Via Twitter, @agfhome asks, “Do people think i’m stupid? Does anyone else get insulted by seeing a read receipt on an email requesting a reply and getting none?”
For the record, here are my thoughts on the subject. I think e-mail read receipts re about the most annoying damn thing ever created and the people who use them are narcissistic douchebags. You’re sending me a message and along with it is this little cover note that says:
- I don’t trust you to actually open my mail
- I want to know if you open my mail
- If you do actually open it, I want your computer to spy and you and report that fact back to me
That you would send an e-mail and demand to know if I read it is ridiculous. I have six different e-mail accounts set up on my Blackberry alone. I actively monitor about 12 different accounts and average around 500 messages a day. There are, within that traffic, a handful of people who have turned on the read receipt option.
Just to be clear, and believe it or not, your message is not the most important one I will get today. Chances are, it’s not in the top 50.
Fortunately, I can configure my e-mail to check with me before it sends you a receipt. Granted, it actually causes me more work, but I’d rather spend the few seconds to specifically tell you to piss off by not allowing my machine to reply.
Do us all a favor. Turn that shit off. I realize the concept appeals to you, but save yourself the embarrassment of being “that guy”. Please!
I don’t use the feature myself, but how is this different than certified snail mail? That’s the postal service “spying” on the sendee for you. No one ever gets worked up over that.
True, but how often do you send certified mail to a friend? Even with snail mail, you generally only use it when there is a business or legal need to verify receipt. It’s not like you send your mother certified mail.