Re: IRIS-L digest 498
- To: Multiple recipients of list <i*@rt66.com>
- Subject: Re: IRIS-L digest 498
- From: C* K* <k*@gte.net>
- Date: Thu, 3 Apr 1997 14:00:29 -0700 (MST)
i
> ------------------------------
>
> Date: Fri, 21 Mar 1997 13:21:44 -0700
> From: Tom Tadfor Little <telp@Rt66.com>
> To: iris-l@Rt66.com
> Subject: ADMIN: subject tags and posting guidelines
> Message-ID: <v03010d16af57677e27df@[128.165.66.193]>
>
> **** Please read this message fully and carefully ****
>
> **** Please keep this message for reference. ****
>
> This message includes important additions and refinements to the Iris-L
> list policies, and will be incorporated into the welcome message and the
> "About Iris-L" file on the web.
>
> Iris-L began with very informal policies regarding what could be posted and
> how. I wanted to build a community where everyone would feel welcome,
> regardless of what they chose to talk about and how they chose to say it.
>
> Iris-L has grown a lot during its first year. There are about 300
> subscribers and the volume of mail is now huge. With that growth and
> success comes more responsibility. We need to strive to be more focused and
> considerate, and a bit more orderly.
>
> With that in mind, I have formalized some of the list policies to make them
> more concrete. These are not laws or restrictions, just suggested practices
> that (if most of us follow them) will make the list more useful,
> manageable, and pleasant for all. Please show your "good citizenship" by
> reading these guidelines, keeping them for reference, and using them when
> you post to the list.
>
> *** Subject Tags ***
>
> Here is the list of subject tags, which I encourage everyone to use to
> preface the subject lines of their messages to Iris-L. Please use the tags
> as they are given; do not invent variations. If the practice loses its
> consistency, it will also lose much of its usefulness. I know this is a
> long listing, but that is a reflection of the breadth and variety of our
> discussions. Don't be intimidated; they will become quickly familiar after
> a short time. Try to use the tag that fits your message best. It is often
> appropriate to combine a tag from the first set (types of irises) with one
> from another set. If nothing fits, don't worry. The tags are not mandatory.
>
> TB: tall bearded irises
> MED: median and dwarf bearded irises
> AR: arilbred and aril irises
> SIB: Siberian irises
> LA: Louisiana irises
> JI: Japanese irises
> SPU: spuria irises
> PCN: Pacific coast native irises
> BULB: bulb irises (Dutch, reticulatas, Junos)
> SPEC: iris species (particularly those not covered in another category)
>
> REB: reblooming irises
> SA: space-age irises
> HIST: historic irises and history of iris development
>
> CULT: culture
> HYB: hybridizing
> REF: references (books and society publications)
> SHOW: iris shows and related topics
> AIS: American Iris Society business and issues
> PHOTO: iris photography
> COMP: iris-related computer topics (record keeping, photo digitizing, etc.)
> CAT: iris catalogs and discussion of commercial nurseries
> AD: iris-related advertisement
>
> OT-PLANTS: other garden plants (not irises)
> OT-ART: iris-motif art and craftwork
> OT-HUMOR: iris-related humor
> OT-CHAT: personal messages and conversation (consider taking it off-list!)
> OT-BIO: introduction from a new subscriber (please follow with your name)
>
> ADMIN: list administration issues (reserved for the list owner)
>
> *** General Posting Guidelines (aka The Ten Commandments) ***
>
> 1. Junk Mail. Do not post messages that are circulating through the
> internet at large. This includes virus warnings, humor, chain letters,
> charity appeals, etc. This is not the place for them.
>
> 2. Matters for the List Owner. If someone posts something you think is
> inappropriate, or if you want to make a comment regarding problems with the
> list culture or the list policies, you are encouraged to refer the matter
> to the list owner, off-list (at telp@rt66.com), rather than posting to the
> list about it. This will keep our discussions more polite and also more
> iris-oriented. Be tolerant...even of those who do not follow these
> guidelines. Often it's best to just let it be.
>
> 3. Potentially Offensive Subjects. Do not post anything with political or
> religious content, even if there is some tenuous connection with irises.
> Some people have very strong feelings on these topics, and there is no
> reason to risk starting a heated debate over something that is rather
> clearly off-topic to begin with. By the same rationale, avoid using
> profanity, even in jest.
>
> 4. Flames. Do not flame! When does a discussion become a flame? That's a
> judgment call, of course. Examine your emotions as you type. If you're
> "worked up" over the message you're replying to, don't send. Wait a day and
> think it over.
>
> 5. Subject Lines. CHECK the subject line before you send, even if you are
> replying to a previously posted message. If the subject line accurately
> reflects the content of your message, leave it alone! If it doesn't, change
> it!
>
> 6. On-List/Off-List. CHECK the recipient line before you send. If it says
> "iris-l@rt66.com" the posting will go to each and every subscriber on the
> list. Often, this is what you want. But if the message is personal,
> off-topic, or of very limited interest, it should probably be sent to one
> (or a few) particular recipients, off-list.
>
> 7. Attachments. Do not send binary attachments, such as digitized images,
> to the list. There is a "cyber cork board" at the Iris-L web site for
> sharing photos.
>
> 8. Message Length. Watch the size of your message. When replying to a
> previously posted message, trim the quotation down to the minimum needed to
> establish context.
>
> 9. Subject Tags. Use the official subject tags whenever possible.
>
> 10. Read the Manual. Finally, become familiar with your welcome message and
> with the Iris-L web site at http://www.rt66.com/~telp/garden.htm. These
> resources include the answers to *many* common questions (How do I go on
> digest? What's the mailing address for Schreiners catalog? What is SIGNA
> and how do I join?) Try not to bother the list with something you can
> easily find on your own, without involving 300 other people.
>
> Thanks to all for your patience and support. We *do* have one of the best
> mailing lists around, in my humble opinion. I hope you'll agree with me
> that a little extra effort in some areas can make it even better.
>
> Happy irising, Tom.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Tom Tadfor Little telp@Rt66.com
> Iris-L list owner * USDA zone 5/6 * AIS region 23
> Santa Fe, New Mexico (USA)
> Telperion Productions http://www.rt66.com/~telp/
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Date: Fri, 21 Mar 1997 13:58:29 -0700
> From: Tom Tadfor Little <telp@Rt66.com>
> To: iris-l@Rt66.com
> Subject: ADMIN: Email robins and Iris-L...case CLOSED!
> Message-ID: <v03010d04af58a2d7ce7f@[128.165.66.193]>
>
> Folks, let's stop this.
>
> The AIS robin program existed decades before Iris-L was even imagined, and
> it is NOT the business of this discussion group to set the terms for AIS
> extending its robin program into email robins. That's up to the AIS Robin
> Chairman and to the directors and participants of those robins.
>
> Believe me, Iris-L is in no danger from competition with AIS robins
> (although the reverse is certainly possible). I assure you there will
> continue to be copious postings on historic irises, Siberian irises,
> hybridizing, and any other conceivable topic, regardless of how the AIS
> manages its robin program.
>
> It's really not our problem. Trust me.
>
> Do we need to have a debate on Iris-L every time some irisarians want to
> use a modem instead of the mail to write to each other? Do we need to
> sanction or control every iris-related web page that goes up somewhere? Of
> course not.
>
> We don't own cyberspace.
>
> Even in the absurdly unlikely event that AIS email robins drive Iris-L to
> extinction, so what? It's just people choosing how they want to spend their
> time. Let's let it be.
>
> This is a ridiculous and pointless controversy to drop into Ellen
> Gallagher's lap. The HIPS email robin had to endure no such scrutiny, and I
> hope no future email robin has to either.
>
> Anyone is entitled to post any iris-related material to this list, provided
> they obtain permission from the writer. That's the beginning and end of it.
>
> No more, please.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Tom Tadfor Little telp@Rt66.com
> Iris-L list owner * USDA zone 5/6 * AIS region 23
> Santa Fe, New Mexico (USA)
> Telperion Productions http://www.rt66.com/~telp/
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Date: Fri, 21 Mar 1997 14:19:30 -0700
> From: Tom Tadfor Little <telp@Rt66.com>
> To: iris-l@Rt66.com
> Subject: ADMIN: Iris-L archives
> Message-ID: <v03010d07af58a96758fb@[128.165.66.193]>
>
> For some utterly mysterious reason, the Iris-L archives maintained by the
> Rt66 listserver have been inaccessible all week. I'm pestering them about
> the problem, but I'm still in the dark. I will make an announcement on the
> list when the situation is resolved.
>
> By bizarre and bewildering coincidence, it also turns out that Christopher
> Lindsey, who has a vision of making all internet gardening discussions
> available on the web through a huge database system, has been in contact
> with me regarding archiving Iris-L on his web site. I gave the go-ahead,
> and he has Iris-L archives available from mid-January to the present at
>
> http://www.mallorn.com/lists/iris-l/
>
> This site has an interface that far superior to what we have been dealing
> with. I'm very excited about what he has done. The messages are sorted by
> thread, and each individual posting is accessed through a hyperlink. Just
> point and click on what you want to read. No more waiting for the
> listserver to dump a day's worth of postings in your lap. Just prowl
> through, a month's worth at a time, and look at what you like. It's a dream.
>
> He's also working on a search engine that would allow you to find all
> references to "alfalfa", say, not just on Iris-L, but on every other
> mailing list he has archived. This will be a tremendous web resource when
> it is fully completed.
>
> Lindsey can also place our earlier archive files in his system. However,
> this cannot happen until we have someway to access the listserver archives
> again.
>
> I'll keep you posted.
>
> Happy irising, Tom.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Tom Tadfor Little telp@Rt66.com
> Santa Fe, New Mexico (USA)
> Telperion Productions http://www.rt66.com/~telp/
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
> ------------------------------
