Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!sharkey!atanasoff!jwright
From: jwright@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu (Jim Wright)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: This newsgroup
Message-ID: <938@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu>
Date: 1 Apr 89 02:44:48 GMT
References: <834@krafla.rhi.hi.is>
Reply-To: jwright@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu (Jim Wright)
Organization: Iowa State U. Computer Science Department, Ames, IA
Lines: 46

In article <834@krafla.rhi.hi.is> frisk@rhi.hi.is (Fridrik Skulason) writes:
| This subject has been discussed here before, but .....
| 
|      COMP.SYS.IBM.PC NEEDS TO BE DIVIDED INTO SEVERAL SUBGROUPS !

Comp.sys.amiga usually has more articles than comp.sys.ibm.pc, and
that doesn't include comp.sys.amiga.tech!  I'd be very reluctant to
go along with most splits.  I'd still probably read them all, and
the cross-posting would be terrible.  How many articles have you
seen along the lines of
	"I've got a stupid question, but I want you to answer
	it so I don't have to RTFM.  And even though I know the
	answer appears on the net every month, I don't want to
	bother reading the group.  So make sure you send email."
These people will cross post to each and every comp.sys.ibm.pc.* group.

| So - the most obvious ways to cut down the traffic might be:
| 
| 	1) Start comp.virus (the voting is going on right now - I think)

Yes, and going well.  (Send votes to me, "YES" or "NO".)

| 	2) Create a subgroup for program/info. requests, where no follow-ups
| 	   would (normally) be posted. In particular this would mean no
| 	   "could you please send me a copy .." articles (just Email the
| 	   original poster)

I have my doubts that a self-regulating PC group would work.  :-)

| 	3) Keep "For sale" articles out of here. Or at least use a local
| 	   distribution.

I don't mind these too much, if they are kept short and to the point.

| Of course there are other possibilities - any suggestions ?

Perhaps a split to a "roll your own" group, including software and hardware,
and a "using applications" group, again hardware and software.  I think any
split to more than two groups is doomed.

|          Fridrik Skulason          University of Iceland
|          UUCP  frisk@rhi.uucp      BIX  frisk

-- 
Jim Wright
jwright@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu