Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!unmvax!deimos.cis.ksu.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!paul.rutgers.edu!hundt
From: hundt@paul.rutgers.edu (Thomas M. Hundt)
Newsgroups: comp.org.ieee
Subject: Re: IEEE Computer Society membership drive
Keywords: Why you?
Message-ID: <May.8.12.48.58.1989.16835@paul.rutgers.edu>
Date: 8 May 89 16:48:59 GMT
References: <3303@ag.sei.cmu.edu>
Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J.
Lines: 28

|We do cross reference the membership lists!!  Before we do a mailing we do
|what's called a "merge/purge" that is intended to prevent exactly what Eric
|is talking about.  I am not sure why his name fell through the cracks!  We

I'm very glad to hear this; if I were running things I would certainly
do this sort of thing; a large organization like IEEE looks monolithic
and impersonal enough just because of its size without slapping people
in the face with redundant and inappropriate mailings. 

|I sometimes do this on purpose, I use various middle initials to track down
|the origins of unsolicited mail -- try it sometime...  it is amazing how
|quickly these lists spread around.

I've got a friend who has it down to a science.  He prints up batches of
mailing labels, with successive "apartment numbers" at the end of his
address, eg. "309 Elm St. #55".   When he sends out some mail, such as a
magazine subscription form, he slaps one of these on and then writes in
his log book what this number was and who it went to.  Later, he can
track down where the junk mail came from.

Myself, I made up several company names to put on trade magazines'
subscription forms, to help get free subscriptions.  A different name
for just about every one!  So now, when I get mail with a bogus company
name on it, I can just toss it right into the recycling pile
immediately.  (Note: always open the survey letters, sometimes they send
you money.  Don't return the survey though, or they won't send more. :-)

-Tom Hundt