Syndicate: this flocks of netgulls

[Andreas Broeckmann <abroeck@transmediale.de>]

dear aleksandar, folks,

thanks for the nice text about your personal list experiences. all this in
just two years ...

i think that what aleksandar writes can be a good starting point for a
discussion about how the syndicate list, network and community should
develop. the concern that he expresses is something that other people have
also remarked. the syndicate meeting in plovdiv in two weeks will be a good
opportunity to discuss these things directly, but for those who cannot go
and who also want to have a say, it might be good to voice ideas and
concerns now.

i doubt that many people are happy with how the list has developed lately,
and personally i think that we should collectively do something about it.
but in order to know which way to move, it would be good if some of you
could say your own opinions and maybe suggest how to proceed. (with the new
team of 4 list administrators, moderation might be a real option, though it
is not desirable, as far as i am concerned.) however, if the lack of focus
and strong contributions from all of us means that our shared interest is
dwindling, then maybe the list should be turned into something different
altogether - maybe an info line for european media culture? (my own
suggestion is that we will take decisions in plovdiv and after. a lack of
contributions to this discussion will only mean that there is not much
care. if you do care, speak up, please.)

below, i am pasting some excerpts from aleksandar's message again.
something else i just quickly did is go through the archive of this year
and do some statistics:

- there were just over 1000 msgs from 159 different list members (multiples
like pavu and mez counted only once where identifiable)

- 63 msgs came via the Syndicate Admin account, mostly from 'outside'
(admin not counted as a member in the following)

- there were 20 people who each posted more than 10 msgs, together they
account for 626 msgs (62%)

- of these, 9 posted more than 20 msgs each; these 9 account for 479; most
of them have posted between 20 and 30 msgs; abroeck has posted 89; integer
215.

these numbers don't say very much because the messages can have a very
different impact. i must say that i was surprised to see that so many
people actually contribute at least occasionally and that in general there
is such an even spread.

it would be great if we could spend a few days together in plovdiv and
confirm what aleksandar writes - that the real fun is in meeting people
from the list in person.

best regards,
-a



Date: Tue, 22 May 2001 11:39:45 -0700 (PDT)
From: Aleksandar Gubas <eurindie@yahoo.com>

>THE FLOCKS OF NETGULLS
>A Personal View to the Mailing Lists

<snip>

>SYNDICATE

<snip>
> the list bothers. Various hot activists, ASCII
>artists and other spammers fill your inbox every day.
>But on the other side, Syndicate is a very useful
>source of the art information from Europe - especially
>from Eastern Europe, which is the region where I
>physically belong.
>Every now and then Syndicate offers that kind of
>information which was hidden away from me by not
>stimulating me to subscribe while I was in Rex.
>Syndicate is an on-line source where the information
>can be freely available to the members, and at the
>same time discreetly monopolized by the art managers
>who should spread it. Syndicate helped me in deciding
>to become the manager of my own.
>Unfortunately, it seems that in the last few months
>Syndicate somehow lost its informational function,
>being saturated by political quarrels on the Balkans
>items. I was also involved in such a quarrel on
>Syndicate, and I regret it. It was with an artist from
>Serbia whom I have never met - and I don't want to -
>although we live only 80 kilometers away from each
>other. When you're on-line, your compatriot can be
>more distant to you than somebody from Seattle or
>Mexico.
>Basically, Syndicate seems to be a private community
>of (mostly European) artists and intellectuals,
>especially fans of conference tourism. But this list
>has shown its another aspect too, being a European art
>scene service - perhaps one of the most important
>ones. And I think this is a responsibility which
>Syndicate should think about in the future.
>And Syndicate is another international mailing list
>whose members I have met (and will meet) alive.

<snip>

>I believe in networking. But it must have the vision
>and must come out from the true need. A mailing list
>should always ask itself which is its sense, purpose
>and vision. Otherwise, the networking becomes just
>another empty and prostituted phrase like
>multiculturalism, tolerance, democracy, open society
>etc.

<snip>

>Subscribing to a mailing list means the definition of
>your flock; it means that you recognized some other
>gulls to cry together on-line.

<snip>


-----Syndicate mailinglist--------------------
Syndicate network for media culture and media art
information and archive: http://www.v2.nl/syndicate
to post to the Syndicate list: <syndicate@eg-r.isp-eg.de>
to unsubscribe, write to <majordomo@eg-r.isp-eg.de>, in
the body of the msg: unsubscribe syndicate your@email.adress