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Date:         Sat, 3 Jan 2009 13:07:17 -0500
Reply-To:     David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Subject:      Re: List filtering thoughts
Comments: To: Allan Streib <streib@CS.INDIANA.EDU>
In-Reply-To:  <m17i5cfgt8.fsf@cs.indiana.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

At 12:19 PM 1/3/2009, Allan Streib wrote: >I think lists like this are more than just knowledge resources, they are >a community of sorts and as such we need to allow (within reason) some >amount of more "social discussion".

'Zackly. This list has shown great discretion and wisdom in avoiding and quickly squashing political topics; in instantly ejecting the heater expert and unregenerate Nazi when he showed his colors; and in maintaining a civil tone. But in my experience over ten years or so it has always been a social list, not strictly a technical one, and I don't think the relative amount of "off-topic" posting has changed all that much over that time.

There has always been a certain tension between the folks who want a strictly focused and/or all-technical list, and those who like myself consider the list an avenue of friendship and contact among a like-minded community scattered across the country and to some extent around the world. I believe this tension has served the list well, keeping it to a middle path. I think that (judging by behavior) Ron Lussier and Tom Carrington were of similar mind, and that Jim Arnott, though restrained in his actions, was/is very much of the highly-focused philosophy, and trying to keep a middle road has taxed him severely.

I personally was dismayed by both the tone and content of the "charter" recently imposed, though I understand the frustration that led to it.

The subaruvanagon list is a good example of a highly focused list, and it works well. It is a technical list concerned with suby engine conversions into vanagons, and anything else is decidedly off-topic; and the line is sharply and consistently drawn by the moderator.

With this list it has been more the case that certain subjects are absolutely off-topic and forbidden, and then there is a sort of sliding scale that centers on Vanagons and slopes gradually off in all directions from there -- I think this is appropriate. Vanagons are largely a state of mind of Vanagon-minded people, and they tend to have other interests and values in common, so it's natural for them to befriend each other.

My two cents... David

-- David Beierl - Providence RI USA -- http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/ '84 Westy "Dutiful Passage," '85 GL "Poor Relation"


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