Date: Wed, 2 Nov 2022 13:45:31 -0400 From: Paul Mather <paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu> To: questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: GNOME discussions Message-ID: <42FFDD9C-F37A-4A31-A11D-F9B1D9931536@gromit.dlib.vt.edu> In-Reply-To: <Y2J%2BvRxEzX2WBmxy@openbsd.local> References: <c9a4ee2d3a9cb81d6131854027e4860e@ltcddata.plus.com> <15e8931aefdad251e9410889360925826b690d8a.camel@riseup.net> <b49e74b6-778b-f970-1e8e-2ad66e92f9a0@freebsd.org> <f273926c4e3b5c47f1cf46f4b8206346606afce0.camel@riseup.net> <3507971d-e9fc-0531-5a63-f22f13854476@freebsd.org> <bb8097f1bc0de737ea90412c90ee12421e7d8592.camel@riseup.net> <74cd46ec-0149-486d-8df1-37859b3b5453@app.fastmail.com> <1dea781f-c56a-30ad-4763-80720aa67475@freebsd.org> <Y2J%2BvRxEzX2WBmxy@openbsd.local>
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On Nov 2, 2022, at 10:29 AM, void <void@f-m.fm> wrote: > On Wed, Nov 02, 2022 at 06:52:31AM +0000, Graham Perrin wrote: >=20 >> E-mail too often fails. >>=20 >> You can't fix this = <https://wiki.freebsd.org/GrahamPerrin/email#Broken_threading.2C_disconnec= tions>, for example. >=20 > in that particular case, I *think* that has to do with server side = attachment limits/policies. >=20 > Looking at that thread, I see it's truncated in my mail client. > But it's not limits set here or at my ISP (unless it is over 50MB = encoded which is a typical ISP limit) >=20 > The actual threading of an email conversation was (or at least I = thought it was) > an email client competency, exclusively. >=20 > I still have a firm preference for email lists because of its = relatively > distributed nature and the bar to entry is a lot lower in terms of = computing > power. Many forums need for example javascript in order to work. Not = everyone > can have that enabled for a variety of reasons. In contrast, I think = it's a > safe bet that nearly everyone on the internet has an email address and = access > to an email client to read that email. Forums are nice to have in = addition > but IMO a bad idea for the sole repository of ideas and information > in the context of a distributed project. In the interests of full disclosure, I'll also state that I have a firm = preference for e-mail lists. Maybe it's just because I've been using = e-mail lists for decades whereas "online communities" based around = platforms like Discourse or Slack are relative newcomers (a Web 2.0 = phenomenon). However, a person who grew up in the Web 2.0 era of = Facebook and Instagram might scratch their head in wonder why anyone = would bother with e-mail. That brings me to my point. As someone who is involved in digital = libraries and long term preservation at $JOB, I will offer the = observation that it is difficult to preserve digital content = successfully, and that e-mail is a simpler and more well-established = digital artefact than something like a Discourse or Slack site. The = latter has a far more complicated (and less well-known) technology stack = to preserve than e-mail messages. If you value your history (e.g., as = FreeBSD did when migrating its source code system from CVS -> SVN -> = GIT) then preserving your past for future generations becomes a = consideration. FreeBSD provides several ways to engage in its community. That is = commendable. I do hope they will continue to provide e-mail lists as = one of its methods. :-) Cheers, Paul.=
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