I have found that when you shift to the public groups systems (google groups, yahoo groups, etc) you lose the ability to make fine adjustments to the content of your lists and discussions.
I have seen Alden here on many occasions gently guiding the list back to it's proper content. Proper according to him, who is the person who matters when considering the focus of this list. When you move away from that kind of control, many times the lists will lose cohesiveness and fail to meet it's intended purpose - I have had personal experience with that. Alden has the ability to make things happen on this list that the public groups don't allow, and to limit things that would get you in trouble on some of the public groups. All in all, I think that having a person, especially such a knowledgable and passionate HG enthusiast, owning and running the list is a really good thing, and I imagine, if he is anything like me, that he gets a lot of enthusiasm and encouragement from the interaction on this list, even when it might be somewhat difficult to manage at times. I guess being connected like this forces you to look and see that there is a pretty big commujnity that is interested in what you do, and I don't think I would trade that off for the world, if I was Alden. Of course, your mileage may vary. But one more plus regarding your particular view of this list. With one owner / moderator / host / rulesmaker, there is only one person you have to convince to change the tone of the list. If you find that Alden agrees with you and that the hassle of dealing with the untrained and novices is too much to deal with, then he will gladly adopt another focus for this group, and will impliment it with as much professionalism and friendliness as he has shown to date. If he doesn't see things the same way as you, then it would do not good to ask him to change anything about his list. We are all guests here, we have no unalienable right to be on this list. Alden is gracious and lets us run amok at times, and he makes us feel welcome instead of beholden. But he doesn't have to, and we should not take his hospitality and friendship as a sign that we have the right to be here or the right to do as we please - being a member of this list is a privelage, one that is graciously extended to us, but a privelage nonetheless. And I for one am glad that Alden retains all the control, that means he can be as hospitable as he wants, and that has been pretty hospitable as long as I have been here. Chris Nogy *********** REPLY SEPARATOR *********** On 1/2/2008 at 8:30 PM Craig Currier wrote: >Greetings, > >Alden (and Cali), I have been on several arcane music lists, most >notably the Cittern-L, started by Han Speek in his grad student >cubical at the University of Twente in the Netherlands, and I would >now suggest to you it is high time you stop trying to host this list >yourself and move it to a Yahoo Group or something like that. > > No one trying to practice lutherie and run a business should have >to put up with the imprecision, random abuse and ignorance you get >from newbies on this list. > >Just my opinion, your milage may vary, Craig ;<)
