[FFML] Just a note on configuration

[John Campbell]

The Wanderer wrote:

> There is a longstanding argument in the more technical parts of the 'Net
> against setting the Reply-To header on mailing lists. I disagree with
> this argument rather sharply, primarily on the grounds that replies to
> messages posted to *any* discussion forum of any type should go by
> default back to that same discussion forum.

Personally I think the old policy, combined with the attitude of the 
posts regarding off-topic posts, most noticeable in replies to such 
things as "Fic search" posts was a great part of the reason the list was 
dieing.  If you don't build a community the list will just die the way 
rec.arts.anime.creative did.

If you look back through the list's archives, back to its height, say 
2001 or so, you'll find there was MUCH more "chatty."  People brought up 
off topic things all the time.  And even when you stripped out the dross 
you still ended up with FAR more actual fic-related discussion than I 
remember ever seeing last year, or the year before.  I don't know when 
the change in policy was made...I could probably find it in the 
archives, but I think it was a bad choice, and would rather put up with 
people asking the name of a fic they barely remember...and reading the 
replies...and replies to replies than see a fic a week greeted by dead 
silence.

Also, as only the author of a fic ever really saw the 
criticism/suggestions related to his fic, only the author ever learned 
anything from it.  We shouldn't be forcing people to make their own 
mistakes publicly by posting a fic with the same flaws as the last three 
fics when we can publicly humiliate the first person to come up with a 
new and novel blunder.

> I apologize for the offtopic post. I do not intend to continue the
> thread further publicly without sanction. (I did remove the [ADMIN] tag,
> on the grounds that it is supposed to appear only in the Subject lines
> of posts made by list admins and I am not one. I seem to recall that
> this was described as good practice once in the past.)

Actually, this shouldn't even be considered off-topic.