news@brl-adm.ARPA (The News System <news>) (03/05/87)
>> I don't mean to be nasty but can't something be done to people >>who send messages like this: >> [request to be removed from mailing list follows] > >No. Education. Digesting maybe. Not really. Sending a gripe to the >whole list just doubles the noise however (this triples it!) Perhaps >administrative issues should be sent to "unix-wizard-request". The following is a suggestion not a gripe (limited noise injection). Education yes! Where is he/she to get the requisite education? Unless a novice net user is lucky enough to have a very conciencious system administrator at his/her site the education is very haphazard. Many new users enter the networking arena without formal education in its proper use. Armed with only a net address and a mail program they attempt to use a system containing some nasty monsters that snap and growl at the networking faux pas. I suggest that there be a short daily posting which points to a clearing house for novice users. The novice (and some of the old timers) need to learn networking techniques, network manners, and network ideosyncracies. This is not a problem unique to this mail group. Not all readers of "unix-wizards" are networking wizards (yet). I consider myself in the novice category. My scars are a persistent reminder. Please contact me if you have suggestions about the nature of the clearing house or have information that you would like to submit to such a mechanism. Flame on this if you will, but the problem will not go away by itself. D.A.R.Y.L. ARPANET: daryl@mitre-gateway.arpa or daryl@gateway.mitre.org Telephone: (703) 883-7278 U.S. Mail: Daryl Crandall The MITRE Corporation Mailstop W-429 1820 Dolley Madison Blvd. McLean, VA 22102
rbj@icst-cmr.arpa (Root Boy Jim) (03/10/87)
From: "The News System <news>" <news@brl-adm.arpa> Date: 5 Mar 87 16:51:17 GMT >> I don't mean to be nasty but can't something be done to people >>who send messages like this: >> [request to be removed from mailing list follows] > >No. Education. Digesting maybe. Not really. Sending a gripe to the >whole list just doubles the noise however (this triples it!) Perhaps >administrative issues should be sent to "unix-wizard-request". The following is a suggestion not a gripe (limited noise injection). Education yes! Where is he/she to get the requisite education? Unless a novice net user is lucky enough to have a very conciencious system administrator at his/her site the education is very haphazard. Like many problems, the solution (or a partial one at least) is obvious. When I sign up to xxx-request I always get a note back saying confirming my subscription. Often (always?) this is a form-letter. Just have each moderator add instructions on how to unsubscribe from the list as well. In fairness, some of them do this already. (Root Boy) Jim "Just Say Yes" Cottrell <rbj@icst-cmr.arpa> Why did Paul Simon name his album after Elvis Presley's house?
black@ee.UCLA.EDU (03/11/87)
> Education yes! Where is he/she to get the requisite education?
When I got the news software for our computer, I made copies of
some doc. that came with it--"How to Read the Network News" and
"How to Use USENET Effectively." To each novice user I distribute
a copy of this stuff. This gives the basics--the University of
Hard Knocks does an excellent job of the rest!
Rex Black
black@ee.ucla.edu ARPA
...!{ihnp4,ucbvax,sdcrdcf,trwspp}!ucla-cs!uclaee!black UUCP
Disclaimer: "It wasn't me, no no babe, it wasn't me,
Yeah, it musta been some-other-body,
No no child, it wasn't me!" -- George Thoroughgooddrears@ARDEC.arpa (03/11/87)
> Education yes! Where is he/she to get the requisite education? >> When I got the news software for our computer, I made copies of >> some doc. that came with it--"How to Read the Network News" and >> "How to Use USENET Effectively." To each novice user I distribute >> a copy of this stuff. This gives the basics--the University of >> Hard Knocks does an excellent job of the rest! >> >> Rex Black This is great for people who recieve items through USENET but what about the people who recieve items only through maillists. I am on the ARPAnet and can get news only through the maillists. The little I know about USENET comes from various UNIX magazines, UNIFORUM & USENIX conferences, and items in info-unix, unix-wizards, and other maillists. We do not have access to uucp (Command Decision) or netnews. I am not alone in this. There are a lot of users out there who suscribe to maillists but don't realize their is a link to USENET. They have no idea what it is. Unfortanately the only way is thru experience. I realize this topic doesn't actually belong to wizards but even if I knew where it belonged I probably could not access it. Any ideas on education for the ARPA users? Dennis Disclaimer: If I needed a disclaimer I wouldn't send it out!