This is a supplement to the Owner's Manual for mail-list.com. It contains advanced instructions for operating your discussion group mailing list.
Table of Contents:
Public Addresses:
Subscriber On
Subscriber Off
Subscriber Switch
List Owner Address
Posting Messages
Delivering Messages
Types of Delivery Methods
HTML Email
Replying to a List Message
Secret Addresses:
List Administration
Advanced Commands
Most discussion groups approve each subscriber to the list. As opposed to letting anybody join by themself. You choose one of the options at
http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Approve Each Subscriber: (for private lists)
If you choose to Approve Each Subscriber, then an Acknowledgement email is sent back to them, noting that their request has been forwarded to the list moderator(s). At the same time, the list moderators will receive a specially prepared email that looks like this.
Subject: Simon-sez: please open_sesame subscribe joe@domain.com
From: yourlist-request@mail-list.com
If you want to add this person to your list, then hit Reply to that Simon-sez email. When our computer receive the Reply, the address in the Subject line is added to your list and the Welcome message is sent to the new subscriber. If you do not want this person to join your list, ignore and/or delete the Simon-sez email.
Some lists will use the acknowledgment message to ask for more subscriber information or state the list rules. Some lists will require that the new subscriber reply acknowledging reading the list rules before the list moderator adds their email address to the list.
Another way of running your discussion group, is to allow anybody to join, without the list moderators being involved at all.
Choose this option
Allow Anyone to Join Without List Moderator Intervention
Now when an email is sent to this address by a potential subscriber:
A confirmation message with a random number in the Subject line is sent back. When the subscriber returns the confirmation message, their email address will be added to your list and they will receive the Welcome message.
This is called double opt-in, and it keeps pranksters from signing up other people to your list.
It is possible to combine the double opt-in procedures with the list owner approval method. That is, you can have all requests to join your list reply to the confirmation message first.
When they reply, the list moderators will then receive the Simon-Sez email. Only when the list moderator replies will the new subscriber be added to your list.
This option can be useful if your yourlist-on@mail-list.com
address gets a lot of spam. This feature is not an option on the web
page, so please email sales@mail-list.com if you
would like to enable this option.
You have the option of receiving a notification every time one of your subscribers removes themself from your list.
Find this option on the web page at http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Receive notification when a member unsubscribes:
No
Yes
When the radio button is toggled to Yes, then you will receive a copy of the Goodbye message. Make sure the word "subscraddr" is in your Goodbye Message, so that it will be replaced by their email address.
The next two options are rarely used, and are not available via the web page. So if either of these two options meets your needs, please email sales@mail-list.com.
You can have your list be double opt-out, which requires the subscriber to respond to the confirmation message when the request to be removed from your list. This option is useful if pranksters or viruses are sending in email causing your subscribers to be removed.
And you can also have each unsubscribe request be approved by the list moderator before your subscriber is removed from the list.
A list can have one or two parts, with each part being a delivery method. The delivery can either be each individual message as it's posted, or a digest of all messages posted during the day.
To change how many parts your list has, please visit
http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Number of Parts in List:
One Part
Two Parts
If your list has only One Part, then there is no need for the Switch command.
For Two Parts lists, the Switch comand - yourlist-switch@mail-list.com allows your subscriber to toggle back and forth between the individual messages and digests by themself.
If you want to receive email related to your list, but do not want to publish your personal email address, use the List Owner Address.
When an email is sent to this address, it will go to the listowner and (optionally) to each list moderator (if you have any):
yourlist-list-owner@mail-list.com
The optional field on the web page,
http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Send reports and messages to all moderators:
Yes
No, just send to your email address
allows you to control whether your additional list moderators will also receive these messages.
Your list can allow each message from a subscriber to be immediately posted, or the list moderators can approve each message before it is posted.
Find this option on the web page at http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Approve Each Message:
Allow All Messages to be Posted Approve Each Message Posted
If you choose Approve Each Message Posted, then every message will first be sent to the list moderators, who decide whether or not the message should go to everybody on the list. The message is delivered to you in a MIME format, and can be viewed by opening the email attachment inside.
You have 6 options on any message.
--To Approve the Message and post it to your list:
Hit Reply to the confirmation email we send you. The Reply email will look like:
To: yourlist@mail-list.com From: your_email@address.com Subject: Re: [yourlist] COMMAND APPROVE 123456789
The original message will be released when your Reply is processed.
--To Approve the Message and add your Comments to the bottom of the
message
Hit Reply to the confirmation email we send you, then replace
APPROVE with COMMENT in the Subject line. Type your comments into
the body of the email. The message will be sent to the list,
including any text you type. Your comments will be below the post,
and be clearly delineated from the poster's message. You cannot
alter any text of the original message.
--To Approve the Message and add an Introduction at the top of the
message
Hit Reply to the confirmation email we send you, then replace
APPROVE with INTRO in the Subject line. Type your introduction into
the body of the email. The message will be sent to the list,
including any text you type. Your introduction will be at the top
of the message, followed by two blank lines. You cannot alter any
text of the original message.
--To Reject a Message and send it back to the poster, with or without
Comments
If you want to reject a message, hit Reply and then replace the word
APPROVE with REJECT in the Subject: line. Any text you type into
the body of the return message will be sent back to the person.
Nobody on the list will see the message or your comments (if any).
--To Reject a Message and Unsubscribe the posting person
Hit Reply to the confirmation email we send you, then replace
APPROVE with UNSUB in the Subject line. The subscriber will be
removed from the list and their message is rejected. Any text you
type into the body of the return message will be sent back to the
person. Nobody on the list will see the message or your comments,
if any. (Of course, UNSUB only works if the message came from a
subscriber, not a non-subscriber.)
--To Discard a Message (throw it away entirely)
Hit Reply to the confirmation email we send you, then replace
APPROVE with DISCARD in the Subject line. The message will be
thrown away. It will not be posted to the list, and no part of the
message will be returned to the original poster.
In summary, if you choose the option for Approve Each Message to the List, you will have several choices of action regarding messages that try to post to your list. You will hit Reply, and then use these command words:
APPROVE - release message to list
COMMENT - release message to list, with your comments at the bottom
INTRO - release message to list, with your introduction at the top
REJECT - returns message to poster, with or without your comments
UNSUB - rejects message, unsubscribes poster, with or without your comments
DISCARD - throws message away
Your discussion group is actually two separate lists on our computer. The addresses are:
yourlist@mail-list.com - individual
yourlist-d@mail-list.com - fancy
In the individual mode, messages are delivered to subscribers as they are received by our computers.
The -d suffix stands for digest. The digest version contains the exact same messages, and typically is delivered once a day, in a single email. If there are no messages to the list, the digest is not sent.
We have two flavors of digests, plain and fancy.
The listowner decides what mode of digest is offered on their list. The fancy digest is the most popular choice, and therefore is the default mode.
A sample fancy digest may be obtained by sending a blank email to the auto-responder at:
Please Note: If the amount of messages sent out in one day exceeds the size threshold, the digest is sent early. This is because some email gateways and email readers have problems with large emails. Currently, the threshold is set at 32,768 bytes.
If any of your subscribers complain about the size of the digest, you can adjust the size of the digest by choosing one of these options at
http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Maximum size of digest:
Default Size
Smaller than the Default Size
Twice the Default Size
Ten Times the Default Size
The digest format has a couple of advantages. First, some subscribers like to receive their messages in one single email. In addition, many discussion groups prefer the daily deliveries, as it allows more people a chance to participate in each discussion.
HTML or Styled email allows the use of the HTML markup language to help format the email. This allows different style fonts, sizes, and colors to be displayed by modern email readers. Many older email readers are not able to display such email at all.
In addition to the formatting commands, HTML also allows scripts to be embedded in the body of the email. These scripts are then executed by your email reader when you read the email.
It is possible that the script in an email will delete all the files on your hard disk. Therefore, to prevent this type of destruction, mail-list.com does not deliver any HTML mail to your list
Instead mail-list.com will convert all HTML emails into plain text before sending them to your list. This will remove all HTML commands and scripts embedded in the email, thus insuring that no viruses are spread via HTML and the scripting languages. In addition, this allows even old fashioned email readers to read all the messages sent.
Should you really want HTML email messages to go to your list, please send a message to sales@mail-list.com explaining your needs.
mail-list.com has an option to insert a Reply-To header in the messages posted to your list, but does not recommend using it.
Reply-To: yourlist@mail-list.com
With most email readers, this will allow any reply to be directed back towards the list automatically.
The other alternative is to leave the Reply-To: header off, in which case any reply would be addressed to the sender, whose address is in the From: line.
Most experienced mailing list members do not like the Reply-To header pointing back to the list, because it's all too easy to send a private message to the list, sometimes causing embarrassment.
In addition, most mailing list members would prefer to see only high quality messages posted. By forcing the sender to take an extra moment to address the mail to the list, the quality level may go up.
The default setup of your mailing list is to leave the Reply-To: header off. If you want to change it, please visit
http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html
Reply to List Header Added:
Reply to Individual Who Sent Message
Reply to List
Secret addresses should only be known by the list owner and any additional moderators that they have designated. Security is difficult in email, and people could learn how to control your list with the secret addresses and corresponding passwords. So take appropriate precautions, and remember that you can change your password at any time by sending email or giving us a call at 1-713-527-9393.
yourlist-moderator@mail-list.com
The List Administration address allows you to manage the list of subscribers and request reports by sending in email messages to this address, with the proper commands placed in the body of the email.
When you send in your list administration commands, your email must be sent From one of these address(es):
List Administration requires a password placed in the Subject line, for your list it is:
open_sesame
In summary, your email headers should look like this:
To: yourlist-moderator@mail-list.com From: your_email@address.com Subject: open_sesame
You will place the commands in the body of the email. Put only one command per line.
You may put as many commands as you want into the body of the email. Each command will be executed separately.
The complete list of commands available is listed in a separate document called "Index of Discussion Group Commands".
Listed below are the Advanced commands. See the Owner's Manual for the Basic commands. Some commands require an email address to work upon. Some commands do not need an email address. The Joe and Sally addresses we use are examples only, and not part of the command.
--
To remove someone from your list without sending them a goodbye
message.
bootoff joe@domain.com
--
To change the email address of a subscriber.
changeaddress joe@old-address.com joe@new-address.com
It does not matter which order the two addresses are in. One address should currently be on your list, and the other one should not.
--
To receive your list back as a text attachment.
attachlist
--
To see the list of new subscribers.
showsub
New subscribers are those that have replied to your confirmation message since the last time your Summary Statistics Report was run. Which will be either daily or weekly, based on the setting of
Summary Statistics Report
at http://db.mail-list.com/list_search.html.
--
To see the list of people that have recently unsubscribed by their own
request.
showunsub
This report will only show the unsbscribe addresses from the past day or the past week, based on your settings of the Summary Statistics Report.
--
To see the list of email addresses removed from your list for
excessive bounces.
showbounce
--
To receive a report listing all email addresses with fewer than 2 SMTP
hosts to accept their email. These people may have more problems in
getting their email, since their ISP has only told the Internet about one
mail machine in their DNS setup. If that one machine is cut off from
the net for any length of time, their email will bounce. Proper
procedure is to have a backup mail host to accept mail when the main
host is down.
showbadmx
--
To see the number and email address that have not responded to the
request for confirmation. This report will be in date order, with the
oldest email address at the top. This report is only produced if your
list is using the double opt-in procedure.
showcookie
--
To receive the domain name category report of your list.
showdomain
This report shows you the most frequently occurring domain names on your list and the percentage of subscribers that are at each of the top domains.
--
To add an email address to your reject list. This will keep that
email address from ever getting on your list. Any attempts by this
email address to subscribe will be silently discarded by
mail-list.com.
addreject sue@domain.com
You can also add a domain name to your reject list, thereby blocking any email address at that domain name from getting on your list.
addreject xyz.com
--
To remove an email address from your reject list, thus allowing them
to join your list.
delreject sue@domain.com
Likewise, you can remove a domain name from your reject list.
delreject xyz.com
--
To see the email addresses and domain names on your reject list.
showreject
Addresses on your reject list are not allowed on your mailing list. Your reject list starts out empty.
--
To put your list into alphabetical order by domain name, and also
remove any duplicate and/or illegal email addresses.
sortlist
--
To add an email address to your vacation list.
addvacation joe@domain.com
The addvacation command removes the subscriber's email address from your distribution list, and puts it on the vacation list. This will stop new messages going to them until either the subscriber sends in a message to yourlist-vacation@mail-list.com , or you send in a delvacation command.
--
To remove an email address from your vacation list.
delvacation mike@domain.com
The delvacation command will remove the subscriber's email address from the vacation list, and move it to the distribution list. This will cause future messages to your list to be sent to them.
Remember that your subscribers can activate and deactivate with one quick email! Please see Subscriber Vacation in the Owner's Manual for complete details.
--
To see the list of people on vacation, and not currently receiving
messages posted to the list.
showvacation
--
To see the list of email addresses that can post to your list, but
will not receive a copy of any messages
showpostonly
--
To add an email address to your postonly list. This will allow
messages from this address to post to your list. However, unlike your
regular subscriber list, this email address will not receive a copy
of any messages sent to the list.
addpostonly jason@domain.com
--
To remove an email address from your postonly list.
delpostonly jason@domain.com
--
To see the list of email addresses that will receive each message, but
cannot post a message without the moderator's approval.
showreadonly
--
To add an email address to your readonly list. This will cause any message
posted to be sent to the list moderator for approval.
addreadonly jason@domain.com
--
To remove an email address from your readonly list. This will remove the
posting restriction for the subscriber, and they will be treated like
any other subscriber on your list.
delreadonly jason@domain.com
--
To verify that your message has been delivered to a particular
subscriber. This command will return the mail delivery logs for that
email address for the past few days.
querysent sue@domain.com
If a subscriber complains about not receiving your message, run a checklist command first to make sure they are on your list. If so, then run the querysent command to see the logs of our delivery attempts.
--
To look for clues on why a particular email address is bouncing. This
will send back a listing of any emails received for this address.
Sometimes these emails will be the bounce messages coming back from
their ISP.
querybounce miguel@domain.com
--
To see the DNS Mail Exchange (MX) information used to deliver email to
a given email address.
showdns marc@domain.com
This command will query the domain name system, to see how email is to be delivered for that domain name.
--
In summary, if you were doing several commands, your email might look
like:
From: your_email@address.com
To: yourlist-moderator@mail-list.com
Subject: open_sesame
subquiet sam@domain.com
bootoff joe@domain.com
changeaddress bill@old.com bill@new.com
showsub
showunsub
showbounce
showbadmx
showcookie
showdomain
For those commands that require an email address (like subscribe, unsubscribe, etc), you can list the command one time, followed by many addresses, one email address per line.
For example,
To: yourlist-moderator@mail-list.com
From: your_email@address.com
Subject: open_sesame
subscribe
charlie@domain.com
sue@domain.com
joe@domain.com
sam@domain.com
unsubscribe
ellen@domain.com
harry@domain.com
mike@domain.com
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