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List:       zlib-devel
Subject:    [Zlib-devel] zlib-users besides zlib-devel
From:       cosmin () cs ! toronto ! edu (Cosmin Truta)
Date:       2003-09-10 6:51:50
Message-ID: Pine.GSO.4.44.0309100155320.11405-100000 () qew ! cs
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Hi,

First I want to thank Mark for his kind acknowledgements :)

I would like to open a debate about whether to use zlib-devel as a place
for asking for help and reporting bugs, or to create a new "zlib-users"
or "zlib-bugs" mailing list specifically for this purpose, or to just
continue with the old scheme where the users send questions privately to
Mark.

Mark asked me if I agree to answer emails about the DLL problems, if
they are not described already in the DLL_FAQ. Yes, I agree, although I
would prefer that the users send their questions to the list instead.
I am still going to answer DLL-related questions inside the list.

After the time spent on the png- and mng-lists, I think this is the best
way to do it, with lots of benefits: list members can answer questions
and save some of Mark's time; when answering a question, a debate may
open and conclude with possibly a better answer; list members become
aware of the reported problems, even if they're don't involving in the
discussions; one is able to query over past discussions and find their
questions that have already been answered before; etc.


But then Mark brought in the following point:

> If users were able to send questions to zlib-devel, then everyone on
> it would unsubscribe within about a day.  zlib-devel is only for zlib
> development and testing, and I'd like to keep the traffic on it
> limited to that to retain our volunteers.  Currently, only members of
> zlib-devel can post to it.

Interesting. I wouldn't do that ;) but maybe other people would. In this
case, maybe a "zlib-users" mailing list could be created especially for
the purpose of helping users, and whoever wants to stay away from those
discussions can do so.

In fact, I expect to have more zlib-users than zlib-devel subscribers in
the long term, because there are so many zlib users who might want to
watch for zlib tips or problems, but very few of them want to be
involved in zlib development.


There is also the issue of needing to be subscribed in order to post
messages, versus having a moderator spending a lot of time filtering
spam (as Greg is doing on the png-lists). I think the first choice is
better, and users will understand the constraints. I know about other
mailing lists for gnu users that have the same policy. To avoid the bulk
of messages, users can suspend the message delivery temporarily without
unsubscribing, or choose to receive them in digest mode.


Best regards,
Cosmin




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