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From: john@moncol.UUCP (John Ruschmeyer)
Newsgroups: net.news.group
Subject: Re: Requesting new newsgroup: NET.SOURCES.PC
Message-ID: <423@moncol.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 13-Jul-85 15:48:17 EDT
Article-I.D.: moncol.423
Posted: Sat Jul 13 15:48:17 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 17-Jul-85 04:22:59 EDT
References: <1955@ukma.UUCP> <3203@cca.UUCP>
Organization: Monmouth College, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
Lines: 72
Keywords: Logical creation of subgroups

]From: david@ukma.UUCP (David Herron, NPR Lover)
]Message-ID: <1955@ukma.UUCP>
]Organization: Univ. of KY Mathematical Sciences
]
]In article <3203@cca.UUCP> norcott@cca.UUCP (Bill Norcott) writes:
]>
]>	Let's start a new newsgroup called NET.SOURCES.PC.  Quite a few of
]>the non-VAX sources submitted are for the IBM PC anyway, so why not make it
]>official? My trigger finger is getting tired from hitting "n" all the time.
]
]This had been discussed some months ago (about the time that
]net.sources.games appeared).  The consensus then was that a 
]group specific to a particular hardware wasn't appropriate.  But
]that a net.sources.micro might be more appropriate.
]
]How do people feel now?

One of the problems with the current breakdown of net.sources is that it is
*VERY* inconsistent. As it stands, we have one big group for the posting of
most sources (net.sources), one for posting of sources of a particular type
(net.sources.games), and one for posting of sources for a particular
machine (net.sources.mac).

   Personally, I find the creation of a group called net.sources.micro to
be very disturbing. Creating it would leave us all with another catch-all
group like net.sources . I own an IBM compatable, but would not want to
have to wade through posting after posting of CP/M or Apple ][ programs.
(It is already bad enough that I have to wade through 4.2 and Sys
V-specific sources to find something that will run on our v7 system!)

   The only logical breakdown of net.sources is along the lines of
operating system. Ideally, the structure should look something like this:


	net.sources		(posting of generic UNIX sources)
	net.sources.bsd		(4.1, 4.2, 4.3 specific sources- non portable)
	net.sources.usg		(Sys III, Sys V specific- non portable)
	net.sources.vms		(Vax VMS specific)
	net.sources.mac         (Macintosh)
	net.sources.cpm		(CP/M software)
	net.sources.msdos	(IBM-PC and MS-DOS software)
		.			.
		.			.
		.			.
	net.sources.bugs	(bug reports)

Ideally, net.sources.games should be eliminated under this structure.
Instead, game sources would be posted to the appropriate OS group.

     This structure would allow the posting of software for machines such
as the IBM-PC with a minimum of bother to sites which don't own such a
machine. It would allow a site to tailor its receipt of net.sources to only
those groups for which it owns an appropriate machine.

   There is and will continue to be an incredible growth in the number of
UNIX-based machines and the number of machines on USENET. As it currently
stands, net.sources is becoming woefully inadequate for handling all that
it must. As it presently stands, net.sources best benefits sites who own Vaxen
running 4.2 or Sys V. With a little reorganizing, net.sources could best
benefit *all* sites, no matter what system they run, UNIX or otherwise.
Subgroups will be needed, but let them be created with some thought to the
future and how to best benefit all the sites on the net.

-- 
Name:		John Ruschmeyer
US Mail:	Monmouth College, W. Long Branch, NJ 07764
Phone:		(201) 222-6600 x366
UUCP:		...!vax135!petsd!moncol!john	...!princeton!moncol!john
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