@DATABASE "CHAP5"
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@NODE MAIN "Chapter 5: MAILING LISTS AND BITNET"
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     @{" Usenet " link CHAP3/WHATUSENET} is not the only forum on the Net.  Scores of "mailing
lists"  represent another way to interact with other Net users. As if
@{" Usenet " link CHAP3/WHATUSENET} and mailing lists were not enough, there are Bitnet "discussion
groups" or "lists."

   @{" Mailing lists                   " link MAILLISTS             }
   @{" Bitnet                          " link BITNET                }


@EndNode
@Node MAILLISTS "Chapter 5: Mailing lists and Bitnet (1 of 2) --  MAILING LISTS"
@TOC BITNETML
@PREV MAIN
Mailing lists

Unlike Usenet messages,  which are stored in one central location on your
host system's computer, mailing-list messages are delivered right to your
@{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} box, unlike Usenet messages.
     You have to ask for permission to join a mailing list.  Unlike
Usenet, where your message is distributed to the world, on a mailing
list, you send your messages to a central moderator, who either re-mails
it to the other people on the list or uses it to compile a periodic
"digest" mailed to subscribers.
     Given the number of @{" newsgroups " link Chap3/NEWSGROUPS 0}, why would anybody bother with a
mailing list?
    Even on Usenet, there are some topics that just might not generate
enough interest for a newsgroup; for example, the Queen list, which is
all about the late Freddie Mercury's band.
    And because a moderator decides who can participate, a mailing list
can offer a degree of freedom to speak one's mind (or not worry about
net.weenies) that is not necessarily possible on Usenet.  Several groups
offer anonymous postings -- only the moderator knows the real names of
people who contribute. Examples include 12Step, where people enrolled in
such programs as Alcoholics Anonymous can discuss their experiences, and
sappho, a list limited to gay and bisexual women.
       You can find mailing addresses and descriptions of these lists in
the news.announce.newusers newsgroup with the subject of "Publicly
Accessible Mailing Lists."  Mailing lists now number in the hundreds, so
this posting is divided into three parts.
        If you find a list to which you want to subscribe, send an e-
mail message to

        list-request@address

where "list" is the name of the mailing list and "address" is the
moderator's @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} address, asking to be added to the list.  Include
your full e-mail address just in case something happens to your message's
header along the way, and ask, if you're accepted, for the address to
mail messages to the list.



@EndNode
@Node BITNET "Chapter 5: Mailing lists and Bitnet (2 of 2) --  BITNET"
@TOC BITNETML
@NEXT MAIN
BITNET

     Bitnet is an international network linking colleges and
universities, but it uses a different set of technical protocols for
distributing information than the Internet or Usenet.
     It offers hundreds of discussion groups, comparable in scope to
Usenet @{" newsgroups " link Chap3/NEWSGROUPS 0}.
     One of the major differences is the way messages are distributed.
Bitnet messages are sent to your mailbox, just as with a mailing list.
However, where mailing lists are often maintained by a person, all Bitnet
discussion groups are automated -- you subscribe to them through messages
to a "listserver" computer.  This is a kind of robot moderator that
controls distribution of messages on the list.  In many cases, it also
maintains indexes and archives of past postings in a given discussion
group, which can be handy if you want to get up to speed with a
discussion or just search for some information related to it.
     Many Bitnet discussion groups are now "translated" into Usenet form
and carried through Usenet in the bit.listserv hierarchy.  In general,
it's probably better to read messages through Usenet if you can.  It
saves some storage space on your host system's hard drives.
     If 50 people subscribe to the same Bitnet list, that means 50 copies
of each message get stored on the system; whereas if 50 people read a
Usenet message, that's still only one message that needs storage on the
system.  It can also save your sanity if the discussion group generates
large numbers of messages.  Think of opening your e-mailbox one day to
find 200 messages in it -- 199 of them from a discussion group and one of
them a "real" @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} message that's important to you.
     Subscribing and canceling subscriptions is done through an e- mail
message to the listserver computer.  For addressing, all listservers are
known as "listserv" (yep) at some Bitnet address. This means you will
have to add ".bitnet" to the end of the address, if it's in a form like
this: listserv@miamiu. For example, if you have an interest in
environmental issues, you might want to subscribe to the Econet
discussion group.  To subscribe, send an @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} message to

                listserv@miamiu.bitnet

Some Bitnet listservers are also connected to the Internet, so if you see
a listserver address ending in ".edu", you can @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} the listserver
without adding ".bitnet" to the end.
     Always leave the "subject:" line blank in a message to a listserver.
Inside the message, you tell the listserver what you want, with a series
of simple commands:

subscribe group Your Name    To subscribe to a list, where "group"
                             is the list name and "Your Name" is
                             your full name, for example:
                             subscribe econet Henry Fielding

unsubscribe group Your Name  To discontinue a group, for example:
                             unsubscribe econet Henry Fielding

list global                  This sends you a list of all available
                             Bitnet discussion groups.  But be careful
                             -- the list is VERY long!

get refcard                  Sends you a list of other commands you
                             can use with a listserver, such as
                             commands for retrieving past postings
                             from a discussion group.

     Each of these commands goes on a separate line in your message (and
you can use one or all of them).  If you want to get a list of all Bitnet
discussion groups, send @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} to

                listserv@bitnic.educom.edu

Leave the "subject:" line blank and use the list global command.
     When you subscribe to a Bitnet group, there are two important
differences from @{" Usenet " link CHAP3/WHATUSENET}.
     First, when you want to post a message for others to read in the
discussion group, you send a message to the group name at its Bitnet
address.  Using Econet as an example, you would mail the message to:

                econet@miamiu.bitnet

     Note that this is different from the listserv address you used to
subscribe to the group to begin with.  Use the listserv address ONLY to
subscribe to or unsubscribe from a discussion group.  If you use the
discussion-group address, your message will go out to every other
subscriber, many of whom will think unkind thoughts, which they may share
with you in an @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} message).
      The second difference relates to sending an e-mail message to the
author of a particular posting.  Usenet newsreaders such as rn and nn let
you do this with one key.  But if you hit your R key to respond to a
discussion-group message, your message will go to the listserver, and
from there to everybody else on the list!  This can prove embarrassing to
you and annoying to others. To make sure your message goes just to the
person who wrote the posting, take down his e-mail address from the
posting and then compose a brand-new message to him.  Remember, also,
that if you see an e-mail address like IZZY@INDYVMS, it's a Bitnet
address.
        Two Bitnet lists will prove helpful for delving further into the
network.  NEW-LIST tells you the names of new discussion groups. To
subscribe, send a message to listserv@ndsuvm1.bitnet:

                sub NEW-LIST Your Name

     INFONETS is the place to go when you have questions about Bitnet. It
is also  first rate for help on questions about all major computer
networks and how to reach them.  To subscribe, send @{" e-mail " link BigDummy.Guide/LINGO 96} to
info-nets- request@think.com:

                sub INFONETS Your Name

     Both of these lists are also available on Usenet, the former as
bit.listserv.new-list; the latter as bit.listserv.infonets (sometimes
bit.listserv.info-nets).

@EndNode
