🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <93066.005323JIM@auvm.american.edu>, Jim McIntosh <jim@american.edu> writes:
> Archive-name: bit/policy
> Last-modified: 17 September 1992
> 
>         ********************************************************
>         *** General Information on Listserv/Netnews gateways ***
>         ********************************************************
> 
> This document gives general  information on bi-directional (or optionally
> uni-directional) gateways between Listserv  and Netnews as implemented in
> Netnews  version 2.4  by Linda  Littleton  at Penn  State University.  It
> includes guidelines on how to establish a new Listserv/Netnews gateway.
> 
> *** What is Listserv?
> 
> Listserv, which stands  for List Server, is a mail  list server that runs
> on VM/CMS. It provides "mail-exploding"  capabilities so that people with
> a common  interest can communicate with  each other by sending  mail to a
> particular  address   (one  address   per  Listserv  list),   which  then
> redistributes  the mail  to each  person "subscribed"  to the  list. Each
> person subscribed to a particular list gets  a copy of each piece of mail
> in their mailbox.
> 
> *** What is Netnews?
> 
> Netnews is  a bulletin  board system  in which articles  on a  variety of
> topics are arranged in "newsgroups" and  stored in a shared location from
> which  individual users  can read  them.  These newsgroups  can be  local
> newsgroups, available only at a user's  site, or may be shared with other
> sites to form a world-wide bulletin board system called Usenet.
> 
> *** What does the gateway do?
> 
> The gateway  software (which  is a  built-in part  of the  VM/CMS Netnews
> server from Penn State) puts each piece of Listserv mail for a particular
> list  into  a  corresponding  Netnews   newsgroup  and  also  sends  each
> Netnews-originating posting to  the newsgroup back to  the Listserv list.
> On a per-group basis, the gateway  can be either bi-directional or can be
> uni-directional in either direction. Generally Listserv groups on Netnews
> are given  the name bit.listserv.<listname>. When  appropriate, the items
> in a  Listserv list might also  be cross-posted to a  "mainstream" Usenet
> group.
> 
> *** Why have a gateway?
> 
> The major  reason sites decide  to carry  gatewayed Listserv lists  is so
> their users can read these lists  via shared disks, rather than requiring
> each user to receive each item to their mailbox. In addition, the gateway
> gives greater  exposure and wider readership  to the list since  the list
> can be now be read by users at hundreds of Usenet sites.
> 
> *** The gateway can be LOCAL or GLOBAL
> 
> On a per-group basis, the gateway can  be either LOCAL (only users on the
> machine where Netnews  is running will see the Listserv  items) or GLOBAL
> (the Listserv items will propagate to other Usenet sites).
> 
> To avoid  problems that can  be caused  by multiple sites  gatewaying the
> same  group, we  request  that only  a  handful of  sites  set up  global
> gateways and that  other sites receive these groups  through their normal
> news feeds. If  you feel it would  be appropriate for your site  to be an
> additional  global gateway  site, then  write to  NEWS-ADM@AUVM.BITNET or
> news-admin@auvm.american.edu to explain the situation.
> 
>                     *******************************
>                     *** AN IMPORTANT PRECAUTION ***
>                     *******************************
> 
> It is  important that  no more  than one site  per list  set up  a GLOBAL
> gateway. If  more than one  site does a  GLOBAL gateway for  a particular
> list,  the list  may get  duplicates  of some  articles. It  is the  list
> owner's  responsibility  to  make  sure there  are  not  multiple  global
> gateways for  the list and to  "signoff" any suspect gateway  site should
> problems start  to occur.  No GLOBAL gateway  should ever  be established
> without the express permission of the list owner.
> 
> In the  event that two  sites did  set up a  global gateway for  the same
> list, here is what might happen. If  a user anywhere on the net posted an
> article to the group via Netnews and the article found its way to both of
> the global gateway  sites, both of these sites would  forward the article
> back to  the mailing list. The  mailing list would therefore  receive two
> copies and although  Listserv will usually detect  the duplicate posting,
> it will return one of the copies to the author with a message saying that
> the post  was a duplicate. Since  the author only posted  once, this will
> cause them some confusion. Also, it  is possible that both posts would be
> distributed to  the list if  software other than Listserv  is controlling
> the mailing list.  Netnews would not have a problem  handling this (since
> it checks message-id's for duplicates), but  it is the people who get the
> items in their mailboxes who would see two copies of the article.
> 
> *** Gateway registration
> 
> In  order to  avoid  problems  caused by  multiple  gateways, a  "gateway
> registration  service"  is  maintained  by  news-admin@auvm.american.edu,
> which keeps track of which site  is doing global gateways for which which
> groups. A  list of  these global  gateways, their  corresponding Listserv
> lists and  Usenet newsgroups, and  the sites  which are acting  as global
> gateways is  available from listserv@auvm.american.edu. Send  the command
> GET NETGATE GATELIST to get a  copy of all registered gateways. This file
> is also available via anonymous ftp from auvm.american.edu.
> 
> *** Setting up the gateway.
> 
> The gateway is set up by  having the Netnews service machine subscribe to
> the Listserv list in  the same way that a subscriber  would, but with the
> addition of setting Listserv options FULLHDR (so that message-ids are put
> on messages) and NOFILES (so that non-mail files are not sent).
> 
> *** Guidelines for establishing a Listserv/Netnews gateway.
> 
> It is the  responsibility of the person requesting the  gateway to do the
> following:
> 
> 1.  Get the approval  of the Listserv list owner(s)  and the Listserv
>     administrator at the host node. (Send a "REVIEW listname" command
>     to the Listserv  at the host node for the  names and addresses of
>     the list  owner(s), and a  "RELEASE" command to the  same address
>     for the Listserv administor's name and address.) Send them each a
>     copy  of  this document.  If  the  list  owner or  Listserv  host
>     administrator objects, the gateway is not done.
> 
> 2.  Get the approval of the Listserv list readers. This could be done
>     somewhat informally  by posting to  the list and asking  if there
>     are objections.  If the  issue was  controversial, a  formal vote
>     should be held according to the same guidelines as for creating a
>     new Usenet group. If there was no major dissenting opinion a vote
>     will not be needed.
> 
> 3.  If there is  a Usenet group where crossposting  would be logical,
>     get the approval  of the people who read that  group (in the same
>     way as approval of the Listserv readers was gotten).
> 
> 4.  Post to bit.admin to see if there are any objections. The subject
>     of  the   posting  should   be  "Gateway  for   <listname>  under
>     discussion". Explain  briefly what  the list is  for. If  you are
>     proposing   that  the   list  be   gated  to   something  besides
>     "bit.listserv.<listname>", this should be stated. Again, if there
>     was no major  dissenting opinion within seven days,  a vote would
>     not be needed; otherwise a vote would be held.
> 
>     Steps 2, 3, and 4 can all be done at the same time.
> 
> 5.  Write to news-admin@auvm.american.edu  or NEWS-ADM@AUVM.BITNET to
>     say that all of the criteria  have been met. Indicate the gateway
>     site (if you  wish some site besides auvm.american.edu  to be the
>     gateway), Listserv list name,  Listserv host node, list owner(s),
>     and  a short  (45  character maximum)  description  of the  list.
>     News-admin will  establish and/or register the  gateway, and then
>     post to  bit.admin to  say that the  gateway is  operational. The
>     subject  of   the  posting   will  be  "Gateway   for  <listname>
>     operational".
> 
> If  for some  reason  you  cannot follow  the  steps  outlined here  (for
> example, if you do not get the  bit groups, so cannot post to bit.admin),
> write to news-admin@auvm.american.edu to explain the situation.
> 
> *** Where to address questions
> 
> Questions about Listserv/Netnews  gateways can be posted  to bit.admin or
> sent to news-admin@auvm.american.edu or NEWS-ADM@AUVM.BITNET.