer the question about to be asked by another user, effectively killing two birds with one stone. [C4] Do not offer help on anything that violates IRC server policies, e.g. how to annoy, takeover, flood, clone, collide, spoof, etc. Do not offer help with anything illegal, e.g. nuking (denial of service attacks), warez (software piracy), etc. [C5] If you are an op, you are in a position of authority and responsibility, so keep that in mind. Also keep in mind that you're only in a position of authority in an IRC channel, so don't take the job, or yourself, too seriously. Don't kick people for no reason. Try to let the person know why they are being kicked in your kick message. [C6] When someone is asked by name to help someone, please allow time for that person to answer. It is just plain rude to answer for someone else. If someone is helping, feel free to add to that help, but do not take over for the person who is handling the question. Being a question hog is not pretty. [C7] Answer only questions you are sure about. Say you do not know when you do not know an answer. It is better than guessing at an answer and confusing or misleading the questioner. [C8] Address the person you are helping by his/her nickname. Sometimes several questions are being asked at once, and it.s important that the questioners know which answers are directed to them. [C9] Be polite while helping people. Keep remembering how it was when you were new! [C10] IRC is a wonderful way of meeting and talking to people all over the world in real time. By being polite and using everyday manners and showing others courtesy, you will make friends that you will value for a long time. The Golden Rule (.Treat others the way you would like to be treated..) really is a good concept to follow. [C11] We'll pause briefly in case you have any questions that you would like to ask your tutor. [CP] CLOSING: #class is held every Friday at 7:30 pm EDT (Fri 23:30GMT) and Sunday at 12:30AM Eastern (Sun 16:30PM GMT). [D1] It has been a pleasure to teach the class today, and we all hope you learned something new. [D2] IRC is a fun and exciting way to communicate with others. We hope you enjoy it and will spend more of your time here, with us. We look forward to helping you and providing a great network for your enjoyment and education. [D3] We'd like to thank the people who made this script possible: Many additions and changes have been made and therefore many people have been involved, I can't mention all the names, but to those who helped, THANK YOU very much. [D4] We'd also like to thank all the tutors who volunteer their time to help you every week. [D5] Before ending this class I would like your attention please, as I have to make some important announcements that concern your security. [D6] Windows® users: Visit http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/downloads/ie6/default.asp Download and install the latest version of Internet Explorer. After that constantly keep your system up-to-date visiting http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ by downloading ALL critical security patches. [D7] The last advice is to NEVER click on websites spammed on IRC or type commands that people say it will stop hackers, spambots or protect your nickname or channel. And do not accept any files via DCC from anyone you do not know and trust. [D8] Thank you all for attending, and we wish you a pleasant chat on Undernet. [END] 09:18 24/06/2008 eof