Enhancement to the Journal Program

[alt_selwyn]

I am pleased to announce a new enhancement to the journals. It is now possible to communicate more privately with one or two people using your journal. Simply write 'Private Message to' followed by one or two names, and then write the rest of your entry as usual. The content of your message will be invisible to all but the intended recipients, who will be able to reply to it as they would any other journal entry.

So, for instance, if I wished to send a message to Robert and Sarah Smith, I would write 'Private Message to Robert and Sarah Smith' in the subject line. Anyone who regularly reads my journal would see that I had written a private message to the Smiths, but would be unable to read anything further.

To answer a few of the questions I have already been asked:

* You may send a private message to only two people at once, but there is no limit to the number of such messages you may write.

* If two individuals share the same name, any additional description (such as an address, a town, or a personal description) will suffice. You do not need to write out the exact name provided that no one else shares the nickname (so, 'Private Message to the Razzer' will reach Mr Lestrange unless there is another Razzer with whom we are not acquainted.)

* All regulations and policies regarding communication by owl apply to this method of communication as well.

* Muggleborns in service who are in possession of journals may use this feature, but their owner of record must always be one of the two people who may view the message.

Many thanks to our gracious and glorious Lord Protector! Any further questions may be left as replies to this entry.

Comments

Order Only

[alt_bill]

Well. I guess there's my answer.

[alt_rodolphus]

I somehow doubt there are many more folk named "Rabastan" than there are "Razzer."

Really, though, what a clever method for making the journals more useful than they already are. I don't suppose that the upgrade was inspired by necessary ban of owls this spring past? The journals were enormously helpful for keeping in touch during that period, but it did show the downside of their (previously, at least) very public nature. Especially for those of a relatively taciturn character.

[alt_lucius]

Working late?

I'm a little interested to see that a certain someone has not used his feature yet. Perhaps he was reticent to try it before it was officially announced.

[alt_zacharias]

Excuse me, sir, but if the people you're writing to aren't related, do you need both their full names? I mean, like, if I was to write to MacMillan and Finnigan, I'd have to write 'Private Message to Ernie MacMillan and Seamus Finnigan' right? Not 'MacMillan and Finnigan' or 'Ernie and Seamus'? I guess that's maybe a stupid question.

[alt_bill]

It's quite a brilliant extension of functionality to the journals project, I must say. The more ways we encourage our citizens to entrust their personal communications to the Ministry, the better.

I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up to No Good

[alt_neville]

So what do you all think?

[alt_percy]

This is indeed wonderful news, Mr Selwyn. I must say, I've been waiting for this announcement with a great deal of anticipation.

[alt_pansy]

This is very exciting, sir!

Do the private messages have to be written in just your own journal, or can there be private messages that are comments on someone else's journal? So if someone said something, and you wanted to ask them something private about it, could you do it in their journal?

Thank you!