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One netiquette question I've wondered about in the past: when emailing an extremely busy person to ask for something, if they send you a message letting you kno

One netiquette question I've wondered about in the past: when emailing an extremely busy person to ask for something, if they send you a message letting you know they've done what you ask, is it better to reply, thanking them (thus giving them yet another email to process) or thank them in advance in your original message?

avar 13y ago
Thinking people in advance when you're asking them and not expecting them to do something always struck me as a bit rude. It gives off the implicit expectation that they're going to do as you ask, and you might as well thank them in advance since them agreeing to do what you're asking is just a formality. Personally I just express how much they'd be helping me if they did what I'm asking and how much I'd appreciate it instead.
- alan_cx 13y ago
  Why is thanking in advance not an expression of professional confidence in the person you are emailing? And there for a huge compliment?
ColinWright 13y ago
Thanking in advance is either rude, because you're expecting them to do something, or different, because you're thanking them for taking the time to read the email and consider the request. If I do something for someone and then never hear from them again, I would be somewhere on the scale from disappointed to annoyed. A one line genuine expression of thanks takes very little time for the recipient. Composing it and getting it right can be difficult and time-consuming, but is, to my mind, always the right thing to do. Make it brief, make it genuine.
vog 13y ago
I often do both. I thank them in advance, to make clear that they'd be doing me a great favor if they reply. Afterwards, I thank them for having taken that time.
joshuacc 13y ago
When I do something like this I thank the person for their time in reading my message, but I do not thank them in advance for acting on a request. The former is professional. The latter is presumptuous unless they are obligated to act on your request.
dredmorbius 13y ago
Close the loop. ESPECIALLY in list, bug report, or other group discussions where you've encountered a bug. If the fix solves it, that's good to know. If not, well, it's less satisfying, but also good to know. And it saves the next person to come along from wondering whether or not what you're discussing has any merits at all. No need to be verbose about it, but a quick "Hey, that worked, thanks!" (with appropriate top-quoted context) would be just about perfect.

avar 13y ago

Thinking people in advance when you're asking them and not expecting them to do something always struck me as a bit rude. It gives off the implicit expectation that they're going to do as you ask, and you might as well thank them in advance since them agreeing to do what you're asking is just a formality. Personally I just express how much they'd be helping me if they did what I'm asking and how much I'd appreciate it instead.

alan_cx 13y ago
Why is thanking in advance not an expression of professional confidence in the person you are emailing? And there for a huge compliment?

ColinWright 13y ago

Thanking in advance is either rude, because you're expecting them to do something, or different, because you're thanking them for taking the time to read the email and consider the request. If I do something for someone and then never hear from them again, I would be somewhere on the scale from disappointed to annoyed. A one line genuine expression of thanks takes very little time for the recipient. Composing it and getting it right can be difficult and time-consuming, but is, to my mind, always the right thing to do. Make it brief, make it genuine.

vog 13y ago

I often do both. I thank them in advance, to make clear that they'd be doing me a great favor if they reply. Afterwards, I thank them for having taken that time.

joshuacc 13y ago

When I do something like this I thank the person for their time in reading my message, but I do not thank them in advance for acting on a request. The former is professional. The latter is presumptuous unless they are obligated to act on your request.

dredmorbius 13y ago

Close the loop. ESPECIALLY in list, bug report, or other group discussions where you've encountered a bug. If the fix solves it, that's good to know. If not, well, it's less satisfying, but also good to know. And it saves the next person to come along from wondering whether or not what you're discussing has any merits at all. No need to be verbose about it, but a quick "Hey, that worked, thanks!" (with appropriate top-quoted context) would be just about perfect.