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Subject:Constraints on e-mail expression From:Roger Jones <Roger -dot- Jones -at- RJPC -dot- DEMON -dot- CO -dot- UK> Date:Sat, 26 Sep 1998 11:41:39 +0100
At 19:25 25/09/98 -0700, Mary Lynn wrote:
>As for your second point--the difficulty of emphasizing what you say in
>emails--I agree that it can be very frustrating. I personally use an
>email program that does not show bold or italics. And like you, I don't
>want to be interpreted as a SHOUTER. :-) I've seen a couple of ways
>around this problem, and I actually think they are rather creative.
>
>One thing I've seen people do is _underline_ what they want to
>emphasize. What I tend to do is use *asterisks* to stress something
>that I want stressed. The trick is to not overuse either method. Both
>can be rather annoying if used extensively.
>
I think the limitations of e-mail format are a wonderful challenge to write
in a way that conveys emphasis and other qualities through good old words
and their arrangement, rather than resorting to post-typewriter
typographical devices, which I use fully in other contexts. What a good
thing it is to be forced to think harder about communication!
All the best
Roger Jones, Publisher
Publishing -at- rjpc -dot- demon -dot- co -dot- uk
