Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!mailrus!iuvax!maytag!looking!brad
From: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton)
Newsgroups: news.misc
Subject: Re: The Rape of Usenet
Keywords: The wholesale capturing of Usenet by GEnie
Message-ID: <65033@looking.on.ca>
Date: 21 Dec 89 05:10:12 GMT
References: <946@crash.cts.com>
Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd.
Lines: 27
Class: discussion

We had this out a while ago.  While a two-way link is best(*), there is
a problem with it, namely the lack of any solid E-mail link.  I don't
think we want a large group of people posting to USENET without an
E-mail link.

E-mail is what keeps USENET civil.   Ok, not civil, but more civil than
it could be.  It is with e-mail that people are reminded of inappropriate
postings, and e-mail that answers most questions, thank god.  Without
it, you would get people regularly posting answers because they could
not e-mail the person they want.

Now I keep hearing rumours of a solid E-mail link, and I am pushing for
one, but it does not exist yet.  I have my own, but it's all through
my account, nobody else can use it.

I put some postings from GEnie out to rec.humor.funny, although there
have only been about 5 so far that I have taken.  (All you people
worried about how rich I have become from GEnie sysoping will be
thrilled to know that, while I can't reveal the exact numbers, my cheques
from GEnie have only two digits in them.  4 if you count the pennies.)

(*) Some people still complain about two-way links, but oddly enough they
haven't tried to force Portal, Well and the varous NIXPUB fee based BBS sites
off the net!  But if you accept a two way link, you have to admit that
before E-mail, a one way link is best.
-- 
Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473