By Suzann Dodd, Contributor 
YOU RECEIVE a joke, an article, which has 50 previous recipients.
You decide to send it on. That means whoever receives it will get a half screen of addresses before the point is reached. Many will delete such a post unread as seeing line after line of addresses suggests a 'chain letter', something intolerable on hard copy and beyond insufferable in cyberspace.
Have the courtesy to cut all addresses before you pass it on. This is easily done with the mouse or edit button.
In on going e-mail conversations to hit reply and punch in your stuff on top of dozens of past conversations just makes the file longer and wastes more space and time.
After a few back and forths, cut all previous conversations so that instead of someone receiving 450,000 bytes worth of discussion s/he receives 4,500 bytes. These two advisories are simple courtesy and no one should be so lazy as to simply forward an item which is well travelled or slap a few words to a 'diary' of all past remarks.
E-Mail can eat so much space that getting back 20 megabytes after a random compact is on the small side.
Delete everything you don't need and set your tasks to automatically empty your trash on logging off.
Anything you don't need to keep get rid of, including your sent mail. If there's something you wish to keep, then cut off all fat.
I have found many people have overflowing trash baskets which have never been emptied. Having 10 Gigs doesn't mean you're supposed to fill them with trash.
Delete and compact as often as you can. Move items you wish to keep to folders so that it will not sit in your Inbox.
Answer your e-mail immediately or not at all. Anyone getting a response from you to a message sent last week suggests you aren't wired, which can be used against you.
Computers make being organised very easy. Don't carry disorder into cyberspace.
Suzann Dodd is a lawyer and writer.
