From: dbrooks@runforyourlife.org   
      
   On 8/10/24 4:37 PM, Dudley Brooks wrote:   
      
   > On 8/10/24 4:32 PM, Jeff Barnett wrote:   
   >   
   >> On 8/10/2024 4:40 PM, Dudley Brooks wrote:   
   >   
   >>> On 8/10/24 2:50 PM, Jeff Barnett wrote:   
   >>>   
   >>>> On 8/10/2024 2:21 PM, Dudley Brooks wrote:   
   >>>>   
   >>>>> I clicked on a message here and got a "Not Found" error.   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> I then clicked on "Delete All Expired Messages" ... and the entire   
   >>>>> ng contents disappeared except for the single post "LLM and Prolog,   
   >>>>> a Marriage in Heaven? (Re: 42 is the answer)" !!!   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> Is this true???  Is there really nothing in this ng???  Or is this   
   >>>>> some bug in Thunderbird.   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> Someone please post and let me know that No, everything really is   
   >>>>> still here.   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> Then I can try to figure out the TB bug or switch to a different ng   
   >>>>> reader.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> TB works fine with this newsgroup. This forum is one that only sees   
   >>>> posts when there is something to say. Almost all of the traffic   
   >>>> consists of descriptions of symbolic systems' tests and statistics   
   >>>> that compare these systems. There is also some discussions of what   
   >>>> is tested and how as well as system idiosyncrasies that may cause   
   >>>> anomalous results.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> Running tests is labor intensive and there are time gaps between   
   >>>> these runs to think about how to grow the test suite. In addition,   
   >>>> there is no point in running and reporting unless either some   
   >>>> systems have released newer versions or the testing itself has been   
   >>>> updated.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> Every once in a while, one of the testers either releases new   
   >>>> results and/ or asks for comments then an appropriate conversation   
   >>>> will follow. Occasionally an interloper such as you or I will pop in   
   >>>> and there is a little flurry of messages. Otherwise, this forum is   
   >>>> here for a dedicated group of people who are interested and   
   >>>> knowledgeable in symbolic mathematics when they have something to say.   
   >>>   
   >>> That's fine.  That's why I'm interested in the ng.   
   >>>   
   >>> But my question was not about what the ng is FOR, or how often anyone   
   >>> posts.   
   >>>   
   >>> It was about whether there are ANY MESSAGES AT ALL in the ng!   
   >>>   
   >>> My experience was this:   
   >>>   
   >>> Every time this ng shows that it has a new posting, I open the ng.   
   >>>   
   >>> I always see the new posting ... and I always see the large number of   
   >>> old postings.  (I don't remember offhand what the number is.)   
   >>>   
   >>> I click on TB's "Show unread" so that I can focus on whatever is new.   
   >>>   
   >>> For each new post (and yes, in this ng that is never very many) I   
   >>> either read it or click it Unread.   
   >>>   
   >>> I then click on Show All ... and there, once again, are the large   
   >>> number of old, and formerly new but now old, postings.   
   >>>   
   >>> Today I did exactly that ... except ...   
   >>>   
   >>> After clicking on Show All, I saw an old one which seemed   
   >>> interesting, so I clicked on it to read it ...   
   >>>   
   >>> ... and it gave an Expired message.   
   >>>   
   >>> So I clicked on TB's Delete All Expired Messages ...   
   >>>   
   >>> ... and EVERYTHING DISAPPEARED, except for the one single message   
   >>> which I saw above!  The entire message list pane was blank except for   
   >>> that one message!   
   >>>   
   >>> I thought maybe I had clicked on Show Unread again, but I had not.   
   >>> It was still on Show All ... and All was only a single message!   
   >>>   
   >>> So I ask you.  When you look at this ng right now, how many messages   
   >>> are you seeing?   
   >>>   
   >>> Because I'm only seeing three messages IN THE ENTIRE NG: The one I   
   >>> mention above, my question, and your answer.  NOTHING ELSE!   
   >>   
   >> I see your two messages, a prior one from me, and a fourth from "Mild   
   >> Shock". You DO know that TB has retention settings for news groups and   
   >> news group servers? Those settings can effect what you are able to see   
   >> and when to delete msg copies on your machine.   
   >>   
   >> Just recall the point I tried to make above: message traffic to this   
   >> group occurs at sort of random times and it occurs in spurts. What YOU   
   >> will see and what YOU will retain depends on when you look and the   
   >> retention policies you have imposed.   
   >   
   > Ah!  That makes sense.  I didn't know about TB's retention settings -- I   
   > never knowingly made any setting.   
   >   
   > I'll check it out.  Thanks!   
      
   *All* my accounts -- email, ng's, etc -- are already set to Do Not   
   Delete Anything.   
      
   However, I now see that practically every ng I am subscribed to has   
   mostly expired messages.   
      
   So I guess it must be the policy at news.eternal-september.org, my ng   
   source.   
      
      
   --   
   Dudley Brooks, Artistic Director   
   Run For Your Life! ... it's a dance company!   
   San Francisco   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)