From 42d22b2b017d432ebe25469769f6d405eca8e40a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Huy-Ngo Date: Sun, 17 Jan 2021 10:59:09 +0700 Subject: [PATCH] Publish mail etiquette --- _drafts/mail-ettiquette.md | 78 -------------------- mail-etiquette.md | 147 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 2 files changed, 147 insertions(+), 78 deletions(-) delete mode 100644 _drafts/mail-ettiquette.md create mode 100644 mail-etiquette.md diff --git a/_drafts/mail-ettiquette.md b/_drafts/mail-ettiquette.md deleted file mode 100644 index f1b099d..0000000 --- a/_drafts/mail-ettiquette.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,78 +0,0 @@ ---- -layout: page -title: Email ettiquette -language: en -ref: mail-ettiquette ---- -I have seen many people having problem with using email, especially from my classmates. -Writing email is an important skill, and knowing how to write email properly is respecting -the recipient. - -In this article I am writing about: - -- Structure of a good email -- Information you should include in an email -- What not to include in an email - -It also includes my email preference. If you violate too many red flags I stated here I probably won't read your mail. - -# Email Structure - -Here is a generic email structure: - - [Tag] Subject - - Greeting: Hi/Dear [name]/Sir/Madame/To whom it may concern, - - Introduction - - Elaboration - - Regards - - Signature - -## Subject - -Some people find it hard to come up with a good email subject. - -## Greeting - -It's not a problem for most people, though I have personally received many emails without greeting. -An email is not a private message, and even for private message you probably should do a greeting -before a conversation as well. - -Note: - -- Hi/Hello is informal, so you probably should avoid it if you don't know the person. -- You could include the person's title (e.g., Dr.) if you like and the other person is comfortable, but for me personally, don't use Mr. -- Refer to the person with their preferred name. For me, this means don't use my family name[^1]. Also, don't deadname trans people. - -## Introduction - -It is necessary to introduce yourself if you and the other person don't know each other. Start with - - My name is... I am ... - I am writing this mail to ... - -If you know the person, you can just come to the reason you're writing this mail. - -## Regards and Signature - -To close an email, you should end it with: - -- Sincerely, -- Regards, -- Yours cordially, -- Best, - -... followed by your name. - -# Send in plain text -# Language -# Pronoun -# Attachment - -[^1]: I would say it's the same for all other Vietnamese people. Vietnamese people currently has quite few family name, -and most of them are "Nguyen", therefore we never refer to one another as family name. This could be different for other Asian culture, -e.g. Chinese or Japanese people may use family name in formal situation. diff --git a/mail-etiquette.md b/mail-etiquette.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5c98fbe --- /dev/null +++ b/mail-etiquette.md @@ -0,0 +1,147 @@ +--- +layout: page +title: Email +language: en +ref: mail-etiquette +--- +I have seen many people having problem with using email, especially from my classmates. +Writing email is an important skill, and knowing how to write email properly is respecting +the recipient. + +In this article I am writing about how to write a proper mail, +my email preferences, and some technical issues related to email. +If you violate too many red flags I stated here I probably won't read your mail. + +### Contents +* Table of contents +{:toc} + +# Email Structure + +Here is a generic email structure: + + [Tag] Subject + + Greeting: Hi/Dear [name]/Sir/Madame/To whom it may concern, + + Introduction + + Elaboration + + Regards + + Signature + +## Subject + +Some people find it hard to come up with a good email subject. + +You can (and should) include a short tag to let the recipient know about the topic +before reading the whole subject line, unless they requested otherwise. + +## Greeting + +It's not a problem for most people, though I have personally received many emails without greeting. +An email is not a private message, and even for private message you probably should do a greeting +before a conversation as well. + +Note: + +- Hi/Hello is informal, so you probably should avoid it if you don't know the person. +- You could include the person's title (e.g., Dr.) if you like and the other person is comfortable, but for me personally, don't use Mr. +- Refer to the person with their preferred name. For me, this means don't use my family name[^1]. Also, don't deadname trans people. + +## Introduction + +It is necessary to introduce yourself if you and the other person don't know each other. Start with + + My name is... I am ... + I am writing this mail to ... + +If you know the person, you can just come to the reason you're writing this mail. + +## Regards and Signature + +To close an email, you should end it with: + +- Sincerely, +- Regards, +- Yours cordially, +- Best, + +... followed by your name. + +# Language + +This should go without saying, but when someone sends you an email in a language, +don't reply in another, unless you're asked to. + +## Pronoun + +Pronoun is a sensitive topic, and mispronoun someone can make [zem] +feel very uncomfortable. + +In English, this is not very a common problem, since first and second pronouns +are neutral. In other languages, such as French or German, it is not. Using "tu" +or "du/ihr" in a formal email (i.e. not with your friends) will make you look +very unprofessional. Choosing pronouns is a difficult problem in a deeper level, +since the pronouns depend on age, gender, social status, job, etc and not +just the formalness. That's why I don't like writing in Vietnamese. + +# Attachment + +This is a rather technical topic, but it's simple to follow. + +[Don't send Word documents][no-word]. Words are not only bloated and inefficient, +it also poses malware and virus threats. Of course, you wouldn't attach those, but for +safety many people including me would not take the risk. + +Instead, just include the text inside the email if it is not long, export the document +as pdf, HTML, or plain text file. + +Similarly, don't send RAR archive. RAR is a proprietary archive format, which means +free software cannot open it. Please use an open format like ZIP instead, or better yet, +just attach individual files in the email - I can preview without download that way. + +# Send in plain text + +This is a rather technical topic, but it's simple to follow. +I'm not dictating which format you should use when emailing someone else, but please do +this when you send me an email. + +HTML text is preferred by marketers, since they can embed bloated images and GIFs in the +email, which can assist their intended purpose. + +However, I recommend writing mails only in plain text for following reason: + +- HTML allows phishing +- HTML makes tracking possible, which doesn't respect recipient's privacy +- HTML emails are less accessible (I will make a post about accessibility and link here) + +In fact, many mail clients only display plain text and not HTML. On the other hand, all +mail clients can display plain text. +Many mailing list blocks HTML. HTML is for the web, which email is not[^2]. + +Read [this page][useplaintext] to see how to write mail in plain text file. + +## What if I want to include an image? + +Attach it as a file and refer to that. + +## Links are usually long and I'm afraid it can be disruptive + +You can use reference, like this: + + Please read the post [1] for more information. + ... + + [1]: https://example.org/this-link-is-long-and-disruptive + +[^1]: I would say it's the same for all other Vietnamese people. Vietnamese people currently has quite few family name, +and most of them are "Nguyễn", therefore we never refer to one another as family name. This could be different for other Asian culture, +e.g. Chinese or Japanese people may use family name in formal situation. +[^2]: They work on entirely different protocols, with different formats. + +[useplaintext]: https://useplaintext.email +[zem]: /menglish.html +[no-word]: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/no-word-attachments.html