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Stop Direct-Mail (SPAM) PostPets!
STOP DM! is a movement going on in the Japanese Internet Community
(it may be elsewhere as well, but so far I only know of it through Japanese websites).
Basically, PostPet lovers everywhere are becoming increasingly concerned
about the number of people who "abuse" their PostPets... not by hitting them or
starving them, but by treating them like a "toy" and randomly spamming total
strangers in an effort to jack up the number of messages that the PostPet has carried. The
STOP DM! (Direct Mail) Campaign wants PostPetPals everywhere to treat PostPet like a
friend, not a slave... to remember that PostPet is COMMUNICATION software, created so that
people all over the world can share ideas and express feelings, using a cute and user
friendly interface.
Personally, I'm not sure where I stand on this. Certainly, SPAMMING is
in very bad taste, no matter what form it comes in... But I also think that when a program
is as cute as PostPet is, it's very hard to resist sending your pet out on increasingly
trivial errands (eg. "Look at what Kaylee wrote in her diary!"-type messages).
My personal PostPet Etiquette Guidelines go something like this:
- Always e-mail or ICQ or Instant Message the person first, to ask if it's okay if you
send over the PostPet.
After all, if they're busy when you send the pet over, they may
not be able to get to it for a while!
- Don't forget to introduce yourself.
How would you like it if a total stranger started calling you over the phone,
without saying who they were, or where they found your number? Wouldn't you much prefer it if
you found out how they knew you, or what interests you have in common?
- Try to have some sort of meaningful content.
And by meaningful, I don't mean some big treatise on the human condition, or an essay on
Shakespear; I mean something that stimulates discussion, or increases communication.
Even if all you write is "This is [Insert name of pet]'s Diary entry", if that provokes
discussion (eg. "Why the heck did she write something like that?" "I think that your pet
has a crush on mine" etc.) that is, In My Opinion, Meaningful.
- Always have a candy or snack out for an incoming guest.
This didn't start out as an etiquette thing... the first time, I had set out a snack for
Killer the Bunny who was "slightly hungry", when someone's pet barged in and ate it. *smile*
Although initially horrified, I grew to enjoy the feeding of someone else's cute pet,
and so it's become a habit to leave out a sweet or a "generic food" on the table.
- Pat the Bunny.
Or Bear, or Turtle, or Cat, or whatever the pet is.
Usually, if you pay more attention to the pet, the pet has more to write about in their
diary... leading, of course, to more Meaningful PostPet Mails. *wink*
- Have fun.
The whole point of PostPet is to make communication fun, and to make new
friends. So if you see someone's name on a PostPet Pal Directory, try sending some
preliminary e-mails. Look for common ground. Let your Pets get to know each other... after
all, they want friends, too!
- If you support the "STOP DM!" cause, place the "STOP DM" button on your homepage (if you
have one) or include it in your PostPet e-mail signature. If you could link to this page, or
the original Japanese one (if you know the URL; I lost it in a computer crash), that would be
great too.
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