Info

Dear Arachne Friends,

The membership handbook is hereby attached. It is published monthly, as near to the first of the month as I can make it. And as always, suggestions for improvement are gratefully accepted.

Lace- and Lace-Chat Subscriber's Handbook

This message is available using Majordomo (see instructions below), and at ftp://ftp.arachne.com/lace-archive/Handbook.txt. You can also find it at http://www.oocities.org/Heartland/Fields/1404/faq.html, click on the link to the handbook (handbook.html). This same site holds the FAQs we have so far published to the list.

LACE ARACHNE MAILING LIST SUBSCRIBER'S HANDBOOK

LACE LIST AND LACE-CHAT LIST

You may subscribe to either the reflected or the digested version of either list. The reflector emails each message immediately; the digestor bundles the individual messages to form a single large message which is sent after a sufficient volume has accumulated. The digest contains the exact same information as the reflector, but all in one lump of about 25K. It is helpful for those who receive a lot of mail and wish to keep the arachne messages separate (see SERVER INFORMATION) below.

DO'S AND DON'TS (APPLY TO BOTH LISTS!!)

1. DO be courteous, and try not to react to someone else's post as a personal affront (look for other interpretations before flaming back). Insulting someone personally, insulting the techniques a person uses, or their choice of equipment is not allowed. For example, you may certainly say, "I don't like tatting shuttles with attached hooks". But it is rude to say, "Anyone who uses a tatting shuttle with an attached hook is an idiot". Luckily, lacemakers are almost universally kind people, so this comes naturally.

2. DO post!! (but to only one list, lace or lace-chat, but not both). We want newbies to introduce themselves when they feel comfortable doing so (this is called "delurking"). We DO encourage beginner questions. Answering them is part of the reason we are here!

3. DO send your *bio* to LaRae Mikulecky, by means of her page at http://www.picotnet.com/Locatelace/locate.html. If you do not have web-access, or have an update to make to an existing bio, please contact her at lmikule@neonramp.com. Use the following format:

   Name:
   E-mail:
   Location: (ie. city, state, country)
   Birthdate:
   Occupation:
   Homepage:
   Major lace interest(s):
   Other lace/needlework interest/s:
   Are you a vendor or bobbin maker?
   Other information to share:

   Also let her know if you object to being listed on the *Locate a Lacemaker* map on her home page http://www.oocities.org/Heartland/5082/

   Fortunately or unfortunately, the list of bios has gotten so large that it can no longer be posted to the list. To get a copy of the collected bios, either email LaRae directly for a copy, or go to the following location - only subscribers will have these URLs because they will not be linked elsewhere (don't you either!)

   http://www.oocities.org/Heartland/5082/aracbios.zip (if you know how to unzip)

   http://www.oocities.org/Heartland/5082/aracbios.txt (big file, be patient)

4. DO you sign your message with your name AND email address. Some email systems strip the headers off, so people on those systems can't reply to you without it. Please DO add your geographic location, we're all curious, you know!

5. DO be specific in your subject line. Our interests vary widely; this will help those not interested in your particular topic to move through their mail more quickly. This is especially true of topics (or, "threads") which have been under discussion for awhile, and the subject of later messages has wandered far afield of the original posting.

6. DO avoid leaving large chunks of a previous message in your replies, but rather limit to a sentence or two. Some people have to pay for incoming mail based on the size and amount of that mail. Others have limited time and resources for reading/printing. Stop first and consider whether your response is really of interest to the whole group, or should be privately addressed to the author of the message. For example, notes saying things like "I agree" and not much else are a waste of resources for many list members. If you need help with editing text and are a Windows user, please see FAQ's "Learning 'Puter" for help.

7. DO NOT send attachments (they appear as an undecodable lump in the digest). If you have an attachment you would like to share, DO offer to send it privately to those interested, or DO put it on your web page if you have one. Likely it's something we'll want to see!

8. Vendors: DO be discreet. An introductory message when you delurk will be wonderful, letting readers know where you are, what you sell, and what your terms are. Please do not post inventory, prices, or sale announcements to the list. You may mention your shop if you are responding to someone asking how to obtain a particular item, but again please don't mention prices. Invite people to ask you for further information if they are interested. Also, a signature at the end of your message indicating your status as a vendor is also fine (limit of 4 lines is considered good nettiquette).

9. Microsoft Explorer email users: DO turn off "html" when sending to the list. The resulting message appears with lots of what seems to be garbage at the end (if you don't know hypertext, that is!). From top line menu, select TOOLS / OPTIONS / SEND / and change this from HTML to PLAIN TEXT (thanks, Noelene).

10. DO NOT post email virus warnings (also appeals for post-cards for dying children, and associated ilk) are invariably hoaxes and/or urban legends. You should not be propagating them at all, but whatever you do, don't send them to the lace lists. No matter how urgent they seem, they are off-topic, even for the chat lists. For more information, please see:
    http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/CIACHoaxes.html
    http://wwwasu.murdoch.edu.au/asu/edtech/cleo_web/cleo_news/virus-hoax.html
    http://www.princeton.edu/~garfunkl/spigot/virus.html
    

11. Do not post copyrighted patterns. Please DO post information about how to obtain a "legal" copy of interesting patterns. Copyright laws and how to interpret them are periodic "threads" on this list. We've found this website with info, at least for U.S. residents: http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/.

12. DO make sure the default "reply to" address is the one you want. It's very easy to send messages intended for the whole list to a single email address, or to address private replies to the whole list without noticing. In addition, if you're going to be changing from off-topic to on-topic or vice-versa, you'll need to change from lace-chat to lace (or vice-versa) when you send your message.

13. DO avoid using special characters in your messages. A number of mail-servers cannot accept mail with 8-bit ascii characters in the message header (areas such as "from" and "subject" and the beginning of the message). Please be aware that some members may not get your messages if you use these characters, which include umlauted characters, accent marks, etc.

14. DO unsubscribe if you are changing email addresses or will be away from your computer for an extended period. If your mail gateway goes down for several days, or if your address becomes undeliverable for some reason (like "mailbox full") for more than a short while - usually 2 or 3 days - you will be unsubscribed from the list and will need to resubscribe.

15. DO be patient with our fellow subcribers. Sometimes we make mistakes and post messages we should not have posted, or posted to the incorrect address. Since the message comes back to us as a subscriber, we quickly discover our own mistakes. Unless the offense is repeated, it need not be pointed out. Such helpful messages, despite being sent with the best of intentions, only cause hard feelings, particularly if they arrive after an apology has been made to the list.

DO enjoy these lists! These nettiquette guidelines are intended to make it pleasant for everyone, not scare you into permanent lurking! They are GUIDELINES, not RULES!!!

For you AOL subscribers whose digests occasionally appear in red: best solution anyone has been able to come up with yet is to select all the text, copy it, then paste it into a blank document in your word processor. If unsure about this process, see "Learning 'Puter" FAQ at http://www.oocities.org/Heartland/Fields/1404/puter.html (or if you have no web access, send me a message requesting this FAQ).

SOME COMMON TERMS

*Ascii Art*: a drawing made using keys available on a standard keyboard. Best when created and/or viewed using a font such as Courier which is not proportionally spaced.

*Caterpillars*: the young lacemakers group of the Mariposa Lacemakers. Contact Marie at lacemaking@aol.com.

Commemoratives: for our third anniversary in April, we have arranged for commemorative bobbins and shuttles and other goodies to be made. For information contact JoAnne Pruitt (phzrbait@aol.com).

Digest Mode: version of the list in which about 30K of messages are saved up, then sent as one message to subscribers of the digest. Helpful for those who receive a lot of mail and wish to keep the arachne messages separate.

Exchanges: Bobbin exchange, bookmark exchange, etc. Exchanges of lace items are organized from time to time by volunteer subscribers to promote *getting something done* and so that members may own pieces handmade by newly-made friends on the mailing list. A recurring swap is for birthday bobbins by month organized by Trayna Walker c.b.walker@abdn.ac.uk.

Knoxville Lacers: we have adopted this group of young lacemakers at Lee Uptegraff's school in Pittsburgh, PA as a place to send contributions of bobbin lace supplies (and you'll get a thank-you note back!)

uptegraf@oberon.pps.pgh.pa.us (Lee Uptegraff)

Lee Uptegraff, 1300 Macon Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15218 U.S.A

Lace 2000: A project idea (which has lost momentum), to promote lacemaking in keeping with the turn of the millennium. Watch for more postings as we get organized if you would like to participate.

Round Robin: a group of up to 5 people who design and tat successive rounds on a doily without instructions provided beforehand.

Secret Pals: exchanges of gifts. These usually last 6 months, with gifts due by a certain date each month. Contact Shirlee Hill (lv2lace@tic.bisman.com). Thank-you postings for this exchange appear on the lace-chat list since the givers are anonymous. Please be tolerant of these messages if you are not a participant. Read a few, you might learn more about your fellow subscribers, or get some great gift ideas.

Snail-mail: Regular postal service.

Tiggy: Mrs. Tiggywinkle is a hedgehog, and our beloved mascot, who lives with her lace-making owner in Bainbridge Island, WA. Miss Tiggy now has a pal, Fuzzy-peg.

Please also check out http://www.oocities.org/Heartland/Fields/1404/fit.html, which has more definitions specific to lace ("fit" standing for "frequently incomprehensible terms!"

OFTEN USED ACRONYMS AND EMOTICONS

BL: Bobbin Lace

BTW - by the way

DH: Dear Husband. SIL: Sister-in-law. MIL: Mother-in-law. BIL: Brother-in-law. You get the idea.

FAQ - frequently asked questions; refers to listings of questions and answers around a subject.

FWIW: for what it's worth

HHOK: ha, ha only kidding

IMO and IMHO - in my (humble) opinion

LOL: laughing out loud

OTOH: on the other hand

ROTFL: Rolling On The Floor Laughing

SO: significant other

SP: secret pal

TIA: Thanks in advance

TTFN: ta ta for now (a sign off)

TTYL: talk to you later (another sign off)

UFO: UnFinished Object. Usually found lurking in some forgotten corner of a closet or drawer.

USO: UnStarted Object. Usually found lurking in some forgotten corner of the imagination.

<g> and <vbg> grin and very big grin OR groan and very big groan (let the context guide you!)

:-) and :) and :-( smiley face (on it's side) and frowny face (on it's side). There are lots of variations of these so-called smileys, from ;-) winking to :-O shouting to...

FTP FOR COLLECTED DIGESTS

READER'S DIGEST VERSION FOR MAJORDOMO

1. To post a message to the lace list, send it to: lace@arachne.com

To post a message to the lace-chat list, send it to: lace-chat@arachne.com

You will know it worked if you see the message come back to you as a regular message of the list either singly or in the digest.

The following commands may be given to the computer which services our mailing list, and it receives those commands at the email address majordomo@arachne.com. You will know your command has succeeded when you receive a message back from majordomo.

2. To subscribe to the reflected version of the list, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
subscribe lace your@address.here (for the lace list) or
subscribe lace-chat your@address.here (for the lace-chat list)

You will know it worked when your receive a message asking you to reply to confirm your subscription. Please read this message carefully and follow the instructions exactly. Once you send back your confirmation, you will receive a confirmation that the command succeeded as well as a welcome message.

3. To unsubscribe from the reflected version of the list, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
unsubscribe lace your@address.here (for the lace list) or
unsubscribe lace-chat your@address.here (for the lace-chat list)

You should receive a confirmation message back that your command succeeded.

4. To subscribe to the digested version of the list, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
subscribe lace-digest your@address.here (for the lace list) or
subscribe lace-chat-digest your@address.here (for the lace-chat list)

You will know it worked when your receive a message asking you to reply to confirm your subscription. Please read this message carefully and follow the instructions exactly. Once you send back your confirmation, you will receive a confirmation that the command succeeded as well as a welcome message.

5. To unsubscribe from the digested version of the list, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
unsubscribe lace-digest your@address. here (for the lace list) or
unsubscribe lace-chat-digest your@address. here (for lace-chat list)

You should receive a confirmation message back that your command succeeded.

6. To get a repeat copy of this message, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only: get lace Handbook.txt

7. To get a list of previous digests, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
index lace-digest (for the lace list) or
index lace-chat-digest (for the lace-chat list)

Read the list that comes back carefully; if you are searching for a message from a particular day, you will be able to see which filename you will need based on the date and time (U.S.A. Eastern Time) the message was sent.

8. To get a copy of a previous digest, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
get lace-digest (filename) (for the lace list) or
get lace-chat-digest (filename) (for the lace-chat list)

For example: get lace v01.n500 for digest #500 (but retrieve the index first just in case to make sure you have the right name). Back issues are also available at ftp://ftp.arachne.com/lace-archive/

9. To get a list of the subscribers to your list, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
who lace (for the lace list) or
who lace-digest (for the lace-digest list) or
who lace-chat or
who lace-chat-digest

10. If you are having trouble to subscribe or unsubscribe, do NOT send a message to majordomo. Instead, contact: owner-lace@arachne.com

11. To get more information on the commands available for majordomo, send a message to: majordomo@arachne.com

The body of the message must contain only:
help