The List and the Forum

[tarda (Gill)]

Way back when, I tried to sign up to the list and received a totally incomprehesible email from majordomo in reply - containing the phrase "command not recognised " at frequent intervals, followed by lines and lines about lists which didn't seem to make any sense (to me). I gave up and retreated to the arms.
I asked my computer literate son & he wasn't sure either!

[Dad Volt]

Way back when, I tried to sign up to the list and received a totally incomprehesible email from majordomo in reply - containing the phrase "command not recognised " at frequent intervals, followed by lines and lines about lists which didn't seem to make any sense (to me). I gave up and retreated to the arms.
I asked my computer literate son & he wasn't sure either!

Yeh me too, I gave up having tried 2 or 3 times to sign up, I fink I must be too fick or something 

[tony the roundhead]

I was on the list from 1997. I gave it up when it became the totally boring preserve of one or two people who thought they were self appointedly funny or interesting. They weren't. it's not a problem the bulletin board suffers from thankfully.

[Tasha]

Way back when, I tried to sign up to the list and received a totally incomprehesible email from majordomo in reply - containing the phrase "command not recognised " at frequent intervals, followed by lines and lines about lists which didn't seem to make any sense (to me). I gave up and retreated to the arms.
I asked my computer literate son & he wasn't sure either!

Yeh me too, I gave up having tried 2 or 3 times to sign up, I fink I must be too fick or something 

Me too thought it was just me and gave up!

[jude]

I persevered and signed up to the list but found the emails I was recieving were incomprehensible.

Here you can at least back track through threads to see what they're on about.

Not that I have a problem with the FC List at all.

I just don't think my brain works that way.

Jude

[Mix (Mic)]

I think it was the almost constant sniping and back biting on the list that got to me the most.
I still don't understand the necessity for the snide comments about Talkawhile that were rife there for a while. I mean, you just don't get that kind of pettiness here do you? E.G. SftBH have just set up their forum......they "announced" it on this board......now I haven't seen anyone jumping up and down and pulling their hair out about it, and I think that's because we are a bit special here maybe, we see that there is plenty of room for everyone and that there is no need for childish temper tantrums. Quite the contrary in fact......the board and it's moderators encourage new ventures, and invariably support new ideas and bands.
That is the beauty of this forum, we are like a family, and as such prefers to encourage rather than criticise..............healthy debate is encouraged but always kept to the topic and not allowed to descend into a slanging match...........and that is the quality that Talkawhile has that, (for me) the List doesn't.

It's a big WWW and room for all.

Mic

[koho (Koen)]

That is the beauty of this forum, we are like a family, and as such prefers to encourage rather than criticise..............

For a while there, the FC list felt exactly like that, as far as I'm concerned. Maybe it was just me thinking this, a relative newbie then on the internet, marvelling at the wonders of being in direct touch with people all over the world who have a love for the same subject. i.e. Fairport. In 1998 there was a big list meet at Cropredy - when all of us walked around in "Meet On The Net" t-shirts which said on the back "Fairport Convention haven't heard of YOU either" (a great line in daily life, though not so much at Cropredy of course), and somehow it did feel like a big family. I did a whole lot of emailing then, and tape/CD treeing, etc etc. Somehow that whole feeling slipped, especially after a particularly nasty episode in 1999 where a "troll" misbehaved atrociously -list oldies active over here will remember this- and people left in bunches, while others took over as regulars and the feel changed. 'Twas never the same after that as far as I'm concerned and I stopped being an active member. Then again maybe that was a natural thing, as communicating with loads of people all over the world became quite normal, in time. I still cherish quite a number of contacts with people I met through the FC List, most of them aren't even a member of it anymore.

[Shane (Skirky)]

In 1998 there was a big list meet at Cropredy - when all of us walked around in "Meet On The Net" t-shirts which said on the back "Fairport Convention haven't heard of YOU either" (a great line in daily life, though not so much at Cropredy of course), and somehow it did feel like a big family.

D'you know - I wondered who you lot were... 
SK

[Paul]

I can't help feeling, that in the interest of irony, I should do a spot of moderating here.

These crypto-fascist tendencies are very worrying, head Vogon.

I mean ..... why have they taken so long to surface?     

Resistance is futile!

(OOh! What a give away!)

Colin will obviously moderate this thread .............

When the paperwork has been signed in triplicate, lost down the back of the sofa, and buried in a peat bog for three years.

That is, if he has finished dealing with the paperwork needed to prevent his grandmother being fed to the ravenous bugblatter beast of thall.

 

Paul

[Jack O Diamonds]

These crypto-fascist tendencies are very worrying, head Vogon.

I mean ..... why have they taken so long to surface?     

Resistance is futile!

(OOh! What a give away!)

Don't start me off, Bazza... I feel a whole litany coming on.... where's me shillelagh 

[JJ (Joanna)]

In 1998 there was a big list meet at Cropredy - when all of us walked around in "Meet On The Net" t-shirts which said on the back "Fairport Convention haven't heard of YOU either" (a great line in daily life, though not so much at Cropredy of course), and somehow it did feel like a big family.

D'you know - I wondered who you lot were... 
SK

So did I and I would have loved one of those t.shirts! 

[Chris]

I have two.....

But they were list-shirts.

[fstix (Michael)]

I guess this is as good a time as any to say I have recently ceased lurking here and subscribed, after having been a regular on the FC List for some years (and still there too).  I can see the benefits of both, but one of the main ones here atm is the actual amount of conversation happening.

Those who have been put off by any sniping on the FCList should head over to the RT List sometimes, which can often be much worse (like right now, mainly due to the usual antagonists)!

Re Koho's reference to the uber-troll that appeard on the FC List in '99 - that person (who should remain nameless lest he Google himself and bring himself here) did the same and far worse in a number of different areas on the Net for years, including trying to align himself to Neonazis.  His house was raided last year and his computers seized but he just got more and kept going (phone and internet harrassment).  He appeared in court last week and will hopefully be imprisoned soon.   

Having said all that - nice to be here.

Michael (Hunter)

[Mix (Mic)]

Hi Michael,
pleased to meet you, welcome aboard, we're mostly harmless
Just wanted to say that it's good to see that one of these internet menaces has been caught and something is being done about him........it restores your faith a bit.
Post lots and have fun here

Mic

[YaBB Master (Colin)]

Welcome Michael

The above Troll has attempted to join this board, a couple of times, but one of the advantages of this software, is that we can prevent people from getting access and people who sign on anonymously, can have their access limited.

[Pugwash]

Gosh Jobb, put some more water in the moat (on the ledge ) and oil the drawbridge.

I don't fancy being uber-trolled.

Puggs 

[schrodingers-cat (Janey)]

I don't know how an "e-mail list" works, having never been part of one, but surely there's room for all of us?? I think there must be some members of both Widds' "list" and Talkawhile on here (Chris?) as I've seen mention of the FC List before and have even linked to bits of it (the Cropredy info pages, now mostly on the FC website, are excellent,) but you have to subscribe, and that puts me off as there's nothing to see to show you what you get when you do!! Perhaps someone can enlighten me?

I personally prefer the email list format rather than Bulletin Board purely because I'm a lazy cow and if it lands in my mail box I'll probably read it... if I have to go looking it just doesn't happen - hence my lack of input since I signed up here. Oh, and I prefer the unmoderated approach (though I can understand those who don't).

Can't we all be friends? We all love Fairport and love reading about them!! And Widds, I'm sure you don't bite really!

You haven't met him then :-)

Jane

[leahdon (Donna)]

Hello,

I've read this conversation with interest and thought I'd join in.

To be honest, the only reason I have joined the bulletin board is because the FC list has now got very boring, although I am staying on that list too.

I've been on the list since 1996/7, and loved every minute of it, including the second FC list shirt (FC haven't heard of you). I can claim to have had the first list wedding, with listees attending, having said that, I think we also had the first list divorce 

I really hope that I build up here the sort of friendships that I still have from the FC list (even though a lot of those people are no longer on the FC list), but I think it will be more difficult, because you have to find the subjects you want to talk on.

So the list has got boring... why?  I actually do blame this bulletin board, I'm afraid. In the old days, we used to talk about FC, musicians around the FC group, fok in general, and had a lot of humour there.  Unfortunately, some people didn't like the off-topic conversations (even if they were fok music related), so we started a second list, called the Off-topic list.  The bulletin board grew out of that, and in so doing, I think deprived the FC list of the family feel I had grown to love.  Indeed, many people described the FC list as a virtual pub.  The Corporation Arms is the next step of that.

God, I sound very negative about this place.  That's not my intention, I'm here now, and I'm going to enjoy myself.

Hope I haven't offended anyone.

Donna

PS Oh, and I must admit I wasn't too keen on the idea of being moderated, although those of you who know me, know that I rarely cause offence, except by accident.

[JJ (Joanna)]

Hi Donna and welcome. 

I am sure, in fact know you will meet lots of friends both old and new on here. The chat room is great to wander in and out of and that way you build up friendships and get to know people. I like the idea of finding different subjects to read and all with just a press of the unread topics button - it's so easy and the list appears in front of you 

I am pleased we are moderated because our motto "It's nice to be nice" gives a feeling of friendship. We do ramble and speak our minds at times but it's never offensive  There's enough of that in the world outside IMHO 

Looking forward to hearing more from you.

[Nuthouse]

Leahdon...

Well glad you made it here whatever the reasons

Speaking for myself I think that you will find that there is a bit of a 'family' feel to what goes on here too. Like all families there is the ocassional dust-up but things soon settle... and this is when the moderation sometimes proves to be valuable.    

Anyway.. looking forward to bumping into you from time to time...

Nuthouse