08-22-2009, 06:39 PM
You're right, Carl. 
It's unfortunate that the relative anonymity afforded by the internet causes many people to forget their usual manners (there's no accounting for those who are rude in person, though 
). I've always felt like I'm among friends here, and I would hope that the rest of the Membership feels the same. Even if someone requests criticism of their work, most of us have the common sense to limit our remarks to the topic at hand and most will offer suggestions for possible improvements.
A bonus of electronic communication is the ability to reply rapidly. The part of that that's often overlooked is the ability to re-read what we've written (perhaps in haste, under some outside stress, or in anger) before hitting the "SEND" button. I've let a couple of "quick" replies sit overnight before sending them, usually revised, and have sometimes deleted them completely. We all have our own ways of modelling and our own ways of expressing ourselves, but the latter should always be done with civility - the same, I would hope, as if we were to meet in person.
Wayne
It's unfortunate that the relative anonymity afforded by the internet causes many people to forget their usual manners (there's no accounting for those who are rude in person, though ). I've always felt like I'm among friends here, and I would hope that the rest of the Membership feels the same. Even if someone requests criticism of their work, most of us have the common sense to limit our remarks to the topic at hand and most will offer suggestions for possible improvements. A bonus of electronic communication is the ability to reply rapidly. The part of that that's often overlooked is the ability to re-read what we've written (perhaps in haste, under some outside stress, or in anger) before hitting the "SEND" button. I've let a couple of "quick" replies sit overnight before sending them, usually revised, and have sometimes deleted them completely. We all have our own ways of modelling and our own ways of expressing ourselves, but the latter should always be done with civility - the same, I would hope, as if we were to meet in person.
Wayne