Netiquette For Remote Communication

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Version Date: September 22, 2016.

Type of Memo: Normative

Email Netiquette

  1. Use plain text email. Do NOT send HTML email, please. Email isn't the place to get creative with formatting.
  2. No return receipts, please.
  3. Attachments should be avoided, if at all possible. In any case, do NOT send proprietary attachments (Word, PowerPoint, etc). I will likely delete them immediately along with your email.
  4. Please write your reply BELOW the original message, unless it is an overall reply.
  5. Each question or distinct issue must be separated, for example, by an empty line. Be polite, while at the same time “information dense”, that is, avoid superfluous phrases.
  6. If you prefer signed and encrypted email please let me know BEFOREHAND, so that we can exchange public keys. Make sure my email public keys are signed by my master key.

Computer Code Communication

  1. NO REPOSITORY SHALL EVER BE SHARED. We use git in a distributed way.
  2. Github is preferred for forks, pull requests, and issues. Pull and push on github.com is the preferred method to exchange code. NO REPOSITORY SHALL EVER BE SHARED. NOT EVEN on github.
  3. Email for pull requests and issues is also OK.
  4. Patches by email are OK, as long as they are standard diffs, small and infrequent.
  5. It's also acceptable if you prefer to setup your PUBLIC READ-ONLY git repository somewhere else instead of on Github. Note that I do NOT work with shared repositories, not even on github.

Other Electronic Communication

  1. The good old landline is also acceptable for urgent stuff, or things too long for email. Please call my office number.
  2. XMPP with OTR is also acceptable, but it's not the preferred communication method, and we would need to coordinate BEFOREHAND. OTR messaging is a must here.
  3. No skype, please. Or other closed protocols.
  4. Do NOT send Linkedin requests please. Or other social media requests.
  5. Do NOT have websites send invitations of any kind. In particular, I do NOT work with shared repositories, not even on github.
  6. I might not be able to read ORNL Calendar emails. Don't rely on them.
  7. I cannot read (much less write) SMB or samba shares. Messages referring to samba resources will be deleted and ignored.
  8. I cannot read closed formats.

See also (not normative)