E-Mail List Guidelines

Here are some list guidelines we established to make the National Restaurant Association's Information Technology E-mail List as productive, friendly and useful as possible.

1. Encouraged Subjects
Please DO use the list to post your succinct questions and answers, announcements about events, and input on discussions of workplace issues.

2. Discouraged Subjects

• Commercial solicitations. Do not post commercial messages. Contact people directly with products and services which you believe would help them.
• Anticompetitive topics. Any time competitors within an industry gather (even electronically), care must be exercised to assure that violations of antitrust laws do not take place. List members must avoid any collusive practices or discussions. "Collusion" is a secret agreement to fraud and usually involves product boycotts, restrictive market allocation, refusal to deal with a third party, or price-restraining activities. Discussions regarding any of these sensitive areas may be construed as implicit violations of antitrust laws.
• Examples of topics to avoid:
  • Avoid discussions of pricing, such as the prices you pay and charge, including labor costs.
  • Avoid discussions of market share allocation.
  • Avoid discussions of quality ratings of products or suppliers, especially those that may cause a competitor to lock out or stop buying from a specific supplier.
  • Avoid all areas which might have anti-competitive repercussions.

3. General Netiquette
If you refer your fellow list members to other Web sites, include the "http://" part of the URL in your e-mail messages. This makes it easier to readers with smart mail applications to link to that Web address. Example: Use "http://www.restaurant.org" instead of "restaurant.org."

4. Please Avoid Sending E-Mail Attachments
Don't send e-mail attachments to list posts. Instead, offer to provide the data to those who request it, or put it up on the Web for voluntary download. Not everyone has the ability to read attachments.