Date: Tue, 25 Apr 1995 11:09:55 -0400 From: Glen Foster <gfoster@osmre.gov> To: gary@wcs.uq.oz.au Cc: hackers@FreeBSD.org Subject: Re: Gating hackers into the newsgroups Message-ID: <199504251509.LAA00347@nomad.osmre.gov> In-Reply-To: <9504250101.AA15300@wcs.uq.edu.au> (message from Gary Roberts on Tue, 25 Apr 1995 11:01:25 %2B1000 (EST))
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Sounds great, put me down as a volunteer newbie helper. I certainly fit the qualifications as "semi-skilled!" I have done several dozen successful FreeBSD (and 386bsd) installs and have already helped several CNBs (Clueless NewBies) but I am a long way from being a guru. In addition to your fine proposals below you may want to consider a mechanism to reassign those being helped should the first helper assigned be inappropriate for that particular person's needs. This, of course, would be done without prejudice to either the helper's or the CNB's status. It would also be very helpful for the helpers to be able to ask a guru should they need a better understanding of whatever issues arise during the helping process or "bump up" the CNB to a "real guru" should problems be greater than the helper's expertise can resolve. For example, I solve the "MBR EIDE disk problem" by choosing SCSI disks when I need large disks. I don't really understand what the deal is with this (I don't run DOS either). Actually, we need a better vocabulary to talk about all this, "newbie" and "helper" are probably not appropriate, perhaps "guide" or "mentor" would be a good term for the latter (and "CNB" could become "de mented" :-) How about a catchy project name, acronym, and slogan, how about: "FreeBSD Mentoring Corps" (FreeMC), "Free Clues for Free OS's!" I think a 30 day maximum is appropriate, of course individual mentors could choose to extend this at their option. Mentors should be able to temporarily stop handling CNBs should their workload become heavy or, for example, if they go on a vacation (I have heard that some people actually do this from time to time). I like the idea of making CNBs go to the bottom of the mentor list but I suspect that most of them will not be able to help others very much at first so I don't think it should be mandatory. Besides, where do the folks who refuse this condition go, to the hacker's list or the well-meaning developers (which resulted in this initiative in the first place)? Finally, it would be good to make arrangements, as much as possible, for CNBs to receive assistance from someone who speaks their native language. Glen Foster <gfoster@osmre.gov> > From: Gary Roberts <gary@wcs.uq.oz.au> > Date: Tue, 25 Apr 1995 11:01:25 +1000 (EST) > > OK, having been stupid enough to put my hand up in the first place, here > is what I see myself being able to do. > > 1. I agree to act as a `registration point' for willing `lurkers'. If you > are willing to help, I would maintain your details on a centralised list. > You would only get one newbie at a time unless you agreed to take more. > You don't have to be a `lurker', just willing to `adopt a newbie'. > (I've already put Terry down for 50. With his volume of output he > should easily be able to handle that number :-> ;-> :->.) (Although > with his 20% `confusion' factor [according to Julian was it??] maybe > that isn't such a good idea -- it'd probably be 90% with newbies :->.) > > All jokes aside, I just wanted to make it clear that the helpers list > would be very much open to all and not limited to one newbie at a time. > > 2. I would produce a suitable `announcement' of the service which would > be posted say once a month (or whatever). > > 3. I would receive all requests from newbies and send them a standard > acknowledgement, pointing out that their commitment would be to take > on a newbie themselves at the end of their `hand-holding' period. > If they agreed to the conditions, I would allocate them to a helper. > > 4. At the end of the hand-holding period (how long do people feel this > should be??) the newbie name would be transferred automatically to > the bottom of the helper list and they would be automatically given > the next newbie. > > 5. Helpers can withdraw at any time *after* handling 1 newbie. This > would be the basic minimum commitment of a helper/ex-newbie. > > 6. I would try to do this `by hand' unless some scripting expert could > come up with some automated scheme to handle it. > > This is all just `off the top of my head' at the moment. Please feedback > suggestions/comments as you see fit. > > Cheers, > -- > Gary Roberts (gary@wcs.uq.edu.au) (Ph +617 844 0400 Fax +617 844 0444) > 4th Floor, South Bank House, 234 Grey St, South Bank QLD 4101 Australia.
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