Re: What gives?

} } Jack Parker asks... } > [...] } > } > I asked the question to confirm a sneaking suspicion I had that net answership } > has declined over the past whatever. Might I ask why? Have we gotten better } > in terms of recognizing when a quesstion is so easy that everybody is going } > to answer? } } Yes. I answered this same question a few months ago, along with 40 or 50 } others. I usually don't address the same topic again unless I have some } new insight to offer. The archives may provide answers (do they?) to } "old" topics. } } > Have we become dulled to the amount of mail that comes across? } } Maybe, but more to the number of *topics* that the forum addresses. It } used to be that we covered SQL, OnLine, SE and some O/S and Unix. Now there } is also NewEra, FourGen, PowerBuilder, RAID, 3 or 4 versions of OnLine, } big vs little unix platforms, and way more newbies. } } > Have we become scared to answer questions for fear that we might be wrong? } } Not at all. Graeme just likes to play "devil's advocate". } } > Have we all gone so far into the stratosphere with our topics that simple } > everyday questions like this are meaningless? } } Maybe, but mostly this falls under question 1: they've already been answered. } } > Have we lost readership due to the number of job postings? } } I hope not. I *like* those job postings. Now that we got the mega-posters } under control (thanks, Donna) the "offers" we get are good news to me. } } > Has Informix become such a little-used product that there aren't that many } > of us left? } } They are growing, we are growing, business is booming. Today. } } > This is not the way I remember it and I don't like it at all. I realize } > that I haven't been answering many questions lately - trying to restrict } > myself to ones I know I know and not those where Jonathan is bound to have } > a better answer. Would y'all care to discuss this? Should we move it to } > IUG-talk? } } Let's discuss it. (I already am!) And no, it's not an IUG question at } all (I'm not a member of that forum.) } } I think there are just more people asking more questions on more topics } than ever before, and though the Q/A ratio has increased over the last } few years I think it's still a good forum. I filter most of the messages } now because they apply to subjects that my company doesn't use, and I can't } answer those questions. Still, I miss the old days, but don't we all! } } > [...sig deleted...] } } __________________________________________________________________ } | Clem Akins Standard Disclaimers Apply | } |Reynolds Metals Co, Alloys Plant "Climb High, Cave Deep!" | } | Muscle Shoals, Alabama USA cwakins@leia.alloys.rmc.com | } |________________________________________________________________| } This could be a more effective list if better etiquette were followed. I have participated in many lists and find that an good policy is that ALL responses be replied to the sender directly, not to the group and that the sender is RESPONSIBLE for posting a summary of replies. Add a dose of moderation in the covered topics and the amount of noise will diminish drastically. This makes for a more readable list and increases the likeliness of responses to relevant topics. -- //////////////// Mark Sigler ////////// // Client Services Engineer ////// / /// Informix Software, Inc. ///// // //// 8675 Hidden River Parkway TBD //// // ///// Tampa, FL 33637 Fort Lauderdale, FL /// // ////// Voice: 813.971.0010 407.883.9319 // // /////// Fax: 813.632.9582 407.883.9319 / /////////// Voicemail: 800.688.4217 x2147 407.883.9319 //////////////// Email: msigler@informix.com WWWeb: http://www.informix.com --