On the Internet, a mailing list is a discussion group that promulgates its member's messages via e-mail. This is accomplished by using a listserver, which is a computer that automatically receives messages from members of the discussion group, and sends all received messages to every member of the group at a specified time interval (hourly, daily, weekly, etc.). These messages are usually compiled and sent to each user as one large e-mail message, but they can also be sent individually. Most of the specific details can be set by the mailing list administrator, and often by each individual member of the list.
The topic of discussion on a mailing list varies from list to list. There are mailing lists that discuss everything from gardening to television shows to computer programming. Regardless of the topic, it is nearly always advisable to keep your posts on the assigned topic of that group. Most mailing lists are small in size when compared to Usenet newsgroups. Mailing lists are also usually more controlled than newsgroups. Mailing lists do have their disadvantages, however. Because all messages are sent as e-mail, one must read through every message, regardless of the subject.
Finding Mailing Lists
With thousands of mailing lists to choose from, it can be quite difficult to find the one you're looking for. If you know of any web pages devoted to the topic you are looking for, check those pages to see if a mailing list is mentioned. You can also ask other people on the Internet who are interested in the desired topic if they know of any mailing lists. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology FTP server, rtfm.mit.edu, has several lists of known mailing lists available to the public, which can be quite helpful when trying to find just the right mailing list.
Smiley's and Emoticons
Writing a personal letter using nothing but a standard alpha-numeric keyboard is an extremely difficult task. This is because people usually communicate using more than just words. We convey emotions, facial expressions, and other subtle body movements that help add "flavor" to our sentences. Believe it or not, but this can all be accomplished in the world of e-mail, as well.
To aid the art of e-mail communications, early Internet users developed a system of characters using different combinations of standard ASCII characters that represent human emotions. These characters are called smiley's, or emoticons (pronounced ee-MOTE-eh-cons). A smiley is read by leaning your head down toward your left shoulder and looking at the characters sideways, reading from left to right. For example, a simple happy face is:
:-)
Although you can use smiley's anywhere in your message, try not to over use these characters -- too many can make your message hard to read. Here are some common smiley's:
Descriptive
Remember, there is no "official" set of smiley's, so be creative! If you need help, check out the Unofficial Smiley Dictionary.
In addition to smiley's and emoticons, you can also add emotion to your actual e-mail text! For example, you can SHOUT on-line, or add _emphasis_ to a word, if you like. Shouting is accomplished simply by typing the part to be shouted in all caps. Because typing in all caps is considered shouting in the Internet world, you need to be sure that you don't leave your caps lock key on while typing e-mail messages, because everyone will think that you're shouting at them. It's just not polite.
As previously mentioned, emphasis can also be placed on a word or group of words. This is done by placing an underscore (the _ character - typed by "shifting" your dash key on most keyboards) before and after the word or groups of words to be emphasized. For example, "I'm _only_ 43 years old." In this example, the word, "only," would be emphasized. If you were to say the example aloud, you would raise the pitch of your voice slightly on the word, "only." Although the "underscore-emphasis" technique isn't used as often as the "all-caps-shouting" method, both can be found quite frequently on the Internet.
Internet Abbreviations
Some abbreviations commonly used in e-mail and other messages on the Internet are as follows:
BTW - By the way
c-ya - See you later
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
FWIW - For what it's worth
IMHO - In my humble opinion
LOL - Laughing out loud
OTOH - On the other hand
RTFM - Read the @%&!^ manual! (Read the FAQ)
TIA - Thanks in advance
By the way (BTW), the abbreviation RTFM gives us the name of the largest Usenet FAQ archive on the Internet, rtfm.mit.edu.