Lantra - has anyone heard of them?
Thread poster: Paul Dixon
Paul Dixon
Paul Dixon  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 21:42
Portuguese to English
+ ...
Apr 18, 2012

Through another site I became aware of a site called Lantra: according to the other site "there are many language-specific mailing lists, but I would really recommend joining Lantra. It's quite an eye-opener and you can learn so much just by reading what goes on there (...)"

I would like to know if anyone has any comments about this forum (Lantra) as I noticed some features which are strange to say the least:

1. The link to Lantra does not lead to a site, but to a Geoci
... See more
Through another site I became aware of a site called Lantra: according to the other site "there are many language-specific mailing lists, but I would really recommend joining Lantra. It's quite an eye-opener and you can learn so much just by reading what goes on there (...)"

I would like to know if anyone has any comments about this forum (Lantra) as I noticed some features which are strange to say the least:

1. The link to Lantra does not lead to a site, but to a Geocities page. The graphics used on this page are very simple, not what you would expect from a corporate site;

2. To subscribe, they ask you to send an e-mail to a Swedish e-mail account. Later they reply with an automatic message with funny error messages. I received one as follows:

"São Paulo, 18 April 2012
Unknown command - "SÃO". Try HELP.

> Dear Sirs,
Unknown command - "DEAR". Try HELP.

> Could you explain why I keep getting funny error messages (see below)?
Unknown command - "COULD". Try HELP.

> PAUL
Unknown command - "PAUL". Try HELP.

> --- On Wed, 18/4/12, LISTSERV Server (15.5) wrote:
Unknown command - "---". Try HELP.

> From: LISTSERV Server (15.5)
Unknown command - "FROM:". Try HELP.

> Subject: Re: Subscription
Unknown command - "SUBJECT:". Try HELP.

> To: [email protected]
Unknown command - "TO:". Try HELP.

> Date: Wednesday, 18 April, 2012, 13:25
Unknown command - "DATE:". Try HELP."

(E-mail removed for the sake of privacy)

Could someone shed light on what is happening?
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Allison Wright (X)
Allison Wright (X)  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 00:42
Lantra-L Apr 18, 2012

Hello Paul

Lantra-L was a really great mailing list for translators in the late 1990s and for a few years after that. It degenerated somewhat because some of the list members got into some quite vitriolic political discussions. It resuscitated itself (thanks to the "listmom") as Rosetta-L, a Google group, with a strict ban on political discussion. There are some members in your language pair. List is populated mostly by very experienced and professional translators from all over
... See more
Hello Paul

Lantra-L was a really great mailing list for translators in the late 1990s and for a few years after that. It degenerated somewhat because some of the list members got into some quite vitriolic political discussions. It resuscitated itself (thanks to the "listmom") as Rosetta-L, a Google group, with a strict ban on political discussion. There are some members in your language pair. List is populated mostly by very experienced and professional translators from all over the world. A friendly lot. Suggest you Google Rosetta-L and follow the steps.
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Paul Dixon
Paul Dixon  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 21:42
Portuguese to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thanks Apr 18, 2012

Thanks Allison, I'll try that. I guess the Geocities page and error messages may have had something to do with the "resuscitation" under a different name. Just one more thing - you say "Rosetta-L" is a Google group, so does this need I need a Gmail account or use other Google services to access it? As for political discussion, I don't like discussing politics in public sites anyway.

PAUL


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 01:42
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
That's a good laugh! Apr 18, 2012

Paul Dixon wrote:
1. The link to Lantra does not lead to a site, but to a Geocities page. The graphics used on this page are very simple, not what you would expect from a corporate site;


Lantra-L is a mailing list, not a corporation.

2. To subscribe, they ask you to send an e-mail to a Swedish e-mail account.


Yes, you subscribe to the mailing list by sending a command to the mailing list server. The command will not be read by a human. The command to join (subscribe) is "SUB" and it must be followed by the name of the mailing list (in this case "LANTRA-L") and your name.

In fact, the web site says specifically: "To subscribe, send the message SUB LANTRA-L Your Name to [email protected] ". But you did not send:

SUB LANTRA-L Paul Dixon

like the instructions said that you should. Instead, you sent:

São Paulo, 18 April 2012
Dear Sirs,
Could you explain why I keep getting funny error messages (see below)?
PAUL


The server responds by telling you the commands are not recognised, and suggests that you send the command "HELP". Sending that command will return a help file.


[Edited at 2012-04-18 20:50 GMT]

[Edited at 2012-04-18 20:50 GMT]


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 01:42
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
@Paul Apr 18, 2012

Paul Dixon wrote:
I guess the Geocities page and error messages may have had something to do with the "resuscitation" under a different name.


There was no resuscitation. At various stages in the existence of Lantra-L, people who got fed up with some or other aspect of it tried to split off and create their own mailing list. Rosetta-L is one of the most successful ones to split from it. Lantra-L itself is not dead, however.

Try joining Lantra-L again, using the instructions on this page:
http://lantragallery.ijlant.com/cheatsheet.html

Just one more thing - you say "Rosetta-L" is a Google group, so does this need I need a Gmail account or use other Google services to access it?


Yes, you need to register with and use Google Groups.

As for political discussion, I don't like discussing politics in public sites anyway.


Well, the Lantrans and Rosettans have their own definitions of "politics", which are not defined anywhere (and which are essentially any topics that vocal members find vaguely upsetting). You'll figure it out eventually as you watch other new members' heads being bitten off or experience your own being bitten off for posting a "political" piece.


 
The Misha
The Misha
Local time: 20:42
Russian to English
+ ...
This looks like a secret masonic lodge or some such Apr 18, 2012

I clicked on the link above out of curiosity and also googled Rosetta-L as suggested here. It looks more like a private secret society, membership and all. What do they even do there? I mean, what kind of a "mailing list" is it, for what particular purpose? And anyway, who wants to use command line codes these days?

 


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Lantra - has anyone heard of them?







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