Please *do not reply to the HOCKEY-L list*, but directly to me if you --------------------------------- have comments or objections: [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask] Note: NETNEWS will not replace the current LISTSERV list, but will simply augment it. No action will be necessary for any HOCKEY-L member, no matter what is done. Background: (I'm not a NETNEWS expert by any means, but here is a synopsis of what gating our HOCKEY-L discussion to NETNEWS means). NETNEWS is available on many networks. Just because we put it onto (maine.maine.edu's) closest NETNEWS, doesn't mean it will get to *your* NETNEWS, though. It depends whether the feed is picked up at all intervening nodes. NETNEWS has the advantage of widening the readership and participation of the College Hockey Discussion List. NETNEWS (on BITNET) stores the files in one place for each installation. (Your BITNET RDR does not fill up with HOCKEY-L postings). Interested parties read postings as they see fit and may save articles of interest. Replies and postings to the NETNEWS group get routed to HOCKEY-L and distributed as they do now. NETNEWS has the disadvantage of losing some control over the membership. NETNEWS readers, as such, will not be "members of the group" as we have now. NETNEWS readers are not notified of postings; they must enter a command to see if new postings are available. Postings "expire" at a rate determined by each NETNEWS installation; if you don't read a posting before it expires ... sorry, you missed it! I am pursuing this with the folks that gate LISTSERV discussions onto NETNEWS. They have lots of rules and regulations for setting this up. (If you were a lawyer, you'd be proud!). I there are *no* objections from this group and there are *no* objections from the gateway folks and we are not required to get permission from the existing "rec.sport.hockey" NETNEWS group, we *may* start the gating to NETNEWS in a few weeks. Finally, I reserve the right to arbitrarily terminate the gating of HOCKEY-L to NETNEWS at any time. We'll just have to see how things work. If things go as expected, it should help and expand HOCKEY-L. Again, please do not reply to the list. Send all comments, questions, and objections directly to me: Bitnet: wts@maine Internet: [log in to unmask] Wayne Smith, College Hockey Discussion List administrator