THE COMMISSIONERS’ INTERNET RESOURCES WORKSHOP
   
Version 2.0 - February 1996
Prepared by:  Michael F. Bowman

Part 3:  You Won’t Believe the Resources Available to You:  Using Information Technology To Capture Scouting Resources on the Internet

Section 2:  Scouting Related Discussion Groups

TABLE OF CONTENTS
	PART 3 - You Won’t Believe the Resources Available to You:  Using 
	Information Technology to Capture Scouting Resources on the Internet
     	2. 	SCOUTING RELATED DISCUSSION GROUPS
			(Mailing Lists, Newsgroups, Usenet, and Others)

			Alpha Phi Omega APO-L
	 
			Arrow-L:  Membership is limited to members of the Order of the 
			Arrow
			CAN.SCOUT-GUIDE Newsgroup - Focus on Scouts Canada
			Open to all Scouts

			DPRV-L:  Des Plaines River Valley List

			E-SCOUTS:  Open to all Youth Serving Orgainizations - 
			Primarily BSA with focus on Information Technology	 
		
			Explorer-Net:  Open to all Explorers	 

			Guiding List:  Devoted to Girl Guiding Issues	 

			JAMBO97:  Devoted to discussions in preparation for the 1997
			BSA National Jamboree	 
	
			J-SCOUT:  For Jewish Scouts, Open to all Scouts
	 
			NCAC-L:  National Capital Area Council List	 
			PATCH-L:  For Scout and Guide Patch Traders	 
			Philmont’s PSA-List:  For Philmont Staff and Alumni	 
		 	Rec.Scouting - USENET
		 	Scouting Canada - ScoutsCan-L:  Open to all Canadian Scouts
		 	Scouting ES - Scouts Espanol: Lista de Distribucion Sobre 
			Escultismo & Guidismo en Espanol

			Scouting-Europe:  Open to all Scouts - Focus on European
			Scouting Issues

			Scouting-NL:  Open to all Scouts - Netherlands - Dutch and 
			English Languages
			Scouts-L:  Open to all Youth Serving Organizations - Primarily 
			BSA
			Scouts-LDS:  Open to all interested in The Church of Jesus Christ
			of Latter-day Saints Scouting Related Matters

			WAGGGS-L
			Worth Noting -- E-mail Odds ‘n Ends 
Return to Commissioners' Internet Resources Workshop Introduction page.

THE COMMISSIONER’S INTERNET RESOURCES 
WORKSHOP PART 3

Section 2 -- Scouting Related Discussion Groups                      

Alpha Phi Omega - APO-L

This  discussion group  deals  specifically  with Alpha Phi Omega, the National Co-ed Service Fraternity founded upon the principles of Scouting Service.  To subscribe to the discussions, send a note to:

LISTSERV@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU  

with the following single line in the body of the message:  

SIGNON APO-L your-real-name

with your name substituted appropriately.  To send messages to other members of the list, send  your  message  to: 

APO-L@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU

and it will be distributed for you.   

Arrow-L

There is a mail list similar to Scouts-L, centered on Order of the Arrow.  This is a separate subscription service restricted to members of the Order.  To subscribe, send an e-mail message 

LISTSERV@TCU.EDU
with the message: 

subscribe Arrow-L Your-First-Name Your-Last-Name .  

You will automatically receive a questionaire asking for some information from you to authenticate your membership in the Order of the Arrow.  After authentication, you will be added to the list.  You will then communicate with the list via 

ARROW-L@TCU.EDU  

Many thanks go to Nathan Brindle for getting the list set up and for volunteering to do the work necessary to keep it working smoothly.  If  you have any questions about ARROW-L feel free to e-mail Nathan Brindle at nathan@lsoft.com   He and the other 20 or so listowners will try to help you. 

CAN.SCOUT-GUIDE Newsgroup

The newsgroup can.scout-guide focuses its attention on program ideas and discussion on the various Scouting and Guiding programs offered in Canada.  Discussion in French or English is encouraged! For more information contact Robert Craig, Carleton University Library, Ottawa, Canada . 613-567-6771 (home) or 613-788-2600 ext 2728 (work) or
rcraig@library.carleton.ca

DPRV-L

DPRV-L is an e-mail discussion group for scouts and scouters who do their scouting in the DesPlaines River Valley in the suburban area along the near west side of Chicago.  While similar in purpose to the Scouting forums on the Internet (SCOUTS-L Discussion list and 'rec.scouting' on usenet) as well as interest group forums on services like CompuServe (CIS) and America OnLine (AOL), the DPRV-L List will focus primarily on
the geographic region of the DesPlaines River Valley area of Northeastern Illinois. 

The DPRV-L discussion list is an open forum for youth and adults with an interest in  Scouting.  This group provides opportunities for members to interact, to compare notes and seek ideas on their programs, discuss organizational concerns, and communicate with other members nearby.  Feel free to discuss any topic regarding your own experiences in Scouting.  To subscribe send an e-mail message to:

LISTSERV@home.ease.lsoft.com

 (CompuServe users=  INTERNET:LISTSERV@home.ease.lsoft.com 

The subject line is not important, but you can use "join"

The one-line text of your message is:

SUBSCRIBE DPRV-L your name

Please use your real name, as you want others on the list to know you.  Do not use your userID, as the LISTSERV(tm) program already knows that.

You will quickly (5 min usually) receive a confirming message to test the accuracy of your email address.  Follow the instructions of your mailer program to REPLY to that msg and then you will soon receive the List Welcome message.  Please read it carefully.  At this point you have become an official member of the DPRV-L List.  Your fellow scouts and scouters welcome you to our virtual campfire.

For more information write a message to:

DPRV-L-REQUEST@home.ease.lsoft.com

Your msg will be read and responded to by the List Owner(s) who are real people, not computer programs.

DPSG-WWW LIST
This isn’t a discussion group per se, but may be of interest.  Try the Web Site for the German DPSG at http://www.uni-duisburg.de/FB6/FS/Mitglieder/Pille.html or contact members on IRC Channel “Pille” for moderated discussions.

E-Scouts

E-Scouts is a listserver mailing/discussion list for Scouters interested in developing electronic Scouting.  Its members are drawn primarily from subscribers to Scouts-L, but any Scouter may join the list.   To subscribe to E-Scouts, send a email message to:

listserv@tcubvm.is.tcu.edu

with the one line message:

SUB E-SCOUTS your name

Explorer-Net	

Explorer-Net is an e-mail discussion group devoted to the promotion of Exploring programs.  To subscribe to Explorer-Net send an e-mail to:

explorer-net-request@erd.rl.af.mil

Guiding List	

The Guiding Mailing List is a forum for exchanging ideas, opinions, problems, and concepts, etc. related to working with children, leaders, and parents in the Guiding and Scouting organizations.  Typical discussions include sharing ideas on crafts, camping, games, and anything else that comes to mind.  This mailing list should be of interest to people currently involved, or thinking of becoming involved in Guiding/Scouting.  To subscribe to Guiding send a message to (leave the subject line blank):

MAJORDOMO@MAIL.SKL.COM

and type the following command in the body of the message:

subscribe guiding

To send a message to members of the Guiding Discussion List, send a message to:

guiding@mail.skl.com 

with your comments to the group in the body of the message.  If possible, include a descriptive subject in the subject line.  The listowner is Cindy Linn clinn@mail.skl.com.  She is the Guider in Charge of the 453rd Toronto Guide Company.

JAMBO97	

The Jambo97 Discussion Group/List is an offshoot of Scouts-L and was developed to assist Scouters making preparations for attending Boy Scouts of America’s 1997 National Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia.  Membership is open to all Scouters interested in the 1997 National Jamboree.  You can receive either daily e-mail or weekly digests.  To subscribe send an e-mail to:

MAJORDOMO@HOPLITE.ORG

Ignore the subject line and insert the following one of the following two messages:

Subscribe jambo97  or subscribe jambo97-digest

Messages to the list should be sent to:

JAMBO97@HOPLITE.ORG

If you would like to see a color scan of the actual 1997 National Jamboree Patch, you can find it on the World Wide Web at this URL:  

http://www.ims.mariposa.ca.us/mariposa/clubs/t94/t94_hp.htm  

provided courtesy of Keven Doyle (Aloha Council) and Mike Montoya (Yosemite Area Council).

J-SCOUT	

The National Jewish Scouting Committee will use the J-Scout list to announce various programs it is producing, such as the new religious emblem for older Boy Scouts and Explorers, regional kinusim, kosher Wood Badge and other training courses, scholarships, and other awards.  Other Jewish Scouting organizations are invited to use the list in the same manner.  It is not necessary to be Jewish to subscribe.  To subscribe to the J-Scouts mailing/ discussion list, send an e-mail message to:

	listproc@shamash.nysernet.org

with the one-line message:

	subscribe j-scouts your name

where “your name” is your real name.

NCAC-L	

This list is dedicated to the Scouters of the National Capital Area Council and provides a forum for the discussion of issues and events in NCAC.  To subscribe send a message to:

NCAC-L-REQUEST@ALPHA.TAGUS.COM

with a message text of just:

subscribe

After you have subscribed, you can submit messages to the list by addressing them to 

NCAC-L@TAGUS.COM.  

This list is maintained by Craig Everett of Tagus Software.  

craig@tagus.com

PATCH-L	

Patch-L is a very new list intended for the trading of all insignia related to the Scouting movement.  If you would like to become a member, send a message to:

LISTSERV@UBVM.CC.BUFFALO.EDU

with the message body containing the following line:

SUBSCRIBE PATCH-L your-first-name your-last-name

A questionaire will be sent to you asking your affiliation, location and how long you have been trading.  After you return the questionaire, you will be added to the list.

Philmont’s PSA-List	

PSA-LIST on LISTSERV@philmont.com - Philmont Staff Association is an open, unmoderated discussion list for current and former staff of the Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, NM.  Discussions about ranch experiences, favorite camps, and general information on Scouting are encouraged.  Archives of PSA-LIST mail items are kept in monthly files.  You may obtain a list files in the archives by sending the command

INDEX PSA-LIST

in the BODY of e-mail to LISTSERV@philmont.com on the internet.  

To subscribe, send an e-mail to: 

LISTSERV@philmont.com on the Internet:

with the following command in the BODY 

SUBSCRIBE PSA-LIST
or
ADD your email address PSA-LIST

Use the second syntax if your From: address is not the the one you want the listserv to mail to.  For example:

ADD armand@philmont.com PSA-LIST

Owner:  Jay Jolicoeur <armand@philmont.com>

Rec.Scouting and the USENET	

Usenet is a global compendium of discussion forums on several thousand topics. Many computers that employ the UNIX operating system can provide their users access to the flows of conversations that include people from all over the globe. The Usenet newsgroup Rec.Scouting focuses on BSA, GSUSA, WAGGGS, WOSM and other scouting organizations around the world. 

Currently there is a formal REQUEST FOR DISCUSSION (RFD) out which would revise the hierarchy of  Rec.Scouting to include the following unmoderated groups:

rec.scouting.girls      	Discussions on guiding and girl scout organizations.
rec.scouting.issues     	Issues related to scouting policy.
rec.scouting.misc       	Diverse topics of scouting not covered elsewhere.
rec.scouting.usa        	Discussions on scouting and guiding in the USA.

The rationale for change is that rec.scouting is read by scouts and guides worldwide.  It has become a central source of program information for them.  The original charter for rec.scouting specified rec.scouting as a place to go for program information and over the years a great interest has emerged in discussing political issues related to scouting and guiding.  The traffic in group rec.scouting currently averages about 93 posts per day, of which 15-30 are contriversial issue oriented posts.  (designated as 3G in the group).  This volume indicates that we should consider a split if merely for every user's efficiency or cost savings to download and read.  It is time for rec.scouting to be divided into a number of groups to better handle the traffic and subject matters discussed.  Also this categorization will allow for the growth of discussions within each of these subject areas.

Normally when a group is converted to a hierarchy it is recommended that the base group is renamed to a group on the same hierarchical level as the new subgroup.  The new group is traditionally named ".misc" to avoid confusion with the hierarchy.  The proponents are proposing rec.scouting.misc. There are both administrative and namespace consistency aspects for doing so.  Briefly: it simplifies news system administration for people taking just that topic area, reduces cross-posting with the hierarchy some, lessens the perception by some people that some topics are being "relegated to a subgroup", makes it easier to logically develop the hierarchy with other groups at a later date, and keeps more clear the distinction of hierarchy vs. group in the namespace model.  It emphasizes to some sites taking just the parent group that a change has been made.  This could be very important to the way their feeds are configured, especially with the changes that are planned for the future Internet. Finally, news server filesystem performance is better when the kernel routine that looks up pathnames doesn't have to search a directory full of articles to find the subdirectory for an article posted to a subgroup.  Groups ending in .misc are the "real homes" for discussions in a lot of hierarchies.

In the scope of consistent usage of a term in the Usenet categorization scheme, the idea of a "general" group is _exactly_ what .misc means.  It is for diverse articles on the topic of the parent hierarchy that don't have more specific groups within the subhierarchy; e.g., everything about cooking except the specific case of equipment (or some other more specific group).

The chartter for rec.scouting.misc would be the same as that for rec.scouting (the previous charter), except for the addition that relevant posts will be directed to the other proposed new groups.

The proposed rec.scouting.usa newsgroup would provide a forum for the discussion of program, membership, finance, and unit support topics related to the scouting programs in the United States, and in areas where the USA's scouting programs are carried out around the world.   Such topics include but are not restricted to discussion of the Webelos Cub Scout program, the Eagle Scout rank and the steps leading to this rank, outdoor and community activity ideas, memorabilia trading and explanation, and other topics. There are many posts currently posted to rec.scouting that discuss these and related topics and it is envisioned with the creation of this new newsgroup, that more and frequent postings will be made to this group. There is precedence on USENET for national forums.  There are currently newsgroups for UK, Canadian, Dutch, Chilean, and other national programs. People who have tried to place ongoing articles, information, and responses to current discussion onto rec.scouting pertaining to USA-only programs have been forced off by current users of rec.scouting with the explanation that rec.scouting is meant to be an international group. A place for these posts is needed and should be provided for on the Internet via USENET.  The appropriate place to put such a group would be in a rec.scouting.* hierarchy.  This hierarchy does not, presently, exist.  This change would create this hierarchy and a convenient place for future expansion of rec.scouting.* groups.

Rec.scouting.girls would be a new group concentrating discussions of interest to members of Scouting and Guiding organizations or organizations that are affiliated with the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts(WAGGGS).  These discussions tend to be specific because Girl Scouting and WAGGGS are completely separate from scouting as performed by organizations only affiliated with the World Organization of Scouting Movement (WOSM); the majority of discussions within rec.scouting are simply not relevant to Girl Scouting/Guiding.  A mailing list was formed (Scout-Girls-L) and has been flourishing for over a year. As reported by the list czar, the drop rate for this group is among the lowest he has seen.  However, persons interested in Girl Scout/Girl Guide issues invariably report disappointment in not finding a newsgroup specific to their concerns.  The list administrator also reports maintenance to be a growing burden.  A separate newsgroup is the obvious solution.

Rec.scouting.issues would become a new group concentrating on discussing issues within and between the national and regional organizations and local users or implementors of scouting and guiding programs. The large percentage of such posts in rec.scouting show that this new group will be read and written to by many people.  This group would be open to any issue relating to a scouting or guiding program.  For example, anything relating to the "the 3Gs" in the USA, or alcoholic beverage consumption during Scouting activities and camps in European Scouting programs, or issues of youth versus adult leadership in short term camping events.

Proposed Charters:

Rec.scouting.girls is an unmoderated newsgroup for the discussion and explanation of issues concerning guiding organizations and those that belong to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. Cross-posting to other rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged. Postings not related to Girl Scouting or Guiding are discouraged.

Rec.scouting.issues is an unmoderated newsgroup for the discussion and explanation of worldwide, national or regional issues concerning national Scouting or Guiding organizations' policies, rules or regulations.  Cross-posting to other rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged.  Postings not related to Scouting or Guiding issues are
discouraged.

Rec.scouting.misc is an unmoderated group for Boy and Girl Scouts and Cuides, Cub Scouts, Venturers, Rovers, Scout leaders and all people interested in scouting and guiding, worldwide. This group discusses issues relevant to scouting activities, and the administration of scout units.  It allows for the solicitation of advice from other netters on what to do in certain situations, and generally seek and provide support and encouragement with respect to scouting.  Cross-posting to other rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged.  Postings concerning topics pertaining solely to US scouting is strongly discouraged.  Postings not related to scouting or guiding are discouraged.

Rec.scouting.usa is an unmoderated group for Boy and Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, Explorers, Christian Service Brigade members, members of religious-based scouting or guiding organizations, their leaders, advisors, professional or career employees of USA scouting movements, and all people interested in Scouting and Guiding in the United States.  This group discusses issues relevant to the program, unit support, finance, membership development and the administration of scout units. It allows for the solicitation of advice and information from other netters on what to do in certain situations, and generally seek and provide support, general information and encouragement regarding Scouting.

The content of this newsgroup is NOT to be accepted as "official information" coming from American scouting organizations, as such information comes normally through their national offices through regional groups to local organizations for distribution to units and
members; however posted messages to this newsgroup may contain parts of official publications and information to answer or respond to questions or issues brought up with the proper crediting of such information by the poster.

This newsgroup is NOT the place for discussions on scouting ISSUES, for instance, issues related to girls in the boy scout program, whether or not Assembly of God churches should abandon the Boy Scouts of America's programs in favor of the Royal Rangers, or open homosexual members as members or leaders in BSA programs. Those discussions will take place on rec.scouting.issues, and those posting to this newsgroup will be followed or redirected to rec.scouting.issues.  Cross-posting to other rec.scouting groups is strongly discouraged.  Postings not related to scouting in the United States are discouraged.

NOTE:  This is a Request for Discussion (RFD), not a call for votes.  In this phase of the process, any potential problems with the proposed newsgroups should be raised and resolved.  The discussion period will continue for a minimum of 21 days (starting from when the first RFD for this proposal is posted to news.announce.newgroups).  All discussion should be posted to news.groups.  At the end of the discussion period, a Call for Votes (CFV) will be posted by a neutral vote taker.  This RFD attempts to fully comply with Usenet newsgroup creation guidelines outlined in "How to Create a New Usenet Newsgroup" and "Writing an RFD".  Please refer to these documents if you have questions about the process.  This RFD has been posted to the following newsgroups and mailing lists:

news.announce.newgroups
news.groups
rec.scouting
rec.backcountry,
can.scout-guide
nl.scouting
uk.rec.scouting
chilie.scout
shamash.j-scouts
SCOUTS-L@TCUBVM.IS.TCU.EDU
ARROW-L@WIN95.DC.LSOFT.COM
Scout-Girls-L@slic.cts.com

Discussion of the RFD will take place in news.groups ONLY.  Please post follow-ups to news.groups only.

In Part 2 you learned about Usenets and Newsgroups. The rec.scouting newsgroup has two FTP sites where a great wealth of information is archived. You can get the archived materials without participating in the discussions through the FTP site.
Additional newsgroups which deal with topics that are related to Scouting include: can.scout-guide, nl.scouting, uk.rec.scouting, chilie.scout, nl.scouting, shamash.j-scouts, rec.backcountry, rec.climbing, rec.bicycling, and rec.birds. Undoubtedly, since new groups appear daily, there are others which may be of interest. Half the fun is exploring and seeing what you can find.

Scouting Canada - ScoutsCan-L	

The Canadian SCOUTSCAN-L mailing list is a service project of the Canadian Fellowship of B-P and resides a server that is located in Calgary Alberta Canada, owned by the members of the Calgary Unix Users Group (cuug).  The purpose of the list is to provide a vehicle for the sharing of Scout or Guide related information and ideas. To help resolve problems, to tap into the wealth of information that resides in the experiences of leaders and guilders across Canada and the world.  The list is not restricted to English Canada.  French Speaking brothers of L'Association du Scouts Canada are more than welcome as are Guides Canada to make use of the list.

To Get Information:  For information on this service and how to use it, send the following request in the body of a mail message to listserv@cuug.ab.ca:

HELP

To Subscribe:  Send an e-mail message to 

listserv@cuug.ab.ca 

with the message
subscribe scoutscan-l

To Sign Off the List:  To sign off this list send message to 

listserv@cuug.ab.ca 

with the message

unsubscribe scoutscan-l    OR   signoff  scoutscan-l

Listowner:  The listowner is Patrick Scholefield <scholefp@cadvision.com> 

Listserver:  Address commands to the Listserver at:

SCOUTSCAN-L@CUUG.AB.CA

SCOUTING-ES

Introduccion:  Esta lista de distribuciÛn  pretende ser un foro de communicaciÛn a travÈs de la Internet para todos los Scout Y GuÌas hispano-hablantes.  No Se trata de ning˙n mecanismo oficial, sino de una iniciativa que se lanza al mundo Scout/GuÌa sin mayores pretensiones que las de ser ˙til. En el momento en que exista alguna lista “oficial” con caracterÌsticas similares, esta lista de distribuciÛn desparecer·, y sus miembros pasar·n a formar parte de la nueva lista.

Motivacion:  Seg˙n los datos que hay por ahÌ (de 1.989) somos m·s de 200.000 los scouts (sin contar las guÌas -- ya que no tenemos datos--) que vivimos en paÌses hispano-hablantes.  Si aÒadimos todos aquellos quue habitan en otros paÌses y hblan espaÒol (fundamentalmente en U.S.A.), podemos tener una masa critÌca suficiente como para que esta lista de distribuciÛn sea activa.

Objectivos:  Los objetivos iniciales que tiene la lista son (aunque no se limita a ellos):

*  	Permitir contactos entre scouts y guÌas de distintos paÌses, expres·ndose en su lengua materna (o, al menos, para las comunidades Û paÌses bilingues, en una lengua que conoce bien)

* 	Intercambio de informaciÛn sobre mÈtodos, formas de funcionamiento, etc. . . .

*	Intercambio de proyectos realizados.

*	Anuncio de actividades

*	Intercambio de todo tipo de documentaciÛn

*	OpiniÛn sobre temas Scout, GuÌa Û sobre cualquier tema de interÈs internacional (no son temas Scout/GuÌa?)

*	Y, en fin, cualquier otra informaciÛn que pueda parecer relevante

Normas De Estilo:  Ni que decir tiene que esta lista se rige por las normas m·s elementales de convivencia y estilo Scout/GuÌa.  Esto pretende ser un foro constructivo, que ayude a comprender la diversidad existente en el Escultismo y Guidismo internacional, y que permita crecer gracias a la diversidad.

Como Conectarse:   Para conectarse es necesario enviar un mensaje a

Majordomo@gsi.dit.upm.es
con contenido
subscribe scouts-es

Si se desea m·s informaciÛn sobre el servidor de la lista puede mandarse un mesaje con contenido

help

Una vez conectado, se pueden enviar mesajes a la lista utilizando la direcciÛn

scouts-es@gsi.dit.upm.es

Nota:  Estas direcciones son provisionales.  Cualquier cambio que se produzca se indicar· por medio de la lista de distribuciÛn  y los mecanismos Scout/GuÌa existentes en Internet.

Responsable de la Lista:  Juan RamÛn Velasco Perez, Scouts de Guadalajara - Movimiento Scout CatÛlico

juanra@gsi.dit.upm.es -- http://www.gsi.dit.upm.es/~juanra/scouts/scouts-es.html

SCOUTING-EUROPE	

Scouting-europe deals with anything concerning European Scouting interests.  If you want to subscribe to the new list scouting-europe, simply send an email to: 

scouting-europe@www-ifi.uni.muenster.de

The subject line MUST CONTAIN ONE WORD ONLY: 

subscribe

That's it.  You should get a reply from the listserver telling you wether the subscription request was successful. If you did something wrong the server will try to help you. The listowner is Lars von Olleschik (ollesch@uni-muenster.de) DPSG - Dioezesanverband Muenster, Oeffentlichkeits-AK 

SCOUTING-NL	

The SCOUTING-NL discussion list targets Scouters in the Netherlands primarily.  Most e-mail is in Dutch, but contributions in English are welcome.  If you want to subscribe to the scouting-europe, simply send an email to:

LISTSERV@NIC.SURFNET.NL

The subject is ignored, and the message should contain:

SUBSCRIBE SCOUTS-NL Firstname Lastname

Messages should be addressed to:

SCOUTS-NL@NIC.SURFNET.NL

Scouts-L	

The following information is taken from Jon Eidson's welcome message giving new users instructions on how to use Scouts-L.  You will get the complete uncondensed version upon subscribing.  This description is longer, because I firmly believe that this discussion group is one of the best places on the Internet to find Scouting information, to share information, and to test ideas.

SCOUTS-L is the "Electronic Roundtable that Never Ends".  SCOUTS-L provides opportunities for members of youth groups world-wide to interact, compare notes on their programs, discuss organizational problems and concerns, and communicate with members all over the world! While the groups discussed may be heavily weighted towards the programs of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), it also includes Girl Scouts and Girl Guides, Boys' and Girls' Clubs, and other world-wide scouting and youth organizations.

If you can imagine a daily meeting with parents of Scouts, leaders at the unit level, Scouters (scouting leaders) at the group, local Council or Regional level and occasionally some people who make Scouting their career (or did at one time or another) -- from all over the nation and from around the world -- you have an idea of the impact this discussion list has.

Discussion covers a wide variety of issues and topics, from the silliness of a "Woodbadge animal" to the very seriousness of child protection policies that many organizations have recently installed.  While none of folks on the list profess to have the answer to EVERY issue or question, they do spend a great deal of time answering as many as they can.  In most cases, they not only answer the "where it can be found in the literature" question, but also give some practical applications of why it is or is not so.

Discussion includes stories of how units or groups are doing, to inspire and to just share with others anxieties, fears and joys.  It can get personal occasionally, because Scouters on the list have grown to be more than merely people discussing youth programs...they've become friends.  They care when fellow members are in the hospital, or when their new son or daughter is born, or when a fellow Scouter attended our first training session or decided that perhaps his/her services were needed elsewhere

Not everyone on the list is in total agreement every day with all issues and resolutions of issues.  There are arguments and Scouters express themselves with deep personal emotion, but also remember that they are in the company of fellow Scouters...people who understand that disagreements are a part of being human; that the disagreement is with the other point of view, and NOT the other person.  Therefore, you will NOT find here the outlandish language and ongoing discussions about topics that have no real answer to them.  These folks don't have time for such nonsense...thry're too busy discussing issues that CAN be resolved.

Subscribers are free (and encouraged) to extract and download the information shared and share it with those that you work with in your youth agency or group.  In this way, you are not letting the information die!  Many Scout "roundtables" use the information from this list each month!   

Subscribing to Scouts-L:  The act of SUBSCRIBING to the SCOUTS-L list is to place your name on the list which will allow you to receive all postings to the SCOUTS-L list as well as to be able to post messages to SCOUTS-L.  To subscribe you should send a 1 line email message to:  

LISTSERV@TCUBVM.IS.TCU.EDU

without any extra headings or signature lines.  This message should be as follows: 

SUBSCRIBE SCOUTS-L your name 

You should use your REAL NAME in place of "your name".  Handles are not accepted on SCOUTS-L.  Your email address is taken from the "FROM" line of your email heading.

The Scouts-L Listserv:  The Listserv is a computer that accepts commands or inquiries. THERE IS NOBODY PHYSICALLY AT THE LISTSERV ADDRESS!  Take some time to learn how to use and interact with the LISTSERV.  This will save you a lot of time and headaches when you want to search for some past topic, retrieve files, or change some of your options.  Remember there are two E-mail addresses that you use: 

SCOUTS-L@TCUBVM.IS.TCU.EDU is used when you want to POST a message to the group, 

LISTSERV@TCUBVM.IS.TCU.EDU is used when you want to subscribe, unsubscribe, get files, database searches, and change options.

Commands:  The commands to LISTSERV are contained in the body of your email message.  A good command to start with is "HELP".  Other useful commands to LISTSERV are:
  
 SUBSCRIBE SCOUTS-L your name      	Can be used to change your name
 UNSUBSCRIBE SCOUTS-L              	Signoff your id from SCOUTS-L
 SET SCOUTS-L NOMAIL               	To stop list mail temporarily
 SET SCOUTS-L DIGEST               	Turn ON the digest feature
 SET SCOUTS-L MAIL                 	To turn ON mail again (reset DIGEST)
 SET SCOUTS-L REPRO                	To receive a copy of your  postings
 QUERY SCOUTS-L                    	To see your distribution options
 REVIEW SCOUTS-L                   	Get a copy of the subscription list and list header
 INDEX SCOUTS-L                    	Get an index of SCOUTS-L files
 GET SCOUTS-L LOGyymm SCOUTS-L     	Get a particular log file
 GET SCOUTPCX BSADSK0 SCOUTS-L 	Get a file from the archives

Scouts-L Digest Option:  For those of you who read SCOUTS-L only once-per-day, have trouble keeping up with the volume of e-mail postings, or those who are only reading SCOUTS-L and don't intend to post, the DIGEST feature may be what you need.  Once set, you will receive ONLY one posting per day that contains all postings consolidated into a neat package.

To set this option, send email to 

LISTSERV@TCUBVM.IS.TCU.EDU

with the following message: 

SET SCOUTS-L DIGEST

To revert back to normal receipt of individual messages send the following:  

SET SCOUTS-L MAIL

A special note to those who reply to a digested SCOUTS-L is to change the subject line to something appropriate.<p>

Unsubscribing from Scouts-L:  To unsubscribe, send an e-mail to
 
LISTSERV@TCUBVM.IS.TCU.EDU

with the following message:  

UNSUBSCRIBE SCOUTS-L 

Scouts-LDS

The SCOUTS-LDS discussion list was developed as an offshoot of the Scouts-L discussion list to address issues related to units chartered by the LDS Church.  You may subscribe by sending a message to:

SCOUTS-LDS-REQUEST@alpha.tagus.com

with the message:

subscribe

messages should then be sent to:

SCOUTS-LDS@tagus.com

WAGGGS-L 

This discussion group is almost exclusively devoted to discussions of GSUSA and Guide topics.  

To subscribe to the new list, send the command to:

listserv@iupui.edu

Enter ONLY the following text in the body of your letter:

subscribe wagggs-l YourFirstName YourLastName

(if you put any other text in the message, it will be
rejected). You'll receive a reply from listserv, asking you to
confirm your subscription. This helps reduce errors on the
list.

Worth Noting -- E-mail Odds n’ Ends

These discussion forums are accessable primarily through e-mail.  As we were developing this page, we ran across a few odds and ends that are purely e-mail related and for the lack of better place, we have included them here:

ASSOCIATION DE SCOUTS DE ARGENTINA

This e-mail address is the official node for the National Office of the Associacion de Scouts de Argentina and is normally used to route messages to and from the national executive staff.  It is also used for international contacts.  A word of caution:  there may be a delay in responses.   To contact the Associacion de Scouts de Argentina for international events, etc., please send e-mail to:

Scoutar@sicoarl.satlink.net

SCOUT STORE

Camp Thunder, Flint River Council, Georgia operates a year around BSA Trading Post stocking thousands of items.  They carry many items not found in local Scout Shops.  If you would like to place orders or find out if they have that hard to find item send an e-mail to:

BSAstore@AOL.com

SCOUTER’S JOURNAL

If you are interested in a subscription to the Scouter’s Journal (not an official BSA publication), you may contact the editors by e-mail  at one of the following addresses:

73302,105@compuserve.com
Scoutjourn@AOL.COM
jrlp74a@prodigy.com

19th World Jamboree in 1999

Organizing Committee for the 19th World Jamboree in Picarquin, Chile e-mail:  scout@dcc.uchile.cl

The Society for Scouting Communication (SSC)  - NOTE:  I know nothing about this Society other than what has been provided by e-mail to me.  Consequently, I am not in a position to endorse this service or the requirement to provide your Scout registration number.  The information is provided simply because this is an Internet Resource.  If you elect to pay for information or provide personal information, you do so at your own risk.
 
Mission Statement 
     The Society for Scouting Communication has been formed to make widely available material for the positive promotion of the Scouting program.  It is the goal of SSC members to use all available media 
to "tell the Scouting Story." To aid in this goal the Society will gather, produce and distribute material in 
electronic and printed form. 
 
Membership 
     Membership in the Society is open all to currently registered members of Boy Scouts of America.   Each member is required to be currently involved in some form of Scouting communications project or to hold a position where the communicating of information about Scouting is a primary responsibility. 
Acceptable projects/positions include (but are not limited to): 

	Council/District Newsletter Editor/Writer. 
     	Troop/Pack/Post/Team Newsletter Editor/Writer. 
     	Council/District Public Relations Chair/Committee 
     	Member. Scout/Cub Roundtable Commissioner/Staff. 
     	District/Council Training Chairman/Staff. Scouting 
     	Professionals. 
 
Cost of Membership 
     Membership is free. Members without e-mail or newsgroup access will need to pay for a computer disk version of the Society's materials. 
 
Focus 
     The material produced and distributed by the SSC will be primarily focused on the Boy Scouts of America. There  will be a mix between current items and items of historical nature (but still relevant and interesting).  
 
     Items will be offered in a variety of formats. 
     Text items will be supplied in ASCII format. 
     B&W Graphics will be supplied in .gif format 
     Color/Gray Scale Graphics will be supplied in .jpg format. 
     Sound Files will be supplied in SUN .au format. 
     Sound and graphics will be uuencoded when e-mailed or posted to rec.scouting. 
 
Methods 
     The Society will have three primary methods of  communication with its membership. E-Mail: Members of the Society will receive a daily e-mail message with a text file and/or other materials.      Rec.Scouting: Members unable or unwilling to receive large e-mail messages, as well as non-members may check the newsgroup rec.scouting each day for a posting containing identical material as that day's e-mail     message.  A mailed disk: All the daily posting from each month will be available on 3.5" disk (high density dos format). The SSC BASIC Disks are $4.00 a month or a subscription is available for $36.00 a year.  For $5.00 a month, or $48.00 a year you may subscribe  to the SSC PLUS disk. The plus disk will contain additional text items not posted or e-mailed. In addition each month's disk will have a collection of clip-art. The 30 to 75 clip-art images in each month's disk will have a theme, and the theme will change each month. 
 
Distribution Dates 
     The 15th of each month a posting will be made to Rec.Scouting (and possibly Scouts-L) and E-mailed to all  current members. This posting will summarize each day's  posting for the following month, as well as the clip art topic for the SSC PLUS disk. SSC BASIC and SSC PLUS are also mailed on the 15th. 
 
The Future 
     Future goals for the SSC include: 
       * a monthly printed and electronic newsletter with 100% original material. 
       * Making current material available in popular word processor formats (dos and mac) 
       * A collection of custom drawn Scouting art. 
       * A book of positive/inspiration Scouting stories. 
       * A Web Page. 
       * The expansion of our membership base and offerings to include members of other Scouting associations. 
 
Legal 
     The Society for Scouting Communications is not a part of  the Boy Scouts of America.  Material produced by the SSC is intended to be exclusively used by members in good standing of the BSA who has as part of their membership responsibility to promote Scouting. 
 
     All text and graphics distributed are copyright (c) the Boy Scouts of America unless otherwise noted. 
 
............................................................. 
 
Membership Application: 
     Please transmit all of the following information to 
     beoric@ultranet.com to begin your membership: 
 
   	Name: 
	Address: 
   	City: 
  	State: 
    	Zip: 
 
   	E-Mail Address: 
 	BSA Council Name: 
    	BSA Council #: 
	Scouting Position: 
   	Registration #: 
 
	Type of projects you are now or will be working on: 

 
	May we provide this information to other members 
      		(yes or no): 
 
	Do you wish to receive your daily posting by e-mail, 
                   	(yes or no): 
   	if yes, What e-mail address: 
 
	Do you wish to receive the monthly SSC BASIC disk, 
                  	 (yes or no): 
   	If yes, please send $4.00 for one issue or $36.00 for the year to: 

                Michael McDonald 
                23 Kendrick Avenue #2L 
                Worcester, MA 01606 
 
	Do you wish to receive the monthly SSC PLUS disk, 
  		 (yes or no): 
   	If yes, please send $5.00 for one issue or  $48.00 for the year to: 

                Michael McDonald 
                23 Kendrick Avenue #2L 
                Worcester, MA 01606

Notes:

A year ago only a small fraction of the above discussion forums were available to Scouters and Guiders.   As more Scout and Guide folks become comfortable with information technology, the ranks of the discussion forums will continue to swell.  Keep a eye out for new developments.  If you know of a discussion group, USENET group, mailing list, etc., that we missed, please let me know.

The Commissioners' Information Resources Workshop by Michael F. Bowman, is presented by R. Gary Hendra -- The MacScouter -- WDL, Pack 92, Milpitas, California