Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2001 22:28:11 EDT
Reply-To: Sersote@AOL.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: "Paul M. Hillbish" <Sersote@AOL.COM>
Subject: Re: Keeping the List Open
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
In a message dated 4/18/01 11:11:14 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
psavage@SABER.NET writes:
<< Let's NOT close the list to unsubscribers.
Some regular subscribers go "off" the list while traveling.
When help/advice from the list is needed while traveling--
& using friend's computers, internet cafes, library computers--
it's necessaary to reach the list without subscribing.
Just a thought. >>
There was a long time ago, (some of you may remember it) where a gentleman
from Europe posted a question, and tagged his opening line with "Before I
subscribe". He was testing the water, and I don't blame him. If you just
wanted to ask a simple question about something that you are having problems
with, or if you are not really that Internet savvy, you are not likely to be
ready for the onslaught of messages that come through. Now yes, I find the
Spam annoying, and I understand the argument of people using a work address.
Although, no matter how many filters you put up, they will find a way around
them. Now, I get some porno Spam from my personal address. So those of you
with work addresses, I can't believe that your ISP has never been a target of
this. Hell, I've even gotten telephone solicitors selling porno where I work!
Also, on that point, where I work (Which is confidential material and subject
to a severe beating with bamboo stick lined with steel if I were to disclose
this) I send people to the list quite often when a Vanagon related question
that I don't know comes up. If the list were closed, I am willing to bet more
money than I will ever see in my life that most of them, would be deterred
from posting if they were hit with "You have to be a member" message. Yes,
porno is offensive, and I hate seeing those ads in my mailbox. I especially
hate it when I am actually talking to the person about it, and either hang up
the phone (As I normally do with telecommuter calls) or I decide for some
reason unknown to myself, to irritate them to the point of them hanging up.
I'm sorry, I'm ranting. My point is, it is not really worth it to explode so
violently about this sort of thing. It happens. If everyone would shut up
about the Spam, there would be a lot less meaningless posts, which take up so
much precious disk space and bandwidth (I remember several people complaining
this about Spam while taking up the disk space and bandwidth to complain,
which was then followed by several more messages telling that person to stick
their head in a bag, or agreeing with what they said.) Point blank: Think
about the amount of Spam that does get through the filters already on Gerry.
What? Maybe 2-5 a day? Then think about the number of posts either poking fun
of the Spam, or complaining about it. That totals what? I counted 76
messages about this Spam, not including the one that I am adding here (I know
I'm a hypocrite now, but I'm attempting to make a point) 76!!!!!!!!!! 76 out
of 137 in my box today. That's more than half!!!!!!!!!! My main message here,
is that I think these people would become suicidally bored with the list if
it were closed and they didn't have all of this to complain about. Can't we
all just shut up for a minute? Sorry it took so long to say that, but it's
been building up inside for the past few days. Thanks for actually reading
this by the way.
--Paul--
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