Re: Mailing List Conventions

[Paul Smith]

On Mon, 2020-05-18 at 11:54 -0500, Pete Dietl wrote:
> Any suggestions?
> 
> On Wed, May 13, 2020 at 4:05 PM Pete Dietl <address@hidden>
> wrote:
> > I am new to using mailing lists in general and I want to use it
> > properly. Is there is a document somewhere that explains the
> > conventions of using it.

There are no specific documents for using these lists.  We generally
follow the common mailing list model for free software lists (I don't
know if these are documented anywhere but I wouldn't be surprised).

We try not to be too militant about it.  More important than the form
is the content.

> >  Like how conversations are grouped together and what context I
> > should provide when replying to someone?

We use "selected inline" quoting: you should reply inline (like this)
while removing all parts of the message you aren't going to reply to
directly.  Our archives are public, so (unlike some business mail) you
don't need to include all the history just for context.  If you clip
too much or someone wants to know more, they can just go look in the
archives.

In particular, please don't quote any signatures _especially_ those
annoying legalese signatures saying only the intended recipients can
read the email.

> > Other questions:
> > * What is the convention for quoting other people?

Any method that makes it clear who is saying what is fine.  Generally
this means that any method other than indenting with whitespace (which
is hard to follow) works.

> > * Is there a convention for using HTML vs plaintext?

We prefer plaintext.  We usually won't ignore messages where
simple/limited HTML is used, especially from newcomers.

> > * Do you always reply to the person replying to you and to the
> > entire mailing list?

It's up to you.  If you're replying to requests for help its probably a
good idea to do so because it's not a requirement that everyone posting
to the list is a member of the list.

If you're asking questions or trying to discuss things with the
developers / long-term users you can assume they're all subscribed and
you can reply just to the list.