Chat Netiguitte

At any one time, there are hundreds of thousands of users connected to the Yahoo! Chat servers. Only a few hundred of them may be Role Players in our sense of the term, but in a game as social and interactive as this, there's no accounting for the type of person you might come across. We've all run in to the odd sour grape before; more often than not they can be found degrading other chatters, spamming with useless banter, and basically making a general nuisance of themselves.
The internet-slang term for these people is 'Trolls', and every online community has been subject to their insufferable drivel at one point or another. It's often sorely tempting to sink down to their level and give them a taste of their own medicine, but that is exactly what they're after, and will only serve to lower the tone of a chat room even more. All we can really do to keep the Troll population at bay is make damned sure we don't turn in to Trolls ourselves.
But there's another, equally important reason to respect your fellow RP'er! If nobody likes you, nobody's going to play with you. For these reasons and more, it's important to maintain online etiquette - or Netiquette. Here are some simple rules of netiquette that you should always bare in mind [most of them you probably know, but skim through the list anyway and see if there's anything pertinent to you]:
1. Don't Spam
You may think what you have to say is funny or important, but that doesn't necessarily go for everyone else. In fact, if somebody doesn't reply to what you have to say, it's generally safe to say that they either don't care, or they're currently busy. Repeating yourself again and again will not change that, so spamming is a futile act that only serves to annoy people.
2. Respect the nature of a room
If you're in a room which seems to be predominantly IC it would be impolite to start bantering OOC. The odd OOC message posted in a think bubble [chat command: /think] is acceptable to inform other chatters that you're leaving, or ask about the setting of the RP, but a full blown OOC conversation is disruptive to the IC flow and should be taken to PM, or another room. Some chatters argue that because Yahoo! themselves haven't specified that a room should be IC [either in the title or the opening blurb] that it's fair game for OOC chatters as well as Role-Players. Whilst this is technically true, it is also true that Yahoo! is brimming with specifically OOC orientated rooms on a variety of subjects so it is much easier for an OOC chatter to try a different room than it is for a Role-Player.
3. Be helpful
Everybody was a newbie at some point, and everyone improves with time, but whether they're a newbie or not, it is not your duty to make fun of what you perceive to be their flaws. Only post criticism if you're willing to follow it up with some constructive advice [NB: "Quit RP", is not constructive advice] as to how they might improve. Then, it is entirely up to them if they take your advice on board or not. Newbies may not be very familiar with our game, but that is not a reflection upon them as a person, so just assume that they are intelligent enough to make their own decisions reap the consequences, whatever they may be. You should also remember that most of the less experienced players will not think of themselves as 'newbies', so don't have an aneurysm if they don't respond to your cry of "OI NEWB!" [not that you should be trying to gain their attention like that in the first place].
4. Try to be courteous
Acting disrespectfully towards strangers achieves nothing. If you try and give orders or demands to somebody who doesn't know you, you're just going to come across as a pompous asshole. What reason do they have to respect your wishes when they don't even know you? If you want another player to steer the RP a certain way, present your idea in an amiable fashion, and then accept their response gracefully [unless they respond nastily, in which case you're justified to argue with them in private, but do not let it disrupt the RP].
5. Presentation
It's worth trying your best to use proper grammar and spelling when you're chatting. Many chatters become impatient with 'txt speak' [things like replacing 'you' with 'u'] as they think it lazy and antisocial. This may be a slightly snobbish opinion, but nevertheless it would be in your advantage to present yourself with a certain amount of competence in the English language.
Another concern regarding presentation is the use of personalized fonts -- Yahoo! allows you to personalize the size, colour and font-face of your text, but remember that everybody can see these changes. A font that's too big will often irritate other chatters by taking up too much of their screen, whilst one that's difficult to read because of its colour or font-face will result in you being ignored by most chatters.
6. Respect the other chatters ... yes, even the ones you don't know personally
Racial, homophobic and sexist slurs are common on the internet, but that doesn't mean you have to join in. These remarks are often made in jest, but it is all too easy to cross the line between a joke and a serious offense ... remember that Yahoo! Chat is open to people of any ethnicity, gender or sex and they may not see the funny side.
7. Arguments
Arguments break out from time to time -- that's a simple fact of life. We've all been in an argument at one point or another, and what most people don't realize whilst they're arguing is that they don't look as cool as they think they do. Do us all a favour -- next time you get in an argument in chat, either drop it or take it in to private so that you don't embarrass yourself and everybody else around you.
We guarantee, if you follow this simple seven step guide your Yahoo! Chat experience will be VASTLY improved. Most of it applies to other community areas of the internet as well.