>But Pete Weiss' asking *should* it, is this really the best way to do
>something like this, is to the point.  The mere fact that a lot of
>people have finally gotten a little comfortable with list procedures
>(and lots of programs/services out there which will do it all for you
>for those who aren't comfortable with it) does not mean that a list,
>as I think most of us understand the term on this (ahem) list, is the
>best way to go for something  like this.....
 
Douglas and Pete make an important point. We've gotten to the point where
a
large percentage of the networked world has not only email but www access,
be it tty-based (lynx) or fully graphical. One-way dissemination in such
large volumes *may* be best served by a daily-updated web site, versus
daily email
to .14 million readers. Of course, it all depends on your criteria for
"best,"
i.e., ease for the disseminators, versus traffic across email nodes,
dispersion
of load over the net, type of requests, etc.
 
I have at times seen requests from people to establish mailing lists for
one-way dissemination of announcements, promos, etc., where the
requestors
did not know (a) what would be involved in maintaining such a list; (b)
whether
there were other existing lists that they might easily contribute to (w/o
spamming, of course); and (c) whether an alternative such as a web page
that is
announced now and then in appropriate places might prove both more
flexible
and less hassle to maintain.
 
Ingrid's comments are also to the point. Something that's doable, or can
be
with some extra tweaking, may not always be the appropriate tool for the
job.
Sorta like "web chats" and "Excel databases."
 
Regards,
 
Dave Phillips
(BIOSPH-L)