Dreamboat mailing list frequently asked questions

 

Q1:
A1:
24th February 2003 . Check back again soon, because they might have changed.
Q2:
A2:
Visit the Info Page and follow the directions there under the section 'Subscribing to Dreamboat'.
Q3:
A3:
Your confirmation is required to prevent others gratuitously subscribing you.
Q4:
A4:
Q5:
A5:
Try the Privacy page.
Q6:
A6:
Try the Posting Guidance page.
Q7:
A7:
Q8:
A8:
Q9:
A9:
Since late 1995.
Q10:
A10:
No. It is run by fans for the fans. If you need official information relating to Heart/Lovemongers current and former bandmembers, please consider visiting the Official Heart website or the Roger Fisher website.
Q11:
A11:
No. Only list members can post.
Q12:
A12:
Yes. Subscribe from the new address and then set the 'Disable mail delivery' option for that account. Your first posting from the new address may be 'held for approval' whilst Mailman sorts out who you are.
Q13:
A13:
No. If you wish to make others aware of images or video files, upload them to a website and then post a link to the list telling everyone where to find the files.
Q14:
A14:
No. Heart/Lovemongers fans are intelligent, thoughtful people who respect the views of others, and are more than capable of carrying on a discussion without upsetting anyone. We don't expect to have any problems with abuse ('flaming') or offensive language, which would be contrary to the spirit of the music.

If, however, someone fails to adhere to these principles, the list administrators have the power to revoke their posting rights.

Q15:
A15:
Yes, by software (just about every mailing list on the internet is). Mailman monitors postings for spam and these are normally deleted by the list administrators. Mailman also monitors bounced messages from subscribers: if messages start bouncing, Mailman will set the 'Disable mail delivery' option on that mailing list account. Anyone is free to read postings, including the administrators. Non-subscribers can read the mailing list archives.
Q16:
A16:
Mailman is the software used to run this mailing list.
Q17:
A17:
You can find a user guide here in Adobe Acrobat format. Alternatively, send an email to dreamboat-request@monger.net with the word 'help' in either the subject line, or body of the message. You will receive an email in return containing instructions.
Q18:
A18:
No. The list of subscribers is only available to the list administrators. See the Privacy page for further information.
Q19:
A19:
Over two hundred.
Q20:
A20:
Maybe :-)  Please also consider that anyone is free to read posts via the archives page.
Q21:
A21:
Visit the Info Page and follow the directions there under the section 'Dreamboat Subscribers'. Alternatively, contact a list administrator.
Q22:
A22:
Only list members can post. If you try to post after unsubscribing, the Mailman software will hold your post for approval by a list administrator.
Q23:
A23:
Send an email to dreamboat-request@monger.net with the word 'help' in either the subject line, or body of the message. You will receive an email in return containing instructions.
Q24:
A24:
The Mailman software will keep a posting held for approval in a number of circumstances, including :-
  1. you are not subscribed to the list;
  2. you have unsubscribed from the list;
  3. your message body is blank because the posting was a MIME posting (with no text);
  4. you have not changed the subject line when replying to a digest;
  5. your message is too large;
  6. your message has an excessive number of recipients (Mailman thinks it might be spam);
  7. the mailing list is an implicit destination for your posting (you included the mailing list address as a 'bcc').
Should the message be a genuine posting to the mailing list, a list administrator will approve it.
Q25:
A25:
Mailman uses certain keywords in headers to trap spam. Should the message be a genuine posting to the mailing list, a list administrator will approve it.

The list administrators also use this mechanism to trap certain discussion topics which have been terminated.

Q26:
A26:
MIME is a mechanism for sending information other than text via email. The Mailman software has been configured to strip postings of any MIME content, so it is wise to configure your email program to send plain text only.
Q27:
A27:
Mailman will remove any non-text content of a posting. A 'stripmime' message such as this is indicative of an email program configured to send something other than plain text.
Q28:
A28:
For some, with relative ease. For others, the process is a little more involved. Some guidance on configuring various email programs can be found here and here.
Q29:
A29:
Visit the Info Page and follow the directions there under the section 'Dreamboat Subscribers'. You will need your password.
Q30:
A30:
If you have forgotten/mislaid your password, the Mailman software can mail it to you. Visit the Info Page and follow the directions there under the section 'Dreamboat Subscribers'.

Additionally, you will receive a reminder each month of the mailing list(s) you are subscribed to, along with your password(s).

Q31:
A31:
Your password allows only you to change subscription options on your account.
Q32:
A32:
You can set the 'Disable mail delivery' option for your account and then reset the option when you wish to receive messages again. If you wish to see postings to the list for the time you are away, use the archives page.

Alternatively, don't go on vacation :-)

Q33:
A33:
No. You can read them from the archives page, if you wish.
Q34:
A34:
Here. You are reading them now. They were last updated 24th February 2003 , so check back again soon, because they might have changed.
Q35:
A35:
Look for a link on the Dreamboat home page.
Q36:
A36:
The mailing list moved to new software (Mailman) during mid-2000 and archives have been automatically generated since then. Archives prior to this time are available as and when the mailing list owner has time to process data to produce the archives.
Q37:
A37:
Yes. Set the 'Digest Mode' option for your account.
Q38:
A38:
Normally once per day. There is a limit on digest size: if this limit is reached, a new digest will be created and the existing one mailed out to subscribers.
Q39:
A39:
Digests are normally created once per day. There is a limit on digest size: if this limit is reached, a new digest will be created and the existing one mailed out to subscribers.
Q40:
A40:
These are quotations from previous postings... hopefully there to put a poster's contribution into context. Sometimes, wayward email programs will happily copy an entire previous message (or worse, an entire digest) if not kept in check. Please take time to edit your posting, so that only a necessary minimum of a previous message is included.
Q41:
A41:
Mailing list postings travel through monger.net and various other servers before arriving in your inbox. Each server has its own interpretation of characters that cannot be represented by the US-ASCII 7-bit character set. Consequently, any character you send which is not in this character set stands a chance of being converted to something else along its route.

Web based email programs have an advantage because they do cater for these characters. If you have a translation that doesn't fare well by normal email, please consider putting it onto a website and posting a link to the list which references the website.

Q42:
A42:
Q43:
A43:
Massachusetts
Q44:
A44:
California.
Q45:
A45:
Mailman monitors bounced messages from subscribers. If messages start bouncing, Mailman will set the 'Disable mail delivery' option on that account.
Q46:
A46:
Yes. Set the 'Receive posts you send to the list' option for your account.
Note: this option is inoperative if you choose to receive a mailing list digest.
Q47:
A47:
Yes. Set the 'Receive acknowledgement mail' option for your account.
Q48:
A48:
It is possible that nobody has posted to the list for a few days. Take a look at the list archives and see if there have been any recent postings. If there have been postings and you have not received them (allow time for digest collation, if you receive postings in that format), take a look at your subscription options to see if the 'Disable mail delivery' option is set. If it is set then your mailbox may be full.

If you know that your mailbox is not full and you are not receiving postings, contact a list administrator (dreamboat-admin@monger.net) and ask for help. Please don't post such requests to the mailing list.

Q49:
A49:
Yes. Please consider that if one of the recipients is also a list subscriber, then they will receive two copies of your posting. Please also note that the Mailman software will consider an excessive recipient list as spam and will hold it for approval.
Q50:
A50:
The answer is a qualified 'yes'. Ask that trivia answers be emailed privately to the originator. As a courtesy, the original poster is asked to post a summary of the responses (not in their entirety) back to the list, once a sufficient majority have had an opportunity to respond.

Please bear in mind...

  1. that some choose to receive a digest version of the list (that means they might read postings a day later than everyone else);
  2. that some choose not to read their email every day;
  3. that some are just getting to the start of their day as you are getting to the closing hours of yours.
Naturally, trivia questions are expected to fit within the mailing list Posting Guidance .
Q51:
A51:
Please do not post jokes to the list.
Q52:
A52:
Please do not post virus warnings to the list.
Q53:
A53:
Any email of the form "please pass this on to all of your friends" is unwelcome, unless it is specifically relevant to the posting guidelines. Blatant advertising outside of the guidelines is also unwelcome.
Q54:
A54:
No. What you can do is to upload your MPEG3 to a website and then tell everyone about it by posting a link to the list which references the website.
Q55:
A55:
Send a polite email to the list administrator (dreamboat-admin@monger.net) and ask him.
Q56:
A56:
Send a polite email to the list administrator (dreamboat-admin@monger.net).
Q57:
A57:
Send a polite email to Ken, the list owner (mitch@monger.net).
Q58:
A58:
Send another polite email to Ken (mitch@monger.net).
Comments on Dreamboat Administration ? Please email dreamboat-admin@monger.net.

These frequently asked questions (and answers) were last updated on 24th February 2003 .

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