[Mailman-Users] "-announce" list configuration

[Norbert Bollow]

Enriko Groen <enriko.groen at netivity.nl> wrote:
> > From: Gary Pullis [mailto:gpullis at omt.cc]
> > 
> > I am setting up a mailman server to serve "-announce" type 
> > mailing lists.
> > 
> > I was wondering if anyone had advice on configuring mailman 
> > for this duty?
> 
> Well... the advice is... Mailman isn't really good towards
> Announce/Newsletter type of lists at this moment.
> You would still have to discard all messages that people tend to send to the
> list.

Actually it's pretty easy to work around this with a little
script or two.  My standard setup for announcement mailing
lists is as follows:

One script receives mail at the "official" list address,
adds a fronter which explains that this message has been received
at that address, and forwards it to the list-owner.

Another script receives mail at a secret list submission
address, which contains the list's password.  This script
deletes the password from the message headers (it will normally
be in the To: header and sometimes also in some Received: headers)
and then passes the message on to Mailman.

For example, if the name of your list is 'testlist', with the
password 'ju23jk9', hosted on the virtual domain 'example.com',
then you can post an announcement to testlist by addressing it

To: testlist-ju23jk9 at example.com

and when the message goes out on the list, it will have this To:
header:

To: testlist at example.com

(and the same change happens in other headers which may
contain the address.)

Greetings, Norbert.

-- 
A member of FreeDevelopers and the DotGNU Steering Committee: dotgnu.org
Norbert Bollow, Weidlistr.18, CH-8624 Gruet   (near Zurich, Switzerland)
Tel +41 1 972 20 59       Fax +41 1 972 20 69      http://thinkcoach.com
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