[From Chris Cherpas (980501.0400 PT)]
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
Welcome to CSGnet. We want your visit to be pleasant and instructive. Things
will go smoothly if you observe the following simple rules: ...
I don't visit CSGnet for what is pleasant and smooth, but I often get
what
is instructive. Fortunately, my Netscape inbox shows me who sent each
post
and I can quickly delete posts from Bruce Gregory without actually
having
to read them (you can do the same with mine). I find this makes the
experience
instructive and _efficient_. I do learn from Bruce Gregory's posts --
by just
reading replies to them from participants having the most experience
with PCT
(e.g., Bill Powers).
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
1. Ask questions. The more technical the better. Either Bill or Rick will
provide very clear and helpful answers. If you need further clarification,
ask for it.
Powers and Marken are obviously well qualified to answer questions on
PCT.
What else would you expect? They often serve as teachers here. I
haven't
found better. Better them than Bruce Gregory, don't you think?
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
2. Read B:CP at least once a year. More often if possible. The book contains
a great deal of material and you must read it half a dozen times to gain the
greatest benefit.
Don't avoid re-reading if it increases your understanding.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
3. Keep your good ideas to yourself. If you are not prepared to offer an
explicit model, you are better off saying nothing. If you are tempted to
ignore this rule, by all means keep the next one.
Your good ideas about PCT are likely to get even better after being
discussed here. Whatever you say here, if you focus on PCT, you're
likely to learn something. To go further than an initial good idea,
you'll likely want to consider modeling it explicitly or ask for help
in doing so.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
4. If you encounter resistance from Bill or Rick, back off at once. Change
the subject. Unless that is, if you enjoy trading insults and engaging in
exchanges that go nowhere. Neither Bill nor Rick are famous for changing
their minds about anything.
I enjoy insulting someone as much as anyone, but that has little to do
with Powers or Marken changing their minds. If you want to see them
change
their minds, try making a good argument instead of composing posts,
like
this one, which go nowhere. Powers and Marken are famous for knowing
PCT;
that's why you might want their comments on what you say about PCT.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
5. If Rick is talking about a model, pay close and careful attention to what
he says. He knows what he is talking about. If Rick is addressing someone
else's understanding of PCT, ignore him. He has a tendency to erect straw
men and to pummel them mercilessly.
Marken is a proven modeler. He's had the experience to know what he is
talking about. We all want to avoid straw men that stand in the way of
improving our understanding. I trust that pointing out specific
fallacies is
part of the process of the discussion which helps refine our
understanding.
CSGnet posts (except mine) are not always flawlessly constructed. The
medium
allows rapid pace, informal exchanges which may be revised and
elaborated, and
can eventually lead to something quite constructive, but the potential
for
decadence is always there. Bruce Gregory's "erect straw men" comment
is no
exception.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
6. Most of what Bill writes is lucid and well thought out. His social views
however tend toward the knee-jerk radical. Cherish the former and avoid the
latter.
Social views expressed by the originator and current top developer
of PCT have not appeared knee-jerk to me. Interpretations of broad
social
phenomena are more speculative than analyses of tracking experiments,
but are nonetheless instructive about, and for, PCT. I have found
Powers highly reflective and revealing of how he arrives at such
statements. Bruce Gregory controls for the perception of knee-jerk
radical statements, and offers this as a public service for CSGnet at
the
cost of a few thousand wasted bytes on everyone's disks per day.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
7. Applications of PCT, with the exception of the Method of Levels, get
short shrift here. Stick to models and you will get along fine.
I believe applications would be greatly appreciated by all. However,
we are
discussing long-evolved systems. Interventions have to be considered
carefully.
Getting from apparent phenomena to models is difficult, perhaps
especially
so for applications with socially significant impact. Keep your
attention
on these problems, and let reorganization do what it can.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
8. Avoid, whenever possible, the temptation to state things in your own
words. Stick to the technical use of terms and you will stay out of trouble.
Your own words will converge to the technical terms as you understand
PCT
better in most cases. If PCT terminology needs to develop
along some original lines you suggest, so much the better for PCT.
Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--
One Who Knows
Again, if you wait for a veteran PCTer's replies to Bruce Gregory's
posts,
you may learn something valuable. I sincerely appreciate Bruce
Gregory's
contributions in this respect.
Best regards,
cc