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Re: Technical content of RAFP vs APD

>    *  Subject: Re: Technical content of RAFP vs APD
>    *  From: George Booth <booth at hpmtlgb1_lvld.hp.com>
>    *  Date: Fri, 15 Mar 1996 10:32:06 -070

> It may surprise you to find out that the quality and depth of postings
> are due to the people who post them and not the forum.  Since all the
> "experts" have gravitated to the APD in the recent months, there is
> more technical information here.  And since it takes "newbies" a
> while to discover the existance of the APD, there are fewer beginner
> questions here.  I also suspect that the beginners are somewhat
> intimidated by the technical discussions and are afraid to post.  This
> is NOT a good thing.

Absolutely.  The quality of the postings depends on the people.
I am afraid that the people in the newsgroup will not be conducive
to maintaining this standard.  I will be very happy if I am proved
wrong.

> Also, the suggestion that the list membership be restricted is
> completely off base.  The last thing this forum needs is to become a
> "good old boys" club.  I think at this point we all know each other
> and know what each other's opinions are and there is not a lot of
> point to endlessly repeating them.  We need new voices and a
> membership restiction is not a good way to get them.

Off-base I can argue with, but it sure does not seem not popular :-).

It is clear that a list cannot handle the sort of volume a
newsgroup can.  The options for the list are either to limit the
number of subscribers or to limit the scope of discussion.  
Neither is really desirable.  The former can shut off new voices
and the latter can be viewed as elitist.  It is a matter 
of choosing the lesser of two evils.  The traffic on the list 
is beginning to bother me.  If and when it bothers a lot of 
people here, we have to make a choice.

Of course, you'll tell me that the newsgroup is the answer :-)

> We can have just as "meaningful" discussions in the newgroup as we can
> here.  Sure, there will be immature postings but these can be ignored.

It is much easier to carry on a meaningful discussion if the
participants are mature and the topics are relevant.  Some people
have thick skin, and others don't.  The latter find it more difficult
to ignore immature postings.

-Shaji