EDLIS Café FAQ

EDLIS CafĂŠ http://www.edlis.org/cafe http://goo.gl/8nL5tB [compact version] == 1. Who is Bob Dylan? == Bob Dylan is a singer, a guitar player, a songwriter and a recording artist. Born Robert Allen Zimmerman in Duluth Minnesota in 1941, his earliest circulating recordings date from 1958 and his first commercial release was in 1962. Hundreds of albums and even more concerts later, Dylan continues to write, record and perform. http://expectingrain.com/dok/who/d/dylanbob.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_dylan

== 2. What is the EDLIS Café? == Welcome, fans and followers! ☻/ /▌ /\

The EDLIS Café is the Facebook Group for general discussions of Bob Dylan's work, concert reminders and related topics.

Pour yourself a coffee (we have not yet hired any serving staff) sit back and join in. There is music here at night and revolution in the air... ♪ ♫ ♩ ♬~I ♥ EDLIS Café~♪ ♫ ♩ ♬ http://bit.ly/a1MEhH Everyone is friendly, no one is ever unpleasant, and all are welcome. It is really boring if a small number of people dominate the conversation. YOU have the solution. Post something. Just be yourself, don't imitate the more outrageous dudes, and if your English is weak post in any language you like, with or without an English translation.

The EDLIS Café is devoted to the discussion of Bob Dylan, his music, concert reminders, and things Dylan-related. We welcome your constructive comments on nearly any issue, even if it's only tangentially associated with Bob Dylan. There is no official Dylan fan club, so small packs of Dylan fans band together to stay informed and carry on general discussion. This particular café was opened on July 31, 1989 by Tom Buckley. You may recall it housed in another structure on Usenet News called alt.music.dylan which we then gerrymandered into rec.music.dylan. You can still post there but do also post a copy here.

Sometimes it seems that all we're interested in are upcoming tour dates and clarification of fact regarding old recordings, but there is often very interesting discussion of Dylan's lyrics themselves, a reason that no doubt many of you come here. If you don't see the sort of discussion you want, you're encouraged to bring it up yourself! Many people criticise the content and tenor of postings but few praise those they like. If you see a posting which is just what you like to see, why not message the poster privately and say so. Many good posters cease contributing because they are not getting any feedback. And use the Like button where you see it below something you like.

Please participate in the discussions or if not could you privately tell Admins in Facebook

messages why you are not participating? We might change things. The way to ensure the EDLIS Café is to your liking is to encourage postings you like and to contribute yourself!

Now, please.

And don't stay up too late until you wonder what’s the matter with you, until you don’t have much to say, daylight sneakin’ through the window and you're still in this all-night café. Walkin’ to and fro beneath the moon out to where the trucks are rollin’ slow sit down on this bank of sand and watch the river flow... https://www.facebook.com/groups/edlis.cafe/ == 3. Is there an EDLIS Café etiquette? == Yes. As with all Internet and related places, the very best recommendation is for you to sit back and read for a while before you make your first posting. That way you can get a proper feel for the place. Then you will see which postings you think are valuable and which are wasting space or preventing good discussion.

The EDLIS Café is moderated and edited. Ruthlessly. By a large herd of Admins. None of them are answerable to anyone. None of them know what the others are doing. That is the reason it looks like it does and reads as it does.

If you do not want this style of place and prefer free speech, do not despair, the place for that is the UseNet Newsgroup rec.music.dylan. http://groups.google.com/group/rec.music.dylan/topics https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.music.dylan/bEw1LtX1Gbs or similar free speech Dylan discussion at The Gaslight: http://democraticrepublicofdyland.yuku.com/ http://youtu.be/uz2jbCJXkpA Or if you want to set up your own Facebook Group without editing or moderation then ask any Admin. We will help you do so and we can provide readers if you want that also.

Do not stay here if you do not like it. There are hundreds of Bob Dylan forums on the Internet

and none will suit all. There are many other groups in Facebook, just ask anyone. There are several other EDLIS Facebook Groups, just ask anyone. Or look at which groups other people belong to, especially those who seem to have tastes and interests like yours. www.edlis.org/etiquette == 4. I sort of see what is going on. But are there any guidelines? == Like all EDLIS activities the principle is one of anarchy. All points of view are welcomed. No one and nothing is too strange. Contribution is the measure.

The main reason something is removed from the EDLIS Café is simply that it is too boring. Or a person is trolling or even just grandstanding. Or insulting a patron of the EDLIS Café. Riding dead horses does not get you far here.

Do not be offended. Everyone has things removed, even the most adept posters. The EDLIS Café is not a place where repetition is common. And one line Comments like "Thanks" or "That was great" rarely survive. There is a Like button for that. Use the Like button to encourage the things you want to see!

You will tend not to see "Me too", "mmmmmm gorgeous", "good one!!", "lol", "a hot one!", "omg", "I am bored", "yummy!", "haha", "Wow!", "*swoon*" “Woooot!” “Shit!” and the like as stand alone comments. If a person objects strenuously and really wants to look foolish with a short attention span and no understanding of the Caf we make a special exception and Admins give them all the rope they want.

Clever posters of course get round this by padding out their clichéd short attention span phrases with content rich interesting and detailed added value. ;-) Similarly there are trolls who repeatedly post misinformation and get most facts wrong. They never ask 'I was wondering' or 'Is it possible?, instead they post with absolute certainty. They then post screeds of reasons they are correct, ignoring all facts, refusing to read what others write in Comments (especially if the Commenter is a woman!!!), refusing to follow links provided to information, refusing to look at a book or journal referenced, never acknowledging corrections to their mistakes, but insisting others are wrong and “don’t get it”, they “know Dylan”. They appear not to mind that the impression they make is one of foolish ignorance, crass arrogance and rudeness. They usually have a small posse of slow-witted admirers supporting their delusions. Do let Admins know if you see this, the Admins balance negativity against contribution, and decide if present behaviour means someone is asking to join the disappeared. ;-) We retain one or two sad walking antiques, for perspective.

EDLIS keeps details of frequently-raised subjects or threads on rec.music.dylan and in the

EDLIS Café, such as "Who is the 13th/15th Century poet mentioned in "Tangled Up In Blue"?". http://www.edlis.org/twice Ask yourself if I waited 24 hours, would I still want to post this? This is especially relevant for posts initiated in anger.

Ask yourself if this is potentially of interest to many people, or would it be better sent via Facebook Message or private e-mail to one person? Or would it be better in Chat?

Accentuate the Positive, as Bob sang at that early performance!

Ask yourself if your posts are usually very negative, sour or grumpy, do people really want to read them? This may be the most important line in the FAQ. ^ That was the most important line in the FAQ! You will notice how the people who can always see the negative put people off, cause people to leave the group, and cause a downward spiral in threads. It is really very sad, especially as the negative poster must be in a bad place. We keep a few doddery old codgers long past their sellby dates in a back room who always come up with a negative slant on everything they touch.

You will be astonished how often they can do it! But no one really wants to read that. Critical thought is great, negative thought is mind-polluting.

"The jaded old Bob Dylan fan's utter lack of aesthetic sense, his distrust of all romantic emotion, his unmatchable intolerance of opposition, his unbreakable belief in his own bleak and narrow views, his savage cruelty of attack, his lust for relentless and barbarous persecution — these things have put an almost unbearable burden upon the exchange of ideas in the EDLIS Café ."

— H.L. Mencken (A Book of Prefaces, 1917) Ask yourself if your post is about Bob Dylan's work. Are you certain?

Remember that in the EDLIS Café there are always newbies and also many for whom English is not their first language. Do not use acronyms, they are irritating, serve to keep outsiders out and confuse newcomers. Acronyms are very much an elitist thing, used to keep new people out of a subject and add to the hurdles of anyone new. Lots of acronyms suggests a very poor writing style. Try and be clear, unambiguous and use language that is acceptable in all countries. You will see swear words and offensive things but only when Bob Dylan is the source or they are unavoidable for some other reason.

The best guideline for what is acceptable in terms of questionable content is probably the EDLIS Sister Principle. http://www.edlis.org/twice/threads/edlis_advice.html#discretion

"EDLIS is very discreet, about Mr Dylan's weaknesses or about anyone else's. EDLIS uses the "sister" principle. We are happy to gossip about anything if we would be happy to know people were saying those things about our sister."

So for example, Bob Dylan's use of heroin, though well known even in the 1960s, was not discussed openly. Now that it is public with the broadcast of his own words in his own voice by the BBC in May 2011, it is discussed openly. But with discretion. We are not journalists exploiting misery for personal gain without compassion. But we do comment even on the slimiest journalists gazing down from the gutter into the sewer they float in. == 5. Humour? Confusion? Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? == There is a reasonable amount of humour, wit, banter and allusion in the EDLIS Café. If English is not your first language or you are from somewhere where this is not the norm it can be confusing.

If you read something and think this is nonsense, it makes no sense, it seems inappropriate, ask yourself if you might be missing humour, especially allusions to obscure Bob Dylan lyrics or interviews. Or reference to things in the EDLIS Café and its predecessors, even many years ago.

And not all humour works. Edgy humour is tricky to gauge for an international audience.

Hyperbole often fails to be recognised by everyone. Sarcasm can easily go sour.

Understatement, irony, innuendo and parody can look odd if missed.

If you post something, anything, and later, a minute later, a day later, wish you had not posted it, then delete it. You can always delete your own posts, comments and photos. If you are fast maybe no one will have seen it. The longer you wait the more people will have read it!

And if someone else offends you, Facebook Message them privately and explain. 90% of the time it comes as a surprise that any offense was caused. Ask for deletion. == 6. Nicknames / Pseudonyms == By the 1980s it was very usual for people in Dylan circles to chose a Dylan-related nickname as their username, especially if they were trading illegal recordings or posting in a forum. Therefore in the EDLIS Café you will find people who still use their Dylan-related nicknames as well as people using their names as found on their passports.

Some people may want to keep their Dylan activities quite separate from any professional profile they might have on Facebook and therefore chose to use a nickname, while others may find it too troublesome to switch between their regular profile and a Dylan-related nick.

Both options are quite acceptable as long as “disguises” aren’t used to hurt or trick other people.

EDLIS has always clearly avoided and condemned that. == 7. Rogue elephants Trampling Black Swans == This is EDLIS and you are in the Caf. Everyone should post and post guesses, post suppositions, post speculations, never hesitate. If others think things that make your post wrong they will post. And we work out what is real and what is not.

You do not look foolish if you post something wrong. Errors are much better than silent consumption.

EDLIS and the Caf are places where people work together and try and get along. Since the 1960s it has worked well under various incarnations. Every now and then we get a rogue elephant who goes off the rails, then patience and understanding are called for. And there are always a few who do not get it. They miss the point. See ghosts and gremlins that are not there.

Criticize and find fault. Retreat to a vault. Sometimes the silence can be like the thunder.

If EDLIS and the Caf suit then partake and enjoy. If weird imaginary characters and needling, allusions and jokettes disturb you, ummm, the Caf is not for you. But then nor is Bob Dylan!

If a person refers to characters in the Caf as "fake" or other judgmental words you can be certain they have no understanding of how the Caf functions or how it models its structures on Dylan songs and the like. They do not get it at all. More intelligent terms to use are "pseudonym", “identity”, "character", “nickname” “pen name” or "role play character". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudonym The use of pseudonyms is a long tradition in Dylan circles, and they have been commonplace in most online forums from their beginnings in the 1980s. It was only with Facebook that some people began to use real names. The Dylan Pool, ExpectinGrain, trading sites, downloading sites, most forums about Bob Dylan require you to use a pseudonym. You would have to be incredibly out of touch with the Dylan community over time online to feel there was something wrong with pseudonyms. Pseudonyms are also normal and common on Twitter, YouTube, Reddit, and Flickr and most other similar places. In virtual worlds and games people express themselves through avatar names. It is striking that those who seem bothered are relative newbies and usually have another agenda, often a quite disturbing one.

If you do not understand something ask anyone, an Admin or anyone. If you do not like the chaos of the Caf, if it disturbs you, ask yourself why are you here? It is not required. Negativity won’t pull you through. ;-) Some throw their toys out of the pram. It is all in the songs. Everything is criticized when you are in need! Distant voices. But there’s always someone who understands.

Everybody’s wearing a disguise To hide what they’ve got left behind their eyes If you do not like fake ids then be sure to stay away from: Alias Blind Boy Grunt Bob Allyn Bob Dylan Bob Landy Boo Wilbury Egg O’Schmillson Elmer Johnson Elston Gunnn Harvey Wade Jack Fate Jack Frost Jim Nasium Judge Magney Justin Case Lucky Wilbury Renaldo Robert Allen Zimmerman Robert Milkwood Thomas Roosevelt Gook Sergei Petrov Shabtai Zisel ben Avraham Tedham Porterhouse Zimbo Zimmy Zushia ben Avraham Or maybe amusing characters and nicknames are a Bob Dylan tradition going back many years? Maybe most people in the Caf have an alias on some other Dylan site, or did have in the past. Windmill tilting is so boring.

== 8. When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain? - a.k.a. Pot Kettle Black... ;-) == “Most decent people do not want to spend time on their usually 'fun' hobby, fighting psychotic idiots who then attack and harass them into oblivion before moving on to the next site...� -- 18 October 2010 at 01:16 -- Mrs Kay Smith (EDLIS Tilting at Windmills agent) [real name: Miss Katherine Bailey] Ever since it stopped being an academic/military service and opened to the wider public, the net has been a place that attracts the eccentric, the disturbed and the insane. This is obvious if you think about it. If you are insane and the people around you have had to cope with that, you may find they are not your most attentive long term audience. On the Internet, and especially on Facebook, you can have a constant source of new audiences who do not realise where you are coming from. You can court new friends who will support your delusions and you can remove, block, unfriend any people concerned to present the real world to you. You can create your own delusional world and live there, silent to reality. Those blocked, unfriended and otherwise denied will be unable to answer any outrageous lies and libels made. And all who see you will know you cannot face any normal fair exchange, you require secrecy, intrigue and spite. If you thrive on argument, you must avoid honest people who would take your artillery away. Though all reasonable people see through this by your actions, new people and old fools you can manipulate with your warped behaviour will help feed your frenzy. Idiot Wind.

You will run across the eccentric, the disturbed and the insane on Facebook, the Caf, other EDLIS Groups, and all over. Expect it. Be prepared. Be kind and sympathetic to these extremes.

You will not help, cure or even comfort someone very much on Facebook. You can so easily rile, provoke or disturb them. Suicides are dangerous.

Remember there is no real privacy on the Internet. It is international with many cultures and variable ethical standards. Many feel it is reasonable to show private messages to others, whereas in some cultures this would seem grossly unethical. Your best approach is to write only what you would be happy anyone seeing. Assume it is about as private as a postcard in a mailroom. And if you choose to read things belonging to others that are private, do not overreact when you read things you did not want to see!

Below is a list of helpful links should you wonder about someone. Internet amateur diagnosis of mental illness is not sensible. But understanding behaviour is helpful. You do not tell a person displaying psychotic behaviour that they have done something unethical if they cannot seem to tell right from wrong. You do not want to needle or undermine someone who is suicidal. But your behaviour is simple. Be kind, helpful and thoughtful. Try and give the benefit of the doubt. Talk to all involved. Communicate directly. If delicate or personal, communicate in private messages. If worried contact good friends of the person and voice your worries privately.

Occasionally wild reactions to something in the Caf will explode. Some of the people can be viciously jealous and possessive of all thought about their boy Bobby. Some of the people can be very sexist and dismissive. For a few sad souls what women post is invisible. None of the negativity shows any comprehension of Bob Dylan or EDLIS. Most mirrors the faults of the posters. Negativity sparks poor behaviour which says so much about the posters, so little about the topic. But given enough rope such people do indeed hang themselves publicly. But many of the readers can read, even if they stay out of things. Among Dylan fans especially, and among people in general to a lesser extent, you will find the more you do, the more you create, the more you achieve, the more some of those who can only consume and offer nothing in return will attack and criticise.That should inspire you, not destroy you. Bob Dylan is a good model for that. Odd fact.

Over the years we have had a number of people who have been in mental hospitals, prisons, or other such places and a few suicides. We have seen behaviour that fits every one of the things listed below. I hope and believe no one was made worse by contact with EDLIS people. Often their behaviour has been dire on the net. We have seen none attacked in an EDLIS Group -- all are edited and moderated -- but we have seen vicious attacks, misinformation, libel and terrible undermining of some on the net in general. It cannot help. The victim. Or the victimizer.

Abuse systematic diminishment of another, always as a course of conduct, not one single event http://www.enotalone.com/forum/showthread.php?t=217482 http://pandys.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=194595 Attachment secure, insecure-ambivalent, insecure-avoidant and disorganized/disoriented http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attachment_theory#Attachment_in_adults Bi-polar transitions between depression and mania http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipolar_disorder Borderline Personality Disorder unstable moods, behaviour, and relationships http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/borderline-personality-disorder/what-is-borderlinepersonality-disorder.shtml Co-dependent dependence on the needs of or control of another http://www.dailystrength.org/groups/codependancy-in-recovery/discussions/messages/5778947 Manipulation having a sufficient level of ruthlessness to have no qualms about causing harm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_manipulation Passive/Aggressive hostile manner of aggression manifest in covert indirect negative behaviour http://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counsellor-articles/what-is-passive-aggressive-behaviour

Silence is the tool at the very top of many lists of abuse http://outofthefog.net/CommonNonBehaviors/TimeOut.html Sociopath -- moral insanity -- psychopathic personality -- antisocial personality disorder http://www.mcafee.cc/Bin/sb.html Stockholm Syndrome empathy and positive feelings towards tormentor http://drjoecarver.makeswebsites.com/clients/49355/File/love_and_stockholm_syndrome.html Suicidal most people who commit suicide don't want to die, they just want to stop hurting http://www.helpguide.org/mental/suicide_prevention.htm And -- drum roll -- completely out of alphabetical order!

Obsessive/Compulsive preoccupation with remembering and paying attention to minute details, making lists, need to collect and hoard http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Call-them-what-you-will-obsessive-compulsive2545952.php Obsessive behaviours bring order to chaos. The EDLIS Café is really a haven for the obsessive.

If you are here taking this much interest in Bob Dylan and mixing with the other coffee drinkers with their level of interest, reading this FAQ, I think there is a strong likelihood you lean towards this one, if only a little. Some a lot!

So remember if you meet a wacko strange post do consider what level your own interest in Bob Dylan is and is it healthy? Be kind and careful. And maybe this is in fact a self help group for the deluded? ;-) Well, the moral of the story The moral of this song Is simply that one should never be Where one does not belong So when you see your neighbor carryin’ somethin’ Help him with his load And don’t go mistaking Paradise For that Caf across the road. == 9. Who do I complain to and how do I complain? == Any Admin.

By Facebook message.

No one wants to read administrative discussion or comment on why something happened technically in a place where people wish to discuss Bob Dylan. If you need an audience and cannot feel comfortable sorting things out behind closed doors you would probably prefer to be elsewhere.

People who insist on discussing policy and procedure irrelevant to a Bob Dylan discussion forum publicly, cultivating an audience and spoiling for a fight seem to disappear. We have no idea how this happens. But there is an eerie certainty about it. [Queue scary organ music.] == 10. So someone might delete what I posted? == Yes. Keep a copy of anything valuable so you could post it in another forum. Or post it several places at once. https://archive.today/ == 11. Spam == Spam and other advertising is generally deleted on sight.

An exception is made if there is substantial Bob Dylan content. So Examiner.com, a division of Clarity Media Group, posts, while obviously overtly commercial and done solely for financial gain, are left up if they provide valuable information. This may be exploiting EDLIS for personal financial gain, but there have been times an Examiner post is the only surviving record of something deleted elsewhere. Plus, it gives a chance for the general public to play at the vanity journalism game if they do not have the ability to partake in real journalism.

Where you find a Post or Comment abusive or manipulative, suggest it for deletion. Especially if you feel the poster is using EDLIS shilling for financial gain! One scurrilous practice is for writers to post a link to their commercial site, which they are paid for by how many people click on it, to show an embedded public link you can see elsewhere for free.

The owner of Examiner.com, Philip Anschutz, is the 38th richest person in the United States of America with an estimated net worth of $10 billion as of 2013. No one ever got poor underestimating the intelligence of consumers.

http://www.rachel1919.com/examiner.html "Examiner.com is "citizen journalism" or vanity website similar to Associated Content. Like Associated Content, they will accept contributions from essentially anyone, they exercise no editorial control, and they pay for page impressions; as such, it fails. In addition, they deliberately allow themselves to be confused with the San Francisco Examiner, which is a reliable source. Examiner.com is paid per impression. I'm not aware of any concerted spam campaign, but the other issues related to examiner.com links have convinced me that we should be blocking them to discourage their use." - Gavia Immer http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Examiner Blogs promoting a product, a vanity publication, a performer, or similar are sometimes incessantly flacked in the Caf. This makes the blogger lose all credibility and look foolish in the extreme. Third parties are more than welcome to post a link to a blog with a caption about why, when it is worthy of mention. But Admins delete commercial spamming. http://njnnetwork.com/ NJN Network is the commercial advertising site of the Internet troll Stephen Pâté, the faux journalist in the courts in Prince Edward Island after having his journalist's credentials removed and faking government press releases. He has never worked as a professional journalist. http://alldylan.com/ AllDylan.com is a gentler spam operation, but rather obvious in its money making agenda, rehashing old news and other people’s work to monetarise it for themselves. Some of its posts are kept, they are not all crass greed.

Kickstarter (2009) is an online begging forum where people pledge money to projects without any check that they have real merit. A good project is usually fundable through normal channels.

No Dylan related project has ever been successful there. Read carefully where Kickstarter explains all the fees and the percentage that Kickstarter takes of a project total. EDLIS usually avoids begging letters unless they have significant Bob Dylan relevance. The Better Business Bureau has given Kickstarter an F rating, its lowest possible rating on a scale from A+ to F. Indiegogo (2008) is another online begging forum. There is a 4% fee for successful campaigns.

For campaigns that fail users have the option of either refunding all money or keeping all money raised minus a 9% fee plus 3% credit card processing fee. In April 2014, after being shown clear evidence of fraud, Indiegogo responded by deleting their anti-fraud guarantee.

EDLIS will help anyone with a real Bob Dylan project of any type that has merit. The scams and the frauds and the faux Dylanista we try to avoid. Tell us if you think we are being used by a shill. ==

12. Archiving, how is that done? == Many people post a copy of an EDLIS CafĂŠ thread in the UseNet Newsgroup rec.music.dylan. It is indexed and searchable. Try a Google Search on the terms EDLIS Bob Dylan +duende http://www.google.co.uk/ You see how well that works. Put every thread you wish to find again in rec.music.dylan. Why not?

Many people mail a copy to their gmail account. Archive anything you like from the EDLIS CafĂŠ anywhere you can think of. Facebook is not easily or reliably searchable nor is it likely to last. As pyramid schemes go it is pretty slimy. And when it bans a person all their content is lost without appeal. This could include threads where you have contributed. People are banned by Facebook for things like going too fast, having too many friends, or posting too much content.

We have even had an EDLIS Admin who at one time was well liked and respected by many but destroyed years of EDLIS work on purpose when she and her various identities left Facebook yet she knew exactly how to preserve the work of others when leaving. Hundreds of people had helped her build threads, photographs, documents, memories and much more and obviously felt profoundly betrayed when she trashed years of their work and blamed others for her own behaviour.

Expect the unexpected. Your best friend and your worst enemy may be one and the same.

Nothing archives Facebook well, comprehensively or easily. But you could see if these help: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-backup-archive-all-your-facebook-data/ http://www.fbarchive.com/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/scrapbook-plus/ http://chris.pirillo.com/how-to-archive-facebook-data/ http://acrobatusers.com/tutorials/capture-and-archive-website-using-adobe-acrobat-9 http://www.evernote.com/ Understand what each does, it probably is not what you want it to do. And be very aware that one application can clash with another, sometimes you cannot have two running at once. Tell us if you find anything better.

Are you thinking, "I will just leave archiving to others?" EDLIS does not work like that. The world does not work like that. If enough people archive, then things might be saved. Archive what YOU value.

== 13. How do I read this free UseNet Newsgroup rec.music.dylan of which you speak? == http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usenet_newsgroup There are many, many ways. Some use http://groups.google.com/group/rec.music.dylan/topics Some use commercial software like Agent: http://www.forteinc.com/main/homepage.php No one sane would attempt to read rec.music.dylan as it is. People who have been reading rec.music.dylan for decades tend to have large Kill filters so they see perhaps 2% of the things posted, having blocked most content. They will also have Highlight/Watch filters that let certain posters and topics through bypassing the Kill filters.

The UseNet Newsgroup rec.music.dylan FAQ is essential reading and is kept up to date by John Howells: howells@punkhart.com Much that is there about Bob Dylan resources on the Internet is not repeated here, you must use both FAQs. Adam K. Powers started the Dylan FAQ in 1994. http://punkhart.com/dylan/faq.html http://www.punkhart.com/dylan/faq1.txt http://www.punkhart.com/dylan/faq2.txt == 14. When and where will Bob Dylan be performing next? == http://www.edlis.org/tour is the first port of call, but many, many other sites cover tour news. == 15. What if I want to talk about Dylan on-line at all hours? ==

The EDLIS Café has a group just for chatting to others: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_175670829110209 You want to click Chat with group on the right hand side.

There are hundreds of other places people chat live online, just ask anyone, especially someone who shares your interests and preferences. Someone who likes pages of lyric analysis may not like chat about how sexy Bob Dylan's shirts are, someone who likes sexy shirt drooling may be bored senseless by people who analyse Bob Dylan's likely literary influences among French symbolist poets. In French. As in the EDLIS Café itself everyone is welcome but you can choose at which table you sit. And you can move about joining in many circles. == 16. No, no, no! I do not want chat, I want to play Dylan music with others online... == http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_106986739373834 EDLIS Online Bob Dylan Jam, play there or ask those there about other on-line venues. There are many. == 17. How do I record, collect and consult all of Bob Dylan's work? == Well you should be respectful and purchase only legitimate product endorsed with that Sony sheen. Trading for free and buying bootlegs are both unethical. Artists should have control of their work and should receive payment.

You might meet people in the dark back alleys behind the EDLIS Café who want to corrupt you.

Avoid them. If someone tells you how to get all of Bob Dylan's work on a two terabyte hard disc drive in strict date order tell them you do not want it. When someone shows you that no anticopying software works and that the same people who create it also work for more money for the people who sell software to break it, tell them that is the devil's work. When you meet some seven year old kid and she shows you how to save and copy any form of video or audio you see on the Internet, guide her to a purer life.

Malibu Bob is about imposing American copyright law on the world, supporting the military industrial complex and stopping the free exchange of cultural property. Though less than 1% of

Bob Dylan's work is available legally, stick to it, and it alone. Sony has your best interests at heart. Just because they also make the best stealth recording equipment in the world does not mean they want you recording, any more than your vicar wants you sinning.

Do not join any communities of these criminal fans or you will soon be a malnourished drug addict in a bordello wondering who turned the lights out. Sharing music gives you diseases you do not want to see pictures of. Being kind to new young fans is communism.

If you hear any talk of this improper behaviour do not be led astray, listen to what any EDLIS CafĂŠ patrons will tell you about all this, make notes, save urls, make contacts and make sure you never do any of these things. Do not become one of these bad people. Love the Greed Sheriff and enjoy corporate product. Sony DRM all the way to the Swiss banks. Bambuser?

"My son is a corporation and his public image is strictly an act, we have absolutely no part in his affairs, those are his own operation. He's a corporation and he has a manager," said Bob's father Abe Zimmerman of Hibbing in an October 1963 News-Tribune article by Walter Eldot. == 18. What's the latest news? == Agricultural reports are regularly updated for all of you prairie farmers on Expectin' Grain: http://www.edlis.org/rain It takes a lot of people a lot of work to keep up with grain futures... http://bit.ly/jbJj2m == 19. I just read an article about Bob Dylan in my newspaper... == Mark Carter provides a cutting service to which everyone should contribute. If you see something in a newspaper, magazine or journal of even the remotest relevance to Bob Dylan and his work then you should send it to him. If it is something you would throw away then send the original, otherwise send a photocopy. Include all relevant information of the date, publication, place, page numbers, etc. Send your contributions to: Mark Carter 25 Marlborough Road Norwich Norfolk NR3 7AP England Just because the article appeared in the New York Times doesn't mean that someone else has already sent it! Duplications are trivial, but omissions are glaring errors :-). Submissions from publications with limited circulation and non-English newspapers are especially encouraged,

since the rest of the world will probably never know of these articles unless you clip them! == 20. Where is that cute fan I met at a concert and then lost track of? == http://www.edlis.org/lost/ Good luck! ;-) == 21. Is John Smith EDLIS on Facebook real? == Is Bob Dylan real? ;-) http://www.facebook.com/EDLISCafe Please send John Smith Facebook Friends who are interested in Bob Dylan's work.

He makes it clear in his profile and one hundred other places that he is fake, a role play character, fictional. But some choose to believe that that is what the real Bob Dylan would say...

What can you do?

EDLIS created its Bob Dylan characters because there were so many others on the Internet.

People asked us to do one. It has proved useful as someone every Dylanista -- or at least the first 5,000 -- can Facebook Friend. Make sure you and yours are his friend. Be cautious on the Internet and in Facebook. Many people are not what they seem. Ask anyone who they are.

Ordinary pseudonyms and role play characters will tell you. People trying to trick or fool you will be cagey. Some people use a pseudonym because they are famous, some people use a pseudonym because they have been harassed or stalked in the past, only a few use a pseudonym with malice aforethought. == 22. What other EDLIS web pages are there? == Hundreds! Really. Any serious interest, agency or topic is best on a web page with a mirror copy and access to editing by at least two people. Facebook is no place to keep anything you want to last. http://www.edlis.org/random No list would be complete. Ask anyone for the ones that might interest you.

== 23. What language should I post in? == Any. The EDLIS Café is international in scope. Please add anyone you know who is a Dylanista in a non-English speaking country. And feel free to post in any language. Include a rough translation into English if you want to. http://translate.google.com/#auto|en| Anyone interested in Bob Dylan will have some English, but it is easier to understand him than it is to compose things yourself in another language. Be patient with those who misunderstand things. And bear in mind many mother-tongue English speakers have serious problems deciphering what Bob Dylan's words mean. And different listeners do not agree on meanings. == 24. Index == http://goo.gl/Bhqci What goes in the Index? Anything you think you might want to find later, anything at all. == 25. Sally Sue Brown really irritates me, she never posts anything interesting and she spoils the whole Café for everyone! == No she does not, some people like her posts and some people like her. Everyone differs. Luckily for you there is a Magic Button! Click on Sally Sue Brown's name to see her Profile. Upper right drop down menu by the wheel you can click on Report/block this person Clicking on this gives you the option to Block, you can skip report options.

Block Sally Sue Brown - Blocking means you won't be able to see or contact each other on Facebook Magic! Sally Sue Brown no longer exists for you. She cannot be seen by you anywhere in the Café. ;-)

Do NOT block the Admins of the EDLIS Café. If the Admins cannot see you there is no alternative but to remove you. No one in a normal state of mind joins a group and blocks its Admins. == 26. Some idiot Blocked me and I did nothing wrong! == Do not be offended. It is normal to shape a Facebook Group to what you want by Blocking people who never have the same interests as you. Do not take it personally. Most people find themselves in some other peoples' Block lists. They may like you perfectly well but have no interest in what you post about. == 27. Is it true EDLIS publishes books? == Yes. Or at least the publisher Hardinge Simpole publishes Bob Dylan books using the help of various people at EDLIS. http://www.edlis.org/alone Do you have a book proposal? == 28. How do I contribute to EDLIS? == Any way that suits you.

Make sure Admins know your Bob Dylan interests and volunteer to help, generally or with any specific project. Make sure your specialist skills are known. Get involved.

Post well on the Wall of the EDLIS Café. Avoid one line predictable cliché phrase comments.

Every comment should have rich content. Add pictures you think many may not have seen before. Document things well: who, what, when, source details, Olof url, book references. http://www.edlis.org/olof http://www.bjorner.com/still.htm When citing a book the standard is Turabian (6th edition) from WorldCat’s Cite/Export drop down menu, all automatic for the lazy, but if you are in a serious hurry a poor citation is better than none.

http://www.worldcat.org/advancedsearch with an ISBN. And a Permalink... So, for example: Ellis, Iain. Rebels Wit Attitude: Subversive Rock Humorists. Berkeley, CA: Soft Skull Press, 2008. 9781593762063 http://cul.worldcat.org/oclc/227918862 When you post a photograph or image, think rich caption! Who was the photographer? Names?

Date? Place? Source? Relevant information, anecdotes, links. If you do not caption a photograph or video at all it is not searchable in future. If you know nothing, and cannot use Google, then just give the URL of the source. Giving no caption makes you look lazy, ignorant and crass with no sense of helping others to know what you know.

Attend an EDLIS lunch before your next concert. Submit events you know about to EDLIS Parties & Gatherings Events. Submit your own and friends performances to EDLIS Original Old Time Hootenanny. Get to know people who share your specific Bob Dylan interests. Or get to know people with new and unexpected interests. Make friends with someone from a country where you are surprised there is an interest in Bob Dylan.

When you are confused or need help, just ask.

http://www.edlis.org/morecentrale/rebel_with_a_cause.jpg ==== http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/12/24/how-facebook-killed-the-internet/ http://corporatewatch.org.uk/news/2014/oct/28/facebook-killed-internet-star-reflections-radicalmedia