Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 00:03:23 +0200 From: "Julian H. Stacey" <jhs@berklix.com> To: FreeBSD <freebsd-questions@freebsd.org> Subject: Re: freebsd list admins? Message-ID: <201106212203.p5LM3NbI005159@fire.js.berklix.net> In-Reply-To: Your message "Tue, 21 Jun 2011 07:44:16 EDT." <20110621074416.58869e66@scorpio>
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Hi questions@
> Robert Simmons articulated:
> > There
> > seems to be a few email addresses that are subscribed to these lists
> > that keep spamming it periodically,
jerry@seibercom.net wrote:
> Now, if this forum were conducted under the same restraints that the
> Postfix forums(2) adhere to, the quality of advice given and basic
> overall quality of this forum would increase immeasurably.
The history of address <questions@freebsd.org> explains why we are here:
questions@ list introduced to provide stuck newbies a lifeline.
(Advertised from /etc/motd after a new install. )
Created long after more lists such as hackers@ &
current@ & some other list, But still created years ago now.
Many old guard didn't subscribe questions@ many years, 'cos
just newbie questions, too boring, no time etc.
A few experienced conscientious people did sub. questions@ though
& did lots of good working helping people.
Years later, what was once a list for mostly simple newbies has
become a lot more skilled
(I was suprised when I re-sub'd after absence of years, a
notable difference; Maybe people presumably learnt FreeBSD,
but failed to move on to hackers@ & current@, & usb@ etc,
is probably down to individual inertia).
The traffic on questions@ has now become very heavy.
Traffic too heavy in fact, & a mess of themes,
Some traffic would be better posted to hackers@ or
current@ or other more specialist lists
http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo
Posting less to questions@ & more to other lists would help:
Some traffic deserves a wider, &/or more specialist
readership on other lists;
Some Subjects some don't need.
Newbies questions could be clearer visible as still
pending an answer, not drowned among a morass of
more technical threads.
> It is my personal view that FreeBSD-Questions should be consolidated
> into the chat forum. Chat forums are rarely moderated and tend to be
> open to the general public. The "Questions" forum has deteriorated to
> the level of SlashDot which has deteriorated to the level of a
> cesspool. At least SlashDot openly admits that they allow (encourage)
> "Anonymous Coward" to post.
I'm against merging chat@ & questions@, & don't believe it will happen
Lists for different purposes, but even if questions@ people
might come to a consensus in favour of merging, lots of
people on other lists have a use for a seperate chat@, ie
to demand of off remit people on their other lists "Take
it to chat@"
I think we should:
make questions@ list writable only to subscribers (if not already); &
Edit /usr/src/etc/motd eg:
OLD If you still have a question or problem, please take the output of
OLD `uname -a', along with any relevant error messages, and email it
OLD as a question to the questions@FreeBSD.org mailing list.
NEW If you still have a question or problem, please subscribe (free) via
NEW http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/subscribe/freebsd-questions
NEW then email <questions@FreeBSD.org>
Should we send in a send-pr to edit src/etc/motd ?
Cheers,
Julian
--
Julian Stacey, BSD Unix Linux C Sys Eng Consultants Munich http://berklix.com
Reply below, not above; Indent with "> "; Cumulative like a play script.
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