Our own Shodan does it. I’ve seen it on a few other posts, here and on other message boards. They sign the bottom of each post with “Regards, <name here>” or some other variant thereof.
What’s it mean? I mean, to my eyes, it’s just noise- it carries no signal, has no meaning, and adds nothing to the message… but every post, there it is. How’d this get started?
I’d always figured it was just a Shodanism*, and as such was just going to ignore it (although I’ve always been tempted to ask him about it)… but just recently, on another forum, I’ve seen three or four posters who do it. Is it just an affectation, or does it have some sort of traditional meaning I’m not aware of?
*[SUB]I’m not being snarky, here, although he and I have been on the opposite sides of many issues. I’m honestly just curious.[/SUB]
“Regards,” in the plural noun sense, are an expression of affection (or, at least, affinity.)
When you say, “Give so-and-so my regards,” you’re saying “Let so-and-so know that I’m thinking of them and hope they’re well.”
Closing with “Regards,” is a little like closing with “Love,” except not quite so familiar; it doesn’t say “I love you,” but rather “I hold you in esteem.”
IME, over the last several years, “Regards” seems to have become the de facto closing for email in general, at least in professional/polite settings. I like it, not too familiar, and not too vague. So, to answer your question, I would go with momentum, the word caught and stuck.
I am still unsure about the opening salutation. “Greetings” makes me think of Viet Nam era draft notices. “Hello” seems a bit unprofessional. “Yo dude” for the txtor crowd. “Dear so and so” seems archaic by internet standards.
What do you proffesional business Dopers open with?
I sign all of my professional emails with “Best regards.” I will either use the person’s name as a greeting (usually when sending to a single person) or no greeting at all (when sending to multiple parties).
My very first question at the first job I had where we did our customer support mostly through email correspondence was: "How do I end these? I mean, ‘thank you’ is inappropriate if I’m canceling someone’s account, ‘sincerely’ sounds a little too Emily Post – "
“Regards.”
“Huh?”
“Regards. Regards, your name. It’s polite, it’s formal, it says absolutely nothing other than ‘this letter is coming to an end, here is my name’.”
I, too, use “regards” to sign off in email correspondence, which I do try to keep as professional as possible, as if it were a business letter on company letterhead. I am trying for professional, though slightly less formal than my usual
Sincerely,
MY COMPANY NAME LTD.
Artfully scrawled signature
My Name
My Position
Our Department
(These emails are often replies to enquiries that are moronic in composition, spelling and punctuation. :rolleyes: )
I never sign my posts, though. It’s a waste of space, and my username is right there in big letters. I was trained at Three Way Action to never sign posts.
Nothing more, I just wouldn’t read too much into it.
It is much less formal than “Sincerely,” or something like “Yours Truly,” or …etc.
Sometime in very informal business or semi-business, or even personal business email, I’ll just sign with “Thanks, <line feed> LOAP.”
Even in this, I don’t necessarily mean to thank the recipient for a personal favor or something. Just a politeness.
(When you are in my Inner Circle of Trust, I just sign the message with a dash (-) and my first name)
I just sent two e-mails, recipients a fellow forensic pathologist, a CSI guy, and a morgue tech. I started with: “Dear Colleagues.” It felt hokey even to me.
I think next time I’ll start with “Good morning”. It would have been particularly appropriate (and even ironic) as an opening salutation on that one since the ER called me about the case at 3:30 in the morning…
bitch bitch I know
best regards to all the Dopers (feels funny - no I do not close my letters with “regards” usually - simply end them with my initials. But I’ve only got one initial on the Dope!)
I agree, it looks weird on a messageboard. Especially when it’s a name that isn’t the username. I think it came from old Usenet habits or something, when you actually sent an email.
Cocking fuck,
It’s just a habit. Sometimes it means just what it says; sometimes it is shorthand for “fuck you, you meerkat-molesting slimebucket”. Depends on the context.
I sign most of my posts, it identifies who I am over my screen name. It also tends to clarify gender. Finally I often add little quips after my name that either do not belong in the body of my post or qualifies my position a little more on an expressed opinion. I noticed that signatures do not really work for old threads. You end up with a completely inappropriate bit of text in the wrong thread. I turned off my Sig and when needed I add my little post specific quip instead.
Thank You,
Jim {Of course I have a mental block to demonstrate my razor* sharp wit in this post}
So my razor is 39 years old, dull and rusty, so what.
True dat. I usually just close emails with my initials.
I always use “Dear Mr. Smith” or its gender-appropriate equivalent as the saluation in business letters on paper, and “Very truly yours” as the closing. I’m old-fashioned that way.
With friends, though, it’s “Dear [first name].” Except for one, who always gets a heartfelt “Duuuuuuuuuuude!” With fellow history buffs I sometimes close with a really old-fashioned, “I have the honor to be, sir, your most humble & obedient servant.”
And there are always those who appreciate a breezy “Ciao, dahling…”
