On Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:39:48 +0200, Nikos Chantziaras wrote:

> > Why are you passing the mail through a conversion gateway only to
> > read it in a mail client? Wouldn't subscribing directly be even more
> > simple?  
> 
> No, because then I would get all the mail in my inbox and I would be
> the one responsible for filtering it; a total waste on bandwidth and my 
> time.  GMane does that for me instead.

Well, setting up filters is hardly taxing or time consuming, but I see
your point.

> I am currently "subscribed" to 31 mailing lists on GMane.  I don't even 
> want to imagine what would happen if I would receive email from all of 
> them (and 90% of the posts would not interest me anyway, so why recieve 
> them in the first place?)  It's just not practical.  A Usenet-like 
> front-end is the perfect solution here; a mailing list is very similar 
> to a Usenet newsgroup and that's why this approach is the most
> practical one.  And even if I were subscribed to only one list, it
> would still be the best way to access it; even though the traffic is
> much lower when compared to 31 lists, but it's still high enough to get
> annoying with something landing on your inbox every 10 minutes or so,
> even stuff you don't intend to read.  With Usenet, you only get what
> you're interested in, and you get it in a way that is very easy to
> access and browse though.

With the downside being that the process is slower, as you have to
download each message or thread as you want to read it. Contrast this
with having email delivered whether you are reading it or not and being
filtered at the moment of arrival so it is instantly available, sorted
into folders, when you start up your client. However, this convenience
uses more bandwidth, so if that is worth more to you than your time, using
Usenet for selective reading does make sense.


-- 
Neil Bothwick

furbling, v.:
        Having to wander through a maze of ropes at an airport or bank
        even when you are the only person in line.
                -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets"

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