Posting Messages to a List

The message posting interface allows you to compose and post messages to a list. You can send plain text, HTML, or multi-part messages. If the list allows attachments, you can add those as well. Fill out each of the fields and then click the "Send Message" button.

Name

Enter your name as you wish it to appear in the "From" field of the email. The email address that will be used in the "From" field is the one that is logged into LISTSERV and may not be changed.

To

If you are replying to an existing message from the archives, this option allows you to decide whether to reply to the list or just to the poster. If you are posting a new message, this options is not available.

Topic

Select the topic, if any, that you want to apply to your message. This option will only be shown if topics are enabled for the list.

Subject

Enter the subject line for the email message.

Content-Type

Use the pulldown menu to select the format of your email message. You may select plain text or HTML.

• Plain Text
  
  To create a plain text message, type directly or copy and paste your text into the text box. Click the "Send Message" button to send your message to the list.


• HTML
  
  To create an HTML message, type directly or copy and paste your HTML code into the text box. Click the "Send Message" button to send your message to the list.


• HTML Editor
  
  Clicking the "HTML Editor" button will open a visual HTML editor in place of the HTML source code text box. The HTML editor allows you to create and edit HTML messages without HTML coding. Note that if you have already entered HTML code into the text box before you launch the editor, the editor will parse and rewrite the existing HTML code, which may introduce changes to the code. To return to the HTML source code text box, click the "Source Code" button.


• Add Part
  
  Click the "Add Part" button to compose a multi-part message. Multi-part messages have a plain text part and an HTML part. To build a multi-part message, select the content type of the first part of your message. Then click the "Add Part" button to open a second text box.

Show Advanced

Use the "Show Advanced" button to display the following advanced options:

• Delivery
  
  Select whether you want the message to be delivered immediately or at a specific time and date. The input format of the date field is yyyy-mm-dd. The input format of the time field is hh:mm using the 24-hour clock. The time zone used is that of the web browser's computer.


• Charset
  
  Use this drop-down menu to select the character set of the email message. If your email message requires a charset that is different from the default charset for LISTSERV (UTF-8), then you can use the drop-down menu to select one before you type or paste in your content.


• Attachments
  
  Use the "Browse..." button to find your file on a local drive. Click the "Attach" button to attach your file to your outgoing message. Note that each list can have its own rules for accepting or rejecting messages with attachments. The "Browse..." and "Attach" buttons in this posting interface will function regardless of individual list settings. As a result, your message may be rejected or stripped of its attachment by the list. Be sure to check with the list owner if you have any questions.


• RSS Abstract
  
  Many lists allow subscribers to read postings through RSS feeds. LISTSERV automatically creates an RSS abstract from the text part of the message. By default, LISTSERV uses a maximum of 500 and a minimum of 250 words for an implicit RSS abstract. These default numbers can be changed either for the entire site or on a list-by-list basis. However, this posting interface also allows you to create explicit RSS abstracts, which can be HTML or text of any length. To provide an explicit RSS abstract, simply enter or copy and paste text in the "RSS Abstract" text box. To use your text or HTML part in its entirety for the RSS abstract, click the RSS icon next to either the Plain Text or HTML section; the content will be automatically copied into the abstract text area.


• Content Analysis
  
  If your LISTSERV license includes technical support, you can check your message and evaluate the likelihood that it will be deemed to be spam by recipient mail systems. LISTSERV will connect to a hosted service at L-Soft, which runs the email message through SpamAssassin. The results will be shown on the screen. If necessary, you can then make adjustments and run the test again.


• Send Test to Self
  
  When constructing an email message, you can send a test message to yourself to make sure that the results are satisfactory before sending it to your list. LISTSERV will send a copy of the message to the email address that you used to log in to the web interface. This kind of test delivery can be particularly useful when creating HTML newsletters or multi-part messages. Email clients vary in their degree of HTML support. Sending a test message allows you to double-check that the message is rendered as you intended. If necessary, you can make adjustments to your message before posting it to the list.

Save Draft

If you have started working on an email message and want to continue at a later time, you can click the "Save Draft" button to save a draft of the message. The subject line, the text part and the HTML part (if applicable) are all stored. Advanced options, such as attachments and RSS abstracts are, however, not stored with the draft. The drafts, which are identified by their subject lines and shown with a timestamp, will be listed in a table on screen. When you return to the message posting interface, you can just click on the subject line to retrieve the draft. To delete existing drafts, just click on the trash can icon next to the draft that you want to erase. Existing drafts are deleted automatically when you have posted them to the list.