jfield@ucsd.bitnet,hrhoads@eagle.wesleyan.edu,JEHRESMAN@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU, jdf2@midway.uchicago.edu,rjh1@midway.uchicago.edu,terri@csd4.csd.uwm.edu, harelb@zaphod.uchicago.edu,John.W.Lamperti@mac.dartmouth.edu, CBFORCEY@PUCC.Princeton.edu,chandra@ucscb.ucsc.edu, hiramc@sco.COM,MATHRICH%UMCVMB.BITNET,dmstern@ATHENA.MIT.EDU ################################################################## This letter to the PSN sub-group is in essentially three parts: (1)How is AML supposed to interface with NLNS? (2)Some problems and difficulties in running NLNS and the electronic version thereof we'd all like to see. (3)A new, improved listing of who you/we all are. (2)Is principally but not entirely in response to issues James Field raised. (1) is primarily in response to Jason Pramas, who (along with list administrator Rich W) I neglected to list the first time I mentioned this PSN subgroup. Jason Pramas is Chief Executive Sultan-King Potentate of the New Liberation News Service; actually, I'm trying to say I'm not sure of his exact position, but that he's the contact person for NLNS, and that if any of you PSNpersons out there aren't part of the NLNS or NASP network, please contact Jason; his addresses, email and US, are at the end with everyone else's. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Here's how I see the "relationship" between NLNS and AML (for the discussion I will assume that NLNS and NASP are, one entity, with identical PSN membership, and that AML is dealing with this one entity; let me know what modifications/complications there are): First, AML and NLNS should work together to get the technical support necessary to get a uniform minimum "on-line"-ness for all PSNs in the network, as discussed in slightly more detail in the last 2 paragraphs. Do people here know about or even have contacts with the Free Software Foundation? I think either they or people connected with them would be good candidates for finding people who can help with want needs to be done as far as the "technical end" and who would be interested in helping out. I'm not very familiar with the FSF, but after reading the GNU Manifesto in the manual I just got, it looks like a promising possibility. As for keeping NLNS funded, something James F mentioned, I think a membership fee from each PSN in the network should work and would be best, rather than trying to have a complicated system of charges each time a PSN "uses" the PSN-EN. What exactly is the PSN-EN. You've all read the two files about PACH, so you know it stands for the Progressive Student Newspaper (PSN) Electronic Network. The overall plans were outlined in the two PACH files, so I won't repeat that, but I will say some more about the short term goals (which are of course flexible and subject your your(pl) input) The PSN-EN starts first with the AML-library, I think, namely easily over a 100 files I and other AMLers have, cleaned up and indexed, and serviced by an archiver mail commands can be sent to. I've already indexed some 2 dozen files in my directory. Rich and I will report when items are "on" the archiver and will then post indices; aside from these files, the library would include all NLNS member articles, or, in practice, all of these which have been put on line and submitted to be shared via NLNS. Third, the AML resource files. Fourth on the AML library would be things from the 2nd stage of the PSN-EN. In the second stage, we set up misc.peace.pach or whatever we call it as a UseNet newsgroup. Non-PSN activists who will want to tap into PACH's resources will have, at the very least, everything from the 1st stage of PSN-EN/AML-lib, as well as items put in the library from stage two. I haven't talked with Howard F again yet, but stage two will hopefully involve, once we have an actually UseNet newsgroup, working with PeaceNet to get things like Christic updates and Central America Updates, which we did by contacting each of these groups separately, but to be able to deal with several dozen PeaceNet groups at once, with essentially one arrangement. However, I am very busy (and need to straighten things out in my life aside from business with other parts of the project), so one/some of you are going to have to actually do the electronic paperwork to create misc.peace.pach -I have the file which gives the rules for this, or you can look in the appropriate news.groups (or?) newsgroup. With this issue, as with technical support, if no one on AML steps forward, things just aren't going to get done, or at best, things which would have been done in weeks/months will take a year(s). The next steps would include AML (myself/Rich/etc), NLNS, and Charlie, who interned at The Nation, to jointly contact them and get a agreements on two key things: advertising by The Nation on the entire PSN network, which should bring needed revenue to NLNS, and more subscribers to The Nation, both PACH goals; and secondly, an agreement about putting Nation articles on the PSN/AML/PACH-library, so each individual PSN on the network not only has access to the stuff, but each can use something else; be it running an entire Nation article, or citing info from, etc. We should also get a list of advertisers which advertise in The Nation and work towards having the "progressive advertisers coop" mentioned in the PACH files. Then we go to people with whom we have less contacts but who should still be quite receptive: In These Times, Zeta, etc. Finally, though not necessarily last, I think we(*) should get in touch with various groups, including FAIR (see appendix to 2nd PACH file; they provide $/support to PSNs); Institute for Social and Cultural Change (e.g. add info from the Speak Out! program to AML resource files); Free Software Foundation; Empowerment Project (re videos, etc); work more with PeaceNet, etc. Speaking of the videos, something I mentioned in the PACH files but not above is using the PSN-network to expand to a "network" which would include all campus peace groups. In particular, have you PSNers out there been in touch with these at your campus? The "videos" AML resource file I posted would be an example of what we should make available to CPGs (Campus Peace Groups; tired fingers; not a love for acronyms). I'll post the index of AML resource files next. Please write and tell me what other things you'd like to see in the AML resource sub-library, for example. ------------------------------------------------------------------ James Field raised some points/problems. At UCSD they are charged for space and time usage of their computer account. They (New Indicator Cooperative (NIC)) are looking for ways (e.g. sympathetic prof.s) to get around this difficulty. In the meantime, at least as far as using up kilobytes on the account, the archive system rich and I are trying to set up should help; that way you only need the indices (if that's too much space, I can USmail hardcopies), and anyone can send the archiver a command to get a file when that file is needed, instead of having a copy constantly in your account. My understanding it that the archiver, being a listserver type of thing, will accept mail commands (just as a mail command to LISTSERV gets one a list of ACTIV-L subscribers), so problem with needing to give interactive commands. Re: ASCII vs. other types (formats) for files, someone else will have to make the modifications if they are necessary for NIC, or others, before they can use the files. This brings up two questions I'd like to ask everyone on this sub-group: does *your* paper need technical help wrt conversion into ASCII or any other intermediary step between getting a file from the archiver and being able to use it. I don't know the answers, but we need a list of the obstacles first, and then we can go to AML or whomever to seek solutions to them, once we know exactly what they are. Secondly, when I attended their last brunch, the Grey City Journal (GCJ) people here at Chicago said they needed some type of software, I think, in the conversion (UseNet files) <---> (microsoft WORD on the Mac) Does anyone out there know about this? Please send info to Jonathan F and Robert H and then clue the rest of us in. This brings up a more general point, discussed below... Also, I recall Theresa was seeking help to help put a SUNY PSN on-line; has that gone anywhere? (Theresa -- more specifics on what exactly they need? At least, why don't you give them NLNS's address (under Jason P., below), and see if they have an email account or can get one? Also, are you at all still involved with Milwaukee's PSN? Please post here or email me and I'll "digest" it) ------------------------------------------------------------------ James and others have brought up various other existing/potential problems/difficulties. Rather than attacking them piecemeal, it seems to me that what we need to do is to have AML work with NLNS and NASP, get in touch with people with the technical knowledge, and systematically give all PSNs on the networka uniform minimum of capabilities. This should include the ability to send and retrieve files from our "data-base," which for now will consist of the archiver; it should also include a relatively painless conversion process both ways, between your Mac or whatever account your paper uses, and the archiver. I'm in the dark as to the conversion process between what's on the Mac, say, and actually getting it printed on paper; if there are potential difficulties here to, these will have to be aired too, before the whole PSN network is completely "on line" Once we have that, the PSN-network project will be off the ground. Then we can worry about perfecting the system by which articles are shared, teleconferencing, etc. This would also take care of the problem of the costs of mailing hardcopies and of these getting too late, which James also mention, I think? Unless they charge you also for CPU time so that emailing lots of "copy" is also expensive?? ################################################################## PSN-Network AML-subgroup: (1)James Field (jfield@sdcc13.ucsd.edu // jfield@ucsd.bitnet) New Indicator newspaper collective at UCSD New Indicator Student Cooperative Center UCSD (0323) 9500 Gilman Dr.// La Jolla, CA 92093-0323 New Indicator (619)534-2016 (2) Heather ____ (hrhoads@eagle.wesleyan.edu) (3) John _____ (JEHRESMAN@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU) Involved with Wesleyan's PSN (name = ?) (4) Jonathan Fine (jdf2@midway.uchicago.edu) (5) Robert J. Hinde (rjh1@midway.uchicago.edu) Grey City Journal, University of Chicago's PSN (6)