Hi Alan,

>
>Do you think that setting up these divisions will actually help to pull
>over some beginners, and "scholars and pandits?" If not, then I might
>wait a little while longer until it isn't simply me posting. If you
>think that it will actually draw in some people, then I suppose I should
>do it immediately.
>So your thoughts are:
>
>Beginners section
>Translation discussion
>Grammar and Term discussion
>
>This last one could be intended more for "experts."

Well if as you say the site isn't drawing a lot of traffic yet it might be premature to divide it up.

What I guess I'm imagining is a php site which would function as a general clearinghouse for promoting the study of Pali. It would be useful for both beginners and scholars, for practitioners and linguists. Ongoing research could be published in REAL TIME and be made available to immediate comment.It could include, for example, all the recommended corrections to the PED (of which probably hundreds have been published in various places, not least by our Dmytryo). It would be a reliable site and the archives wouldn't be lost if the owner fails to pay the bills or decides to move on in life.

Translation projects could be presented as they unfold as is taking place here on Yahoo.

Typos and other mistakes in learning materials could be collated and collected, answer keys completed.

The main thing is that with the right structure, and with a moderator with an archivist's and librarian's take on the whole thing, such a site could become searchable and deeply useful.

Exactly what sections would make sense isn't that easy to decide, but the three categories you mention above would definitely be useful.

An example of a possible subsection would be 'semantics and lexicography'.

Another good reason for doing this on a php forum is that since it's threaded, it's much easier to carry on side discussions without 'taking over' the forum like can happen here where I'm actually putting this message into a bunch of people's mailboxes (sorry!)

What I'd hope to see is a well-structured, comprehensive site for Pali studies that can appeal to all levels and all types of interest in the language and which would be THE place to go, THE place where everybody can meet anybody interested in the language.

For this to work there'd have to be quite a number of subdivisions, and just deciding how to structure it would be a job in itself. Perhaps the e-sangha context isn't the ideal place to realize this vision, but as the Pali section there grows you might want to divide it up like this, I don't know. At the very least having a beginner's zone and a more advanced zone might be a good idea.

best regards,

/Rett