Mailing List
A mailing list is a list of email or postal addresses and is often used for sending press releases or news. It provides a group, in which all email addresses are publicly viewable, with the ability to exchange news and information in letter form. All addresses are maintained in a single place in the mailing list administration and do not need to be re-entered each time news is sent. There are moderated and unmoderated mailing list options. In case of a moderated list, a moderator decides which messages are sent to the users. The management of the mailing list, such as subscribing and unsubscribing list users and message distribution, is handled by a list server.
Creating a mailing list
In most cases, it is not necessary to set up a list server to create a mailing list. If an institution such as a university, school or company does not have a list server, it is possible to use free mailing list services on the Internet such as KBX, Domeus, Yahoo! Groups or Google Groups. The creation and administration of the mailing list can then be controlled via the browser. No further software is necessary.
Subscribing and unsubscribing to the mailing list
In order for a user to receive messages from a particular group or to send messages to members, it is necessary to subscribe to a mailing list. There are different registration procedures, from an informal request to a fully automated procedure. The administrator of the mailing list regulates by a special server configuration thereby whether the user has the possibility to subscribe to the mailing list or not. In addition to subscribing, it is also possible to unsubscribe from a list. There are different procedures for this as well. In most cases, when subscribing, the user receives a message informing him/her how to unsubscribe from the mailing list. The subscriber must send a specific unsubscribe command to a specific mail address. In some cases, there is also an option to unsubscribe via a web interface.
Protective measures
Sometimes misuse of mailing lists also occurs. In this case, third parties try to add the recipients’ mail addresses to other lists without their consent, so that they receive unwanted messages. To prevent this abuse, the administrator of the list should prescribe the so-called Confirm-Opt-In procedure during registration. With this procedure, the recipient receives one message per list. An entry in the distribution list of the list takes place only if this email was replied. If an opt-in procedure has been waived, the recipient must unsubscribe from the lists himself or instruct the administrator to unsubscribe.
Deleting the mailing list
Deleting the mailing list is only possible by the contact person. After deleting the list, sending messages and accessing the list archive is no longer possible.
