[GRRN] Attachments; Growth
Bruce Nordman (b_nedg@dante.lbl.gov)
Thu, 22 Apr 1999 13:31:27 -0700 (PDT)
I concur with all the critiques of including attachments in postings
to this list. I think that a corollary is the inclusion of original
messages in replies. In my personal email, I've noticed a recent
increase in people including the entire original message in their
replies whether or not there is anything in it that I need to refer
to. I archive all outgoing email, so can easily look up the original
message if necessary.
For this list, I encourage people to think several times before
including the original message. Due consideration should be given
to providing a summary or relevant excerpt. When truly warranted,
including the entire original message is fine.
A problem with excess mail (beyond what others have already noted)
is that the more there is, the easier it is to 'lose' wanted information
in the sea of unwanted information.
On the growth column that was posted, there is a (usually unstated)
assumption that the size of the economy is identical or closely related
to quality of life. For most residents of the U.S., and many others
in the world, I think this is empirically not true. In these cases,
any assumption that growth is necessarily good is invalid. While some
changes that lead to growth may be good, it is only by studying the
individual change or project that we can conclude that.
--Bruce
Bruce Nordman
BNordman@LBL.gov
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
510-486-7089; fax: 510-486-4673
http://www.lbl.gov/~bnordman