Off topic explained

In the context of mailing lists, discussion groups, discussion forums, bulletin boards, newsgroups, and wikis a contribution is off-topic if it is not within the bounds of the current discussion, and on-topic if it is.

Even on very specialized forums and lists, off-topic posting is not necessarily frowned upon,^[1] but a common netiquette convention is to mark a new off-topic posting or email by beginning it with "OT"^[2] - for example in a forum discussing the Linux operating system someone might post: "OT: Did anyone else see that giant goose?".

Posting off-topic messages to deliberately aggravate other members is a form of trolling.

See also

• Netiquette

External links

• NewsReaders.com: Getting Started: Netiquette
• Netiquette of sending
• Off Topic Forum

Notes and References

1. http://historymedren.about.com/library/weekly/aa072399n.htm "Members of more informal lists may be excited to learn you've had a baby or landed a new job. Others may find such posts annoying and may even flame you. "
2. http://tolkien.slimy.com/faq/Netiquette.html "It is appreciated if articles that have absolutely nothing to do with Tolkien have subject lines beginning with "OT:" ("Off Topic")."