Re: News/400's ClubTech section

["Simon Coulter" <shc@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello David,

I'll give you my opinion but I don't think I'll participate in discussion since 
it is 
off-topic  :)

Chuck needs to learn some grammer -- you can't "unsubscribe to" a mailing list, 
only 
unsubscribe FROM it.  (Interestingly, I went to the referenced site just before 
sending 
this and GOSH! the reference has been changed -- surprise, surprise!)

There are two things that kill mailing lists; inactivity and volume.  Volume is 
tolerated if the quality of the information is worth the effort.  MIDRANGE-L 
generates 
80 odd items per day.  With the other lists the total is well over 100 items 
per day.    
Once the noise threshold exceeds the quality level people drop off.  They 
simply can't 
be bothered to sift through the dross for the few (very few) grains of gold.  I 
notice 
that many of the "old hands" are no longer with us.  I assume that is because 
there was 
insufficient precious metal among the base.  The chatty nature of the list is 
more 
disappointing than the inanity of many of the questions -- although the 10's of 
answers 
to simple questions still irritate me.

Most of the list participants are in the US.  That means they see the messages 
during 
their working day.  They get the messages arriving in small groups and can 
process them 
without much impact -- although I'd bet that it takes more time than you think 
(like 
smoking -- smokers in a smoke-free environment should work 2.5 hours a week 
more than 
non-smokers or get paid less!).  Those of us at other ends of the time zone 
face 
upwards of 100 messages in the morning e-mail.  We get to see the 20 answers to 
simple 
questions, we get to see all the chat in one hit, it gets tiresome.

If you want the list to grow I think you may have to police it a little more 
and knock 
a few threads on the head once the original question has been answered.  
Perhaps you 
can filter the answers? Especially the one word responses to gormless 
questions.  I 
know policing it would be a big job but it would be easier if the list 
participants 
policed themselves.  I've voiced this concern in the past.

Suggestions:
        1/ Since ~80% of the questions are answered by ~10% of the active 
participants 
make sure the answer goes to the correct list.  If some twit asks a non-RPG 
related 
question in RPG400-L then send the answer to MIDRANGE-L and a single sentence 
to 
RPG400-L saying "Answered in MIDRANGE-L".  If you all do this that will help 
with 
inappropriate questions on the specialised lists.

        2/ Seriously consider waiting before answering the more trivial 
questions.  
Those are the ones that can be answered by any literate person excercising more 
than 3 
brain cells in about half an hour.  The ones that could be answered by GO 
CMDXXX, or 
CHG* [F4], or following the menu options (GO MAIN).  If the answer is easy 
enough you 
KNOW someone else will get it (and doing so will allow the lurkers who may feel 
inferior to answer so they get a "warm-fuzzy" from a sense of participation).

        3/ Cut the chat -- most people really don't want to know your oldest 
tape 
drive, or what system you started on, or your first programming language, OR 
THE 
CORRECT MODEL NUMBER OF 10-YEAR OLD TAPE DRIVE.  If there is truly interest in 
that 
then ask David to create a geezer list and put that crap there.

        4/ There was a request a few weeks ago regarding a general chat type 
list.  IF 
(and that's a bloody big IF -- I'm occasionally guilty ) subscribers are 
sufficiently 
disciplined to move the "chats" to another list that would probably help but I 
doubt it 
-- the reply button is just too convenient.

        5/ View the list as the last source of information.  When you've 
exhausted the 
normal avenues available to you (softcopy, web-sites, MIDRANGE-L archives, 
collegues 
and peers, IBM support, etc) THEN ask the list.  Don't send a question as your 
first 
choice.  I view the list as a fallback for when I've reached my wits end (now I 
fully 
realise I have more wit than most but that's hardly the point)

The series of posts in question 
d not warrant the either the News400 author's 
comments nor the number of list responses (15 messages). So, someone called Al 
Barsa 
criticised Brad's book?  And Brad didn't like the criticism?  Big fat hairy 
deal!  
Although that wasn't how I read the review.  It simply said RPG was an 
inappropriate 
choice and there were better alternatives -- I tend to agree.  I do take issue 
with 
someone impersonating another but that hasn't yet been proved.

More crap comes from the 13 posts answering one word -- CHGSPLFA.  Also the 24 
pieces 
about 9347 tape drives (not to mention the geezer session it inspired).  And 
the 20 
items of drivel about AS/400 tattoos.  That shows up in the recent statistics 
list.  
It's a pity the statistics can't track the quality of the posts rather than the 
quantity!

Regards,
Simon Coulter.

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//--- forwarded letter -------------------------------------------------------
> X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.5 PL3]
> Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 16:26:31 -0500
> From: "David Gibbs" <david@midrange.com>
> To: midrange-l@midrange.com
> Reply-To: MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com
> Subject: News/400's ClubTech section

> 
> Ok, at the risk of starting an off-topic thread, I'd like to 
> ask folks to take a look at the comments on this URL ...
> 
> http://www.as400network.com/resources/clubtech/
> 
> The statement I'm refering to is "And lastly, do you want to
> see one of the reasons people unsubscribe to mail lists? Check
> out this annoying thread (if you dare)." and provides a link to 
> http://archive.midrange.com/midrange-l-archive/200007/threads.html#00267
> (which happens to be the thread about Al Barsa's forged review
> of Brad Stone's book).
> 
> Is this actually the reason people unsubscribe from mailing 
> lists?
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> david
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