As a well-known AFW resident busybody, I've periodically taken it upon myself
to post courtesy reminders. As the American holiday of Thanksgiving approaches,
I thought I'd do once more. The friends I've made here (though some I've never
seen!) are one of the things I'm thankful for.

BTW, Some very good info can be found at the group FAQ,
http://www.virtual-ink.com.au/afw-faq/guide.htm,

A few thoughts (mostly derived from previous courtesy posts):
1) This is Usenet , a tool for discussion. Don't expect to post something w/o
possibility of someone refuting it.
2) Please keep in mind that many of the contributors to alt.food.wine do not
speak English as their first language. Also even for some of us who do, it's
easy to mistake the tone of written communication. If there's 2 ways to take a
post, be easy on yourself and decide the least offensive perception is the
correct one.
3) Let's try to avoid personal comments. If you don't like someone, filter
their posts. The details of how to do that vary according to newsreader
software, but tutorials exist on the Web for employing filters in all the
popular newsreaders.
4) If you realize someone's intent is to provoke and annoy (in other words, a
troll) , please just ignore. Every time you argue with them, or invoke their
name, you're stroking their (IMHO somewhat warped) ego.
http://www.onlinenetiquette.com/courtesy9.html

If you feel compelled to respond,I can't stop you. But please don't quote
trolls , it puts their words in front of those who have kill-filed them
5)New Folks: you're here to learn, right? So if someone who has been on AFW
for years and serious about wine for 30+ corrects you, learn from it, don't get
your feelings hurt.
6) Old folks : remember you were new (to wine and AFW) at some point, too.
Correct if need be, but let's try to do so graciously.
7) Personally, I find it less than helpful to make generalizations about people
based on where they live, what they do outside wine, etc. People who invoke
offensive off-topic subjects on a regular basis deserve to be killfiled,
period.
8) No one is superior (In My Humble Opinion) based on either the simplicity or
elegance of what they eat or drink. Isn't this group big enough for someone to
have Shiraz with BBQed chicken and another to have rack of lamb with a fine
Pauillac? Does it somehow offend you to read about a meal you wouldn't eat
yourself? If someone says that they will not drink certain types of wines,
don't waste your time worrying about their opinions of those wines, listen to
those that do.
9)Newbies: we welcome your participation (this is speaking as someone who has
participated for a few years, I'm neither a true old-timer or a newbie). But as
in ANY social situation, whether on or off line, it is wisest not to attack a
respected member of a community while a newbie, it really won't win you any
points. It is a time-honored tradition that one should lurk for a while before
posting to get a feel re tone of a group.
10)Most of the people here use their real names Some use a pseudonym, but do
include a valid email address. As to others, I personally don't feel that it's
wise to put too much energy into conversations with those who are unaccountable
and unreachable. As they say,YMMV.
So there. As usual, I'm sure I've offended a couple of old-timers and a couple
of newbies, but hope the rest of you can take these remarks to heart. I don't
claim to be immune to digression (I remember ruefully the "collectors recork
wine every 10years/chianti cannot be drunk young/Europeans are all wine
sophisticates" guy.
I got a little over-involved;sorry!);all I'm asking is that we try to keep
these guidelines in mind.

best wishes,

Dale

Dale

Dale Williams
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