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From: jw@pan.UUCP (Jamie Watson)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: net.sources -> ?
Message-ID: <261@pan.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 16-May-87 03:36:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: pan.261
Posted: Sat May 16 03:36:32 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 17-May-87 20:00:32 EDT
References: <6095@hi.UUCP> <332@wolf.UUCP> <237@sandia.UUCP> <2500@ncoast.UUCP>
Reply-To: jw@pan.UUCP (Jamie Watson)
Organization: Pansystem Informatik AG, Zuerich, Switzerland
Lines: 44
Summary: comp.sources.misc - moderation growing already?


Perhaps I have missed something here.  When net.sources was changed to
comp.sources.misc, I thought it was clearly stated that the moderation
would consist only of shunting non-source postings into the appropriate
groups.  I am 100% in favor of this, for reasons which should be obvious.

Now, things have started to change, and I find the following:

> Quoted from allbery@ncoast.UUCP (Brandon Allbery):
> 
> I *can* and *will* test Un*x sources.

At this point I object, for several reasons:

  - Unix sources are already being tested, very admirably, by Rich Saltz

  - If the idea is not to do as complete testing as Rich does, then I would
    say that half-hearted testing is of no more value than no testing at all.
    Anyone who has, in the past, taken source code from an unmoderated group
    should have done so with the knowledge that it needs thorough testing
    before general use.  Taking source code from a semi-moderated group is
    the same - it doesn't gain you anything.

  - A major part of the objection to moderation of this groups has been the
    potential for delays.  I am willing to accept the delay inherent in the
    original idea of filtering out non-source postings, because it will
    save me a lot of time when I read the group.  I do not have the same
    feeling about delays for testing.

  - There are people in this world, some of them quite talented, who will
    not post to a moderated sources group.  We might be able to convince
    them that filtering non-source is not *really* moderated, but tested?

What are we supposed to be gaining here, anyway?  Why make a half-hearted
duplicate of comp.sources.unix, by testing Un*x sources and passing every-
thing else through?

A few days ago, I started seeing articles that said several sites were
going to continue carrying and distributing net.sources.  I thought at the
time that this was a silly thing to do; if in fact the moderation is being
extended to include testing, I would have to say that continuing net.sources
is a good idea after all.

jw	...!seismo!mcvax!cernvax!paninfo!jw