Music DSP Frequently Asked Questions

Please send additions/corrections/comments to douglas * music columbia edu

Please also read the dsp FAQ.

how do i un/subscribe from/to music-dsp?

http://music.columbia.edu/cmc/music-dsp/joindsp.html has instructions on how to un/subscribe from/to music-dsp.

is the list archived?

there is an archive of the list available here: http://music.columbia.edu/cmc/music-dsp/musicdsparchives.html

no. music-dsp is a public, open list. anyone is free to join or quit as they like.

yes:

the topic of the music-dsp list is digital signal processing as it relates to music and sound. please post on-topic. if you feel that you must post something that is off-topic, please put [OT] in the subject line to make it easier for people to filter out unwanted, off-topic posts.

do not cross-post (post to more than one list) off-topic messages to the list.

if you purposefully ignore these guidelines you will be unsubscribed from the list. we have had problems in the past with spammers and chronic off-topic posters, and this seems to be a fair way to deal with the problem.

if someone's posts are off topic and they bother you, simply ignore them or use your email program to filter them out. you can also subscribe to the digest form of the list, which does not contain any messages marked as [OT]. please do not post messages to the list complaining about off-topic posts. email the offending party directly if it really bothers you. if it really really bothers you, you can always unsubscribe from the list.

why are my posts bouncing or just not showing up on the list?

there are a number of reasons for bounced or missing messages. the specific reason should be listed in the subject line of the bounce notice you received. if you don't receive a bounce message it's likely that you've sent non-plaintext email (see below).

the most common problems are:

you sent the message from the wrong email address. you must send your messages to the list using the same email address as you used to sign up for the list.

your server is changing your email address behind your back. sometimes servers tack an extra segment onto your email address. me@myschool.edu might become me@mail.myschool.edu. this will cause a bounce, as above. you'll have to resubscribe to the list using the new address.


you sent non-plaintext (html, rtf, etc.) mail to the list. only plaintext is permitted. you email client should have some way for you to specify plaintext for your messages.


you sent an attachment to the list. no attachments are permitted. this includes weird business card signatures, images, sound files, executables, source code, etc. if you have a file that you'd like to show to the list, simply put it on the web somewhere and send the link to the list. if you don't have access to web space then you can send the file to douglas and he'll put it on the music-dsp site for you.


you are not subscribed to the list. only list members may post to the list. if you used to be subscribed but now find that you're not, it probably means that you were unsubscribed automatically for some reason. normally this happens when an account starts bouncing a lot of mail because of server problems or because the account is over quota. simply resubscribe and you should be all set.