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(If you are new, check out our ‘What is netiquette?‘ section for more information).Don’t spam! – It is normal to want to be noticed in the crowd of people on social media – but spamming (another word for sending the same or similar messages lots of times) can be annoying and may have the opposite effect!Be yourself – If you want to get the most out of communicating online, be yourself. You could do this by using emoticons, putting “lol” (laugh out loud) at the end of the message or by starting with a phrase like, “On a lighter note…”Newbies – We were all once new to social media, gaming online, emails, messaging and forums – so always try and help someone new who is making mistakes. So to avoid potential misunderstandings, always indicate the humorous nature of your comment. It’s sometimes easy to get carried away and write something that you would not dream of saying to someone’s face and can be mistaken for displaying bad netiquette or cyberbullying behavior.Do you get it? – Jokes, dark humor and sarcasm are often difficult to convey over the internet.
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One small error can completely change the meaning of your message, so read and read again before sending.We are only human – Remember that an actual person with real feelings, beliefs, imperfections and emotions is behind every message, email or comment. Include context – When commenting on a message or conversation thread it is good netiquette to include a relevant quote from the original message to give context to your comment.Check, then click – Before you post a comment, double check that you are saying exactly what you want to say.
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