Re: the welcome message

[nsivin@xxxxxxxx (Nathan Sivin)]

Daniel Say:

The main way in which the list server is not like a 1984 PC is
that all its operations are automated. For unmoderated lists
like ours, it is highly automated, which makes it practical for
me to keep it going despite an insanely busy schedule of teaching
and research. When someone sends the magical subscribe message,
they are added to the list (which is an actual ASCII list of
addresses), the welcome message is sent to them without human
intervention, and I automatically receive a message mentioning
their name. In moderated lists, as far as I know, the moderator
must send a message authorizing each subscription. Every so
often the list server makes me do the same thing, for unknown
reasons. It may have to do with what online service the
subscriber is using.

That's why I don't know offhand who is subscribing, except for
those who contribute often enough for me to be aware of them as
regulars.
Every couple of weeks I send the magical "who" message for the
three lists I run, so that I have in my account a fairly current
list I can check when needed (mainly when messages get bounced
because someone closed an account without unsubscribing). I will
check the addresses you sent and let you know if anyone is not
properly subscribed. I also keep a copy of the welcome message
in my account so I can send it directly to people who didn't keep
a copy of the original one and so can't figure out how to order
files, unsubscribe, etc.

-- Nathan Sivin
History and Sociology of Science
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia PA 19104-3325
(nsivin@xxxxxxxx)