----------------- HES POSTING ----------------- 
 
The summer vacation season is almost over, and so with the start of a  
new academic year I thought I'd take a couple bytes of your mail folder  
space to mention several items regarding HES list postings: 
 
1) If you have something you want posted to the list, please send it to  
the list address <[log in to unmask]> rather than to me. That way, you will be  
listed as the "sender" of the message instead of me. Also, all messages  
sent to the list address are routed to me before going to the entire list,  
and I routinely "fix" messages that won't be transmitted to the list in the  
right format. When you send messages to the list address rather than to  
me, I get the chance to see what the message looks like to list  
members. Many of the mistakes in message formats that have occurred  
recently have come from messages that were sent to me rather than the  
list address -- I sent the message on thinking everything was alright,  
when it wasn't. (My apologies to list members who couldn't read  
messages because of improper formatting. Please let me know and  
we'll fix the message in the archive.) 
 
2) Computer system changes at my institution have necessitated that I  
have a unique address for the purpose of moderating HES messages  
(<[log in to unmask]>). DO NOT USE THAT ADDRESS  
TO SEND MAIL TO ME! My regular email address is  
<[log in to unmask]>. I check for messages to moderate at least  
once per day. Don't be alarmed if your message to the list doesn't get  
distributed for several hours. DO send me a message if your posting  
isn't distributed by the next day! 
 
3) Part of my moderating task is checking subject lines. I always (well,  
almost always!) check the subject line and make sure the subject is  
formatted correctly. Many of you have figured out the subject line  
format, and I appreciate the help I get from posters. The basic format  
is as follows: 
 
[HES: ]TOPIC -- short description 
 
The HES: prefix is automatically added by the list management  
program when the message goes out to the list. I do not add it, and  
posters do not need to add it (I have to strip it out of postings that are  
sent with it). The TOPIC abbreviations I usually use are: 
 
ANN (announcements or notices to pay attention to) 
CFP (calls for papers) 
CONFANN (conference announcements -- I sometimes simply use  
ANN here is the conference description is too long) 
DISC (topics for discussion) 
EDITORIAL (for guest editorials) 
QUERY (inquiries and questions) 
REPORT (usually used for list subscriber reports, and maybe for  
conference reports) 
RVW (book reviews from EH.Net or H-Net) 
WWW (web resources of note) 
 
Feel free to add these topic identifications to the subject lines of your  
postings if you wish, and to create your own message descriptions if  
you are starting a new conversation thread. Please remember the rule  
that the subject line should be less than 72 total characters (including  
the HES: prefix and Re:). 
 
I sometimes take it upon myself to provide a new subject line for a  
message that was sent as a reply to a different topic. I usually do this  
when I think the posting may start a new thread which should be  
distinguished from the old one. (The recent Sraffa and Wittgenstein  
thread was started this way, beginning from a reply to riddle #2). I also  
modify subject lines if they will be too long.  
 
As you already know, messages which are replies to earlier messages  
have an added subject line item: 
 
Re: HES: TOPIC -- short description 
 
Most mailers add "Re:" when you reply to messages. The HES list  
management program is set up to recognize this prefix and to put the  
HES: prefix after it if it appears in a subject line. Thus, all you have to  
do when replying to messages is use the same subject line as the  
original message used. 
 
4) Which brings me to replies. In order to save message space both in  
subscribers' mailboxes and in our list archives, the HES list does not  
include the original message in the body of replies. I do leave portions  
of the original message in a reply when the person is replying to a  
specific comment, and the reply might not make sense to someone who  
does not have the list archive immediately at hand. Those of you who  
can control what your mail program includes in a reply, please don't  
include the original message with your reply -- it will only be deleted by  
me. But feel free to work a very short portion of the original message  
into your reply if you feel it necessary. 
 
5) You can make my moderating job easier if you do not include your  
"signature" with your posting to the list. Our policy is to strip out  
everything except a person's name and email address. I usually make  
sure that the sender's name at least is at the bottom of each message. 
 
6) The HES list posts announcements of conferences, web sites, etc.  
which are of direct interest to the community of scholars in the history  
of economic thought. I welcome (and myself try to provide)  
announcements which might not reach those historians of economics  
who work primarily in the economics discipline (for example,  
conferences in interdisciplinary fields which would welcome input from  
historians of economics). However, I don't usually post conference  
announcements and the like which are normally distributed to the  
general economics profession through other channels. For example, I  
would usually not distribute a call for papers for the Eastern  
Economics Association conference, but if one year the EEA  
conference was devoted to a topic in the history of economics, or if  
someone was looking for participants in an EEA session on a history  
of economics topic, a CFP would be welcome. 
 
7) Finally, where is the line between personal messages and list  
messages? It is sometimes hard to distinguish, and I do err in one  
direction or the other from time to time. Generally, if a TOPIC thread  
has become a conversation between only two people, I ask the  
participants to continue it off-list. If a message is sent to the list which I  
think is more appropriately sent only to a particular person, then I re- 
direct the message and send both participants a message saying that I  
will post the message to the list if they think it should be. When  
messages are incendiary in some way, I try to consult the HES editorial  
board for advice before posting them, and frequently either reject the  
message or ask the person to rephrase their comments. If you think my  
handling of a message was incorrect, please email me and we'll get it  
sorted out! 
 
Thanks for your attention. I look forward to a continuation of great  
discussions! Questions and comments are welcome! 
 
Ross Emmett 
[log in to unmask] 
 
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