I'm all for strictly technical solutions to existing problems coming from the vendors' who's products were cited in the question.
In my opinion though, the vendor who started this recent discussion did not come close to that. He noticed a lot of discussion about a competitor, and then decided to ask the list for suggestions on how to improve his product. In my mind, this was a veiled attempt to get some name recognition and attention for his product. I don't care who he was, or what standards bodies he is or was on or what certifications or credentials he has, it still is an unsolicited commercial communication. It was not an unsolicited technical communication which is what I think you described in the Apple inc. fantasy, and I agree I would be fine with that. I also would not be against a vendor posting an answer to a generic technical question with a technical answer. For example, suppose someone had a question about 802.11n and spatial streams and MIMO and a vendor who had some expertise posted a credible and helpful answer about the mechanics of the protocol. I think this would be helpful to the list, and would have the benefit of possibly engendering some good will towards and recognition of the vendor as well. I have seen this happen quite successfully in other discussion groups. Pete Morrissey -----Original Message----- From: The EDUCAUSE Wireless Issues Constituent Group Listserv [mailto:wireless-...@listserv.educause.edu] On Behalf Of Philippe Hanset Sent: Friday, August 27, 2010 11:11 AM To: WIRELESS-LAN@LISTSERV.EDUCAUSE.EDU Subject: Re: [WIRELESS-LAN] Vendors contacting list's participants... Bruce, The Educause Guidelines mentions "unsolicited commercial communications". Really, It's up to list subscribers to decide on direct communication's appropriateness. Imagine that Apple Inc. posts on this list a bug fix announcement for MacBook Pro (we can always dream ;-). That's not commercial, that's technical! Philippe On Aug 27, 2010, at 4:52 AM, Osborne, Bruce W. (NS) wrote: > Philippe > > I assume that it's OK for a vendor to contact an existing customer to resolve > an issue that is mentioned on the list. (Primarily for support, not sales) > > I know that, from time to time, I have alerted vendors about customers who > expressed issues with the vendor's products on the list. > > > Bruce Osborne > Liberty University > ________________________________________ > From: Philippe Hanset [phan...@utk.edu] > Sent: Thursday, August 26, 2010 5:26 PM > Subject: Vendors contacting list's participants... > > All, > > I just received a complaint from a participant that has been contacted > directly > by a vendor as a result of a posting on this list. > > Besides the fact that it violates Educause's policy on list usage this kind of > behavior could progressively mute this list. > > Participants from educational institutions should be able to ask questions > freely on this list without the fear > of receiving unsolicited emails or phone calls. > > Please respect these basic requirements, > > Thank you for your understanding, > > Philippe Hanset > Constituent Group Leader > wireless-...@educause.edu > > p.s. you can report unsolicited communication directly to me, > I will make sure to inform Educause > > > > > ********** > Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE Constituent > Group discussion list can be found at http://www.educause.edu/groups/. > ********** > Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE Constituent > Group discussion list can be found at http://www.educause.edu/groups/. ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE Constituent Group discussion list can be found at http://www.educause.edu/groups/. ********** Participation and subscription information for this EDUCAUSE Constituent Group discussion list can be found at http://www.educause.edu/groups/.
