Samtonia
30-12-2003, 16:47
Due to the lack of people posting well(or legibly), I present:
Guidelines to Good Posting
How to type properly and not single yourself out as a mentally incapable individual:
Short of instituting a literacy and IQ test to gain access to NationStates, this thread is here to educate the general populace on how to actually type a good post.
Many Forum users have mastered the art of posting well. Most of these members are Veterans, or are recognized by other posters as distinguished members of NationStates.
The main reason you should follow the 11 Golden Rules of Posting is that everyone enjoys reading an attractive, well thought out post.
These aren't hard and fast - Just general guidelines of what is considered good practice across NationStates, and across the Internet and throughout the world. Use them wisely.
Rule 1 - Do not type in l33t, text message speak or any derivative thereof. It just looks stupid.
Rule 2 - Do not use numbers, or single letters in the place of real words. Eg: "I am going to" should not be typed as "I m going 2" or "I am going to be good" should not be typed as "I m going 2 b good."
Rule 3 - Capital letters go at the start of every sentence and every time you type "I" by itself, and in conjunctions thereof. (I, I'm, I've etc.) Capital letters are also used at the start of proper nouns, names, places and things. (Samtonia, England, RMS Titanic)
Rule 4 - Do not type in one solid block of text. It is difficult to read. Use the return/enter key to insert paragraphs, it makes posts more attractive, look longer, and people may actually read them without suffering a seizure. Headers and subject lines are a good idea also.
Rule 5 - If you're unsure how a word is spelled, copy and paste it into word and run spell check.
Rule 6 - Spell things out. Do not post shortcuts other than commonly accepted truncations. (Like Etc for 'Etcetera') For instance: The word "People" is spelled P-E-O-P-L-E. NOT "ppl."
Rule 7 - Do not drag out words, use Bold, Underline or Italics to make a point rather than adding extra letters to words. (E.g. - No Waaaaaaaaaaaaay!!) It instigates the "Horizontal Scrollbar of Doom".
Rule 8 - Post in either the default black on gray, or another easily readable color. Dark Red, Pink, and other colors are unreadable and annoying. Use your best judgment, and if someone complains they cannot read your post, you're probably typing in a bad color.
Rule 9 - Don't quote really long posts and just add a smiley or a single word reply. That is spam. Only ever quote the relevant part of a post, and reply to it.
Rule 10 - Use inventive thread titles. They should still however, indicate the main content of the thread. Make sure you apply the same rules to them as to your posts, correct spelling etc.
Rule 11 - A and An go in front of different words. They are NOT interchangeable. If a word begins in a vowel, (A, E, I, O, or U) "An" goes in front. ('An American') If it begins in a consonant (Everything else) "A" goes in front ('A Nazi')
Well thought out posts are more difficult to guideline. Read through your post before you click 'Submit' and make sure that someone's not going to think "What an idiot." or "What a newbie."
Guidelines to Good Posting
How to type properly and not single yourself out as a mentally incapable individual:
Short of instituting a literacy and IQ test to gain access to NationStates, this thread is here to educate the general populace on how to actually type a good post.
Many Forum users have mastered the art of posting well. Most of these members are Veterans, or are recognized by other posters as distinguished members of NationStates.
The main reason you should follow the 11 Golden Rules of Posting is that everyone enjoys reading an attractive, well thought out post.
These aren't hard and fast - Just general guidelines of what is considered good practice across NationStates, and across the Internet and throughout the world. Use them wisely.
Rule 1 - Do not type in l33t, text message speak or any derivative thereof. It just looks stupid.
Rule 2 - Do not use numbers, or single letters in the place of real words. Eg: "I am going to" should not be typed as "I m going 2" or "I am going to be good" should not be typed as "I m going 2 b good."
Rule 3 - Capital letters go at the start of every sentence and every time you type "I" by itself, and in conjunctions thereof. (I, I'm, I've etc.) Capital letters are also used at the start of proper nouns, names, places and things. (Samtonia, England, RMS Titanic)
Rule 4 - Do not type in one solid block of text. It is difficult to read. Use the return/enter key to insert paragraphs, it makes posts more attractive, look longer, and people may actually read them without suffering a seizure. Headers and subject lines are a good idea also.
Rule 5 - If you're unsure how a word is spelled, copy and paste it into word and run spell check.
Rule 6 - Spell things out. Do not post shortcuts other than commonly accepted truncations. (Like Etc for 'Etcetera') For instance: The word "People" is spelled P-E-O-P-L-E. NOT "ppl."
Rule 7 - Do not drag out words, use Bold, Underline or Italics to make a point rather than adding extra letters to words. (E.g. - No Waaaaaaaaaaaaay!!) It instigates the "Horizontal Scrollbar of Doom".
Rule 8 - Post in either the default black on gray, or another easily readable color. Dark Red, Pink, and other colors are unreadable and annoying. Use your best judgment, and if someone complains they cannot read your post, you're probably typing in a bad color.
Rule 9 - Don't quote really long posts and just add a smiley or a single word reply. That is spam. Only ever quote the relevant part of a post, and reply to it.
Rule 10 - Use inventive thread titles. They should still however, indicate the main content of the thread. Make sure you apply the same rules to them as to your posts, correct spelling etc.
Rule 11 - A and An go in front of different words. They are NOT interchangeable. If a word begins in a vowel, (A, E, I, O, or U) "An" goes in front. ('An American') If it begins in a consonant (Everything else) "A" goes in front ('A Nazi')
Well thought out posts are more difficult to guideline. Read through your post before you click 'Submit' and make sure that someone's not going to think "What an idiot." or "What a newbie."