On Mon, 13 Nov 2006 19:14:56 -0330, Bill Schipper <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>Subscribers on one of the lists I manage are complaining that when
>they are asked to confirm their subscriptions they need a password,
Not so. There is clearly much mis-understanding about this.
>The server sends out an email message that includes a link which, when clicked on, sends the >confirm message back to listserv.
Only the randomly generated 'cookie' code is sent back via the WWW click but
otherwise essentially correct.
>That much I know from the ones who have copied
>the message they received. If that in turn requires them to log in
>with a password,
It does not. The subscription mechanism is specially designed so that a
password is NOT required, otherwise nobody would ever be able to subscribe to
any list. But this is why a confirmation is sent by email, to be sure the
address being subscribed is accurate and mailable, that is reaches the proper
person, and that that person indeed wants to subscribe to that list.
>then there is a problem; but it is entirely possible that the ones
>I've heard from anticipate needing a password.
Ah, truth outs. Such users should be reassured that in this case only it is
safe to click first and ask questions later.
[I am assuming a proper installation of LISTSERV. An incorrect installation
of the LISTSERV WWW Interface may result in a request for a user to enter a
*network* userID and password (not a LISTSERV password), which they will not
have since they are not users of your network. This is an installation
problem you should direct to [log in to unmask] (if you have paid support) or
to [log in to unmask] (Site Admins list).]
>But replying with OK as the body of the message has always been the
>simplest option, it seems to me.
Yes, a good option that almost always works (barring email system problems).
>and many of them seem to have forgotten their personal passwords for the list.
So if truly necessary, they simply register a new password, which replaces the
old. It is not necessary to know the old password to do this or even to have
an old password (forgotten or not).
>I thought individual passwords were now obsolete,
Not at all. They are required for all non-public WWW access for subscribers
(e.g. to change their subscription options and possibly, depending on list
configuration, to read the list message archives via WWW).
>and that only list owners required passwords in order to access protected areas and
>operations such as list headers.
List Owners need a password for these reasons as well as the above reasons.
>If that is the case, is there a
>simple way for me to quietly delete all individual passwords on the list?
No. That would require Server Administrator privileges and still could only
be done 1 user at a time. This is best done by each user for themselves.
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