NAC: Masters Thesis NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC

[urquattro]

> Not to start a big argument or anything, but I feel that this is more than
> just an "audi list".  I have made several friends from being a member of
> this list, and I really value that.  Additionally, many people have been
> helped by the great wealth of intelligence on this list with matters
totally
> unrelated to Audis.  Personally, I feel that putting NAC in the subject
line
> is perfectly fine, as long as you're not trying to advertise or profit
from
> your message.  I have seen people announce great events in their lives
such
> as becoming a father/mother or wife/husband.  These messages are typically
> very well met.  It must be great to know that you have a group of people
> that care enough to wish you well, even though some only know you as name.
> Additionally, what does it hurt if someone wants some help with  something
> as important as a thesis?  Seriously, it was only 1 message, and a very
> short one at that.  I find nothing wrong with this, and, in fact,
encourage
> it.  If you don't like NAC messages, just don't read them.  I, for one, am
> certainly glad to have such a large resource at my fingertips.  One last
> point.... About 50 times as much bandwidth is wasted by people fighting
and
> arguing about opinions, so why don't we just let the NAC stuff slide, and
> crack down on the pointless argument.

While I too would have preferred that everyone would have looked the other
way on the security poll and either discussed the issue directly with the
poster and/or Dan Simoes rather than posting anything back to the list ...
let alone recommending a boycott ... we have now opened Pandora's "purpose
of the list" box once again ...

The quattro list IS a list that is dedicated to the discussion of Audis and
related topics, and it is this focus that makes the list useful to me ...
and perhaps others.  That said, it is true that a lot of friendships have
developed over the years and from time to time people post items that may
not be Audi related as the ones mentioned above.  I agree that such posts
are for the most part acceptable, but it is indeed a thin line we walk ...
and it is my belief that each of us should think carefully before posting
off topic items.  I personally do not believe that it is acceptable to post
anything you like as long as you warn people with the NAC TLA in the header.
There are the better part of 2000 addresses subbed to this list, and I would
argue that every one of the people who are here has at least one NAC topic
they could rightly post to the list based on the above criteria.  If that
happened, I believe the value of the list would be reduced.  The real value
of this list is that is is comprised of a group of folks who agree to
cooperate to help each other keep their Audis running well; and there are
those here who may provide more value to the list than they receive.  To my
mind these are the folks who would also be the least likely to put up with a
high level of NAC postings ...

So, to reiterate ... if anyone here sees a post that they feel to be
inappropriate, for any reason, do feel free to take it up with the poster
via a private reply and/or with the listmeister.

The real reason I felt compelled to reply quickly was the "more bandwidth is
wasted by arguments" comment ... again!  Since no example was cited it is
difficult to know for sure what sort of issue is the cause of problems for
the poster ... but I can say that from my point of view an argument that is
centered on an Audi or automotive-related topic that can be applied to Audis
should be welcomed!  Here again, we can get into the "walking a thin line"
as the topic strays away from Audis ... but to my mind this list is
primarily comprised of folks who tend to be more of the hobbyist bent rather
than professionals who have a formal education in the topics being
discussed.  This means that sometimes people will have a strong belief that
they understand something, when in fact their understanding is incorrect.
In such cases it can take some dialog to try to work things out, hopefully
with everyone coming to a common understanding ... with a related benefit to
the list as a whole.  So, I see this as a very good and healthy thing (as
long as personal attacks are avoided) and I've got to say that I fail to
comprehend why so many people here compalin about this as being a problem.
Arguments are not evil ...

One solution that I see would be the creation of a "NAC" list on the
audifans server ... I have seen this sort of thing done on other lists.
Some people are here more to "chew the rag" than to deal with the ultimate
intricacies of the latest whiz bang technology that Audi has chosen to
incorporate in their vehicles.  I really think that a significant population
of the audifans members might well participate in such a list.  Do I think
tht it is a mandatory thing?  No, but to my mind at least I'd like to think
that there was more of a real purpose in the creation of a NAC list than the
"Torsen" list we do have.

... off the soapbox, and off to bed for me ... :-)  Schlafen sie wohl
audifans!

Steve Buchholz
San Jose, CA (USA)