The Hassle: A buddy said my e-mail is annoying. I stopped sending jokes and don't use all capitals anymore. But I must be violating other rules of e-mail etiquette. Do you have any advice?

The Fix: ALL CAPS and jokes? Stay away from my inbox, okay? I have lots of e-mail advice for you to chew on.

Brevity is the soul: Use a short, descriptive subject line (if you leave it blank, I'll delete the message sight unseen). Many small paragraphs are better than one long one. Keep your signature information short, too, but do include your clickable e-mail address (put mailto: in front of your address, if your e-mail program hasn't already converted it into a link).

If the urge to send funny stuff overpowers you, prefix your subject line with "Joke." The prefix separates the note from your legitimate messages so I can filter it into the trash folder (just kidding) or my 'humor' folder for later reading.

When you reply to a mailing list, trim the junk from previous messages that accumulates at the bottom, keeping just the essential text. If you decide to forward a daily digest of mailing-list messages, warn recipients by changing the subject from "Digest" to something descriptive.

Complicated messages, or those with multiple topics, are easier to understand if you number each topic. It also makes replying--by the number--simpler.

Here's another easy rule to follow: Delete any message filled with angle brackets. If you have to forward a year-old, friend-of-a-friend e-mail petition to draft Tipper Gore, delete the 80 lines of headers first. Then kill the brackets with EmailStripper, before forwarding what's left.

I'm a fan of vCards, which contain data about the sender, but if you've sent it to me once, don't attach it to every new message.

I have more ways for you to make your e-mail less aggravating. Read my "Be Less Annoying" series (part I, part II, part III, and part IV).