My name is Dave

I am the administrator of this list and am responsible for the Black Country List running as smoothly as possible I'm now forced to set some guidelines. This is one of the friendliest lists on Rootsweb and I aim to keep it that way

1) To POST a message to this list use the address:

ENG-Black-Country-L@rootsweb.com

2) To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE send a message to:

ENG-Black-Country-L-request@rootsweb.com

(to receive the messages individually)or

ENG-Black-Country-D-request@rootsweb.com

(to receive multiple messages in one email)

In the BODY of the message (not the subject line) type the word subscribe or unsubscribe.

THIS SHOULD BE THE ONLY WORD IN THE BODY OF THE MESSAGE!

The List Rules:

This list is for the discussion of Genealogy, Geography, Humour, History (both oral and written), primarily regarding the area known as the Black Country in England. Discussion of migration patterns, immigration, heraldry, historical sketches, census data, wills, family Bibles, vital records, web sites, etc. involving this area is encouraged, as are tales of our language and heritage (i.e. Aynuk & Ayli)

DO NOT post virus warnings, test messages, chain letters, political announcements, current events, items for sale, personal messages, etc. If you think that a posting is borderline check with me first. For information on virus hoaxes and urban legends see http://www.cyndislist.com/internet.htm.

Please DO NOT send file attachments (messages with files appended) to the list. The Rootsweb filters will not allow them through.

NO rude comments or flaming in the list! No discussion of flaming in the list! For definitions of flaming and related information see http://www.matisse.net/files/glossary.html#F. Anyone breaking this condition will be unsubscribed immediately

DO NOT impose any other rules or conditions, expressed or implied elsewhere, upon this list. Rules of other forums may not necessarily apply here. Do not try to regulate this list. If you do not like the way someone formats their queries or responses, or the content of their subject titles, take it up with me, NOT in the list. The list is for the purposes set out above and is unlike any other list as far as I'm aware.

I reserve the right to unsubscribe anyone who posts commercials, rude or derogatory remarks about another List member or anything offensive or just plain stupid. I will not tolerate flaming or possible slander on this list.

TIPS:

Before sending your first message to the list, please check your software to ensure that you are using plain text. Messages written in HTML or MIME will be rejected automatically by the Rootsweb filters and returned to you.

SURNAME lists are okay. Use your common sense about what you post. PLEASE capitalise ALL surnames (not the whole message) as this makes it much easier for others to see your surnames when reading your message. Do not capitalize towns or cities as this may mislead people as to which names you are seeking.

SUBJECT LINES - When replying to a message please check the subject line to make sure that it is relevant to the topic in hand. It gets very frustrating when subject lines get repeated over and over from the original message and it has nothing to do with the present topic.

Digest users MUST change the subject line to reflect the content of their messages. Our subscribers prefer to see a SURNAME, locality and date in the subject line if appropriate

OTHER LISTS - I reserve the right to immediately susubscribe any person who has caused trouble/problems on any other Rootsweb list following consultation with the relevant list admin

NON-GEN MESSAGES - Unlike most other Lists the BC List thrives on its Non-Gen messages, in future, to save space in the headers please prefix messages of this nature with *NG*

TRY to keep quoting to a minimum. "Quoting" is repeating text of the message you are replying to. Some quoting is necessary to remind other readers what the thread is about but do try to use good judgement. Quoting the previous writer's signature block or surname list is totally unnecessary. To prune the text, drag your cursor over the words to be removed to select them, and overtype with <snip>, to show you have removed a section.

The TAGLINES at the end of each message have important tips and links.

ACKNOWLEDGE replies to your queries. This is a regular occurrence where someone will reply to your message but receive no acknowledgement that you have received it and not even a simple thank you for any information they have furnished.

REPLY to the list if your information may be of value to others on the list.

REPLY to the poster if it would only be of interest to the individual you are replying too.

POST your query frequently, perhaps every other month, if you have not yet found your ancestor. New people are joining the list all the time and they may have the info you need.

Use abbreviations sparingly. The list contains novices and people who've never been to The Black Country. Here's a list of common abbreviations:

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions.

FHC - Family History Center

FHS - Family History Society

GRO - General Registrar's Office

IGI - International Genealogical Index

ISP - Internet Service Provider, like AOL, MSN, etc.

LDS - Latter Day Saints (Mormons)

LOL - Laughing Out Loud

ONS - One Name Study (GOONS = Guild of One Name Studies)

PRO - Public Record Office in the United Kingdom

RG - Registrar General

SKS - Some Kind Soul (the timid may use SKP for Some Kind Person)

SOG - Society of Genealogists

TIA - Thanks In Advance/Anticipation

URL - Uniform Reference Locator (an internet web site address)

FWIW - For what it's worth

IMHO - In my humble opinion (or usually in my

case, anything but!)

<g> - Grin

<VBG> - Very big grin

If you change e-mail services, please unsubscribe from the old service before termination. If you can't, notify me and I will try to do it (if I can find the old address, it's not always an easy task!). Otherwise your Rootsweb mail bounces to me. If you go on holiday or vacation, make sure that you have enough disk space with your ISP (sometimes called "quota") or your Rootsweb mail will start bouncing to me.

Useful Links:

http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/STS/

http://www.rootsweb.com/~maillist

http://www.cyndislist.com/

http://www.genuki.org.uk/

http://www.pro.gov.uk/

http://www.streetmap.co.uk

http://www.railwayancestors.demon.co.uk/

http://www.pubsindex.freeserve.co.uk/index.htm

Archives for this list

http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl

Then enter: ENG-Black-Country