Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!texbell!ssbn!looking!brad From: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton) Newsgroups: news.groups Subject: Re: Give it up, folks Message-ID: <47588@looking.on.ca> Date: 14 Nov 89 23:03:23 GMT References: <36339@apple.Apple.COM> <10119@stag.math.lsa.umich.edu> <6463@cbnewsm.ATT.COM> Reply-To: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton) Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd. Lines: 41 Class: discussion What's wrong with creating lots of groups? An ancient debate. Let me present how it's done on some other nets, such as GEnie and CIS. Only the execs can create a new master group (forum or round table as they call it.) They then appoint somebody to look after that area, called a SYSOP. The SYSOP can create subgroups within the master area as desired. They are usually called categories. Within the categories, *anybody* can open a topic. A "topic" as it's called on GEnie, for example, is halfway between a newsgroup and a USENET thread. It's partly in the structure and a little bit due to the reader software. You can read a topic on its own. Like a notesfile, the articles are grouped together. If you followup, you do it within a topic. You can unsubscribe to a topic. Topics stay around for quite a while, usually until the SYSOP decides they are long dead and cleans them up. SYSOPS don't moderate like USENET moderators, but they do have the ability to change topics after the fact, editing their subject or moving them to another category. Usenet threads are close to topics, but the ability to read in sequence and unsubscribe is only roughly implemented in *some* of the net reading software, not at all in the posting software. ------- That's the description. I think there is something to be learned from this model: A) Master groups that are hard to create, and are consistently named. B) Sub-level groups that can be created easily, either by a 'category moderator' for each master group, or some quick and simple process. C) Topics (threads) that are a little more entrenched in the software, that anybody can create. -- Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473