First time poster, Rules and topic list. 3852

Use, netiquette, and usenet aren't consistent. I had reasons for maintaining the misc.jobs.* FAQs (I wanted an edge for hiring the best people, and it was useful. And a few people caught on and got with it).

Viewers don't "appreciate" most ads on TV, but that's never stopped and there is a claim there is no bad advertising. Excepting moderated groups, usenet has few control mechanisms. And THIS is an alt.* group. Gilmore was adament about moderation (there was a former mod.* hierarchy). This is also why Killfiles started.

What defines "appropriate" be they community standards {unlike Howard Reingold, I don't hold Usenet is quite a community} or whatever cultural term you want to use: you are free to drift over whatever range of topics (content) you want. It's your choice. One does not have to read sequentially (many do). Same goes for news papers (no one except te copy editor reads every ad and page (and inaccurately at that). The remote is a joke for TVs, programs, and ads. Usenet is largely about convention, not standards.

Your ISP may differ. Just 4 months ago, I heard John McCarthy give a spirited defense of Usenet to the Stanford CS Dept. on its 40th ann.

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