TIP OF THE WEEK: on-list or off-list?
- To: i*@Rt66.com
- Subject: TIP OF THE WEEK: on-list or off-list?
- From: T* T* L* <t*@Rt66.com>
- Date: Tue, 12 Nov 1996 14:52:43 -0700
When you reply to a message you read on Iris-L, your response automatically
goes to the whole list. This is usually what is intended...everyone gets
to participate in the ongoing discussion. However, there are also times
when you might want to reply to a message "off-list". For example,
+ if the original message requests off-list responses
+ if your reply is of interest only to the original sender, not to
everyone else
+ if there's something sensitive in your reply that you'd rather
keep private
+ if the subject has gone so far off the topic of irises that you
think it's no longer appropriate to the list
Common uses of off-list replies are in responding to offers of seeds,
catalogs, books, etc., that are occasionally posted here, sending
someone help on a computer or listserver problem, or arranging some
local iris business or get-together with someone.
On some lists, it is customary to post a question and request that
replies be sent off-list. The original poster then collects the replies
and posts a summary back to the list. On Iris-L, we prefer to have all
the real iris talk go on on-list where everyone can enjoy it, rather
than posting summaries.
If you need (or want) to reply to a posting off-list, you can either
use the "reply" function and manually change the "To:" address, replacing
the Iris-L address with the poster's address, or you can make a brand
new message using the poster's address.
In any case, it's always a good practice to double-check the "To:" line
in a message header before sending *any* email. I think everyone at
some time or other has written paper letters and stuffed the wrong one
in the wrong envelope. It happens with email to, but much more easily!
Enjoy the list,
Tom.
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Tom Tadfor Little telp@Rt66.com
Santa Fe, New Mexico (USA)
Telperion Productions http://www.rt66.com/telp/
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