Notice: The Automation List is now served by Mailman

Automation List FAQ and Guidelines

The purpose of the maillist "automation@control.com" is to provide a non-commercial forum for the discussion of automation topics, including PLCs, plant networks, and general automation concerns. It was founded by Ken Crater (ken@control.com) and is moderated by Jennifer Powell, Robert Hazelwood, Lenore Tracey, and Pam Williams at listm@control.com.

Although we hope not to be too bureaucratic and rigid about enforcement, for the common enjoyment and productive use of this list we would appreciate adherence to the following guidelines:

1. PLEASE POST MESSAGES! The realities of maillist dynamics are that only a small percentage of subscribers participate -- taken to extremes, the maillist is silent and pointless, therefore it dies.

2. Please use English. If you post in a language other than English, you must include an English translation.

3. Please post thoughtfully. A considered post or response will generate considered replies, and valuable discussion could ensue. An extra minute or two spent on a message will reap rewards with greater appreciation shown for your point of view.

4. Please make use of the topic filtering system in the subject of each message that you send. (See FAQ #18b below for details.)

5. Please post considerately. As you may have already noticed, irreverence is fine, vehement disagreement is expected, and the occasional unsupported conclusion is inevitable. But try to keep arguments on a technical or business level, not on a personal level.

6. Please post concisely. While it's true that explanation is often necessary to communicate technical arguments adequately, a point made concisely has more impact.

7. Please edit quotations! When you quote a previous post to establish a context for your response, please edit the quote down to the minimum necessary to jog peoples' memories.

8. Please do not post attachments (images or files) to the list. These files may be larger than some mailboxes can handle. It is usually sufficient to post a message offering to send the relevant file if people contact you directly, or if possible, to post it on an FTP or WWW server.

9. Please sign your message, otherwise it's not always clear who the poster is. Also, if you want readers to be able to contact you offlist, include your email address in your signature. (The header of an A-List message does not include the writer's email address otherwise.)

10. If you're interested in receiving information about managing your subscription via email, send an email to automation-request@control.com with the message body:

          help

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

• 11. Posting a message to the List
• 12. Joining the List
• 13. Unsubscribing from the List
• 14. Changing your subscription address
• 15. Who to contact for help
• 16. Who may join the List
• 17. What are considered appropriate/inappropriate posts?
• 18. Too much mail from the List? Here are some solutions.
• 19. The A-List archive
• 20. Altering other subscription options

11. How do I post a message to the list?

Send your message to automation@control.com. It will then be routed to the list moderator, who will likely approve it and forward it to the list. If there is any problem with your post, a moderator will try to contact you as soon as possible. Please have patience; sometimes due to heavy usage there's a lag of a day or two between submission and posting.

By the way, we encourage you to use the List archives to find past discussions on your topic of interest, in the interest of avoiding duplicate questions whenever possible. Use the "Search" box in the lefthand column of our website screen at http://www.control.com.

12. How do I join the list?

Go to http://lists.control.com/mailman/listinfo/automation for more information, or email the List for help as described in #10 above.

13. How do I get off the list?

Login at http://lists.control.com/mailman/listinfo/automation for more information, or email the List for help as described in #10 above.

14. My email address has changed. How can I change my subscription address?

Go to http://lists.control.com/mailman/listinfo/automation for more information, or email the List for help as described in #10 above.

15. Who do I contact for help (if I need to reach a human)?

The list moderators are Jennifer Powell, Robert Hazelwood, Lenore Tracey, and Pam Williams of Control.com Inc. You can reach them at listm@control.com.

16. Who may join the list?

Anyone with an interest in the topics of the list may join, although we reserve the right to limit participation to avoid commercial exploitation. We invite and welcome members of all other companies and academic institutions, including researchers, end users, integrators, and suppliers, to join and actively participate.

17. What are considered appropriate/inappropriate posts?

Besides the general comments listed above at #1-10, here are some more specific guidelines for List interaction:

(a) If you're a vendor or work for a vendor...
Control.com does not post unsolicited product announcements.
When replying to a thread, if you feel your company has a product that may solve the problem at hand, supply basic technological information. Do not use flattering, promotional language about the product (e.g., "the best solution", "great performance", etc.), and do not discuss pricing issues unless specifically asked to.
Do give your company's website (and/or an email or phone number) so that individuals may follow up if they choose to.

(b) Need a job or want a job?
We do not allow job postings or requests for employment.

(c) Selling/Buying
Currently, Control.com doesn't allow buying and selling items via our forum. If you are looking for something in particular, such as an item of used equipment, word your post to ask for recommendations on reputable vendors of such items. Note that some of our readers have recommended EBay.
Please do not post message about products you want to sell, new or used.

(d) Off-topic posts
Our forum's general subject is industrial automation and control. Please, no posts about anything but the subject being discussed.

(e) Personal Replies
If a writer has provided an email address, you may contact them directly unless you want your reply to be seen by the entire Forum because of additional questions or comments. Typical situation: they're offering a document, program, or other information and all you want is a copy -- go ahead and contact the writer directly.

(f) Constructive Criticism
If you disagree with a writer, please keep your criticism aimed at the ideas and technologies being discussed, not the individual, and keep it friendly. Your comments should include technological examples where possible; "I don't like that product" is not enough. Comments we feel are personal or insulting will not be posted; obscene language will be removed.

(g) When to start a new thread
If you're reading an existing discussion and have a new question, only partly related to the discussion at hand, please feel free to start a new thread.

(h) Uh-oh, Copyrights
We cannot post copyrighted material outside of a very brief excerpt if there is no notice of permission to reprint, per the principle of Fair Use. If the document is online and is available to all, please supply its name and its URL. If the document is only available via a paid support contract, you may refer to it by name only and be sure to state where it comes from.
If you want to learn more about Fair Use, see these links: 10 Big Myths about copyright explained or Copyright Basics - Fair Use

(i) Illegal Software Use and Promotion
We do not allow posts that suggest solutions to problems that involve copyright infringement or any other illegal activity.

(j) Student Projects
Please ask detailed technical questions about problems you are working on. Give as many details as possible.
Do not submit general questions asking for the answer to a test question or homework problem, or ideas for projects. Your question may be ignored if it appears that you want someone else to do work for which you will get credit or that you are simply submitting a question from an exam or homework assignment verbatim. A few common student questions are already in our archives, such as the Elevator (Lift) and Traffic Lights programming problems -- search first!

(k) I posted before and no one replied!
Please be aware that we do not allow duplicate postings of questions from the same person. The contents of our site are searchable via the Web and could conceivably be found by anyone at any time. If you posted within the last few days or weeks and received few replies, and feel your question should be restated or that additional comments from you may help your case, please reply to your own thread. The new information will appear as part of the thread on our site, and will also be posted to the members of the Automation List (the e-mail version of our forum).
If the original posting of your question is older than several months and you are still looking for discussion, you may post a new question; please provide a link to the previous discussion in your new post.

18. Gaack! I'm getting buried in email! What can I do?

Here are some options:

(a) There is a "digest" mode available for the maillist. Instead of getting each message as it is approved by the moderator, you will receive one big message each day. Login at http://lists.control.com/mailman/listinfo/automation for more information, or email the List for help as described in #10 above.

(b) Choose the messages you receive by topic. The Automation List is divided into fifteen main topics, which represent many of the main interests of list subscribers with respect to the Automation List. The topics are:

          APPS (Application Questions and Problems)
          BUSN (The business of automation)
          COMM (Communications Equipment, Networks, and Protocols)
          ENGR (Engineering and workplace issues)
          HMI  (Human-Machine Interface, and SCADA)
          INFO (Information resources, documentation)
          LANG (Programming languages)
          MOTION (Motion control, servos, steppers, etc.)
          NET (Local and wide area networking in factory automation)
          OPENC (Open control: open interfaces, software and hardware)
          PC   (Computers in manufacturing, also hardware discussion)
          PLCS (PLCs and related questions)
          PROC (Continuous process industries, DCS questions)
          SENSOR (Sensor technologies)
          SOFT (Software, including programming, OS issues, etc.) 

By default, all members receive all topics. If you would like to limit your subscription to a smaller subset of topics, login at http://lists.control.com/mailman/listinfo/automation. Those without web access may email listm@control.com; list your preferences in your email. Please note that if you receive the Digest, you cannot limit your topics.

19. Is there an archive for the Automation List?

Control.com's Cool Stuff folders contain A-List mail dating back to November 1999. See the righthand column of the www.control.com homepage.

20. How do I change other settings -- for example, turn off my mail when I'm away and turn it on again when I return, or get a copy of my own postings?

Login at http://lists.control.com/mailman/listinfo/automation for more information, or email the List for help as described in #10 above.

For more information about our legal requirements, see http://www.control.com/legal_html
Our privacy policy is found at http://www.control.com/legal_html#privacy

(c) Control.com Inc., February 2003