>The reason to archive the list is two fold.
>
>1) So we the list members can go to the archive to find useful past "bits"
>
>2) So others can read the achive to see if they share a common mentality to
>the other users of FoRK.
We're not talking about "to archive or not to archive".. we're discussing
whether these should be public or not. Those values are intrinsic to a
public archive and needn't be debated.
>That being said, isn't the accepted rule of FoRK that the 97% are clueless?
>So we're opening ourselves up for who? The clueless?
Sometimes you've gotta cast a big net to catch a few fish.
> I personally have
>told Rohit that I would prefer my archived posts be passworded. Because I
>am not CobraBoy. CobraBoy is a personna on FoRK. Clearly Elwood was a
>pretty bright guy and he couldn't figure it out.
I'd never say anything in a crowd of people that wasn't indicative of my
personality, either as a direct statement or as sarcasm. In a text-based
medium, the intonations and inflections of sarcasm are much harder to
convey, and so you have to be careful of what you say. You have to be both
tactful and you have to be willing to stand behind your words.
On Friday, in an attempt to prove my theory, I scanned through more-or-less
everything I've ever said on a mailing list that has been archived. I'm
proud to say that in 7-odd years of Internet posting I've never said
anything I'm particularly ashamed of (even though I did find some
remarkably obtuse statements, I chalked it up to evolution).
I'd suggest that if CobraBoy really is just a character, you should invest
the effort in drawing a clear distinction between himself and your "real"
persona, so there's no confusion. Use a different email address or
something, if that's your real concern. Secondarily, if CobraBoy is a
character you're trying very hard to project, and if you admire CobraBoy as
much as you seem to, then that might be indicative of a greater need for
treatment.
Seriously though, if I can't say something that I don't want the world to
see two years hence, how useful/valuable is it for you to see now?
I'm really sold on Rohit's fishbowl. Keep it public.
-Ian. (Elwood #223920)
________________________________________________________________
Ian Andrew Bell (604) 482-5708
BC TEL Interactive belli@bctel.ca
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"Make it idiot proof and someone will make a better idiot"