Email Lists

RootsWeb has over 20,000 genealogy email lists. Go to the RootsWeb Mailing Lists for a complete list of these. Below are specific instructions for joining Knox County and its adjoining counties.

[ Fulton ] [ Henry ] [ Mercer ] [ Peoria ] [ Stark ] [ Warren ]

Knox County [ Knox ]

Subscribe. To subscribe, choose the mode you want (usually list mode) and click on the related link.
- Subscribe to ILKNOX-L (List Mode). List mode means you will receive one email for every email that is sent to the Knox County email list. [If the shortcut link at the beginning of this bullet does not work with your browser, send an email to ILKNOX-L-request@rootsweb.com with the single word "subscribe" (without quotes) in both the message subject and body.]
- Subscribe to ILKNOX-D (Digest Mode). Digest mode means you will periodically receive one email that will include one or more emails that was sent to the Knox County email list since your preceding digest email. [If the shortcut link at the beginning of this bullet does not work with your browser, send an email to ILKNOX-D-request@rootsweb.com with the single word "subscribe" (without quotes) in both the message subject and body.]
Unsubscribe.
- Unsubscribe from ILKNOX-L (List Mode). [If the shortcut link at the beginning of this bullet does not work with your browser, send an email to ILKNOX-L-request@rootsweb.com with the single word "unsubscribe" (without quotes) in both the message subject and body.]
- Unsubscribe from ILKNOX-D (Digest Mode). [If the shortcut link at the beginning of this bullet does not work with your browser, send an email to ILKNOX-D-request@rootsweb.com. with the single word "unsubscribe" (without quotes) in both the message subject and body.]
Send a Message.

If you'd like to post a message so everyone on the mailing list receives it, just send it to ILKNOX-L@rootsweb.com. It will then be sent on to everyone in both mail and digest mode. You don't need to send it explicitly to both.

Email is certainly different than letters, telephone, or face to face conversation. It's kind of a combination of them all. So if you have trouble getting a feel for email style, don't feel bad: difficulties are the rule, not the exception.

You've probably already seen 'emoticons' in email -- they are small faces which make up for the lack of verbal and facial inflections present in other communication. They are a separate language of their own, like hieroglyphics or pictograms, and require some knowledge of the language to be used effectively, especially if you do not want your intended audience to misunderstand your emotions! Some common Emoticons are:

:>  or : ) or :-) Smile, happy

):-):-):-)   Loud guffaw

:< or :( or :-( Frown, sad

;> or ; ) or ;-) Wink, sly

:-J   Tongue in cheek

:0   Oh! excited, surprised

:-! Foot in mouth

Some people make emoticons like this: (-: --left-smiled. Don't think that using them is stupid -- many times emoticons can make sarcasm, joking, or irony less aggressive looking.

There are literally thousands of Emoticons. (Go to NetLingo.com for a comprehensive list.) The basic idea is to use common typewriter symbols to imitate a facial expression. It works well, if the recipient is either well versed with Emoticons or understands them in the context of your text. The problem arises when the recipient is either unfamiliar with Emoticons or perhaps unfamiliar with the language or facial expressions of the sender. So Emoticons can work both ways - and you need to be careful.

Another method of incorporating emotions into your email is simply to use parentheses with the intended emotional word. For example, the phrase:

I really wish you would not do that

can be transformed into two different sentences with opposite emotional connotations by adding:

I really wish you would not do that (grin).
I really wish you would not do that (frown).

Other text conventions:

ALL CAPS IS CONSIDERED SHOUTING.
many people consider all lower case mumbling
_Underscored Text_ indicates underline or italic
In place of bold text, *asterisks* are used
> Lines of text with brackets
> preceding them show a
> quote from a previous message.

And a few suggestions:

Set your email software to TEXT mode. The RootsWeb Email Lists only accept TEXT emails; they do not accept HTML emails.
Put a meaningful subject on your email. This helps those who are reading the mail you send. "IMPORTANT!!!!" or "Please read" aren't useful -- they just look like spam.
Don't reply to a message if you're not addressing its content. If you want to send a new message to someone, use the Compose function.
Don't forward jokes, virus warnings, petitions for 'good causes,' or other similar material to email lists.
Don't send personal email to email lists without asking the original sender's permission.
Don't send attachments -- they are automatically rejected by the RootsWeb Mailing List system.
Think before you flame. (See below.)

Many people find it much easier to be more aggressive with email other forms of communication. This is called 'flaming' -- here's more about it. We've all flamed someone one time or another. Sometimes it can be fun, but it has gotten people into trouble. Generally speaking, if you find yourself writing a nasty email, it may be wiser to save the message and come back to it after a while -- it's easy to write something that seems fine now which you really regret later. If you still feel as strongly, well, there you are.

Knox County, Illinois Genealogy & History

Knox County, Illinois
Genealogy & History