I'm struck by how profoundly destructive the spam phenomenon has been. Spam itself is an inconvenience, but the pathological and extreme responses to it -- from individuals and ISPs and others -- has been even worse. > Most likely the user's ISP is blocking mail with RFC821 MAIL > FROM:<> as a (misguided) anti spam measure. All OK/Confirm cookie > msgs are sent with RFC821 MAIL FROM:<> (as required by RFC821). It ranges from this and AOL's recent, um, to use the word loosely, strategies, down to the fact that, like lots of others, I've set my lists to private, set the size limits to 150 lines, and prohibited attachments (all three of which decisions have been the major labor-intensive characteristics of the lists ever since). I remember getting the first one -- the Green Card scam -- and having not the faintest idea that it was the crack in the ozone layer that would end with everybody having to wear body armor to go outside . . . I wasn't a listowner then, and had I known, maybe I never would have been. -- Russ __|~_ Russell A. Hunt __|~_)_ __)_|~_ Professor of English St. Thomas University )_ __)_|_)__ __) PHONE: (506) 452-0424 Fredericton, New Brunswick | )____) | FAX: (506) 450-9615 E3B 5G3 CANADA ___|____|____|____/ [log in to unmask] \ / ~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.StThomasU.ca/~hunt/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~