Creative Computers/Creative Computers CD-ROM, Volume 1 (Legendary Design Technologies, Inc.)(1994).iso/text/misc/bob's_bored/gen_rule.doc

Text File | 1994-11-17 | 7KB | 136 lines

Computer Etiquette -- general rules to follow on a BBS
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This file was gotten off the TBBS Software Support BBS. It is a
good set of rules to follow if you wish to remain welcome on the
BBSes that you call. Please capture the following text and save
it somewhere, so that you will have it as a reference. If you do
follow these rules, then you will save  yourself and the SYSOPs
alot of hassles.


Computer Etiquette, By Mel North
--------------------------------

The following are a few points of general BBS etiquette. If you
wish to maintain your welcome on whatever system you happen to
call, it would be to your advantage to observe these few rules.

1.  Don't habitually hang up on a system. Every Sysop is aware
that accidental  disconnections happen once in a while but we do
tend to get annoyed with people who hang up every single time
they call because they are either too lazy to terminate properly
or they labor under the mistaken assumption that the 10 seconds
they save online is going to significantly alter their phone
bill.  "Call Waiting" is not an acceptable excuse for long. If
you have it and intend to use the line to call BBS systems, you
should either have it disconnected or find some other way to
circumvent it.

2. Don't do dumb things like leave yourself a message that says
"Just testing to see if this thing works". Where do you think all
those other messages came from if it didn't work? Also, don't
leave whiny messages that say "Please leave me a message". If
ever there was a person to ignore, it's the one who begs someone
to leave him a message. If you want to get messages, start by
reading the ones that are already online and getting involved in
the conversations that exist.

3. Don't use the local equivalent of a chat command unless you
really have some clear cut notion of what you want to say and
why. Almost any Sysop is more than happy to answer questions or
offer help concerning his system. Unfortunately,  because about
85% of the people who call want to chat and about 99% of those
people have absolutely nothing to say besides "How old are you?"
or something  equally irrelevant, fewer Sysops even bother
answering their pagers every day.

4. When you are offered a place to leave comments when exiting a
system, don't  try to use this area to ask the Sysop questions.
It is very rude to the other  callers to expect the Sysop to
carry on a half visible conversation with  someone. If you have a
question or statement to make and expect the Sysop to  respond to
it, it should always be made in the section where all the other
messages are kept. This allows the Sysop to help many people with
the same problem with the least amount of effort on his part.

5. Before you log on with your favorite pseudonym, make sure that
handles are allowed. Most Sysops don't want people using handles
on the system. There is  not enough room for them, they get silly
games of one-upmanship started, it is  much nicer to deal with a
person on a personal basis, and last but not least,  everyone
should be willing to take full responsibility for his actions or
comments instead of slinging mud from behind a phony name. Also
when signing  on, why not sign on just like you would introduce
yourself in your own society? How many of you usually introduce
yourselves as Joe W Smutz the 3rd or 4th?

6. Take the time to log on properly. There is no such place as
RIV, HB, ANA or  any of a thousand other abbreviations people use
instead of their proper city.  You may think that everyone knows
what RIV is supposed to mean, but every BBS  has people calling
from all around the country and I assure you that someone  from
Podunk, Iowa has no idea what you're talking about.

7. Don't go out of your way to make rude observations like "Gee,
this system is slow". Every BBS is a tradeoff of features. You
can generally assume that if  someone is running a particular
brand of software, that he is either happy with it or he'll
decide to find another system he likes better. It does nobody any
good when you make comments about something that you perceive to
be a flaw when it is running the way the Sysop wants it to.
Constructive criticism is somewhat more welcome. If you have an
alternative method that seems to make good sense  then run it up
the flagpole.

8. When leaving messages, stop and ask yourself whether it is
necessary to make it private. Unless there is some particular
reason that everyone shouldn't know what you're saying, don't
make it private. We don't call them PUBLIC bulletin  boards for
nothing, folks. It's very irritating to other callers when there
are huge blank spots in the messages that they can't read and it
stifles  interaction between callers.

9. If your favorite BBS has a time limit, observe it. If it
doesn't, set a  limit for yourself and abide by it instead. Don't
tie up a system untitem as a  new user and run right to the other
numbers list. There is probably very little that's more annoying
to any Sysop than to have his board completely passed over by you
on your way to another board.

10. Have the common courtesy to pay attention to what passes in
front of your  face. When a BBS displays your name and asks "Is
this you?", don't say yes when you can see perfectly well that it
is misspelled. Also, don't start asking  questions about simple
operation of a system until you have thoroughly read all of the
instructions that are available to you. I assure you that it
isn't any  fun to answer a question for the thousandth time when
the answer is prominently displayed in the system bulletins or
instructions. Use some common sense when  you ask your questions.
The person who said "There's no such thing as a stupid  question"
obviously never operated a BBS.

11. Don't be personally abusive. It doesn't matter whether you
like a Sysop or  think he's a jerk. The fact remains that he has
a large investment in making  his computer available, usually out
of the goodness of his heart. If you don't  like a Sysop or his
system, just remember that you can change the channel any  time
you want. Besides, whether you are aware of it or not, if you
make  yourself enough of an annoyance to any Sysop, he can take
the time to trace you down and make your life, or that of your
parents, miserable.

12. Keep firmly in mind that you are a guest on any BBS you
happen to call.  Don't think of logging on as one of your basic
human rights. Every person that  has ever put a computer system
online for the use of other people has spent a  lot of time and
money to do so. While he doesn't expect nonstop pats on the
back, it seems reasonable that he should at least be able to
expect fair  treatment from his callers. This includes following
any of the rules for system use he has laid out without grumping
about it. Every Sysop has his own idea of  how he wants his
system to be run. It is really none of your business why he wants
to run it the way he does. Your business is to either abide by
what he says, or call some other BBS where you feel that you can
obey the rules.