From: dbrooks@runforyourlife.org   
      
   On 8/10/24 4:56 PM, Dudley Brooks wrote:   
      
   > 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.   
      
   I accidentally hit Send too early, before asking recommendations for a   
   news server, if any, with a longer retention policy.   
      
   For $$ reasons at the moment (please don't ask) it has to be a free   
   service ... which I guess severely limits my choices.  Oh, well ...   
      
   --   
   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)