XPost: rec.humor.oracle, rec.answers 
  
 Archive-name: usenet-oracle-intro 
 Posting-Frequency: monthly 
 Last-modified: Apr 22 11:59 
 URL: ftp://ftp.cs.indiana.edu/pub/oracle/help 
  
 "Know thyself."       "The folly of mistaking a paradox 
  -- Delphic Oracle,     for a discovery, a metaphor for a 
     8th century BC     proof, a torrent of verbiage for a 
         spring of capital truths, and 
         oneself for an oracle, is inborn in 
         us."           -- Paul Vale'ry, 1895 
  
  
    THE INTERNET ORACLE (TM) 
  
         also known as 
     The Usenet Oracle (TM) 
  
 The Internet Oracle is available to answer all your questions. You may 
 mail them to: 
     oracle@cs.indiana.edu 
  
 The "Subject:" of the message must be something like "Oracle Most Wise, 
 please tell me ...".  Actually, all it has to have is "tell me" or 
 "tellme" somewhere in it.  Capitalization doesn't matter.  The body of 
 the mail should contain only your question.  You should receive a reply 
 within a few days at most, probably much sooner. 
  
 In the meantime, the Oracle may require that you answer a question for it 
 as payment for its services.  You will receive this question in the mail. 
 You should respond with as most wise and witty an answer as you can. 
 Mail the response to oracle@cs.indiana.edu, preserving the message's 
 "Subject:" line.  Usually, this can be done by simply replying to the mail 
 through the normal means in your mail program, for example, using the "r" 
 command in the standard Berkeley mail program.  Actually, the subject 
 just has to contain the word "answer" and the question number somewhere 
 in it.  The body of your mail response should contain only your answer -- 
 don't include the question itself.  Please try to respond within at most 
 a day's time.  If you take longer, there is a chance that the question 
 will be answered by someone else first. 
  
 Mailing the Oracle with the word "help" in the "Subject:" line will get 
 you the most recent version of this help file mailed back.  If you mail 
 the Oracle with "ask me" or "askme" somewhere in the subject, the Oracle 
 will send you a question to answer, if there are any available. 
  
 Your questions, comments and even complaints about the Oracle are welcome. 
 Please address them to oracle-people@cs.indiana.edu. 
  
           ETIQUETTE 
  
 The Internet Oracle is intended primarily as a cooperative effort for 
 creative humor.  Since its main purpose is just to let folks have fun, 
 there are intentionally few rules.  However, an etiquette has developed 
 among its participants. 
  
 A series of identical questions submitted is not appreciated since the 
 same person often ends up answering many of them.  It is okay to resubmit 
 a question after you have received a reply, especially if you believe 
 that the answerer did not do it justice. 
  
 If you find yourself unable to give due consideration to a question you 
 are to answer, it may be better to not answer the question at all than 
 to give it a trivial answer and disappoint the questioner.  However, 
 doing this too much can cause a buildup of unanswered questions and slow 
 down the Oracle's response time for everyone. 
  
 You may wish to read some issues of the Internet Oracularities (see below) 
 to get an idea of the conventions and style of writing in Oracle questions 
 and answers.  However, it certainly isn't required to follow them. 
 Originality and creativity are usually the most appreciated qualities. 
 Here are some general guidelines for those upon whom the Muse of the 
 Oracle has descended and who are to write an answer as an incarnation 
 of the Oracle: 
  
   -  Creativity and humor are valued.  Many people find the anonymity of 
      the Oracle a license to express themselves creatively and uniquely, 
      often to surprising success. 
  
   -  Participants in the Oracle like to feel they've gotten out of it 
      as much as they've put in.  Please keep this in mind when answering 
      questions. 
  
   -  Remember that brevity and clarity are key points of good writing. 
      Overly long answers will reduce an Oracularity's chance of being 
      published in the Internet Oracularities (see below) since it must 
      really be worth the extra length to have it selected to be read by 
      tens of thousands of people. 
  
   -  In general, avoid obscenity, slang, jargon, and obscure references. 
      People of all different backgrounds and ages located all over the 
      world use the Oracle.  In particular, please be sensitive to the 
      fact that children may be using the Oracle. 
  
   -  Try to be sensitive to new participants or to people who seem to 
      have asked serious questions. 
  
   -  Don't flame the questioner for not asking a "good question". 
      An off-the-wall or vague question calls for creativity, not rudeness, 
      in the answer.  Consider it a challenge! 
  
          THE INTERNET ORACULARITIES 
  
 The Oracle's priesthood receives a duplicate copy of all answered 
 questions, or Oracularities as they're called.  This is so that the best 
 ones can be selected for the Internet Oracularities -- the chronicle 
 of the mythos of the Internet Oracle.  Your use of this program implies 
 your approval of this usage.  The Internet Oracularities are regularly 
 published via postings to rec.humor.oracle, the World Wide Web and a 
 mail distribution list, as well as occasionally via other media. 
  
 Rec.humor.oracle is a moderated newsgroup.  If your news system is 
 properly configured, any postings you make to rec.humor.oracle will 
 be forwarded directly to the Oracle and so you can ask questions of the 
 Oracle by posting to the newsgroup.  Rec.humor.oracle.d is unmoderated and 
 anyone may post to it.  It is a public forum for discussion and questions 
 about the Oracle.  If your system doesn't carry these newsgroups, 
 encourage your news administrator to do so! 
  
 Readers of the Oracularities may mail in ratings of each published 
 Oracularity, the results of which are returned to the authors of the 
 Oracularities and published in a later posting.  They are also used 
 to select occasional "best of the best" postings to rec.humor.oracle. 
 Instructions on how to mail in your ratings are given at the top of 
 each issue. 
  
 If you don't have access to rec.humor.oracle and would like to receive 
 the Oracularities via mail, send mail to 
  
  oracle-request@cs.indiana.edu 
  
 to get on (or off) the mail distribution list.  Include the word 
 "subscribe" (or "unsubscribe") in the "Subject:" line. 
  
 Back postings and ratings are available via anonymous ftp on 
 ftp.cs.indiana.edu (129.79.252.109) in the directory /pub/oracle. 
  
  
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 --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05 
  * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)