This posting describes the Chicagoland regional newsgroups (chi). It is
meant to be an adjunct to the postings describing the net-wide
newsgroups.
This posting also describes the procedure for creating and destroying
newsgroups in the chi hierarchy.



To start, here are the brief descriptions of the newsgroups suitable for
framing or inclusion in your LIBDIR/newsgroups file. This information
will be posted in a "chi" newsgroups checkgroups control message. The
checkgroups control message will be sent out automatically, on a regular
basis and when the "chi" newsgroup namespace changes.
-----
chi.eats Group for discussion of Chicagoland restaurants.
chi.forsale Chicago area for-sale notices.
chi.general General discussions, Chicago area, not forsale/wanted.
chi.mail Discussion of Chicago area email issues.
chi.places Group for announcements of Chicago area events.
chi.wanted Chicago area wanted (not for-sale) notices.
chi.weather Chicagoland weather reports.
-----

Additional description:

chi.eats This is a dandy newsgroup for finding good restaurants
or sharing your finds with the rest of the community.
Other appropriate postings might include information
on unusual grocers or food preparation equipment stores.

chi.forsale This is likely to be your first choice newsgroup for anything
you want to sell. It reaches a local audience, so people in
New Jersey won't have to read about your car for sale.
You should not cross-post a chi.forsale message to
chi.general, or any other group than another *.wanted
or *.forsale type group.

chi.general This newsgroup is for miscellaneous local-interest postings
that do not fit more appropriately into another group.
It is not for postings looking to buy, sell, rent, or trade
anything. chi.forsale and chi.wanted are perfectly fine
newsgroups for such postings.

chi.mail This newsgroup is for discussions related to Electronic Mail
into, out of, and within the Chicagoland area. Issues related
to the reliability of local mail, domains, etc. are welcome.

chi.places This is a good place to announce meetings, Ham fests,
concerts,
etc. Minutes or reviews might also be appropriate here.

chi.wanted This is likely to be your first choice newsgroup for anything
you want to buy. It reaches a local audience, so people in
New Jersey won't have to read about your wanting a new
dinette set. You should not cross-post a chi.wanted message
to chi.general, or any other group than another *.wanted
or *.forsale type group.

chi.weather This group is fed weather reports, forcasts, and other
items of meteorological interest from the National Weather
Service through a bizarre collection of equipment.

It is believed that the Chicagoland news community is still small enough
(and rational enough) that elaborate voting schemes are not necessary
to control the newsgroup namespace. On the other hand, it is generally
felt that the total anarchy of the "alt" hierarchy leaves much to be
desired. With that in mind, the following procedures are proposed.

Newsgroup Creation Procedure
----------------------------
The person wishing to create a new newsgroup should go through the
following steps.

1. Think again.
2. Propose the newsgroup in an article posted to the group
"chi.general".
(At this time, it is felt that there is insufficient volume to
warrant
any kind of "chi.news" group or hierarchy.) The proposing article
shall include:
- The proposed name (or names) for the new group.
- The proposed "one-liner" for for the LIB/newsgroups file.
- A brief description of the purpose for the new group, intended
audience, reason for local distribution, and reason no exising
newsgroup is appropriate.
3. Discussion should take place in chi.general, to reach consensus.
(con-sen-sus n. general agreement in opinion)
4. If agreement is reached on the desirability for the new group, and
on its name after a discussion period of at least two weeks, the
person who originally proposed the group shall send a message to
news@clout.chi.il.us. The message shall state that a discussion
has been held in chi.general and that a new newsgroup is being
created. The message shall include the group name and brief
description agreed upon for the LIB/newsgroups file, so that the
automated "chi" checkgroups message can be updated.
5. The person who proposed the new group shall issue the control
message for new group creation. If that person does not have the
local authority to issue the control message, or does not have the
knowledge of the correct way to do so, the message to
news@clout.chi.il.us can include a request that the control article
be sent, as well.

Newsgroup Deletion Procedure
----------------------------
This procedure provides a "sunset" for newsgroups that are not as popular
as anticipated or which have out-lived their usefulness. It is not
inteded
to be used for newsgroups in active use. A person who believes he/she
has discovered a dormant "chi" newsgroup should go through the following
steps.

1. Think again. Has the group seen no traffic (perhaps other than
"keep-alive" traffic) in the past few months? Is the newsgroup
of a seasonal nature? Can the newsgroup reasonably be thought
to be dead?
2. Propose that the newsgroup is dead in an article posted to
chi.general.
In the article, describe why you think it's dead and not coming back
in the near/foreseeable future.
3. Discussion should take place in chi.general.
4. If no one provides a reasonable argument that the group is still
alive (or will be soon) within two weeks, the group can be declared
dead.
5. The newsgroup slayer shall send a message to news@clout.chi.il.us.
The message shall state that the newsgroup has been declared dead,
and that the automated "chi" checkgroups message should be updated.
6. The newsgroup slayer shall issue the control message for group
deletion.
If that person does not have the knowledge of the correct way to do
so,
the message to news@clout.chi.il.us can include a request that the
control article be sent, as well.