Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/

[mdthomas AT mindspring.com]

InterNetWorkers <internetworkers AT franklin.oit.unc.edu> wrote:
> At 06:56 PM 3/14/00 -0500, mdthomas AT mindspring.com wrote:
[snip]
 >...In short, it's a feedback mechanism. When
 >I'm talking to someone, I can get a good feeling
 >about whether or not they like what I'm saying.
 >In email it's not so easy...

>....which isn't very helpful to either
>the one who's being encouraged/discouraged, 
>the one who's responding (s/he doesn't 
>really have to think through the response - 
>just shoot off an anonymous "yes/no") or to
>the group. What possible good can it do? 

This is true... there is only binary feedback
(though the quantity of feedback would have
some meaning.) I may be missing the forest
for the perl scripts... err, trees.

Hmmm... I'm imagining getting a discourage note
and immediately getting paranoid everytime
I encounter someone from the group... "Is this
person one of my discouragers?" (But of course
remember that the model can be implemented 
with encourage only.)

>If you like what someone has to say, 
>tell them, and tell them why. If you don't
like what someone has to say, tell them *and 
>tell them why*. Have a discussion! Have a 
>community! Are we all at least agreed that
>one thing Internetworkers is about is community?

Really the primary thing... get people
talking, sharing ideas, etc. 

I'm a technical person, so maybe I'm 
looking to hard for a technical solution
to determing "what's the list for." I 
think it's best that this question is
answered by list itself. Though the
more qualitative manner which you 
describe would probably include input
from fewer members, it may indeed 
provide better input overall.

>And why do we want it to be context-free? 
>IMNSHO, context is important in determining 
>what a community is about. Or maybe I'm 
>misunderstanding what you mean?

Hmmm... For me, context is the root of 
formality... and informality makes things
fun. I think informality also leads to
good things happening organically -- e.g.,
who knew that we'd have a homecoming queen
for our April gathering :-)






Cheers!
-Rachel
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