Re: Why not a news server?

[Andrew DeFaria <ADeFaria at Salira dot com>]

Larry Hall (RFK Partners, Inc) wrote:

> At 02:06 PM 2/1/2002, Andrew DeFaria wrote:
>
>> Larry Hall (RFK Partners, Inc) wrote:
>>
>>> OK, there are differences now compared to when this topic was last 
>>> discussed so maybe it warrants "discussion". However, I'd highly 
>>> recommend that anyone that wishes to discuss this review the email list
>>> archives.
>>
>> See that's just the thing. AFAIK searching the email list archives is 
>> not convenient nor easy.
>
> Have you tried it? Just curious since you preface your statement with 
> AFAIK, which implies you don't have personal experience. I won't 
>  suggest that looking in the mail list archives is not trying at 
> times. It's usually most frustrating when you look for something that 
> isn't indexed the way you think of it. AFAIK a news server doesn't 
> make that easier but I have no experience searching on a news server. 
> In any case, I, like others in the discussions of yore, have no 
> objections to a  news server for the Cygwin list in addition to the 
> mail list. I think if someone stepped forward to create and maintain 
> one, no one would object  to it's announcement on the Cygwin list.

Yes I've tried it. It's OK. Really don't like the "threading" as per se. 
Often get lost trying to track down a thread. No news servers do not 
make searching that much more easier but IMHO they make discussing 
things much more easier, which is, after all, what this list is about, 
discussing Cygwin.

And again, currently this is not very convenient. For example, Larry 
here emailed me directly at my work email address about this topic. I 
hit reply and replied to him. But our discussion did not go to the 
Cygwin mail list. I noticed, just as it was too late, that I forgot to 
add on the cygwin@cygwin.com, so you all didn't get that first response. 
Then Larry emails me again, continuing our discussion of this issue. 
This time I remembered. As I said email is not conducive to discussions, 
which is why news and news servers exist no? Also, as has been stated, 
it's a big waste of bandwidth and space to send everybody a copy of the 
thread, especially since rarely is anybody interested in all of it.

>>> I think it was generally agreed that no one objected to the use of a 
>>> news server so long as it didn't replace the email list.
>>>
>>> In this context, I believe the main reason that a news server has 
>>> never been implemented is that no one has volunteered to set one up 
>>> and run it. So, I guess if you're interested in having one, you can 
>>> have one if you or someone else is willing to do the work to create 
>>> and maintain it. Not to sound too pessimistic but pointing out this 
>>> fact in the past was enough to kill the thread... for a while.
>>
>> Creating it and maintaining it is one thing. Getting the equipment 
>> and connection to have it accessable is another. But that is not 
>> necessary, why not simply have something lick comp.os.cygwin?!?
>
> Similar suggestions were made in the past. Would you like to get the 
> ball rolling by going through the process of creating the group?

Well there's a downside to this too. You see a comp.os.cygwin group 
would be great in general. But in specific my company doesn't have a 
news server either. So I could not read the comp.os.cygwin news group at 
work (where I need it more) save using something like groups.google.com 
or something else like that (which I hate). I can, however, read news 
from say Netscape and Microsoft and other company hosted news groups. 
And you don't need to be big to have company hosted news groups. For 
example, Twelve Tone Systems (makers of Cakewalk, a music sequencing 
program) have a news server as well as even individual, not so company 
oriented places like Steve Gibson's grc.com And Julian Haight's 
spamcop.net.. However such a news server needs to be hosted and I do not 
have the resources to host such (unless ya'll want to hit my DSLed 
Windows XP box at my house and will chip in for a new hard drive! :-).


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