[Coral-List] Unclog email account by moving coal-list to a forum/bulletin board?

Tue Mar 21 06:03:45 EST 2006

I second Jeffs suggestion of moving the list to a more structured forum.
Apart from allowing individual members to browse through subjects as they
see fit, the administrative burden can be shared by a far larger
admin/moderator team.

It also allows for much simpler search capabiliites of past discussion
threads and specific references that have been posted on the list.

/Albert Norström

Dept. Systems Ecology
Natural Resource Management 
Stockholm University
Sweden

-----Original Message-----
From: Jeffrey Low <cat64fish at yahoo.com>
To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2006 03:18:55 +0800 (CST)
Subject: [Coral-List] Unclog email account by moving coal-list to a
forum/bulletin board?

> Hi everyone,
>    
>   I wonder if the list should be moved to a more structured forum /
> bulletin board?
>    
>   That way, people can pick and choose whihc topics are of interest to
> them, administrators can be assigned regardless of location etc.
>    
>   Any thoughts on this?
> 
>   Cheers, Jeff
>   
> capman at augsburg.edu wrote:
>   I am a biologist, but I can only marginally call myself a coral 
> researcher (even though I have been working some with corals in 
> recent years). Consequently, for the several years that I have been 
> signed up on the Coral List I have mostly just read what others have 
> had to say, and only occasionally have had things to contribute.
> 
> In the past few years I have noticed a fairly extreme intolerance on 
> the Coral List for discussions that might be seen as straying too far 
> from the mission of the list, and a strong tendency for people to 
> quickly move their conversations to private e-mails rather than 
> continuing them on the public forum. To a certain extent this is 
> good, though I often wish that more of the conversations that follow 
> from the postings to the list (and answers to questions posted on the 
> list) were done in the public forum so that more of us could benefit 
> from the wealth of expertise represented by the members of the list.
> 
> As far as messages clogging e-mail inboxes is concerned though, there 
> is a fairly easy solution: Most e-mail programs (including ones like 
> Eudora that you can download for free) allow you to filter messages. 
> All of my Coral List e-mails get send automatically to a separate 
> mailbox where they are easy to find, but not clogging my main Inbox. 
> The other thing I do, once these e-mails are neatly tucked away is 
> this: I simply don't read them all. I just read the ones that look 
> like they are likely to be of interest to me (and once a thread has 
> become boring or not relevant to me anymore, it is very easy to 
> simply not read the further responses). This is pretty easy to do.
> 
> If a person is in a remote location with very poor Internet access 
> (where each additional bit of data that is received really is a 
> burden), then I suppose my solution does not address the fundamental 
> problem, and I can see where this would be a big reason for keeping 
> postings to the list to a minimum. The drain on the moderator's time 
> that would result from large numbers of posts would be another reason.
> 
> However, my sense it that the bigger concern tends to be from people 
> who simply don't want the distraction and bother of getting too many 
> e-mails all the time. As I noted above, it seems that there are easy 
> ways to not be bothered by Coral List e-mails without limiting 
> conversations that many (though not all) on the list might find 
> valuable.
> 
> Bill
> 
> 
> >Dear James,
> >
> >Not surprisingly, my recent email has elicited a variety of responses.
> >Happily, most have been constructive, well considered, highly
> informative
> >and above all, polite. Only a couple have been otherwise and to them:
> >"Likewise, mate"!
> >
> >As I said in my previous email regarding my views and comments of the
> List
> >upon recently re-joining it: "At best, my view is just skewed because
> of my
> >recent rejoining." Clearly there is much more on the Bahamas issue
> that I
> >have not been party too. However, I am well aware of some issues in
> the
> >Bahamas, having not too distantly become extremely P'd-off and since
> >withdrawn CCC's offer of support for a GEF initiative there.
> >
> >James, I wanted to reply to your email openly via coral-list (as
> opposed to
> >the others I have done so directly and in private) because your reply
> was in
> >the first-person, informative & constructive, and not instantly
> knee-jerk
> >hostile or personally abusive.
> >
> >I remain convinced that the dialogue I have seen (limited as it may
> be, and
> >co-limited as to the period of my rejoining the List has been)
> regarding
> >Guana has at best run it's course as far as the List is concerned. In
> my
> >opinion, it now needs to be shifted into another dedicated focal
> arena; an
> >arena that all wishing to join should be openly invited to do so -
> period!.
> >Some of what I have read posted to coral-list (since I re-joined) from
> >certain parties regarding Bahamas could, in other hands, become
> extremely
> >profitable to those whose livelihoods are dependent within the legal
> >profession - enough said!
> >
> >Be advised also that the Bahamas issue is US-centric: of interest to
> US
> >scientist adjacent to the US coastal cities. It (the issue) should be
> born
> >in mind, but related and extended to those countries such as the
> >Philippines, where in my own limited experience (21 years), far more
> can be
> >accomplished and achieved by US scientists willing to travel beyond
> the
> >confines of the USA.
> >
> >Let me put this another way: a good deal of time and effort appears to
> be
> >spent on trying to protect a few hectares (?) of coral reefs
> surrounding
> >Guana, and at face value perhaps at odds with the Government and
> influential
> >and well-financed development stakeholders. What BEST has to say about
> all
> >this or what the local community have to say, I have not been party
> to;
> >their voice/comments via the List I have not seen, perhaps given my
> recent
> >re-entry. There are several thousand ++ hectares of equally (if not
> more)
> >important reefs out there in places like the Philippines just begging
> a
> >one-tenth diversion of US reef-focus to them. With just a fraction of
> the
> >Guana attention and focus, US reef scientists would successfully
> accomplish
> >way more than they could ever hope to in tiny places like the Bahamas.
> >
> >There really is some "interesting data" coming from the Philippines.
> My
> >point is: is there anyone from the USA that really wants to listen to
> it?
> >For the very small minority that do/can, please contact the likes of
> CCC.
> >
> >All the best,
> >
> >Pete
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >_____________________________________________
> >Peter Raines MBE FRGS FIBiol CGeog CBiol MInstD
> >Founder & Chairman
> >
> >Coral Cay Conservation Ltd
> >40-42 Osnaburgh Street, London NW1 3ND, UK
> >Tel: +44 (0)20 7874 5212 (direct line)
> >Tel: +44 (0)777 176 7423 (cellphone)
> >Fax: +44 (0)870 750 0667
> >email: psr at coralcay.org
> >www.coralcay.org
> >
> >
> >DISCLAIMER: This message (and any files transmitted with it) is
> intended
> >only for the person(s) to whom it is addressed and may contain
> confidential
> >and privileged information which may not be copied, distributed or
> disclosed
> >to any third party. If received in error, please inform the sender
> >immediately and delete from your mailbox. Any views expressed in this
> >message are not necessarily those of Coral Cay Conservation Ltd and no
> >liability is accepted for loss or damage arising from their use. Coral
> Cay
> >Conservation Ltd takes all reasonable action to suppress viruses and
> cannot
> >accept responsibility for any loss or damage caused by inadvertent
> >transmission of contagious files. Emails may be open to monitoring and
> are
> >stored for future reference.
> >Coral Cay Conservation Ltd, 40-42 Osnaburgh Street, London NW1 3ND,
> United
> >Kingdom. Tel: +44 (0)870 750 0668 www.coralcay.org
> >______________________________________________
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> >From: coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> >[mailto:coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov] On Behalf Of James M.
> >Cervino
> >Sent: 18 March 2006 12:50
> >To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> >Subject: [Coral-List] Corals don't Clog, Discovery Inc. will clog
> them?
> >
> >Dear Pete,
> >
> >
> >I don't think bringing attention to a development project that will
> >kill 200 year old corals in the Bahamas can be constituted as
> >"clogging up this list". Do you realize that the Bahamas Govt is
> >about to approve such an action? We were using Guana as a study site
> >to monitor corals that are infected with very low indices of coraline
> >diseases. We coral scientists need to have old colonies to monitor
> >over time during this current time, and if this development project
> >takes place with the help of these so called "experts" the developer
> >is paying we will loose this study site. I was actually happy to see
> >that this reef, if the levels of nutrients were to be controlled, can
> >be a great study site for many scientists and divers to use as an
> >educational tool so close to US coastal cities.
> >
> >Erik Gauger has told me that this thread may actually help save the
> >corals of Guana. We appreciate Jim Hendee's efforts for having this
> >open platform and are looking forward to hearing about your
> >"interesting data" from the Philippines!
> >
> >James
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >Dear all,
> >
> >I've just rejoined the List and am starting to regret having done so:
> my
> >emails having been immediately swamped today by "The Great Guana Cay
> Debate"
> >etc etc,....
> >
> >Much of what I have read and been party to on this issue (in just the
> past
> >12 hrs since I rejoined) seems somewhat polarised and extremely
> focussed (I
> >choose my words very carefully here!). At best, my view is just skewed
> >because of my recent rejoining. At worst, some would say that
> coral-list has
> >been hijacked. I shall remain on the List for a few days more in the
> hope
> >that my initial concerns are unfounded.
> >
> >Important as the Guana issue is (and it is), perhaps it's now time for
> those
> >wishing to pursue it so passionately (and you have all made us all now
> know
> >very load and clear who you are) to do so amongst yourselves, move off
> to
> >another dedicated communication channel amongst yourselves, and not
> clog-up
> >the open channel that coral-list was established for.
> >
> >So, having said all that: anyone out there want info on the status of
> coral
> >reefs in Southern Leyte (Philippines)? Some really interesting data
> coming
> >out of there, if you are interested.
> >
> >Cheers,
> >
> >Pete
> >--
> >**************************************************
> >Dr. James M. Cervino, MS, Ph.D.
> >Marine Pathology
> >Department of Biological & Health Sciences
> >Pace University New York NYC
> >Phone: (917) 620-5287
> >Web site: http://www.globalcoral.org
> >***************************************************
> >_______________________________________________
> >Coral-List mailing list
> >Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> >http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
> >
> >_______________________________________________
> >Coral-List mailing list
> >Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> >http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
> 
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