--- In Nostratica@yahoogroups.com, "Gerry <waluk@...>" <waluk@...>
wrote:

> Times are different now Richard. In the "liberal past" the group
> archives would have been open to everyone. But within the past few
> years there has developed such hostility within yahoogroups that in
> several of the groups I have moderated, files have disappeared.

Are you confusing the archive of past messages with the 'files'.
They are different entities!

> If
> someone wishes to review the files, they simply sign in and I

approve

> them.

Incidentally, what is the difference between 'open membership' (as at
PhoNet) and 'restricted membership' (as here and at Cybalist).

>Look at what happened with the old Nostratic group without a
> moderator.

The only problem I remember was a bit of spamming. (Admittedly, it
could only have got worse.) We probably generated more uninteresting
e-mail when setting up the new group! The biggest problem at
Nostratic was probably that new members could not join, though I
would like to know how I joined. Did I simply get in through my
application timing out? Incidentally, we don't yet have a back-up
moderator!

> This archive remains "for members only". Besides, why
> would the general public be interested in Nostratic files?

Are you suggesting I should leave? My degrees are in mathematics, I
did no formal study of languages after the age of 16, I work as an
engineer, and linguistics is only a hobby. I suspect that makes me a
member of the 'general public'. It's strange that I should consult
Starostin's databases (especially Pokorny) from time to time.

Richard.