The Internet gives you lots of opportunities to meet people or keep in touch with people you've met. You can do this through e-mail lists, forums, and newsgroups.
E-Mail Lists
An e-mail list consists of two or more people with a shared interest. Lists are set up so that when an individual on the list (a subscriber) sends an e-mail message to the list, it is distributed to all subscribers on the list. A subscriber can be an active participant on the list by sending new messages or replying to messages sent by other subscribers. A subscriber can also "lurk" by reading the messages without sending out any messages.
Lists can be public or private. A public list is open to anyone with an interest in the list subject. Private lists can be joined by meeting the criteria of the list. Lists also come in two types. The first is an announcement list in which you receive announcement messages but cannot post to the list. The second type is a discussion list in which everyone posts and participates.
Every list has an administrator or moderator. To subcribe to a list, you send a message to a special e-mail address from the e-mail address that you wish to receive e-mail. After you subscribe, the adminstrator will e-mail you details and instructions about the list. It is usually a good idea to save these instructions as the directions for unsubscribing are included.
List e-mail can be delivered one at a time or in digest form, in which a set number of individual e-mail messages is bundled into one single e-mail, then delivered to the subscriber. Volume on a list can range from one or two e-mail messages a day to over 100 messages a day. If you are unsure of the volume level of a particular list, subscribe in digest mode until you are sure you can handle the volume of individual e-mail. Digests are usually mailed after a set number of individual messages have been set or at a set time on a daily basis.
Square Dancing Lists
- Square-Dancing is a discussion list relating to square dancing in general and is owned by Ken & Helena Robinson. To subscribe, send e-mail to macjordomo@eclipse.net and put "subscribe square-dancing" (without the quotes) in the body of your message. You can also subscribe by filling out the subscription form. This list has digest mode available and relatively low volume (less than 10 messages a day).
