[Dixielandjazz] Those who dislike change . . .

[Jim O'Briant]

Pat Ladd wrote:

> What more do you need. 
> 
> Pictures? `friends?` Texts with Wot U doin? and other 
> pithy comments? ...
> 
> Why all the angst because the list is not something 
> it was never designed to be?

This mailing list was not designed to carry images or embedded videos,
because those features weren't available when the DJML started. They ARE
available now, but not through a plain-text mailing list. And because
formatted text, photos, graphics, embedded videos and the like are
available, people under about 35 years old generally expect them -- and want
to use them. If a given forum doesn't offer them, it's viewed as a dinosaur,
due for extinction -- and soon.

The service that hosts DJML apparently believes that sending an email to the
list and then waiting 24 hours for it to appears is just fine. In 2014, the
time lapse between sending the message and others receiving it should be
closer to 24 seconds. 

The service that hosts DJML apparently thinks that rejecting all messages
from huge & widely used email host domains is just fine, even if that means
that some DJML members have to send emails to their friends & ask the
friends to forward them on to the list. This is simply unacceptable, and
you'd agree if btinternet.com messages were all treated this way.

There is now a DJML page on Facebook. I haven't joined it yet, only because
for the past week I've been in a location with absolutely terrible Internet
access. It's slow, I get kicked offline frequently, and access is sometimes
unavailable for hours on end. I for one am not saying "well, the Internet
access here was probably crappy 15 years ago, too, so it's all right if it's
crappy today, even if the entire world has left this place behind." No, my
reaction is that I'm stuck here until Wednesday, I'm leaving promptly on
Wednesday, and unless technology access here changes I will never be back.
That's exactly what young potential OKOM fans say about a text-only email
list that provides less than minimum standard service and sometimes no
service at all.

Sorry, Pat, but to my ears your message is nothing more than a new version
of "what was good enough for my grandparents is good enough for me." For
some things, that may be fine -- but NOT when we're trying attract present
and upcoming generations to discover, appreciate, love and support OKOM. 

Jim O'Briant
Gilroy, CA