[rec.scouting.*] Newsgroups Help and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ 1)
Bill Nelson
Last-Modified: 1998/12/21
The Frequently Ask Questions (FAQ) files for all Scouting
groups are archived at the following sites:
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/scouting/
http://www.faqs.org/#FAQHTML
Please let me know by email of any additions or corrections.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
=================
1 - Introduction
2 - Group Charters
3 - Some Frequently Asked Questions
Subject: General Introduction
Welcome. This is the second in a series of FAQs for the rec.scouting.*
hierarchy. The first FAQ is entitled:
[rec.scouting.*] Welcome - Read this First (FAQ 0)
It is recommended that you read that FAQ prior to reading this one.
NOTE: The term rec.scouting.* refers to the rec.scouting hierarcy
within this FAQ.
This file or parts of it may be freely used, printed and re-distributed
as long as you enclose this paragraph and keep the references to the
respective contributors and to the maintainer (listed below) intact.
-- Bill Nelson <nel...@aztec.asu.edu>
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Subject: The Groups and Their Charters
Date: 17 Sept 1998
*** THE GROUPS ***
CHARTER: rec.scouting.misc
Rec.scouting.misc is an unmoderated group for boy and girl Scouts and
Guides, Cub Scouts, Venturers, Rovers, Scout leaders and all people
interested in Scouting and Guiding, worldwide. This group discusses
issues relevant to Scouting activities, and the administration of scout
units. It allows for the solicitation of advice from other netters
on what to do in certain situations, and generally seek and provide
support and encouragement with respect to Scouting. Cross-posting to
other rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged.
Postings concerning topics pertaining solely to US scouting are
strongly discouraged on rec.scouting.misc, use rec.scouting.usa
instead. Postings not related to scouting or guiding are discouraged.
CHARTER: rec.scouting.usa
rec.scouting.usa is an unmoderated group for Boy and Girl Scouts,
Cub Scouts, Explorers, Christian Service Brigade members, members of
religious-based Scouting or Guiding organizations, their leaders,
advisors, professional or career employees of USA Scouting movements,
and all people interested in Scouting and Guiding in the United States.
This group discusses issues relevant to the program, unit support,
finance, membership development and the administration of scout units.
It allows for the solicitation of advice and information from other
netters on what to do in certain situations, and generally seek and
provide support, general information and encouragement regarding
scouting.
The content of this newsgroup is NOT to be accepted as "official
information" coming from American Scouting organizations, as such
information comes normally through their national offices through
regional groups to local organizations for distribution to units and
members; however posted messages to this newsgroup may contain parts of
official publications and information to answer or respond to questions
or issues brought up with the proper crediting of such information by
the poster.
This newsgroup is NOT the place for discussions on scouting ISSUES, for
instance, issues related to girls in the Boy Scout program, whether or
not Assembly of God churches should abandon the Boy Scouts of America's
programs in favor of the Royal Rangers, or open homosexual members as
members or leaders in BSA programs. Those discussions will take place
on rec.scouting.issues, and those posting to this newsgroup will be
followed or redirected to rec.scouting.issues. Cross-posting to other
rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged. Postings not related to
Scouting in the United States are discouraged.
CHARTER: rec.scouting.issues
rec.scouting.issues is an unmoderated newsgroup for the discussion
and explanation of worldwide, national or regional issues concerning
national Scouting or Guiding organizations' policies, rules or
regulations. Cross-posting to other rec.scouting groups is strongly
discouraged. Postings not related to Scouting or Guiding issues are
discouraged.
CHARTER: rec.scouting.guide+girl
rec.scouting.guide+girl is an unmoderated newsgroup for the discussion
and explanation of issues concerning guiding organizations and those
that belong to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.
Cross-posting to other rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged.
Postings not related to Girl Scouting or Guiding are discouraged.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Subject: Is this where I can get clipart and fonts?
Date: 5 Jan 1998
Q. Where can I get clipart and fonts?
A. There are a number of places on the net to find clipart and fonts
For a few starting places see:
For scouting clipart:
http://usscouts.org/
ftp://scout.org/hints+ideas/art
ftp://scout.org/hints+ideas/pcx
ftp://scout.org/etienne/pictures
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Subject: How do I let Scouts and Scouters know where my site is?
From: Mike Walton (black...@hcc-uky.campus.mci.net)
Date: 5 May 1996
Q. "I've created a SUPER web site for Scouting. How do
I let Scouts and Scouters know where it is and how to
access it?"
A. Post it to rec.scouting.misc. ... You also might want to
post it to several of the email mailing lists as well (see the
General FAQ for their addresses and information on
subscribing).
PLEASE DO NOT CROSSPOST IT TO ALL OF THE SCOUTING
NEWSGROUPS!! That defeats the charter of those groups...
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Subject: How do I post requests to trade Scouting memorabilia?
From: Bill Nelson and Mike Walton (black...@hcc-uky.campus.mci.net)
Date: 5 May 1996
Q. "I trade patches and other Scouting memorabilia. I
want to post my wants list and perhaps also sell some
of my extra Scouting items. How do I do this, and which
group(s) is/are appropriate for this?"
A. 1. Describe EXACTLY what you have. Don't use abreviations
or slang terms for your items, many people may not be understand
them.
2. Describe WHAT you want in trade for the item(s).
Money, patches in trade, or whatever.
3. Post YOUR email address and ASK THAT PEOPLE INTERESTED
IN YOUR ITEM(S) PLEASE REPLY TO *YOU* INSTEAD OF THE NEWSGROUP.
If you only want USA respondents, post it to rec.scouting.usa;
if you only want Girl Guide/Scouting respondents, post it to
rec.scouting.girl+guide; if you want WORLDWIDE respondents,
post it to rec.scouting.misc.
Do not cross-post within rec.scouting.*
and do not post the advertisement more than once a month).
There's also a Patch-L mailing list that you might
want to send your information to. (For more info on subscribing
to that list, refer to FAQ #5.)
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Subject: What are the copyright laws?
From: Mike Walton (black...@hcc-uky.campus.mci.net)
Date: 5 May 1996
Q. "I want to print/use/copy some of the great postings
here. Can I do this legally and if I can't, how do I get
permission to do so?"
A. That's a gray area. There are laws in the United States that
say that anything you "publish" is copyrightable, and if
others want to use it, they must ask for your permission. Of
course, that means squat if you live in Denmark and find
some Scouting recipe or song here. There's also a USENET
"common sense rule" that basically states that if you want
to use something that you obtained here, you need to ask the
person that posted it. Of course, that "rule" isn't carved
in stone. So, I would just *ask* the person if it's okay.
For more information see postings in the group:
news.announce.newusers, and read the post
entitled: Copyright Myths FAQ.
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Subject: What is considered net abuse?
From: Mike Walton (black...@hcc-uky.campus.mci.net)
Date: 5 May 1996
Q. What is considered net abuse, and what can I do about it?
A. First off, don't reply with a Post to the group!
Take a look at The Net Abuse FAQ.
This FAQ is normally posted to news.answers and news.admin.net-abuse.misc.
A copy is also kept up to date at:
http://www.cybernothing.org/faqs/net-abuse-faq.html
This FAQ covers the topics of net abuse and Spamming.
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Subject: What can be done about the language used here?
From: Mike Walton (black...@hcc-uky.campus.mci.net)
Date: 5 May 1996
Q. "I don't like some of the language/description/ideas used
here. Is there any way that I can object or let "someone in
charge" know of my objection?"
A. There is really "nobody in charge" of an unmoderated group
like ALL of the rec.scouting.* groups are. ... there's
very little you or I or anyone else can do about it. ...
Please exercise care with your children while accessing these
newsgroups; please try to uphold the best qualities of your nation's Scouting
principles while posting...
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Subject: Are the postings archived?
From: Mike Walton (black...@hcc-uky.campus.mci.net)
Date: 5 May 1996
Q. "Are the postings here on rec.scouting.* archived in
anyway? Are MY postings to ANY newsgroup archived anywhere?"
A. Yes, to both questions. There is a website that tracks your
postings to ANY newsgroup ... and
which allows you to search by name (for instance, Mike Walton)
and see ALL of the posts he made to a particular newsgroup,
the postings made to ALL of the newsgroups ...
Point your browser to http://www.dejanews.com and see for
yourself!
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Subject: Is there a boy who is trying to collect the most
business cards in the world, before he dies?
From: Bill Nelson <nel...@aztec.asu.edu>
Date: 29 April 1996
Q. I hear there is a boy who is trying to collect the most
business cards in the world, before he dies, is this true?
That would make a good project for my scouts...
A. The boy is now healed and the family has requested an end
to the mail.
News reports stated in 1989 that Craig Shergold, a 9-year-old
English boy diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor, wanted to
be recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records for receiving
the most greeting cards. His wish was fulfilled in 1990 after
receiving 16 million cards.
Shergold's tumor was successfully removed in March 1991.
Several versions of the letter exist, most of which
wrongly claim that the young boy remains terminally ill
and now wants to receive the largest number of business cards.
Internet notes have listed his name as Shirgold, or another
similar name, and his location shifts from state to state.
For further information, and to find out how
you can help the Make-A-Wish Foundation fulfill wishes see:
http://www.wish.org
Or contact:
Make-A-Wish Foundation of America
100 W. Clarendon, Suite 2200
Phoenix, AZ 85013-3518
(800) 722-9474 Fax: (602) 279-0855
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From: j...@cray.com (James A Lindberg)
Subject: How to handle inflammatory postings
Date: Tue Jun 11 05:50:39 1996
I would just like to say a word about trolling, for those of you who don't
know what it is. Trolling is when someone says something very controversial.
They hope to get a rise out of you. The best way to handle it is ignore it.
If you would like to respond to a troll, reply to the person directly.
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From: nel...@aztec.asu.edu
Subject: What is Net Abuse and what can I do about it?
Date: Sun Jun 23 1996
According to the experts on news.admin.net-abuse:
... as Neil Pawson says, "it's for abuse *of* the net, NOT
abuse *on* the net." Just because somebody does something vile, we
don't necessarily want to hear about it on net.admin.net-abuse.
To qualify as
true panic-inspiring net-abuse, an act must interfere with the
net-use of a large number of people. Examples of this: newsgroup
flooding, widespread or organized forgery campaigns, widespread or
organized account hackery, widespread or organized censorship
attempts...
However, much which is not considered net abuse, are very serious
violations of Netiquette. Netiquette is explained in RFC
1855 Netiquette Guidelines which can be found at:
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/htbin/rfc/rfc-index.html
More information on net abuse, and how you can do something about it can
be found in the Net Abuse FAQ which is posted in the following news groups
news.admin.net-abuse.misc, news.groups.questions and news.answers.
It is also available at:
http://www.cybernothing.org/faqs/net-abuse-faq.html
Even more information can be found on the WWW page "Everything You'd
Rather Not Have To Know About Net-Abuse" :
http://www.tezcat.com/~haz1/netabuse/netabuse.html
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From: nel...@aztec.asu.edu
Subject: Chain Letters and other fraudulent posts
Date: Dec 21 1999
The following are guidelines for US citizens. Other countries
may have similar laws.
Many people post chain letters or other fraudulent solicitations
to newsgroups or send them via e-mail.
Often they claim that their letters are legal because they are selling
a product (such as a recipe) or because the initial solicitation isn't
sent through the US mail. Well, the United States Postal Service has a
very different opinion. According to the USPS all such letters, no
matter how they're sent, are illegal. Please go to the web page
at http://www.fraud.org and report their actions.
In many states, it is illegal to send chain e-letters and SPAM, and if you are caught,
there is a fine and/or jail time for EACH COPY which was sent from your account. For
example, if you are caught sending SPAM in Virginia, you can be fined up to
$500 (IIRC) for each copy which was sent from your account. Sending only 10
copies can result in a $5000 fine. In many areas, if you are sending
to a mailing list and include instructions on
how to be removed from the mailing list it is not SPAM.
Do not post a reply to fraudulent posts. If you would like to respond
to a chain letter, reply to the person directly. Perpetuating a chain
letter can result in your Internet access being revoked by your service
provider.
By the way, the "Make Money Fast" type chain letters are cancelled
when system operators see them, you do not need to reply to them.
They will be deleted in due time.
End of [rec.scouting.*] About the Scouting newsgroups (FAQ 1)
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