LL-L "Administrativa" 2002.06.12 (03) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 12.JUN.2002 (03) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
 Web Site: <http://www.geocities.com/sassisch/rhahn/lowlands/>
 Rules: <http://www.geocities.com/sassisch/rhahn/lowlands/rules.html>
 Posting Address: <lowlands-l at listserv.linguistlist.org>
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 A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian L=Limburgish
 LS=Low Saxon (Low German) S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic Z=Zeelandic (Zeeuws)
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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Administrativa

Dear Lowlanders,

It happens quite often that (former) subscribers write to me asking to
be readmitted to Lowlands-L, and most of them turn out to have assumed
that I had "kicked them out" because of non-participation (i.e., being
charged guilty of excessive lurking).  In most cases (especially in
cases of habitual lurkers) I had not even noticed that they were no
longer subscribed.  In a couple of cases, the returning subscribers had
assumed that I had "kicked them out" for excessive participation or for
some sort of _faux pas_ or misdemeanor.

Please let me make this quite clear once and for all:

(1) I would *never* kick anyone out without due prior warning and a
number of attempts to get them to mend their ways, and I would
communicate with them about this privately.  This has happened very
rarely in the seven-year history of Lowlands-L.  Such a thing does not
happen unless there is gross misbehavior (e.g., "flaming," verbal or
psychological abuse, or flagrant expressions of disrespect) or repeated
breaking of the rules and no hope of redemption.

(2) "Lurking" (i.e., being a passive, reading subscriber rather than a
participating, "vocal" one) is not against the rules.  In fact, it is
your right to lurk to your hearts' content.  This personal choice would
never make you subscribers in bad standing (though I would encourage you
to participate if all that is holding you back are a feeling of
intimidation, perceived lack of language skills or "academic expertise,"
and/or fear of being ridiculed, for I will not permit anyone to be put
down, and our participants are not inclined to do so anyway).

(3) If you suddenly find yourself unsubscribed (i.e., the LL-L issues
stop coming for more than, say, four days), the most likely reason is
that the list server (a machine/program, not a person) has automatically
unsubscribed you.  It does so whenever mail to your address keeps
bouncing back as undeliverable for a number of days.  The server will
try to redeliver the mail quite a number of times, for several days, in
certain intervals.  It will give up at a certain point and will
unsubscribe the problematic address.  More often than not, the reason is
that someone has allowed his or her mailbox to be filled to capacity
("over quota") and has not done anything about it for many days.  This
is why I suggest you unsubscribe if your mail quota is small and you
travel somewhere where you have no access to your email, and then to
resubscribe after your return.

(4) To resubscribe, you can write to me (sassisch at yahoo.com).  Better
still, use the subscription application form on our welcoming pages
(http://www.geocities.com/sassisch/rhahn/lowlands/) and in the textbox
("What you hope to gain from being a subscriber to Lowlands-L") just
mention that you are a returning subscriber.  The application will come
to me (or whoever stands in for me), and I (or he/she) will make sure
that you are resubscribed.

On another note, let me ask if we have any volunteers willing to write
those introductory blurbs about Lowlands languages.  They must be brief,
could even be as brief one paragraph each.  The way I envisage it is
having one intro blurb for one language or "group of language
varieties," and then linked to it optional blurbs about special language
varieties.  For instance, we would have a blurb for Scots and then
"sub-blurbs" for Mainland Scots, Ulster Scots and Shetlandic.  Later we
could expand by adding "sub-sub-blurbs" for any specific dialects anyone
cares to write about.  If you wish, you could write in teams and then
send it to me for posting.  Or you could write a blurb draft and post it
as such to the List, inviting input/critique from others before
submitting the final blurb.  You could always change the text later,
even after it has been posted on the web.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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