[Scan-DC] Fire Hydrants and Other Off Topic Messages

[Malcolm]

Charlie,

I just read your message and really couldn't agree more.  I have been
a member of this mailing list since 2003.  It has been an excellent
source of information and a good resource.  However, in the last few
months it seems to have really gotten out of control.  I also use a
smartphone and thanks to the off topic discussion, I now filter out
SCAN DC.  The discussions about the Grundig radio pushed me the
closest I have been to unsubscribing to this list.  We all have access
to the internet and there are many better and more appropriate places
to find product reviews, ask for a copy of Windows mobile software or
learn how to use the direct connect on your Nextel.  I would ask that
before sending out an email consider that it is going to thousands of
people who joined a very specific list "dedicated to discussion of
scanner radio-related topics in the Washington-Baltimore area".
Unfortunately, off-topic activities may benefit a few but hurt the
community overall as individuals unsubscribe or stop contributing
valid information.

-Malcolm

On Tue, Feb 9, 2010 at 6:53 AM, Charlie <dogcow911 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Gang,
>
> I've been holding out for a while, now, but enough is really enough.
> This is a mailing list with a large number of subscribers. People
> subscribe to this list to find out about scanning information in the
> D.C. area. Many people get messages delivered to their BlackBerries
> and other smartphones when a new message is sent to the list.
>
> I've been subscribed for some time now, and I am amazed at the number
> of off-topic emails this list generates (generally by a select few of
> the same individuals).
> This isn't the place to talk about fire hydrant colors. This isn't the
> place to exchange over 30 emails about a crappy Grundig receiver Radio
> Shack has on sale (maybe one email letting us know its on sale would
> have been fine). This isn't the place to send out hundreds of weather
> alerts -- alerts that we all get anyway -- and discuss personal
> opinions about weather. This isn't the place to send out jokes about
> the "Nestle Crunch Hotline" or the Boeing 787 making its first flight.
>
> Just as bad as the off topic stuff, list users seem to have a habit of
> replying to the entire list with meaningless one or two line replies
> that nobody aside from the original poster cares about. If you're
> replying to say "thank you" or you just feel like rambling on without
> contributing any useful information, please don't reply to the whole
> list -- reply only to the original sender(s).
>
> I know some of you are thinking, "if you don't like it, unsubscribe."
> Wrong. If that's how you feel, you're missing the point. I like the
> idea of this list, but let's try to keep limited to relevant topics -
> like new signals/frequencies, breaking events, and perhaps a technical
> discussion or two.
>
> Please remember that this is an email list, and should not be treated
> the same way as a Web forum. Send out only relevant, timely
> information, and you'll make this list a great resource to the radio
> community.
>
> Charlie
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