[sqr-users] Monthly sqr-users Hints Posting

[Nathan Stratton Treadway <nathanst@ontko.com>]

  sqr-users Mailing List Hints and Guidelines
  Nathan Stratton Treadway, Ray Ontko & Co.
  (nathanst@ontko.com)
  $Revision: 1.17 $ $Date: 2003-11-01 09:45:47-05 $

  This document gathers in one location information about the sqr-users
  mail list.  It includes instructions for changing your subscription
  settings (including unsubscribing), as well are guidelines for using
  the list.
  ______________________________________________________________________

  Table of Contents


  1. Changes Since Previous Version
  2. Introduction
     2.1 sqr-users Mailing List
     2.2 sqr-users Hints and Guidelines Document
     2.3 Related Mailing Lists

  3. Interacting with the list server
     3.1 Subscribing to the list
     3.2 Unsubscribing from the list
     3.3 When your email address changes
     3.4 Digests
     3.5 Obtaining your password
     3.6 Problems

  4. Posting to the sqr-users List
     4.1 General Guidelines
     4.2 Posting a Message
     4.3 Replying to a Message

  5. Job Announcements


  ______________________________________________________________________

  1.  Changes Since Previous Version

  Changes since the version dated 2002/11/13:


  o  Hyperion has aqcuired Brio Software.

  o  Add section on what to do when one's e-mail address changes.

  o  Mention that the subscription address and message return address
     must exactly match in order to post to the list.


  2.  Introduction



  2.1.  sqr-users Mailing List

  The sqr-users mailing list was created to enable discussion related to
  the SQR database language from Hyperion <http://www.hyperion.com/>
  (and to other products in the SQR product suite).

  Note: SQR used to be published by SQRIBE Technologies, which was
  merged into Brio Technology on August 3, 1999. Brio Technology changed
  its name to Brio Software in October 2001.  On October 16, 2003,
  Hyperion acquired Brio Software.

  SQR and related applications have also been called "Brio.Report" and
  "Brio Reports".


  The mailing list is provided as a service of Ray Ontko & Co.
  <http://www.ontko.com/> A searchable archive of past postings to the
  mailing list is available from the SQR Users Group web site
  <http://www.sqrug.org/sqr-users/>.



  2.2.  sqr-users Hints and Guidelines Document

  This document gives various hints and guidelines about the sqr-users
  mailing list.  It will be posted approximately monthly to the mailing
  list so that new users can see it (and existing users can find it
  easily).

  An HTML version of the document is always available at
  http://www.sqrug.org/sqr-users/sqr-users-hints.html.

  If you have comments or suggestions about this document, please
  contact me directly at the address listed in the title section.

  This document is Copyright (C) 1999-2002 by Ray Ontko & Co.  It may be
  freely copied and distributed provided it is not modified in any way
  and it retains the original copyright notice.


  2.3.  Related Mailing Lists

  Here are some mailing lists that cover topics relating to SQR in some
  way.


     sqr-jobs <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sqr-jobs>: SQR Jobs
        This list may be used for posting SQR-related resumes,
        recruitments, job announcements, project announcments, help-
        wanted, work-wanted ads, etc.  To join, follow the link above,
        or send any message to "sqr-jobs-subscribe@yahoogroups.com".



     peoplesoft-fans <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/peoplesoft-fans>:
        PeopleSoft Fans
        Moderated list covering technical and functional aspects of
        PeopleSoft.  To join, follow the link above, or send any message
        to "peoplesoft-fans-subscribe@yahoogroups.com".



     psusers <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/psusers>: PeopleSoft Users
        For questions related to any aspect of PeopleSoft (including
        PeopleSoft-specific SQR issues).  This list has merged with the
        Peoplesoft Fans mailing list and is no longer active, but the
        message achive can still be found at the link above.


     BrioSQRReport <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BrioSQRReport>: Brio
        SQR Report
        List for discussion of SQR and SQR Developer (formerly called
        Brio.Report and Report Builder).  To join, follow the link
        above, or send any message to "BrioSQRReport-
        subscribe@yahoogroups.com".


     rm-users <http://www.sqrug.org/mailman/listinfo/rm-users>: Report-
        Mart Users
        List for discussion of Brio Portal (previously called
        ReportMart).  To join, follow the link above, or send a message
        containing the word "subscribe" in the body to "rm-users-
        request@sqrug.org".


     brioportalusersgroup <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/briopor-
        talusersgroup>: Brio Portal Users Group list
        List for discussion of Brio Portal.  To join, follow the link
        above, or send any message to "brioportalusersgroup-
        subscribe@yahoogroups.com".


     brio-l <http://www.openitx.com/g/brio-l.asp>: OpenITx Brio List
        List for technical and functional discussion of all Brio
        products (but most messages are currently about Brio
        Intelligence).  To join, follow the link above.


     briousers <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/briousers/>: Brio.Enter-
        prise Users
        List for discussion of the Brio.Enterprise (now called
        Intelligence) product.  To join, follow the link above, or send
        any message to "briousers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com".


     briolist <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/briolist>: Brio List
        List for discussion of Brio Intelligence.  To join, follow the
        link above, or send any message to "briolist-
        subscribe@yahoogroups.com".



  3.  Interacting with the list server

  The sqr-users mailing list is hosted using the Mailman list server
  package.  All of the Mailman functions described below are accessed
  from the sqr-users List Info page,
  "http://www.sqrug.org/mailman/listinfo/sqr-users";.



  3.1.  Subscribing to the list


  To subscribe to the mailing list, enter your e-mail address in the box
  at the top of the "Subscribing to sqr-users" section on the sqr-users
  List Info page, then choose a password to assign to your subscription
  and enter it in both "Password" boxes.  This password is used to allow
  you to securely make changes to your subscription over the web.   This
  password will be e-mailed back to you at varous times, so you should
  not use the same password as you are using elsewhere.


  Once you have filled in the password, click the "Subscribe" button.
  You should soon receive an e-mail message from the list server
  requesting confirmation of your subscription request.  Once you have
  replied to this message and your subscription has been processed, you
  will receive a "welcome" message giving you more information on the
  list server, and as well as a reminder of the subscription password
  you chose.



  3.2.  Unsubscribing from the list

  To unsubscribe from the list, go to the sqr-users List Info page,
  enter your e-mail address in the "sqr-users Subscribers" section, and
  click the "Edit Options" button.  In the page that comes up, there
  will be an "Unsubscribing from sqr-users" section; simply enter your
  password in the box there and click the "Unsubscribe" button.
  Assuming you enter the correct password, you will recieve a message
  stating "You have been unsubscribed." and the removal will take effect
  immediately (there is no need to send in a confirmation e-mail
  message).


  (If you have forgotton your password, see the ``Obtaining your
  Password'' section, below).



  3.3.  When your email address changes

  If your e-mail address changes -- for example, if your company changes
  names, or if your mail administrator changes the way your name is
  spelled out or abbreviated -- you will need to update your
  subscription to match your new address before you can post to the list
  (see the ``Posting'' section, below).

  Unfortunately, the list server software currently does not provide a
  way for you to change the e-mail address used in a list subscription.
  This means that you will need to subscribe yourself from your new
  address and then unsubscribe yourself from the old address, using the
  normal subscribe and unsubscribe processes described above.



  3.4.  Digests


  You can request to get your messages in digest form (one large message
  containing all of the posts made each day).  To do this, enter your
  address in the "sqr-users Subscribers" section of the sqr-users List
  Info page and click the "Edit Options" button.  At the bottom of the
  resulting page, you will see a section titled "Your sqr-users
  Subscription Options".  Change the "Set Digest Mode" option to "On",
  enter your subscription password in the box provided, and click the
  "Submit My Changes" button.


  (If you have forgotton your password, see the instructions below.)


  You actually have a choice of two different digest formats, "MIME" or
  "Plain Text".  The MIME format sends each individual list message as a
  separate MIME attachment to the digest; the plain text format consists
  of one large text message, with all of the individual messages run
  together.  Which format you will want to use depends on your mail-
  reading software (and personal preference).  If you are not sure which
  format will work best, you can just leave the default setting of
  "MIME" and see if the next morning's digest is easy to read in your
  mail reader -- you can change to the other format at any time using
  that same web page.


  If you use digests, you should not just "reply" to the digest mailing.
  Instead, be sure your message's subject header matches the subject in
  the original posting to which you are replying, and that you don't
  include a quoted copy of the entire digest in your post.
  To restore normal distribution, simply follow the above instructions
  choosing the "Off" setting for the Digest option.



  3.5.  Obtaining your password


  You will not be able to unsubscribe or change your subscription
  options without your password.  If you have forgotten your password,
  simply click the "Email My Password to Me" button on the Edit Options
  page and your password will be emailed to you.  You will also be e-
  mailed a copy of your password at the beginning of each month, as part
  of a "mailing list memberships reminder" message from the Mailman
  software.



  3.6.  Problems

  If the above instructions do not work, please contact the list manager
  at "sqr-users-manager@sqrug.org".  (Do not send a message to the list
  itself -- no one there can help you with your problem!)  Please
  include a description of what you were trying to do and what exactly
  happened when you made the attempt.



  4.  Posting to the sqr-users List

  In order to post to the mailing list, you must be subscribed to it
  (see directions above).  More specifically, in order for Mailman to
  recognize that this message was sent by a subscriber, the return
  address on your message much exactly match the addresss you used to
  subscribe -- if you have more than one address you will need to be
  sure that you are sending from the correct one.  (See the ``When you
  email address changes'' section, above, if your e-mail address has
  changed.)


  4.1.  General Guidelines

  For any message you send to the list, please:

  o  make sure your mail software is not requesting a "Return Receipt".
     (If a "Return Receipt Requested" message is sent to the list,
     several dozen receipt messages will be sent out to the mailing list
     in reply from other subscribers.)

  o  do not send messages in HTML or other special formats.  (These are
     not usable by many subscribers, especially those who receive their
     messages in digest format.)  The list server will delete these
     special attachments from your message and send you a warning
     notice.  Also, if you are trying to send (for example) SQR source
     code files, make sure your mail-reader software is assigning proper
     MIME types to your attachments or they may not be distributed.

  o  keep in mind that over 500 people will receive your message, and
     that it will appear in the list archives.  Try to keep your
     messages on-topic and relatively short.  Consider sending your
     message directly to particular people if it won't interest many of
     the list's subscribers.

  o  ignore abusive and inappropriate messages that get sent to the
     list, rather than getting drawn into a debate.  The very nature of
     these messages will cause most subscribers to automatically
     discredit them -- no "response" is necessary.  To the contrary, any
     response will only "add fuel to the fire," prolonging the
     controversy and further interupting the normal conversation on the
     list.

  4.2.  Posting a Message

  Once you are subscribed, you can post to the list by sending a message
  to  "sqr-users@sqrug.org".  Be sure your subject heading describes
  your specific problem or question (i.e. don't just use "SQR
  Question").

  In the body of your message, please include the following information:

  o  Brio product and version number (see notes below)

  o  Operating system and version number

  o  Database name and version number

  o  Application name (i.e. PeopleSoft) and a version number, if any

  Also, include a short code sample whenever possible.  It's much easier
  for other people to understand what you are trying to do when they can
  see the actual code.  (At the same time, be careful not to post
  confidential or proprietary code, since the posting will be placed in
  a public web archive.)


  Note that your question should relate to SQR or other Brio Report
  product in some way.  Don't ask questions about PeopleSoft, for
  example, unless you are having SQR-related issues.  (For PeopleSoft-
  specific questions, see other lists mentioned in the ``Related Mailing
  Lists'' section.)


  In 2001, PeopleSoft purchased from Brio the rights to the source code
  for SQR and began releasing its own line of SQR.   PeopleSoft's SQR
  version numbering is different from Brio's, so it's very important to
  mention whether you are using Brio's "SQR" or "SQR for PeopleSoft".
  (This info is included automatically if you include the full SQR
  version-id string as described below.)


  To get the version-id string for your copy of SQR, you can run the
  following program:


  begin-program
  show $sqr-ver
  end-program


  This will produce a line that looks something like this:

  SQR/3.0.15/Intel/SCO Unix R3.2 V5.0/Oracle 7.2.2.3/Sep 25 1996


  Include the full line of output in your message.   Note that the oper-
  ating system version number listed here is the one under which this
  copy of SQR was compiled, so you'll still need to include this infor-
  mation for your own environment.


  In a command-line environment (Unix, etc.), you can also get this
  version-id string by saying
  sqr -id



  4.3.  Replying to a Message

  Messages sent out on the list have a Reply-To header pointing to the
  list.  This means that you should be able to simply use your mail
  reader's "reply" function to send a reply to the list.

  Generally, all answers to questions sent out on the list should be
  public replies, so that other subscribers can benefit.  In those cases
  where a private reply is appropriate, be sure to over-ride the default
  Reply-To address.

  If your message is not actually a reply to the earlier message, please
  do not use the "reply" function.  Instead, address a new e-mail
  message to the list as described in the previous section.  (This is
  because the list archives will incorrectly show the new message in the
  original thread if you use "reply".)

  You should quote enough lines from the original message that later
  readers can understand your answer even if they missed the original
  question.  At the same time, you should remove any unnecessary lines
  from the quote in order to make your message shorter and easier to
  understand.  (Remember that some people read the mailing list in
  digest form, and the digests become much larger if unnecessary lines
  are quoted.)



  5.  Job Announcements

  Please do not post job announcements on the sqr-users list, but use
  the sqr-jobs list instead.  (See ``Related Mailing Lists'' for more
  information on this list.)  A large number of sqr-users subscribers do
  not want to receive job announcements (for various reasons) and such
  posts tend to cause a lot of disruption of the discussion on the list.



_______________________________________________
sqr-users mailing list
sqr-users@sqrug.org
http://www.sqrug.org/mailman/listinfo/sqr-users