GENERAL COURTESY, NETIQUETTE AND HPFGU-SPECIFIC
CONVENTIONS AND POLICIES

Our posting conventions may be summarized as ordinary netiquette (courtesy to your fellow group members) plus a few quirks that we think are particularly worthwhile in our community.

The goals of our list rules are:
- To facilitate fun and intelligent adult discussion of the Harry Potter books.
- To foster an atmosphere of mutual respect for other list members.
- To make it as easy as possible to follow and keep up with our very busy list.

Please observe the following:

2.1 Be Courteous

Do not flame, send obscenities or spam, engage in other discourteous, disrespectful or illegal behavior or discuss list policy onlist (send comments to

HPforGrownups-owner@yahoogroups.com instead). We welcome debate, but do not attack or insult other list members.

If you disagree with someone's message, no matter how strongly, please respect the other person's right to his or her own opinion. Cite canon to support your arguments and give chapter references; when expressing an opinion (as opposed to citing canon) or other beliefs (e.g., religious) be sure to make this clear ("I believe..." or "In my opinion...").

If you do wish to argue against the post, do so by building up your own case, rather than just knocking down the other person's. Your post should advance the discussion and not merely repeat arguments you've already made. There is no need to have the last word in a discussion. Difficult as it is, when faced with irreconcilable differences, list etiquette means it is better to walk away.

Also consider how other members of our diverse international community might react to your post and remember that sarcasm can be difficult to convey in written form. When in doubt, save your message overnight and reread it in the light of dawn.


2.2 Use the Right List

Put on your Sorting Hat and send your posts to the correct list.

All posts to the main list should discuss the "canon," that is, the written works of JK Rowling. Discussion of information about the books and characters provided by JK Rowling in her interviews or website is also permitted.

Posts that discuss the movies should go to HPFGU-Movie, including posts that use the movies to make a point about the books or that use the movies as a jumping-off point for canon discussion. Any post that does not discuss the books or movies (such as how to navigate JK Rowling's website) should go to HPFGU-OTChatter. Posts that announce or publicize other websites, groups, fics, etc., should be made to HPFGU-Announcements.


2.3 Quoted Material (Or "When You Reply to a Post"):

Please write your post *below* the quoted material (quoted material is the content from another post you are replying to).

"Top-posting" is not permitted, as members find it very frustrating to read your response without understanding what you are replying to. Also, top-posters almost never remember to snip the quoted material (see 2.3.2 below).


2.3.1 Attribution

Please identify the author of quoted material at the beginning of the quote. When replying to a post containing comments from more than one person, make sure you attribute each quote to the proper person.

Please preface your comments with your name or handle (for example, "Snapeskitten:") or sign your posts at the bottom with your name or pseudonym -- it helps people quoting you to properly attribute your comments to you. Do not use "Now me:" as readers of down-thread responses may have difficulty properly attributing your comments. Finally, leave some blank space between the quote and your comments.

Please clearly indicate quoted material by using chevrons or angle brackets [>], which Yahoo and many email programs insert automatically; or by putting quoted material between quotation marks.


2.3.2 Snipping

People do not like to have to scroll through acres of irrelevant material to find the part you're replying to (not to mention your new comments!) so please snip (delete) all quoted material, leaving only the minimum necessary for others to understand your reply. This basic consideration helps those with slow internet connections and bandwidth concerns.

Snipping properly can be trickier than it sounds, though, so here are some additional guidelines:

You should assume that anyone reading your response has already read all of the other messages in the thread, so it is not necessary to reproduce the gist of the entire thread in your reply.

If you've quoted more than a paragraph without inserting a comment of your own, or if the quoted material is longer than your own remarks, you probably haven't snipped enough.

If you are using Yahoo's automatic attribution feature (which happens when hitting "reply" to a message), please make sure to remove any unnecessary information, including names of people who are not being quoted in your message. Don't forget to delete Yahoo footers and ads at the end of the post.

As both attribution and snipping can be confusing at first, we ask that before you post to the list you first read our Formatting Tutorial, which can be found in the Admin Files folder in the Files section on the main list:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/files/Admin_Files/


2.4 Keeping the Posting Volume Manageable

To help keep our posting volume manageable, please do the following:
*read the entire thread before posting, and don't merely repeat what's already been said
*combine all responses on the same topic into a single post
*limit your posting volume to no more than five a day
*don't post a one-line response
*don't post to ask a simple factual question
*send comments like "me too!" or LOL!" offlist, or cleverly insert them into a longer, more substantive post
*don't post anything that violates the TOU (see section 1.2)


2.4.1 Make Your Post Worthwhile

The best posts are not just written; they are constructed, with an introduction, argument, supporting evidence from canon, and conclusion. We strongly encourage posters to take their time writing posts, and to consider before posting whether the post will add anything new to the discussion or merely repeat things that have already been said.

Before starting a new thread, check to see if there has been a similar discussion in the last few weeks.


2.4.2 Combining

Read the entire thread before posting, and combine all responses on the same topic (even if they are in different threads) into one post. To do this, you can simply copy the quotes you're responding to into an email as you read through the threads, holding off posting until you're finished. Also, Yahoo's threading function often fails to pick up all the posts in a thread, so please also check the subject headings of recent posts before responding.


2.4.3 No Introductory or Me-too Posts

Don't post just to say "Hi, I'm Melanie from Wisconsin." We do want to get to know you, but conventions have to be adjusted for a list that gets an average of 10-20 new subscribers each day. Instead, include your introduction within your first substantive post, or post it to OT-Chatter.

Similarly, do not post just to say "great post!" or "me, too!" (even if it takes you three paragraphs to do it). Onlist compliments are welcome, but only as part of a substantive response. If you have nothing to add, please send your compliments offlist.


2.4.4 One-Liners

The HPFGU standard is for members to submit substantive posts; therefore, one-liners are strongly discouraged. Off-topic and "me too" one-liners are not allowed, just as lengthier off-topic and "me too" posts are not allowed. We recognize that the occasional canon-supported or humorous one-liner has its place, but don't forget that a one-liner counts against daily posting limits.


2.4.5 Post Limits

As a courtesy to other list members, please try to limit your posting volume to no more than five per 24 hour period. Although this is not a strict daily limit, please observe it as a guideline, as excessive posting is a violation of posting rules.

During time of increased activity on the list, the List Elves may decide to reduce the posting limit again to 3 per day. If this action is taken, an Admin (or Special Notice) will be posted to announce the change.


2.5 Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (and Proofreading!)

Use standard English grammar, standard spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Bear in mind that HPfGU members come from many countries, and some speak English as a second or third language, making it imperative that all members use standard English.

This includes using capital letters at the beginning of sentences, "I" when referring to yourself, and proper names. Periods should be at the end of sentences, commas in the middle to show phrasing, and question marks at the end of questions. Please restrain yourself from using multiple exclamation marks or question marks.

* Never use all lower case letters or, worse still, all CAPITAL LETTERS. It is visually jarring and using all caps is considered SHOUTING!

* Do not use netspeak. Some common abbreviations are fine (the "btw," "iirc," "afaik" type) but using numbers or single letters for words ("2" for "to", "u" for "you", "r" for "are", etc.) are not.

* Please write with paragraphs, separating each of them with an empty line (like this section). This "white space" makes it much easier on the eyes, as it is exceedingly straining to read long blocks of unbroken text.

* Before hitting the 'send' button, please take a few minutes to look over your post and correct any typos, spelling/punctuation errors, or problems with sentence structure or capitalization. This will make it much easier to read and help in getting across your point.

If you're used to forums where speed is important (chat rooms, role playing games, etc.), it's easy to fall out of the habit of proofreading. Here, however, your post will be as relevant in twelve hours as it is now.


2.6 Subject Headings

Use appropriate subject headings so that others can find the topics that interest them most (e.g., not "Digest 5000," and not "Snape's greasy hair" if the topic has changed to "Lupin's gray hair"). Not everyone has a good threading function on their e-mail. If you are combining responses to more than one post, please change the subject heading to reflect that (e.g., House Elves/Hogwarts Plumbing/Evil!Albus).


2.6.1 Prefixing

We've found that some topics provoke a strong reaction. Some people run screaming at the sight of them, while others can't get enough. As a courtesy to other readers, please use the prefixes listed here.

FILK: for HP song parodies
SHIP: Canon-supported speculation about romantic relationSHIPs between the characters
TBAY (Theory Bay): HPfGU's wild and wacky role-playing posting style, featuring cyber-action role-playing (CARP) using fictional settings such as Theory Bay and/or extended metaphors to make a canon point. For more information and examples, visit Hypothetic Alley.


2.7 Observe Spoiler Rules

If any spoiler rules are in effect, observe them. Also, please be considerate when revealing spoilers from other works (such as The Lord of the Rings), keeping in mind that many members will not have read those books.

In other words, observe basic netiquette and the conventions of the list. If you're not sure of either, ask your List Elf or contact the Admin Team at

HPforGrownups-owner@yahoogroups.com. We lives to serve, sirs and misses!


2.8 Failure to Observe Posting Guidelines

We all make mistakes from time to time, and occasional lapses, such as spelling and grammar errors, will not earn anyone detention.

However, ignoring our netiquette or posting conventions will result in an offlist reminder. Repeated violations or more egregious ones, such as personal attacks on other list members, or doing anything that could be construed as illegal, will result in an offlist Howler. Receiving too many Howlers could result in you being placed back on moderated status or even losing posting privileges.

Offlist communications are sent to the email account you used when you joined HPFGU, so be sure to check this account regularly. If it appears from your posts that you have not read or heeded our reminders, we will add a note to one of your posts asking you to contact us; if you do not, we will have to suspend your posting privileges as a last resort until we hear from you.

For security reasons, we will place anyone who sends spam or viruses to the list on moderated status immediately. If this was inadvertent on your part, please let us know so your privileges can be restored.