Is It Rude To Write In Capitals?

[Poxican]

Ive got a colleague whose emails consist of capitalised subject lines.

A few examples:
WILL YOU HAVE TIME TO MOVE THE SHELVES PLEASE

CAN YOU RING ME BEFORE 4PM IF POSSIBLE

Im not usually easily irritated but this really gets my goat. Am I just being oversensitive or is it poor email etiquette?

[mattbanshee]

Originally Posted by Poxican

Ive got a colleague whose emails consist of capitalised subject lines.

A few examples:
WILL YOU HAVE TIME TO MOVE THE SHELVES PLEASE

CAN YOU RING ME BEFORE 4PM IF POSSIBLE

Im not usually easily irritated but this really gets my goat. Am I just being oversensitive or is it poor email etiquette?

It is poor etiquette, as well as bad practice due to all caps actually taking longer to read than properly capitalised text.

[LoFi]

It depends on what you're writing. Existential tracts, Communist Manifestos and Diaries of Plague and Fire are all fine to be written in capitals. Picturesque tales of young women seeking love, not so much.

[ZenOvertone]

Very poor etiquette - I'd be putting them to the bottom of my list - unless they are of use to me, of course, don't forget that one!!. If that's the case and they are useful to you, keep quiet and wait for someone more senior to pick them up on it!!

[digitalscream]

I tend to write in block caps (big caps = capitals, smaller caps for lower case) when I really need somebody to be able to understand what I'm writing. Due to having spent too much time with keyboards in the last 15 years, I've lost the ability to write legibly.

[sfocata]

Originally Posted by Poxican

Am I just being oversensitive or is it poor email etiquette?

It is poor etiquette... partly because (whether he likes it or not) capitals are interpreted as shouting or excited speech, and partly because it's bloody irritating to read. Lowercase has a mixture of tall and short letters, so the eyes can follow more easily.

[BlindLemonAde]

Well, I have written in London, and Washington DC... so I say not.

[Sporky_McGuffin]

Originally Posted by Poxican

WILL YOU HAVE TIME TO MOVE THE SHELVES PLEASE

CAN YOU RING ME BEFORE 4PM IF POSSIBLE

These two examples are also rude because they are demands presented as questions.

[bird.land]

People Who Shout Are Insecure

[Vim Fuego]

I used to work for a software house, and the finance package they used was the one they also sold. It really annoyed me as to use it you had to have the caps lock button on. I had to make a special point of remembering to turn it off when I wanted to use something else, unless I was sending internal emails, then I left it on, and if anyone thought I was being rude they could damn well re write the program.