Goodbye mailing list.
Nilsson, Zak
Zak.Nilsson@latimes.com
Thu, 17 Oct 2002 12:23:58 -0500
I, too, haven't been an active poster on this list for quite a while
now. But I read it every day... usually a few times a day I check
my mail for it. Larry, you're exactly right about the forums, and
how they hinder the flow of a conversation - but that's exactly
why I'm still on this mailing list, and I suspect why so many
others are too. As others have mentioned, this is one of the
cleaner mailing lists out there, and it would be a great loss
to me personally if this list were to shut down. I understand
your reasoning, but I have to throw my vote in for keeping the
list going as well. This is where I get a lot of good information,
and like you, the way the information flows here just suits me
better.
I mean, you know I've been on the SE-R list since before you took
it over... somewhere around 8 years now I think. And while it was
great before, your involvement has definitely been the best thing
that ever happened to the SE-R community. This list was indeed
the center of the online SE-R universe, for years. Now the focus
is changing, it's shifted to online forums somewhat... but nothing
has changed the fundamental usefulness of this mailing list, nor
its importance to us old timers and newbies alike - even people
who just joined this list seem to recognize how much easier it is
to get information here, as opposed to the online forums.
We've got a lot of highly knowledgable people still subscribed here
that don't hit the forums, and I believe that this list is still one of
the best places to ask SE-R related questions. God knows I still
learn things here, this list is just loaded with people I admire and
respect. Of course there's the nostalgia issues... very nearly
everybody I know in the SE-R community, I met on this list first.
Including you. :) I would love the list to stick around as an old fart
list too, but I still think it's a lot more useful and prominent than
that.
I think specifically because this list is so orderly and straightforward,
we're still going to get people subscribing who recognize those
qualities and appreciate them. Who knows when the next Rob Cadle
or George Roffe will subscribe? It's like this place is an oasis of
rational and intelligent discussion, in an ocean of illiterate newbies
spewing garbage like "Y yUO nOt lIKe my BOddEE KITT yO itS
mAD pHat!!111! My WinG IZ 7 FEeT tALL!!!!11"
I don't think that should be available to old farts only. I still believe
that there are lots of people out there who are smarter than 5th
graders, looking for a nice place to hang out and talk cars on the
internet... and I believe that this is one of those places, and that
it still has its place among the forums and everything else.
Anyway, I'll get off the soapbox now, it's getting a little worn out.
But no matter what happens, thanks for running the list for so
long and for so well, Larry - I'm pretty sure I can speak for
everybody (well maybe not Naji) when I say we appreciate
everything you've done.
-Zak Nilsson
Professional Weirdo
Old Fart