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Subject:Off-Topic Posts, Eric, etc. From:Nancy Hayes <nancyh -at- PMAFIRE -dot- INEL -dot- GOV> Date:Wed, 14 Feb 1996 17:58:59 GMT
Just more fuel for the fire.
1. Yes, we do get "off-topic" posts sometimes; so does
every other newsgroup/list. I don't think the problem
is that an off-topic thread is started, so much as when
it deteriorates into a did-not-did-to arguement. (The
recent that-which discussion comes to mind. You can pick
any six style guides and get three different answers. Nothing
we say is going to change that.)
2. Eric is in the unenviable position of being the one who
gets to shout "Enough!" As far as having him be too restrictive,
I think I've gotten three returned messages in the two years
I've been reading this list.
3. Love the idea of a FAQ. You might talk to some of the copyediting-L
folks to find out how they went about working on their FAQ. I think it
was several months worth of work. (If anyone from copyediting-L reads
this, where =is= the FAQ?)
4. Do I think grammar discussions, which software does what, is there a
decent alternative to the generic he, is HTML-writing the same as
paper-writing have value? Yes. In moderation. Maybe we need to have
a time-out rather than a don't-post message. "The which-that thread has
been on this list for three weeks. Let it die." Who knows?
Nancy Lynn Hayes (nancyh -at- pmafire -dot- inel -dot- gov) Carpe Diem
Seize the Day!
