John, You're doing a great job and you're providing a great service. Thanks for all that you do. Bernie Sent from my iPhone > On Mar 24, 2015, at 6:05 PM, John Panarese <john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > > Hi folks, > I want to be clear about a few things that occurred yesterday. List > traffic got exceptionally high, and I apologize to those of you who, like me, > have enough to deal with in our inboxes during the course of a day. There > were over 40 messages in regard to a subject that had really no place on the > list, and there were 12 alone overnight.. > > I was going to post the rules here again for the list, but I then decided > that it shouldn't be necessary. I simply like this list to stay on topic and > be a list for questions and answers for technical support matters. Understand > that off topic is fine within reason, and I tend to let things slide, > especially if I know the people posting and I also know they will not go too > far astray. We've had it occur before, and it's generally not been a problem. > > Nevertheless, I take some responsibility for what occurred yesterday, as I > broke a few of my own personal rules about avoiding being drawn into debates > with people who are not going to back down. Each response to messages > yesterday generated more list traffic, and this is exactly the kind of > situation you don't want on the list. Also, it is why I referred to it as > "trolling", and I had two list members write to me within a half hour of one > another also indicated that they felt the list was being trolled. One message > was particularly humorous, and I thank the person for giving me a laugh at > around 11:50 last night, as I needed it. > > Here is what would have happened if I had let things go in the direction > they were heading. This individual sent me a link privately to an article he > found that supported his assertions about PCs out selling Macs, and he was > not aware that I had about nine links I collected or was sent by someone off > list that talked about Macs eclipsing PC sales in the last 9 sales > quarters. The problem is, if links start getting posted to prove the > sender's point, it simply goes back and forth and generates off topic traffic > that eventually causes members to leave the list entirely. I've seen it > happen on other lists, and I had to think of the overall state of the list, > and not my own personal position about the subject I wanted to back. > > So, I choose not to post my links and end the topic, and in the words of > one of our list members, who sent me the amusing message off list and though > I will not identify them, I will basically quote one of their several > comments here, "It's obvious there is an agenda at work here. Why invite a > means for him to push that agenda. If he thinks Windows is so wonderful and > he wants to live in the past, remove him from the list and let him do so > elsewhere." > > I did not remove anyone from the list, though. I have not banned a member > in the several years I've run this list. However, please do not push your > luck either. The topic remains closed, but I wanted to address things because > I had four list members write to me about this, and I also feel the list > deserves an explanation. > > Also, on a similar note, as a word of advice, if you want to write me > privately and give me suggestions about list policy changes, I certainly > don't mind and will read them and may even institute them if I find them > appealing. However, do not try to dictate list policy to me and tell me what > I should do in your opinion. Start your own list if you want to run it in a > particular way that suits your style. This list has existed for several years > with its current policies and I was actually quite flattered and shocked by > the number of people we now have subscribing here. I do thank all of the > newcomers that have joined us in the last few months, and I apologize for not > posting a welcome to you all. > > > Take Care > > John D. Panarese > Director > Mac for the Blind > Tel, (631) 724-4479 > Email, john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > Website, http://www.macfortheblind.com > > APPLE CERTIFIED SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL FOR MAC OSX 10.7 LION and 10.8 Mountain > Lion > > AUTHORIZED APPLE STORE BUSINESS AFFILIATE > > MAC and iOS VOICEOVER TRAINING AND SUPPORT > > > > > ************ > > > You are subscribed to the mac4theblind mailing list. > > > The url for this list, where one can unsubscribe or make any changes to > their list subscription is: > > //www.freelists.org/list/mac4theblind > > The list archive is located at > > //www.freelists.org/archive/mac4theblind/ > > All emails intended for the list owner can be sent to: > > john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > ************ You are subscribed to the mac4theblind mailing list. The url for this list, where one can unsubscribe or make any changes to their list subscription is: //www.freelists.org/list/mac4theblind The list archive is located at //www.freelists.org/archive/mac4theblind/ All emails intended for the list owner can be sent to: john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx