On Tue, 7 May 2002, Zane H. Healy wrote:
> > > > A lot of folks
> > > > who had a lot to contribute here have left because of this problem.
> > >
> > > Got any examples to back that statement up?
> >
> > Chuck McManis, Andrew Davies, Tim Shoppa... I'm sure there are more who
> > chose to simply make silent departures.
>
> There are others, I can think of a couple whose names I can't remember at
> the moment. One in particular was a MS employee who left early on because
> of the hostility he experienced.
Oh yes, I forgot about Kai Kaltenbach. There are at least 2 others whose
names I can't remember right now that cited they were leaving due to the
noise. I know of others who left without saying anything because it
wouldn't make a difference either way.
> I've always argued that the occasional off topic post here is OK. Well,
> the signal to noise ratio is so bad, I'm barely paying any attention to
> this list, and I'm starting to wonder if it's worth my time to remain
> subscribed. I simply do not have the time to sort through the garbage to
> find the worthwhile messages.
I don't have a problem with the occasional off-topic post, or even short
lived thread. But the problem here is there is no self-control, and
threads will, nine times out of ten, mutate off into oblivion. When
anyone complains and offers remedies, they are shouted down. Meanwhile,
the problem deteriorates over time and the list suffers overall as a
result. There have always been off-topic posts, and off-topic threads,
but they were tolerable in the past. It's been bad for a long while, with
intervening stretches of topicality, but it's now at its worst.
Anyway, I've given up on fighting over it. Sure I'll still contribute to
the pissing and moaning about it, but nowadays I look at the message index
and read maybe 2 messages out of fifty. I stay because it's always been a
good source of information for the few who are still listening amidst the
din.
Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival
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Received on Tue May 07 2002 - 16:48:37 BST