Wayback Fanlistings

Odile · **on:** July 08, 2014, 10:37:08 PM

Hello, everyone and anyone! Blowing dust off my forum account here.

I've been thinking a lot lately about the sometimes fleeting nature of fanlistings. I recently picked up a few subjects that I've loved years. For whatever reason, the FLs weren't adopted out before they went under. I always feel so sad about that, it's like a piece of fandom history has been lost.

On to the question. Would it be right to try and fix that?

If you can find the previous listing's url, it's sometimes possible to look at old members lists via the Wayback Machine. I admit that I've considered adding these people back to the lists they joined. I'm pretty sure I could do this using the same method as uploading an adopted list's old members.

But would that be right? Is that stealing from another webmaster, or is it honoring the intent of the people who joined the older FL? How far back would it be OK to go? A year? Five? Ten? (Goodness.)

I'd be very interested to know anybody's thoughts on the ethics of this, and whether it has ever been discussed before. Apologies if this is 100% verboten already! I checked the rules and recent(ish) discussions and didn't see anything related, but of course I may have just missed it.

Rain · **Reply #1 on:** July 10, 2014, 06:07:38 PM

I remember this has been talked about before. Most people wouldn't use the list as is, but it has been suggested (and I think people have already done this) that when you find the emails of former members at the list at the wayback machine, you can email and tell them that there's a new fanlisting for that subject online and, since they were a member of the previous listing, they are welcome to join the new one too. Personally, I wouldn't mind if people would add me to a fanlisting of them this way (looking up my email adress at the wayback machine and then add me to their fanlisting) but I can understand if people don't like and/or want it. I don't think there's a rule anywhere stating that adding members from/via the wayback machine is forbidden, it's more of an ethical thing .

Mitzrael · **Reply #2 on:** July 29, 2014, 08:10:22 PM

Adding my two-cents here, I personally wouldn't object against being re-added of sorts, as long as I get some kind of notification to which I could reply and ask for a removal if need be. It sounds like extra work but as a fellow fanlisting owner, I think you always have to be the responsible end of the bargain, so either add all members and ask them if they are okay with it after doing so or, ask them if it's okay to add their information to a new list before doing so, and so, wait 'til they get back to you. Either way it's going to require some work, time and lots of patience, but it feels good in the end, doesn't it? :proud:

Ainna · **Reply #3 on:** May 29, 2018, 05:13:34 AM

Hello all!

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I was wondering if there ever is an update to this post regarding an official position of TAFL, or if we just leave it up to FL owners to decide on their own?

I'm with Odile on this one; I'm really big on FL continuity. For some reason, I'm really saddened when an FL closes and THEN has to be restarted. It's like a piece of fandom history has died. (Sorry, I know that sounds dramatic lol but that's how I feel.)

Thanks!

Miriallia · **Reply #4 on:** June 12, 2018, 01:15:35 PM

I don't think there are news about this... It's up to you to decide what to do~! But I agree with what Rain and Mitzrael wrote in their posts.

DarwinTis · **Reply #5 on:** December 13, 2018, 06:52:36 AM

I know exactly how you feel, Ai. I've similar situations like that 3-4 times over the years and it's never easy. What can you do though, except to be appreciative of the good times.