To Erik & All, these comments from Erik:
...
Would it make sense to have it somehow as part of the e-mail map on the
home page? It almost seems more logical, rather than a single state
contact person, to have all in a given state, who are interested & willing, to
have their contact info available? ...
...
What about a part of the web page that was something like "Meet the
Letterboxers", where the intros now being developed might reside, maybe
not quite as abbreviated in terms of one line of text, and, maybe a
place to display one's personal stamp ...
...
I think it might be interesting to have a place to display failures,
i.e., the backwards text, misspelling (did I mispell ' misspelling'?),
etc. For the new stamp carvers, it might show how we can all make
'misteaks' (sic), might be fun, might make 'the perfect stamp' less
daunting of a goal...
My comments:
I'd thought about the first 2 ideas already. The 3rd one is good too.
I wonder though if we should give the first 2 ideas some more thought
(as to how).
I'd like to explore the idea of emailing links to pages that "Introduce the
Letterboxers" rather than linking them with the web page -- to keep
it more interactive - more in the hands/& process of our correspondence
rather than sitting out there for the whole world to see.
I think to make this more clear, in general, you should look at
HOW these pages are sitting (by themselves):
http://www.pclink.com/elf/label.htm
http://www.pclink.com/elf/testform.htm
These are not linked to the main page or anywhere else, nor do they include any
links to anywhere else. They're just sitting out there, not likely to be seen
by anyone unless somebody points them out in an email note. That's what I'm
suggesting for the introductory information as well -- which may include stamp
samples, pictures, etc.
But I'd like to think about how to do this. I think, when the web is
invloved, input forms are the way to go. There could be an input form for this
eventually too, similar to the one being proposed for clues.
Again, the input form will not be a main link or appear on a main page.
If you want somebody to know about it you would have to email them and
say, "Hey, look here:"
http://www.pclink.com/elf/testform.htm
BUT, for
right now I had just planned to forward the info via email, mainly for new
members. But to get this started I can post more detailed info for you
(including a stamp sample or picture if you want) elsewhere. So then what comes
in an email may look something like this:
Adrian (Have Feet Will Travel) Williams, Age 43, Dartmoor England: Manager &
Letterboxer
mailto: adrian@letterboxing.freeserve.co.uk
http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/~have.feet/letter/page2.html
Notice it has the email link plus the link to Adrian's info (his page).
So then I would provide a similar page for each state or each person,
but it would not be advertised on the left-hand map on the main page.
The link would come in an email form only BY CHOICE (as intervened by us humans)
and as part of our ongoing correspondence. Does this make sense? It lends more
toward keeping the communication going rather than having some static system.
Then you could sign-off with the links or pass them on in your correspondence.
You may even want to put it at the beginning of your note. Its all optional
then. There are many ways other ways to do this too. As usual, comments, if
any you have, would be greatly and unequivocally appreciated.
Daniel
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Intro, phase 2?
5 messages in this thread |
Started on 1999-01-31
[L-USA] Intro, phase 2?
From: Daniel Servatius (elf@pclink.com) |
Date: 1999-01-31 11:14:34 UTC-06:00
[L-USA] Re: Intro, phase 2?
From: erik/susan davis (davisarc@wcvt.com) |
Date: 1999-01-31 14:24:09 UTC-08:00
Dan'l Servatius wrote:
> These are not linked to the main page or anywhere else, nor do they include any
> links to anywhere else. They're just sitting out there, not likely to be seen
> by anyone unless somebody points them out in an email note. That's what I'm
> suggesting for the introductory information as well -- which may include stamp
> samples, pictures, etc.
I think this is a good idea. Some people are reluctant to discolse too
much personal info on open, easily-surfed web pages, for all sorts of
valid personal reasons. What you suggest is a pretty good compromise -
presumably, the link might always be provided whenever an inquiry is
received from someone new, perhaps sent directly by one of us, not to
the whole Letterbox-USA group? I.E., ya gotta come forweard and show an
interest before you get to "meet us all" - is that what you had in mind?
To me, it seems to work just fine as a concept.
I guess, to get it set up, first the proffer thru the talk (as you just
did recently) for some introductory bio info would be sent to all the
list. When it is established, following the above "rules" (so to speak),
the link should be mailed to all active participants?
Not bad.
Erik
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> These are not linked to the main page or anywhere else, nor do they include any
> links to anywhere else. They're just sitting out there, not likely to be seen
> by anyone unless somebody points them out in an email note. That's what I'm
> suggesting for the introductory information as well -- which may include stamp
> samples, pictures, etc.
I think this is a good idea. Some people are reluctant to discolse too
much personal info on open, easily-surfed web pages, for all sorts of
valid personal reasons. What you suggest is a pretty good compromise -
presumably, the link might always be provided whenever an inquiry is
received from someone new, perhaps sent directly by one of us, not to
the whole Letterbox-USA group? I.E., ya gotta come forweard and show an
interest before you get to "meet us all" - is that what you had in mind?
To me, it seems to work just fine as a concept.
I guess, to get it set up, first the proffer thru the talk (as you just
did recently) for some introductory bio info would be sent to all the
list. When it is established, following the above "rules" (so to speak),
the link should be mailed to all active participants?
Not bad.
Erik
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[L-USA] Re: Intro, phase 2?
From: (Letterboxr@aol.com) |
Date: 1999-01-31 20:54:35 UTC-05:00
Dan writes:
> I'd like to explore the idea of emailing links to pages that "Introduce the
> Letterboxers"
I like the idea of including a web page reference along with the bio
information.
Then we can keep our ''Virtual Welcome Wagon'' short and sweet, knowing that
if anyone wants to learn more about us, they can check out our personal web
page.
At each person's discretion, the personal web pages could either be self-made,
as in the example for Adrian, or they could be provided as part of the
Letterbox USA services, as Dan suggests. There would certainly have to be
some constraints regarding length for pages provide by L-USA. They could be
done for each person, or for each state, although I tend to prefer individual
pages for each person, unless we can think of an efficient way to see that
people who provide their own pages also get included in the state-by-state
listings.
Erik writes:
> It almost seems more logical, rather than a single state
> contact person, to have all in a given state, who are interested & willing,
> to have their contact info available?
This makes sense to me. I think the contact people for both Washington and
California felt pressured by the responsibility of being the sole
representative for their state. Fearing they could not meet future
expectations, they both chose to bow out rather than face the possibility of
letting someone down. Here in Oregon, I am more than happy to represent our
hobby to newcomers in the area, but if I were on vacation or caught up in
bothersome ''extra-cyber'' responsibilities, a potential letterboxer could
just as easily learn everything they need to get started from my neighbor Thom
Cheney (assuming he has no objections to this... I'm just using him as an
example). I think people will be more likely to volunteer if they know they
are part of a network of representatives for their area, rather than a
solitary contact person.
Please take the following suggestion with a grain of salt... I don't want to
sound like a spokesperson for egroups or any other free email list service.
This is just an idea to consider: We could set up any number of smaller
mailing lists for each state or any other specialty group (stamp carvers,
technical people, etc.) This would provide two benefits, as I see it. It
would provide a single mailing address that forwards messages to any number of
people who wish to be included, and it also provides better security against
''spam-bots'' that endlessly search the net for websites such as ours that
include links to personal email addresses.
Sincerely, Mitch
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> I'd like to explore the idea of emailing links to pages that "Introduce the
> Letterboxers"
I like the idea of including a web page reference along with the bio
information.
Then we can keep our ''Virtual Welcome Wagon'' short and sweet, knowing that
if anyone wants to learn more about us, they can check out our personal web
page.
At each person's discretion, the personal web pages could either be self-made,
as in the example for Adrian, or they could be provided as part of the
Letterbox USA services, as Dan suggests. There would certainly have to be
some constraints regarding length for pages provide by L-USA. They could be
done for each person, or for each state, although I tend to prefer individual
pages for each person, unless we can think of an efficient way to see that
people who provide their own pages also get included in the state-by-state
listings.
Erik writes:
> It almost seems more logical, rather than a single state
> contact person, to have all in a given state, who are interested & willing,
> to have their contact info available?
This makes sense to me. I think the contact people for both Washington and
California felt pressured by the responsibility of being the sole
representative for their state. Fearing they could not meet future
expectations, they both chose to bow out rather than face the possibility of
letting someone down. Here in Oregon, I am more than happy to represent our
hobby to newcomers in the area, but if I were on vacation or caught up in
bothersome ''extra-cyber'' responsibilities, a potential letterboxer could
just as easily learn everything they need to get started from my neighbor Thom
Cheney (assuming he has no objections to this... I'm just using him as an
example). I think people will be more likely to volunteer if they know they
are part of a network of representatives for their area, rather than a
solitary contact person.
Please take the following suggestion with a grain of salt... I don't want to
sound like a spokesperson for egroups or any other free email list service.
This is just an idea to consider: We could set up any number of smaller
mailing lists for each state or any other specialty group (stamp carvers,
technical people, etc.) This would provide two benefits, as I see it. It
would provide a single mailing address that forwards messages to any number of
people who wish to be included, and it also provides better security against
''spam-bots'' that endlessly search the net for websites such as ours that
include links to personal email addresses.
Sincerely, Mitch
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[L-USA] Re: Intro, phase 2?
From: Daniel Servatius (elf@pclink.com) |
Date: 1999-01-31 23:56:08 UTC-06:00
Letterboxr@aol.com wrote:
> Erik writes:
> > It almost seems more logical, rather than a single state
> > contact person, to have all in a given state, who are interested & willing,
> > to have their contact info available?
>
> This makes sense to me. I think the contact people for both Washington and
> California felt pressured by the responsibility of being the sole
> representative for their state.
I guess I missed that part by Erik initially. I don't think it makes much
difference now because of the relatively small number of adherents. I mean
right now being state contact has meant little more than (perhaps) getting
an email or two from interested people in one's state. I think its an initial
contact thing more than anything. So even if the number of people grows
appreciably... I don't know... I wonder what it will entail - probably not
that much even when it grows. But some people may like the left-hand map
(the contact map) and may not want it changed. I think if we do change it
should just be that clicking on a state would give you the option of
contacting several people instead of just one person. I think that's what
your saying in essence, right? So you could click on for instance Iowa,
and bring up a page of Iowa contacts, one of whom is primary. For that
matter the list of people could show up right alongside of the state map.
For that matter each contact name could be color coded and correspond to
the dots on the map... just thinking out loud here. Then again, like I
said earlier some people may not want it changed at all. But I suppose
I could try a few of these options and put them out there for testing
to see what people like and don't like. All in due time. It all takes
time. Too many irons in the fire right now I think. Maybe a week or two
on that one. I'm in Overtime mode at work right now and that usually
lasts a week or two. But I will get to it, I promise.
Dan
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> Erik writes:
> > It almost seems more logical, rather than a single state
> > contact person, to have all in a given state, who are interested & willing,
> > to have their contact info available?
>
> This makes sense to me. I think the contact people for both Washington and
> California felt pressured by the responsibility of being the sole
> representative for their state.
I guess I missed that part by Erik initially. I don't think it makes much
difference now because of the relatively small number of adherents. I mean
right now being state contact has meant little more than (perhaps) getting
an email or two from interested people in one's state. I think its an initial
contact thing more than anything. So even if the number of people grows
appreciably... I don't know... I wonder what it will entail - probably not
that much even when it grows. But some people may like the left-hand map
(the contact map) and may not want it changed. I think if we do change it
should just be that clicking on a state would give you the option of
contacting several people instead of just one person. I think that's what
your saying in essence, right? So you could click on for instance Iowa,
and bring up a page of Iowa contacts, one of whom is primary. For that
matter the list of people could show up right alongside of the state map.
For that matter each contact name could be color coded and correspond to
the dots on the map... just thinking out loud here. Then again, like I
said earlier some people may not want it changed at all. But I suppose
I could try a few of these options and put them out there for testing
to see what people like and don't like. All in due time. It all takes
time. Too many irons in the fire right now I think. Maybe a week or two
on that one. I'm in Overtime mode at work right now and that usually
lasts a week or two. But I will get to it, I promise.
Dan
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[L-USA] Re: Intro, phase 2?
From: erik/susan davis (davisarc@wcvt.com) |
Date: 1999-02-01 19:59:04 UTC-08:00
Dan'l wrote:
> I think if we do change it
> should just be that clicking on a state would give you the option of
> contacting several people instead of just one person. I think that's what
> your saying in essence, right?
That's it, Dan - for example, my name is on VT by virtue of being the
first here.Tom Cooch , for example, is equally - no, more active that I
ahppen to be at the moment. It makes sense to have both our names
available for local inquiries.
Mitch wrote (this and more)...
>
> Exactly. If we set up 50 miniature talk lists (one for each state) we could
> just replace the contact person's email address with the address for the state
> talk list. Then, an inquiry for the state of Iowa, for instance, would be
> forwarded to anyone and everyone interested in greeting a new person from that
> state.
and.....
> Imagine how exciting it could be for someone who has just discovered the hobby
> to send a simple message requesting info... only to be greeted by two or three
> or half a dozen people in their area who are already involved. Much better
> than receiving a reply from a single individual who may or may not have the
> time to deal with their request at that particular moment.
Mitch, you are truely a global thinker! While I hope that smaller
localized lists won't dilute the energy of the larger (goegraphically)
list we have now, I like your long-range visions.
Isn't it interesting how one little snippet of an idea (in this case,
Dan'l's mini - bio's) growes into something so much larger so quickly.
Amazing.
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> I think if we do change it
> should just be that clicking on a state would give you the option of
> contacting several people instead of just one person. I think that's what
> your saying in essence, right?
That's it, Dan - for example, my name is on VT by virtue of being the
first here.Tom Cooch , for example, is equally - no, more active that I
ahppen to be at the moment. It makes sense to have both our names
available for local inquiries.
Mitch wrote (this and more)...
>
> Exactly. If we set up 50 miniature talk lists (one for each state) we could
> just replace the contact person's email address with the address for the state
> talk list. Then, an inquiry for the state of Iowa, for instance, would be
> forwarded to anyone and everyone interested in greeting a new person from that
> state.
and.....
> Imagine how exciting it could be for someone who has just discovered the hobby
> to send a simple message requesting info... only to be greeted by two or three
> or half a dozen people in their area who are already involved. Much better
> than receiving a reply from a single individual who may or may not have the
> time to deal with their request at that particular moment.
Mitch, you are truely a global thinker! While I hope that smaller
localized lists won't dilute the energy of the larger (goegraphically)
list we have now, I like your long-range visions.
Isn't it interesting how one little snippet of an idea (in this case,
Dan'l's mini - bio's) growes into something so much larger so quickly.
Amazing.
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