README: Current Fedora Core 2 Problems & Solutions/Helpful Links

[Robert P. J. Day]

On Sat, 24 Jul 2004, Craig White wrote:

>> how about: don't post lengthy answers to unasked questions.  if you've
>> got this much to say, get a web page, ok?

> evidently you haven't been reading this message base for the past few
> months. This post (Lisa's) is very much appreciated by a large number of
> active users of the message base since they questions seemed to get
> asked time and time again.
>
> Suggest that you create a 'filter' or procmail rule to eliminate this
> weekly message so you don't feel compelled to sound off next time.

   given the interesting feedback, i think it's worth clarifying a 
couple of points, all in the genuine interest of perhaps making that 
regularly-posted FAQ more useful, if it's going to continue.  so, to 
set the stage ...

   yes, melgil88's information is potentially really handy.  no, it's 
*not* being presented appropriately.  so what should be changed?  i'm 
glad you asked since, if it's going to be a recurring event, it might 
as well be done right.  (yes, i'm insufferable, too, and i don't have 
to work hard at *that* either. :-)

   for a quick timeline, i went back to the archives and found the 
following (and, yes, i really am looking for an excuse to not do any 
real work, but rather just kick back and admire lance's annihilation 
of the pack today.)

   the first post suggesting a regular FAQ was on, AFAICT, jun 6 (which 
suggests that mr. white is stretching reality just a wee bit when he 
talks about "the past few months" -- i don't mind disagreement, i do 
mind altering reality).

Jun 6:		the proposal
Jun 7:		apparently, the first actual content post
Jun 12:		the next post, content resembles the first one
Jun 19:		next installment (apparently, the same content but
 		without the shouting :-)
Jun 26:		and again (with the top caption "No changes this week
 		...)
Jul 3:		and again (no caption, but the first part of the post
 		appears to be identical to the previous one -- same
 		stuff?  possibly.)

... etc ... an obvious pattern of once a week.  so jump ahead to 
today, jul 24, in the archives, cursory examination, first part of 
post looks exactly as it did on jul 3.  so, what do we conclude?
well, a couple of things.

   first, just who would this regular posting be useful for? 
obviously, anyone having one of those problems.  but if some poor 
schmuck doesn't time it *just* *right* and misses the weekly post, 
then they're out of luck.  given that it's a post, it will have gone 
by and, since they won't see it again for another week, chances are 
they'll just post to the mailing list, anyway.  in short, unless one 
times it just right, the posting is not terribly useful and saves no 
one any time and the mailing list still takes a hit.

   now, if the poor schmuck still goes and asks, you all know what the 
response is going to be: "hey, that's been asked lots of times, it's 
in the archives.  sheesh.", forcing the unfortunate noob to figure out 
where the archives are, how to get to them and how to search them 
perhaps.  whereas, if the info was on a web page, a simple URL would 
solve everything.  the clear advantages of a web page.  but there's 
more.

   given that the content seems to barely change from week to week, i 
have to ask (and i'll pick on mr. white here again, since he seems to 
have his cycling shorts in a bunch), what is the value to mr. white to 
see almost exactly the same helpful info once a week, week after week? 
if it's that useful, mr. white, i suggest saving it to a mail folder. 
lots of us do it.  it's not hard. (perhaps melgil88 can add that as a 
useful tip.)

   and even if new info is added, unless there's an *obvious* change in 
content, you run the risk of introducing what i've just decided to 
call "MOTD syndrome".  most of you know exactly what i'm talking about 
-- logging in and seeing the same opening to the "message of the day" 
file, and just blowing off the rest of it.  at the very least, new 
stuff should be at the top to get one's attention.  even better, once 
something has been posted once or twice, it should be relegated to 
offline archives to keep the content fresh so that people will want to 
read it.

   this is precisely why i started to ignore that posting -- i 
remembered it opened with

***WinXP Dual boot problems**

*every* *single* *time*, so i wrote it off as just repetitive and 
redundant.  and there's just so much 10K worth of repetition and 
redundancy i'm interested in getting in my mailbox once a week.
(i'm also a bit put off by any postings that contain the demand 
"README" in the subject line.  i've used mailing lists long enough to 
know that postings are, in fact, for reading and not for, say, 
polishing the car or deworming the cat.)

   a compromise?  if you're really set on doing this, how about a 
weekly post of *new*, *breaking* goodies, with a pointer to the 
archives for the rest of it.  if that was the case, heck, *i'd* read 
it.  but if it's going to be predominantly the same stuff over and 
over, just say so, and i'll happily shut up, redirect it to /dev/null 
and get back to work.

rday

p.s.  and please, no argument that lots of people find this stuff 
useful.  of course they do.  personally, i've been running FC on my 
inspiron 8100 for over a year, but i'm not going to post a weekly FAQ 
of the same content on how to do it.  that's not, in my opinion, what 
the list is for.  if you have this much info you want to share, either 
make it constantly fresh, or get a web page.