Recent threads have touched on the perennial question of how
far the list should indulge new -- or apparently naive --
members.
The main point in my view is this.
New members get a welcome message from Marcello Pagano
when they join the list. The main burden of that message
is that new users should read the Statalist FAQ before they
post. Among other things, that FAQ does outline at length
things that can, indeed should, be done _before_ posting,
including use of online help (e.g. -search-) and use of -update-.
It seems to me that if new users choose to skim or skip
reading that FAQ, or to decide that for some reason the
advice does not apply to them, then they really should
not be surprised or upset when members rather firmly remind them
of that advice. Also, as some of us are human, sometimes
the exasperation really does show!
The rationale for that advice is not to keep this list
as a forum for elite users. It is that, long term, no
one would benefit from a long tail of trivial postings
which members could really answer for themselves.
As there is no moderation -- nobody filtering out dopey
or lazy messages -- such list discipline has to be
exerted, on-line or off-line, by list members themselves.
To end positively: no one has ever been thrown off
Statalist for bad behaviour!
Nick
[email protected]
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