The following is a list of frequently asked questions on the Ranma ML. These are subject to revision/addition at any time.
How does this ML work?
How do I post?
How do I reply to something on the ML?
Do I have to post to be a member?
Are the people nice on the Ranma ML?
What does "matome okuri" mean?
What's the difference between "1 hour matome okuri" and "6 hour matome okuri"?
How do I unsubscribe?
Can I sign up under multiple email addresses?
Are the ML people insane, or just strange?
How many mails do I get a day?
How much am I allowed to post?
What if I stop getting mails?
KTF, CoN, WoS...what are all these acronyms?
Do the ML people have real lives?
What's the age group of the Ranma ML?
Is there anything that can't be talked about?
How many members are there on the Ranma ML?
Can I read what's been posted before I subscribed?
Are the ML people smart?
Sometimes I see posts that are replying to stuff I never saw on the ML, or which reply to something that appears in a later post. Why is that?
Ack! I haven't gotten any mail from the ML, what's wrong?
Does Hitoshi just boot people from the ML sometimes, if he needs to?
Is there any way to not get the mail in "maotome okuri" form?
Do the ML people ever get tired of talking about Ranma?
Why is the ML in a mail-type format instead of a chat format?
Basically, people post to the ML, writing to one address on a server which compiles all the mails made for a particular hour, and sends them to all the members each hour, which are called maotome okuris. Then the members are free to reply to whatever is posted.
To post to the Ranma ML, use the following address:
ranma@ML.usagi.org
It is always helpful to type a subject in the Subject: line, as these are the first things one sees on the maotome okuri mails.
How do I reply to something on the ML?
If you see something you want to reply to that is posted on the ML, just cut it and paste it into a new post to the ML you are making, and then put your replies below it, so people know what you are replying to. Never use the "Reply" function on your email system.
Do I have to post to be a member?
No, but new opinions are always welcome. If you do not wish to post to the ML, you can just receive the mail and take in what everyone else says. Participation is encouraged of all members, of course.
Are the people nice on the Ranma ML?
I'd like to think we are. ^_^ Despite occasional differences some people might have, we're not going to bite your head off. Do unto others as you would have done unto one's self is the norm here. And there's always room for another opinion, even if it's new.
What does "matome okuri" mean?
I'm not too sure on what the term means, but matome okuri refers to the format in which the ML is placed. The mails made for a particular hour-long span are compiled by the mail server and put out every hour (or every six hours, depending) into one mail. For example, say I posted something, my friend Ted Wang posted something, and you posted something in an hour long span of time. At the end of the hour (or of six hours, again, depending on your mode), all three of our mails would be conglomerated into one mail and sent out as one mail to all the members, including us. The result is one mail with a whole bunch of little mails that the members have written. There is "1 hour matome okuri" mode and "6 hour matome okuri" mode.
In a post dated Sat, 14 Feb, 1998 the "answer" was
given...
Matome Okuri means Mail Digest. Therefore 1hr Matome Okuri means a one hour Mail Digest, and 6hr Matome Okuri means a six hour mail digest.
What's the difference between "1 hour matome okuri" and "6 hour matome okuri"?
The difference is in the number of mails you get a day from the Ranma ML server. In "1 hour" mode you get matome okuri digest-type mails every hour, while in "6 hour" mode you get them every six hours. Don't worry - there's no difference in what mails you get - only in the frequency that you get them.
Kamisama forbid that you would ever want to unsub from the list ^_-, but if you do, either write Hitoshi Doi, or look at the "trailer" which follows every matome okuri mail to find out how to unsub. Don't post to the ML asking to be unsubbed.
Can I sign up under multiple email addresses?
Yes, you can. I myself have two addresses subbed to the list in case one gets faulty. Usually, I only use one email address, though, and use the backup only when the first one is down. Keep in mind that the domains "hotmail.com" and "microsoft.com" are banned from the ML. Keep in mind, however, that you should check your "backup" address occasionally to clear out the mail. Oftentimes if a mail server gets too full, it starts bouncing mails back to Hitoshi's server, and he has to unsub the offending address. So keep an eye out on your backups.
Are the ML people insane, or just strange?
I'd like to think a little of both. ^_^ Seriously though, there are many different unique personalities on the ML. It takes a little while for someone new to get used to the nuances and mannerisms that some of us may have, and also for us to get used to you. ^_^
How many mails do I get a day?
This depends on your mode. If you are in "1 hour" mode you can get as many as 24 a day. However, if you are in "6 hour" mode you get only 4 a day. Note that the 6 hour files are a lot bigger, and can short out some mail servers - only get this if your mail system can handle it, otherwise, take "1 hour" mode.
How much am I allowed to post?
You can post all you want, but try not to go off-topic all the time. In fact, in case anyone is curious about how much they post, Hitoshi puts up Statistics every month so you can find out how many posts you made. Is is highly recommended that you do not post merely to boost your ranking in the statistics.
If Hitoshi hasn't informed the ML that the servers will be down, it may be a temporary serer problem on your end. I myself have gone through this a couple of times. If you're really concerned, you can email Hitoshi at doi@.win.ne.jp to see if your posts are going through or if you're still subbed.
KTF, CoN, WoS...what are all these acronyms?
These are factions on the Ranma ML, organizations which may be dedicated to a certain character or aspect of Ranma 1/2. More information can be found on the faction page.
Do the ML people have real lives?
Believe it or not, we of the ML do have real lives outside of the mailing list, even though the number of posts that some of us put up may suggest otherwise ^_^. Many of us are in a lot of different positions and places, though probably half of us are students.
What is the age group of the Ranma ML?
We have a broad range of people of different ages on the ML, from as young as 13 or 14 to as old as those in their 30's and 40's. There's no need to feel uncomfortable merely because you think you are younger or older.
Is there anything that can't be talked about?
Technically, there isn't, though the ML has discussed certain issues quite extensively already, including Anime vs. Manga, best babes, Shampoo's hair color, and a couple of other done-to-death issues.
How many members are on the Ranma ML?
As of right now, there are just over 200 people on the ML, though only a small number of us regularly post.
Can I read what's been posted before I subscribed?
Yes, you can. On the Usagi ML page (the link is at the bottom of this page and every other page, to sign up for the ML) there is an archive list of all the posts from all the months of the Ranma ML's existence. You can also find your own posts there that you made before, after a few months. Hitoshi archives the month's posts monthly, so if you're curious you can check it out.
How dare you ask such a question! ^_^
Seriously, though, at the risk of inflating our collective egos, I'd go out on a limb and say we're all pretty sharp on things. we definitely have a diverse group of individuals, and one more is always welcome.
Sometimes I see posts that are replying to stuff I never saw on the ML, or which reply to something that appears in a later post. Why is that?
Some people post stuff to the ML that they get in private mail, or from another Ranma-related mailing list, for some reason, usually because they think it will pertain to the Ranma ML in some way.
If you see someone replying to a post that appears later, then it might have just been some kind of weird server thing.
Ack! I haven't gotten any mail from the ML, what's wrong?
Well, this could be one of several problems..
-Have you checked your mail recently? Some mail programs, such as Juno, tend to erase all incoming messages if their inboxes get too full. If you hadn't checked your mail in a few days, and have just gotten to it now, this may be the reason why you have no messages.
-You got unsubscribed somehow. Return to the Usagi ML admin page and go under the "list members" part of the Ranma ML. If you're still on the list, you should still be getting mail. If not, you got unsubbed somehow and need to get back on.
-You have what I refer to as a "server burp". Basically, you mail box either doesn't receive/send mail for a while, and then suddenly belches out all the mail at you all at once. I remember posting 14 messages to the ML one weekend. When they didn't pop up, and I didn't get any mail, I got worried and sent them again. They didn't appear until Monday, when my mail server decided to burp up all my messages, ending up with 28 messages. ^_^;; In this case, just wait a while, and your mail will come in.
-No one is posting to the ML at this particular time. It happens, because of the answer to Question 15. ^_^
You can always email Hitoshi at doi@win.ne.jp if you have tech questions.
Does Hitoshi just boot people from the ML sometimes, if he needs to?
Our administrator is pretty generous. He lets us police ourselves on the ML and doesn't really step in to take action against someone who is excessively flaming, SPAM-ing, etc. However, he does make exceptions - for example, if you support Anime piracy publicly on the ML, he will boot you. He also boots people who have not checked their mail in weeks and are cousing mails to be "bounced back" to the ML. Other than that, he lets us do the enforcing.
Is there any way to not get the mail in "maotome okuri" form?
No, there isn't. The transition was actually made to "maotome okuri" form for several reasons last year. Overall, it was supposed that the digest mode is a better way to organize the mail.
Do the ML people ever get tired of talking about Ranma?
I don't think so. There's always a topic floating around on the Ranma ML, and it's rare that there are periods where no one posts anything at all. I'd think that we all like Ranma 1/2 very much, and that we will probably not tire of talking about it for a long time to come.
Why is the ML in a mail-type format instead of a chat format?
I believe one of the reasons could be that if it were a chatline it would be quite hampering on a lot of us since we rarely have time to chat online, and email is a better way of doing this because you can just check in when you can to see if there are any messages to respond to... With a chatline, you cannot do this. You can't always scroll back to see past questions, only reply to what you see when you are there. Some of the topics on the ML change so slowly that sometimes you have to see what's been said in order to understand what the conversation is about... On a chatline this would be akin to jumping in at the middle of a conversation...
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c. 1997 by Frank Sanchez This page last updated on April 15, 1998