Subscribing, Unsubscribing, and Setting Your List Options

How to subscribe to lists, sign off of lists, hold your mail while you're away, and control whether you receive individual messages or digests

To subscribe to the list, unsubscribe from it, or change the way you are subscribed, you communicate with the mailing list management program (list server). For most lists, you send an e-mail message to the list server containing one or more commands. You need to know the proper command, which depends on which list server manages the list you want to use. You also need to know the address to which you have to send the command. Read on for a list of the commands for subscribing to, unsubscribing from, holding your mail, and receiving mail in batches (digests) for lists managed by the four popular list servers: LISTSERV, ListProc, MajorDomo, and Lyris, as well as how to work with web-based lists.

Where to Send Commands

Address your e-mail message to an address consisting of the name of the list server (LISTSERV, ListProc, Majordomo, or Lyris) followed by an @ and the name of the computer on which the list server runs. For example, to subscribe to the lists managed by Majordomo running at gurus.com, you send commands to majordomo@gurus.com. This address is called the administrative address, the address for administrative commands.

Don't send commands to the list address! (The list address is the addrses where you send messages that you want all the subscribers to see. It's usually the list name followed by a @ and the host computer name.) Commands like "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" are not of interest to the subscribers of the list. Don't send them to the list address, where they may be distributed to all the subscribers of the list, and make you look like a clueless idiot. Instead, send them to the administrative address, where the list server program can carry out your commands.

How to Send Commands

Type the commands in the body (text) of a regular e-mail message, not in the subject line. Most list servers ignore the subject line of messages. If your e-mail program usually adds a signature to the ends of your messages, turn this feature off for this message. If you can't, type the command "end" on a line by itself after the command you are sending; this command tells the list server not to process the rest of the message, so it doesn't interpret your signature lines as commands. For example, if you want to subscribe to the harrypotter list at gurus.com, you'd send an e-mail message with this text:

subscribe harrypotter
end

Dealing with Manually-managed or Web-based Lists

For lists managed by a human being rather than a computer, just send a polite note to the list manager. If you don't hear anything for up to a week, don't nag -- the person might be on vacation or very busy. Sending repeated messages will just tick the manager off.

For lists that are managed by a Web-based site, like Topica or OneList, go to the Web site and follow the directions on the Web pages. Lyris lists also have a Web interface that you can use for subscribing and unsubscribing. ListProc lists may have a Web interface, depending on which version of ListProc is involved.

Subscribing to a List

To subscribe to a list, send the following command to the administrative address for the list, typing the command in the body of the message (replacing listname with the exact name of the list and Firstname Lastname with your own name):

List Server	Command
LISTSERV	subscribe listname Firstname Lastname
ListProc	subscribe listname Firstname Lastname
Majordomo	subscribe listname
Lyris	subscribe listname Firstname Lastname Or send a blank message to the address listname-join@hostname or listname-subscribe@hostname, where hostname is the name of the computer where Lyris manages the list.

Any list worth its salt will require you to confirm that you really want to be on the list. This step prevents malefactors from subscribing you to lists without your knowsledge or consent. (Occasionally, some big jerk subscribes an enemy to thousands of lists, filling his or her mail box with a flood of unwanted mail.)

When you get the confirmation message from the list server (these messages are usually confusing and scary-looking), follow the instructions in the message to confirm your subscription. For most list servers, you can just click Reply, then Send in your e-mail program, to send a reply that confirms that you want to subscribe.

Once you are subscribed, you receive a welcome message about the list. Save the welcome message! It contains instructions for unsubscribing, contacting the list manager, and changing your list configuration settings, as well as the rules and netiquette guidelines that apply to list subscribers.

List Etiquette

Once you have joined a list, it's best to lurk (read the messages but don't post anything) fora week or so, until you get the feel of the discussion.

When you do post, make sure that you don't break any of the long-standing rules of list etiquette. Read Brian Edmonds' Mailing List Etiquette FAQ at http://www.gweep.bc.ca/~edmonds/usenet/ml-etiquette.html before your send your first post!

Unsubscribing from a List

To sign off from a list, send the following command to the administrative address for the list, typing the command in the body of the message (replacing listname with the exact name of the list):

List Server	Command
LISTSERV	signoff listname
ListProc	signoff listname
Majordomo	unsubscribe listname
Lyris	unsubscribe listname Or send a blank message to the address listname-off@hostname or listname-unsubscribe@hostname, where hostname is the name of the computer where Lyris manages the list.

Holding Your Mail

If you can be away, or to busy to read the messages from a list, you can tell the list server to stop sending you messages until you signal it to begin again. You are still a subscriber to the list, so you can still post messages. Majordomo doesn't have this feature -- just unsubscribe and resubscribe.

To temporarily stop receiving messages from a list, send the following command to the administrative address for the list, typing the command in the body of the message (replacing listname with the exact name of the list):

List Server Command

LISTSERV set listname nomail

ListProc set listname mail postpone

Majordomo unsubscribe listname

Lyris set listname nomail

To start receiving messages again, send the following command to the administrative address for the list, typing the command in the body of the message (replacing listname with the exact name of the list):

List Server Command

LISTSERV set listname mail

ListProc set listname mail ack (to receive individual messages)
set listname mail digest (to receive MIME digests)
set listname mail digest-nomime (to receive non-MIME digests)

Majordomo subscribe listname

Lyris set listname mail

Receiving Individual Messages or Digests

For many lists, you can control whether you receive postings individually, or batched together in digests, which are usually sent at least daily. Majordomo considers the digest version of a list to be a different list, with a different name: to switch from receiving individual messages to digests (or vice versa), you sign off of one list and subscribe to the other.

To receive messages individually, send the following command to the administrative address for the list, typing the command in the body of the message (replacing listname with the exact name of the list):

List Server Command

LISTSERV set listname nodigest

ListProc set listname mail ack

Majordomo unsubscribe listname-digest
subscribe listname

Lyris set listname mail

To receive digests, send the following command to the administrative address for the list, typing the command in the body of the message (replacing listname with the exact name of the list):

List Server Command

LISTSERV set listname digest

ListProc set listname mail digest

If you want the digest not to use MIME formatting, send the command "set listname mail digest-nomime".

Majordomo unsubscribe listname
subscribe listname-digest

Lyris set listname digest

Copyright 1999-2000 Margaret Levine Young, one of the Internet Gurus.
To test your e-mail, write to test@gurus.com. For questions or comments about this site, write to listgurus@gurus.com.
http://lists.gurus.com/subbing.html page last changed on January 14, 2000.