What I don't like is *too much* off-topic stuff.
I'm happy for discussion to *develop* (someone said 'evolve')
and thus
reach other areas. Maybe one of the contributors will declare
'Hey, this
is getting off-topic---let's take it to e-mail'.
[Shit, I must be old---I can remember when the Usenet was
like that ;->]
Maybe the list-owner will intervene in a thread and call
time---that's
OK too. But there's a fine-line between on-topic and
off-topic
discussion, like the distinction between noir and
hard-boiled. To
decide on which side of the line a post falls can require
fine
judgement. Discussions *about* that judgement can provide
some of the
more entertaining --- but never the most interesting ---
aspects of the
list.
I lurked through the jazz discussion. Very interesting.
I think we can learn a lot from each other (I just learned
synefrog's
really called Steve). Maybe Steve (synefrog) would be willing
to share
his big paper on noir with the list?
What I *don't like* about the list is the general aversion to
'snipping'
material in responses. The worst offender of late has gotta
the recent
post that contained *fifteen words* to tell us the sender is
going away
from a few days holiday (not even to a pulp fest or
noir-convention,
mind you)---followed by *fifteen lines* of a 'quoted' and
seemingly
unrelated post---complete with signatures and list-footers!
[The poster
isn't the only offender, so I'm sorry to highlight one
particular post,
but it was a *particularly wicked* example of what I'd call
*list
abuse*]
It can be a bit of a [what's a word?] to scroll down the
digest and
watch multiple copies of the untrimmed, quoted, posts wind
by. If we
wanted this type of stuff we could all go join
dorothy-l.
I'm looking forward to re-reading _The Maltese Falcon_ and
have a couple
of things to finish before then. I'm coming to the end of
William F.
Nolan's _Black Mask Murders_ (heavy-handed hokum, imo; not as
convincing
as Joe Gores's _Hammett_. I also had to dig out the two
Sharman pbs
that were waiting tbr (I *live* in a tbr pile). I picked 'em
up a few
months ago in Greenwich for a quid each :-) along with a
parking ticket
:-( _Paint It Black_ will have to wait; though I'm dipping
into the
collection _Sharman and other filth_ (I used to go to school
just up the
road from Hendon Central Station btw).
Maybe some Brit-noir could be added to the group tbr list? (I
say this
with _London Noir_ and _Fresh Blood_ within eye-shot).
Apologies if this reads like an evangelical rant
(I'll try to get my old form back for the _TMF_
discussion)
Keep up the good work
ED
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