Frequently Asked Questions

Last revised: 20 March 2015

Don wrote, "Sooooo... hows about a little FAQ with dos and don’ts and definitions so us newbies don’t have to rub quite so much fur the wrong way? I am more than willing to follow the rules, IF I know what they are!"

Rules? We don't need no stinking rules! Just general consensus...

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UNSUBSCRIBING - To unsubscribe from the PDML you need to click this link and follow the instructions. Sending an unsubscribe message to the list will get you nothing but a bunch of silly replies and references to the Hotel California.

WHY WAS I KICKED OFF THE LIST? - About the only thing that gets you kicked of the list is bouncing e-mail. Check that your mailbox at your ISP is not full. It is best if you download all mail from this list, and any other mailing lists you may be on, to your computer and erase the messages in your ISP mailbox.

PLAIN TEXT - Posts to the list must be in plain text. If your posts don't seem to be getting through, check that your email client is not set to send in HTML format.

COLONS (:) in subject lines - It has been pointed out that some mail readers treat anything with a colon in the subject like a RE: or SV: (both mean the same thing) and that can mess up threaded mail readers. So try to use a dash (-) instead if you feel the need to separate things in the subject line.

MARK! - Each year Mark (Speck) Roberts publishes a list of memorable quotations that have appeared in list messages during the previous 12 months. From time to time the term 'Mark!' will appear in a message. This is to both 'Mark' a potential candidate for the next quotation list and to draw Mark's attention to it. It may be accompanied by one or more exclamation Marks!

Note - It's been acknowledged that Mark cannot and does not read each and every PDML post, so "Mark!-ing' a potential quote doesn't mean that it will appear in the final list or that Mark will even see it. Many a superbly crafted and memorable witticism has been and will be inadvertently overlooked - that's just the way it is...

LIST MEMBERS - Remember that the people here on the PDML live all over the world. Their customs, languages, beliefs, religions, values, and most of all their SENSE OF HUMOUR may vary. Always take this into consideration when reading or replying to their comments. Also their command of English may not be up to your standards (mine isn’t, and it is my native language), but think about how you would do in their language and give them a break.

POLITICS/RELIGION - Since some of us can not seem to remain civil in these kinds of discussions we very much prefer not to have threads about them on the list. This is violated often, until someone goes off the deep end and then most of us shut up.

CORMORANTS - (aka 'shags', a term with different connotations in different localities...). For reasons that remain unclear, the cormorant has been adopted as the PDML mascot. Feel free to post links to any and all cormorant photos.

CAT PHOTOS - A former popular list participant swore he would leave the list if anyone mentioned guns again, or posted a link to a cat picture. He left anyway which shows that you might as well ignore such stuff. However, many consider Guns/Abortion/Etc as part of Politics and Religion, so generally they should be avoided. Although Cat Photos are now, seemingly, OK again.

COTTY'S HAT - Some years ago, a certain list member made a statement (considered rash by some) that if Pentax ever made a full frame DSLR (as in 35 mm sized sensor) he would eat his hat. To date, the hat has remained intact, but each time a rumour surfaces that Pentax is about to release a full frame DSLR, mentions of appropriate condiments and marinades to accompany or assist in the consumption of said hat will appear on the list.

POSTING PHOTOS - You put a photo up on the web somewhere (eg Flickr, Picasa, etc) and post the URL in your message.

  • You cannot post photos directly to the list - the list management software will automatically delete your post.
  • For the more formal monthly PUG (Pentax Users Gallery), there are links to the Submission Guidelines and the Submission Form at the bottom of the PUG page. Photos for the PUG must be made with Pentax equipment (lens, body or both). For other photos, that is preferred but not required.

PDML PHOTO ANNUAL - The Annual is a printed collection of the best images by PDML members during the previous year. The first Annual was published in 2009.

PDML SHOP - Mark Roberts maintains a "quasi-official PDML shop". Tee shirts, hats, caps, mugs, posters and more.... All profits are donated to the National Childhood Cancer Foundation.

ITEMS FOR SALE - You can post details of photographic items that you have for sale but please use the following as guidelines.

  • Pentax stuff anytime, although many only want to have to look on Fridays, and prefer "For Sale Fridays". Most of us would prefer that you limit any non-Pentax stuff to Fridays as well. Regular list members only, please.

  • EBAY - It is all right to mention your own auctions. Do not mention other items until the auction is over (common courtesy). An exception is obviously funny and BS stuff like the 11 million dollar Canon 1Ds digital, or non-photographic stuff like the wedding dress that was the basis of a long thread here a while back.

LIST ARCHIVES - All posts to the list are archived...twice! So, if you want to know who said what in May 2008, here's where you go (take your pick):

FLAMES/TROLLS - People who can not keep from continually attacking others, or who insist on trying to incite folks to anger, should be totally ignored. For they will, if they have their way, destroy the nicest mailing list on the Internet.

These are the main ones that have mass general agreement, though common courtesy is always appreciated here. Some folks do not like the off topic stuff, but we who engage in it are usually the old timers here, and are not going to pay much attention to them (grin).

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ACRONYMS

PESO - Photo Every So Often (also PAW - Photo A Week - less often used these days). A feature introduced to the list a while back by Shel Belinkoff where you can put up a link to a photo you want commented on and folks will tell you how you should have done it (grin).

GESO - Gallery Every So Often. Similar to PESO except you link to a small gallery comprising a number of images.

PUG - Pentax Users Gallery. A monthly gallery of photos by PDML members (see above under 'Posting Photos').

PPG - Pentax Photo Gallery. A gallery maintained by Pentax USA, which is not the same as the PUG and has no direct connection with PDML, except that a number of members contribute images to it.

GFM - Grandfather Mountain. On the first weekend in June each year a nature photography weekend is held at Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina, USA. A number of PDML members attend and some present lectures. Any time from about March onwards you can expect to see references to GFM in list messages. If you're curious about the mountain or what PDMLers get up to there, Mark Roberts' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Grandfather Mountain Nature Photography Weekend might help.

LBA - Lens Buying Addiction. It's contagious. There is no hope. None whatsoever....

WOW - Workover Of the Week (or Workshop a Week). Similar to PESO/PAW, where you post a photo somewhere that folks can download, and they run it through Photoshop or whatever to show you how they would have done it. Rarely seen in the wild these days.

HAR!, GRIN!, Etc - Indications that the post/comment was meant to be humorous, and that you should not take it too seriously. There are a lot of variations on these, but they all mean various degrees of the same thing. Of course a few folks here just use the old fashioned smiley. :)

OTHER ACRONYMS - "OTOH", "IIRC", etc. These are usually pretty standard and a list of them can easily be found by doing a Google search for "internet acronyms".

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DISCLAIMER - The PDML is operated and maintained by Doug Brewer who volunteered to take it over and maintain it at his own cost when Pentax USA decided they could no longer support it for liability reasons. Pentax has no connection with this current list, and they do not endorse or condone anything posted on it. Doug, not being into censorship, is not liable nor responsible in any way for the content or opinions expressed here on the list. He maintains the list only out of goodwill. So....

KEEPING PDML AFLOAT - You will find a 'Donate' button at the bottom of the main PDML page - making a small annual donation is strongly encouraged but is not mandatory.

We seem to talk about doing this FAQ about twice a year, but it never seems to go very far. So, if anyone has additions, changes, deletions, or corrections let me know.

This FAQ was originally developed and maintained by Graywolf at http://www.graywolfphoto.com/pentax/pdml-faq.html, but it appears that page is no longer intact. Scott Loveless found a copy on the Wayback Machine from March 11, 2005, and that has formed the basis of this current FAQ. A big "Thanks!" is owed to Graywolf for keeping it online for so long and to Scott for resurrecting it.


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