From: Michael Polesky MPA Date: Sun, 31 Oct 1999 12:59:02 -0800 Subject: ADMINISTRATIVE: Posting Guidelines - Please read
Hi all,
Traffic on the list has really grown recently, which is a good thing, but also means that we need to take extra care to make sure all that traffic flows as efficiently as possible for the greatest majority of users. There are both several methods of following Harp-L discussions as well as a huge number of different internet service providers (ISP's) who charge their clientele in a variety of different ways. Some of our readers still pay for internet access according to the amount of information they download or to the amount of time they spend on line. So, here are a few posting guidelines we should all try to follow as best we can. If we all try to comply with these guidelines, it will certainly be more pleasant for all and provide a better lasting record of harmonica information.
STAYING ON TOPIC: First and foremost it is important to remember that Harp-L is an archived list and that we want these archives to be as useful as possible for future players to research and read. Thus, we have to mold our posts in ways that will facilitate this process. By "staying on topic", I really mean posts that will remain useful beyond the current ebb and flow of our daily discussion for later harmonica enthusiasts to use as educational and informational material. This is not always as easy as it might seem. The harmonica world touches and is touched by nearly every subject on earth at one time or another. However, there are ways to decide if the post is on topic and a useful addition to our traffic. We need to avoid over-posting whenever possible to ensure that list traffic remains useful to all our readers.
1. Humor and Social Issues Humor is always a wonderful addition to any post, but we have had far too many humorous posts in comparison to salient posts on harmonica issues. We do like to keep up to date on the health, welfare and newest projects in the lives of our subscribers and harmonica heros. In addition we enjoy hearing some of the off-beat comments and banter between our subscribers. However, as we are often averaging 50 or more posts a day currently, these addendums to the harmonica discussion can seriously detract from the ability of digest or web-interface readers to browse their mail, not too mention the added number of individual e-mails it piles on regular list readers. In addition, digest and web-interface users often receive Harp-L traffic later than regular list users and some of this banter loses its timeliness as a result. Because of the different server speeds and connections replies sometimes even appear before the original post, so the humor and social commentary become very difficult to follow. Also, not everyone knows what these comments are about. They are particularly daunting to new readers. Ask yourself who would really be interested in the post and whether it is an important issue for the whole list or just a few individuals who you could correspond with privately. We don't have to cut out humor or social interest topics all together, but we do need to prevent them from overwhelming regular traffic.
2. Political and legal issues These issues tend to get off-topic pretty quickly because they become subjects of great contention. While legal and political issues often affect the harmonica world, they are not something we can easily settle here. These types of threads often breakdown into arguments over WHO, rather than WHAT is correct. As a result, there is a great deal of nastiness involved we can avoid. There is no need to prove who is the most authoritative source in these discussions or any others. We all have differing opinions on a variety of matters. Don't be provoked if someone disagrees with your opinion. Be respectful of others opinions and maintain your objectivity and politeness regardless of what the other guy does. Express your opinion once only and if you disagree with another's opinions do so politely. Just because someone may be incorrect does not mean they don't deserve common courtesy and respect. Allow everyone the chance to express their opinion and let our readers decide who is correct. Arguments over who is right tends ot overwhelm our regular traffic as well.
REPLYING TO POSTS: This is one area where a large number of us can use more common sense to cut down real volume in our traffic. Cut out the majority of included text when replying to another person's message. This is especially important for digest users who occasionally quote the whole digest by mistake ;-). Certain important points should be included between "snips", but be as sparse as possible whenever possible. We do not need to re-read every message that is replied to. If you do not know how to cut large portions of text from your replies, consult your local Computer Guru...then if all else fails, we can certainly help you at harp-l-worke~arply.com or send a note to me at newcal~acbell.com (faster replies) or owner-harp~arply.com. Remember, a kilobyte saved is a kilobyte earned (I made that up).
ATTACHMENTS: These are particularly "nasty little beasts" for majordomo and savvy internet users both. We may decide to forward all attachments to the owner box in the future for efficiency's and safety's sake. Attachments can carry viruses and other executable programs that many can't use. They make trouble for digest users who, if they receive them, may not know to which post they pertain. We recently saw the "Happy99.exe" virus resurface on list. Sometimes majordomo rejects them all together - especially if they contain graphics. If you have a file or graphic you think the list might enjoy try to find somewhere on a web page to host this for our viewing. If you don't have available space yourself go ahead and ask on list if someone does or ask us at the addresses above. Forwarded messages often end up as an attachments as well. I found several messages I forwarded ended up as attachments even though I thought they were going out as regular text. Try to use the "reply" button whenever it is a Harp-L post. When you are forwarding a message from somewhere else try to copy the whole message into a "new mail" to harp~arply.com. This will simplify a great deal for digest users and folks who avoid attachments both as well as avoid confusion.
