What is the “Field of Dreams” argument all about?
The protagonist in the movie “Field of Dreams” was told, “If you build it, they will come.” Many proponents have this kind of faith in their proposals. The idea seems so good and so worthy of discussion, they simply assume that the group will be well-used. Predicting the future of an as-yet-uncreated newsgroup is difficult. We do not know for certain in advance whether a proposed group will succeed or fail. The Board wants to create groups that will be well-used; we do not want to create empty “fields of dreams.” Therefore, we would like to see as much evidence as possible that there is support for a proposal from people who know how to use Usenet. We believe that the more supporters a proposal attracts in its initial stages, the better the chances are that the group will thrive. A newsgroup with no news is no fun. Proponents should therefore strive to collect as many supporters as they can as early as they can in the RFD process.
• The protagonist in the movie “Field of Dreams” was told, “If you build it, they will come.” Many proponents have this kind of faith in their proposals. The idea seems so good and so worthy of discussion, they simply assume that the group will be well-used. • Predicting the future of an as-yet-uncreated newsgroup is difficult. We do not know for certain in advance whether a proposed group will succeed or fail. • The Board wants to create groups that will be well-used; we do not want to create empty “fields of dreams.” Therefore, we would like to see as much evidence as possible that there is support for a proposal from people who know how to use Usenet. We believe that the more supporters a proposal attracts in its initial stages, the better the chances are that the group will thrive. A newsgroup with no news is no fun. Proponents should therefore strive to collect as many supporters as they can as early as they can in the RFD process.
