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From: jpd@kepler.UUCP (John Donovan)
Newsgroups: net.news.group
Subject: Re: Causes on the net... (Suggestion to limit traffic)
Message-ID: <220@kepler.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 7-Sep-85 16:52:28 EDT
Article-I.D.: kepler.220
Posted: Sat Sep  7 16:52:28 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 10-Sep-85 03:23:48 EDT
References: <205@kepler.UUCP> <774@vortex.UUCP> <2978@sdcc3.UUCP> <3207@nsc.UUCP>
Organization: MicroPro Int'l Corp., San Rafael, CA
Lines: 34
Summary: Band-aid suggestion

I'm finally emerging from my ignorance about the magnitude of the 
traffic problem that Lauren and you are chafing about. My local
unix gurus took me aside and explained how the good citizens of
the net have been passing along news to their downstream neighbors
for years; and that if they take my advise and "unsubscribe," the
net will be all over.  Allow me to apologise for my ignorance
instead of demonstrating it much further.

Chuq, I share your aversion to moderating groups.  Those groups
where it would have the biggest impact on traffic are those that
are the most interesting.  It would impose a dead hand on free form
discussions.

How about a bandaid solution?: Removing those groups that show
minimal activity for a certain period of time--say, a month.  Or,
you could hold a popularity contest for a month, with members
voting for their favorite groups; at the end of which time the lowest
ranking 1/3 (or so) of the groups would be dropped.

This suggestion would primarily impact those groups with the
lowest traffic levels, limiting its effectiveness.  In addition, there
would be a transfer effect, as members of terminated groups carry
on their discussions on existing groups.  To the extent that this
transfer effect didn't take place, the solution would help.

This is a limited suggestion, but I would like to hear your thoughts.

Best regards/John


-- 
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... John Donovan, MicroPro Technical Communications
{dual,ptsfa,hplabs}!well!micropro!kepler!jpd