Another Great Renaming?

[John Plocher]

In article <109 at jetson.UPMA.MD.US> john at jetson.UPMA.MD.US (John Owens) writes:
>	comp.unix.i286		UNIX on systems using the Intel '286 CPU
>	comp.unix.i386		UNIX on systems using the Intel '386 CPU
>	(delete comp.unix.xenix and comp.unix.microport)
>and another popular one:
>	comp.unix.intel		UNIX on systems using Intel CPUs
>	(delete comp.unix.xenix and comp.unix.microport)

Please note, however, that *never* in the history of Usenet has a newsgroup
been completely and successfully renamed.  Proof:  There are still net.sources
articles bouncing here and there... :-)   It sounds great to some people (let's
trash .xenix and .microport), but knowing the inertia of the net, it just 
won't fly.  Too many people don't keep up with their news software, and
they don't know enough (or are paranoid enough) so they don't automagically
process control messages.

It took a good 4 months to get .microport to the point that enough people
were reading it to make it viable; let's not start all over again just
because someone has this great Idea for renaming things.  What with
Vr3.2 just around the corner the whole landscape will change and the
286/386/unix/xenix camp will get a little closer together.  BUT, there
will *still* be those with Xenix (IBM 2.0, 68K...) and those with *non*
Vr3.2 Unix (Xenix 2.3 is *not* the same as Vr3.2, email me if you don't
know why).  Simply deleting .xenix and .microport won't help THOSE users
a bit!

I like the idea of creating .intel or .286/.386 groups; I just think that
deleting the .xenix and .microport groups is premature.  Even though
they all are "unix", the admin and installation procedures are SO different
between them that lumping them together would lead to quite a bit of
"noise" postings:

	I am interested in 3.2 on a Compaq 386:  I don't care about V/386 3.0
        or Xenix 2.3; why should I wade thru those postings in *my* group?

	I am interested in Xenix 2.3, but everyone here seems to be only 
        interested in 3.2; what do I do?

	I use Xenix on a Tandy 68K, now they deleted my .xenix group, where
        do I go?

	Xenix isn't reliable:  ruptime /dev/maytag says 25 years! na na nana na

	I use V/AT and V/386; I want to flame uport, now I have to type two
	newsgroups on the line.  This is too much like work, I think I'll just
        call them!  :-)

    -John Plocher
    (Its me, I tell you, ME!)