From roots-in@roots-l.rootsweb.com Thu Apr 13 08:43:15 2006 Received: from mail.rootsweb.com (mail.rootsweb.com [192.168.65.34]) by admin.rootsweb.com (8.12.8/8.12.8) with ESMTP id k3DEhFjb031489; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:43:15 -0600 Received: from roots-l.rootsweb.com (roots-l.rootsweb.com [66.43.16.22]) by mail.rootsweb.com (8.13.4/8.13.4) with ESMTP id k3DEhE4E024884 for ; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:43:14 -0600 Received: from roots-l.rootsweb.com (roots-l [127.0.0.1]) by roots-l.rootsweb.com (8.12.10/8.12.10) with ESMTP id k3DCAvFI027195 for ; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:10:57 -0400 Received: (from roots-in@localhost) by roots-l.rootsweb.com (8.12.10/8.12.8/Submit) id k3DCAuCX027194 for roots-approved@rootsweb.com; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:10:56 -0400 Received: from lists5.rootsweb.com (lists5.rootsweb.com [66.43.27.41]) by roots-l.rootsweb.com (8.12.10/8.12.10) with SMTP id k3DAAhFI026834 for ; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 06:10:44 -0400 Received: (from slist@localhost) by lists5.rootsweb.com (8.12.8/8.12.8) id k3DCgodi025197 for roots-in@roots-l.rootsweb.com; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 06:42:50 -0600 X-Envelope-From: MaeMay510@aol.com Thu Apr 13 06:42:49 2006 Received: from mail.rootsweb.com (mail.rootsweb.com [192.168.65.34]) by admin.rootsweb.com (8.12.8/8.12.8) with ESMTP id k3DCgnjb025186 for ; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 06:42:49 -0600 Received: from imo-m17.mx.aol.com (imo-m17.mx.aol.com [64.12.138.207]) by mail.rootsweb.com (8.13.4/8.13.4) with ESMTP id k3DCgl3A028154 for ; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 06:42:47 -0600 Received: from MaeMay510@aol.com by imo-m17.mx.aol.com (mail_out_v38_r7.3.) id e.2f0.3bffc77 (3940) for ; Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:42:19 -0400 (EDT) From: MaeMay510@aol.com Message-ID: <2f0.3bffc77.316fa12b@aol.com> Date: Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:42:19 EDT To: ROOTS-L@rootsweb.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" X-Mailer: 9.0 Security Edition for Windows sub 5301 X-Spam-Flag: NO X-Scanned-By: MIMEDefang 2.52 on 192.168.65.34 X-Scanned-By: MIMEDefang 2.52 on 192.168.65.34 Sender: roots-in@roots-l.rootsweb.com Subject: [ROOTS-L] Who made the rules? In a message dated 4/12/2006 11:43:36 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, ROOTS-L-request@rootsweb.com writes: CAPS are the last thing that I worry about ... who made the rules anyway? And who would consider it shouting if a sentence asking for help is in CAPS? Eyesight or training or habit ... Good question. As an old timer to computer genealogy in the days before internet (does anyone else remember FIDO and BBS?), we SYSOPS set the rules. They were valid for the time -- we had to pay for every letter and space sent through the BBS so we created and encouraged the use of emoticons and shorthand to reduce our cost (the users were getting the service for Free) -- but they are no longer valid. They have been around long enough, however, that they are considered common usage and we see them used in places other than genealogy. Fortunately we don't have to pay for every key stroke while on internet, so we don't need the same rules in genealogy and are discouraged, in fact, on lists. ALL CAPS could have been used, however, when older timers were writing their FGSs by hand -- it's easier to make out a capital letter that is printed than one in cursive proper style. With this established, it was easier to continue the practice on FIDO and we newer old timers could see for ourselves that the name stood out. So now I think common usage has determined we should make the surname all CAPS. No arbitrary rule, but common sense if we want our surname to stand out. Not everyone follows it, but that's okay. It's a history in itself how conventions developed in genealogy. Wish someone would write the book. Shirley Maynard Hampton, VA