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E-Mail Guidelines

Quick Contents

• Full Contents
• Introduction [Subtopics]
• Writing style [Subtopics]
• Quoting [Subtopics]
• Formatting [Subtopics]
• Organization [Subtopics]
• Addressing [Subtopics]
• Subject lines [Subtopics]
• Citing other e-mail messages [Subtopics]
• Signature [Subtopics]
• Mailing list guidelines [Subtopics]
• Guidelines for MFM Employees [Subtopics]
• Links to other resources

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Full Contents

• Quick Contents
• Introduction
  • Advantages of e-mail
  • Take it from the pros
• Writing style
• Quoting
• Formatting
• Organization
• Addressing
• Subject lines
• Citing other e-mail messages
• Signature
• Mailing list guidelines
• Guidelines for MFM Employees
• Links to other resources

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Introduction

Advantages of e-mail

Electronic mail (e-mail) is an exceptionally efficient way for people to exchange detailed technical information. E-mail provides many advantages over conversing on the telephone or in person. For example:

• E-mail reduces the real-time constraint: E-mail largely frees people from the real-time constraint; that is, two or more people do not need to schedule a common time to meet in person or talk on the phone. Instead, the computer buffers the communication between all participants, allowing each one to respond as his or her schedule allows. This reduces stress, interruptions, and time conflict. E-mail gives you time to research your answers to questions. E-mail allows you to accumulate work over a period of time and then attack it at once, without having to be available for the entire period. For example, you can accumulate e-mail during nights or a weekend and attend to it in a few hours without having to be present to handle each message as it arrives.
• E-mail leaves a record: Human memories are fallible. After a few weeks or months, two people may remember completely different versions of a conversation, or nobody may be able to remember important details about how to solve a specific problem when it happens again. In business such errors can be costly. With e-mail you can save a record of your conversations with other people and be able to verify exactly what a particular person wrote on a particular date. At MFM we archive our mailing lists so subscribers can browse past messages and search them for keywords. This is enormously useful for finding solutions to technical support problems, for example.
• E-mail is easy to copy: Since e-mail messages are just computer files, they are easy to copy and send to additional people. This is useful whenever a group of people wish to invite new people to join an ongoing conversation. If the conversation had taken place over the telephone or face-to-face, one of the participants would have the tedious job of repeating the details to the new participant(s). With e-mail you can simply forward copies of the old messages or reference them in an archive to permit the new participants to catch up.
• E-mail makes it easy to reference other resources on the Web: Most modern e-mail programs are Web-aware. If you type or paste a valid URL in the body of your e-mail message, the recipient's e-mail program will recognize the URL and turn it into a clickable hyperlink. This enables you to reference Web pages and other Internet resources (such as files on an ftp site) very conveniently.
• E-mail handles the details: Most people convey technical information better by writing it than by speaking it. Most people comprehend technical information better by reading it than by hearing it. Complex procedures, specifications, computer commands all travel better in written form. In some cases the recipient doesn't even have to "understand" the message; for example, a recipient can paste a DOS command directly from your e-mail message into an MS-DOS prompt window on his or her computer. This is often much easier than reciting complex commands full of obscure characters over the telephone.
• E-mail overcomes distance cheaply: Anybody with Internet access can send almost unlimited amounts of e-mail to anybody else in the world with an e-mail address for a flat monthly rate. Once a group of people have structured their work habits around e-mail, the members of that group can work anywhere in the world that they desire.

There are other advantages of e-mail that become obvious as you use it. But mostly you will find your work becoming more rational, enjoyable, and valuable to your employer as you improve your e-mail skills and rely on e-mail more for your work.

Take it from the pros

The best way to develop good e-mail habits is to imitate the people who use e-mail well. As you read hundreds of e-mail messages from dozens of people, you'll discover that some people are better than others at creating messages that are easy to understand. The difference is no accident. People who have years of experience running complex businesses with e-mail are usually much better at it than people who are just starting. Avoid the common beginner mistake of imagining that you can become an e-mail expert in one afternoon. It takes time to learn the how's and why's of writing quality e-mail.

• This page can help. After you understand the guidelines on this page and incorporate them into your work habits, you'll be writing e-mail that others will enjoy rather than ridicule at or complain about.
• Guidelines become all the more important when you begin participating in mailing lists or Usenet newsgroups. When large numbers of people begin sending e-mail message to each other, it becomes essential for all participants to follow a common style. The style guidelines on this page follow the Usenet standard. The Usenet standard evolved over the last two decades as a total of several million people learned by trial and error how best to carry on large-group electronic conversations. Your online experience will be much better if you learn from their past mistakes rather than repeat them.

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Writing style

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Quoting

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Formatting

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Organzation

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Addressing

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Subject lines

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Citing other e-mail messages

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Signature

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Mailing list guidelines

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Guidelines for MFM Employees

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Links to other resources

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Last modification date: Monday, August 17, 1998