> This is a diverse list
> with many different levels of Internet experience represented, and one
> off-topic post is not a big enough problem to merit banning people.
(my 0.02 Euros...)
I have to say that beyond the technical competence of people on this
list (which is excellent), I'm very impressed by the kind mindset and
helpfulness here. I lurk on the *BSD groups from time to time, and I
happen to know that some people do enjoy much of the former, and very
few of the latter... So thank to you Perl mongers for being responsive
even when *way* off-topic,
*** BUT ***
for those newbies who feel inclined to asking some random, unrelated
question on *any* techie discussion group: *PLEASE* do your homework,
and prefer bothering a few thousand computers (http://www.google.com/)
rather than just one human. This will take the same time or less once
you get used to it, and it is a matter of politeness, and maybe of
resource management too. What if the list suddenly becomes filled up
with such requests, forcing members to read thousands of messages a
day of which a fraction of a percent is of interest to them? Obviously
they'll unsubscribe and go for another, more on-topic (read:
controlled, moderated and inamical to newbies) place to discuss Perl
things amongst them. And the off-topic-acceptance will be gone when
you really need it, e.g. for a question that is really difficult to
solve by looking up the Internet. Think of it!
--
Dominique QUATRAVAUX Ingénieur développeur senior
01 44 42 00 35 IDEALX
