At 08:00 PM 5/10/1999 -0500, Tesla Coil wrote:
>On 6 May 1999 Michael Stutz wrote:
>> I realize that this list has been very quiet in recent months, and so maybe
>> it is time for a meta-discussion on the purpose of this list [...]
>>
>> This list has more subscribers than ever, but I get a sense that nobody
>> knows what to say [...] I don't think this list has to increase traffic to
>> 25,50,100 messages a week (I couldn't handle it right now!), but not having
>> a sense of who is on this list and why they are here is not good, either.
>>
>> [...] How can we improve things? For the people subbed to the list right now:
>> why are you subscribed, when you could just as easily read the WWW
>> archive of the list? What do you want to get out of this list; what
>> expectations do you have for it?
>
>The reason I subscribed to the list is to quote its description. It is a
>discussion list for artists who use GNU/Linux and other free software in the
>creation and distribution of their work. The list has a rather broad scope.
>Both theory and practice are welcome here. Discussion concerning free art
>(in the GNU sense) is also welcome.
>
>I've been subscribed since 18 March, about eight weeks. I generally prefer
>to spend a few days observing discussion in progress before contributing.
>To rely only on the evidence provided by this period, and considering the
>wide range of relevant discussion that could occur here, I would be tempted
>to conclude that artists are very poor at expressing themselves.
>
>This conclusion would be reinforced by Michael's "thanks all for the comments
>both on- and off-list." That post of 7 May would refer to *two* comments
>on the list. I know neither the number or content of comments *off* the list,
>but *closed source* commentary occurs to me of negligible contribution to a
>"meta-discussion" or "a sense of who is on this list and why they are here."
I would more likely conclude the off-list replies are simply from people
sending a reply without changing the To: line to [EMAIL PROTECTED], a mistake I
originally made as well. Since I had intended to send it to everyone, the
following is my estimate of why things are currently quiet:
At 08:14 AM 5/6/1999 -0400, Michael Stutz wrote:
>Do people no longer have an interest in creating art-related projects with
>Linux-based systems, or do they have nothing to say about it, or do they
>just not know about this list? How can we improve things? For the people
>subbed to the list right now: why are you subscribed, when you could just as
>easily read the WWW archive of the list? What do you want to get out of this
>list; what expectations do you have for it?
Well, personally, I haven't had the time to ask/answer questions or
experiment much with Linux lately. So I'm mostly lurking on all my lists.
As for why I'm here, it's because I don't often visit and revisit web sites
to see what's 'new' nor read newsgroups that often, perferring to waste my
online time other ways, but the one thing I'm assured of doing is checking
email. So, being on this and other lists insures I'm up to date with what's
going on in my fields of interest.
My expectations thus far have been met by this list already, and I
haven't been wishing for a change. I think you've just hit a really slow
period all across the Internet, probably because all the high school and
college students who really started to turn to the Internet for information
and entertainment around '95 or so are all ready to graduate from their
respectinve schools and universities.
At least that's my theory after reading several graduation
announcements elsewhere. YMMV.
--
Michael Knight,
B.S. Broadcasting and Film
and Unpaid Professional Writer (Hopefully to chance soon. <g>)
"... only he is an emancipated thinker who is not afraid to write foolish
things." - Chekhov
