Posting Guidelines

If we all follow these guidelines, we can make the list work much more smoothly for each of us and, at the same time, not overload the many members who wish mainly to learn about our disease and how to help themselves and others live a better quality life.

1. List Topics: This list is about Emphysema/COPD. Its principal aims are (1) mutual education and support of patients with this disease, and (2) activism/advocacy to increase awareness of our disease and obtain more research to end or substantially reduce it. While an occasional off-topic message is OK, in general try to avoid them on the main list. (We have set up other lists for your O/T subjects - see items 6 & 7 below).

2. Articles of Interest. If you find an interesting COPD-related article on the Internet and want to share it, do not post the entire article unless it is very short. Rather, just briefly describe it and include the web address where it can be read by others.

3. Prayers, Birthdays . We happily post birthdays and prayer requests to the list so that you can join in if you wish. But, if you do so, send your wishes and/or prayers directly to the individual only. Please do not send them to the entire list.

4. Misc. Congrats, Thank you's, Me too's, Small Talk, Gossip, Etc. Please post these things directly to the individual, not to the entire list.

5. Religious, political, highly controversial views, and disallowed posts. Please do not post (or respond to) messages regarding religious, partisan political, or strongly controversial views that might provoke inappropriate action or stress to other members. When such situations develop, Management has no option but to take the necessary steps to maintain control and dignity of the list. Also, do not post virus warnings, chain letters, or petitions of any sort.

6. Jokes, funny stories, poems, etc. We have a supplemental list (FUNDAY) on which EFFORTS members can post jokes, funny stories, poems, or other things that might cheer someone up. To join that list, go to http://www.emphysema.net/lists.html

7. General topics (not COPD-related) We have another supplemental list (TALKONLY) on which EFFORTS members can discuss topics other than COPD. It is for talk only - no jokes, no graphics. To join that list, go to http://www.emphysema.net/lists.html

10. Managing your subscription. If you wish to change any mail option, (email address, format, temporary no mail, etc) do not send your request to the list - use the form at the bottom of the page on http://www.emphysema.net/bbanner.html Also, should you have any questions or suggestions concerning the administration of the EFFORTS list, do not send them to the list - send them to efforts-request@effortslist.org

11. Flaming. We do not tolerate "flaming" or the private posting of abusive and argumentative posts from individuals to other members. If this happens to you, although the perpetrator might say "this is private and not meant to be any more than between us", please let Management know at efforts-request@effortslist.org and we will handle it.

1. TO: Whether you click on "Reply" or on "Reply All", your EFFORTS messages will, by default, be sent to all members. That's because ANY message relevant to our disease may help many others - including our quieter folks who are reluctant to ask questions. However, if you are responding to a member, and your response is relevant only to that one person and not to the whole list, please change the TO address accordingly before you click SEND.

2. SUBJECT: Use the Subject line ONLY to clearly identify the main topic of your message. That will allow each of us to pick out and read only those messages which interest us. Also, it will immensely improve our Digest and Index mail versions. And it will make it easy to use our archives to find past messages on any subject. Some use a previous message to start a new topic but do not change the original Subject line. This makes the Subject line completely useless (like a previously used envelope). If you change the subject in your reply, then change the Subject line as well.

3. BODY: When replying to a message, include part of the original message to help others know what you ar replying to. Do not include all of it - just the part to which you are replying. Also, if your mail program is set up to automatically include the entire incoming message, use your mouse to mark and delete the unnecessary parts before sending your reply.

Trolls Occasionally, someone joins a list under an assumed name only to send private messages to our members. Such a person is called a 'troll' (one who joins lists with a twisted intent of disrupting discussions or otherwise making trouble). If you suspect a message you receive, please do not respond to the individual - instead, forward the suspect message to list management at efforts-request@effortslist.org copy without responding to the individual or, if it is questionable, we can verify membership. (For more about trolls, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_trolls ).

Folders You can easily segregate EFFORTS mail from all your other email by setting up an EFFORTS mail folder so that all incoming EFFORTS mail is automatically placed in a separate folder. How to do this, and other useful mail handling techniques: http://www.emphysema.net/FAQ.html

If you have any questions or comments, just give me or anyone on the Executive Board a holler.