Mailing List FAQ

What's a mail list?
A mail list is a method of electronic communication that brings group discussions right to your "electronic front door" via your private email account. When you want to participate in the discussion, you send email containing your message to a central distribution "hub" which then forwards your message to all members in the discussion group. Likewise, as a member of the discussion group you will receive email messages from other group members anytime they send their thoughts and comments on the particular discussion taking place.

What's the advantage of a mail list?
The biggest advantage of a mail list is that you do not have to log into a "live" chat room or similar arena to participate in a discussion on a topic that interests you. You do not have to wait your turn to talk or incur large phone bill costs to "stay with" the discussion either. With a mail list, all discussion occurs through electronic mail which means you only have to log onto the internet long enough to download your daily email from your internet provider. You can then read all your new messages at your leisure, formulate your replies, and then log onto the internet again only long enough to send all your mail replies back to the mail list hub.

What's this mail list hub you keep talking about?
A mail list hub is a centralized computer (sometimes called a list server) with specialized software that accepts your email addressed to a particular discussion group, and redistributes that mail to all members within the group. Instead of sending your message to each individual in the discussion group (which would be time consuming and tiring), you simply send one message to the hub (central computer) and it takes care of distributing your message to all other members in your discussion group.

Mail List, Discussion Group, List server...I'm confused!
Don't be...all three terms basically mean the same thing and refer to an email based method of communication with other people who share a similar interest in discussion topics.

Who will see the messages I write?
If you address your electronic mail to the discussion group, then every member of the group will receive a copy of your message.

If you want to respond privately to a specific member of the mailing list, you can address your email to that person individually exactly as you would for any other email message that you normally send outside of the discussion group.

Additionally, some lists are "archived" which means all messages are preserved in a digested form so that late arrivals to the discussion group can read what earlier members have been talking about. This gives them a chance to catch up on the conversations that might be taking place. In some cases, individuals outside of the discussion group may have access to these archives.

Who knows if I'm on the list?
In all cases, if you send an email message to your discussion group then every group member will be able to identify your email address and have access to any personal information you include in your email headers. Other group members will be able to respond to your messages through the general group discussion, or send you a private personal response.

Additionally, when members sign up for a mailing list, their email address is archived and stored away by the list server. Obviously, the list server needs this information so it can send messages from other group members to you, through electronic mail.

Depending on the configuration of the particular discussion group, the email addresses of all discussion group members may be made publicly available. If this is a concern to you, check with the list manager of the particular discussion group you want to join and ask if the member list is made available to the public at large, other members only, or made completely unavailable.

Finally, if the member list is suppressed from everyone and you never a write a mail message to the group, you are essentially a 'read-only' member and the list-manager is the only person who knows you have joined the discussion group.

What is an "open" mail list?
An "open" mail list means that anyone may join the discussion group and no approval for membership is required. You generally send a one line mail message to the list server requesting to "subscribe" to a particular discussion group. The server automatically adds you to that mail list and sends you a confirmation mail in response. You can immediately join in on the discussion.

What is a "closed" mail list?
A "closed" mail list means that membership in the discussion group is conditional and you must get "approval" before you can join. In most cases, you "subscribe" to the mail list in the normal manner but instead of the mail hub automatically adding you to the mail list, your request is forwarded to a listmanager who decides if you should be a member of the list or not. Whether you are approved by the listmanager or not, there are no extra steps required of you. If approved, the listmanager will automatically add you to the list and inform you through email.

What about privacy issues?
Privacy is an important concern on the internet. However, the "Movie of the Week" and over-zealous news organizations have in many cases sensationalized internet security and privacy concerns. In reality, it is nearly impossible to get information about you that is not either publicly available or that you have not given out yourself. If you dial onto the internet through a major internet provider and are issued a dynamic IP address when you log on, you're effectively an anonymous user.

If you are extremely sensitive about your privacy, protect yourself by using common sense on the internet. Never give out your home address or phone number. Never, EVER, provide your social security number or credit card number over the internet EVEN if the web page claims that it is a secure site. And simply do not provide information about yourself to people you don't know.