Web4Lib Frequently Asked Questions List May 15

[Thomas Dowling]

WEB4LIB FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
May 15, 2000


This is the current set of Frequently Asked Questions (or, perhaps,
Frequently Needed Answers) for the Web4Lib mailing list.  

Questions in this message:
    How do I unsubscribe from Web4Lib?
    What help is available if the listserv won't do what I want?
    Where are the list's archives?  Where is its Web site?
    What topics are usually considered on- and off-topic?
    Is there a list for Internet filtering?



HOW DO I UNSUBSCRIBE FROM WEB4LIB?

    To unsubscribe from Web4Lib, you must e-mail the listserv program
    that distributes the list.  PLEASE NOTE: this is a different
    address than the list itself.  To unsubscribe, send e-mail to
    listserv at webjunction.org with this single line in the body of
    the message:

	unsubscribe web4lib

    Shortly after you send this command, you should receive a
    confirmation message from the listserv reading, "You have been
    removed from list web4lib at webjunction.org.  Thanks for being
    with us." This message usually arrives within a few minutes, but
    may take a couple of hours if the server is busy; if you do not
    receive it in a reasonable time, you should contact the list owner,
    Roy Tennant, at rtennant at library.berkeley.edu.

    The listserv running Web4Lib is currently ListProc 6.0.  This is a
    powerful and flexible program, and it may offer you options for
    management and receipt of Web4Lib that you did not know about.  For
    further options, send listserv at webjunction.org the message
    "help", or consult the command reference at the Web4Lib Web site
    <URL:http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Web4Lib/#Commands>.


WHAT HELP IS AVAILABLE IF THE LISTSERV WON'T DO WHAT I WANT?

    There are two common reasons why the commands above don't work and
    give you an error message.  One is, ahem, operator error.  If
    you're trying to unsubscribe or issue other listserv commands, make
    sure that you are spelling both the listserv address and the
    command correctly.

    The other common reason why unsubscribe and other commands fail is
    that your e-mail address has changed since you first subscribed to
    the list.  Sometimes this is because you have chosen to forward
    mail from your original address to a new one.  Sometimes this is
    due to your organization changing its entire e-mail addressing
    structure en masse (for example, from addresses like
    "chris at mailhost.domain.org" to "chris at domain.org").  For security
    reasons, listserv will only process commands affecting your
    subscription if the command is mailed from the same address as the
    original subscription request.  If your address has changed, and
    you are still able to use the old address to send a message, use
    the old address to unsubscribe from the list and then subscribe
    from your new address.

    If (and only if) you have exhausted all the alternatives available
    at your end, you will need to send e-mail to the listowner, Roy
    Tennant, at rtennant at library.berkeley.edu.  Please be patient:
    unlike the listserv, Roy is a human and spends several minutes each
    day doing things other than administering Web4Lib.


WHERE ARE THE LIST'S ARCHIVES?  WHERE IS ITS WEB SITE?

    Web4Lib's online home is
    <URL:http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Web4Lib/>.  Much of the
    information in this message is based on material at that site.

    The Web4Lib archives,
    <URL:http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Web4Lib/archive.html>, provide
    keyword searching of every message posted to the list since the
    spring of 1995.  The archive can also be browsed by date, subject,
    or author.


WHAT TOPICS ARE USUALLY CONSIDERED ON- AND OFF-TOPIC?

    The offical posting policy is located at
    <URL:http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Web4Lib/#Policy>.  Please read
    it.

    Web4Lib is usually an easy-going place, open to posts that may only
    be tangential to the core subject of the World Wide Web and
    libraries.  There are some helpful guidelines for keeping Web4Lib
    productive, however: keep your posts concise and substantive; post
    when you have something to add, and not simply when you want to
    express agreement (or disagreement) with an earlier post; post when
    you have something to say to all of the several thousand
    subscribers, and not when your message is intended only for one or
    two individuals; and be civil.

    Those guidelines aside, some types of posting are always out of
    line.  Advertisements are inappropriate, although you may certainly
    comment on the merits of a product within the context of a list
    discussion.  Vendors may discuss their products in the same
    context.

    Personal attacks, insults, and name-calling may not be posted to
    the list.  Material with copyright restrictions that disallow
    distribution on the list may not be posted; if you have permission
    to redistribute the material, you should say so in your post.

    Finally, virus warnings should NOT be posted to the list until and
    unless they have been confirmed by CERT <URL:http://www.cert.org/>
    or CIAC <URL:http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/>.  Before forwarding a
    virus warning to anyone, you may wish to acquaint yourself with the
    history of virus hoaxes at
    <URL:http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/hoax.html>.


IS THERE A LIST FOR INTERNET FILTERING?

    The subject of filtering software for Internet access is not off
    topic for Web4Lib.  However, it is a subject which is certainly
    capable of generating enough traffic for its own list, and that
    list is FILT4LIB.  To subscribe, send e-mail to
    filt4lib at public.ci.escondido.ca.us with the word "subscribe" in the
    subject field, and nothing in the message field.

    [As of May 17, 1999, it appears FILT4LIB is defunct.  Can anyone
    confirm this or point to its new location?]



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If you think there are questions which should be addressed on this list
(especially if you can provide the answer!) please contact Thomas
Dowling, tdowling at ohiolink.edu.