Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!husc6!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!triceratops.cis.ohio-state.edu!karl From: karl@triceratops.cis.ohio-state.edu (Karl Kleinpaste) Newsgroups: news.admin Subject: There isn't even a `backbone' alias any more Message-ID: <22931@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu> Date: 29 Sep 88 16:09:45 GMT Sender: news@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu Lines: 43 I was going to write some mail to the backbone mailing list, to see what the recipients thereof had to say about Gene's recent comments concerning `no news admins read news.admin any more,' especially since I know that *some* do, and I was under the impression that a fair number do. I thought I'd make sure that the addresses still work. [101] [11:51am] tut:/dino0/karl> telnet rutgers.edu smtp Trying... Connected to rutgers.edu. Escape character is '^]'. 220 rutgers.edu Sendmail 5.59/1.15 ready at Thu, 29 Sep 88 11:51:31 EDT vrfy backbone 250quit 221 rutgers.edu closing connection Connection closed by foreign host. [102] [11:51am] tut:/dino0/karl> telnet purdue.edu smtp Trying... Connected to purdue.edu. Escape character is '^]'. 220 arthur.cs.purdue.edu Sendmail 5.54/3.16 ready at Thu, 29 Sep 88 10:51:16 EST vrfy backbone 550 backbone... User unknown: Inappropriate ioctl for device quit 221 arthur.cs.purdue.edu closing connection Connection closed by foreign host. [103] [11:52am] tut:/dino0/karl> So much for that idea. I guess I know why the list has had no traffic in the last month. I find it pretty disgusting that managers of heavy-hitting news sites don't read anything in news.*. The relevant comment strikes me that it must be bloody darn hard to manage the news if you don't know what the news `customers' are doing out there, regardless of whether one has to wade through a lot of crap to learn those sorts of facts. I find it similarly disgusting that the alias itself simply fell off the face of the earth without (as far as I can recall) any mention that it would be gone, e.g., `next week, and would someone like to take it over.' If it had been offered, *I* would have taken it over, just to keep the lines of communication open. --Karl