Jocelyn, thanks for making this point
more follows, but the key point of this message, if you don't want to
read it all, is:
Please use "Reply", not "Reply All"
There has been a spate of "me too" messages recently, and I
have been thinking of sending a message on this point myself, but thought
I would just check that I wasn't missing something. Namely, that
perhaps
(a) messages were being sent back to the whole list by accident, or
(b) there was a good reason for posting to the whole list
Re (a)
With some email lists (for example Museums Computer Group) hitting Reply
posts to the whole list - with consequences ranging from mildly amusing
to mildly disastrous, depending on the nature of the inadvertently
broadcast message!
The GEM list is set to "reply to sender only" to avoid
this sort of accident, and also to cut down on the number of unnecessary
emails. The only way to post to the whole list (there are 860 GEM
list subscribers) is to type in the email address [log in to unmask], OR
to use the "Reply to all" button instead of
"Reply".
Re (b)
I asked a few people who had sent messages to the whole list asking (one
person) for a summary why they did email the whole list.
("Cmon, fess up, why DO you do it?")
One person said that they always "reply-all", as this makes it
easier for the person collating messages to send them out to the right
people - which is laudable, but it doesn't help,
unfortunately. Also, many people post summaries to the whole list
anyway if they get a good response.
The other reason people post to the whole list is that they want other
people to know that they are working on the same topic - which is fine
when they share some useful information or add a new perspective to guide
responses, but is annoying when the only point is self promotion.
So to summarise: unless there is a good reason to post to the whole
list, please use the Reply button (not the Reply All button).
Best wishes
Martin
---
Martin Bazley
GEM list owner
At 13:31 23/02/2005 +0000, Jocelyn Goddard wrote:
Dear
all
sorry to be bad-tempered on this lovely snowy
afternoon but if you want to be copied replies to a query, please could
you contact the person direct rather than going through the list?
Otherwise our inboxes get clogged up with people saying "me
too".
thanks
Jocelyn
Jocelyn Goddard
Access and Learning Adviser
South East Museum, Library and Archive
Council
The Garden Room
Historic Dockyard
CHATHAM
Kent ME4 4TE
01634 405031
www.semlac.org.uk
---
Martin Bazley
ICT4Learning
15 Margin Drive
Wimbledon
SW19 5HA
07803 580 727
www.ICT4Learning.com
