When you use an online chat room, you need to have some chat-room etiquette.  Chat-room etiquette covers ways of behaving in the chat-room and  ways of responding and interacting with chat-roomers.  For study abroad students, chat-rooms devoted to international students and study abroad experiences are  a great way of getting an idea of how your fellow international students, travelers, and other communities that you want to link with are feeling about issues which affect them and you.

chat-room etiquette in action

To get the most out of the chat-room experience, check these guidelines for what to do and what not to do.

1.  Be polite, have good manners, but use your common sense
2. Chat roomers are often very friendly, and they will ask you your name, where you are from and all sorts of things which you may consider information too personal or revealing.  If you are uncomfortable with these questions, even though they may be innocent, you do not have to provide answers to every question that you are asked. Take your time and type only what you are willing to share.
3. Communication in the chat room is very fast and pacey, so if you are new to the chat-room world,  do not feel pressured to reply instantly.
4. It is easier if you just chat with one person when you enter the chat-room, and  then gradually start to talk to other chatroomers.
5. It is a good idea to select a color for your messages, so that you can identify your messages. Others in the chatroom will hopefully also using specific colors, so you can see who is messaging what.
6. If you feel uncomfortable with intrusive questions either do not reply or block people on private messages.
7. Be cautious with humor and jokes. Without people being able to read your body language and know you well, some humor can be mis-understood. When you do make a joke, add a smiley face or some emotion.
8. Avoid using capital letters, which are seen to be shouting.

Here are some of the most frequently used chat-room abbreviations:
b4           before
bbl         be back later
bfn          bye for now
brb          be right back
cyl          see you later
lol          laughing out loud
Blimey     Oh my gosh
rofl         rolling on the floor laughing
ty           thank you
wb           welcome back
yw           you’re welcome

When you use an online chat room, you need to have some chat-room etiquette.  Chat-room etiquette covers ways of behaving in the chat-room and  ways of responding and interacting with chat-roomers.