On Thu, Sep 01, 2005 at 02:15:54PM -0600, Hans Fugal wrote: > On Thu, 1 Sep 2005 at 12:13 -0600, Shane Hathaway wrote: > > Simple solution: create a second mailing list, "[EMAIL PROTECTED]". > > Also, perhaps it would help to rename this list to > > "[EMAIL PROTECTED]", to gently remind posters what the topic is > > supposed to be. > > I like constructive ideas. Let's talk about this. What you want to > do is separate the community from the on-topic discussion. I submit > that this is impossible. However it is a frequently-proposed idea so > maybe we should try the experiment.
If human nature holds constant, the list will experience some activity at first. Those who use the spin-off list will occasionally flame people who send OT messages to the main list. Activity on the OT list will wane, with two or three die-hard idealists continuing to use it. Several months down the line, when activity on the OT list has dropped to near-zero, the OT list will either be discontinued, or it will just sit around in a state of perpetual stagnation. In my book, the absolute best solution to the general problem of OT messages is the ``[OT]'' in the subject. This makes it easy (a) for humans to identify posts or threads that are of tangential interest or (b) have a procmail filter in place that will toss messages with [OT] to /dev/null. This is a social convention that I would like to see gain more popularity among the masses. Mike .___________________________________________________________________. Why is it that when everyone freaks out, I'm always the one who gets the phone call?
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