Proper etiquette(礼仪) should be observed in all forms of communication. When face-to-face, you communicate not only verbally, but with your body language, hand gestures, and tone of voice. Over a network or the Internet, you do not have the luxury of relying on additional methods of getting your message across. Therefore, there are some generally accepted techniques when communicating online.

Tone Down Your Language

Given the absence of face-to-face clues, written text can easily be misinterpreted. Avoid the use of strong or offensive language. If you feel particularly strongly about a point, it may be best to write it first as a draft and then to review it, before posting it, in order to remove any strong language.

Be Forgiving

If someone states something that you find offensive, mention this directly to the instructor. What you find offensive may quite possibly have been unintended and can best be cleared up by the instructor.

Test For Clarity

Messages may often appear perfectly clear to you as you compose them, but turn out to be perfectly dull to your reader. One way to test for clarity is to read your message aloud to see if it flows smoothly. If you can read it to another person before posting it, even better.

Net speak

Although electronic communication is still young, many conventions have already been established. DO NOT TYPE IN ALL CAPS. This is regarded as shouting. Acronyms and emoticons (arrangements of symbols to express emotions) are popular, but excessive use of them can make your message difficult to read. Some common ones include: