Table of Contents (* for new or updated topics)

 2.        General questions about the list

 2.1.      Keyword Introduction
*2.1.1.    What are the keywords?
*2.1.2.    How do you use the keywords?

 2.2.      Netiquette
 2.2.1.    Why isn't this topic OK?
 2.2.2.    What's a flame and why is it bad?
           (Or, This isn't a flame, you moron!)
 2.2.3.    Why can't I post in persona?
 2.2.4.    How much can I quote?
 2.2.5.    What's wrong with my signature?
 2.2.6.    WHAT'S WRONG WITH WRITING IN CAPITAL LETTERS?
 2.2.7.    What's up with the "plain text only" rule?
 2.2.8.    Why does my text look so funky?

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2. General questions about the list
===================================

2.1. Keyword Introduction
-------------------------

The Realms-L list uses subject line topic keywords.  (For those of you
on the ADND-L list, it's exactly the same idea.)  This allows you to
tailor the Realms list to *your* interests.  Don't like all the gods
posts? You can turn them off!  Not interested in reading about books
before they're released?  You don't have to!
TOP | Intro

2.1.1. What are the keywords?

ALL: Not really a keyword, this broadcasts the message to everyone on
the list.  Reserved for the exclusive use of the moderators of the
REALMS list, monitors, and WotC netsec.

OTHER: Also not really a keyword, messages without keywords (or with
improperly-formatted keywords; see below) go into this group. REALMS-L
users are not initially subscribed to this keyword.

ADMIN: Posts about the list itself, rather than about the Realms. Should
NEVER be crossposted with another keyword.

CUSTOM: for new Realms creations, may be used with other keywords

FAITHS: Messages about the deities and faiths of the Realms.

FLUFF: Original stories and poetry set in the Realms.  Also includes
discussion of such stories, and can be used to advertise for sites
concerning such things.

HISTORY: discussions of Realms history and timelines, may be used with
other keywords

MAGIC:  spells, magic items, the process of using magic itself in the
Realms and other aspects of Realmsian dweomercraft; may be used with
other keywords (note that this includes psionics but not, as a rule,
priestly magic specific to a given faith)

NOVELS: Discussion of the Realms novels and short stories.  If you are
discussing a new novel, be sure to include spoiler space (preferably at
least 20 lines, as not everyone sees a message header before they get
into the message.) The NOVELS keyword can be used for discussion of the
FR/AD&D comics and for other things like that; basically, any fiction
specifically set in the Forgotten Realms.  Creation and distribution of
such material should still be done via the FLUFF keyword.

PEOPLE: NPCs (or PCs) of the Realms.

PLACES: Geography of the Realms, from city maps to village taprooms.

REVIEWS: Reviews of new Realms products and novels.  Spoilers must still
be clearly indicated and protected with spoiler space, so as not to ruin
the product for people who haven't had a chance to get it yet.

MISC: Any message that does not fit any of the above categories. Should
NEVER be grouped with another keyword, as by definition, if it fits
another category, it isn't MISC.

PROJECTS: This keyword is to be used for discussions concerning: The
starting/organizing of projects to expand information on a variety of
things for the Forgotten Realms.  Current examples are the Mage School
project, where members contribute new schools/academies (or expand on
briefly mentioned "canon" schools), and (to toot my own horn briefly)
the Realms Temples project, which is attempting to catalog and list all
temples of all faiths currently mentioned in "canon" materials (in the
future, we'll be willing to add custom temples...but that's some time in
the future). This keyword is different from the CUSTOM keyword in that
projects tend to involve many people working together to create a
project. This keyword may be used in conjunction with all keywords.
TOP | Intro

2.1.2. How do you use the keywords?

a) Single keywords are at the beginning of the line (leaving in the
"Re:" reply indicator is OK, but NO OTHER reply indicators are
acceptable) (leaving in the [FR] is also OK) followed by a colon.

Correct: PEOPLE: Manshoon the moron
Correct: Re: [FR] PEOPLE: Manshoon the moron
Incorrect: [PEOPLE] Manshoon the moron
Incorrect: PEOPLE Manshoon the moron

b) Multiple keywords are separated by a comma, with the last one
followed by a colon.

Correct:  FLUFF,NOVELS,MAGIC: Shandril Starts a Campfire
Incorrect: FLUFF: NOVELS: MAGIC: Shandril Starts a Campfire
Incorrect: [FLUFF][NOVELS][MAGIC] Shandril Starts a Campfire

If you don't want to receive all of these, or you only want to receive
one or two, it's quite easy to select a sublist of the above keywords to
get. All of the following commands must be sent to
LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM to take effect.

To add a keyword or keywords: set realms-l topics= +NOVELS +PLACES
To remove a keyword or keywords: set realms-l topics= -REVIEWS -PEOPLE
To add all the keywords: set realms-l topics= +ALL
To change the keywords to a specific list:
     set realms-l topics=FAITHS MAGIC ADMIN MISC

These can be mixed and matched as needed.  The default setting for
REALMS-L is +ALL -OTHER (all keywords except OTHER).
TOP | Intro

2.2. Netiquette
---------------
2.2.1. Why isn't this topic OK?

There are two major reasons why the monitors may "suggest" that a topic
should be moved or terminated.

Most common is an off-topic message or thread. The Realms list is for
discussion of gaming in the Forgotten Realms, not for general AD&D or
gaming discussion. If your topic is not specifically related to the
Realms, you may want to seek out a more appropriate venue

The second reason is a topic that has just been hashed to death (within
the last two to three months, at a minimum) or one that, while nominally
on-topic, is likely to prove unproductive and possibly even
inflammatory.

You're welcome to make your case off the list to the monitors, but
please don't argue the issue ON the list; that's as bad as perpetuating
a closed topic in the first place. We don't usually ask that a thread be
ended, so when we do, please abide by that decision.

Spam, product advertisements (except for the occasional TSR press
release *from TSR*), chain letters, email virus reports, and so forth
are grounds for immediate unsubscription. Don't send them.
TOP | Intro

2.2.2. What's a flame and why is it bad? (Or, This isn't a flame, you
moron!)

A "flame" is a message whose primary purpose is not to foster
discussion, but to promote argument, dissension, and ill will. Overt
insults are flames, but there are very subtle messages that also come
across as inflammatory.

Everyone has been misread, or has misspoken themselves, and been accused
of flaming. If no hostility was truly meant, you are within your rights
to explain yourself, but the best course of action is often simply to
say, "That wasn't what I meant; I'm sorry it came across that way." If
you DID mean to flame, I hope you have the good grace to apologize.

It should go without saying (but doesn't, so I'm saying it) that neither
flames nor annoyed responses to flames belong on the list. Remember that
the height of good manners frequently consists of not hearing a nasty
remark; this is easily accomplished by swift application of the DELETE
key.
TOP | Intro

2.2.3. Why can't I post in persona?

This has been a point of contention on the list before, so I'll explain
MY interpretation of the persona guideline. Others may differ.

A person who merely signs his posts with his persona name is fine. Even
the occasional post in character isn't too obnoxious. What gets very old
are posts which are in persona for no good reason, and persona posts
where the persona itself is rather annoying. I certainly understand the
appeal of playing your character, but most list members would prefer to
conduct conversations with another human being, not a figment of your
imagination. (You should use the keyword FLUFF in for any post that's
primarily in character, so that the people who really don't like persona
posts can avoid them.)

Using your persona to belittle other characters or other players and
their ideas is, of course, absolutely forbidden. Also forbidden are
persona posts with no other content; this is a discussion list, not a
role-playing list per se.
TOP | Intro

2.2.4. How much can I quote?

As little as possible.

Except in VERY rare cases (and VERY short posts), quoting an entire post
without performing some editing is considered extremely rude. It's best
to find one or two sentences, a paragraph at most, to give some context
to your reply and quote only that much. You may, alternatively, elect to
summarize another user's post if there's no part which can easily be
extracted. However, if you are unable to edit quoted text (or unwilling
to learn), the monitors respectfully ask that you refrain from quoting
at all.

A good guideline, BTW, is that you should add at least as much text as
you quote.

When quoting, you should be sure to trim the signature and the "To
unsubscribe" footer. You should use some system to ensure that the
quoted text and your additions can be distinguished. Some systems will
automatically insert a '>' at the start of each quoted line. If you have
to cut and paste, as AOL and some other system require, it's traditional
to include opening and closing angle brackets in sets of two or three at
the start and end of the quoted text.

Please leave at least one line between the quoted text and your
addition, so that we can determine who said what. Also try to break up
long blocks of text with blank lines; it makes your post much easier to
read. If there are several points in a long post to which you want to
respond, don't just have a long piece of quoted text; reply
point-by-point.
TOP | Intro

2.2.5. What's wrong with my signature?

It's almost certainly too long. There's something extremely silly about
a two-line message followed by a twelve-line signature file, including a
bad ASCII squirrel, four web pages (two of which are yours and two of
which have nudie Star Trek stars), and three email addresses, one of
which you haven't checked since the Bush administration.

There are legitimate reasons to have a signature that's a little longer
than most, but remember that little pictures, pithy quotes, and excess
contact information (how many people really need your latitude and
longitude?) bloat signatures very quickly. If your signature is too
long, in the monitors' judgment, you may be asked to trim it or refrain
from posting with your signature.  Around five lines for a sig file
should be the limit.

It also helps if you put a '--' as the first line of the sig file, to
set it off from the rest of your message.
TOP | Intro

2.2.6. WHAT'S WRONG WITH WRITING IN CAPITAL LETTERS?

This is considered very, very bad manners as capitals are considered to
be used as an emphasis. Therefore, according to everyone who is reading
your post, you're "Shouting". I know it sounds silly, but trust me: do
not use capitals and you'll be fine.
TOP | Intro

2.2.7. What's up with the "plain text only" rule?

I know your message looks fine on your system, with three different
fonts, five text colors, and full justification of your text.  Trust me,
it looks like crap here, and on a lot of other systems.  Not every mail
program understands HTML or MS rich text encoding, and on those systems
your message will be ooooog-lee.  Worse, every single little formatting
tag will show up in its entire text-based splendor in the digest form of
Realms-L.

Stick with plain text for list messages.

.
Craig Sefton reports:
If you're using Netscape Messenger for 4.0:

Select "Edit", then the option "Preferences..."

A panel will open with a white window on the left hand side, and some
basic options to apply to your email on the right. In the white window,
you can expand the options with a [+] next to their name. Make sure the
option entitled "Mail and Groups" is expanded i.e. a [-] is next to the
name instead of a [+]. Once, expanded, you'll see an option called
"Messages". Click on this once. At the top of the page on the right,
you'll see an option entitled: By default send HTML messages. Make sure
the checkbox next to it is blank (i.e. not selected). At the bottom is
another option entitled [More Options]. Click this button and in the new
panel that opens, make sure the option "Always convert the message into
plain text" is checked (located about halfway down the screen.

Click okay until you close all the panels. That should be it :)

Craig Sefton again:
This is for Outlook Express for IExplorer v4.0 on Win 95

Okay, as far as I know to turn off all MIME, HTML etc. etc. stuff do the
following:

In Outlook select the "Tools" option.
In the menu bar, select "Options.
In the panel that appears, along the top should be a button labeled
"Send". Select this.

The panel should look something like this:
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-
-Mail Sending Format-
o HTML            [Settings]
o Plain Text      [Settings]

-News Sending Format-
o HTML            [Settings]
o Plain Text      [Settings]

[] Save copy of sent messages in the 'Sent Items' folder
[] Include message in reply
[] Send messages immediately
[] Reply to messages using the format in which they were sent
[] Automatically complete e-mail addresses when composing
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-

Make sure, under the heading "Mail Sending Format", that the 'Plain
Text' option is checked.

Also, it's probably a good idea to uncheck the option near the bottom
labeled 'Reply to messages using the format in which they were sent' so
that you don't use a mime format that someone else may have sent to the
list.

NEXT STEP

Next to the 'Plain Text' option under "Mail Sending Format", click on
the button labeled "Settings".

You will see a panel open up with the heading "Message Format" and two
basic options of MIME and Uuencode. Select the MIME option. Next to that
should be a small drop down menu labeled "Encode Text Using" with 3
options in the drop down: None, Quoted Printable, and Base 64.

Select "None." And click Okay all the way back through to your email
program.

Okay, I figured out how to turn off HTML/MS-Rich Text in MS Outlook 98

1) Click on the Tools option in the menu bar.
2) Click on 'Options'.
3) In the window that appears there should be a selection "Mail Sending
Format" near the top. Select this.
4) You'll be able to specify 'Plain Text' here from a drop down box.
5) Right next to where you select 'Plain Text', there should be an
option 'Settings...'
6) Clicking on 'Settings' will produce another panel where you can
select MIME format (make sure this is selected) and, in the drop down
box next to it, you'll be able to select what MIME Type you need. In
this case, select 'None'.

And that should be it :)

"Cyric" adds:
If you're using MS Outlook Express:

From menu "Tools" select "Options". Window "Options" will open. Click
"Sending" card, and select "plain text" in the first frame. Click Ok
button.

[Please send in similar instructions for other software!]
TOP | Intro

2.2.8. Why does my text look so funky?

Many users have a word wrap feature in their email programs.  Many
users
ignore this feature, and hit return at the end of lines that are
just a
little too long, so that one or two words wrap over to the next line,
followed
by another full line of text.  It's very ugly (as you may have
noticed).

If your email program supports word wrap, you should hit return only at
the ends of paragraphs, just as if you were using a word processor.
(It's a good idea, if the wrap margin can be changed, to set it at about
70 characters.)  Conversely, if your software does NOT support word
wrap, it's a good idea to use a monospaced font, and get a good feel for
where the 70-character boundary is so your lines don't get too long.
TOP | Intro