E-mail, instant messaging, text messaging, chat rooms and message boards are relatively new forms of communication that are rapidly becoming staples of today's communication repertoire. Remember the following: While the rules of correspondence etiquette are much looser, the ways in which you represent yourself still tell a great deal about you. Start your communications with a greeting and end them with a closing statement and your name. Avoid the use of all caps. While their use is to signal urgency or importance to the information being conveyed, good writing skills will prevail. Writing in all caps is more difficult for readers to interpret and sends more negative signals than positive. It can cause the reader to feel as if he or she is being shouted at. Avoid the use of extensive web slang or shortcuts such as "UR," "LOL," and "2nite," along with avatars and dingbats, unless you know the recipient well and have established this as common usage between you. Spell Check. While there are large margins of forgiveness on the Internet, your professional edge is compromised when your communication, in any form, is filled with spelling, typographical, or grammatical errors. The message you send is that you are too busy to care. Most of all, remember that nothing you send electronically is private. Choose your words carefully and consider the message you are trying to convey. Think about how you would feel if what you have written were to be read by your peers or supervisors.