Wendy Plotkin <[log in to unmask]> said:
 
> Only the editors using VM/CMS and Rice Mail have been successful at
> distributing messages with the "From" field showing the message
> contributor's name.  From the other systems, the moderator's name is
> shown in the "To" and "From" fields, and the editors have had to
> manually enter the contributor's name and e-mail address into the body
> of the message.
>
> Is anyone aware of any solutions to this problem?
 
I also had this problem when I first tried to moderate our lists
from a Vax VMS account.  I solved it by switching to our Unix
machine which uses the elm mail agent.
 
The capability you need is the capability to send the message out
again with the original header intact except for the addition of
a "Resent..." line with your address on it.  The elm command to
do this is called bounce.
 
Elm also has a forward command.  When you forward a message, it
is sent with an entirely new header, and the original header is
sent as part of the text of the message being forwarded.  If you
have only a forward command, your only alternative is to manually
enter the name and address.
 
I've just started using PMDF MAIL on our Vax VMS system instead
of VaxMail.  It also has a resend command.  I think I could now
use my Vax VMS account to moderate the lists, but I have been to
lazy to switch over.
 
I'm sure there are other mail agents that can "bounce" or
"resend" in addition to "forward."  The first step is to make
sure your moderators have not overlooked this capability in the
mail agent they are using.  The next step is to ask your system
manager if there are other mail agents available on your system.
I think there are four different ones on our Vax, but very few
people know that any of the alternatives to VaxMail are there.
Finally, you can ask your system manager to install a new mail
agent that can bounce/resend messages.
 
>   Also, what problems
> are likely to pop up from continuing the compromise of adding the
> contributors' names and addresses manually -- e.g. making the Digest
> less usable, searching logs, etc.
 
Yes, you see the problems.  It is very nice to have the sender's
name/email address in the From: field for the digests and
database searches.  But I think users can live with these
problems if that is the way it has to be.
 
                          Peace,  Dan
 
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