Frequently Asked Question about Frambors

Contents

Frequently Asked Question about Frambors

Frambors Terms Conditions

Please click here for frambors Terms and Conditions.

Posting Rules

What is the purpose of the Frambors e-mail group?

The purpose of Frambors is to provide a public forum for discussing and debating local government and community issues in Framingham. There are two major lists that relate to Framingham, each with a distinct purpose. Frambors is for discussion of issues that in some way relate or could relate to Framingham town government . Framcom is for posts related to anything to do with Framingham that do not relate to town government.

How do I post to Frambors?

Only subscribers can post to Frambors. To start a new topic, compose a message and send it to frambors@syslang.net. To contribute a post on a topic that has already been started, reply to an existing message, and make sure that frambors@syslang.net is in the "To:" line. Many people do this by clicking on "Reply to All" instead of just "Reply." Please delete the unsubscribe instructions at the bottom from the message you are replying to, and save only as much of the previous poster's message as you need to preserve the context of your message.

What topics are appropriate for discussion on Frambors?

Appropriate topics for this list include

matters in front of local governing bodies,
issues that someone believes should be addressed by the town government,
issues in front of community or neighborhood groups, and
stories and editorials in local newspapers, radio stations or other local media that relate to these issues.

There are special rules about discussing candidates and issues during elections.

What kinds of things are not appropriate for posting on Frambors?

These kinds of things are not appropriate for posting on Frambors

Posts that do not conform to Frambors civility rules.
Post that are not substantive in nature, like "thank yous," one-liners or jokes, satire, posts that, in effect, simply say "me too" or "I agree" without adding any additional commentary.
Links to a web page without explanation of what it is, how it relates to issues in Framingham and why you are sharing it with the list.
Complaints about the civility of posts and commentary about list operation and/or policies. These issues should either go to frammod (if you were a subscriber) or to the list operators <frambors DASH owner AT syslang DOT net>. (AT=@ and DOT =. in the e-mail address. Formatting it this way helps prevent the address from being harvested by automated "spambots" for spammers).
Issues that are being debated primarily at the state or national level, rather than the local level (e.g. immigration, income taxes, state and federal education policies, abortion, global warming, etc.)
Topics that relate to Framingham but do not relate to town government, neighborhood groups or media of coverage of such topics.
Community events announcements not related to town government, neighborhood groups or media of coverage of such topics, such as PTO events, non-profit fundraisers, and concerts.
Personal requests or announcements (recommendations, advice, yard sale or for sale announcements).
Personal replies which should only go to one or a few people but are not of sufficient interest to go to the entire list.
Posts that have individuals in the To:, CC: or BCC: lines, as it causes list members to get duplicate copies and causes confusion about whether a particular post came from an individual or the list. Posts copied to individuals is the number one reason for private e-mails being inadvertantly forwarded to the list.

What are the special rules in force for elections?

The public is allowed to ask questions of the candidates, and, of course, the candidates are allowed and encouraged to answer. If a question is not answered by a candidate, the same question may not be repeated. Consider it asked and answered. Candidates and the public are allowed to make political announcements. Examples of things that are of an announcement nature might be "I am running", "I am holding a fundraiser", or "I have a website to provide information". Whenever possible, the operator of frambors will provide hosting for anyone's webpage if they do not have access of their own facilities.

All messages that refer to a candidate's name will trap for review by the moderating team when during campaign season. Such posts by and about candidates will be reviewed before going to the Frambors to ensure that they do not contain either campaigning or endorsements according to the following guidelines:

No campaigning is allowed, and all candidates' posts will be moderated to enforce this policy. During elections, candidates may discuss issues, answer questions, and announce campaign events. However, if it seems like you are blowing your own horn, then it is not allowed. The moderating team will decide whether or not posts comply with this rule.
No endorsements are allowed, and all posts that mention a candidate's name or e-mail address will be reviewed by the moderating team. You may discuss issues but anything that might be construed as favoring a particular candidate will be rejected. Likewise, anything that might be construed as a personal attack, will be rejected. However, members may post a link to their endorsements, and use the Framingham Wiki to post their endorsements

What are the rules regarding the civility of posts on Frambors?

It would be nice to be able to state simple definitions for civility and then let everyone exercise their common sense. However, experience has shown that it is necessary define what civility means in as much detail as possible so as to make as many people as possible understand our intent. Posters are expected to show basic respect for other list members in their posts. It is considered more polite to refer to the author of a previous message as "the previous poster", and are generally encouraged not to use the name of other posters in their responses. While we do not operate under Robert's Rules of order, basic etiquette is always encouraged. The list moderators will ultimately make the determination about violations of civility rules, as one person's opinion or description is another person's insult.

Issues, not people, are to be the subject of the debate. Personal attacks, including insults, name-calling and unfounded accusations (especially with respect to legal and ethical violations,) are not allowed on the list about anybody at any time. Posts should not attack or question the unstated motivations or character of another person. Insulting characterizations of groups of people, (such as immigrants, opponents of illegal immigration, social service clients, those who oppose social service expansion, legislators, members of a town board...) are not permitted.

Personal attacks are also not allowed off-list (a.k.a flames) in response to a post. Contacting someone off-list about a post after they have made a personal request that you not contact them anymore, or contacting someone anonymously off-list is also prohibited.

Sometimes the actions of a public official or representative of an organization can be a legitimate topic of conversation or criticism. It is important both the people be held accountable for their actions when they affect the general public, and that criticism not be discouraged. However, in this forum, the actions of the people and their impact should be the focus of discussion, not the character or motivation of those people.

The question of civility is one of the biggest reasons for people to be placed into supervised mode (where an operator has to review the postings of an individual to confirm that it is in compliance). A goal of this list is to supervise the minimum number of people. But the decision of whether a person has acted in an uncivil manner happens on the frammod list (i.e., the Frambors Moderators). Ultimately, the decision to supervise someone is in the hands of the list moderators.

Examples of statements that would be unacceptable include:

John Doe has obviously lost his marbles if he is so naive as to believe that.
Jane Doe is a liar for saying that.
John Doe is a bigot and a racist if he makes statements like that.
Town Board member Jane Doe must be on the take if she voted that way.
I heard a rumor that John Doe is selling illegal drugs from town offices.
That Town Board hearing looked like it was fixed from the start.
Our legislators do not really care about the town.
That newspaper reporter has it in for this town.
The previous poster's mother used to be the town drunk. Maybe he has taken up the bottle as well.
All opponents of the expansion of social service agency programs are prejudiced against people with disabilities.
Drug addicts are losers who are like leeches draining away the vitality of our community.
Non-profit executives are really more interested in lining their own pockets than helping others.

Examples of statements that would be acceptable include:

I believe this writer was mistaken about this. This is what I see about the situation
By failing to act on these issues, our town officials are jeopardizing the quality of life in our community.
The legislators do not appear to care about this issue, based on their actions.
Articles like this that put our community in a negative light hurt our town's public image, which contributes to falling property values.
The Board took action that will have a negative impact on our town, one from which we are unlikely to recover.
I disagree with the previous writer who said "The quick gray coyote jumped over the lazy brown deer." Obviously, the coyote was just leading the hunter to the deer.
The legislators have shown no interest on moving forward on this issue, and I believe the consequences for Framingham are terrible.

Can I remain anonymous on this list?

You may subscribe to the list anonymously. Upon subscribing to the list, you will be asked for contact information by one of the list moderators, which is used to resolve technical issues (like having e-mails from the list bounce back.) Other than your name, your contact information will not be available to the list in general. If you choose not to provide the contact information, and you accidentally identify Frambors as "spam" or your e-mails bounce, you risk having your subscription shut-off if we cannot contact you via e-mail. As long as you remain a lurker (someone who never posts), you can remain anonymous. Your identity as a member of the list is almost a secret. The list software allows other list members to know who is a member of the list, and only by e-mail unless you provide a name.

However, you may not post anonymously. When you choose to post to the list, you must provide provide some contact information to the moderator for verification of your identity, and your name will be available to list members in association with your e-mail address. In addition, you must identify yourself by your first and last name in the body of the text of your post.. Your full name in the "From" line is not enough because some people have mailers that won't display the full name. (Forgetting to sign your post is only considered a minor violation, if you have sent in your contact information to the moderators.)

The identity verification process should prevent people from posting anonymously. Anonymous postings are considered a major violation of list rules, especially when such posts are made using a false name, and can result in your being supervised and/or permanently removed from the list. All posts made by an anonymous poster may be removed from the archives. It is unfortunate that we have to have this rule, but, unfortunately, it has been an issue on occasion.

List Moderation

When, why and how are posts reviewed prior to being posted to the list?

Most posts are not individually approved prior to being posted to Frambors. Posters are generally responsible for the content of their material. There is a moderating team that manages the list, enforces Frambors rules, deals with subscriptions, and answers questions.

Individual posts are reviewed by someone on the moderating team reviews individual posts that have been flagged for a consult for one of the following reasons:

The sender is not a subscriber to Frambors;
The sender is on the supervised list because of noncompliance with posting rules;
The sender is a subscriber who has not submitted contact information to the moderating team;
The sender has sent more than 3 posts in 24 hours;
The sender is a subscriber who has not yet posted a message that conforms with posting guidelines; or
The message includes text, either in the headers or the body, that the moderating team has flagged for review, either because the topic is starting to get "heated" or is inappropriate for the list (e.g. election e-mails, lost dog or cat).

The moderator has the option to reject or accept a message that flags for review before it goes to the list, based on conformance to list rules. You may be asked to revise your post and resubmit it. When posts are flagged for moderation, there may be a significant delay in those posts getting posted to the list. Moderating is a part-time volunteer job, and moderators are not online, waiting for your posts, 24/7. Please be patient if there is a delay.

How do people get on and off the supervised list, and how does it work?

People's posts can be supervised for several reasons, as listed in the previous section. When people violate list rules, sometimes they are warned before they are placed on the supervised list, and sometimes not, at the discretion of the moderating team. Some people are supervised for a short period, and some people are on for as long as they subscribe. If you are supervised, you will be informed of your status, and why. In general, people who have problems with the technical requirements of a list will be given specific instructions on how to fix the problem in subsequent e-mails. All new subscribers are in a supervised state until they post a message that conforms to list rules.

Do people ever decide to have their posts reviewed on a voluntary basis?

Sometimes people choose to have their posts reviewed on a voluntary basis. Typically, these people fall into 1 of 3 categories: 1) they find that that the technical requirements of the list are confusing, 2) they sometimes respond to messages while they are still mad, and send messages that they would rather not have go to the list, or 3) they accidentally send personal replies to the list by mistake. These people would rather have a post delayed waiting to be reviewed than have a potential mistake go to the list. We have even been known to do a quick spelling check. Let the owners know if you are interested in this option.

What should I do if I see a post that seems inappropriate?

Because we do not typically review posts before they go to the list, you may occasionally see posts that you feel are inappropriate. When that happens, do not complain about other people's posts to Frambors. However, feel free to call it to our attention by e-mailing <frambors-owner AT syslang DOT net>. (AT=@ and DOT =. in the e-mail address. Formatting it this way helps prevent the address from being harvested by automated "spambots" for spammers).

What are the most common reasons that posts get rejected?

Frambors is automated as much as possible by some very sophisticated software called Majordomo2. This need to manage the process means that sometimes we will get messages from the server that are not coming from a real person.

There are a number of conditions that will cause messages to be rejected automatically. These conditions are:

When you reply to a message and you do not remove the unsubscribe footer from the end, the robot can not tell whether the message it is processing is intended to be commands or a message intended to be sent out to a large group of people. In other words, if you reply to a message and do not remove the footer, then your message will be instantly rejected.
If you try to send your message to more than one list, it will be automatically rejected. Think of it this way; your message is either relevant to the discussion of town government or it is relevant to some other discussion about Framingham, but not both.
If you try to send a message using Bcc, it will be rejected. You have to address your message to Frambors either on the To line or the Cc line.

Besides automatic rejections as described above, it is possible for some messages to be rejected by the operator.

Sometimes the operator will decide to place an entire topic under supervision because of a past demonstration of that topic being used inappropriately.
If a person is in supervised mode and the post is inappropriate, then the message will be returned will an explanation why it was rejected.
Only people who are subscribed can post. If you are not subscribed then your message will be rejected. If your are posting from an address different from the one that you are subscribed from and we can figure it out then we will allow it, but we are not perfect and your message may be rejected. (Let us know if you plan on sending from multiple addresses and we can add an alias to your account.)

Managing Your Subscription

What is request confirmation?

TBD

How do I subscribe to or unsubscribe from the list?

To subscribe, go to http://steveo.syslang.net/cgi-bin/mj_wwwusr and find the section called "Subscribe to Mailing Lists." Click on the list that you want to subscribe to and then just enter your e-mail address. Click on the "subscribe" button and you will have a confirmation emailed to you. You must reply to the confirmation and your subscription will be completed. At that time your randomly generated password will be emailed to you along with the intro file explaining details of the list.

To unsubscribe, you'll need your list password. If you don't have it, please see the section below for instructions on how to get it. Then go to http://steveo.syslang.net/cgi-bin/mj_wwwusr and click on the "Unsubscribe or Change Settings" button at the top or bottom of the page. Enter the e-mail address under which you are subscribed and the "Sign in" radio button and then hit "Go". This will take you to a page with your settings for each list that you are subscribed to. This list of settings includes an option to unsubscribe.

How do I find out my password if I don't know what it is?

Go to http://steveo.syslang.net/cgi-bin/mj_wwwusr click on the button at the top or bottom of the page that says "Sign in". Just fill in your email address and click the radio button that says "I forgot my password". Then click on the "Go" button. You will soon receive a message asking you to confirm the fact that someone is requesting your secret password. You need to confirm that request. (Instructions on how to confirm will be included in the email.) Once your request is confirmed, your password will be e-mailed to you. It may take a few minutes for it to arrive.

How do I change my subscription to a different e-mail address?

You'll need your list password for the old subscription in order to proceed. If you don't have it, please see above for instructions on how to get it.

To switch your subscription, got to http://steveo.syslang.net/cgi-bin/mj_wwwusr and hit the "Unsubscribe or Change Settings" button at the top or bottom of the page. Almost at the bottom of the page will be an option called "Changing your Address". Just fill in your address and click on "changeaddr". You will then receive confirmation instructions.

I'm getting too many messages. Should I switch to Digest Mode?

If you are overwhelmed with messages, we recommend that people filter messages from frambors into a separate folders, if you're willing to take a bit more trouble to set it up. rather than switch to digest mode. Filtering into folders automatically places all your List messages into one or more specific, segregated places (folders) on your own system or account, as soon as each message arrives. There are just as many messages and they arrive all day long, but they aren't cluttering up any other folder, and there aren't any other messages cluttering them up. You can go look at them in their special folders -- or not -- when you choose.

However, digest mode may be simpler for those not technically inclined. With digests, you get a few big messages each day (usually one) that contain all the messages for that day, instead of getting them as individual messages throughout the day. You enable digests by changing an option on your list subscription.

There are two kinds of digests. MIME digests and text digests. When you receive the list as text digests, you can no longer treat each message as an individual e-mail for surgical deletion and other operations. Replying to a digest message works if want to post a reply to the list, but the subject of the reply becomes something like [frambors] RE: frambors digest, Vol 1 #318 - 28 msgs". It's easy enough to change that manually to the true subject, but if you forget, or type it wrong, your readers may not realize which message you are replying to. Also, with digests, there's no convenient way to reply to the sender rather than the whole List. You'll have to copy and paste the recipient's e-mail address, or use another method.

How do I switch between regular mode and digest mode?

You can change your subscription so that instead of getting every message individually, you get one or two big messages each day that contains 25 or so messages at a time.

You'll need your list password to do this. If you don't have it, please see abovefor instructions on how to get it.

Go to http://steveo.syslang.net/cgi-bin/mj_wwwusr. Your Delivery Mode is just one of your personal settings. All you need to do it to log in with your password and change the Delivery Mode setting to something else. Your digest choices are the Daily Digest in either index, text or mime format.

If you want to turn digest mode off, follow the above instructions, except choose "each message as it is posted".

I'm going away for a while. How do I temporarily shut the mail off?

You'll need your list password to do this. If you don't have it, please see above for instructions on how to get it.

There is no web interface to do this. Instead, you need to send commands to majordomo@syslang.net.

approve PASSWORD set LISTNAME vacation-4d

This will turn your delivery off for four days.

approve PASSWORD set LISTNAME vacation-1m

This will turn your delivery off for one month.

If you get back early and want to turn your delivery back on, just say:

approve PASSWORD set LISTNAME vacation-return

For full documentation send a message to majordomo@syslang.net and say help set in the body of the message.

If you get stuck, e-mail the moderators <frambors-owner AT syslang DOT net>.

How can I read the archives to see past messages?

If you are interested in reading back issues of the list, go to http://steveo.syslang.net/cgi-bin/mj_wwwusr/ and enter your email address and password, go to the "Unsubscribe or Change Settings" and then click on the info button to the right of the name of the list. From there you will see a list of choices. Click on the one that says Message Archive and you'll be able to read them month by month. If you have forgotten your password, please see above for how to get it.

FramborsFaq