Dear List Members,
With it being nearly two months into the new jiscmail (as opposed to the
old mailbase) 'regime' of the social-policy mailing list I thought it
timely to write to update you all on matters relating to the transition
- including some of the NEW features enabled by the jiscmail software.
At the same time, I would like to take the opportunity to remind list
members of some basic ground rules for the list.
I have split this message into numbered sections so that you can skip
those that aren't relevant to you individually. However, I would be
grateful if everyone at least read sections 2, 5 & 6.
For reference the sections are:
1. Debates on the list
2. NEW features enabled by the jiscmail software
3. Sending attachments to the list
4. Advertising on the list
5. Netiquette
6. Suspending mail when you are away/If you e-mail address changes
7. Viewing the user guide
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1. Debates on the List.
The social-policy list is run by the Social Policy Association (SPA) as
a service to all members of the social policy community, be they SPA
members or not. It aims to provide a forum for the exchange of
information and views. As such, I think that social-policy relevant
debates can and should be accommodated on the list. I, for one, found
the recent exchange on joined up government to be interesting and
informative.
Obviously the volume of messages being posted to the list needs to be
manageable for average list members; if, at some future point, the
number of messages gets out of hand, this policy will be reviewed.
However, for those who find the current number of messages overwhelming,
please read on!
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2. NEW features enabled by the jiscmail software
There are various new features brought to the list by the jiscmail
software that has replaced the old mailbase software. I will bring news
of these over the coming months as they become available, but for now I
want to draw your attention to a valuable feature for those who find
messages on the list only occasionally useful or those who cannot cope
with the volume of messages being posted to the list.
As with the old mailbase software, the jiscmail system sends all
messages to all members by default. While, for the most part, this means
just one or two messages a day coming to you, I know that some members
find any increase in activity on the list inconvenient. If you fit into
this category, then you might want to take advantage of one of two
options.
(i) You can receive messages in a DIGEST form. This will mean you
receive just one consolidated message per day that draws together all of
that day's messages. To receive messages in digest form, you need to
send a message to [log in to unmask] (NB: Please enter the right
address - DO NOT send this message to the social-policy list) with the
following text in the message:
set social-policy digest
(ii) You can unsubscribe from the list and read messages on the
social-policy jiscmail website. You will receive no notification of new
messages but will be able to read any of the messages sent to the list
any time you visit the website.
To leave the list, you need to send a message to [log in to unmask]
(NB: Please enter the right address - DO NOT send this message to the
social-policy list) with the following text in the message:
leave social-policy
You can then read messages via the web by visiting:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/social-policy.html
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3. Sending attachments to the list
There has been some concern of late about large attachments being sent
to the list. The basic policy in relation to attachments is that WE
STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST PEOPLE SENDING ATTACHMENTS TO THE LIST. There
are three key reasons for this:
(i) it is an ineffective way of spreading your message. Not all members
can read attachments and many find them irritating. If you CAN, it is
better to send your message as a plain, text based e-mail
(ii) e-mail attachments are the most effective way to spread computer
viruses - something as an innocent word processed document can
inadvertently contain a viruses that is set loose once the attachment is
opened
(iii) attachments can be a real nuisance for members with slow machines
or those who work from home with dial-up modem connections. This is
especially the case with large attachments that can take a considerable
time to download and, as a consequence, put someone's machine out of
action while they try to download an attachment that may even be of no
interest to them.
In some cases there may be a need to circulate a document quickly to as
many members of the social policy community as possible (the recent
example of draft guidelines on postgraduate funding etc springs to
mind). In such cases, the use of attachments can be unavoidable.
However, if you are posting a flyer for a study day, conference, new
journal or book, please refer list members to a website where they can
view full details, rather than sending full details to the list. If you
do not have the facility to place your material on a website, it is
often possible to place such flyers on the SPA's website
(http://www.social-policy.com), which is run alongside this list. If you
would like to advertise an event on this site please contact me at
[log in to unmask]
Unfortunately, the jiscmail software does not allow me to automatically
block the sending of attachments in any shape or form and advises 'user
education' as the way forward, so please try to follow these guidelines.
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4. Advertising on the list
Except for the above caveat re attachments, I do not have any objections
to people advertising books, journals, pamphlets, conferences, study
days, job vacancies and training events on the list, as long as they are
relevant to the concerns of social-policy list members. If you wish to
advertise such items you do not need to contact me first for permission
- I am happy for them to be posted directly to the list.
There has been some discussion concerning the advertising of degrees on
the list. The general consensus is that members should not advertise
general vacancies for degrees on the list - this holds the possibility
of the list degenerating into cyber junk mail as all institutions try to
take advantage of free advertising. However, if you have FUNDED places
for graduate study (e.g. university scholarships), this is a different
matter - the list can and should be a forum for highlighting such
opportunities.
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4. Netiquitte
At present, social-policy is an open list; anyone, anywhere in the
world, is free to join the list and post messages. The list currently
has in the region of 1,000 members, meaning we are a sizeable community.
Like any community, we need some rules to operate smoothly (NB: this is
not an invitation for philosophers on the list to open a debate on
communities and the need for rules!)... Jiscmail have quite extensive
guidelines concerning netiquette, acceptable behaviour and so on (on the
web at http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/docs/default.htm). I just want to
highlight two that we have had need to remind people of in the past:
(i) please respect other members of the list, even if you do not agree
with their views. If anyone is completely out of line I can instruct
jiscmail to remove them from the list, but, happily, we have not had to
do this yet on the social-policy list. Some individuals have, however,
been subjected to unwarranted abuse in previous years, which has been
unwelcome and unpleasant.
(ii) please be tolerant of other member's mistakes. If someone sends a
message that inconveniences you personally, please try to avoid web
rage! While large attachments or multiple mailings of messages have
caused irritation over the years, these have generally been genuine
errors committed by well meaning people who weren't fully aware of the
problems they were causing. We need to educate rather than berate!
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6. Suspending mail when you are away/If you e-mail address changes
Following from netiquette, a couple of tips relating to the management
of e-mail accounts.
(i) If you are going to be away from your computer for a while AND have
set an auto-reply message to inform people you are away PLEASE suspend
messages from the social-policy list too. If you do not do this, then
anyone sending a message to the list will receive your auto-reply
message - particularly annoying if they do not know you and even worse
if they do and had thought you were finally getting in touch with them
again...
At the moment there is a long list of offenders and we are reliant on
people following good practice here. To suspend mail, send a message to
[log in to unmask] (NB: Please enter the right address - DO NOT
send this message to the social-policy list) with the following text in
the message:
set social-policy nomail
When you return and want to receive mail again, repeat the process, but
send the following message:
set social-policy mail
If you are a member of more than one jiscmail list, you can
automatically suspend/resume mail from all lists by replacing
social-policy with *
(ii) If you are changing your e-mail address, please remember to update
your details on the social-policy list. To leave the list, send a
message from your current address before it changes, to
[log in to unmask] (NB: Please enter the right address - DO NOT
send this message to the social-policy list) with the following text in
the message:
leave social-policy
When your new e-mail address is active, you can re-join the list via the
web; go to the social-policy list's home page
(http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/social-policy.html) and follow the
on-line instructions.
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7. Viewing the user guide
Jiscmail have produced on-line user guides that summarise the key
commands and explains advanced features. Visit
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/docs/default.htm to view these.
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If you have got this far, thank you for reading... any queries, please
contact me at [log in to unmask] and I will do my best to help.
John Hudson,
List Owner.
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John Hudson,
Lecturer in Social Policy,
Department of Social Policy and Social Work,
University of York,
York,
YO10 5DD.
http://www.york.ac.uk/depts/spsw/
http://www.social-policy.com/
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