On Fri, 22 May 1998, Damon Casale wrote:

We currently have about 800 subscribers (at last count, which was
several weeks ago).  That means that the list server currently has quite
a lot to handle with the "normal" mail load, not to mention the people
on the receiving end.  What do we do if the list keeps growing?  Can the
list be divided among two server machines?  Is White Wolf even willing
to purchase another machine to host the list? 

If it's possible, though difficult, for most people to keep up under
normal FFML traffic, but next to impossible when the traffic gets even
*mildly* heavy, what are we going to do if the list keeps growing?  What
are we going to do to keep traffic down to more manageable levels, even
if it doesn't keep growing? 

Try not to be more stupid than usual, please.  I estimate the current
machine can handle ten times the current load before I need to think about
an upgrade. 

The problem is NOT the server.  The problem is NOT the number of
subscribers.  The problem is the SPAM, which Does Not Belong on this list.
The problem is the traffic that fills up your mailbox with crap.

The server can handle stuffing your box.  The question is, do you *really*
want that to happen?

When Tybalt first came on as "semi-moderator", White Wolf agreed that it
wasn't a perfect solution, but was necessary to keep the traffic down to
manageable levels.  I agreed with that, at the time.  Previously,
however, I had suggested a few different approaches, most of which
involved dividing up the list in one manner or another.  It was pointed
out to me that a lot of people would end up joining all of the sub-ML's
anyway, so this wasn't a good solution. 

That defeats the entire purpose of the list.

I have one suggestion, though.  Maybe it's time to start seriously
considering making the FFML into a newsgroup, even with all of the new
perils and pitfalls associated with that.  I mean, maybe it's just
getting too big for *anyone* to keep track of. 

That defeats the entire purpose of the list.