When configuring your e-mail software (whether IMP/HORDE on Kielo, or Outlook Express, Eudora, Mozilla Thunderbird, etc., on your home computer, or a webmail account such as Gmail, Hotmail, etc.) and sending e-mail, one should observe the following conventions:

1. Use a Descriptive Subject Line
   Whenever mail is being sent to another person (as opposed to an e-mailed 'command' being sent to Listserv), either directly or via an e-mail 'list,' always fill in the Subject line. The subject should be long enough to specify what the message is about, and also distinguish it from mass-mailed 'spam' postings.

2. Use a Signature File
   Create a short (a maximum of 3 lines is considered proper 'netiquette' signature file which will be appended to all e-mail that you create, forward, or 'reply' to. At the top of your Signature File use the 'underscore' character to create a 40-character (roughly) line to separate the end of your e-mailed text from your signature file text. The signature file itself should include your name and e-mail address. It may also include a link to your personal web pages (whether other relevant personal data would be available for those who are interested) and/or your institution and 'status' where this is relevant. Do NOT include numerous lines of phone and fax numbers, full addresses, etc., etc.

3. Configure Your Mailer to Send and Receive "Plain-Text" E-mail
   
   1. Configure your e-mail software to send mail as "plain text" rather than as "HTML mail". This will eliminate the annoying "HTML attachments" that are often received from novice e-mailers. It will also ensure that your e-mail will be easily readable by all recipients, regardless of what software or platform they are using.

   2. Also configure your software so that it only receives incoming e-mail as "plain text," rather than as HTML. Increasingly, the images or scripts embedded in HTML-coded e-mail are being used to transmit viruses, implant 'spyware' on the recipient's computer, hijack your browser settings, etc. — all silently in the background without you ever knowing about it until it is too late.

      Setting your mailer to receive e-mail only as "plain text" will allow you to see 100% of the text sent, without risking any of the above-mentioned problems with HTML mail. Setting your mailer configuration (for example in IMP/Horde) to NOT display images even from people in your address book is an additional security step.

4. Double-space Between Text Paragraphs, and Do Not 'Indent' Paragraphs
   In your e-mail messages, set the line length in your mailer to a maximum of 74 characters per line. Use full-block paragraphing, without indentations at the beginning of a new paragraph. Keep your paragraphs relatively short: it is difficult to read overly-long paragraphs that fill an entire screen (or more) with continuous text.

   Use double-spacing to separate paragraphs from one another, and titles or section headers from the text which follows. Remember that you have no control over what software the recipient(s) of your mail may be using and how it has been configured to re-wrap, re-format, or otherwise possibly change into an unreadable mess mail which has not used double-spacing to separate the text elements. [This also applies to the coding of HTML pages, the paragraphs and sections of which should also be separated by double-spacing.]

5. Do Not Copy/Repeat Entire 'Received' Messages When 'Replying'
   When replying to a received e-mail note, configure your software so that it does not automatically copy the entire message you originally received to your your reply to that message. If you wish to comment on specific parts of a received message, copy-and-paste only those parts of the message into your reply.

6. Do Not Send 'Attachments' Unless It Is Absolutely Necessary and Permission Has Been Received
   Do not append 'attachments' to your e-mail notes unless (a) this is the only method by which the information you are sending can be conveyed in its proper format; and (b) you have first checked with the recipient that they can receive 'attachments' in the format you are considering.

   Sending e-mail as plain text in the body of an e-mail note (not as an attachment) is always the easiest and most reliable way for recipients to receive your information. If you are sending 4-5 paragraphs or ordinary text which you happened to compose in Word, copy-and-paste the text from Word to the body of your e-mail software rather than sending it as an attachment.

   If you are sending a highly formatted text, such as an academic paper with lots of boldface, italics, different fonts, etc., then an attachment will be necessary. RTF format should be used unless the text contains images or other exceptional formatting which may be lost with RTF. In this case check with the intended recipient whether some other format, such as PDF, can be used.