[prog] Mailing list software - how does the emailing work? (mass bcc?)

[Dan]

> I had a very brief look, and will try to look into it more in the next few days.
> Are aliases very flexible?

It depends on how you use them. There are two ways that might be of use
to you.

First, alias files can be used for mass-mailing: you can make the
address reptiles at example.com an alias that forwards mail to lots of
people (presumably people interested in reptiles). This requires
rewriting the alias file every time the subscription list changes. More
importantly, it allows anyone to bypass any protections you may have by
sending e-mail directly to that address. For this reason, it's probably
better to do the BCC yourself, rather than using alias files for this.

The second use of alias files is to execute a program, which reads the
mail on standard input. This is how the mailing list software reads your
mail (whether it's posts to the list or [un]subscription requests). This
functionality is described here:
http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/usail/mail/aliasing/#redirecting-to-programs

> We will not have root access to the box, only user access.

You may need root access to make alias files, or at least to set them up
at the beginning.

> So for example you email the various members the weekly newsletter or
> something, general discussion would not be allowed (we're both
> thinking of very different lists).

In that case, it may be possible to avoid aliases and do the interaction
via the web. Aliases are necessary if you want to receive mail, but
optional if you want to send it.

(By the way, broadcast/update/newsletter mailing lists are part of the
functionality provided by standard mailing list software.)

Here is my favorite quick-start tutorial on SMTP:
  http://cr.yp.to/smtp/mail.html
To try it out, telnet to your mail machine, port 25.

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