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I have a subscriber to my list who has been complaining for a long time about
what she believes is a conspiracy theory relating to how her name is displayed
in e-mails she sends to my list.  I'm 100% certain that this is a software
configuration problem with the mail client rather than with LISTSERV or the
conspiracy theory she keeps bringing up, but I think I finally figured out what
was really going on, and I'm curious to know a little bit more information about
how LISTSERV handles the Firstname and Lastname parameters for subscribers.
For example, I could issue this command:

ADD listname [log in to unmask] Firstname Lastname PW=whatever

and LISTSERV will happily tell me that Firstname Lastname has been added to
the listname list with the e-mail address of [log in to unmask]

I am led to believe, having actually RTFM myself ;-) , that LISTSERV doesn't
actually use the first and last names for anything except that they come in
handy when doing list queries for names or addresses that one is trying to
track down, either to fulfill requests by list members or to do various list
e-mail address maintanance.

Now, today, I finally (I think) tracked down the nature of the current problem.
My subscriber does not want her real name displayed in messages that come
through the list, though a real name is required to be subscribed to the list
(not by LISTSERV but by me as list owner), but in a test e-mail she sent to me
just now, the From field indicates that her name, either her real name or the
one she wishes to be displayed for other list members to see, is not being
included by her e-mail software, and LISTSERV is thus adding her name based
upon how she is subscribed to the list.  Is this a correct assumption about
how LISTSERV handles the firstname and lastname parameters from the original
subscribe request?  Or should I be looking at something completely different?

Please CC a reply to me directly as I presently do not frequent this list.

Glenn Alperin
[log in to unmask]