[OT] get rid of OT

[rikona]

Hello Alan,

Thursday, September 29, 2011, 8:33:26 AM, Alan wrote:

> Hi,

> On 29 September 2011 16:20, rikona <rikona at sonic.net> wrote:
>> Another approach might be more fruitful. It is evident that there
>> are a number of people who really like to post OT stuff. Trying to
>> silence these people by moderation is, as we can already see,
>> fraught with problems. Giving them a good place to post OT material
>> might solve a lot of the problem.
>>

> Well we could have a policy of "no OT" on the list, and police it
> hard. People who transgress get warnings then mute/removal from the
> list. It would certainly focus people's attention (and invite
> censorship claims from some of the more militant members of the
> list).

Hmmm... originally I had reservations about heavy policing, but did
not want to add to the already loud OT noise. But, in posting a
somewhat different solution, and immediately getting a flippant answer
or sarcasm, I can see that perhaps your approach is the only thing
that might work. There are clearly some folks that do NOT want a
solution to the OT noise. 

>> What they need is an easy-as-possible alternative mailing list. The
>> bikeshed forum alternative is NOT good - javascript, ads, and way
>> too much other googleness. I am amazed that, with all the tech
>> folks here, SOMEONE could not start a 'real' mailing list something
>> like UB-OT, or if it needs more obfuscation, UBOT.
>>

> Anyone can setup a mailing list if they want. You almost certainly
> wont get approval for an offtopic one hosted on lists.ubuntu.com,
> but anywhere else, go for it.

Agreed that it should not be part of ubuntu. If I currently had the
ability, it would already be available.

>> Is there NOBODY here willing to set up such a 'real' mailing list?
>> I would think that with all the technical capabilities here, we
>> would already have such a MAILING LIST.
>>

> Many are technically capable. It's whether they want the headache of
> running it. Honestly talking to some of the people on this list is
> mentally and emotionally _exhausting_.

That is quite clear - thank you very much for your patience.

> I don't envy someone running an entirely offtopic list.

If it's really a no-holds-barred list, maybe it's easier. :-) Just let
folks be as nasty as they want to be - as they certainly will. That is
often a self-limiting process, and the list will fade if it is really
bad.

-- 

 rikona