[vlc] [RFC] closing the vlc user mailing list.

[Stuart McGraw]

On 02/06/2012 04:47 AM, Jean-Baptiste Kempf wrote:
> The User mailing list vlc at videolan.org is mis-used by most posts and has
> almost no developer or power-user answering to the questions correctly.

Of the 30+ technical maillists I read regularly, the vlc list 
is unique in the large number of clueless posters.  I have never
understood why.

> Moreover, many people feel this is the support chan and do not subscribe
> to the list and do not get the answer.
> Finally, people complain about the lack of anonymity of this service.
> 
> The forum, on the other hand, is working correctly and fixes the above
> issues.
> 
> Therefore, I suggest that we close this vlc mailing list in a close
> future.

Mailing lists have a number of advantages over web-based forums:
* Easy to save posts for future reference.  This is a PITA on forums.
* Interface choice in my control (I can choose from any number
  of mail readers) vs whatever interface the the web forum server
  provides.  I can also read maillist posts via the web (e.g. google
  or my choice of usenet newsreader (gmane, etc)
* There are a large number of tools for working with mail messages.
* Mail readers offer features unavailable in forums like filters
  and kill-lists, keeping track of what's been read previously,
  etc.  (I realize the volume on the vlc list is low enough that
  some of these are not often needed but still...)
* Mail lists are often archived in multiple places (gmane, google,
  nabble, etc) so the accumulated knowledge-base and history are
  not subject to the longevity or availability of a single web site. 
* Mail interfaces make better use of screen real-estate.  Most web
  forums waste large amount of space on avatars, jpeg sigs, ads, etc.
* Mail is pushed to me with no effort on my part.  It is easy to
  delete (or in my case ignore, since I read via gmame).  With a 
  web forum, I have to take a positive action to visit the web site
  (and since I'm both busy and lazy, am less likely to do.)
* Better responsiveness.  Web forums, for those of us who still
  have not-so-fast internet connections, feel slow and bogy.

I realize some of the items above are subjective and a matter of
taste.  But I think there are a number of readers like myself that 
still find mail easier and more efficient to work with.

IMO a good solution is a two way gateway between the maillist
and the forum: posts to the forum appear as mail lists posts,
and visa versa.  The big disadvantage is obviously the work needed
to setup and maintain such as gateway.

Another possibility would by a one-way gateway: forum -> maillist.
To post (which most people do infrequently) one would have to
register and post at the forum, but it would still provide the 
advantages above for readers which is what most people do most of
the time.