Netiquette 101: Rule # 3 - "Toto...I don't think we're in Kansas anymore!"

In this part of the ongoing series on Netiquette, we will discuss Rule #3, "Know Where You are in Cyberspace."  We briefly discussed in the last post that we are not all hatched from under the same rock and not all of those rocks are equal. Take for instance this example:

"The Japanese company Matsushita Electric was promoting a new Japanese PC for internet users. Panasonic created the new web browser and had received license to use the cartoon character Woody Woodpecker as an interactive internet guide. 


The day before the huge marketing campaign, Panasonic realised its error and pulled the plug. Why? The ads for the new product featured the following slogan:
 
 "Touch Woody - The Internet Pecker." The company only realised its cross cultural blunder when an embarrassed American explain what "touch Woody's pecker" could be interpreted as!"

It would have been a horrible marketing blunder but since I've never heard this web browser here in the states, maybe Matsushita (Panasonic) should have used "Touch Woody - The Internet Pecker."

The basic rule here is to "Lurk Before You Leap", hang around in a forum or blog and read more before you drop any responses or comments.  Ignorance is never bliss.

Netiquette 101: Rule #2 - "Just because you live in a barrel doesn't mean you have to act like a monkey"

I have found it interesting that peoples behavior changes dramatically when they believe they won't get caught doing something.  I'm quite sure there are volumes of articles written by the mental health community as to why this is.  Through all the 50 cent words they use to give reasoning to this human phenomenon, there is an obvious reason for it. 

We are naughty because...well....we can be.  It's that simple.  And if we really think we'll never be caught, we behave even more outlandishly.  Interesting, eh?

So, you add this theory to how anonymous we perceive the internet to be, the humans inherently naughty nature  and {{WHAM}} you've got an irresistible combination.  Invisibility + Naughty Nature = A barrel of monkeys!

Today's rule is a little more formal than my silly rendition but you get the picture.  This rule has a few simple principals to follow for clean, clear and respectful internet communication:

1. Be Ethical
2. Breaking the Ethical Laws is Bad Netiquette!

Being ethical seems simple enough but there are caveats because we all didn't hatch from the same egg on an island in the South Pacific.  But this is about communication so follow an ethical approach to talking.  As in real life, think before you speak (type), read and re-read until you know you've not offended the hair off someones head with your opinions.  Really people....if you're willing to be seen doing or saying what ever you are typing, then by all means go ahead and send/post it....but don't blame the internet for the nuclear fallout you'll experience later. 

And there are repercussions for our "Bad Netiquette", like some people have found out the hard way.  Remember the young lady who lost her high-paying job because of several "naughty" Facebook posts from a long party weekend?  Or the fella who lost his job and fiance after a YouTube video was posted from his very naughty bachelor party? 

A more applicable example to this article is "Ned" who made several online pseudo-profiles and proceeded to post things like "Cats are crunchy and taste good with ketchup" and "Did you smack your baby today?" But after 100's of bans as inappropriate "Ned's" IP address was flagged by his ISP and {{SMACK}} the bars slammed shut on his high-speed internet account.  Wanna be on dial-up?  Jump in the barrel with the rest of the monkeys. 

In the next post, we'll review Rule #3: "Lurk before you leap"

Netiquette 101: Rule # 1 - "Remember the Human"

I liked this course so much I decided I would pass on the information and hopefully someone will find it as useful as I did.  This week's posts are dedicated to this topic...and maybe even next week if I don't drive everyone crazy playing "Ms. Manner's of the Internet".

Rule #1:  Remember the Human
I touched on this in yesterday's post, the whole "Do unto others" approach to communication.  Lets dive a little deeper into typical and a-typical human behavior.

Typical (in a workplace or home setting)

• Human tends to think (not everyone) before it speaks.
• Human is a little more concerned about losing its job by not using foul language.
• Human tends to consider others feelings (albeit briefly).

 A-Typical (The internet, driving a car on a busy freeway, emails, blogs)

• Human uses vial language and has vivid expressions of inappropriate behaviors.
• Human subjects others to its naughty thoughts (like we want to know the sewage that flows between your ears?).
• Human has no regard for the other person it is "flaming" because it falsely believes the internet provides it with anonymity.  (not the case, but ignorance is bliss, right?)

As quoted from the official Netiquette training manual at Albion.com:

"It's ironic, really. Computer networks bring people together who'd otherwise never meet. But the impersonality of the medium changes that meeting to something less -- well, less personal. Humans exchanging email often behave the way some people behind the wheel of a car do: They curse at other drivers, make obscene gestures, and generally behave like savages. Most of them would never act that way at work or at home. But the interposition of the machine seems to make it acceptable."

Here is the earth-shattering kaboom....one single, simple, basic rule: (and it is not news to 99.9% of the population)

1. "Would you say it to the persons face?"

I'll close with a quote from this book that should be a clear reminder of how truly visible you really are on the internet:

"Never forget the story of famous email user Oliver North. Ollie, you'll remember, was a great devotee of the White House email system, PROFS. He diligently deleted all incriminating notes he sent or received. What he didn't realize was that, somewhere else in the White House, computer room staff were equally diligently backing up the mainframe where his messages were stored. When he went on trial, all those handy backup tapes were readily available as evidence against him."

Next, we'll tackle Rule #2 - "Just because you live in a barrel doesn't mean you have to act like a monkey"