RE: [-empyre-] Designing Contexts/Social space, art practice, network structure

["Charlotte Frost" <charlotte@digitalcritic.org>]

Answering my own post and Joel Slayton's question: 

>>Is there anything in such contextual structures that is meaningful in
itself, or if it is all context?

And picking up on some of Kathy's points, I wonder if the meaning, is
'off-list'? I don't mean this in an entirely defeatist sense, but many of
the best responses I have received during my stint on Empyre have been
off-list. Firstly emails I have received from people who didn't want to 'go
public' or felt they had something to say to me but that it might be 'off
topic' somehow, and secondly because during this time I have met a lot of
people either from lists (Faces meeting in Tallinn or because they
recognised my name from Empyre postings) and have had some great
conversations in person that have greatly affected my understanding of
lists! 

Kathy has expressed a dislike for personal conversations that take up
valuable list space, which I understand, but what might go unacknowledged is
that when these conversations do continue, albeit off-list, they can be
greatly beneficial. I guess that is what David was trying to say, although I
personally don't see it in such terms of 'dead' and 'alive' but more on a
ratio of what is personally beneficial. It really would be tantamount to
wanking if the list had to accommodate all our own indulgencies, which,
thinking about it, almost makes it sound like David believes life comes from
wanking hmmmmm lucky for the world population that that isn't the case!!!
;-) So topic is important, if not just so that we can all buck against it
and congregate off-list - like Melinda has said, our behaviours often centre
around working both with and against the structures.

I know it sounds obvious in that mailing lists are for networking as well as
discussing, but perhaps it is the networking that is its strongest benefit,
and perhaps, rather than contextualising the art, lists are more focused on
contextualising the people?! This would work with Christian's questions
regarding the 'game playing' because as we have all witnessed, some people
merely use the list to perpetuate their academic quest for world
domination... ;-) And I am pleased that my list participation and in fact
lurking has caused me to meet so many great people in the last few weeks!

But I, like Kathy, would have been interested to hear more about what people
would like to get from lists, and perhaps what they do get. I still think
that lists are a foggy area and perhaps that is why so many of the questions
go unanswered or end in flaming. If anyone, like Robbin, knows of great
examples of list 'characteristics' or 'behaviours' I would be grateful for
links and references, in order to father my research, and please email me
'off-list' if you have any more thoughts on the subject and don't want to
'go public' or even after this Empyre session is over...and I might return
to my lurking...

Charlotte