Conference iosg::all-in-1_v30

    Rick
    
    This has been discussed oh approximately 7 billion times (:==:)
    
    SUBSCRIBERS: is sent to local users only it doesn't get autoforwarded
    
    Regards,
    
    Andrew.D.Wicks

The reason it's like that is obvious if you create a mail message addressed
to SUBSCRIBERS:... the free-form name for SUBSCRIBERS: is "All ALL-IN-1 users on
this node".  Having set an autoforward, you are by definition no longer a local
ALL-IN-1 user.  As the SUBSCRIBERS: distribution list is meant to be used for
messages of relevance to local ALL-IN-1 users, ALL-IN-1 helpfully doesn't send
it to you, as it will be of no interest.

If you do need to see the messages being sent to SUBSCRIBERS:, then the system
manager should set up another distribution list for those type of messages.

Scott

How about giving the user the option of forwarding local mail?  And just to 
make the "purists" happy, I would vote for "N" as the default.



Nevermind...who needs a choice anyway.  After all, who knows better what 
the market needs than us!

>> who needs a choice anyway

Distribution lists, groups, etc, etc, give the user plenty of choice.

SUBSCRIBERS: is a very old mechanism designed for a very specific purpose.  If
you don't like the way it works, there is plenty of choice for how to do it
differently...

Scott

>>> Distribution lists, groups, etc, etc, give the user plenty of choice.

>>> SUBSCRIBERS: is a very old mechanism designed for a very specific 
>>> purpose.  If you don't like the way it works, there is plenty of choice for 
>>> how to do it differently...

All of these choices are available to the SENDER.  I am merely a humble 
TO: or CC:.  I will just have to be happy with the knowledge that when I 
make the transition from reader to author, a whole world of choice will 
blossom before my very eyes.  Ooh, the overwhelming feelings of 
anticipation are making me light-headed...

Thank you for putting things in perspective for me,

Rick C	- who's a little less than ecstatic about the stock price, the 
	health of the company, the decline in revenues and the lack of
	"customer-orientedness" with respect to "what can we do
	to make our product better for you?"...basically, I'm in a bad
	mood!

Hi Rick,

Yes, I know what you mean about getting depressed, but don't put it down to 
'lack of customer awareness'. The ALL-IN-1 group has never been short of 
things which would be worth doing to improve the product! Why not submit it as 
a suggestion (wishlist item)? At least then it'll be recorded that at least 
one customer wants it - and that's how they decide what gets into the next 
release.

And as a humble reader, you still have choices. How about a nightly batch job 
which runs up ALL-IN-1 to read any unread mail and forward it to wherever you 
want it? 

But, be honest now, were any of those messages worth reading?!!

grahame

>>> But, be honest now, were any of those messages worth reading?!!

You mean, other than the one about the job posting that I saw a month 
late...then , I guess not.

>> All of these choices are available to the SENDER

Precisely - by choosing "SUBSCRIBERS:" the sender is choosing to send the mail
only to those people who read ALL-IN-1 mail on the local node.  It's exactly
the same as the sender choosing a distribution list on which you don't appear -
that's their choice.  You wouldn't want an option that allowed you to receive
mail for which you weren't on the distribution list, would you?

However it sounds in this case as though you should have received the mail
(about the job posting) in which case the sender needs training to educate
them that SUBSCRIBERS: is not a suitable distribution list for such mailings -
SUBSCRIBERS: is meant for system-related things that only the local audience
need to know about.  The job was probably only of relevance to a few people on
SUBSCRIBERS:, and probably of great relevance to a lot of others who aren't,
including those on remote nodes, etc.  Using SUBSCRIBERS: for such a mailing is
as non-sensical as me sending technical ALL-IN-1 questions to my S&SC
distribution list!

Just philosophising...
Scott

If I am using ALL-IN-1, I can manually forward ANY and/or ALL of my 
messages.  It doesn't matter how it was sent to me.

Now, if I decide that I want to be more productive, wouldn't it be great if the 
system could automatically forward those messages, MY messages, to 
where I am currently manually forwarding them?  Gee...what would be a 
good name for a feature that would allow me to automatically forward all of 
my mail messages...the ones that end up in my INBOX, the ones that I 
manually forward today...hmm...I know, how about AUTOFORWARD!

Hey, wait a minute, we already have that feature.  However, it only forwards 
MOST of MY mail messages (the ones that end up in my INBOX).  Now I 
suppose I could call that a problem or a feature...it just depends whether I 
am an inconvenienced user or a religious ALL-IN-1 zealot.

You decide ;-)

>> what would be a good name for a feature that would allow me to automatically
>> forward all of my mail messages...the ones that end up in my INBOX, the ones
>> that I manually forward today...hmm...I know, how about AUTOFORWARD!

>> Hey, wait a minute, we already have that feature.

Seeing as you're nit-picking now, I should point out that ALL-IN-1 does not
have auto-forwarding functionality.  The feature that ALL-IN-1 calls
auto-forwarding is actually message redirection (I assume I don't need to
explain the difference?).  There is no precedent or rationale to say that
message redirection should work the same way as manual message forwarding.

I agree with you entirely that if ALL-IN-1 were to offer proper auto-forwarding
functionality, then it should work thus: the message would be delivered to your
ALL-IN-1 account, *and* a copy would be forwarded to your auto-forwarding
address.  Note the difference between this and message redirection.

The reason ALL-IN-1 uses the wrong name for its functionality is because it
was implemented many years ago before these terms were well-defined or
understood.  The reason it doesn't get changed involves complicated words
like "management decisions", "strategy" and "funding" (or lack of).

>> it only forwards MOST of MY mail messages

The ALL-IN-1 AF functionality will redirect (note NOT "forward") all of "YOUR"
mail messages.  It's just that as SUBSCRIBERS: is a dynamic distribution list,
you cease to be on it when you set up an AF address, for reasons I've explained
in previous notes, and which are documented.  Hence a message addressed to
SUBSCRIBERS: is no longer one of "YOUR" messages.

Be careful about throwing out potentially abusive terms like "religious ALL-IN-1
zealot".  People answer notes in this conference voluntarily in addition to
their full-time jobs.  The answers attempt to be helpful explanations of why
things are the way they are, or suggestions for how to fix things (eg Martin's
suggestion in .10 that you use APA).  No-one's trying to force bigoted opinions
down your throat, and you shouldn't take replies that way... don't shoot the
messenger.

Scott