[CAUT] Forum format (wasRe: Requirementsforcontributing/posting; RPT status

[Ed Sutton]

Fred-
Sounds good to me.
Ed

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Fred Sturm" <fssturm at unm.edu>
To: "College and University Technicians" <caut at ptg.org>
Sent: Friday, July 18, 2008 1:41 AM
Subject: Re: [CAUT] Forum format (wasRe: 
Requirementsforcontributing/posting; RPT status


> On Jul 17, 2008, at 8:31 AM, Ed Sutton wrote:
>
>> Piano technology doesn't always converge to the one-and-only best  way to 
>> do something. I would hope that any compilation of list  material would 
>> preserve and express the divergence of opinion in a  fair manner. The 
>> Wiki process tends to move all material toward a  consensus, and will be 
>> dominated by those who spend the most time  working the process. I don't 
>> know if this will produce a good result  in our field. Sometimes 
>> divergence is much more interesting.
>
>
> Hi Ed,
> I certainly agree with these sentiments. I don't think we want to  take 
> Wikipedia as a model for our "final product." There are certainly  a lot 
> of issues to be resolved to create a format which retains the  diversity 
> of opinion rather than pre-digesting it into some bland,  uncontroversial 
> "common dogma."  I'm certainly no expert in it, but I  do believe that the 
> wiki design has a lot to recommend it. There is  the underlying 
> organizational scheme, with hierarchies of subject and  topic. There are 
> embedded key words and phrases which serve to cross  reference from one 
> article to others. And there is the ability to  harness the independent 
> work of a large number of people, each  contributing as time and 
> inspiration allow.
> I think it is time to take some action and see where it leads us.  With 
> the full understanding that there are plenty of pitfalls, that  nobody 
> (including ourselves) will be entirely satisfied with the  results, but 
> confident that the process will be a rewarding one.
> It seems clear that there is a desire for easier access to material,  and 
> that there is a lot of material in these lists that more or less 
> languishes in obscurity. Mining for nuggets seems like a good way to 
> start, especially if we can take advantage of the work a number of  people 
> have already done in compiling their own personal archives.
> If there are enough people interested in plunging in, I am happy to 
> contribute as I can. If not, I have plenty of other projects calling me.
> Regards,
> Fred Sturm
> University of New Mexico
> fssturm at unm.edu
>
>