Remember: You read it here first!
The small issue about the volume and mix of traffic on Pen-L is a recurrent
episode on the more dynamic lists with heterogeneous subscriber bases. It
is worth reflecting for a dozen lines or so on the causes, implications and
solutions. The first KEY point is that this virtual workspace is becoming as
REAL as the time and space bounded material workspace we spend the rest of
our time working in. It is becoming a RESOURCE, an input into intellectual
production, and social action production. (of course it will be a resource
in the sale of old movies and fresh pizzas but that is another channel). As
a resource is has a crucial scarcity component, our TIME. We have a classic
allocation problem here with all the issues of the commons, the town hall,
etc.
What we need is an ability to flexibly configure, reconfigure, archive and
close down multiple virtual workspaces "in the same neighbourhood". The
CSU site has become our community storage locker of sorts, but we still only
have one meeting room. We need the capacity to set up sub-groups "on the fly"
and we need to persuade ourselves to become "rapportours" to report back what
happened in our block. This means we are going to have to figure out how to
command more of the abundant resource (listservs, gopher sites, etc.) and how
to 'ZONE" them for appropriate use. By zoning I don't mean passing virtual
laws saying what is done where, I mean setting polite rules of conduct which
govern what consenting adults can do where on "our" part of the internet.
I make these point only to sketch out the task before us. Most of us stumbled
into this virtual workspace thinking we had found a wonderful add-on. Some of
us think it was more like making a pact with the Devil, especially if one is
foolish enough to manage a site. Hopefully, the rest will realize that it is
"one more world" in which social action, political process, the struggle of
the common good vs. private gain, are all reproduced. It goes beyond that of
course since the two worlds, virtual and material, are becoming all part of
one common process. The resources of the New World were (a) stolen from their
original custodians, (b) incorporated into global capitalism, and (c) the
hotbed for democratic tendencies. The resources of the Virtual world are now
the same sort of frontier. Until such time as the PEN-L cohort's have been
able to secure their on line resources they will face the "zoning" problem
and remain dependent on the good will of sites and listmanagers. I note in
closing that we have a non-political world class listserv here (on Mark Twain)
being run by a couple of students. They are about to leave and the University
response is: "they go, list dies.", next item. Important point there!
The problem will not go away. How to maintain a "workspace" with multiple
"rooms" and how to "zone" the work for equity and efficiency? The problem
will not go away. In the mean time we are all picnicing on the same
commons (PEN-L in this case) and the time honoured way of keeping one's
item on the table is to simple grab space. The lessons of the Commons do
warn us of the downside risk but until such time as, for example, the LTV
picnicers can be configured (on the fly) to run their list for a while,
it will be a crowded site. To a civil and cordial picnic.
Sam Lanfranco, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Canada
