List Mom Message
The List Rules
From: Mac-Mgrs List Mom (chuck goolsbee)
Subject: Semi-regular reminder from the MAC-MGRS List Mom
Hello, I'm Chuck Goolsbee, the List Mom for the MAC-MGRS mailing list. This
document is a reminder about how the list works, and how list members are
expected to behave while using the list.
I will post this regularly (but not frequently) to the list and make it
available on the list's web site(s). If you receive it from me *directly*
(not via the list) you can assume that it is a *gentle* reminder to stay on
course. It is lengthy, so bear with me and read it all. If required my
second reminder will be *very* brief (along the lines of "rm -r"), so make
good use of this one.
I request that everyone who uses the Mac-Mgrs mailing list help us in
making this a useful and interesting place to be. There are certain rules
that I ask everyone to follow so that everyone understands what is expected
of them as a user of the list, and to make administration and management of
the list as consistent and fair as I can. To improve this mailing list, we
have adopted some fairly common rules associated with other 'manager' type
mailing lists in netland. Please adhere to them so the mac-mgrs mailing list
will be the valuable tool it can be.
SHORT SUMMARY
-------------
This list is designed to facilitate Mac Managers do their job
Research your problem first by reading FAQs and other sources on the net
Post really descriptive questions or informational postings
Send replies DIRECTLY to the person asking the question (NOT the whole list!)**
Original questioner should collect replies and post a SUMMARY to the list**
** These are the keys to having a list with maximum usefulness & minimal noise.
LONG VERSION
------------
This message is a summary of the mac-mgrs charter and rules. Failure to
adhere to these guidelines may result in severe flaming by the list
maintainer and other list participants. It's chock full of great information
sources and a few rules we ask everyone to adhere to for the good of the whole
list. Please retain a copy of this statement and refer to it before submitting
messages to the list or the list administrator.
Table of Contents
Where to get more information
Rules for using the Mac-Mgrs mailing list
Suggestions for improving your messages
Good Net manners & this list
The necessary disclaimers
++++++++++
Where to get more information
I invite you all to familiarize yourselves with MAC-MGRS by checking out
the MAC-MGRS web-site (http://www.mac-mgrs.org/).
Don't forget that the web-site is an excellent starting point for the kind of resources
that Mac administrators need to solve problems quickly. Searching the the list archives:
http://archives.mac-mgrs.org/
How the list works (sub, unsub):
http://www.mac-mgrs.org/list/mac-mgrs-FAQ.lasso
How to get your message across on the list (posting, replying):
http://www.mac-mgrs.org/list/mac-mgrs-post.lasso
++++++++++
Ground rules for participating in Mac-Mgrs: "The Charter" This list is intended to be a quick-turnaround trouble-
shooting aid for those who administer and manage Macintosh systems
Its primary purpose is to provide the Mac manager with a quick source of
information for system management problems that are of a time-critical nature.
"The Method" Answers to questions are to be mailed back to the *questioner*
and are NOT to be sent to the entire list. The person who originally
asked the question has the responsibility of summarizing the answers
and sending the entire summary back to the list. A summary should
include attributions so others can pick up conversations offline if
needed with original posters. BUT, try not to simply dump all the
replies into a mail and send that to the list -- that is not really a
summary! When a summary is sent back to the list, it should contain
the word "SUMMARY" as the first word of the "Subject" line. Please
try to briefly restate your original question so that others have
some clue as to what it was you asked that generated all those replies!
This list is NOT moderated! Every message that is sent to the list will be
passed on to every member of the list (with a few small exceptions).
Stay on topic. The list has a charter of acceptable content and topics.
Do not post things to the list that are not part of that charter,
for any reason. It doesn't matter how important you think it
is -- if it's off-topic, it's not appropriate for the list. This
rule specifically includes postings on chain letters, the Neiman-
Marcus cookie recipe, and get well cards (Craig Shergold does not
need any more postcards. Really.) Anyone who posts on the "Good Times
Virus" (which *is* a hoax) will be lined up against a virtual brick
wall and virtually shot.
VERY IMPORTANT: Do not play Topic Cop. PLEASE leave that to the List
Mom. A lot of work is done behind the scenes via private e-mail.
Most of the time, people who try to do the List Moms' job for them
only make the situation worse. If you have a problem with something
that's been posted to a list, e-mail your comments to the List Mom
and let the List Mom deal with it.
I do not allow any kind of buy/sell messages in the mailing list, except
with previous approval of the List Mom. If you aren't absolutely sure,
ask for permission first.
Commercial postings are not allowed on the list except by previous
approval of the List Mom. I do not want blatant sales hype and
pitches. The List Mom is willing help you write your posting to be
acceptable if it's possible.
I really cringe when I see posted warnings about companies in MAC-MGRS.
It's simply not appropriate to take a company to task in a group
like this based solely on one individual experience of hardware
failure even if the problem seems somewhat on-going. Most OEMs have
thousands of clients and we can all sit here and give counter-examples
(of good service) or corroborating experiences (of bad service).
The simple fact of the matter is that hardware fails and as Information
Technology professionals we have to plan for that. If we demand
accountability from our suppliers then we will get what we deserve.
So, before posting articles that can damage a company's reputation
please consider whether you've done *everything* in your power to
exact the kind of service and reliability that you deserve.
Do not attach files to either your questions or summaries. Do not send
attached files when you respond to questioners. If the solution to
the problem involves files then either include a URL to an FTP site,
or arrange beforehand to send the file(s).
++++++++++
Suggestions for improving your messages
Checked Apple's Support Site? (http://www.info.apple.com/)
Checked the MacInTouch page? (http://www.macintouch.com/)
Checked the list archives? (http://archives.mac-mgrs.org/)
Cultivated that WWW search? (have a start at http://www.mac-mgrs.org/resources/fast.lasso)
Then you're probably not ready to post a message to the group yet.
Remember: research, post succinctly, reply only the sender,
and be kind to each other.
If it is not specifically related to Macintosh management, then it does NOT
belong on this list. Requests for vendor recommendations are tolerated,
provided that the hardware/software in question is something that
system managers normally purchase.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE...Think before you send a message! Ask yourself "is
this really appropriate?" There are enough other newsgroups and
mailing lists around to cover the marginal topics. Perhaps there is
another forum that is more appropriate.
AGAIN: DO NOT ATTACH FILES TO YOUR POSTINGS!
If you reply to a post, please do not send files to the poster
unless the two of you have agreed to do so in private email first.
Our list server software will not post messages containing the words
"subscribe", "unsubscribe", or "help". Instead, it sends them to
the list owner (on the premise that they are newbie posts) --
so don't use those words anywhere in your message! Substitute a
* or something like that for one or more of the letters in those
words if you find you must use them.
Keep postings as short as possible. The longer your message, the more it
rambles, the harder you make it for someone to figure out what you need
or what you're saying -- the fewer people will read or respond to your
message.
If you include quoted material, (which should only happen in *very* rare
occasions since you would *never* respond to the list, right?) edit
it ruthlessly. Edit, edit, edit! Delete ALL text in the reply except
the exact phrase you're responding to.
Keep signatures as short as possible.
++++++++++
Good Net manners & this list
Do not post to multiple mailing lists, or post the same request multiple times.
Do not send list administration commands to the mailing list.
As a policy, I do not respond to mail sent to the wrong address except
to remind people how to do it properly -- this is to not encourage
people to develop lazy habits by being able to "get away" with the
wrong behavior. My interest is in teaching you how to do it right,
even if it takes me more time as admin -- because it helps people
learn how to work properly with all mailing lists.
You may *not* use addresses obtained from this list to harass others or
send them offensive, abusive or commercial e-mail. If I find out
that people are sending commercial solicitations or abusive e-mail
to users of our list, the offender will be removed from the list
and reported to his/her site administrators. I am merciless with
spammers, so don't tempt me.
Our mailing list is rated PG-13. Strong emotions and heated
discussion happen and are part of discussing things people care
strongly about -- but that is no excuse for abusive language, using
obscene language just for shock value, or attacking other users.
You must be a subscriber of the list to post to it. I do not allow
non-subscribers to send messages to the list. Majordomo is very
picky about your address -- you MUST post messages and list
administration from the account you originally signed up from.
If your address changes or things stop working for some reason,
please contact the List Mom.
Do not post copyrighted material. It's illegal to type in an article
verbatim, or re-post one from an on-line service like Clarinet.
(Yes, I know it happens all over the net. That doesn't make it
right or legal.) If you do it, you put yourself and the List Mom
at risk if the copyright holder decides to sue. You CAN post a
pointer, summarize what the work is saying, post quotes from the
work within the boundaries of fair use. Better yet, post a URL so
we can all find it. If you aren't sure that what you want to do is
legal, ask the List Mom for advice.
Anonymous remailers may not be used to subscribe or post to this mailing
list. Any user found subscribed from an anonymous account will be
removed from the system. I believe everyone should be responsible
for what they say, and sending mail anonymously defeats that. If
you aren't willing to sign your name to your posting, we aren't
interested in reading it.
If you use a "vacation" program while away from your e-mail, make sure
that it is smart enough to not send messages to the mailing list
or to users who post to the mailing list. If your "vacation"
program starts nattering at the list or list members, I will
unsubscribe you without hesitation and you *will* lurk about
in shame upon your return. The best solution is to unsubscribe
for the duration of your absence and resubscribe upon your return.
Get to know your mailer and how it works. Learn how to use its whizzy
features, and more importantly how to turn them off, before you
test them out on us. Do not send mail that uses MIME or includes
enclosures. Not everyone can read MIME files, and large, attached
files are not appreciated by many. Exchange users sending
WINMAIL.DAT files will be summarily added to my Fecal Registry.
++++++++++
The necessary disclaimers
If the List Mom decides a user is a destructive influence or is found to be
abusive to the list, its users, the hardware or the list administrators, I
may revoke your privileges to use the mailing list. Using this list is a
privilege, not a right.
I don't like pulling rank. Sometimes I have to. If the List Mom writes you
and asks you to do something, please cooperate with me. Please, though,
don't act like I'm staring over your shoulders: if you're doing something
I'd rather you not do, I'll let you know. If you don't get e-mail from the
List Mom, then everything is fine. It is my policy to try to work with
people to get their message across in the best way possible.
I expect everyone to act like mature, intelligent adults, and to treat each
other courteously. Pretend you're all in a room together, and that your
Mother is watching. If you wouldn't do something while you were in the same
room as a person, don't do it here. That's all I really ask.
+++++++++++++++
A final few words:
Your feedback on improving the documentation and methods of Mac-Mgrs is
always solicited. If you have questions you can't find an answer to, or if
you have an idea for how to make something better, please send it to the
List Mom at listmom@mac-mgrs.org.
Most of the changes I make to
improve things come from the users. If I'd thought of it myself, it would
have been done by now!
I volunteered for the task of being List Mom for many reasons, the primary
one being a dedication to support my peers in (mostly) Macintosh networking.
I have found in my eight years of being a network manager that *Nothing*,
not books, not classes, not videos, not web pages, *Nothing* has been as
valuable to me as the support I have received from my peers. I first found
that out on such long-gone and legendary Mac BBS'es as Pac-Mac (whoa, that's
a blast from the past!), and on AppleLink, back when it was a valuable,
though obscenely expensive, support network. But it was when I joined the
Northwest Chapter of ANMA (The Apple Network Managers Association, a users
group http://www.anma.org/ in late 1991
that I found a pure peer-support
environment. I have always thought of the Mac-Mgrs List as a "Virtual ANMA"
since it accomplishes much of the same task: getting support from your fellow
network managers out in the trenches. Though it may feel like it at times, you
are *not* alone. No matter how ugly or weird your problem is today, one of
us has lived through it before. We are here to help.
Enjoy the list!