mrose@CHEETAH.CA.PSI.COM (Marshall Rose) (02/26/91)
Some of you may noticed the lack of response from Bug-ISODE recently. There are approximately 30 "experts" on this list, but in the past only three have responded with any regularity. Those three people are now hard at work finishing up ISODE 6.8. As such, they haven't been answering messages sent to Bug-ISODE for some time. Further, it is unlikely that any message to Bug-ISODE will be answered for the next two weeks. Although I personally would prefer a more consistent level of support, I must remind everyone that ISODE is not supported and is made available strictly on an "as is" basis. Historically, the vast majority (>85%) of the messages sent to Bug-ISODE either 1) contain questions that could have been answered by simply reading the Manual or in the worst case, by making a very cursory examination of the source code, which is openly available; or, 2) are examples of pilot error from someone not having read the READ-ME file. This leaves the other ~15% of the messages which relate to genuine bugs or things which are not adequately explained in the documentation. It is unfortunate that these people will suffer due to lack of resources. After the 6.8 release, which hopefully will be next week, I will spend more time on organizing some kind of more formal infrastructure for support. If you find my position unacceptable, then I suggest you find some company which is willing to sell you ISODE support and then you can vote with your feet and your pocketbook. Thank you for your patience, /mtr