Dear Colleagues,

This morning, I woke up to discover a post ["avatars"] wondering
whether I am Cindy Jackson. I am not Cindy Jackson. I have noticed
that Cindy often shares my viewpoint, but a common viewpoint does not
mean a pseudonym.

The choice of a shared view on Heidegger as evidence for a pseudonym
is interesting. If we were the only two people to note Heidegger's
opaque and difficult prose, it would be a different matter.

If I were to find the best evidence for suggesting that Cindy is my
avatar, I'd have pointed to that lovely compilation she posted after
a research request on philosophy of design. That's exactly what I
believe people should do, and what I request that people ought to do
when they use the list to gather information. But then, if I had
compiled that fine collection, I'd have posted it in my own name.

Cindy may find Alan Sokal's post rude. Since I have occasionally
wanted to say some of the things Cindy said, I don't. I wondered why
Dr. Sokal borrowed Hans Blix's email account to post here, but that's
another story.

Dr. Sokal's post asks a good question. What sort of list etiquette
and ethics do we want? I've asked exactly that question myself. When
I have asked, there have been a few responses but little extended
discussion. There are very few rules here. During the on-line
conference last year, one list member argued that even these rules
don't exist. The rules concerning list governance are established by
JISCMAIL. This is the discussion list service of JISC, the Joint
Information Systems Committee of UK educational institutions in the
post-secondary sector. These rules govern all JISCmail lists, but the
list member required us to use a couple of days to clarify an issue
that should have been clear from my statements as conference
convener. A thoughtful response from another list member prompted me
to suggest that he moderate a specific discussion on this theme, but
he did not want to take it up at that time.

Perhaps it is time for us to consider these issues.

So far, we have very few rules. Anyone may launch a thread on any
topic at any time. While we have a specific range of topics related
to design research and doctoral education in design, all topics are
welcome. Anyone may write at length in careful developed, well
referenced posts. No one is required to write scholarly or scientific
notes: direct person comments are welcome. No one may call for a
thread to end while any list member wishes to carry it forward.

The JISC rules govern all JISCMAIL lists. Apart from technical rules,
only one JISCMAIL rule affects on-list protocol. This is the fact
that JISCMAIL list owners are the final governing authority on any
list. A list owner "owns" the list on behalf of JISC. He or she sets
standards, establishes or changes rules, imposes standards, and has
full authority over list membership and activities. Our list owners
are David Durling and Keith Russell. David and Keith are fairly low
key. They mostly enable us to pursue the conversations that emerge
from the protocol established after La Clusaz, the few rules stated
above. The only time times that either list owner has ever intervened
have been occasions when a subscriber repeatedly interrupted list
discourse or refused to recognize that a designated process with
special rules was under way. To my knowledge, that has only happened
two or three times in the six years since the list was established.

The question of list etiquette and ethics probably involves more
issues than whether or not an "avatar" is acceptable here. This would
include some of the issues I raised during and after the on-line
conference. And it might well include issues raised off-list by
subscribers who have occasionally felt uncomfortable with the list.

I wanted to take a moment to reflect on Alan Sokal's post and to
suggest that it may be a good moment to reflect on etiquette and
ethics in several dimensions.

What do others think?

Best regards,

Ken

--

Ken Friedman
Professor of Leadership and Strategic Design
Department of Leadership and Organization
Norwegian School of Management

Design Research Center
Denmark's Design School

+47 06600           Tlf NSM
+47 67.55.73.23    Tlf Office
+47 33.40.10.95    Tlf Privat

email: [log in to unmask]