Since things seem to have gone a bit haywire with the old New Vines topic, I'm starting a new one. Here's the basic info on what the deal is with vines, for those just joining us:

With collaboration from various kind folks in the Dead.net vining community, our own erickat prepared this handy guide explaining how vining works hereabouts. Many thanks to all involved, and vine on! --

Dead.Net Vines - What It Is & How It Works

BACKGROUND: The concept of a "vine" is music sharing through conventional means (e.g. mailing cd's or dvd's) with the sign-up list being on-line. The basic idea is that someone starts (seeds) a vine, made up of one or multiple shows,and sends it via mail to the first person who signs up. That person makes a copy for themselves and sends the ORIGINAL media on to the next person on the list. As more people sign up, it continues to grow and grow - hence the name "vine".

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS: Make sure you can deal with the media format. Many vines are in audio CD format, so the minimum basic requirement is that you are knowledgeable and capable of copying audio CD's. Other vines are in DVD format, which means you at least need the capability of reading a DVD. Yet others are in SHN or FLAC format- if you sign up for one of these, you need to know how to deal with those formats. Help is readily available - just ask. Here are some helpful links:

Flac Format

SHN Format

DEFINITIONS:

VINE: An original physical package of music or video (cd's/dvd's) being passed from person to person

VINEYARD: A topic within Dead.net (where all the vine forums exist) SEEDER: A person who initiates a vine (creates the original "seed" media) PM: Short for "Private Message" - communication provided through dead.net SIGNUP LIST: The list of people who sign up to receive the package. Note - Be careful to get the most up to date version - you may have to go back a few pages from the end to find it.

POSTING: The act of leaving a message in a forum (very important) Post to sign-up Post when a vine arrives ; Post after a vine is sent.

New VINE Process (changes for 2009):

1. Check the Vinedex (updated from time to time, but may be out of date) to make sure it hasn't already been vined. Note - not everything is fair game for vining. Check the following before vining anything:

a) The Vinedex

b) Dicks Picks

c) Other Live Albums

d) Download Series

If it's not in those places, it is generally fair game. No copyrighted material, please Taper friendly bands only. (Marye may veto a particular vine for copyright or similar reasons.)

2. Post your vine info here (without signup list) - maybe include a note reminding people not to sign-up until it has its own topic.

3. Marye creates a forum topic with the vine info & a blank sign-up list and posts a link in the new vines area (e.g. VINE XXXX Lives HERE - with a link)

4. Then people go to that vine & start signing up NOTE - to make it easier on Marye, you could also PM her with the info. No early sign-ups - Any sign-ups before the vine has its own home will be ignored

SIGNING UP FOR A VINE:

1. Find a VINE you want to sign-up for.

2. Locate the most recent and most complete LIST (towards the end of the vine)

3. Copy the list & paste it into a new message, adding your username at the bottom.

4. Post the message & PM the person directly before you with your name & mailing address. Note the fact that you signed up for this vine (a spreadsheet is a good idea) (it can take a long time between when you sign up and when it arrives, so you really need to track what you're on the hook for & when to expect it- it's a responsibility)

5. Check your PM inbox and the vines you've signed up for periodically, so you know if someone is looking for you AND so you know when to expect each vine's arrival. Remember, if someone posts that they sent it to you & that's the last we know... it will look like you were the one that dropped the ball. If you don't receive a vine when you thought it was coming, then Post

6. When the vine arrives, post to dead.net (on the appropriate vine) that you received it.

7. Take care of the media - don't scratch 'em or crack 'em or put your fingerprints all over them - clean media means a longer lived vine

8. Make a copy for yourself & mail the ORIGINALS to the next person on the list.(If the person directly behind you on the list hasn't sent you their address, PM them. If no response after 3 or 4 days, PM the next in line - but post to the vine so people know)

9. Please make sure to properly package and address the media before mailing it. We have had some unfortunate losses, due to bad addresses, packages falling apart and just plain lost in the mail. Padded envelopes are cheap - and make sure they're securely taped & properly addressed.

10. AFTER you mail it, post on dead.net (on the appropriate vine) that you have sent it to the next person on the list. It is your responsibility to remember what you sign up for and be anticipating its arrival. Post messages to the vine upon receipt and again, after you have sent it on.

TROUBLESHOOTING:

1. If you did not receive a PM or email from the person who is next on the list, PM them. If no response, then PM the following person for an address and send it to them, if they respond. If they don't, PM the next person - but in any case, make a posting on Dead.Net (on the appropriate vine) about what you're doing. This is very important. It's the only way we know what's going on.

2. If you were expecting a vine and did not receive it - PM the person who was going to send it to you. In any event, post to Dead.Net (on the appropriate vine) with the circumstances, so everyone knows what is going on. It can't be overstated how important POSTING is - just knowing what is going on will prevent speculation, accusations & hard feelings.

CAVEAT EMPTOR As a friend of mine always says ... "don't sweat the small stuff" - "and by the way - it's all small stuff."

Life happens - car accidents, arrests, people get sick - people abscond - but you can't get overly upset about any of it, especially when it's all free. Sometimes vines disappear - and many times, they are revived or re-seeded by kind folk. This is the most unrestrictive & trusting vine community I know of - and the reason we emphasize posting is so we can keep the music flowing - not to accuse or condemn. If we know a vine is lost, then someone can re-seed and keep the music going. Nobody should get upset or make personal attacks over what happens here. In the past, we've had all sorts of reasons why people just disappear - and when they came back, we were overjoyed that they did. Sometimes, if a person is known to be unreliable, their name will be removed from the vine lists - but that's a rare occurrence.