Re: new ALTERNATIVE newsgroup

[raspail!steve@SHAMASH.CDC.COM (Steve Schonberger)]

In article <8810250508.AA11360@GAFFA.MIT.EDU>, troyer@CCB.UCSF.EDU
(John Troyer) writes:

[stuff deleted]

> This new moderated newsgroup would only contain interviews, reviews
> of records and concerts, articles, real news, discographies and 
> other hard information.  The music discussed would be limited to 
> "alternative" artists -- college radio faves, punk, alternative 
> dance, industrial, noise, improvisation, etc. from both rock and 
> jazz orientations. 

You are right that there is no newsgroup that covers this.  However,
this newsgroup, rec.music.gaffa, covers this fairly well already.  I
think that Doug would be glad to accept copies of the material you
propose for a new newsgroup.  Also, there is a mailing list that
covers similar types of music (reachable at
nm-list@beach.cis.ufl.edu).  The mailing list does not confine itself
to facts, but otherwise it seems a very good forum for your newsgroup
idea.

> I would like to know 1) if the net in general would like to see such
> a forum, and 2) Do I have to go through the entire voting process
> to establish this new newsgroup?  There is enough backlog of material
> to generate a moderate level of traffic until other contributions come
> in. (in other words, did rec.mag.otherrealms and rec.mag.fsfnet have 
> to be voted into exsistence?)

I personally don't support the creation of such a group.  I think it
is too much of a duplication of existing groups, specifically this
newsgroup and nm-list.  You never have to go through the entire voting
process to establish a new newsgroup, but if you fail to do so, the
backbones are extremely unlikely to forward your newsgroup, which will
mean it will exist only on your site and a few others.

> If a formal vote  is necessary, then let this serve as a stimulus for
> some discussion. thanks a lot.

I suggest that, if you don't think that rec.music.gaffa and nm-list
are appropriate forums for your material, you create a mailing list of
your own, and advertise it in places that would be likely to have
people who would be interested in it.  If, after some time as a
mailing list, your group shows wide enough interest to get the formal
approval, suggest the vote again.  Chances are, if the group has
existed for a while as a mailing list, the vote will go favorably.
And with a history of usage of the mailing list, the backbones are
likely to create it quickly when the voting is completed.  Remember
that the backbone sites don't have to take any newsgroup, even one
which passed the formalities -- after all, they are deciding how to
run _their_ machines.  The newsgroup comp.women was approved in the
voting process, but the backbone sites chose to put it in
comp.society.women instead.  They could also reject it entirely, like
with {rec,soc}.sex, which ended up as an alt group.

> John Troyer        		troyer@ccb.ucsf.edu
> 				troyer@ucsfccb (bitnet)

	Steve Schonberger
	steve@raspail.uucp	raspail!steve@shamash.cdc.com
	...!uunet!rosevax!shamash!rapail!steve