Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!bloom-beacon!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!osu-cis!att!alberta!teletron!andrew
From: andrew@teletron.UUCP (Andrew Scott)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: Too much for the reader? (was: Re: Unbiased moderator volunteers)
Message-ID: <397@teletron.UUCP>
Date: 5 Jul 88 15:08:44 GMT
References: <2805@rpp386.UUCP> <28.UUL1.3#935@aocgl.UUCP> <4542@gryphon.CTS.COM> 
Organization: TeleTronic Communications Ltd., Edmonton, Alta.
Lines: 34

In article , webber@porthos.rutgers.edu.UUCP writes:
> 
> However, on any unix system there are plenty of automatic
> tools for searching and processing text files.  You could let your cpu
> do alot of sifting for you.  Ignore the headers -- process the raw text!

This is interesting.  I'm curious as to how *you* read news, Bob.  If there
is a Better Way to read news, I'd like to try it out.

This is an honest question.  I'm not trying to be belligerent, I really am
interested in reading news in a more efficient way.

> Don't kill the flow of the net just because YOU don't have time to swim
> in it.

I'm assuming that there are other people out there who feel the same way.
(In fact, some of the email I've been getting does agree with what I've said.)

There are several reasons as to why I'd like to see more moderation, archive
service for sources and binaries, and more efficient software.  Most impor-
tantly, the net *will* continue to grow unless we do something.  Some people
have said "if you don't want it, don't carry it."  This is a non-solution.
Taking to it's logical extreme, soon all I'll be able to carry is a dozen
newsgroups of 200K/day each.  Even in the short term it's not a good solution.
Why?  Because I'm *obligated* to carry those groups.  In exchange for my
newsfeed, I provide one myself.  I would be doing any downstream sites a
big disservice by cutting them off from groups I don't want.  I think that
a great many sites look to Spaf's list for guidance, rather than picking
and choosing individual groups themselves.  Why not let them get the groups
elsewhere?  It may not be practical due to local newsfeed policies in that
particular region.
-- 
Andrew Scott		andrew@teletron.uucp    - or -
			{codas, ubc-cs, watmath, ..}!alberta!teletron!andrew