This document provides basic information about e-mail discussion groups.
Other documents in the e-mail discussion groups series build on this
information. E-mail discussion groups also are referred to as e-mail
lists, or listservs. All of these terms refer to group discussions
administered via e-mail. Definitions
Administrator: A person
assigned by the listserv host to handle the technical
issues and problems related to the listserv, such
as deleting and adding members and archiving conversations.
Host: The individual or agency who manages
and is responsible for the listserv.
E-mail Discussion Groups: A mailing list of e-mail addresses
of people interested in a certain subject. When
a message is posted, it is automatically
sent to the e-mail address of everyone who has
subscribed to that list.
Post: The act of sending a message to
the e-mail address of everyone subscribed.
Subscribe: The act of joining an e-mail discussion group.
Unsubscribe: The act of leaving an e-mail discussion group.
Purpose
E-mail discussion groups make it easier for people
to communicate. Participants can quickly disseminate
information as well as receive feedback and responses
in a short amount of time by posting messages
to an e-mail discussion group.
People with a common interest can use an e-mail discussion group
to share information and discuss issues. E-mail discussion groups
exist for multitudes of topics and several exist
specifically for people involved in national service.
(See the subtopic "The Resource Center E-mail Discussion Groups.")
How It Works
E-mail discussion groups work like a post office.
An individual can send a message to the listserv,
and the listserv will distribute the message to
the e-mail addresses of every subscriber.
A software program run on a computer automatically
handles all the administrative functions of the
e-mail discussion group and maintains the list of e-mail addresses.
The computer that handles the e-mail discussion group is called
the server.
The server accepts two types of e-mail messages:
- Individuals interested in subscribing or
unsubscribing to an e-mail discussion group send a simple e-mail
message to the e-mail discussion group's subscription address with the proper command. For example, to
subscribe to the National Senior Service Corps e-mail discussion group, NSSCTalk, an e-mail message is sent
to join-nssctalk@lists.etr.org.
- E-mail discussion group participants who want to post a
message to the e-mail discussion group sends an e-mail message
to the distribution address.
For example, to post a message to NSSCTalk,
an e-mail message is sent to nssctalk@lists.etr.org.
The server then adds and deletes subscribers
as well as sends messages posted to the e-mail discussion group to everyone on the mailing list, depending
on the type of e-mail message it receives.
E-mail Discussion Groups Pros
E-mail discussion groups allow people to:
- Network easily with others to share ideas,
gain information and ask for assistance
- Disseminate information to a large audience
quickly
- Stay attuned to issues, concerns, and changes
in their field
E-mail Dicsussion Groups Cons
Some drawbacks to e-mail discussion groups are:
- Active e-mail discussion groups can inundate a person's
inbox with e-mail every day, which can become
overwhelming.
- At times, postings stray from the e-mail discussion group's
purpose or mission and subscribers end up reading
irrelevant e-mail messages.
- As with all discussions among humans, disagreements
can occur among participants. Disparaging
remarks posted to an e-mail discussion group can be overheard
by thousands of others.
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