[xsl] XSL-List Guidelines

["B. Tommie Usdin" <btusdin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This information is posted to the XSL-List (and the XSL-List Digest)
at intervals under the subject line "XSL-List guidelines".

Topics:
 - Posting
 - Before You Post...
 - Do Not Cross-Post
 - Replies Go To The List
 - Use Short Quotes of Previous Messages in Replies
 - Attachments are Banned
 - Disposition Notifications are Banned
 - Daily Digest
 - Unsubscribing from the XSL-List
 - Unsubscribing from the XSL-List Digest
 - If you stop getting XSL-List messages
 - Searchable Archive
 - Names and email addresses in Archive
 - XSL FAQ and other information on XSL
 - Reporting Bugs in Software
 - DSSSList -- The DSSSL Users' Mailing List
 - Contact

POSTING
=======

Only subscribers can post to XSL-List, and only from the address they
used when they subscribed.

There is no restriction on what may be posted to the XSL-List provided
it is related to XSL, which encompasses both XSL Transformations
(XSLT) and XSL Formatting Objects.  Items concerning XML but without a
direct connection to XSL should be posted to a XML-related list
instead of to the XSL-List.  Items related to DSSSL should be posted
to the DSSSList.

Do not begin your subject line with "help" or "subscribe" since the
list software will bounce the message because it looks like is an
administrative request.

Do not use un-informative subject lines like "Urgent", "Easy
question", "Beginner Question" or "Problem".  Instead, use 
a meaningful subject line that will make sense to the people 
whose help you are trying to get.

It is best to start a new message for a new thread.  Do not start a
new thread by replying to an unrelated message and just changing the
subject line, since the header of your message will contain references
to the previous message and your new message will appear in the
archive as one of the replies to the original message.

Both subscribers to XSL-List@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and subscribers to
XSL-List-Digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx should post their messages to
XSL-List@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, and the messages will be received by
both subscribers to the list and subscribers to the digest.


BEFORE YOU POST...
==================

1. Check that your question isn't already answered in the XSL FAQ at
   http://www.dpawson.co.uk/ and, if you use Microsoft's MSXML or IE5,
   the Unofficial MSXML XSLT FAQ at
   http://www.netcrucible.com/xslt/msxml-faq.htm.

2. Check that your question isn't already answered in the XSL-List
   archives at http://www.biglist.com/lists/xsl-list/archives/.

3. If you are asking for help with XSL-List code, use the stylesheet
   at http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/processor-version.xsl
   (see http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/processor-version.html
   for more information) on itself and paste the text from the HTML
   output into your post to identify which XSL processor you are
   using.

4. If you are replying to a post, trim the quoted message to just the
   parts to which you are replying.


DO NOT CROSS-POST
=================

Cross-posting to the XSL-List and to another list, even XML-Dev or the
DSSSList, is often counter-productive unless everybody who replies to
the thread is on both lists.  No list's archive will contain the
complete thread, cross-posts from non-subscribers continuing the
thread will bounce, and XSL-List subscribers who are not also on the
other list will only see half of the thread, as will those on the
other list who are not also on the XSL-List.  Subscribers to both
lists may see two copies of the message, annoying them as well.


REPLIES GO TO THE LIST
======================

The reply address of XSL-List messages (and of digests) is
xsl-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx so REPLIES GO TO THE LIST BY DEFAULT.
If you want to reply to just the author of a post, you should change
the "To:" field in your reply.


USE SHORT QUOTES OF PREVIOUS MESSAGES IN REPLIES
================================================

Please do not quote entire messages just to add a few lines at the
beginning or end.  Instead, quote the parts to which you are directly
replying or quote enough to establish the context.

Everybody on the list has already received the message that you are
quoting, and anyone searching the archive will find your message and
the previous message listed under the same thread.

Subscribers to the XSL-List will just ignore most of the quoted
messages and move to the next post, but subscribers to the XSL-List
Digest will mostly have to page past the quoted messages to reach the
next material in which they are interested in reading.


ATTACHMENTS ARE BANNED
======================

Since Mulberry's mailing lists have in the past been unwittingly used
for spreading viruses in e-mail attachments, all e-mail attachments
are banned from the XSL-List.

XSL stylesheets are XML files, and XML files are text files, so this
does not affect the majority of posts to the list since you can
include the files' text in the body of your message.  If you need to
refer to a binary file such as a PDF file, you should put the file on
a Web site or FTP site and include the file's URL in your XSL-List
post.

If you do include an attachment in your XSL-List post -- even a HTML
attachment -- your message will bounce.


DISPOSITION NOTIFICATIONS ARE BANNED
====================================

Disposition notification headers, which trigger "return receipt"
messages from some mail systems, are not allowed on XSL-List posts.
Disposition notifications don't make much sense on a mailing list, and
the headers are noted as being used to collect e-mail addresses for
later spamming, so messages with disposition notification headers will
either bounce or have the disposition notification header silently
removed.


DAILY DIGEST
============

Daily digests -- copies of a whole days XSL-List messages (or a 40,000
character chunk, whichever comes first) sent as one email message --
are available.  Not only is it one mail message containing all of that
day's XSL-List messages, it averages half the bytes of the individual
messages since it doesn't include the overhead of the mail headers
from each message.  To unsubscribe from the list and subscribe to the
digest, send mail to majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx with the
following two lines as the body of your message:

unsubscribe xsl-list
subscribe xsl-list-digest

Alternatively, you can unsubscribe then resubscribe from the form at
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html.


UNSUBSCRIBING FROM THE XSL-LIST
===============================

To unsubscribe from the XSL-list, send mail to
majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx with "unsubscribe xsl-list" as the
body of your message.

Alternatively, you can unsubscribe from the form at
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html.


UNSUBSCRIBING FROM THE XSL-LIST DIGEST
======================================

To unsubscribe from the XSL-List Digest, send mail to
majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx with "unsubscribe xsl-list-digest" as
the body of your message.

Alternatively, you can unsubscribe from the form at
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html.


IF YOU STOP GETTING XSL-LIST MESSAGES
=====================================

Ordinarily, mail bounces back to xsl-list-owner only because a user's
account has been closed on their system without their unsubscribing
from the list.  If mail to an address bounces for an extended period,
or if it bounces in a way that inconveniences the list administrator,
that address may be removed from the list.

If you stop receiving XSL-List messages, you may have been removed
because mail to you was bouncing.  You are not being picked on, and
you can just rejoin the list.


SEARCHABLE ARCHIVE
==================

XSL-List messages are archived at
http://www.biglist.com/lists/xsl-list/archives/.

The archive is updated NIGHTLY.  If you don't see the message that you
sent today, wait until tomorrow.


NAMES AND ADDRESSES IN THE ARCHIVE
==================================

The XSL-List archive is a complete record of list postings, including 
the names and email addresses of the poster. If you do not want your
name or email address to be included in the XSL-List archive do not
post to the list. The archive will not be edited to remove names, 
email addresses, or thoughtless posts. 


XSL FAQS AND OTHER INFORMATION ON XSL
=====================================

The XSL FAQ by Dave Pawson is available from
http://www.dpawson.co.uk/xsl/xslfaq.html.

The Unofficial MSXML XSLT FAQ is available at
http://www.netcrucible.com/xslt/msxml-faq.htm.

The W3C information on XSL is at http://www.w3.org/Style/XSL.

The XSLT recommendation is at http://www.w3.org/TR/xslt. The XPath
recommendation is at http://www.w3.org/TR/xpath.

An excellent source of information about XSL is the XSL page of Robin
Cover's "XML Cover Pages" at http://www.oasis-open.org/cover/xsl.html.

Mulberry's Quick References, including one on XSLT and XPath are
available at http://www.mulberrytech.com/quickref/.

XSL-FO list http://groups.yahoo.com/group/XSL-FO/ states it's purpose as "to encourage free discussion of the W3C XSL Formatting Objects". (NOTE: XSL-List is intended as a place to discuss XSLT, XSL-FO, and the interactions between them. We point to XSL-FO list as another resource and not to imply that discussion of XSL-FO is unwelcome of XSL-List. Discussion of XSL-FO is appropriate on XSL-List.)



DSSSLIST -- THE DSSSL USERS' MAILING LIST
=========================================

Mulberry Technologies also provides the DSSSList -- the DSSSL Users'
Mailing List.  For subscription information and the DSSSList archive,
see http://www.mulberrytech.com/dsssl/dssslist.


CONTACT
=======

If you have any questions or problems, please contact
owner-xsl-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

--------------------

 XSL-List info and archive:  http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list
-- 
====================================================================== 
B. Tommie Usdin                        mailto:btusdin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mulberry Technologies, Inc.                http://www.mulberrytech.com    
17 West Jefferson Street                           Phone: 301/315-9631 
Suite 207                                    Direct Line: 301/315-9634 
Rockville, MD  20850                                 Fax: 301/315-8285 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Mulberry Technologies: A Consultancy Specializing in SGML and XML               
======================================================================

 XSL-List info and archive:  http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list