Re: [SM-DEVEL] This mailing list rejecting alternate email addresses

[Paul J. T. <cap...@sq...>]

Here is my take on the mailing list policy issues we have been
discussing recently.


Reply-To:
=========

I think I remember reading the reply-to-harmful page once. I think I
agreed, but was similarly annoyed at having to LEARN to hit Reply-to
instead of Reply. The lists WERE set to have a reply-to header as the
mailing list for a long time. However, Sourceforge removed this
option. Since then, I have thus learned (as many others, I suspect)
to hit reply-to instead of reply.

Bottom line is, Sourceforge removed the ability to add a reply-to for
the mailing list as a whole. Not an option.


Mailing List Purpose, the Trackers, and the Future
==================================================

In my opinion, the mailing lists exist for one basic reason: to allow
for communication amongst the SquirrelMail Community. Note that I say
the SQUIRRELMAIL COMMUNITY - not our users or system administrators
in general, the community. Go read this:

      http://squirrelmail.org/wiki/SquirrelCommunity

Ok, so now (having read that) you understand a bit about what I mean
by community. The SquirrelMail Community, to give a my definition, is
everyone who takes some variety of active interest in the Project.
Here is an incomplete list of types of people who fit that profile:

  * People who want to contribute CODE to SM (developers)
  * People who want to translate SM (translators)
  * People who want to help people use SM (user support)
  * People who like SM and want to participate in SM discussion
  * People who want to spread the good news of SM (evangelism)
  * People who have a growing interest in SM (converts :)

What is NOT in the definition are those people who want one-stop
answers to questions on how to install/use/fix SquirrelMail.

Now, I am sure the FIRST reaction of many of you to that will be that
this is a terrible way to do things. That I am silly if I do not want
the input of the "one-stop" people. Well, my concept here is NOT that
I do not want their input, cause I do. The point is that I want their
input in the RIGHT MEDIUM.

And a MUCH BETTER medium, as I see, is the tracker system provided to
us by Sourceforge. Let me give a couple reasons for this (note that
ALL of these reasons rely on the SquirrelMail Project Team using the
tracker system in a consistent and effective manner):

  1. The tracker system has the potential to help us avoid things
     from falling through the cracks. Whether the "things" we are
     talking about are user support requests, bug fixes, feature
     ideas, patches, or whatnot - the presence as "open" items in
     the trackers lets us know that things are still on the table.

  2. Right now the "things" I mention above fall to a variety of
     locations. Some people use the trackers, some people use the
     lists, some people email ME directly, some people use the
     feedback section on the webpage. Using the trackers as a
     standard place for such things gives us a "one-stop" location
     for handling SquirrelMail project work.

  3. The tracker system gives us a way to give common answers to
     problems. For all trackers, you can build "canned" responses
     which you can use to respond to tracker items. That way, when
     someone asks that same stupid question that everyone asks, we
     can just select the same response, and send it to them.

  4. The canned responses are also a benefit here in that it allows
     us to fine tune our answers to things. Think of it this way:
     are we going to do a better job answering a question if we
     have to write up that answer once, or a million times? Plus,
     the tracker system lends toward more then one person working
     on the responses, leading to a higher level of quality.

  5. The tracker system will provide a historical record for work
     done with SquirrelMail. This is easy to browse and search for
     later use.

  6. This will help keep us on track with exactly where we are. My
     older brother once told me that he does not memorize anything
     that he does not need to. His point here is that why MAKE us
     work harder to keep with where we are then we need to. With
     tracker items, we can update them and work with them (as a
     group) to deal with items in an effective manner.

Gee - seems I just gave my selling pitch there on the trackers. The
point is that people should not have to join (or even use) the
mailing lists to make a suggestion, ask for some help, or send us a
patch. That should be done in the trackers, which will only require
that a person has a sourceforge account.

Now, I feel obligated to note ONE DOWNFALL of the trackers, as I see
in our system. One nice thing about the lists now is that you never
know WHO is going to have the answer to a question - and with the
mailing lists, many eyes are constantly looking at the issues being
presented. This is less likely with the trackers, as people are not
going to monitor them as well as they do their email accounts.

My only solution to this is to simply keep discussion alive on the
lists concerning tracker items issues. The tracker system is not
where the solution has to take place. Rather, it simply needs to be
where the solution (and problem) are documented. The mailing lists,
IRC, or any other media, can be used for the actual process of
solving the problem.

And it does not mean that people can not ask questions, make
suggestions, etc, on the lists. It just means that those items should
eventually find their way to a tracker item, if they are new issues.


Conclusion (Sort of)
====================

So, there it is. There is my general take on the mailing lists and
the issues that we have been discussion. No, of course, it is not law
or anything. I am not like the Pharoah or something (So let it be
written, so let it be done! :). Just thought I would throw out what I
would like to see happen, and see what the rest of the team might
think.

I do not know, maybe the trackers are a waste of our time and I am
just silly. :)

-- 
Paul Joseph Thompson
cap...@sq...
AIM/Yahoo/MSN IM: Captain Bunzo
ICQ Number: 38801719