--- ian davidson <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> It is probably true that if we look back to the late
> 90s then that was a golden age of listservs, but
> that was before facebook, my space etc, and a
> million other ways to communicate. I don't think
> these lists will ever have the impact they made
> then, when they linked people that geography had
> held apart, but they still serve an important
> purpose, for discussion and distribution of
> information.

I'd agree with that--though also note that the two
scholarly lists I belong to--VICTORIA (for Victorian
lit & culture) and NASSR-L (Romantics) have remained
pretty much the same. VICTORIA has had between 1600
and 1700 members for at least fifteen years. One of
the features of its success is that the owner doesn't
moderate it per se, but does police it to make sure
people stay on topic.




David Latane
http://www.standmagazine.org (Stand Magazine, Leeds)