Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!oliveb!apple!epimass!jbuck
From: jbuck@epimass.EPI.COM (Joe Buck)
Newsgroups: comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d
Subject: Re: we need an unmoderated binaries group
Message-ID: <3154@epimass.EPI.COM>
Date: 4 May 89 03:37:42 GMT
References: <1944@csuna.csun.edu>
Reply-To: jbuck@epimass.EPI.COM (Joe Buck)
Distribution: na
Organization: Entropic Processing, Inc., Cupertino, CA
Lines: 44

In article <1944@csuna.csun.edu> abcscagz@csuna.csun.edu (Jeff Boeing) writes:
>Back in the good old days before c.b.i.p became moderated, anyone who wanted
>to share his binaries with the usenet world was free to.

I understand your feelings, Jeff, but there will never be an unmoderated
binaries group, at least outside of "alt".  There are several reasons
for this:

1) Volume.
When Rahul has time to work on c.b.i.p, it generally becomes the #1 group
by volume on Usenet, even with heavy pruning and backlogs.  An unmoderated
group would have higher volume (perhaps increasing total traffic on
the net by 25%, increasing traffic in "comp" by 50%) and significantly lower
quality, with lots of crippled demos and shareware of questionable value.

Given limited time and volume constraints, binaries group moderators have
generally favored utilities over games.  Every time I see someone demanding
an unmoderated group it is almost always because a game posting has been
delayed.  The world will not end if you have to wait an additional two or
three weeks for nethack.

2) Security.
Without a moderator to try each program, it would just be too tempting for
people to post trojan horses and viruses, accidentally or deliberately.
Yes, I know that something bad might slip past Rahul, but at least there
is some quality control.

Back when there was a backbone cabal, said cabal basically insisted that
there be no unmoderated binaries groups.  Sys admins of large sites are
almost 100% against you on this one.

>   A moderated group for pc-compatible binaries serves a necessary
>function.  But we need a place where ANYONE can just leave a program for
>anyone's consideration, with no guarantees and no strings attached.

NO, because such a group would quickly become far and away the #1 volume
group on the net, and the quality of its contents would be very low.

>This group fails in this function, especially since posting binaries
>here is considered in "bad taste".

Not just "in bad taste."  Don't do it.
-- 
-- Joe Buck	jbuck@epimass.epi.com, uunet!epimass.epi.com!jbuck