|
|
|
|
Why on earth would I want to join AVIEN? Quite simply, because you want to talk to fellow specialists about viruses, worms, Trojan horses and other things that keep you busy.
If I register for the Early Warning System do I automatically get into AVIEN? No. You must fax your signed AVIEN application form to the same number as the EWS application. You can do both at the same time, if you like. If you meet the AVIEN membership requirements, you'll get an email welcoming you. How do you verify that AVIEN members actually meet the membership requirements? We ask for some corroborating information from each applicant. Most members to date knew at least one other already in the network, so that makes it easy. We also have some rather large individuals who visit each potential member and ask embarrassing questions. If the potential member is able to answer these questions correctly and perform a mathematical skill-testing question, the large individuals will then move on to the next victim, err..., candidate. What happens to a member who violates a list rule? They are warned and placed on suspension (no list access except for alert warnings) until the Disciplinary Committee decides on a course of action. To date, we have not had to apply this rule. Everyone has been very civil, mainly serious, and utterly professional. Except for the contingent who insist on calling everyone Bruce... If I'm "shy", or just plain paranoid in the beginning, will I be given some leeway in AVIEN messages or will I need to participate immediately? You talk as little or as much as you want. No pressure. If you seem to be dead, we might send around the paramedics to do CPR... <g> (This joke was supplied by an AVIEN member.) Is the tone of AVIEN messages deadly serious, or is there room for some interesting banter? We try to keep things professional. However, if you feel the need to make a pun or poke fun at an AV company, we look the other way... so we don't spill coffee on our keyboards. 92.45% of messages are serious. |