Date   : Fri, 14 Oct 1983 00:12:00 EDT
From   : Herb Lin <LIN@mit-ml>
Subject: appropriate use of CPM and MICRO lists.

the following is an interchange (about 50 lines) between myself and
another info-cpm/info-micro reader, who says my use of these lists has
been improper.  I request commentary on it; I will CC answers to the
list if people so desire.

************* start of interchange *****************

Date: 13 October 1983 23:58 EDT
From: Herb Lin <LIN>
To:   BYRNE at CMU-CS-C
cc:   LIN
Re:   INFO-CPM and INFO-MICRO

    From: BYRNE at CMU-CS-C.ARPA
    Re:   INFO-CPM and INFO-MICRO

    All right, lin, enough is enough!  All you ever do is post to
    these bboard asking for help.  You NEVER CONTRIBUTE A DAMN THING!
    You just use up other people's time asking silly questions.

    Are you totally incompetent?  Or do you just want others to
    do your working and thinking for you?

Incompetent? I don't think so.  Ignorant?  Probably.  I am new to the
micro business, and having lost many hours of work in previous
programming experience,I am rather hesitant to push my largely
outmoded knowledge.  Furthermore, my knowledge is general rather than
specific, and as you know, general knowledge may help you to
understand what is going on (once explained), but it doesn't help to
get a specific system running.

    I see these "I'll 
    summarize and post" things from you, but you never have
    posted a summary of responses.  

Two comments here: (1) the number of responses I have gotten for the
past year is rather small; thus there has been little to post.  I am
not complaining, nor do I rule out the possibility that most people
who read my questions are like you and would rather not respond.  I
simply state this as a fact.  (2) I have indeed posted responses when
there have been more than one (i.e., a summary) which have NOT been
CC-ed to the lists directly.  Do you think I should post responses
which have been sent directly?  What if no one expresses interest in a
response?  Should I simply *assume* that there is an interest?

    Your quota of postings is up for the year.  Please refrain from
    posting until you can contribute something instead of
    asking for handouts.

I'll leave this one up to the readers of the list.  If there is some
stated (or implied) policy concerning the use of the lists concerning
quotas of questions or types of discussion, I will abide by it.  I am
operating under the assumption that novice questions are appropriate,
even if from the same source a great deal of the time.  How about it,
INFO-CPM and INFO-MICRO?  Is this right?  Or am I wrong?  Am I abusing
these lists?  I will summarize and post to the list (if I get
responses).

In addition, I have indeed responded to people who have asked me to
share information.

    By the way...this message has been brewing since Feb of this year,
    I just got too damned tired of seeing your damned questions
    this time.

If my questions are that onerous to you, my suggestion is to set up
your mail reader to flush anything that comes in with my name attached
to it.  that way, i won't bother you.  If your mail reader is BABYL, I
can even show you how to do this (assuming you don't know already).