Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!husc6!purdue!decwrl!palo-alto!vixie
From: vixie@palo-alto.DEC.COM (Paul Vixie)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: Moderated USENET (was Re: The death of USENET)
Message-ID: <3145@palo-alto.DEC.COM>
Date: 20 Jun 88 22:16:48 GMT
References: <2805@rpp386.UUCP> <28.UUL1.3#935@aocgl.UUCP>
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation, Western Research Lab
Lines: 25

In article <28.UUL1.3#935@aocgl.UUCP> tmanos@aocgl.UUCP (Theodore W. Manos):
# In article <2805@rpp386.UUCP> jfh@rpp386.UUCP (John F. Haugh II) writes:
# > bravo!  here's my vote, and an offer to moderate a group.
# 
# Do I finally hear some peace and quiet coming??? :-)  Here's my vote too.
# I also will offer to moderate a group - even one I don't read!

I favour moderation, for reasons I'll outline in an article here in the
next week or several.  However, I have to jump in at this early moment
to say:  if you think a group should be moderated, volunteer; if you want
to volunteer for something, think of a group.

Moderators have to know a lot about their topic -- to answer frequently
asked questions and to recognize subtle flames, among other things -- and
they have to care a great deal about the topic and about the net -- because
moderation can consume a vast amount of effort if you have a popular group.

Again: don't bother to volunteer to moderate a group you don't read, because
you aren't qualified; don't suggest that a group be moderated unless you are
willing to moderate it.  Two rules of thumb WRT moderation.
-- 
Paul Vixie
Digital Equipment Corporation	Work:  vixie@dec.com	Play:  paul@vixie.UUCP
Western Research Laboratory	 uunet!decwrl!vixie	   uunet!vixie!paul
Palo Alto, California, USA	  +1 415 853 6600	   +1 415 864 7013