Hi Horse, Bodvar, committee and all LilaQs,
I'm rather ambivalent about this whole charter business. The Lila Squad
never had one till now.
If we want introduce a formal charter or constitution, we need to answer
the following:-
1. Why do we need a charter - what problems does it solve?
2. Who does the Charter BELONG to, and who calls it into being?
3. What is the EXPLICIT mechanism (e.g. voting requirements) to amend
the charter?
This said, I AM in favour of occasionally posting some group
"netiquette" guidelines, which I believe was Bodvar's original intent.
Some of the clauses of the proposed charter could serve this purpose.
I have a couple of specific comments below.
[NOTE: I've heavily edited Horse's Charter for brevity. Refer to
original where necessary]
>MOQ_DISCUSS CHARTER
>
>The MOQ_DISCUSS mailing list exists to provide a general ...
>The MOQ_DISCUSS mailing list currently has an 'Open' policy ...
Is the server currently open to accept mail from non-subscribers? I
suspect it is,
because I see members occasionally posting from an alternate email
address.
This is a potential vulnerability which we may need to close.
>The MOQ_DISCUSS mailing list is currently an unmoderated mailing list.
>Members should observe the Rules of the list in order that discussions
can be
>conducted in in a civilized and reasonably courteous manner.
DEFINITELY, but this is simple netiquette (applies with or without a
charter).
>Members of MOQ_DISCUSS are free to initiate a new discussion or topic
by
>posting a message announcing the new topic or with a Subject line
identifying the
>new topic.
>
See note below on cross-referencing...
>Members of MOQ_DISCUSS are not required to participate....
>If it becomes necessary to remove a member ...
I suggest removing this clause, especially because no disciplinary
procedure has
been fully defined. I think the threat of expulsion is best left
implicit for now.
>The Charter and Rules of MOQ_DISCUSS are subject to addition or
modification
>under the guidance of the list administrator. Any additions or
modifications will be
>posted to the list with reasons given.
This is inadequate for a formal charter. You need to define the exact
rules,
voting procedure or whatever. Otherwise, it isn't a real charter
(which suits me fine).
>MOQ_DISCUSS RULES
>1) All members must have read ...
>2) All topics and discussions must be relevant ...
>3) Currently, each member should post no more than one ...
>4) Members should reproduce only the relevant parts...
>5) Contributors should reproduce the Subject line of the
thread/discussion to
>which they are replying. The MOQ_DISCUSS mailing list archive at:
>http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
>has the option to group posts by Subject. Reproducing the subject line
makes it
>easier to find and follow archived posts by Subject.
It would be nice if we could formalize a method of cross-referencing
posts so that retrieval is just a click away. This becomes important
when people create new threads combining several old ones.
>6) Where possible, posts should be restricted to plain text ...
>7) Posts may not contain attachments ..., gifs or other documents
except by
>8) Members should refrain from swearing, using offensive language ...
Let me close by restating the case for some simple guidelines instead of
a formal charter.
The last week or so has shown that the group responded very well
(without exception)
to Bodvar's call for order.
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