Conference wahoo::fishing

       1518.85 is not set hidden, it is in fact deleted and has been returned to the 
author (Pardo) for editing with the offending segment pointed out.

 The reason that particular note was deleted is because it combined profanity
with a personal insult to make a statement that could be considered to be 
offensive by a reasonable person. It is my opinion that such a note goes beyond
what the "good natured ribbing" is supposed to allow, to wit, violation of
the proper uses of computers and networks outlined in DEC P&P 6.54. Allowing
such a note to stand exposes the file to potentially damaging consequences,
none of which are especially pleasant for either participants nor moderators.

 In order to prevent an escalation of personal insults, I deleted the note. We
do not intend to allow a free for all atmosphere to develop here. Nor do we
want to take all of the fun out of noting- and I am the first one to admit
that give and take can be a ball. What I am most interested in is maintaining
this resource for all of us. I don't want to see fishing notes become known
as "Little Soapbox," nor do I want to have to deal with a personnel type
who feels that we were derelict in our duties as moderators by allowing too
many offensive notes to be posted.

 It's a judgement call, admittedly. That's why we have moderators, to make
these kind of calls.

  As for why that note is different from .88, to be frank, if someone complains
about .88's use of the word "Christ" I may be inclined to delete it as well.
Certain religions (including mine) take exception to using that particular
oath. Since I am a moderator, I am putting my own religious beliefs aside
(particularly since in speech I occasionally use such oaths myself) and defer
to the sensibilities of other participants. If someone complains on religious
grounds and it is an honest complaint that appears to have merit, we will at
minimum ask the author to rethink his use of the offensive terms. If we don't,
then the entire conference is at stake.

 As far as the other words in .88 go, big deal. Perhaps the most objectionable
term remaining is ass, and I don't think that this particular word is 
necessarily a big deal- unless it is used in a derogatory manner. Then it can
be, depending on the situation. I believe that .85 was just such a situation.

 Again, it is hardly my intention to censor anyone. I am primarily interested
in keeping this resource operating in an orderly fashion. For the most part,
I don't care too much about what goes on in the bustin' note or in the rathole,
as long as it's kept light and as long as nobody complains. The funny thing
about harrassment is that it is in the eye of the beholder, so we have to be
very careful not to allow anyone's complaints to go unheeded.

  As a matter of fact, I know a noter in another conference who wrote something
that apparently aggravated another noter. The second noter forwarded the
note to the first noter's manager, along with threats to pursue personnel
action if the problem wasn't solved. The other noter's boss said to make
the problem go away, that he did not want to have to deal with it. This is
not the sort of conversation that I think anyone wants to have with their boss.
Does anyone really want to discuss a notes problem in an employee interest
file when we are experiencing the joys of "downsizing"?

 Do you have a problem with my reasoning? I am willing to discuss this further
if need be.

 The Doctah

 <*** moderator response ***>

 That reply was indeed written yesterday, just before the local segment decided
to take a vacation. That explains the delay in responding. I try to respond to
"hot" issues like this in a timely fashion.

 I'd like to make a few more points here. First of all, I want to point out
that I will be putting <*** moderator response ***> as the title of any 
offishal notes I write that might otherwise not be obvious written as a 
moderator. I don't want there to be any confusion between when I'm writing
as a mod and when I'm writing as just another wiseguy.:-)

 And another thing, I am going to start a new topic to discuss conference
policy. That way we won't rathole important topics (like Spring Classic Bustin')
when we discuss your laundry list of greivances.

 I want to state that I am open to persuasion with regards to policy. If you 
think that policy is wrong, inconsistently applied or whatever, initiate
some dialogue with the mods. We're not going to be micro-managed, however.

 If you see a situation where one guy said one thing and it got deleted and
another guy said the same thing and it stayed, tell the mods. We try to be
as consistent as possible, but we are human. We're not playing favorites.
We sometimes miss something. It's not a big deal.

 I've used "I" alot in the last reply and this one- take it to mean "we" as
we moderators. 

================================================================================

 As a noter: Sully- maybe your wife can outfish me. We won't know this spring.
I'm already in a trout fishing derby that conflicts with this tourney. Maybe
I'll take you up on your offer to buy me a new skirt at the Fall Classic. :-)

 The Doctah

    Is there any way of knowing what items in 241.* are still for sale?
    Maybe the individuals entering the notes could edit or delete them
    before they run to the tackle shop with all that new money, momma
    doesn't know about yet.
    
    Poor Karl, the tackle vendor's friend
    

 At this point, the only policy with regards to want-ads is that they cannot
be commercial ventures and they must include a name, mail address and DTN.

 If the readership wants a delete when no longer valid policy, we can
institute one. What I'd like to see is a show of interest in considering
such a policy first. Then we can hold a 1 or 2 week period of discussion,
and we can then decide what to do. Of course, if the readership simply wants
to be dictated to, that can also be arranged. :-)

 The Doctah

    I understand the need to limit access during working hours, is it
    possible to have limited access during lunch?
    
    Brian

     Brian-
    
     It is not our doing. I don't know if they will go for a time period
    during lunch when we can access the file, but I will ask and see.
    
     The Doctah

    
    I hope the system's "support" folks understand the impact of there
    decisions?  Although some of these files are not work related they
    do provide a "temporary" break for those many of us who work "odd"
    hours and extra one's at that.
    
    Whatever time this file is not made available will affect some noter
    who wishes to take a break and enjoy communicating with those other
    noter's with similar interests.  I'm speaking of those who are not
    your typical 9-5 clock watchers.  An assumption wrongly made by
    some (not all) systems management folks (not the worker bee's in
    IS support).
    
    Remember that Digital is a "Worldwide" "Network" of folks who
    "communicate" on a truly amazing "system".  If you shut this down
    for any reason being it work or play you affect the total operation.
    What happens during this "time slot shutdown" as a previous noter
    mentioned when you wish to access the note file during lunchtime.
    Remember lunchtime in New England is a tad different than in 
    other time zones both Domestic and International.
    
    Case in Point:  I went on business trip to Albuquerque last week.
    Worked Sunday the 17th 12hrs, Monday the 18th 12hrs Tuesday the
    19th 16hrs and Wednesday the 20th 12hrs. It was truly a help to
    be able to access the notes file to "get a break" from the data
    collection work I was doing and talk with some fishing folks.
    In addition I had taken the Fishing Notes file PHOTO Album to
    ABO and if it were not for access to the fishing notes file
    I would not have been able to locate a former Digital Noter who
    now works for INTEL in Albuquerque.  We were able to meet for 
    lunch and share the ALBUM's interesting collection of photo's
    and some of our own from our get together.
    
    I also flew on to California for a Thursday customer meeting.
    Due to time constraints I was not able to access the note's file
    but I would have done so given the opportunity.
    
    Just wanted to add this impact statement to make sure those in decision
    making authority get some more information as to it's impact to
    other's who truly value this service and do not take advantage of
    time managment.
    
    -< Tuna Tail >-
     

 You're preaching to the choir...

    
    Ok,
    
    This is simple. If it's going to be shutdown let's MOVE IT !!
    Let's find a home for the notesfile on another cluster or 
    Standalone machine that WE can control. 
    
    If you tell me how big it is I may even volunteer my 3500 for it's
    home.
                                            
    - Slammer

 Yes, they are serious. We're looking at roughly 3 weeks of reduced usage.

 As for moving the conference, DonMac has already asked us to find a new home 
for the conference. Don's ready to bow out as big injun among the moderating 
crew. If you are serious about donating resources, let me know.

 I did indeed ask if we could keep the conference open at lunch. Here's the 
response:

From:	RANGER::BONAZZOLI    26-MAR-1991 11:55:40.85
To:	WAHOO::LEVESQUE
CC:	
Subj:	RE: Notesfile usage on Ranger cluster

  I had looked at this possibility also, but it would make the net
here worse as there is no "let up" at lunch time.  This is only
temporary; however, as we are getting more E-net bandwidth fot this
building in 3 weeks.


Rich

    Pass the sermon on to the Director...

    
    	YO! Doctah....it is 10:00am.....WHY am I able to access this
    	notesfile?  Are the tough times over?
    
    	OR...is it that my notes are so important that I get special 
    	privilages...:-)
    
    	Gitzit'
    
    

 Is anybody else bothered by the series of new topics each discussing a 
different make and model of boat? It seems to me that perhaps VICKI::BOATS
would be a more appropriate place to discuss each make and model, with this
file being reserved for fishing specific aspects of boats in general such
as rigging a boat for fishing, etc. How do you guys feel? Do you think it's 
worthwhile to have separate topics for every kind of boat that our readership
considers buying? Should we have a single note into which all of the related
boat issues are placed?

 The Doctah

    
    You're welcome to "ask away" on any boat recommendations over 
    in the boating conference and we'll do our best to help. However, 
    we've only got a few hardcore fishermen, so questions regarding
    the fishing qualities of a particular boat are probably still
    best asked here.  I don't how many of us could have commented
    on the amount of storage space or rod lockers in a Sea Nymph, 
    as recently came up here.
    
    But go ahead and ask and we'll give an opinion, even if it's 
    wrong!    8^)
    
    Rick
    boats co-mod

    Fishing boats are unique.  I think this file is where the expertise for
    them lies, as my neighbor (Rick W.) pointed out.
    
    I don't think a single topic for each brand that someone cares to 
    comment on is too much.  I don't think need a separate topic for each 
    model - that's why I recently combined the two recent sea nymph topics,
    one on the FM161, the other on the TX155.  
    
    These topics can be utilized for discussing issues related to the 
    individual manufacturers - just as we have a Daiwa Corp. topic, etc..
    
    -donmac

 I am interested in getting some feedback before I implement the new file on
a number of issues.

 I want to get a sense of the community about bustin'. Yea or nay?

 Should we continue to allow bustin' in the appropriate notes or should we
eliminate it entirely? What do you think?

 What other rule changes would you like to see?

 How would you like to see the file change?

 What elements of the file do you want to be sure remain after the changeover?

 What do you like most about the file?

 What do you like least?

        The Doctah

> I want to get a sense of the community about bustin'. Yea or nay?

  Yea

> Should we continue to allow bustin' in the appropriate notes or should we
>eliminate it entirely? What do you think?

  You really got something against this don't you? 

> What other rule changes would you like to see?

 I think DEC notes Policy is fine enough. 

> How would you like to see the file change?

 These votes should be done by a show of hands so we can have confidence in the 
vote counting.

> What elements of the file do you want to be sure remain after the changeover?

 Not sure what you are looking for, but I wouldn't like to see it deleted at all.
 Why not just delete the B.S. topics about" I caught this today...." "Hi Joe, 
 long time no see type of crap.

> What do you like most about the file?

What it was like about 1 year ago.

> What do you like least?

Notes moved by the moderator like they are going out of style.

Why not create a separate conference for the busting kinda like a sandbox
for the children to play.  Then when they grow up they can join in with the
adults in civilized society.   
The separate note by itself does not seem to have worked very well as many 
don't seem to be able to differentiate between busting and not.

	I've stayed away from this conference for a year now, but if the 
busting is still here, I am not.

	

    Mr. Bissell, life is too short to take everything so seriously.
    If you can't joke a little bit while also having serious notes,
    then what is life coming to?  I take great offense about you
    refering us to a sandbox until we grow up.  I think you older
    people should start looking for a new notesfile about elderly
    housing or maybe the game of chess.  There must be some light
    busting here.  I think we've cleaned up our acts significantly.
    We don't talk about each other's mothers anymore.  Keep the notefile
    the way it is.  The moderators are doing a great job.  Fishing is
    a recreation and leisure sport which creates a fun and friendly
    atmosphere.  I love being a kid and hope that I never lose that
    feeling.  So if you want me in a sandbox, then let me know where
    there is one.
    
    	Rodney Swivel Huff (Isn't this nickname stuff silly?)

            I too cast my vote for NO busting.  Those that want to bust
    each other can send mail instead of using up the disk space in the
    FISHING file.  This is not the BUSTING notes file.  I also think the
    moderators are doing a good job but there is always someone who thinks
    they can do it better!  
            
    
                 Bob  

    Have a hands-off busting note. If you don't want to read it, hit
    next unseen. Call it a sand box, call it a place to have a few 
    laughs but NOTHING in it should be taken serious or personal.
    If you want to play then do so, if you want to R/O then fine but
    don't comment or complain. Hit next unseen. This notesfile has 
    become too rigid and controlled for most and not enough for some.
    Your not going to be able to satisfy everyone and you'll go nuts
    trying. I'd also recommend having a seperate Salt Water notefile
    since there seems to be a clear deliniation between salt and fresh
    water fisherpersons. That may also help keep the file membership 
    more focused on their particular interest. If it becomes too rigid
    then I think you'll lose more folks, but then again that may not 
    matter to some.
    
    IMHO,
    RT  

    re .24
    
    I like the idea of salt/fresh water notesfiles.  And things are
    controlled enough in society these days.  We've got the next unseen key
    if you don't want to read a note.

    
    I agree with .24(my god, what's this world comming to!!!!)
    
    Hit next unseen!
    
    /LT

 Please keep the insults to yourselves. I don't want to see this become a
"you're a child cuz you like bustin" "you're an old fart cuz you don't" series 
of insults.

 I do want your opinions, either in here or in mail (as some have already done.)
But check the insults at the door. The object of the game is not to win points
and impress your friends by coming up with the meanest insult.

 The Doctah

    I didn't realize busting went on in this conference, so I guess you
    can leave it.
    
    And like .24 said, next unseen works.
    

    I agree with leave the bustin in its own note and hit next unseen. 
    That is if the general population can keep the bustin in there.
    
    I also like the idea of seperating salt from fresh water.
    
    If your talking about collapsing the file down I suggest the membership
    volunteer to read through topics and delete the trivial notes.  You
    know the ones that have nothing to do with the topic.  In other words
    take the keyword lists and divide those up and assign or get volunteers
    to read the topics and clean them up.  That way we won't loose all the
    data thats accumulated.  I would rather do that than archive and start
    from scratch.
    
    I would volunteer to help in that effort.
    
    Brian

    
    	I volunteer to help.
    
    	Rodney

    I:
    
    1) agree with separation of Salt & Fresh
    2) feel the "busting" has been sufficiently suppressed/repressed and no
       longer interferes with my enjoyment of the conference or puts the
       file at risk of censorship or elimination.
    3) would help delete irrelevant notes & replies if my discretion was 
       judged to be adequate.
    
    -SSS-

    I would like to have one file for both Salt and Fresh water.  A lot of
    times people do both and the information/techniques can be
    interchanged.
    
    Busting - It doesn't bother me, sometimes I'll read it and sometimes
    just hit next unseen.  I think in the interest of file size busting
    notes should be purged periodically (one month?)
    
    Tournament noted should be deleted after the event and back slapping is
    finished.
    
    The imbedded garbage from otherwise useful notes should be deleted and
    in the future (recently I think the moderators have done a good job
    with this) more them if the replys add no value to the note.
    
    There is a wealth of good knowledge/information and I for one would
    hate to see it archived.  For example: ther hasn't been much activity
    in the tuna note recently; but there is good how to info to be used as
    reference.
    
    I will volunteer to help delete some of this garbage.  I agree with the
    previous responses that the file could be divided up and each designee
    clean up the notes given to him/her.
    
    Gordon
    

    I don't like breaking up the salt/fresh since there is allot of
    common info to both (sonar, rods/reels/tackle,techniques...).
    I can live without the busting but as long as it is in moderation
    I can live with it also.
    
    As far as deleting old notes, the place to start is for people to
    delete their own first (that way you can be your own judge) and avoid
    controversy as to what has value or not. Then work from there...
    
    Bruce

	Doc,
		1.) I like the idea of a separate salt water conference.

		2.) I don't like the bustin. Of course if item 1 comes
		    to be, this item would probably be a moot point. If 
		    bustin contiues, I think periodic purges would help.
		    I don't think there would be too many pearls of wisdom 
		    lost and disc space would be saved.. 

	Paul

    I like the idea of having volunteers clean up the file.  But, rather 
    than trying to divide tasks by keyword, I'd recommend doing it by topic 
    numbers.  Topics, as well as individual replies, can have mulitple 
    keywords associated with them.  I'd just give someone topics, 1-100, the 
    next guy 101-200, etc..  After it was all cleaned up we could restructure 
    the directory to close up all the gaps from deleted notes...
    -donmac

    The problem with bustin is that it creates kind of an inner circle vs
    outer circle mentality in a notes conference.  I ran into this in
    another conference a couple of years ago - someone made the observation
    that it was like showing up at a cocktail party where everyone except
    you seemed to know everyone else.
    

    Busting... Belongs in the Rathole and the designated busting notes.
    	Purge it once in a while.  There's a designated key if you don't
    	want to read it.
    
    Tourney Notes... Keep the results and whatever "Here's how we did it"
    	from the winners, could be used as a reference by people.  Purge
    	the rest.
    
    Volunteer cleanup... Please be sure that the people doing the cleanup
    	are knowledgeable in the subjects that they are responsible for.
    	Salt water subjects cleaned up by salt water anglers, bass subjects
    	cleaned up by bass anglers, etc.  It would be a shame to lose all
    	the info in here because someone who didn't understand the subject
    	"cleaned it up".
                        		B.C.

    re.  .37
    
    		DITTO!
    
    I would only add, do not seperate the Fresh/Salt water fishing topics.

    I have stayed out of this file because of the Bustin'.  Leaving the 
    bustin' notes *still* takes up disc space.  I like the idea of using
    mail to bust B*lls, leave it out of the notesfile.
    
    IMHO,
    
    Dave
    

    
    
           I vote me keep it all, delete nothing!!! If it changes it
    won't be the same. I like it just the way it is. I usually hit
    next/unseen on the bust'in and rathole...until lately. The rest 
    of the file is extremely infomative, usefull and I reference old
    notes on a consistent basis. Well, I'm out of here half-day today,
    goin Trout'in...Not goin fishing...going "catching".
    
                                             Jeff (Captain)
                                             Team Starcraft

re: Bustin

At times is really gets out of hand, gets off the base topic, and even gets 
somewhat offensive to some.  If it can be restricted to the bustin note or 
rathole, fine...just hit next unseen.

One "plus" of all this bustin is that it certainly adds a lot of pent up 
energy to our tournaments.  How many times have you met someone for the 
first time in person at the ramp and said..."so Y-O-U are the Legend?  Ha! Ha!"

One-liner responses to many notes are unnecessary and usually add little 
value.  They also grow the file considerable, consume disk space, make it 
difficult to wade through the file looking for something specific (of real 
value), and affects overall performance.

I vote for periodic cleanup of the above.

re: Salt & Freshwater fishing files

Keep them two combined.  There are many common aspects between fresh and 
salt water fishing that can be shared.

My 2 cents worth (if it was worth that much!)

-HSJ-

    
    
    	I would vote to keep the salt and fresh together.  Even though I
    	couldn't find the ocean...:-)...I still have interest in the 
    	conversations.
    
    	Bustin'...MUST stay.  I agree that we had at one time swamped the
    	file with bustin' everywhere.  But it seems that after you meet
    	and fish in tournies with some members of the conference...it
    	just is tough not to toss a barb once in a while...I mean
    	the KEG is SUCH an easy target....[STRIKE THAT].
    
    	Agree with the logic of cleaning up the files.  I believe that
    	you have a good start with the directory set up.  
    
    	Gitzit'
    

1) Deleting notes does NOT reduce the size of the file due to the way that
notes files are set up (it's a technical thing, ask a gweeper for details.)
There is no net benefit in terms of disk utilization in deleting old, useless
notes.

2) Archiving this file does NOT mean it's any more difficult to access than it
is now. It just means that no more new notes can be added _to this file_.

3) Starting a new file will have the following benefits: 

  o It will be smaller and therefore easier to access
  o It will be easier to control (keeping bustin where it "belongs", keywords,
    setup, etc
  o It will be easier to find specific notes
  o We won't have 500 notes on each subject
  o We can still access stuff in this file by simply opening a different
    conference (ie, no information is lost.)
  o The new conference can be properly "seeded" such that traditional topics
    are already started
  o *Really* important notes can be crossposted from the archived file

 The Doctah

    Doc,
    
    It sounds like you'd find a Fishing II conference easier to manage and
    we wouldn't lose much, if anything, if Fishing I is archived.  I'm OK
    with that.
    
    To keep Fishing II more manageable than it's predecessor, purges should
    be conducted periodically.  Beyond disk space, there is still a "time
    to find" issue.  Miscellaneous irrelevant notes just add to the time it
    takes to get through the directory and directory assistance.  I suggest
    a note just for tourney results that would be entered by the mod only
    at the time the individual tourney note(s) are deleted.  
    
    Why the resistance to separate salt/fresh conferences?  While some of
    us are all 'round fishermen, some aren't.  There's a FF conference. 
    Those of us who don't FF, don't visit it.  Likewise, those who only FF
    and whose dainty sensibilities are offended by what goes on here, don't
    read FISHING.  Nobody has to read what they aren't interested in and
    yes I know where the next unseen key is.  Actually, 2 conferences would
    allow me to explore Salt when I had the time and inclination as opposed
    to having to Next Unseen past them as I do 75% of the time now.
    
    -SSS- 

    	I've yet to see an archived notes file set-up that has worked well.
    Even in a notes file that is as well set-up as this one you still get
    the occasional:
    
    	"I didn't see anything already on this so........."
    
    ...another redundant note occurs, and this occurs with only ONE file to 
    look through. I suspect it would be much more frequent if someone had
    to check two files for information.
    
    	I also like the idea of keeping the salt/fresh together. There are 
    certain conveniences (like buying/selling items) that occur when both
    topics are in one file. Also, there are not that many salt water notes 
    anyway so that next unseen wouldn't be a big deal. If one can live with 
    doing next unseen for the busting notes I don't see why this would be any 
    different. 
    
    	As far as disk space, could you create a new file and move the good
    notes from the existing file into the new notes file ? Then you could
    simply delete the old file when you've gotten everything out that you
    wanted. I know this would be a big effort but if you had volunteers and
    did it this way, you could have your cake and eat it too.
    
    
    	RAYJ

    Are you sure you cannot reduce the size of notes file...?  
    
    After massive deletion I would think a CONVERT with the notes database 
    FDL file would produce a compressed output.
    
    -donmac

>    ...another redundant note occurs, and this occurs with only ONE file to 
>    look through. I suspect it would be much more frequent if someone had
>    to check two files for information.

 I don't mind redundancy in the new file. It's inevitable. The key is that
things will be easier to find and quicker to access. Besides, I can't see how
we can have any worse of a redundancy problem than we do now with a single file.

>   	As far as disk space, could you create a new file and move the good
>    notes from the existing file into the new notes file ? Then you could
>    simply delete the old file when you've gotten everything out that you
>    wanted. I know this would be a big effort but if you had volunteers and
>    did it this way, you could have your cake and eat it too.

 This is an option that I've been considering. Anyone know how to use PAN?

>    Are you sure you cannot reduce the size of notes file...?  
    
>    After massive deletion I would think a CONVERT with the notes database 
>    FDL file would produce a compressed output.

 That is supposed to work. But simply deleting notes doesn't have any effect.
I've heard something about CONVERT, but I dunno how you use it. A bigger problem
to me is the fact that we have 1600+ topics here. It's an awful lot of work
to find out if someone's already started a note on the new topic you've
been thinking of, so people don't bother to try. I think that a new file
would help this out since there would be so fewer notes to wade through. 
Besides, alot of times it's tough to figure out which note to move a new note
to (since there are so many that are so closely related.)

 The Doctah

    Leave the Busting note alone since we can't bust each other during a
    reply on someone's topic. I mean if I couldn't bust the Legend then
    why read this file 8*).
    
    I also agree with the other folks about "if you don't like the busting
    just hit next unseen" That's what I do when I come across any saltwater
    notes.
    
    Bass-O-Matic

    I could make up a com file for you to do the CONVERT and send you
    an appropriate FDL file.  Additionally, I'd recommend dcl com files 
    to assist in the cleanup - com files to delete series of notes, etc..
    
    -donmac

            I like the busting file (read only).The format on which 
            the file is done could be changed...

            Topic

             1 Spring Bassin
             2 Summer Bassin
             3 Fall Bassin
             
             One seperate topic discussing ice fishing since alot
             of people are fair weather fisherpersons.

             A topic for Blues another on Stripers.

             Have one file relating to a favorite lake,river,pond etc...

             Now all of these are seperate easy to find instead of being
             spread all over.

             In all these topics you discuss the types of baits at the 
             certain time of year,kinds ewe use in a lake,location,places
             to stay near the lake all in the same topics.


             I think ewe Einsteins get the idea.


                                

                                          The Keg


             Gitzit ole buddy,old pal,old skunkbait,I will get ewe for that...

    How about spawning off a bass fishing file from the main fishing file
    instead of doing salt water vs. fresh water?  
    
    It seems to me that the bustin, tournaments and bass fishing all go 
    together.  Personally, I fish fresh water *and* salt water but I don't
    participate in bass tournaments (although I think bass tournaments 
    are a great part of fishing---just not priority in this partof the
    contry)
    
    So maybe there could be the main fishing conference and then there
    could be a bass conference and the tourny guys could harrass
    the heck out of each other without bogging down the general
    conference???
    
    My other idea is to have a tournament conference so that Bass fishing,
    equipment, lures, rubber worms etc would be discussed in the general
    file and tourneys and busting would be in the tourney file.  But I
    think the bass crowd might rather have their own conference???
    
    Just a thought.  Please no flames.
    
    /brett 
    

    
    My $.02 worth.
    
    There's too much here to ditch. Users like me doan know how to access
    archived files.
    
    Delete all the non-pertinent-to-fishing drub. Keep the rest, hawglist
    included. 
    
    Do the donvert of the kpl file and condance it..Like DonMac said.....
    DonMac are you a "gweeper"..?????
    
    Dont split salt and fresh, base and cod or otherwise. If its about
    crude iron casting and deadmeat bait gomming it should all be here.
    should be here...Carp to (ugggghh) KEG.
    
    Keep a bustin note, even I can use the keypad...and I just love to have
    my "dainty sensibilities" occasionally titillated.
    
    Thank you for condoning the input of a mostly RO FFisher.
    
    K&R Ed
    
    Whats a "gweeper"???
    

re: Bret

>    How about spawning off a bass fishing file from the main fishing file
>    instead of doing salt water vs. fresh water?  

 This is appealing. Anyone want to start up a BASSIN' conference? 

 re: Ed

>    There's too much here to ditch. Users like me doan know how to access
>    archived files.

 It's easy. 

NOTES> open fishing

 That's it. The only thing you can't do is enter new notes.

>    Whats a "gweeper"???

 It's a WPI term for software guru types.

 The Doctah

    >> DonMac are you a "gweeper"..?????
    
    Geez, I hope not, `cuz if I am, they sure aren't paying me enough!!!
    
    -donmac 

    Well now that this has been beaten to death whats the decision?

 Ok- here's the deal.

 This version of the file is going to be set no-write as of this friday 
afternoon. I will go through some of the topics and delete nonsense. CONVERT
will be run on the file to minimize disk space. The file will remain accessible
forever for read access in the same place it is now; you don't have to do 
anything different to read any note in this file.

 A new fishing conference has been started which will bring the writing traffic
to a smaller, more manageable, and easier to access file. The file is basically
going to be an extension of what we have already done here; there will not be a
whole host of new rules and restrictions (I added one- formally putting the
"bustin'" policy in writing.)

 I expect some growing pains to occur and some grumbling to surface as
people get used to the new file, but I think that once people get used to
the idea things will run smoothly. With improved access and less extraneous
stuff to wade through, things will be better for those trying to find 
information on a particular topic.

 The new file is open for business already. It can be accessed by adding the
conference WAHOO::FISHING-V2 to your notebook (kp7). There are a small number 
of seed topics already started, please reply to them if they are a topic of 
interest. Other topics have not yet been started- start them if no other topic
reasonably addresses your noting needs.

 Have fun, and have at it!

 The Doctah