Re: Why I object to the new mailing list (repost)

[jessica@athos.rutgers.edu (jessica)]

ed@wente.llnl.GOV (Ed Suranyi) writes: (large bits taken out)

>    I've been a pretty regular poster on love-hounds for quite a few
>years now, so many of you know me.  I haven't yet said anything about
>the new mailing list "warm room", so some of you may be wondering how
>I feel.  

I've been reading for several years but am probably less known, i've
posted very little overall. But I feel the need/desire to post my
opinions and ideas on this too, as I think that what i write at the
end is quite relevant and I wonder what other people think.

>     This morning I had a conversation with Andy Marvick, aka IED, to
>discuss this a bit more, and to help me clarify my thoughts.  I do
>not like the idea of this mailing list, and I'll try to explain why.

There are some things about the "warmroom" list that I like, and some
that i don't. what i like is that it will (i expect) have the usual
atmosphere that a mailing list has that a news group doesn't, which is
just some sort of feeling of "warmth" or closeness, or just comfort, i
suppose becuase for some people at some times, it's easier to write to
a miailing list, where becuase you're pretty much aware of who else is
on the list and who'll be reading your message, you may feel more
comfortable. What I *don't* like, is that it *won't* have all the good
things that i like about news groups, which are the open atmosphere,
the very public advertising of it's very existence. *So* many people
come across the group just by wondering "waht is rec.music.gaffa"; I'd
hate to see that lost.

>It's somewhat easier to reply when the postings
>come as separate mailings, but then there's another problem:  lack of
>organization.  I already subscribe to several mailing lists, and it's
>annoying when they arrive in bits and pieces, all mixed up. 

The problem lies only in the mail reading software you're using. Try,
for example, mm, in which it's *extrememly* easy to sort messages
according to the address to which they have been sent (or any other of
a number of handling keywords. or a combination of them, etc.) you can
have it do this automatically on startup, etc. for people who receive
mail from several different mailing list, i can't recommend a better
reading/filing mail program. You could of course send the messages to
individual files firs,t and later with mm read the unread messages in
them, and thus have the timing like a digest, but the flexibility of
unbundled messages without having to do any "unbundling" yourself.

>So whenever a flame war starts that doesn't interest me, I just ignore it.  

Same here. 

>     I have the feeling I will be forced to subscribe to the new mailing
>list, just to keep up with all the Kate talk.  But it wouldn't be my
>choice.

I did subscribe, and i've posted there (though it never made it to the
list as the disk the mailing list file is on has been trashed, it
seems, so i'll repsend it when it's back) that I hope we can cultivate
a really good atmosphere, and then *leave* the mailing list to bring
that atmosphere back to gaffa. 

As several people have pointed out, gaffa *started* as a mailing list.
I think this was a HUGE influence in making it the sort of news group
it is/has been. The atmosphere of the mailing list - the regular
posting by several truly interested/knowledgeable/talkative people -
continued here on gaffa and supported the inquiries of new people.
That atmosphere is what's been missing lately, so I'm hoping the
mailing list will have that (it already does, from the looks of it)
and that in a few weeks or so the people there will be willing to
attempt to merge that back into the newsgroup. 

>Ed
>ed@wente.llnl.gov

			jessica


ps: i want to add that I too don't like the idea of poeple being
actively excluded from a mailing list that I'm on. Jorn, could you
clarify that? have you/will you actually exclude anyone for any
reasons? You've a right to, i'm just not sure I'll want to be a part
of it.
-- 
|| jessica  || It is this that || Don't try to tell me there's no reason for ||
|| lawrence ||    brings us    || any moment in time, every memory of mine.  ||
|| koeppel  ||    together.    || Those years are lines of color on my face, ||
|| dembski  ||        --Kate   || the past is warpaint.     --Happy Rhodes   ||