What is a discussion list?

A discussion list allows a group of people to discuss topics via email, with everyone able to send email to the list and have it distributed to everyone else on the list. A list may also be moderated, so only allowed posts are distributed, or only certain people are allowed to send to the list.

How would a discussion list benefit me?

List Serves are excellent methods of distributing information within groups. Businesses, organizations and associations use list serves to distribute all kinds of information. For a mere fraction of the cost of a mailing, a list serve can reach your audience and solicit an interactive response. Once set up, the list serve is extremely easy to administer; adding and deleting names is easy, requiring no assistance from the hosting organization. Then, whenever there is a comment or point for the discussion to be made, one email is created, and with the push of a button, it is sent to all the subscribers. The list serve can become a dynamic asset to almost any online venture. Many organizations utilize a discussion as an internal discussion to serve as a team/building/problem-solving tool. This allows all members of the list serve to comment.

What is an archive?

Archives offer the opportunity to maintain previous postings for both discussions and broadcast email. They are searchable by keyword, date, sender and/or thread. Many newcomers to a list may wish to review an archive to see if questions have previously been answered.