|
Index of my lists, |
Bach-list |
Scandinavianm-l information |
DSCH-L |
|
Mahler-list |
Bmusic-l |
Lieder-l |
Schubert-l |
|
Operetta-l |
This is an html'd version of the list's welcome message. This message covers most important topics regarding subscribing to the list, unsubscribing, list options, and the list topic.
* Acknowledgment: this welcome message "borrows" from a number of sources, including the welcome messages for Orchestralist and Opera-l, as well as the listserv owner's manual.
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Welcome to Mahler-list. Mahler-list is an unmoderated mail list with the following list topic:
The life and works of Gustav Mahler, as well as other late-romantic and post-romantic composers. Although Mahler is the most popular topic of conversation, the "official" list topic is the range of composers from, and including, Brahms through Berg/Webern/Schoenberg.
A rather longish standardized listserv reference file concludes this message, but their a few important commands we should take care of right away.
All user requests are sent to the same address:
listserv@listserv.uh.edu
The listserv accountname directs all request to the listserv list management software. The software can handle almost all subscriber requests, and you should always exhaust the resources of the listserv software before contacting the list owner. Throughout this message you will be told to mail listserv. What this means is to address your mail as To: listserv@listserv.uh.edu
You must always use the full listserv@listserv.uh.edu address when sending requests.
To post, write directly to the list address. The list address is:
mahler-list@listserv.uh.edu
To subscribe to mahler-list, mail listserv@listserv.uh.edu. This message you send should appear as follows:
To:listserv@listserv.uh.edu
subject: [blank]
subscribe mahler-list Your Name
(where Your Name is your real name.)
You will be sent a confirmation message that you must reply to. Just hit reply when you receive it and type the words OK at the beginning of your reply. (Make sure that OK is the first thing in your reply..don't quote back the confirmation message and then type OK at the end.)
If some day in the distant future you want to sign off, send email to:
listserv@listserv.uh.edu
with the message:
unsubscribe mahler-list
mahler-list archives are available through listserv.
Archives are available two separate ways. First, you can browse the archives through the web. To do so, point your browswer to:
http://listserv.uh.edu/archives/mahler-list.html
You will see a list of archives available at that site. Simply click on mahler-list and you will be taken to the archives. You can read the archives themselves, which are compendiums of each month's posts, or you can enter a search string and you will be given specific posts that match your search.
You can also have the full text of each archive emailed to you.
To get a list of the archives, you would mail listserv@listserv.uh.edu with the message:
index mahler-list
This will result in your being sent a list of all the archive files. You would then get an archive file by issuing the command:
get mahler-list FILENAME
For example, for the file LOG9605 you would issue this command:
get mahler-list LOG9605
The log file will then be mailed to you. You can request multiple files in one message by typing several requests, each on a separate line:
get mahler-list LOG9605
get mahler-list LOG9611
etc.
The list is also available in digest format. To receive the list in a once-a-day digest, mail listserv with the command:
set mahler-list digest
As a default, you do not receive copies of your posts to the list and you do not receive notification that messages from you have been distributed to the list.
To receive your own posts, issue this command to listserv:
set mahler-list repro
To receive your notification that your messages have been distributed, issue this command:
set mahler-list ack
You can change your settings later. For example, if you want to go back to receiving separate messages instead of the digest, you may issue the command:
set mahler-list nodigest
You can also later set yourself noack, norepro, etc., should you no longer wish those options. The default settings for new subscribers are nodigest, noack, and norepro.
The list is set to include in the Subject line of all posts the name of the list. [MAHLER-LIST] appears at the beginning of each subject line in list posts. If you do not want this feature, mail listserv@listserv.uh.edu with
set mahler-list nosubj
If you ever want to turn it back on:
set mahler-list subj
I run several classical music lists, all located at listserv.uh.edu. If you are interested, here is the list:
The topics for the first four are rather obvious.;) bmusic-l is for discussion of British composers, performers, ensembles, etc.
The way to subscribe is the same as for mahler-list. Mail listserv@listserv.uh.edu with the message:
subscribe listname Your Name
where listname is one of the lists from above, and Your Name is your real name.
That's all! Now, on with the details.
Welcome to mahler-list, an unmoderated mailing list devoted to discussion of Dmitri Shostakovich and other Russian/former Soviet composers. This list is managed by Jason Greshes, who can be reached at jgreshes@netaxs.com.
The fact that this list is unmoderated means that any message sent to the list address is automatically forwarded to the members of the list without prior editing or screening by the list manager. However, there are some limitations, as we will cover later on.
A couple of things to keep in mind, though:
1) The list is being hosted as a service to the public by UH. Therefore, we owe it to UH not to unduly be a burden on university resources. Mainly, I ask that subscribers not use the list to transmit extremely large files such as binaries and uuencoded binaries (such as graphics and sound files).
2) The list archives are kept under the assumption that discussion of a worthwhile nature is going on and a permanent record of that discussion is of value to the public. What this means to the subscribers is that they should keep in mind that non-subscribers may be reading your posts months or years from now, so keep that in mind when you hit the <SEND> button!
3) Since the list is hosted by UH as a courtesy, the list can be booted off if it proves to be a pain. So, if you have some problem with the list or another subscriber, DO NOT go complaining to anyone at UH. It isn't their job to police the list. Write to me personally, jgreshes@netaxs.com
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I run a comprehensive Mahler page located at: http://www.netaxs.com/~jgreshes/mahler
It contains links to most other Mahler-related pages.
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IT IS IMPORTANT to understand the proper usage of email addresses. In items of administration (subscribing, signing off, etc.), address your mail to:
listserv@listserv.uh.edu
To post a message to the list, address your mail to:
mahler-list@listserv.uh.edu
The third address belongs to me, the list manager. If you have
any troubles regarding the mechanics of this list, write me at:
jgreshes@netaxs.com
I can also be reached through:
mahler-list-request@listserv.uh.edu
H/e, I prefer that mail be sent to the personal account rather than the -request one.
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In posting to this mailing list, it is good to keep a few things in mind, items that will make your stay at mahler-list more pleasurable for yourself and others.
1) When referring to another posting, please quote only the portion that is relevant to your discussion. We've already read the message in its entirety. Make sure, also, to strip out all header information from the previous posting; it is a waste of space and may prove confusing for subscribers and their system's mail configurations.
2) Conclude your message with your real name and complete email address, at least until you've posted for a while and people know who you are. I just put "Jason" at the bottom of my posts, but if people don't know who I am by now...
This has two benefits: 1) we will all know your real name, and 2) your address will allow us to respond directly should the need arise. Headers usually provide this information, but not always.
3) Be somewhat nice. We all goof up occasionally or express ideas that may, unknowingly, be obvious to everyone else. There's no need to "flame" someone for this. If a response is necessary at all, send mail to the offender directly.
Please remember that the list subscribers will be a mix of people with various levels of experience. So, when someone asks a clueless question, don't be too hard on them. On the other hand, when someone does ask a clueless question they can expect that some will answer their question with accurate information but also without the amount of handholding that might be expected. Please consider that its probably the fiftieth time that person has answered that particular question.
4) Take special care in wording the "subject:" line. This may be your one shot at attracting attention to your posting. Generally, if the topic being discussed has drifted so far away from the original listed "subject", do everybody a favor and make a new subject when sending in your reply.
5) When citing a new recording, it is helpful to include the following information:
1. Label serial number--so someone can order it if they are interested
2. Orchestra/ensemble
3. Conductor's name
4. Soloist's name, if any
5. If a truly oddball recording, where it was purchased.
Doing so from the beginning cuts down on the number of followup questions attempting to a certain basic information about the recording in question.
6) Please do not send administrative requests to the list. Listserv will handle almost all requests, and any that it cannot process should be sent to *me* rather than the list. Your fellow list subscribers cannot issue administrative commands for me, so please don't bother them.
In addition, the following suggestions are contained in the standard listserv documentation:
Like so many other things, network users tend to expend a great deal of virtual gunpowder about the subject of etiquette on the network (otherwise known as netiquette). Part of the culture of the network is built on the fact that an individual user can put forward any face he or she cares to present. Thus over time, the network has evolved various sets of rules that attempt to govern conduct. To avoid taking up a great deal of space arguing the merits of differing systems of netiquette, the following general pointers that should be accepted by most users are offered for the convenience of the list owner.
Additionally, care should be taken when using local idiom and slang. A common word or phrase used by Americans in everyday speech, for instance, might be taken as profanity or insult by those in other English-speaking countries, and may not be understood at all by non-native speakers of English. When a list has a high international readership, it is probably best to avoid non-standard English so as to provide the clearest and least-objectionable exchange of ideas.
However, in this case, the subject of the list involves a specific set of cultures, those of England, Ireland, Wales, and Scotland, and subscribers shouldn't feel restrained from using their cultural idioms if they choose.
If someone on a mailing list has sent a private message to you (i.e., not to the list at large) and you have lost that person's address but want to respond, do not post private mail to the list. The REVIEW command will give you a copy of the list membership that you can search for the person's address. If this approach does not work, contact the local postmaster or the list owner for help.
Flames (insults) belong in private mail, if they belong in mail at all.
Discussions will often result in disagreements. Rebuttals to another person's opinions or beliefs should always be made in a rational, logical and mature manner, whether they are made publicly or privately. What is a flame can range from the obvious (ranting and raving, abusive comments, etc.) to the not-so-obvious (comments about how many "newbies" seem to be on the list these days, "RTFM!" exhortations, etc.).
Subscribers should refrain from abusive or derogatory language that might be considered questionable by even the most liberal and open-minded of networkers. If you wouldn't say it in front of your mother, don't say it in electronic mail.
Most of these are contrary to appropriate use policies governing the use of the poster's Internet access provider. Not only that, they are annoying and (in the case of chain letters) often illegal. See the following section on the subject of "spamming" for more details.
Self-explanatory. It is rarely possible to catalog all forms of anti-social network behavior. Be sure that you as a list owner cover as many bases as you think necessary when promulgating a code of netiquette for your list. Then be sure to adhere to it yourself. [Of course, this particular list owner is sometimes guilty of breaking this particular rule. - Jason]
"Spamming" is a network term invented to describe the act of cross-posting the same message to as many newsgroups and/or mailing lists as possible, whether or not the message is germane to the stated topic of the newsgroups or mailing lists that are being targeted. A "spam" is defined therefore as either (1) a specific act of spamming, such as the so-called "Green Card Spam", or (2) the message that actually comes to your list as a result of someone initiating a specific act of spamming ("The message you just saw was a spam, and it should be ignored"). Spams are fairly rare on listserv lists; they often have "To:" fields directed to large numbers of lists, usually in alphabetical order. Listserv screens such messages are refuses to forward them to the list.
If a spam gets through the list, it tends to engender sarcastic replies (often with the spam quoted in its entirety) and users often insist on informing the entire list of their displeasure rather than the spammer himself. Please be aware that when that when a spam occurs:
- The person responsible for the spam is probably not a regular subscriber to the list, and any response back to the list will not reach that person. If the person is a regular subscriber, they won't be for long. I usually delete and set listserv to screen away all posts from persons that spam. Most of the time, I will have done so before subscribers have had the chance to respond to the message.
- An appropriate response to a spam is to forward a single copy of the spam to the person in charge of the site from which the spam originated ("POSTMASTER", "ROOT", etc.) pointing out that the spammer is probably violating his site's appropriate use policies.
- It is inappropriate to attempt to flood the spammer's mailbox with network mail in response. This is probably in violation of your network's appropriate use policies, and it just wastes bandwidth.
[Listserv traps most spams and does not allow them to be distributed to the list. On the one or two occasions when this list has been spammed, those responding to the spam did far more damage than the actual spammer. If the list gets a spam, the spammer is deleted if they are a subscriber to the list, no questions asked. So there is **absolutely no reason** to reply to the list about a spam. The spammer either was never a subscriber to the list or has already been deleted from the list, so the one person I can guarantee will not get your to-the-list complaint is the spammer himself.]
The following kinds of spam will get users deleted automatically from the list:
1) make money fast type posts
2) various chain letter type posts, no matter the assumed worth of such. Examples: some kid has cancer and wants email messages, I just read about this virus, Congress is about to pass a law that does ______, etc. Most of these messages are hoaxes that have been spread around for years. The fact that you see such a post on another list simply shows that a sucker is born every minute.
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Here is a list of commands that you may use at any time. Send all
commands to the following address:
listserv@listserv.uh.edu
1) To get a list of the mahler-list membership, send the message:
review mahler-list
Very soon you will receive an email message with the complete roster of names with email addresses. If you wish to change anything about your own name, just send me note privately and I'll see what I can do.
If you believe that you have been removed from the list, or are concerned because you have not received mail from the list lately, please check on such using this command. *Do not send "TEST" messages to the list.*
2) Included below is a complete list of "set" commands that affect
the way your mail from mahler-list is handled.
set mahler-list ack your post is sent back to you
set mahler-list noack your post is not sent back to you
set mahler-list digest new messages are accumulated into digests and sent to you daily
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This list is maintained as a public service by the University of Houston.
Any constructive comments or suggestions are welcome and may be sent directly to list owner Jason Greshes at:
jgreshes@netaxs.com