[MCN-L] MCN-L Content Filtering

[Richard Urban]

Hi MCN-Lers,

When we setup the new MCN-L mailman listserv several years ago we  
decided to start out with a pretty strict set of content filtering  
rules.    We did this out of a concern that MCN-L could become a  
vector for attachment-bourne viruses.  For the most part, this caution  
seems to have worked out.

However, those rules are looking more and more anachronistic in an age  
of gmail and other web-based e-mail systems.   As a first step towards  
revisiting these rules, I've lifted the ban on many common forms of  
attachments, such as gifs, jpgs, pdfs, and rtf.    For the moment most  
MS attachments (Word, Excel, PPT, etc.) are still being held for  
moderation.

I would appreciate feedback from the list about:

1)   Should MCN-L allot HTML formatted messages (currently only plain  
text messages are allowed by default)
2)   What other file types should be allowed to go to the list without  
moderation?

Of course there is also the bigger question of what is the future of  
MCN-L.  There are a number of long-standing needs that the current  
Mailman software and the environment that it runs in haven't been able  
to support (such as a searchable archive).   I would also welcome any  
feedback that I can pass along to the MCN Electronic Services  
Committee about current and future needs of the MCN-L community.

Cheers,
Richard Urban
MCN-L Listmanager
rjurban at illinois.edu