nettiquitte, part 1: italics/underline
my abhorrence for cutesy spellings, ALL CAPS unicase, and other nonsense has been well-established. it's kind of the itch that you can't scratch of my online existence -- not something that keeps me up nights, but irritating in a small way. rather than bitch about it, i should be part of the solution.
i see ALL CAPS used inappropriately on livejournal with great frequency. before you hit the caps lock key, ask yourself: do i want to YELL or do i want to emphasize?
if your goal is merely to be emphatic or denote a title, try a different tag. for example:
italics and underline
i frequently use italics to denote titles (cf., "the saddest music in the world is the best movie, ever!"), but some people use underline for the same purpose (as in: "i appreciate the wrens' album seacaucus."). use whichever you find preferable. using these tags is as easy as making a "real" link -- simply put < i > before the word or phrase you wish to italicize or underline, and use < /i > to finish off the phrase.
this is preferable to capitalizing the title of a significant work (album, movie, book) because it sets the title apart without leaving your readers with the impression that you sound like howard dean would if he started writing film/book/record reviews.
these tags can also be used to emphasize something. cf.: "i firmly believe that the song 'tears of rage' is based on king lear." this is preferable to "i FIRMLY believe that (etc)."
the temptation to hit the caps lock key is great, but try and limit it to when you are especially emotional. "my roommate was having loud sex with some jenna jameson clone in his room, and i kept having to yell 'SHUT UP!'"
above all, try to minimize the use of caps lock, as it will leave your readers rubbing their ears while they read your text. also, lay off the exclamation points unless especially necessary.
[sarcasm]
coming up next: why "my fandom is" icons are loathesome and abhorrent. you will join me, won't you?
[/sarcasm]
i see ALL CAPS used inappropriately on livejournal with great frequency. before you hit the caps lock key, ask yourself: do i want to YELL or do i want to emphasize?
if your goal is merely to be emphatic or denote a title, try a different tag. for example:
italics and underline
i frequently use italics to denote titles (cf., "the saddest music in the world is the best movie, ever!"), but some people use underline for the same purpose (as in: "i appreciate the wrens' album seacaucus."). use whichever you find preferable. using these tags is as easy as making a "real" link -- simply put < i > before the word or phrase you wish to italicize or underline, and use < /i > to finish off the phrase.
this is preferable to capitalizing the title of a significant work (album, movie, book) because it sets the title apart without leaving your readers with the impression that you sound like howard dean would if he started writing film/book/record reviews.
these tags can also be used to emphasize something. cf.: "i firmly believe that the song 'tears of rage' is based on king lear." this is preferable to "i FIRMLY believe that (etc)."
the temptation to hit the caps lock key is great, but try and limit it to when you are especially emotional. "my roommate was having loud sex with some jenna jameson clone in his room, and i kept having to yell 'SHUT UP!'"
above all, try to minimize the use of caps lock, as it will leave your readers rubbing their ears while they read your text. also, lay off the exclamation points unless especially necessary.
[sarcasm]
coming up next: why "my fandom is" icons are loathesome and abhorrent. you will join me, won't you?
[/sarcasm]