Internet Hints

• Apply the golden rule: Treat others the way you would like to be treated. Remember there is a person on the other end of your message.

• Know where you are and use appropriate good behaviour. Don’t use inappropriate or offensive language
• Do not send abusive or heated messages (flames). If you receive a flame, it is best to ignore it. Always remain calm, especially if someone insults you (or you think they have).
• If someone sends you e-mail which threatens you or makes you feel uncomfortable, talk to a parent or other adult right away.

• Allow time for mail to be received, and replied to, keeping in mind time differences around the world and other people's busy schedules.

• Internet communication is not completely secure. "Never put in a mail message anything you would not put on a postcard".

• Any message you send could be saved or forwarded by its recipient. You have no control over where it goes.

• Remember the Internet is a global community, and other peoples values and outlook on life may be different to your own. Be tolerant and careful with slang or phrases that may not be understood in another country.
• Respect the privacy of other people. This includes passwords, full names, addresses, or interests. Sharing your own password with someone else, even someone you like, is never a good idea. Passwords and personal information are private, and are never safe to share with others.

• If you are forwarding or re-posting a message, don't change the original wording.

• Wait overnight to send emotional responses to messages.

• Use emoticons to indicate tone of voice, but use them sparingly. :-) is an example of a emoticon. (Look sideways). Don't assume that by adding a smiley you will make the recipient happy with what you say or wipe out an otherwise insulting comment. (See below)

• Never send chain letters, they are forbidden on the Internet, and can lead to users losing their net access

• Check your spelling, be concise, and keep messages short.

• Take care with addressing mail.
• If you want your mail to be read, don't make it too long unless the receiver is expecting a lengthy message. Over 100 lines is considered long.
• Use mixed case, UPPER CASE LOOKS AS IF YOU'RE SHOUTING.
• Mail should have a subject header that shows what the message is about.

• Know how large a message you are sending.  When attaching files, don't send any larger than about 50k.

Follow the same rules of good behaviour that you would in real life.

Using emoticons

Because it's often difficult to convey emotion, intent, or tone through text alone, early Internet users invented emoticons, which are virtual facial expressions made from basic keyboard characters, like the colon and right parentheses (just remember to rotate your head left a bit, because emoticons lay on their sides at 90 degrees!).

Emoticons are easy and fun to use and you can even create your own. :-}

Learning online acronyms

Another idea that has evolved to streamline communication is using acronyms. Because typing takes longer than speaking, savvy netizens like to reduce common phrases to a few simple letters. If you encounter an acronym you haven't seen yet, politely ask what it means and you'll have a great acronym vocabulary before you know it.

Here are some examples of commonly used acronyms:

ASAP   (As soon as possible)
BBL   (Be back later)
BRB   (Be right back)
LOL   (Laughing out loud)
ROFL   (Rolling on the floor laughing)
BTW   (By the way)
OIC   (Oh, I see)
CUL   (See you later)
OTOH   (On the other hand)
GMTA   (Great minds think alike)
IMHO   (In my humble opinion)
RUOK?   (Are you OK?)
TIA   (Thanks in advance)
J/K   (Just kidding)
TTFN   (Ta-ta for now)

Sources
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/online/netiquette.mspx
http://www.dtcc.edu/cs/rfc1855.html
http://www.albury.net.au/new-users/netiquet.htm
www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html
http://www.bpl.org/kids/Netiquette.htm: