ATM RE: Beginner's View

[Gord Seifert <gseifert@uniserve.com>]

I agree that supplying pointers to sources like the archives is a very
good idea. I have seen Mel do this many times, without putting anyone
down. It does shortcut a lot of needless repetition. 
  I also agree with Jeff Baldwin's view that the rudeness seen in this
thread is not called for. In this case it was particularly unfortunate
since the person being lectured to apparently did not even see the
suggestions he was accused of ignoring. It is very easy to miss a
message when your inbasket has half a hundred messages a day flowing
through it. 
  As long as I'm here.....  If given a choice, I would rather see
hundreds of  lines regarding practical, useable, even 'newbie'
information than hundreds of lines regarding essoteric mathematical
derivations that I will never find any use for whatsoever. That capital
Z thingy (Simga I believe) causes my delete finger to twitch
convulsively, but very accurately, every time I see it. I switched
majors in college to avoid it and have celebrated fifty odd years on the
planet without ever finding a need for it. Sorry, I am sure a number of
you just love that higher math stuff and are totally incensed by what I
have just said. But is this list really the place for those discussions?
  Of course much of the body of information we all fall back on could
not have been created without the use of higher math. That is why I have
paid for all those books. To find out what others have found out who
used that Z thingy. Not to find out how to use it myself. My aim is
simply to learn to make a good mirror and telescope. Thanks to all for
the great info you share here. Sorry to anyone I may have upset. 

  Regards. 

        Gord Seifert - Chilliwack, BC
        gseifert@uniserve.com
        gseifert@ntonline.com