On Sat, Jan 04, 2003 at 11:08:08PM -0500, Smitty wrote:
> > Be forewarned: opening up an opensource list to commercial involvement
> > is a slippery slope. Constant barrages of advertisements and
> > solicitations, trolling headhunters, and garage sale type ebay folks
> > will tend to irritate anyone attempting to ask technical questions or
> > have open conversation. This is really why the SLUG list has policies
> > against these things: there are no sinister plots behind it.
>
> I think you are speculating, Ian. I am not aware of anyone espousing
> conspiracy theories about SLUG list policies. We are educated adults and I
> think we can handle all the negative things you mentioned, if and when they
> occur.
Speculating? Perhaps. Having subscribed to hundreds of mailing lists for
over a decade, experience has found this to be the case. A well policed
list will generally avoid these problems, I will agree.
> > Yahoo Groups can be a pain though. If the registration process weren't
> > irritating enough, those little trailer advertisements on every email get
> > on my nerves. The spam is also rather obnoxious.
>
> Now, those statements are downright untrue. I found the registration process
> to be a breeze - easier than Majordomo! There are No trailer advertisements
> on every email as you asserted and No spam whatsoever. I have been
> subscribed to another yahoogroups list for two years and Never got any spam
> from that list at all. Gosh, Ian, if I didn't know you better, I would think
> you are trying to F.U.D. a bit about FLALUG.
Untrue? The last time I subscribed to a YahooGroups list, every message
did include a small advertisement at the bottom of every email. Again,
personal experience. If Yahoo has changed their policy since then, I'm
glad to hear it.
As far as Spam is concerned: your list is "Restricted Membership. This
means you must approve every new member, which will cut down on the
potential Spammers. Open lists tend to have these problems.
F.U.D? No. Personal experience. Perhaps I should reserve judgement until
I'm approved to be part of the list.
> > It would still be fun to join if for no other reason than to pick up
> > cheap hardware ;)
>
> And, Ian, you can advertise the services of your ISP on the list without
> threats by a list admin.
As I work for the company that hosts the current SLUG list, it is
professional courtesy and a wish to honestly help the community that
stop us from doing so.
It's an image thing as much as a marketing thing. All opensource shops
need to weigh the benefit of the company vs the community. If the
community subscribes to a policy of active solicitation, the benefits
may outweigh the risk.
> > In the end, it really depends on the effort or the organizers. If you
> > have the time and resources to run another group, I'm sure it will be
> > successful.
> >
> > I wish FLALUG the best.
>
> We will keep your good wishes in mind.
*sigh*
- Ian
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