MNRail 9 Guidelines for Posting______________________________1.0_____
March 17, 1998

Nine Guidelines for Posting to the MNRail List

The short version:

o MNRail is not a "catch all" railroad discussion list.
o MNRail is not a model railroading list.  
o Keep it on topic.
o Be specific (ship UP?  well...).
o Please change the subject line if the content does not match.
o Don't post your complaints to the list.  Email the owner and/or the
  originator of the problem.
o Don't post if you don't know the answer.
o If a topic wanders into an area or depth of information outside of the
  intended content of MNRail, take it to a more proper forum such as
  email, Usenet, a different list, etc.
o Before replying to a post, please look ahead in your email to see
  whether or not someone else has already provided the same or more
  (accurate) information than you were going to provide.

Have any questions?  Keep reading.

The long, somewhat explanatory version:

o MNRail is not a "catch all" railroad discussion list.
  That means the desired message volume of MNRail is not conducive to
  answering and discussing every question of a general nature.  Many of
  such answers can be found by looking at general interest web pages such
  as:

       Cyberspace World Railroad http://www.mcs.net/~dsdawdy/cyberoad.html

  On a related note, many Frequently Asked Questions on MNRail may be
  answered by checking out the following three sites:

       Minnesota Railroad Research Project http://www.skypoint.com/~hudsonl/
       Twin Cities' Railfan Guide
       http://www.skypoint.com/~n0kfb/homepage/tc_rails/tc_rail1.htm
       MNRail Home Page http://www.visi.com/~mfrahm/mnrail/

  The MNRail Home Page has links to two archives of MNRail which, if you
  use the search feature, just might have the answer for which you're looking.

  Want to discuss coupler design?  This isn't the right place.

  Want to cheer for your favorite railroad as if it were a football team?
  Not here.  This isn't the right place.  

o MNRail is not a model railroading list.  That means keep modeling
  discussions to a bare minimum.  For example, you can identify a freight
  car and a close model of it, but getting into how to scratchbuilt one is
  too much.  The list owner is a railroad modeler, but this isn't the
  reason the list exists.  Want to post notice of a swap meet?  Go ahead.

o Keep it on topic.  News, operations, history.  That's what is wanted.
  That's what MNRail is supposed to be.  That includes trip reports and so
  forth.  

o Be specific.  Don't ask, "What's happening in the Twin Ports?"  If
  "something" is happening in the Twin Ports, someone will post something
  about it.  Been unsubscribed for a few days?  Check the archives.

o Please change the subject line if the content does not match.  Self-
  explanatory.

o Don't post your complaints to the list.  Email the owner and/or the
  originator of the problem.  In some instances, you may see one of the
  owner's designees (Jason Korth, perhaps) make a post in the owner's
  absence with regard to keeping the list "on track."  That should not be
  confused with an on-list complaint.

o Don't post if you don't know the answer.  Sometimes one may forget that
  it is a list, not merely an individual, to which they are replying.

o If a topic wanders into an area or depth of information outside of the
  intended content of MNRail, take it to a more proper forum such as
  email, Usenet, a different list, etc.  Why?  Because people lose
  interest in even a "good" list if there are too many messages.  Why is
  that?  For one, because email programs don't allow browsing the same way
  that newsreaders do.  

o Before replying to a post, please look ahead in your email to see
  whether or not someone else has already provided the same or more
  (accurate) information than you were going to provide.  Even the list
  owner forgets to do this from time to time.  Still, put forth an honest
  effort to do this.  

Have questions or comments?  Email the list owner @ mfrahm@visi.Kom
(actually, "com", not "Kom")
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