Email Guidelines
1.
Try to use the office
hours as much as possible. There are office hours available 4 times a week.
Only use email if absolutely necessary.
2.
If you need to email
your question then send it to all three TAs.
3.
Questions will be answered
during TAs office hours.
4.
Questions that you could
answer yourself by attending lectures or looking at the course web page, text
or your lecture notes for 5 minutes will receive no response.
5.
All emails must start
with “CMPT120:” and have a descriptive subject line.
a.
Some good subject lines:
"CMPT120:Assignment 1 technical question", "CMPT120:confused on
definitions", "'CMPT120:Access denied' error on web page"
b.
Some bad subject lines:
"help!", "dear sir", "question",
"Assignment"
c.
Subject lines like
"URGENT!!!!" will go to the bottom of the pile.
6.
Use good grammar.
a.
You have a shift key.
Use it.
b.
You have a caps lock
key. That doesn't mean you should use it.
c.
"U" is not a
word. Neither is "b4".
d.
If your grammar is so
bad that we can't figure out what you're saying the first time through, we
won't respond.
7.
Be specific.
a.
Questions like "My
(blank) isn't working. Can you help?" will get the appropriate response:
"No." We aren't mind readers. You should include as much detail as
you can. List the steps you took and the results, including specific error
messages (copied and pasted, not your vague recollection).
b.
"Prepare your
question. Think it through. Hasty-sounding questions get hasty answers or none
at all."
8.
Use Email properly.
a.
Do not send attachments
unless absolutely necessary. Large attachments may result in your email being
deleted without even being opened.
b.
Do not quote back a
previous message unless there's some reason.
c.
Messages sent more than
once will decrease in priority.
Some relevant tips from
"How To Ask Questions
The Smart Way", which is aimed
at people asking for technical help on mailing lists, but parts are relevant
anyway:
Other Links