Make sure that you understand the rules that govern your computer and e-mail use, depending on who is sponsoring your account and where you are accessing the internet from

Never give your password to anyone! And make sure that you change your password at least once a month. Passwords should not be your birthday, your name, the word "password" (which according to one survey is actually the most common password) or any other dictionary word. They should contain both letters and numbers. And you should never have just one password for all your accounts. If you need help coming up with a nonsensical password, click here and Social Studies World can help.

Never, under any circumstance, give out personal information such as your address, telephone number, parents’ work address/telephone number, or the name and location of your school or location without your parents’ permission. Remember, the people who need that information already have it, no one else needs it. Additionally, websites operating in the United States are required to follow FTC guidelines in collecting information of users under the age of 13, as per the COPPA Law, of which more information can be found here. Unless a website has a clearly defined privacy policy that ensures that information they collect will not be used, no information should ever be divulged to them.

Internet filtering software in installed for a reason. Do not attempt to circumvent it. Even if you are successful, you may wind up in very undesirable places and at the least, you'll have broken the AUP of the computer you're using, which will most likely mean your computer access will be forfeited.

Anonymity doesn't really exist on the internet. Assume that anyone will be able to know who you are.

Come up with a username that is not your real name and use that when you are communicating online.

Don't write anything you don't want others to see!!! This is perhaps one of the most important rules of all. Once sent, e-mail can never be recalled (think of what happens once you put a letter in the mailbox) and can be read or forwarded to anyone who originally received the message. Additionally, e-mail messages often are saved (especially if sent to schools or large businesses) and can be retrieved years later.

Notify an adult, such as a parent or teacher, immediately, if you come across any information that makes you feel uncomfortable.

Never agree to get together with someone you "meet" online without first checking with your parents. If my parents agree to the meeting, be sure that it is in a public place and bring a parent along.

Never send anyone your picture or anything else when online.

If you use an instant messaging program, restrict your talks to just those you personally know. Avoid chat rooms, but if you do enter one, make sure it is a monitored chat room.

Never respond to any messages, either by e-mail, in a chat room, or in an online conversation, that are mean or in any way make you feel uncomfortable. It is not your fault for getting a message like that. If you do tell someone right away so that they can contact the internet service provider (ISP) to take appropriate action. All ISP's and online content providers have abuse departments that allow them to take action against those that abuse the internet.

Always try to be a good online citizen and not do anything that hurts other people or is against the law.

In addition to safety rules, students need to remember that when they are communicating over the Internet, whether by e-mail or other media, that they are always talking to another person. The rules below should help them improve their "netiquette."

Always place a subject in the Subject Header of an e-mail. This helps the recipient property sort their mail

Don't "CC" (Carbon Copy) your e-mail to everyone. People quickly become upset when their inbox is flooded with e-mails that are just running conversations with no relevance to them. Only CC people who actually need to read an e-mail. Additionally, when replying to an e-mail, do not use the "Reply All" feature, just reply to the people that need to read your response.

Keep messages short and to the point. If your question or topic is very in-depth, you're probably better off making a phone call.

Typing in all caps is the online equivalent to yelling and should always be avoided.

Emoticons usage is acceptable in moderation, depending on the circumstances. The well known :-), :-(, :-p, and other expressions are commonly referred to as emoticons and are popular with online messages. They do serve a useful purpose, as they can help express emotion which would otherwise be lacking in an e-mail. However, in e-mails in professional setting, they should generally be avoided, and constant use of them can make it harder to read a message. Curious about what types of emoticons there are? Check out this link to see a list of some of the more popular ones.

Use the same decency standards you would as if you were speaking to someone (i.e. No swearing).

When sending e-mail, avoid formatting your e-mail with colored text and background colors or images. Not only will it make your message harder to read, it may also take longer to load and for users who have text-based e-mail programs, may make it impossible to read your message.

Don't send mass e-mails unless absolutely necessary and preferably if everyone knows you will be sending a mass e-mail. Otherwise, your message may be mistaken for spam and your e-mail address could be blocked. Even if you are sending an e-mail to just one person, make sure the e-mail is relevant to them. If you do have to send a mass e-mail, consider putting the recipients in the BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) field. When an e-mail address is designated in the Blind Carbon Copy field, the recipient will get a copy of the e-mail while their e-mail address remains invisible to the other recipients of the e-mail - some of whom they may or may not know. This way the privacy of others e-mail addresses are preserved.

Don't send chain e-mails, jokes, prayers, petitions, or the like to others. Chances are few will find it as interesting as you did and they've probably seen it before. Forwarding these messages may fill up their in box, use other's resources unnecessarily and may cause other important e-mail to bounce. If you get an e-mail about some urgent cause first check out the Urban Legends Reference Page to see if the cause has been debunked. In the event the e-mail is about a virus, go to Symantec's Virus Hoax Page.

Avoid nasty e-mails. Again, remember that someone will actually read your message, and while you may temporarily feel better after sending an angry e-mail, you'll probably regret it in the long run. As a general rule, if you wouldn't say it to their face, you shouldn't say it over e-mail.

Do not use Return Receipt Request (RR) for each and every personal e-mail you send. They are annoying and should only be reserved for those times when you really need to know when a person has read your message. Keep in mind opened doesn't mean read and that the recipient can decline an RR request so you will not be notified.

Never take someone else's online postings and claim them for your own. Besides being terribly unprofessional and meeting the definition of plagiarism, taking someone else's work is a violation of copyright laws and could result in a lawsuit against you. A copyright exists online even if the author does not claim one. Additionally, posting a private e-mail message is also a violation of copyright protection and can land you in legal trouble.

As a courtesy, include your name and return e-mail at the bottom of all your messages, so the recipient has no problem knowing who sent the e-mail and how to respond. All e-mail systems and programs allow users to automatically include a "signature" on their messages, and you can even include a quote at the bottom if you'd like.

Don't mark a message as "urgent" or "highest" priority unless it really is, otherwise your future e-mails may be ignored.

Check your spelling and grammar before sending messages. While a lot of people don't use proper grammar while online, over-misuse of English and spelling errors can at the least make your recipient take you less seriously and at worst make your message incomprehensible. Additionally, don't criticize someone else's spelling mistakes, not only may they not be able to check their spelling before sending a message, it is petty.

Remember to tell people the format of any attachments you send, and be sure to specify what type of attachments you can receive. Additionally, don't send large attachments unless necessary and if the recipient knows it is coming

Make sure you are using the most recent Antivirus software. Otherwise, if your machine becomes infected, then the virus can use your address book to send copies of itself to everyone you know.

Ensure that you yourself understand the e-mail messages you have received and that you know the context in which a person sent an e-mail to you.