Fedora Core Support List Unofficial User's Guide (draft 3 - Gustavo Seabra)

Duncan Lithgow duncan at lithgow-schmidt.dk
Fri Mar 4 22:16:04 UTC 2005


Hi Gustavo - looks great. Much nicer formatting. 

I've done some spelling corrections (mostly to my original spelling!)
and put some suggestions in context... (Does this count as top posting?
Bad Duncan, Bad Duncan, smack smack smack.)

On Fri, 2005-03-04 at 11:50 -0600, Gustavo Seabra wrote:
> Ok here we go...
> 
> This draft is based on Duncan's first post 
which was based on James McKenzie's ...

> There's also been a number of suggestion to the title. I didn't change
> it here yet, but some "voting" on that could also be useful. Here are
> the ones I found:
> "Get Your Question or Problem Read on fedora-list"
> "Effectively Eliciting a Useful Response To Your Question(s)"
> "List Guidelines or the How to Get Help for Your Fedora Problem"
> "How to Get Help on fedora-list"
> 
> My suggestion: 
> "Fedora Users List Guidelines: How to Get Help for Your Fedora Problem"
Because I can't see people agreeing on a name I'll settle on about
anything reasonable - but the one I re-worked from RHEL seemed easiest.

Ideally it would be a normal subject line length - but that might be too
much to ask.

> 1. E-mail The Rules to every new member;
> 2. Send a monthly e-mail with The Rules to the list;
> 3. Keep a web-page with them, and a link to this web-page added to the
> automatic list footer. Something like
4. Include it in the list welcome message (is there one? does anyone
read them?)

> =======================================================
> Part One: 
> FEDORA CORE SUPPORT LIST - UNOFFICIAL USER'S GUIDE
> =======================================================
> 
> * BEFORE POSTING TO THE LIST *
> ================================
> Do your homework first! There are a number of ways you can find
> help within your system. If you don't find the answer there, try to look 
> into the list archives before posting a question. This is a *very* high volume
> list and chances are that someone already had to face the same issue,
> so let's no reinvent the wheel, ok? 
I'd just start from "There are a number of ways..." People are easily
annoyed if they don't like the tone of something. The title makes it
clear I think.

> See *section 2* below for a list of useful resources.
> 
> * IF YOU STILL CAN'T FIND AN ANSWER *
> =====================================
> If you don't find a suitable answer for your question in the resources
> descrbed in part 2, then writing to the list is a good idea. To
> make sure your post is read, please try to follow the guidelines.
> 
> This guide is in the spirit of the :
> "RedHat Install List (RHIL) Unofficial User's Guide"
> http://www.rhil.net/docs/rhil-guide.html
> and 
> "How To Ask Questions The Smart Way"
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
> 
> We are all regular member of the list and discussion about netiquette
> is ongoing. Previously established conventions are always being
> re-questioned. So, please read this in the spirit of creating an
> evolving consensus.

> Remember that you are *a lot* more likely to get
> answers to your questions if you try to follow these guidelines. You
> may also find useful to look at Charles Curley's netiquette guide at
> http://www.charlescurley.com/netiquette.html.
I think we've got a lot of text before point one, but i can't see what
to do about it.

> 1. NO HTML MAIL, PLEASE
> Set your mailer to send only plain text messages to the list
> (http://www.expita.com/nomime.html). Why? HTML is designed for web
> pages not emails, and uses a lot more bandwidth. Many list members
> actually block HTML because it is used for malicious code.
> (http://www.georgedillon.com/web/html_email_is_evil.shtml)
> 
> 2. STARTING A NEW SUBJECT
> When you send in a new topic, *do not* start by replying to an
> existing message, but rather, start a new message to
> "fedora-list at redhat.com". This keeps messages organized by thread, for
> people who like to use threads (on high-volume mailing lists like this
> one, threads can be a great convenience).

> 3. WRITE A GOOD SUBJECT LINE
> Make a subject line that tells us what you need. Try "Can't get
> past partitioning on FC3" instead of "Argg - help me!!!". Why? 
current:
> So
> that the right people read it. Also, lots of people just skim through
> the subject lines and only read the messages they are interested. So,
> by creating a good subject line, you increase the chances that your
> message is actually going to be read (and answered, of course).
suggestion for compressing the text:
So that people with certain skills, looking for someone to help, will
notice your message. That helps you get help from the right people
quickly.
> 
> 3. IF YOU ARE REPLYING TO A MESSAGE
current:
> * Make sure we can tell what you are replying to. 
> Place each part of your reply after the text it addresses. Most mail
> readers put a '>' character in front of each 'replied to' line.  (Why?
> It gives a conversational flow to the text, and people know what
> you're replying to.)
> 
> * Also, trim irrelevant material. 
> (Why? It makes it easier to read your reply and helps the reader to
> stay on subject.)

suggestion for compressing the text:
Trim away irrelevant text so we can concentrate on the topic. Make sure
we can tell what you are replying to. Place each part of your reply
after the text it addresses. Most mail readers put a '>' character in
front of each replied to line. It gives a conversational flow to the
text, and people know what you're replying to.

> 4. LET US KNOW WHEN YOUR QUESTION IS ANSWERED
> When you get a solution to your question (or find it yourself after
> posting to the list), *reply* to your original e-mail describing what
> solved your problem.
>
> -- CONTROVERSIAL ISSUE --
> *This issue is still not clear if should be included.* 
> Add a [SOLVED] to the end of the subject line. This will let people
> know that you don;t need help anymore with this and can look for other
> posts to help. Also, it makes a search in the archives easier when
> someone has a related problem in the future.

-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: signature.asc
Type: application/pgp-signature
Size: 189 bytes
Desc: This is a digitally signed message part
URL: <http://listman.redhat.com/archives/fedora-list/attachments/20050304/2433c37e/attachment-0001.sig>


More information about the fedora-list mailing list