Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site watmath.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!bstempleton
From: bstempleton@watmath.UUCP (Brad Templeton)
Newsgroups: net.news
Subject: Why do people put their postal addresses in their signatures?
Message-ID: <6173@watmath.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 24-Nov-83 12:09:20 EST
Article-I.D.: watmath.6173
Posted: Thu Nov 24 12:09:20 1983
Date-Received: Thu, 24-Nov-83 23:48:36 EST
Distribution: net.news
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 20

These days I see signature files reaching up to 8 lines long, and
I think it's rediculous.   Asides from how annoying it is to see the
same information transmitted again and again (costing other people money),
what I can't figure is why people put their postal address in that file.

Has anybody gotten a postal letter in response to a usenet posting without
some sort of electronic mail followup first?  I doubt it.
The only case I can think of would involve an article that made a specific
request for postal mail - and this very rare article could have the address
manually inserted.

So why does everybody tell me their postal address.  I would be interested
if anybody can give me a case where their postal address in their signature
file got them mail.

Your phone # is a different thing.   People use that regularly.  And until
we get the net better organized, I suppose some people want multiple paths.
But there is little reason for going beyond two lines.
-- 
	Brad Templeton - Waterloo, Ont. (519) 886-7304