[MUD-Dev] META: FAQ and Thread Summaries

[Chris Gray]

:  1) Should we have a FAQ?

Have people specifically asked for it? How many? If enough have, then
it might be worthwhile to see if we can come up with an easy-to-maintain
FAQ.

:  2) What should be in it?

Well, I like your idea below: brief blurbs from list members who want to
have a blurb in it (no requirement). Then, if thread summaries become
available, perhaps a very brief description of the threads that are
available in summarized form.

:  3) Who should own it?  Volunteers?

I suspect you would have to own it, but perhaps not. As for writing it,
hopefully it could be just a collection of things from members, with a
bit of glue around them.

:  4) Should we have thread ownership?
:
:  5) Should we have an official thread summariser per thread?
:
:  6) How should the thread summarisier be appointed?  Self-elected?
:Appointed by list owner?  Appointed by thread participants?  Determined by
:volume of contribution to thread?

We *could* try to work on a volunteer basis, where someone interested in
a thread decides to volunteer to keep track of it. That would consist of
archiving the discussions in a separate file, and, when the thread dies
out, making that file available to the membership somehow (perhaps sending
it to wherever the current list archives are). The only hard part here,
perhaps is recognizing when a new, distinct thread is starting, so that
going back through notes isn't necessary. For example, who would have
guessed we would end up with a mini-thread on the real-life ecology of
forests (now wandering into plains)? In situations like that, building
a thread requires access to past notes that contain contributions on it.
I could do that, since I'm archiving nearly all notes, but others may
not be set up to do that.

:  7) Should any of these participation rules be mandated as part of list
:membership?  Should they instead rely on internal feedbacks/measures?
:What?

Well, I'm somewhat in favour of some guidelines for volunteers, but I
wouldn't mind some kind of more formal structure, either.

--
Chris Gray   cg at ami-cg.GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA