MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 1164 Topics covered in this issue include: 1) Messages strange are being by StarDust21-+AT+-aol.com 2) Re: FW: Kingdoms and people by georg-+AT+-swbell.net 3) Re: Safa/Age/Braids by "=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Familia_Rinc=F3n_Parra?=" 4) Re: Messages strange are being by "Unbreak my heart ..." 5) Re: my 2 cents by "=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Familia_Rinc=F3n_Parra?=" 6) Re: Messages strange are being by "=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Familia_Rinc=F3n_Parra?=" 7) two braids in one night!! by cjkocher-+AT+-spectra.net 8) Re: Kingdoms and people by Shidrati Binte Ali BEMSA 9) Re:Vanyel's Bardic Gift... by Elisiande-+AT+-aol.com 10) Re: my 2 cents by Shidrati Binte Ali BEMSA 11) This and That by texs72-+AT+-webtv.net 12) Re: Kingdoms and people by georg-+AT+-swbell.net 13) RE: This and That by Shidrati Binte Ali BEMSA 14) Re: Moving on - Life on the list AFTER TLS by kelara-+AT+-juno.com (Laura M Quimby) 15) Newbie Fest: Part the First by Ken Hyde 16) NewbieFest: Part the Second by Ken Hyde 17) NewbieFest: Part the Third by Ken Hyde ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 7 Apr 1997 22:16:43 -0400 (EDT) From: StarDust21-+AT+-aol.com To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Messages strange are being Message-ID: <970407221502_-735892904-+AT+-emout16.mail.aol.com> I am getting all of these mesages out of order. Is this a normal occurrance? And I know I posted something, but it hasn't shown up yet!! Help! What should I do?? *StarSong ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 07 Apr 1997 21:24:03 -0500 From: georg-+AT+-swbell.net To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: FW: Kingdoms and people Message-ID: <3349AC43.7567-+AT+-swbell.net> CHRISTY GOLDBACH wrote: > > > 3. Has anyone solved the mistery of the land (I can't remember its name) > > that borders with Valdermar, mentioned in the first of Mage Storm saga? > > Bye, > > Kestrel > > Are you talking about Iftel?? If you are talking about Iftel then I > don't think the mistery is solved but maybe it will be solved in > Storm Breaking, the third book in the Mage Storms. > wind to thy wings > Christy the people of iftel are actually related to karse and worship the sungod...when the son of the sun found this out she was quite unnerved. george ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 7 Apr 1997 20:39:32 -0600 From: "=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Familia_Rinc=F3n_Parra?=" To: Subject: Re: Safa/Age/Braids Message-ID: <199704080232.UAA07437-+AT+-sol.racsa.co.cr> Nightdancer wrote: >It is so depressing to find out the age of a favorite character. I could always >pretend that Vanyel was my age, now I can't(sigh). Does anyone else >have that problem. Same here... That takes all the fun from it, doesn't it??? But you can still imagine you're his age; Anyway, when has age mattered? About Braids... I'm trying... sorry if I have at anytime bothered anyone with the same message more than twice... Liz bonded with Ryni: a lovely caring female white owl :) 7 months ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 7 Apr 1997 22:42:49 -0400 (EDT) From: "Unbreak my heart ..." To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Messages strange are being Message-ID: THIS MAILING SHIT IS OUT OF ORDER, TAKE ME OFF THE FUCKING LIST PEOPLE GET A FUCKING LIFE AND STOP SENDING MESSAGE OUT TO ME -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ttkHis -- -Di theo tie^'ng go.i cu?a con tim http://www.gomer.ml.org./~ttkh -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 7 Apr 1997 20:48:20 -0600 From: "=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Familia_Rinc=F3n_Parra?=" To: Subject: Re: my 2 cents Message-ID: <199704080241.UAA08472-+AT+-sol.racsa.co.cr> Ashara wrote: > To bring up an *old* subject, can't you tell that a Companion is a > reincarnated > Herald by the names being off by like 1 letter ex: sayvil-savil > jasen-jaysen etc.? In Storm Warning Ulrich mentions that firecats are just like companions, only fewer, because not as many Sons of the Sun (correct me if I'm wrong) had died. At this, Rubrick's companion (once again, the name might be incorrect- i don't have the book at hand) sort of makes fun of Rubrick for not having thought of it. It also gives the posible reason why Companions had kept the secret away from the Heralds for such a long time... I won't go into it unless someone is interested, just to make things short. :) > I was wondering, we can get bondbirds and Companions but can we > get kyree(s?) > or gryphons or familiars or whatever? I don't think kyree are considered as bond-animals... Anyhow.. same question here. Oh right... I don't get it! what do sheep mean?!? > Whatever sheep are(if they're good), lots of rainbow sheep to my fellow > listsibs. What ARE sheep?? (You know what I mean!!) Zhai'hallava liz bonded with Ryni, a loving and caring female white owl 7 months old :) ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 7 Apr 1997 20:52:50 -0600 From: "=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Familia_Rinc=F3n_Parra?=" To: Subject: Re: Messages strange are being Message-ID: <199704080246.UAA08957-+AT+-sol.racsa.co.cr> Star Song wrote: > I am getting all of these mesages out of order. Is this a normal occurrance? > And I know I posted something, but it hasn't shown up yet!! Help! What should > I do?? To all the ones that have this problem: Perhaps you should check in View and select Sort by. Choose Recieved and uncheck Ascending, that way you'll get all your messages at the top of the scrollbar. That's what I do, and it works with me. Good luck liz bondbird: Ryni, white female owl, loving and caring, 7 months old ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 07 Apr 1997 23:34:22 -0500 From: cjkocher-+AT+-spectra.net To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: two braids in one night!! Message-ID: <3349CACE.C26-+AT+-spectra.net> *sigh* I think it might be a good thing for someone with a bit more seniority on the list to say something about how one does spoilers, braids, etc etc ... then again, Auntie Mel's Rules were just posted, so please read them newcomers ... someone just posted a pretty big spoiler that could definitely ruin part of Storm Breaking if they haven't read it yet. Sheeps for the short post, but it seems like Cennyd's posting of the rules was ignored and people are going to start flaming if things aren't put a wee bit under control. Sheeps for anyone I offended ... just my ever-so-humble opinion. ;) Ashara wrote: > I think there is just the one gift > but you have to have 2 of 3 things to be accepted as a Bard.. The three Gifts of a Bard are Talent, Creativity, and the Bardic Gift. In the cases of a firstborn son of nobility, you must have two of the three Gifts since there will be problems with inheritance etc ... I'm not sure if this rule applies with "commoners" ... also, the Collegium trains minstrels as well, since there probably aren't enough Bards to go around. Ashara also wrote: > To bring up an *old* subject, can't you tell that a Companion is a > reincarnated > Herald by the names being off by like 1 letter ex: sayvil-savil > jasen-jaysen etc.? Not every Companion has a name that keeps repeating every time they are reincarnated; I think Misty just did this in a rather obvious manner so as to clue the rest of us in on what was really going on. ;) Hrm ... methinks that a posting of the Newbiefest may be in order... can any of you senior-listsibs do that? Reece's Pieces-flavored sheeps to you all... *grin* Crystal PS ... to those asking if you can "get" gryphons, kyree etc ... you might want to re-read Cennyd's post on copyright etc ... gryphons fall into that category of creatures widely used before Misty's time ... but I can think of another reference where kyree have been used like this. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 08 Apr 97 11:56:00 PDT From: Shidrati Binte Ali BEMSA To: mercedes-lackey Subject: Re: Kingdoms and people Message-ID: <334A9501-+AT+-nusnetgw1.nus.sg> the people of iftel are actually related to karse and worship the sungod...when the son of the sun found this out she was quite unnerved. george ______________ So what is the Guardian of Iftel? And do the people of Iftel have priests also? Why were the people of Iftel that leave seem reluctant to talk about Iftel? I wonder if Karal is related to the mystery of the Iftel. One thing about Misty's books that I enjoy is that she always have some kind of mystery involved related to the main character, which in the case of the storm series is Karal. Wind to thy Wings Kestrel ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 8 Apr 1997 00:17:33 -0400 (EDT) From: Elisiande-+AT+-aol.com To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re:Vanyel's Bardic Gift... Message-ID: <970408001531_638665420-+AT+-emout19.mail.aol.com> Happy happy spring!!!!! Texie quoted Savil >>>taking away with one hand and >>giving with the other" or something like that. But in MPromise, when >>Jervis and Vanyel finally sit down to talk, Jervis asks if he ruined >>Vanyel's chance at music. Vanyel replies "No. I didn't have the gift. >>---You didn't take anything away from me, not really.", which implies >>that he doesn't have the gift. >>> and asked if that meant that Van didn't have the Bardic Gift...., My take on that conversation is that, to me, it seemed like he was reassuring Jervis that AT THE TIME when Jervis broke his arm, he didn't have the Bardic Gift, which was blasted open when Tylendel, etc.-- so that JERVIS had not truely harmed his chances of becoming a Bard. He was trying at the time of the conversation to make peace and reassure Jervis, too, so this was both a tactful and honest assessment of the situation. Didn't he use just a touch of Bardic Gift when he went "undercover"? And didn't he say to someone, somewhere, that the irony of the situation was that now, if he had the time, he could become a full-fledged Bard, but that once he was Chosen, it became a moot point? And that he'd trade it all, except Yfandes, to have "Lendel back? I haven't read the books lately, so I might be imagining the conversation... someone let me know? (We are moving in a month, so a lot of my books are packed...) and mint-chocolate-chip sheeps if I did imagine it... i habd a codb in by headb... >>>most of the population >>of Valdermar do not seem to have the Gifts. They don't seem to provide >>training for the Gifts outside of the Collegium. >>>(Kestrel) Do you think that the Gifts would provide enough "drive" that those who possess them make their way to the Collegium anyway, if at all humanly possible? There's probably no textevd for it, but... just a question..... Elisiande-+AT+-aol.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 08 Apr 97 12:07:00 PDT From: Shidrati Binte Ali BEMSA To: mercedes-lackey Subject: Re: my 2 cents Message-ID: <334A9A78-+AT+-nusnetgw1.nus.sg> Ashara wrote: > To bring up an *old* subject, can't you tell that a Companion is a > reincarnated > Herald by the names being off by like 1 letter ex: sayvil-savil > jasen-jaysen etc.? In Storm Warning Ulrich mentions that firecats are just like companions, only fewer, because not as many Sons of the Sun (correct me if I'm wrong) had died. At this, Rubrick's companion (once again, the name might be incorrect- i don't have the book at hand) sort of makes fun of Rubrick for not having thought of it. It also gives the posible reason why Companions had kept the secret away from the Heralds for such a long time... I won't go into it unless someone is interested, just to make things short. :) >> Yeah, got to agree that it makes sense now that Ashara brought it up. I think this subject was also hinted in the book Magic Price where Star Wind(sorry for the misspell, don't have the book here) told Savil that Stephen was the reincarnation of Tylendel and that his people believe in reincarnation and in the first book Arrows of the Queen, where Ylsa came to Talia after her death. But what about the Companions "born" of the Grove? These are Companions that come for special purposes. So where do they come from? One question, has anyone read about Sunsinger and Shadowdancer? Misty in her trilogy of Arrows of the Queen refered to them in songs. But has she ever written anything of the real Sunsinger and Shadowdancer? ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 8 Apr 1997 00:22:17 -0400 From: texs72-+AT+-webtv.net To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: This and That Message-ID: <199704080422.VAA22246-+AT+-mailtod-103.bryant.webtv.net> Heyla All! Nightdancer and Liz, I am sorry to shatter your ideas on Vanyel's age, just answering a question (it wasn't my fault, i'm sorry, please, babble, babble :-)) I always like knowing the ages of the characters , it helps me create a better picture in my mind. ****************************************************** Ashara, in response to my post that there are three Bardic gifts, you said , "I think there is just the one but you have to have 2 of 3 things to be accepted as a bard." In MPrice, there is a section on pgs 36-37 in the Bardic gifts. It says, "It took two of what were commonly called "the Bardic GiftS" to ensure entry into Bardic Collegium as a Bardic apprentice rather than a simple minstrel. The first of those two were the most common: the ability to compose music, often referred to as the "Creative Gift", and the unique combination of skills and aptitudes that comprised the "Gift of Musicianship". The third was more along the lines of the Gift of Healing or one of the Heraldic Gifts -- and that was simply called the "Bardic Gift". Etc, etc. Both Medren and Stefan had all three of these gifts. It was my thought that maybe when Vanyel's channel was blasted open, it may have been one of the lesser of the three gifts. As I said before, just MHO. ******************************************************I was a good little newbie and remembered to save up all my comments and "braid" them. (I'm so proud of myself!) Do I get a star :-)? I have one question, I know that Misty wrote a short story about how Alberich came to become a Herald and how he left Karse for Valdemar. I just can't remember where it is!!! Can anyone help me???? Blessings to all! Texie ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 07 Apr 1997 23:52:43 -0500 From: georg-+AT+-swbell.net To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Kingdoms and people Message-ID: <3349CF1B.23F0-+AT+-swbell.net> hope this is correct ssssssssssssssss pppppppppppppppp oooooooooooooooo iiiiiiiiiiiiiii lllllllllllllll eeeeeeeeeeeeeee rrrrrrrrrrrrrrr > > the people of iftel are actually related to karse and worship the > sungod...when the son of the sun found this out she was quite unnerved. > george > > ______________ > So what is the Guardian of Iftel? And do the people of Iftel have priests > also? Why were the people of Iftel that leave seem reluctant to talk about > Iftel? I wonder if Karal is related to the mystery of the Iftel. > > One thing about Misty's books that I enjoy is that she always have some kind > of mystery involved related to the main character, which in the case of the > storm series is Karal. > > Wind to thy Wings > Kestrel the guardian is the sungod....when the people of iftel faced the cataclysm the sungod answered their prayers by creating the barrier to keep the monsters out. This is why the barrier recognises karal...a priest of the sungod. george ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 08 Apr 97 13:35:00 PDT From: Shidrati Binte Ali BEMSA To: mercedes-lackey Subject: RE: This and That Message-ID: <334AAC03-+AT+-nusnetgw1.nus.sg> I have one question, I know that Misty wrote a short story about how Alberich came to become a Herald and how he left Karse for Valdemar. I just can't remember where it is!!! Can anyone help me???? Blessings to all! Texie >> Hi, I can't actually remember the title of the book but it is a book compiling the short fantasy/adventure stories on horses if I'm not wrong. Sorry can't help much. Wind to thy Wings Kestrel ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 08 Apr 1997 01:34:27 EDT From: kelara-+AT+-juno.com (Laura M Quimby) To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Moving on - Life on the list AFTER TLS Message-ID: <19970408.013849.9671.15.Kelara-+AT+-juno.com> On Sun, 16 Mar 1997 22:39:02 GMT Lonehawk2-+AT+-aol.com writes: > In all seriousness, guys, don't you think it's time to stop??? The most amazing thing about this list is the diversity of opinions, views, and ideas represented. There is not >way that all of us will come to agreement on something that provokes such strong responses. So instead, let us all just put in out .02 cents, say "I can see where you're coming from but I have my own opinion and here is what it is." Lets get back together, and try to regain the warm >and fuzzy atmosphere that this list used to have. > Sheeps to everyone who can take this message to heart. > >Much love to all of you, >Lonehawk !!AMEN TO THAT!! 'Bout time somebody said it, too.... Lady Godiva ******************************************* "Can't we all just f%*$#-+AT+-& get along?" To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first, and call whatever you hit the target. - Ashleigh Brilliant Hitch your wagon to a star. - Ralph Waldo Emerson ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 8 Apr 1997 03:52:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Ken Hyde To: Misty Lackey List Subject: Newbie Fest: Part the First Message-ID: Okay, everyone, here is the NewbieFest, with commentary by Ele, Deniz, and Ken. (BTW, if you have comments to add to this, please send them to me via private email at "kenny-+AT+-UDel.Edu"). --- Newbie Fest --- La Fiesta de Nuevenos --- La Fete des Neufs --- Here's a quick table of contents for what's included in this NewbieFest. Actually, this is turning out to be really long, so it's broken up into sections. This will show how they're divided up. Part the First: on getting the FAQ... please do it now, it's simple and easy, and just an e-mail message away. 1. How do I get the FAQ and other official-type documents? Part the Second: On the titles people have and some frequently asked questions. 1. Gods and Goddesses, Clergy, Knights and Dames, and other Assorted Titles 2. Sheep 3. Birthdays 4. Bondbirds Part the Third: On general list-iquette, addressing issues mostly on braiding and responding to list posts. 1. Braiding 2. Why are people yelling at me? or "Sure-Fire Ways to Get Flamed" aka "Really Annoying Things." --------------- Part the First --------------- 1) How do I get the FAQ and other official-type documents? ---------- The FAQ EVERYBODY KEEPS TELLING ME TO READ THE FAQ. WHERE IS IT? HOW DO I GET IT? There are a few different ways to get this valuable document. By mail, FTP, or the web. Jake and Cennydd are busily working on upgrading it, be even longer and more extensive... until then, we'll keep posting this NewbieFest at semi-regular intervals. The following part is quoted from the FAQ, itself: mail: send mail to listproc-+AT+-herald.co.uk, with a blank Subject: line, and message body: get mercedes-lackey lackey_faq.1 get mercedes-lackey lackey_faq.2 get mercedes-lackey lackey_faq.3 get mercedes-lackey lackey_faq.4 get mercedes-lackey lackey_faq.5 This will send the FAQ to you, in 5 separate messages. FTP: ftp://ftp.herald.co.uk/pub/lists/lackey-archives/ HTTP: http://www.herald.co.uk/local_info/lackey_faq.html --------- Auntie Mel's Rules of Thumb There's also something really helpful called "Auntie Mel's Rules of Thumb." Unfortunately that isn't available as its own seperate e-mail message. You can get it by going to the web-site that's the home of this list, and either read it online, or better yet, save it for future reference. Actually, you can also get the digest it was reposted in most recently by e-mail. So, here are the two methods: HTTP: http://www.herald.co.uk/local_info/rules_thumb.html e-mail: send a message to listproc-+AT+-herald.co.uk with a blank subject and a body: get listproc/mercedes-lackey 970109-1049 It should be message: 11) [REPOST] Auntie Mel's Rules Of Thumb! New Users PLEASE read! by Shdwflt-+AT+-aol.com Seeing as this is really easy to do, please just hit compose, switch between windows, and copy and paste the relevant lines into your message. Copy and past the address, and send off your message. While you're waiting, go on and finish up the rest of the NewbieFest. Within around 20 minutes (at the *most*) you should have all the documentation you requested. Take the time to read it and mull it over. If you pay per byte of e-mail, then visit the URL's listed above, or use the FTP process. Any way you slice the cake, you ought to read these things as they're here to help you out. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Version written by Deniz Sarikaya Edited by Eleonora Scoseria and Kenneth Hyde Some materials in this document are copyrighted by Mel Harper. Last revision: 7 April, 1997 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 8 Apr 1997 03:54:37 -0400 (EDT) From: Ken Hyde To: Misty Lackey List Subject: NewbieFest: Part the Second Message-ID: --- Newbie Fest --- La Fiesta de Nuevenos --- La Fete des Neufs --- On the titles people have and some frequently asked questions. 1. Gods and Goddesses, Clergy, Knights and Dames, and other Assorted Titles 2. Sheep 3. Birthdays 4. Bondbirds -------------- Part the second --------------- 1. Gods and Goddesses, Clergy, Knights and Dames, and other Assorted Titles. ---------- Gods and Goddesses EVERYBODY SEEMS TO BE GOD OR GODDESS OF SOMETHING. HOW CAN I BECOME DIVINE? Cennydd, once again, eloquently stated: > There has been a decided upswing in the use of faux divinity on the list > recently. Remember that Lady Thess is the only one who can actually > name a god or goddess on the list (She is the Goddess of Nomenclature). > Unless she names someone to be her avatar in her absence (she seems to > have disappeared into the obscurity of work-induced lurkerdom), everyone > will just have to wait until she gets around to a Naming. Until that > time, it is customary to use "soon-to-be (I hope)" in front of any > godhood that your have requested. Actually, Cennydd has been named Thess' Avatar until she may return. Please send your requests for Divinity to him off-list at "kenny-+AT+-udel.edu". If there is a conflict of overlapping domains, he will so inform you. [Deniz comments:] He's also a wonderful guy, and you really shouldn't be scared of him. I've been on the list for almost four months, and the one flame I saw him write was while I was gone (had to trawl the archives for that one), and the flamee enjoyed the experience (after she got over the initial shock). However, clergy may be appointed by already official Gods and Goddesses. Just apply to the God or Goddess whom you think you would serve best, either on list or off list (depending on how fluffy your post already is), and leave it in their capable hands. Becoming a Demon is something that you just do, I suppose. Well, Wintershard always was Demon of Crappy Weather... I, on the other hand, had people move and second said motion that I become Demon of Deceitful Aliases. I didn't ask for the honor, but since it was so moved and accepted... [Demons are basically personae who choose not to be Named officially; after all, what are demons except gods without a "club card"? *grin* --Ken] ----------- List Member Organizations KNIGHTS AND DAMES, LADIES, CHAMPIONS, AND OOoUL/L, AND OTHER ASSORTED TITLES Mishi said: >>Let's see we have different groups on the list (Ladies in Green, Cat People, Ones in Black, and Men in White) that sprang up when the Magewar started. Magewar is a sepreate list that a lot of memebers of this list are also on. If you want to know more ask [mishi ].<< [Cennydd adds: for the purposes of the Misty List, if you want to join one of the groups, ask another member (you can tell, since most of them will have something in their .sig about it) how to join. On the Misty List, these memberships are mostly just cool titles to have, since none of the action occurs on this list. However, you are welcome to apply to any of the groups.] Firemist said: >>Ladies of the Pink Wand (LotPW) are women cursed with falling in love with gay men. "The best men are either gay, dead, or fictional. The best (Vanyel) is all three." We have Champions, Redcaps, fire-breahting badgers, Wand-sworn, virtual kittens, non-stop chocolate, [and OoUL/L - Objects of Unrequited Love/Lust] and lots of fun. email Lilac at LilacFairy-+AT+-aol.com for more info.<< The Order of Amber and Marigold, founded by Heather (HTH), is one that protects Vanyel from accusations that he is whiny, self-absorbed, etc. In order to join, choose whether you'd prefer to be a Knight or a Dame (gender doesn't matter), promise Heather (Hth) (the Grand Dame of the OoAM) you'll uphold the creed of the OoAM, and just put it in your sig. We're a non-profit group, so no brib... er, gifts are neccessary. There're also a few new groups forming... there's the Gsuilsd of Tyeposists, apply to Liseth for more info... and there's the Order of Putzer Servants, for people who make completely boneheaded chess moves or win by complete flukes which you could not recreate, and apply to ShadowWolf for more info. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2) Sheep WHY IS EVERYONE OBSESSED WITH SHEEP?????<-----(and what's with counting ?'s and !'s?) Okay, here's what Ele had to say about this: >>...an all-time best-seller among newbies. The sheep thingy. You will notice people offering each other sheep (chocolate covered, something or other flavored, etc), and also saying things like "sheeps behind someone or other" Well, the sheep thingy has 2 parts and both are humorous and in some aspects a bit bawdy. I will transcribe what was explained to me by Nightshade, who in turn got it from Mel...... Sheep Explanation: >The sheep thing started when Lady 'Reesa started signing off as (among other things) "Queen of Everything and Close Personal Friend of Many Sheep". People started making sheep jokes... sheep-and-kilt jokes... sheep-and-Aussie jokes... etc and so forth. 'Reesa made the most jokes, of course! Then somebody (don't ask me who, if 'Reesa ever mentioned names I don't remember them) sent 'Reesa some really nasty private e-mail in which they said her sheep jokes were disgusting, she was warped, she was a corrupting influence, stuff like that. (Hey, *I* thought the jokes were funny! They weren't that bad, she was just making comments about sheep being warm on a cold night, they don't snore, etc...) Understandably, she was upset, and complained on-list; everybody said they didn't see anything wrong with the jokes, and the sheep were here to stay. Then when Lady Thessaly set up as Goddess of Nomenclature and started naming people as Gods and Goddesses, of course everybody gave tithes when they asked to be Named, and a lot of the tithes were sheep. (Chocolate-covered sheep, sheep-shaped chocolates, sheep-flavoured chocolates - that one made me look twice! - spun-sugar sheep, and just plain sheep.) Most recently, somebody got tired of using >About the notes pointing to how many exclamation marks or question marks a person uses? If I remember correctly, it's a Pterry thang. (Pterry is Terry Pratchett's nickname in case you were wondering)<< [Cennydd comments: In his novel "Reaper Man," Pterry has one of his characters comment that more than three !s is the sign of an insane mind. Since there are many Pterry fans on the list, it became an in joke to have five !s (indicating massive insanity) and to put a little note saying "look 5 !" to call attention to it.] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) Birthdays Deniz wrote: >>I'm managing a birthday list. I'll give 2-day warnings as to whose birthday is coming up along with how old they'll be turning (optional) and their private e-mail (optional). If you see this last option, that means that if you were going to post a one-liner b-day message -- don't. Send it private. If I don't put it up (and I won't unless it is sent to me in the body of the message, honor and all), then BRAID your good wishes and "gifts" into your post.<< [Ele's note: you will find that we give each other all sorts of magical artifacts as B-day gifts. Just join in the fun. We are after all readers of fantasy, so what did you expect from us? ;)] [Cennydd comments: please be sure to send your birthday to Deniz via private email. If you put it in a post to the list, she may not (probably will not) catch it and you won't get added.] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) Bondbirds Nightdancer has recently joined the list and is making virtual bondbirds available to list members. Like Divinities and Group Affiliations, this is a little something nifty that you can add to your list persona. However, as with other fluff-stuff, requests for bondbirds and questions about them should be done off the main list. Send mail directly to Nightdancer at . She will be posting a compiled list of who has bonded with which birds on semi-regular bases. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Version written by Deniz Sarikaya Edited by Eleonora Scoseria and Kenneth Hyde Some materials in this document are copyrighted by Mel Harper. Last revision: 7 April, 1997 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 8 Apr 1997 03:56:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Ken Hyde To: Misty Lackey List Subject: NewbieFest: Part the Third Message-ID: --- The Newbie Fest --- La Fiesta de Nuevenos --- La Fetes des Neufs Part the third: On general list-iquette, addressing issues mostly on braiding and responding to list posts. 1. Braiding 2. Why are people yelling at me? or "Sure-Fire Ways to Get Flamed" or "Really Annoying Things" -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) Braiding Okay, there seems to be a lot of debate on this topic. Basically, the reason braids were invented was because too many one-liners and similarly short posts will cause Vanyel (the listprocesser) to break down. However, the problem with braids is that sometimes they get too long and make people feel like they're reading digests. Basically, if you're going to write a one-liner, either don't, incorporate it into another message, or send it private. If you want to respond to several posts on the same topic then please BRAID. It is really irritating to see several short messages by one person in a row on the same topic. It's so much easier to have them all together. However, some people don't like braids because they can grow to epic proportions, often covering more than 10 topics and easily take 1000 bytes of memory-- not fun. But there are reasons for this latter type of braid, as well. Some people only write once a day, but contribute to many of the discussions... so rather than respond to each seperate message seperately, or seperate the different topics for different braids, they combine it to form a mega braid. If you want more arguments for braids, write to: Emily the Invisible or Cennydd If you want more arguments against braids, write to: Tensen or Jerry Cullingford If you would like instructions for how to braid, find your server and contact these wonderful volunteers(remember, cut and paste :)): PINE David Tiffany Cennydd Eudora Light Emily the invisible Pegasus Emily the invisible Vrondi (DOS and Windows) Netscape Eleonora Vrondi Juno Vrondi AOL Lady Silvermoon Spry Deniz Sarikaya Hotmail Nobody yet, but they seem to be having lots of technical problems, so if you have figured it out, please contact one of the editors of this Newbiefest and volunteer to help others. Not Listed? state your server on list and we'll see what we can do. If you would like instructions on how *not* to braid, write: Tensen ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2) Why are people yelling at me? or "Sure-Fire Ways to Get Flamed" or "Really Annoying Things" ---------- SURE-FIRE WAYS TO GET FLAMED Ele's note: Cennydd is our resident linguist as well as Mage of Green Silences and God of Karma. He is by popular acclaim our defender against those who advertently or inadvertently waste bandwidth, and will normally pay them a private visit (i.e. email). In some cases, his well-intentioned, semihumorous flames are public (as in Aistes's case). He is also a great guy and we love him very much, so don't get the impression that he is some kind of monster who will flame whoever steps marginally out of line. He will not. He is very tolerant, and anyway if you get flamed by him, I would suggest your enjoying it. Most list members treasure his flames ;) In the Mage's own words: >>Also, several people (I won't name names because you will know who you are) are on the list of Soon To Be Drifting Ashes. Please, snip and braid, or the list becomes unmanageable, Auntie Mel becomes testy, and I become downright bitchy (as list-members will attest, I am sure). BTW, in case you are not familiar with the terms: snip means to delete the quoted material in a response that is not relevant to the response. Braiding is when you combine responses to several postings in one message. A rule of thumb is "your quoted material should never be longer than your response." Another rule of thumb is "One-liners are *EVIL*!" [emphasis mine]. BTW, in case you are wondering how to join the Drifting Ashes, just post a response with 2 or more pages of quotation and less than one screen of response commentary. That generally will get the job done. =) I am not going to say that TINAF, because that would be obviously misleading. Rather, this is a friendly shot across the bow with a high-powered blow-dryer. Real flaming will be done on an individual basis in the privacy of your own home. =)<< We couldn't say it better ourselves. And I, for one, won't try, because I don't think my asbestos will last an assault from Cennydd, because I'm sure he doesn't fight with just fire. ---------- "Ways to Get Flamed" aka "Really Annoying Things" FLUFF Fluff is basically what it sounds like... this is a Mercedes Lackey Discussion List. Fluff is anything that is not Misty related. If we had no fluff at all on this list, we'd be bored silly. If we had too much fluff, though... we'd wonder why this list is called mercedes-lackey and not just something like good-times (the virus does NOT exist! You can't get a virus by reading a text-based e-mail message!!!!!). It's actually because of fluff that we had a new group formed. This would be the Lilac Fairy's Bower. Basically, their level of fluff raised so high that they were asked to leave. A similar situation occured with the Mage Wars, which is also its own seperate group. Now that I think about it... one of these groups was asked to move their fluff, the other did so of their own volition (probably due, in no small part, to the example of the previous group). [Cennydd comments: The Ladies of the Pink Wand was the group that left of their own accord. The Lilac Fairy took the Bower off of the Misty List before the fluff level could get to be a problem. As far as I know, the Ladies were never asked to leave.] ONE-LINERS As we've said before, and will probably say forever, one liners are annoying. Also, they give Vanyel (the list server) fits, and make him break down. It's like getting a letter in the mail consisting of a slip of paper saying, "Hi! Write me! Bye!" or something inane like that. PUBLIC/PRIVATE MESSAGES Many times, I find myself reading a message from a newbie, and wondering if they had wanted to send it private mail, and that they should have done so. Remember, because this is a discussion list, when you hit reply, your message will automatically be addressed to the Misty List. If you want to send a private message but want to use the text from their message, just delete the List's address and write in the person's address into the To: line. [Cennydd comments: as Mel points out in the FAQ, the current configuration for this mailing list is as a discussion list. This means that when you hit reply in most email programs, the default is to send the reply to the entire list. If you are replying directly to a particular person, be sure to select "reply to From:" and not "reply to Reply-to:" so that your message gets sent the person, not the list.] SPOILERS Remember to use spoilers, please... currently, Storm Breaking, Fire Bird, and Sword of Ice are in spoilers. If you want to ask about them, either write a seperate message with SPOILER in the title, and the name of which book. If it's in a post, please put it at the end, because many people will, upon encountering a spoiler, disregard the rest of the message. Besides, it's the polite thing to do. [Cennydd comments: also remember that Babylon5 and Star Trek: Voyager are under spoilers too. Mel, in particular, has threatened dire and horrible fates to anyone who discusses either of these programs' recent seasons on the list (remember that many people are not in the US and are only now seeing seasons that are almost 2 years old in the US).] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- remember, sometimes you're gonna feel out of it when someone cracks an in-joke... don't worry we were all newbies once. If you're ever confused, offended, or anything else, just write whoever affected you that way, and they'll probably take the time to explain what they meant, and to help you out. If you're having problems, look for the people who have stuff like "official welcoming committee member" in their sig and write them... they're begging to help you out. See? That was painless, wasn't it? Oh, yeah... yes, Savil (Van's teacher) was reincarnated as Sayvil (Kero's companion). [Cennydd comments: and if you would like to help with the other "done to death" topics (to be added to the FAQ), please let me know. I can send you a list of the topics and a little bit about what kind of help we need. Thanks.] By the way, in case you didn't get this before, welcome to the insani... er, fun! Enjoy yourselves, please. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Version written by Deniz Sarikaya Edited by Eleonora Scoseria and Kenneth Hyde Some materials in this document are copyrighted by Mel Harper. Last revision: 7 April, 1997 ------------------------------ End of MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 1164 **********************************