"Tom Sloper" <tomster@sloperama.com> wrote in message news:<3r4zb.397584$Tr4.1151177@attbi_s03>...
> WHAT'S NEW IN THE FAQS THIS WEEK (since the Nov. 17, 2003 posting):
> 
> 
> 1. FAQ 7k - changed the URL for Gareth's FAQ 7l. Made some formatting
> and wording changes to help newbies choose a set while I was at it.
> 2. FAQ 0 (this FAQ) - changed the URL for Gareth's FAQ 7l below.
> 3. FAQ 3 - changed URL for a book file available from Gareth Saunders.
> 4. FAQ 7i - changed URL for a kards download available from Gareth.
> 5. FAQ 5 - added Korean URL where Access Girls sequel can be purchased
> (thanks to Dajava).
> 
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> Archive-name: mjfaq00.txt
> Newsgroups: rec.games.mahjong; fj.rec.games.mahjong
> Posting-frequency: weekly
> Last-modified: November 17, 2003
> Version: 2.23
> 
> <><><><><>
> 
> 
> I. THE FAQ FILES ON THE INTERNET. WHERE THEY ARE AND WHAT'S IN THEM
> 
> The Frequently Asked Question articles are located at:
> 
> http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq.html
> 
> FAQ00. Introduction to Mah-Jongg Newsgroup (this article)
> FAQ01. Mah-Jongg 101; Getting Started
> FAQ02. How to choose a rule set to study, and how to identify which
> rule set you (or your friends) are playing
> FAQ03. Books on Mah-Jongg
> FAQ04a Selected Websites on Mah-Jongg
> FAQ04b MORE Websites on Mah-Jongg
> FAQ05. Computer Mah-Jongg games
> FAQ06. "Rosetta Stone" of Mah-Jongg terminology
> FAQ07. ALL About Mah-Jongg Tiles:
>  FAQ07a Types of Mah-Jongg Sets
>  FAQ07b What Constitutes A Complete Set of Tiles
>  FAQ07c How To Identify Tile Material
>  FAQ07d All the Bits & Pieces
>  FAQ07e Those Special Tiles
>  FAQ07f Playing Tables
>  FAQ07g How Old Is My Set?
>  FAQ07h How Much Is It Worth?
>  FAQ07i Mah-Jongg Cards... and Kards
>  FAQ07j Tips For Buyers
>  FAQ07k Where To Buy (General)
>  FAQ07l Where To Buy (U.K.) (Moved to Gareth Saunders' site: http://
> www.garethjmsaunders.co.uk/mahjong/faq07uk.html)
>  FAQ07m Where To Buy (Tokyo & Hong Kong) (NEW)
>  FAQ07n Tips For Sellers
>  FAQ07o Cleaning or Restoring Tiles
> FAQ08. Strategy
> FAQ09. Etiquette
> FAQ10. Simplified rules for mah-jongg.
> FAQ11. History of mah-jongg
> FAQ12. Tile-matching software download sites
> FAQ13. Rules for 1-, 2-, and 3-player games
> FAQ14. The Rules On Table Rules
> FAQ15. How To Find Players In Your Local Area
> FAQ16. Answers to Questions About the Current NMJL Card(NEW)
> FAQ17. "3 Fan" Mah-Jongg Explained
> 
> All of the FAQ articles are subject to change, and readers' comments
> are welcomed.
> 
> INDEX FOR THIS FAQ*
> 
> I. THE FAQ FILES ON THE INTERNET. WHERE THEY ARE AND WHAT'S IN THEM
> II. WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION TO THE MAHJONG NEWSGROUPS
> III. CHARTER FOR THE REC.GAMES.MAHJONG NEWSGROUP
> IV. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE NEWSGROUP
> 
> *("FAQ" is short for "Frequently Asked Questions.")
> 
> Note: This FAQ is (and will remain) in text format. References to
> internet URLs are not clickable. Scroll down to read this FAQ; if
> viewed on the internet, use your browser's "Back" button to go back
> to the page that referred you here.
> 
> <><><><><>
> 
> 
> II. WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION TO THE MAHJONG NEWSGROUPS
> 
> Welcome to the rec.games.mahjong Frequently Asked Questions.  The
> purpose of this article is to assist readers in finding answers to
> their Mah-Jongg questions and to introduce new readers of
> rec.games.mahjong to newsgroup and bulletin board etiquette.  Ques-
> tions and comments about this FAQ should be emailed to Tom Sloper
> (tomster@sloperama.com). FAQ 0 (this article) is posted weekly at
> the newsgroup.  The FAQs are on the web at:
> 
> http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq.html
> 
> The newsgroup FAQs are on the Web (instead of being posted regularly
> on the newsgroup) because
> 
> 1. The FAQs are sizeable, and we wanted to be nice to the newsgroup
> servers around the world.
> 
> 2. "Newsfeed" is a funny, mysterious, unpredictable thing -- not
> everybody's ISP provides timely access to the current postings at the
> newsgroups, so sometimes a user will look at the newsgroup and not
> see recent postings which other users can see there. It often
> happens that someone will ask a question that's answered by the FAQs -
> - we advise the asker to read the FAQs -- but the asker can't see them
> even though they had just been posted a few days previously. Thus the
> web version of the FAQs. The web version will not expire like
> newsgroup postings do.
> 
> 3. Newsgroups are becoming a lesser-known part of the internet as the
> Web grows in usage, and there's a clear need to include graphics in
> the FAQs.
> 
> NEWSGROUP POSTING ARCHIVES:
> 
> There once was a newsgroup archive at
> http://mahjong.pathbot.com, but the site is no longer up.
> 
> Google's Newsgroups Search page (http://groups.google.com/) is an
> excellent place (if not the only place now) to read old newsgroup
> postings.
> 
> <><><><><>
> 
> 
> III. CHARTER FOR THE REC.GAMES.MAHJONG NEWSGROUP
> 
> It is probably useful to reprint here the original Rationale and
> Charter, written in the spring of 1997 by Zuwei Thomas Feng.  These
> are the texts which led to the creation of the English-language
> newsgroup (news:rec.games.mahjong).
> 
> ================
> 
> RATIONALE: rec.games.mahjong
> 
> The rec.games.mahjong newsgroup is for discussions and announcements
> related to Mahjong, an multiplayer game that originated in China and
> has widely spread to Asia, America, Europe, and other parts of the
> world.  Note that Mahjong is NOT the solitaire game also known as
> Shanghai.
> 
> Aside from a large player base in homes, local clubs and tournaments,
> there are also many people who play Mahjong with computer software.
> In particular, since the Internet Mahjong Server went on-line, it has
> attracted more than 1,000 players who came from different Mahjong
> communities.
> 
> Mahjong is becoming a more visible international phenomenon.  The
> first international Mahjong tournament to be held this year, will
> bring together top-notch Mahjong players from around the world and
> hopes to bring to Mahjong participation and prestige of games like
> Bridge, Chess, and Go.  Such efforts will naturally be welcomed by
> Mahjong fans everywhere, and discussion of Mahjong rules, playing
> styles and skills will be key to their success.
> 
> Mailing lists for various local Mahjong clubs and the Internet server
> already exist.  Creating a big mailing list would however create too
> much traffic and scare off people who just want to participate in
> casual discussion.
> 
> Popular games such as Bridge, Chess, and Go all have their respective
> newsgroups.  Mahjong is arguably as popular as these games, and still
> gaining momentum.  Unfortunately, there is no group within the
> rec.games hierarchy in which Mahjong postings are appropriate.
> 
> [END RATIONALE.]
> 
> CHARTER: rec.games.mahjong
> 
> Rec.games.mahjong is an unmoderated group for the discussion and
> announcements related to Mahjong and its variations.  There is no
> "standard Mahjong", so all versions, including Chinese, Japanese,
> Jewish, the Taiwan 16-tile variant, and some 3-player variants, etc,
> are covered by the group.  The group welcomes all postings of the
> following kinds:
> 
> 1. Discussions of Mahjong rules, play, and strategy.
> 2. Announcements of club meetings and tournaments.
> 3. Advertisements of Mahjong related products, with a repost frequency
>    of at most once every month.
> 4. Private "for sale" or "want to buy" notices, with a repost
>    frequency of at most once every month.
> 
> The group accepts NO binary postings.
> 
> END CHARTER.
> 
> ================
> 
> So here we are, some years later, enjoying the existence of the
> English-language mah-jongg newsgroup (news:rec.games.mahjong) and its
> Japanese-language counterpart (news:fj.rec.games.mahjong) as places
> where we can discuss all things mah-jongg.
> 
> <><><><><>
> 
> 
> IV. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THIS NEWSGROUP
> 
> The rec.games.mahjong newsgroup is generally friendly.  However, new
> readers are well advised to familiarize themselves with the normal
> practices on the group before posting.  Certain types of postings
> frequently pop up -- and some of them sometimes can cause flaring
> tempers and flame-o-grams.
> 
> o The best type of posting is a question about rules or strategies of
> Mah-Jongg.  The question "Teach me the rules of Mah-Jongg" is way too
> broad -- read the FAQs and find out where you can learn the rules of
> whatever type of Mah-Jongg you're interested in learning.  Rather, the
> best type of posting is a question about a fine point of the rules that
> may not be clear in your rule book.  For example, "West drew the 4th
> tile to make a Kong, took a loose tile from the back of the Wall, and
> discarded it.  Isn't there supposed to be a bonus of some kind if
> another player can win on that tile?  We play by the Whitney rules of
> Classical Japanese."  That last part is important.  The rule can be
> completely different depending on which game you play!  But now I'm
> getting into the next point.
> 
> o  Frequently someone will post a question about a particular rule of
> Mah-Jongg, without specifying which version of MJ they play.  There
> isn't just one rulebook for Mah-Jongg -- it's played in many different
> ways all around the world.  So the first batch of responses invariably
> is like a shotgun blast, with many of the pellets missing the mark.
> Before posting a question, it would be best to read the FAQs and
> identify your "flavor" of Mah-Jongg, if you are unsure.  Then when
> writing the question, specify which rulebook or game your question
> is about.  We have regulars who play all the major varieties of MJ,
> and somebody will gladly field your question.  We will even discuss
> how the same situation is handled differently in other varieties
> of MJ -- we enjoy confusing newbies!
> 
> o Another typical type of posting is when someone reads an answer to
> a MJ question, and posts a reply asking why such an answer was given.
> The answer is invariably, "Because those are the rules under that way
> of playing." There isn't just one rulebook for Mah-Jongg -- it's
> played in many different ways all around the world.  Rules don't need
> to be explained (there probably /is/ a good reason why a rule was
> made, but the rule was probably made a very long time ago, and the
> people who made the rule are either dead or don't frequent this
> newsgroup).
> 
> o  Bad tempers can result if you post the suggestion that the rules
> of [some flavor or other of] Mah-Jongg are stupid and should be
> changed.  If you have a regular play group, that is the place to
> make the rule changes!  People all around the world play Mah-Jongg
> in many different ways.  You can make your table rules be whatever
> your regular group can agree to -- but you're not going to get all
> the players all around the world to change to your way of thinking!
> Some group regulars might get mad at you -- they're perfectly
> happy with their way of playing.
> 
> o  Many players post messages looking for players in their area.
> There's no harm in making such posts, and by all means go ahead, but
> in the majority of cases it's not as effective as posting at
> http://www.sloperama.com/majexchange/findplayer.htm  (after you read
> all the posts there yourself to see if someone from your area has
> already posted). See FAQ 15.
> 
> o  A very frequent type of post is along the lines of, "I'm looking
> for places to buy tiles, or sell tiles. . ."  or "I got an antique set
> when my Aunt Fannie died, how much is it worth?"   -- Please read
> FAQ 7 before you post.
> 
> o  Please don't post off-topic messages.  We at this newsgroup are
> interested in discussing the game of Mah-Jongg, or games played with
> Mah-Jongg tiles, only.  There are other newsgroups for the discussion
> of other games and other topics.
> 
> o  Posts that purport to be about "Mah-Jongg" but are actually about
> a computer solitaire tile-matching game (such as "Shanghai," or a
> program similar to Shanghai).  Before you post, make sure you know
> the difference between "solitaire mah-jongg" and "true mah-jongg."
> Both are games played with mah-jongg tiles, but they are very
> different games.  One is mah-jongg, and the other is not (regardless
> of what the program may be named).  Think of the game of Shanghai
> (or games similar to it) as "Solitaire," and the game of Mah-Jongg
> as "Gin Rummy."  Consider: Poker is not Bridge.  If this newsgroup
> was all about Bridge and you started posting about Poker, you would
> (naturally) not get a friendly response.  This newsgroup's Charter
> (reprinted at the top of this FAQ) does not expressly forbid the
> posting of messages about MJ tile-matching games, but the Rationale
> which accompanied the Charter expressly and rightly declares that
> those games are "NOT mah-jongg."  Therefore be aware that if you
> post about such games, it is arguable that you are posting off-topic.
> Off-topic posts are unwelcome in all newsgroups.  Appropriate
> discussions about fun uses of MJ tiles (or a knowledgeable com-
> parative study of the various games played with MJ tiles, even
> including the tile-matching games) might be accepted as not too off-
> topic, but you should be prepared for an overheated response if you
> post only to brag of your high score or best time in a tile-matching
> program (especially if you call that game by the generic name "mah-
> jongg" when the group regulars know it's /not/ mah-jongg).  Such
> messages might be better posted at news:rec.games.computer.puzzle
> instead.  (This is no guarantee that the crossword puzzle fans at
> that other newsgroup will appreciate your bragging any better than
> the mahjong newsgroup regulars do... (^_^) )
> 
> o  "I have computer MJ game X and I'm having this technical
> problem..." -- This type of posting is not interesting for the members
> of the group, and will not get you the info you need as quickly as if
> you contacted the makers (publisher) of the game directly.  If you
> have a technical question about a computer game, contact the makers
> (publisher) of the game directly.  You can find out how to contact
> them via the About box in the game, or from the info in the printed
> manual.  You can find the maker/publisher's website and get the Email
> address there.  Send detailed info about your computer, the
> version you have, and what the problem is.  The typical "message from
> hell" goes like this: "Hey what gives, MJPro doesn't work on my
> computer, HELLPP!!"  . . . Come on, what's anybody gonna do with that??
> -- User didn't tell what specific MJPro game [full title and version
> #] the user has -- user didn't say if s/he has a Macintosh or Windows
> 3.1 or Windows 98 or what -- and "doesn't work" could mean anything!
> "The colors are weird" is totally different from "this game only comes
> on CD, and my computer only has a floppy drive."  Be specific.  The
> maker/publisher needs clues in order to help you, and only you can
> provide them.
> 
> o  People occasionally find a reason to post a picture to illustrate a
> question. This is a BIG no-no! Do NOT post any pictures here.  This
> newsgroup's charter expressly forbids the posting of binaries (all
> picture files and sound files and movie files are "binaries" in
> newsgroup parlance). You could always Email a picture to someone who
> can look at it and answer your question. Don't Email raw BMP files,
> either -- convert them to JPG or ZIP format before Emailing.
> 
> o  One of the entertaining pastimes of newsgroups is "flaming", where
> posters publicly insult each other in terms that they might not use if
> meeting face to face.  If you have been flamed, please don't take it
> personally, and PLEASE don't start a real flame war over it. Just
> remember that people at keyboards are sometimes more feisty than they
> might be face to face.  We don't have netcops like those found in
> other Usenet groups -- don't make us go there!
> 
> o  What you should do before you post a question:
> 
>    -  If you haven't read the articles that are regularly posted to
>       the newsgroup news.announce.newusers, please do so.  You will
>       learn about some general rules and principles that apply to
>       virtually all newsgroups, like a ban on posting most binary
>       files and MIME attachments, and sending email instead of posting
>       if your message is intended only for one person.
> 
>    -  Read the newsgroup for at least a week (reading for some time
>       before posting is proper etiquette for ANY Usenet newsgroup.
>       If you didn't realize that, all the more reason for you to go
>       back and read news.announce.newusers).
> 
>    -  Know the difference between mah-jongg and solitaire tile-
>       matching games. Don't say "mah-jongg" if you actually mean a
>       tile-matching game.
> 
>    -  Be aware that posting in newsgroups can cause you to start
>       receiving unwanted junk Email.  But if you put a "nospam" filter
>       in your Email address, others have to be smart in order to Email
>       you in response.  You have to decide what to do.
> 
>    -  Read the other FAQs.  See section I...
> 
> <><><><><>
> 
> 
> (C) 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 Tom Sloper. All rights reserved.

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