[ADMIN] Posting guidelines
Bart De Pontieu (bdp@blackadder.lmsal.com)
Thu, 2 Sep 1999 12:42:14 -0700
Hi folks,
Here is a reminder of our posting guidelines:
1. Guidelines
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SeeSat-L is a busy list with over 600 subscribers. The list-owners want
the list to remain focused on VISUAL satellite observing. SeeSat-L is
intended to be a low-to-moderate volume list with high information content
about visual satellite observations. A lot of information on visual
satellite observing is already available on the Internet. A good starting
point is http://www.satellite.eu.org/satintro.html or for
American observers: http://www2.satellite.eu.org/satintro.html
All previous messages to SeeSat-L have been archived on an ftp-server
(ftp.satellite.eu.org) and the WWW
(www2.satellite.eu.org/seesat/seesatindex.html). The 2 is
optional.
If you decide to post a message to the list, please make sure
you follow these guidelines:
a. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you send binary/encoded messages to
SeeSat-L. We want only plain text (ASCII) messages on SeeSat-L. I.e. no
images, no html-documents, and so on. Be careful when you 'attach' files
to your message. These attachments can be encoded ! Also, many
mail-programs automatically encode your messages into html. Those messages
are not welcome on SeeSat-L as they are not readable by many subscribers.
b. Messages to SeeSat-L need to have an OVSC:
Obligatory Visual observing Satellites Content. If you are posting a
message to SeeSat-L which does not have an OVSC, you're making a mistake!
c. Discussions about any aspect of visual (!) satellite observing are
welcome of course. This means that messages about RADIO observations are
OFF-TOPIC. On-topic are messages describing such things as orbital
elements, visual observations, methods for observing/calculating, news
about satellites (only if it is tied into VISUAL observing), and so on.
Sending NASA press releases that are not *directly* tied to visual
observing is not a good idea.
d. Please AVOID:
- reporting too many 'I saw this satellite' messages without
any 'added value' to it. Yes, Iridiums do flare up, and yes MIR *is*
bright. But that's no longer news. Exceptional MIR and Iridium
observations are welcome though. What is added value? (Flash) Timings,
positions of satellites in the night-sky, seeing satellites under
difficult/exceptional circumstances (e.g. first sightings, in the vicinity
of other satellites), and so on.
- replying to long messages with wise-cracks or one-liners such as 'I
agree', 'You are wrong', and so on.
Remember this list is read by over 600 people!
- sending test messages. If you need to test whether your messages are
reaching lists.satellite.eu.org, just send a message with the word "help"
in the SUBJECT to the ADMINISTRATIVE address
SeeSat-L-request@lists.satellite.eu.org
If all goes well on our and your end, you should then receive the
help-file of SeeSat-L. This way the 600+ subscribers won't be bothered. If
you are receiving the test message from the ADMINISTRATIVE address but
your posts to the whole list are not appearing, contact the maintainers.
- quoting excessively. All readers are subscribed to the list and you can
expect them to have read the message you're replying to. Please just quote
those parts that are relevant to your response.
- sig-lines longer than 4 lines.
- commercial advertisements.
- using the old, outdated domains in the e-mail addresses
of the list(s) such as blackadder.lmsal.com,
cds.plasma.mpe-garching.mpg.de even if messages seem to originate there.
e. Suggestions:
- If you have just subscribed to SeeSat-L for the first time, we
appreciate it if you send a short introduction about yourself and
your interest in satellite observing to the EXPLOSIVE address
(SeeSat-L@lists.satellite.eu.org).
- please always include your geographical coordinates (latitude,
longitude) and the exact time of observing (+ timezone) if you report
observations of unknown satellites.
- when in doubt, please ask the maintainers (see below) whether messages
are on-topic or not.
- try reading the FAQ (see www.satellite.eu.org/satintro.html
for links) before you post questions to SeeSat-L. If the FAQ doesn't
answer your questions, feel free to post them to the list.
- SeeSat-L can also be received in digest-form.
The digests are sent out daily or if the submissions exceed 32 Kb. Send a
message with as SUBJECT field the word 'help' to the following address for
more details on the digest form: SeeSat-D-request@lists.satellite.eu.org
- a help-file with more details can be obtained by sending a message with
as SUBJECT field the word 'help' to the ADMINISTRATIVE address:
SeeSat-L-request@lists.satellite.eu.org
2. How to unsubscribe, change addresses, ...:
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You can unsubscribe at any point by sending a message with as SUBJECT
field the word 'unsubscribe' to the REQUEST address:
SeeSat-L-request@lists.satellite.eu.org
If you are sending your request from an address different from that in our
files, make sure to write 'unsubscribe fill_in@you.old.address.here' in
the SUBJECT of your message.
To change addresses, unsubscribe the old address and subscribe the new
address. If you have questions or problems, please address them to the
maintainers of the list:
Bart De Pontieu at bart@satellite.eu.org,
Neil Clifford at neil@satellite.eu.org
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