Hey.
You don't know me. I've never submitted before. I discovered moq.org a few months
ago, and was excited to find a site where discussion of Pirsig's works was ongoing. I
am still sorry that I discovered Zen and Lila too late too have participated in the
Lila Squad.
Per the request in the FAQ, I subscribed to the lists as an observer until I felt
like I had a feel for things. I was dismayed at the amount of material suddenly
pouring into my inbox. Jumping mid-thread into an unmoderated discussion was just
plain daunting, and checking my email once or twice a week wasn't enough to keep up
with everything on the unmoderated list.
So I unsubscribed from the unmoderated list, hoping the moderated mailings would
allow me to participate (and observe) at a more convenient pace. I was surprised to
see, suddenly, how *few* messages were arriving in my inbox.
Obviously, the moderated discussion list is an evolutionary dead end if no one
posts to it. I guess in MOQ terms, it was a Dynamic choice that mangaged (apparently)
to become too static, and now is dying (dead?).
And now that I've managed to restate the obvious (in a mere four paragraphs,
even!), I have some musings. Obviously, veterans of moq.org are going to view this
development differently than newcomers like myself. While I am struggling to keep my
head above water, so to speak, others may view the elimination of the moderated list
as productive weed-pulling. So the first question is, am I the only newbie around?
How many "veterans" are actively participating in *either* list? And at what rate do
we get new participants?
It seems to me that the moderated list is a boon and a blessing to a site that is
attracting newcomers at a reasonable rate. But if most of the true MOQers out there
have already found moq.org, then obviously the moderated list is going to be an
excersize in futility. The majority of the subscribers will have exhausted their pool
of static musings and would now be on to the Dynamics of unmoderated discussion (where
the really good stuff happens - IF you can keep up!).
If (and this seems to be the case) the majority of subscribers are more interested
in unmoderated discussion, elimination of the moderated discussion is quite
reasonable. Alternately, it could be used as a "topic dump" when the unmoderated
group comes across a subject that demands expansion - someone could move to "shift
this topic to the moderated list" so as to keep potentially stagnant waters out of
unmoderated conversation.
I have one question to which I see no clear answer. What about latecomers? I feel
it would be a shame to discourage new blood, though newcomers may be few and far
between. The unmoderated list is quite daunting. Sadly, the moderated list is all
but nonexistent.
That's my two newbie cents. Hope I've managed to follow all the forms... (^_^)
Later,
Kenny
"A little nonsense every now and then is cherished by the wisest men." --Quoted by
Willy Wonka
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