> the net is all about communication, and I don't want to
> make it hard for people to communicate with me [...] I
> won't make myself hard to reach just to deflect the stuff I
> don't want [...] if we're forced to do that sort of thing
> to keep the newbies and spammers off our backs, they've
> won, and ruined the net
I completely agree with Steve, and add another reason.
Since my FAQ is in health care (diabetes), many of the
newbies are in a state of personal desperation when they
come to the net looking for help. This is not a situation
where it's appropriate to toss them back into the pool to
learn to swim. That's often appropriate in other areas --
say, bicycling or early music (to mention some other
passions of mine). When people's health is at stake, I'll
assume some of the responsibility for helping them overcome
the technical obstacles of joining the net.
Edward Reid