[NAGDU] NAGDU Dos and Don'ts

Thu Jan 2 01:25:03 UTC 2020

Good evening to all and a very happy New Year. It is, of course, the first
of the month again. Therefore, I will send to you our list rules. The rules
or guidelines are, if totally followed, a way to keep everyone mostly happy
here.

I appreciate all of you on the list and look forward to another good year.

Cindy Lou Ray, Moderator

cindyray at gmail.com <mailto:cindyray at gmail.com> 

Following is the list of our rules/guidelines:

NAGDU email list rules: 

*Be nice to others* 

Being nice includes: 

1. Using a courteous and respectful tone and language.   If in doubt don't

post it.  Please feel free to disagree with any idea, concept or topic, but

disagreement does not preclude manners. In Short-no flaming. This list is

publicly archived and may be read by minors.  

  2. being respectful of others time by staying on topic.  The main topic of

the list is *guide dog use*.  Occasional discussions of general blindness
issues

or other types of *service animal use* are acceptable, but please keep these
at a minimum.  Also there will be posts

on National Federation of the Blind initiatives and related announcements.
The National Association of Guide Dog Users is a strong and proud division
of the National Federation of the Blind.   

3.   Any announcement for any sales, collection, donation or other exchange

of goods or service not directly related to the National Federation of the
Blind or the National Association of Guide Dog Users is not allowed.

Guide dog related Product recommendations in which you do not receive direct

financial compensation are completely acceptable and appreciated.

Likewise if there is a direct question about a product or service that you

provide you are free to respond with your sales information to that specific

question.     It is perfectly acceptable to have a link to your product web

site in your signature line.   Examples of acceptable discussion of goods or

services: 

*announcements of National Federation of the Blind* affiliate, chapter and
division fundraisers

*answering questions regarding guide dog related goods and services you

provide 

*discussion of a product you have used

Examples of inappropriate goods and services posts:

*advertisements for any product or service you provide not prompted by a

specific question from another list member

*advertisements having to do with goods or services unrelated to guide dogs

4. No discussion of any sort of criminal activities.  

5. Every effort should be made to provide accurate and up to date

information about laws regarding guide dogs.  Please be prepared to provide

the specific law you are referencing in the discussion.

6. All posts should be of substance and add to the discussion.  Please

refrain from post like, "I agree" or "me too" or Thank you" or "Please email

me off list.". If the message is one word or only one line, please send the

message directly to the person to whom you would like to respond. In your
responses, write a complete sentence so that your readers will know what you
are talking about without having to read the messages below or find
messages. 

7. please refrain from posting an inordinate amount of email to the list. In
order to cut down on the list traffic, list members will *generally be
allowed to post only* 5 posts per day.  This list can be high volume at
times.  Please respect the time of others on the list. *Often times,*
responses can be grouped into one email or emailed directly to a list
member. Even the one line one word messages count toward the 5 posts per day
per member rule, and such messages clutter the list and add no substance to
the thread. 

8. All list members are required to include at least a first name and email
address in the signature of each post. As of May 2014 the email management
program that NFBnet utilizes does not allow for the easy access of who an
email is from. We should always be aware of who the author is. Email
addresses should also be included so that members who would like to take a
conversation off list will have easy access to that address. Most email
programs have a signature feature. If you would like assistance in setting
up that signature including your E-mail address by using the feature in your
E-mail program that allows you to do so, please ask fellow techie list
members how to set that up.  

9. If a topic changes within a thread, please remember to change the subject

line of the message. This will keep those who are looking for specific

messages from reading everything.  

Continued violation of the rules after being warned *may result in moderated
status or*removal

from the list.  

That's all the rules.   The below are things that would be appreciated,

but are not mandatory.  

1. Trim your posts.  This means to remove all that header info from a

forwarded message or the 13 previous messages in the thread that you are

replying to.  It's just courtesy.  

  2. If you're posting pictures please include a description of them.  The

majority of list members cannot see the pictures so a text description is

very much appreciated.     

3. If you ask a question about a situation you are experiencing requesting

advice, please update us on the resolution of the problem.  It is just

so gratifying to know how things worked out and the information might prove

useful to someone else.  

4. If you're posting an attachment please let us know in the body of your

message what the attachment contains.      

5. Please keep forwarded messages to a minimum.   Remember the message

should be relevant to guide dog users in a large geographic area.  If the

message has nothing to do with guide dogs, don't forward it.

6. If your posting a link, please include a bit of information about the
link in the message body, including what it is that made you think the list
would enjoy checking it out. It is also recommended that persons who post
links, copy and paste the article into the email, including the link, so
that all members who are reading the email can read the article. 

Things to keep in mind:

1.        This list is open to anyone interested in the use of guide dogs.
This

Includes but is not limited to: guide dog users, former guide dog users,

Future guide dog users, puppy raisers, guide dog trainers, guide dog program

Employees, owner trainers, pet dog trainers, friends and family of guide dog

Users, guide horse users etc. It is not necessary to be a member of the
National Federation of the Blind or of the National Association of Guide Dog
Users

to join or participate on the list;  however, membership is encouraged. You
can become a member by joining your affiliate division or going to
<http://www.nagdu.org/> www.nagdu.org

2.       This list is publicly archived.  This means that anyone with an

Internet connection can read posts.   Don't post anything you don't want the

Whole world to know such as: phone numbers, addresses, web site etc. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email:

 <mailto:cindyray at gmail.com> cindyray at gmail.com

You may also contact Marion Gwizdala, president of the National Association
of Guide Dog Users, via email to  <mailto:president at nagdu.org>
president at nagdu.org.