I am sure many of you are familiar with the clickable material inserted
at the end of list postings on LISTSERV lists using the latest (if not,
just see below, maybe).

We have here a blurb which reads:
 [ Note: This message contains email list management information. ]
                               ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The indicated part is clickable.  Click on it.  Both number 1 and 2
say to click HERE for information.  No. 1 is a web link (got gripes about
that, but one topic per gripe posting).  No. 2 reads exactly the same
as No. 1, but what it does is send a command to the LISTSERV address of
the list's host site.  For LSTOWN-L, that should be
INFO LSTOWN-L

But that is not what is sent, which is   INFOLSTOWN-L
That is not a command, so you get back an error message.  There should be
a space there, INFO LSTOWN-L   not  INFOLSTOWN-L .

It works exactly the same way on my lists hosted at buffalo.edu, and all
LISTSERV lists to which I subscribe (at, oh, loc.gov, oclc.inc, Kent State
in Ohio, etc., etc.).

Why does that #2 *ALWAYS* do the email as  INFOlistname (which ain't a
command), instead of INFO listname (which is a command)?

And why has no one griped about it before? (Maybe you never checked to
see what those clickable would do?  Maybe you did, but thought it was a
bug in your system?  Maybe you did, on lots of lists, and it is always the
same, but, well, always something else to do, or surely someone who knows
more will say something (my, blush, case)?

And don't tell me the sites are messed up, because LSTOWN-L does it, and
it is hosted at LSOFT.  If the other sites are messed up, LSOFT is messed
up the same way.  Or, there is a bug in the "email list management
information" programming.  At least, so it seems to me.

Douglas Winship  [log in to unmask]