Why was Netiquette (Email Etiquette) invented?

Recently, a site visitor emailed asking why I felt the “need” to invent Netiquette (giving me too much credit). They then added, “Who was I to tell anyone what to do?”

I’m not “telling anyone what to do.” Instead, I am relaying suggestions on using technology properly, with a bit of courtesy along the way. I fail to see what is wrong with informing online users about how to use technology properly.

Long-time readers know I get these emails every so often from those who see no need to “use technology with knowledge, understanding, and courtesy.” (That’s my tagline, which I’ve used for decades.)

But that’s the world we live in. Who among you hasn’t seen someone on social media or in a group pipe in with commentary that you know they would not say face-to-face? So, sadly, it’s pretty standard and accepted by now.

Intel did it — in 1995

While I would love to take credit for such a wise idea, I am only one of many. Over the decades, many have added to, morphed, and updated the original concept of Netiquette.

Intel was the first to recognize the need for guidelines for this new technology in 1995, when I opened my consulting business. And the rest is history.

Netiquette and email etiquette have been topics many have carried the torch for. Our forerunners recognized that technology was becoming an essential part of our lives, so they realized how a set of guidelines just made sense. Get everyone on the same page, so to speak.

Network Etiquette = Netiquette

In October 1995, an Intel employee took the initiative to draft an RFC. RFC stands for Request for Comments. It is, more or less, a living document that others can contribute to and help create. The RFC on Netiquette, RFC 1855, is still available for your review.

It begins with…

This document provides a minimum set of guidelines for Network Etiquette (Netiquette) that organizations may adopt for their own use. As such, it is deliberately written in a bulleted format to make adaptation easier and to make any particular item easy (or easier) to find. It also functions as a minimum set of guidelines for individuals, both users and administrators…
RFC1855

After paging down, you’ll see 28 resources available when this document was created. So, in essence, the online community invented Netiquette at that time. No one is trying to tell you what to do, but rather to suggest how we can all make technology better by having some ground rules.

Guidelines are Malleable

Netiquette, like any guideline, is a guide. So no, you won’t land in the pokey if you don’t embrace Netiquette and Email Etiquette principles. But if you do, you’ll have a more productive and enjoyable experience online. How you use technology can also strengthen personal and professional relationships.

How you choose to use technology and communicate with others will speak volumes about the type of person you are. That’s not my opinion; we all do it every day by making assumptions, perceptions, and judgments about what type of person someone is based on how they choose to communicate.

Basically, if you minimize these issues, your success and how you are perceived may suffer. Any efforts to integrate Netiquette into your daily email practices will signal what you consider important.

So, don’t ask why anyone invented netiquette or why it is essential. Instead, the better question is: are you willing to embrace technology to make the best possible impression?