The ADUG mailing list is not moderated so this means that we rely on all list members to follow a few simple rules to ensure that it is an effective and welcome tool for all members to use.
Please note that the ADUG list master has absolute discretion to add or remove people from the list at any time and is not obliged to notify those who have been removed.
If you have any questions about list policy, please address them to listmaster@adug.org.au

1 Aim of the list

The aim of this mailing list is to facilitate on-going constructive communication between all Delphi programmers. This is an appropriate forum if you need help with Delphi or if you have any suggestions to raise. Limited forms of advertising are permitted. Please see the advertising guidelines below.

2 Lurkers

This list is maintained by the ADUG for the benefit of Delphi programmers. If you are a Delphi programmer at any level you are welcome to lurk, and to post. We leave it up to you to consider supporting us by joining ADUG as a financial member.

3 Appropriate subject lines

Please use a subject line for every message you post, and please ensure that it is appropriate. The aim of the subject line should be to allow those people who might not be interested in your message to decide not to read it. Blank subject lines and non-descriptive subject lines like “Help me” are very tedious and all members are encouraged to ignore such posts. Another silly subject line is “Off topic” – it’s better to describe the topic clearly and allow the reader to decide.

4 Message format

Messages should always be in plain text. This ensures all recipients can readily read all messages. Plain text also makes it easier to set up search facilities on the mailing list archives.
HTML messages will be converted to plain text and this will result in the loss of details such as embedded images and will likely upset any formatting.
Please try to avoid very long lines. Not all mailers fold them and they can make a post very hard to read.

5 Large messages

The list server automatically limits messages to 20kB (including attachments). This is a deliberate policy to discourage posting of binaries and other large files or messages. Some list members may use relatively slow connections (e.g. congested WiFi or 3G) and it wastes time waiting for large messages to download. If a large item is of general interest then it is preferable to just post a message about where it can be found. Alternatively you can invite requests, and send it directly to those who want it. Messages over the size limit will be held pending List Manager approval – while this will generally be forthcoming, it will delay the message, sometimes for many hours.

6 Attachments

Attachments are not permitted – all attachments will be stripped before the post is forwarded. Additionally large attachments will result in the post being held pending List Mananger approval (see 5 Large message above).

7 Courtesy and tone

Please be careful not to give offence, and particularly do not defame anybody, regardless of whether they are list members or otherwise.
Please include your Delphi version, and other pertinent details, if asking for assistance as this will assist potential responders and improve your chances of receiving helpful replies.
Be aware that list members have a wide range of programmer experience, from the complete newbie to the 20 year veteran, so do not assume the poster has the same knowledge level as yourself. If you are unsure of the experience level of the poster, and therefore the level of detail required in the answer, tactfully ask. Likewise, if you are posting a question it is beneficial to all if you include your experience level (if not apparent from the question).
The aim of the list is to facilitate constructive communication and disseminate useful information. Messages and replies that come through as offensive or derogatory, or with no constructive content are unwelcome on this list. Before posting negative criticism of any party every effort should be made to resolve the issue directly and privately with the party involved.

8 Observe the rights of others

Please ensure that you have the right to post material. Simply acknowledging copyright does not give you the right to post something that is copyright.
Please observe other people’s privacy and do not give out contact details without their permission, even if they are members of this list.

9 Advertising

Some forms of advertising is welcome as long as it is appropriate to the group. This would include products and services that would be of particular interest to Australian Delphi users. Formal job advertisements are not appropriate on the general ADUG members list. Members and outside agencies are asked to submit all job advertisements via Advertiser Information. If you are unsure whether your advertising is appropriate please check with the ADUG list master at listmaster@adug.org.au.

Advertisers should especially take care to ensure that the subject line of their message is appropriate and descriptive. It should make clear what is being advertised, and if it is location specific then the location should be made clear. Remember that list members come from all over the country, and overseas.

10 Check your mailer

The list server sets the Reply-To field of each message to try to ensure that replies are posted back to the list. Unfortunately some mailers ignore this field and send the reply direct to the sender. So please check that the recipient is adug-members@adug.org.au when you send a reply that is intended for all to see. If this doesn’t happen you may wish to consider updating your mailer program.

11 Replies direct to sender

The list server sets the Reply-to header to ensure that replies go back to the list. There are however some messages for which it is preferable for replies to go directly to the sender. Advertised products and services would fall into this category. Originators of these messages should clearly indicate that responses should be made direct to them and not to the list and provide an appropriate contact address.

12 Auto-responders

If you use an “out of office” notification facility or other type of auto-responder please unsubscribe yourself temporarily from the list while it is active. It’s also a good idea to configure your auto-responder to reply only once to each sender.
Auto-responder replies will typically cause your email address to be automatically unsubscribed, due to excessive bounces. If you have previously used an auto-responder and discover the ADUG list has gone strangely quiet, please log onto your ADUG mailman page (a personalised link is at the bottom of every ADUG list email) and re-subscribe yourself.
If you see an auto-responder message in an endless loop on the list please refrain from posting to the list as this will only compound the problem.

13 Message Trimming

Please make sure you trim the messages before you reply. If you require certain parts of the old message refer to it by quoting the original message. If you don’t refer to the old message strip it entirely from your message body. In particular make sure that other list members’ Unsubscribe/Options-links get deleted before you hit the send button. We do have an online archive available and don’t want an archive of the entire discussion in each reply.

For example a trimmed reply message could look like this:

Hello Joe,
please find my comments below.

Joe wrote:
>Question part A
My reply on question part A.

Joe also wrote:
>Question part B.
My reply on question part B.

Cheers,
MyName

[Part C & D have been deleted since there were no comments for them.]