Percy-L: Literary, Religious, Scientific, and Philosophical Discussion of Walker Percy

[Henry Mills <hpmills3 AT austin.rr.com>]

Title: Important Update--How to contact the list moderator/search the percy-l archives

Dear Percy-L,

In recently reviewing the Percy-L Guidelines, an updated version of which I post below, I observed that there was an incorrect email address specified for contacting me as list moderator.  (The Percy-L Guidelines are automatically distributed to new members at list sign-up.) Please note that list members should use following permanent email address for sending any questions, comments, or other special concerns to me regarding the list or its operations: 

    percy-l-owner AT lists.ibiblio.org 

Now in its fifteen year of operation, Percy-L currently has 110 members with all posts since 2001 conveniently archived at the following address: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/. Note that you can search the Percy-L archives by using the following Google command:

    Google command to search the Percy-L archives: 
        site:lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ [search string (omit the brackets)] 
    Put this command in the Google search box, not in your browser’s URL box.

I encourage all members to bring new discussion topics regarding Percy or his works to the list at any time, including potential discussion or correlation of the relevance of his work to current events. Please also do take a few minutes to review the updated Percy-L Guidelines found below and save this email for your future reference. 

I look forward to the next round of discussion! 

Best regards,

Henry Mills
Percy-L Moderator 
The Walker Percy Project, Founder

http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy (WPP website)



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                PERCY-L GUIDELINES: PLEASE SAVE THIS WELCOME MESSAGE
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PERCY-L GUIDELINES
This document provides an overview of the Percy-L listserv discussion policies followed by a list of the basic user commands for operating your account.  Please save this document for future reference.

A. GENERAL POLICIES
The Percy-L forum is open to the discussion of all topics pertaining to the work and thought of the American novelist and philosopher Walker Percy. Students, general readers, and scholars are all welcome, as well as simply the curious. There is no standing agenda for the list except the promotion of commentary of the sort that one would expect from people with a special interest in Percy.  As such, the list will remain unmoderated unless some future reason requires it. A diverse range of critical perspectives is therefore welcomed, if not encouraged, as long as the manner and method of _expression_ are responsible and respectful of the parties they are addressed to, as well as the larger list membership as a whole. 

(Quick Links)
The following is a list of “quick links” related to the list (also see the bottom of these guidelines for additional listings):
    1) To post to this list, send your email to: percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org
    2) General information about the list and account management options such as password retrieval are available at: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l
    3) All messages are publicly archived at the following address: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/

B. INTRODUCING YOURSELF
Please consider introducing yourself to the Percy-L community even if you plan to participate only as an observer. The more we all know what our various interests are, the more likely it is that someone will address them in some way.  With any good fortune, as list discussion and participation grow, Percy-L will develop into a vital community resource, from both its ongoing inquiry into Percy's work as well as the record of discussion that is contained in the list's permanent archives. The more we invest ourselves in the list, and in developing connections with one another, the more fully we will all benefit from it by the communal undertaking it is.

C. INTRODUCING TOPICS
Members should feel free to introduce a new topic for discussion or to respond to any existing "thread" or line of thought already in process at any time, as you see fit. This medium of communication takes multiple "threads" of discourse to be a given: anyone can enter into the discussion at any time, just as those already involved in it can pay as much or as little attention to whatever is of interest to them. Needless to say, both patience and tolerance are encouraged in all matters related to the list, for electronic discussion of this sort is fraught with the potential for misunderstanding, even as it provides for new channels of discussion.

If no one responds to your post, you should not assume that that is because of a lack of interest, or that your post is perceived as unimportant. Frequently, the interested reader just doesn't have time to respond, and few of us have time to answer more than a small percentage of the posts that are of interest to us in any case. Therefore, pose your questions and comments well by your own standards, and remind yourself that, even if there is no direct response, what you have said or asked will be read by a large body of Percy-enthusiasts. And who is to say in what way ripples may occur following any post? If response is important to you, then wait a month or so and try sending your query again.

D. REPLYING TO TOPICS
In replying to posted topics, it is helpful to others if you provide a beginning line in your message indicating who you are replying to and about what (brevity is encouraged when it comes to quoting). For the same reason, you should also consider having a closing signature line or block in all of your messages that identifies who you are or your affiliation. How much information you wish to provide about yourself is up to you, but any information you provide will likely help members keep better track of the conversational flow.

E. A NOTE ON THE NATURE OF GROUP DISCUSSIONS 
During group discussions, it is not infrequent that participants may wish to individually address others through the list, but such an occurrence does not necessarily mean that the discussion has become "personal" in the sense that it would best be conducted off-list.  To put it in other words, what is personal and what is _private_ are two separate matters. Rather, the question at hand is whether the discussion concerns topics of broader relevance to the purposes of the list as a whole as identified in section A. 

It is therefore more than acceptable for any number of individuals in public electronic-based discussions of this sort to pursue special interests as long as there is nothing deliberately exclusive of others in it, either explicitly or in tone.  However, if you have any problems about topics being posted, or in connection with the receipt or posting of your own messages, please contact the list administrator at percy-l-owner AT lists.ibiblio.org.

F. SPECIAL DISCUSSION CONSIDERATIONS
In order to keep discussion focused on Percy subjects, please observe the following discussion guidelines:

        1) Avoid introducing what might be considered partisan political topics, unless they directly bear on or are consciously correlated to Percy and his thought. This rule does not exclude current events from discussion, but merely underscores that this is a listserv dedicated to Percy topics, not personal political agendas.

        2) Please do not forward outside announcements through the list unless a case can be made for a direct connection to Percy and the interests of those who have joined the list. If in doubt, please contact the list administrator at percy-l-owner AT lists.ibiblio.org. 

        3) Please contact the list administrator at percy-l-owner AT lists.ibiblio.org before submitting any posts involving the marketing of Percy-related products if you represent a business or non-profit group (bookstores, film-makers, etc.). Individual, non-commercial collectors of such items as rare books or memorabilia are welcome to post to the list at any time as long as the messages involved specify that interested parties should approach the seller off-list to conduct any transactions.

G. SPECIAL TECHNICAL CONSIDERATIONS
In order to keep list operations efficient, please be aware of and observe the following technical concerns:

        1) HTML-based email messages will post as HTML, though members should be mindful that a select few of list members may not have their email applications HTML-enabled so any special formatting you use will be lost. Text-only messages are assured to be readable by all however you format them.

        2) Please do not send images through the listserv. If you wish for members to see a particular image, place it on a website and then direct the members of the list to it by including the URL in your message body. Since some members may use a dial-up connection, this tactic provides individual users with the option of viewing the image, and hence will limit frustration with download times associated with the list. The same holds true for any other media items such as sound, video, or animation files.

        3) Lastly, please do not forward any large attachments through the list. This rule also limits member frustration with long download times. If you have a particular document to share that relates to Percy, please make certain that its size is no more than 100kb. Also, be mindful of sending the document in a format that will be readily accessible to all members, for instance, Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF. Alternatively, and perhaps the best option given virus concerns (many members will be wary of opening a file attachment), you can cut-and-paste the contents of your document directly into the body of the email message.  Since this method will distribute your document’s content in a text-only format, the size of the document will be considerably smaller, and there is no risk of transmitting/receiving a virus in a text-only email.

H. A FEW POSTING TIPS: CURRENT & FUTURE READERS
Following these tips will help insure a better quality of present list discussion and enhance future accessibility to your messages in the archives:

        1) Please quote messages you are replying to astutely and sparingly, using your cut, paste, and delete functions.  A "reader-friendly" message has a better chance of being responded to.

        2) Avoid short, personal comments along the lines of "I agree," etc., that do not significantly advance Percy content discussion. These comments would best be submitted solely to the person they are intended for rather than to the listserv address (i.e., the entire membership). Please be heedful of the time of the list members--many belong to multiple mailing lists--by only submitting posts that in some shape or form better the interests of the entire community.

        3) Always fill in the "subject" box of your email to help readers identify your topic of discussion.

        4) Remember that if you use the "reply" command to a message you have received through the list, your message will be distributed publicly to all members of the list. However, if you want to have private correspondence with someone who has sent a message through the list, you should create a _new_ e-mail message and address it specifically to him or her lest the entire list will read your message.

        5) To help individual members of the Percy-L community follow the context of your comments, be attentive to your use of quoting and quote identification methods. For example, consider including the following sample information immediately below the text of your comments in an email message response:

At 06:18 PM 9/17/96, Binx Bolling wrote:  

>I am on a search!

If you wish to add other quotes to your message from multiple posts or other sources, be certain to identify clearly where the material comes from in a way that you determine will make best sense to your post’s readers.  As before, the better crafted and referenced your message, the more likely it will generate thoughtful response from the community.
 
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A. USER ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT
The following links and information will be useful to you in managing your listserv account. All changes to your account require your specified password (listed below).  Note: This is a hidden list. The member roster is available only to the list administrator.  

B. QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR CONCERNS?
Please direct questions, comments, or other concerns about the Percy-L Guidelines or about listserv operations to the list administrator at percy-l-owner AT lists.ibiblio.org. 

C. USER LINKS & OPTIONS
All messages are archived at the following address: 

  http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/

Subscribe via the listserv web page at: 

  http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l