<snip>

There are people on the list who *do not* want any of the spam.  They just
want to read the fanfics, and send c&c.  They would not have to subscribe
to the spam mailing list.

Hey, SPAM is inevidable on unmoderated lists. People stray off topic. Like
shit, it happens.

There are also those that do not want to take part in the discussion of
fanfics, or read other people's c&c.  Instead, they prefer to send their
c&c directly to the author.

This has already been taken care of by a current anti-SPAM device: the
reply-to field is to the original sender, not the list.

 These people would not need to subscribe to
the discussion list.

There are those people who *only* read Ranma ff, and those that read
anything but.  And those those that only read Ranma and Sailor Moon
fanfics.  These people could subscribe to the appropriate mailing lists.

<snip>

The amount of Spam might increase, but that shouldn't bother anyone on the
spam mailing list.  That's what they want, after all.

But there would be no spam on the spam list. After all, spam is off-topic
conversation, which would be perfectly in place on the spamFFML. :)

By using filtering software on the users end, the disccusion list could
be fine-tuned to accept discussion of only the fic lists the user is on.
For example, if the user is only on the [MISC FF ML], they could filter
out any discussion from the other two fic lists.  It seems to me, that
this could only increase the amount of discussion and c&c going on.

Heh. There's a bit of VERY effective filtering software that everyone has
already preinstalled: YOUR BRAIN!!! When you check your mail, first go
through the whole list of posts and eliminate those that you don't want. I
do this; it cuts down on unwanted spam enormously.

You have to actually think (HORRORS!) and spend some effort (GASP!), but
you have the advantage that the filter constantly updates itself, it's made
by unskilled labor, and it comes free with each life. Besides, user-end
filters are the USER's responsibility not the Admin's. WW can't do it for
us; we have to.

I'm not completly sold on the idea myself, but I think this idea might
well benifit the list.  What would be the drawbacks?

Well, one would be that the setting up of all this would not be without a
great deal with effort. After all, WW can't even update that damned
archive. ;)

The second problem is that the lines between C&Cing, discussion and SPAM
are very thin. One usually doesn't realize that he's spamming until he
looks back and says, "Gee, that was a spam thread, wasn't it?"

The really alarming thing in my view is that this sounds a lot like
MODERATION. << O.O >> One of the reasons why this list was set up in the
first place was to give an off-RAAC forum to hack out fics before being
released to that newsgroup, if I'm not mistaken.

I compared Gary's suggestion to the current newsgroups under
rec.arts.anime.*. It sent shivers up my spine. Go and see for yourself.
Kinda scary, isn't it? If the FFML goes this way, I'm unsubbing altogether.
It'll just be a Usenet clone.

The FFML doesn't need any fixing. It WE that needs the overhaul!

                           ---------------------
##   ## ##   ## #######  ##   ##  AKA Tom Jefferys, Time Lord for Hire
##   ##  #   #   ##   ## ### ###    "Have TARDIS; Will Travel."
## # ##   ###    #####   ## # ##  Wielder of ANVIL and SPAM! Breaking
### ###    #     ##  ##  ##   ##    the Rules of Fanfiction!
##   ##   ###   ###   ## ##   ## of UT      <wyrm@mail.utexas.edu>
Save the Bit Trees -- Conserve SPAM!         When in Rome...BURN IT!!!
                  Darwin was wrong: Man is still an ape!