Dear Marcia and LSTOWN-L Folks, >I've started my first mailing list and Gate Open From the top of my head, with little study or thought, I've generated a quick list of steps in a rough order for your edification. I'm sure Pete or Winship or Nathan could do better, if they pleased to and had the time: General Steps to Set Up A New LISTSERV 1. Get the list created by the site manager. Have the site manager also create some standard templates, and enable your location for list files (Welcome and Farewell, for instance). Pick the best available name for your new group. 2. Add or subscribe yourself and all other list owners. Create a password for your list management account(s). Put your own account on "review" to prevent accidents. Become familiar with the LISTSERV Web interface. 3. Test the list with multiple kinds of e-mail addresses that you create from hotmail, and other free services, and your own uh.edu address(es). Delete the tests from the archives. 4. Write your welcome message. Put it. 5. Write your faretheewell message. Put it. 6. Write your "I'm just the list owner and it's not my job to answer on-topic questions in off-list e-mail" message. 7. Write a message to help the &%$#@! to unsubscribe. Write another to help anyone to subscribe - include both e-mail and Web methods. 8. Write your other administrative messages as they are required. Save them with names that will help you find them in the future. If it happens once, it will probably happen again. 9. Create a Web "home page" for your new group - create a place for good on-topic links to be shared (to get new comers up to speed). Include any "rules" or etiquette you intend to enforce. 10. Customize your LISTSERV Web interface to look the way you want it to be seen. Make sure you know what each option does, and how it can be used. 11. Announce your new group to NewList and register with other list-availability-type sites (PAML, TILE.NET, LISZT, etc.). Make sure you show up in Catalyst, in time. 12. Join and read the list-owner mailing lists: a. Anything local to your site b. LSTOWN-L c. LSTSRV-L d. List-Managers e. LIST-moderators, etc. 13. Learn to read e-mail headers and LISTSERV error messages. Respond appropriately. General Advice Don't say anything you would not want to see in a newspaper headline tomorrow. Don't make a rule you won't enforce fiercely against your own mother. Be fair. Live by what you wrote, not by what you meant. Keep your list-manager informed if there are barbarians at the gate. Otherwise be nice. Be as kind as possible to the newbies - they are our future, whether we like them or not. </gate> I hope this helps (IHTH). Pax, Ballew Kinnaman <[log in to unmask]> 206/463-2322 Discussion list owner: Allergy ---> http://www.Immune.Com/allergy/index.html Arthritis ---> http://www.Emissary.Net/arthritis/index.html Latex Allergy ---> http://www.Immune.Com/rubber/index.html Thyroid ---> http://www.Emissary.Net/thyroid/index.html