[SWLUG] Re: top quoting (Dick Porter)

[Dave Cridland [Home]]

On Fri, 2003-06-13 at 19:02, nat wrote:
> earlier <rhys_sage at yahoo.com> wrote...
> > Regarding sig files, most people seem to use 6 lines
> > rather than 4. 
> 
> in my experience a 4 line signiture is the norm.

RFC1983 (supercedes RFC1392)
Internet Users' Glossary
        " signature: The three or four line message at the bottom of a
        piece of email or a Usenet article which identifies the sender.
        Large signatures (over five lines) are generally frowned upon.
        See also: Electronic Mail, Usenet." 
        
RFC1855
Netiquette Guidelines
        "Make things easy for the recipient. Many mailers strip header
        information which includes your return address. In order to
        ensure that people know who you are, be sure to include a line
        or two at the end of your message with contact information. You
        can create this file ahead of time and add it to the end of your
        messages. (Some mailers do this automatically.) In Internet
        parlance, this is known as a ".sig" or "signature" file. Your
        .sig file takes the place of your business card. (And you can
        have more than one to apply in different circumstances.) [...]
        If you include a signature keep it short. Rule of thumb is no
        longer than 4 lines. Remember that many people pay for
        connectivity by the minute, and the longer your message is, the
        more they pay. [...] Again, be sure to have a signature which
        you attach to your message. This will guarantee that any
        peculiarities of mailers or newsreaders which strip header
        information will not delete the only reference in the message of
        how people may reach you. " 
        
Traditionally, 4 lines is indeed the acceptable limit, and has been for
several years - certainly, in the ~10 years I've been using online
communication methods, signatures have been 4 lines max, often with an
extra line "--" to clearly delimit them, and often dropped entirely on
some mailing lists, forums, and close-knit newsgroups.

Evidence to the contrrary gratefully received.

Dave.
--
Dave Cridland		Sometimes at http://dave.cridland.net/
dave at cridland.net	Also at http://www.clues.ltd.uk/ for work.
Infotrope: http://infotrope.clues.ltd.uk/
Opinions, mistakes, ommissions: All my own work.