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Hi Andrea... A couple of comments,... There are several mailing list managers and/or possible configurations that would allow a list to accept subscribers on the basis of a single email message... as an example, our current version of Majordomo does not require a confirmation message. In some instances the mailing list owner approves each subscription and in other instances it is likely possible to have the list-owner intervene on certain types of subscriptions (list-owner decides). Your mailing list administrator should be able to sort this out for you, although if they operate a large site and many lists you will have to be clear about your need and possibly persistant in your request. If you are unable to find a suitable solution on your current host let me know... With respect to the low level of technology in developing countries. The CSuite Software project has for several years been involved with developing software/internet tools suitable for low technologies (low bandwidth, old computer technologies). This means that there _are_ browsers that do not require tons of memory... While working on these solutions, attention was paid to individuals with handicaps including blind users. And finally CSuite was developed using internationalization features so that it could be coverted to other languages including a lot of work already done on the French version. It's interesting how close the CSuite project and yours actually are... ;-) "Because CSuite's services are accessible to user platforms ranging from the least expensive text-based machine (well suited to the visually impaired) to the most powerful multimedia desktops, it can attract a wide range of interest and support. CSuite support of both French and English interfaces and full multilingual capability broadens its appeal even further." See: http://csuite.ns.ca/Html/purpose.html David Potter Mailing List Administration Chebucto Community Net 'Powered by Csuite' > Andrea's msg... From: List-Managers-Digest <list-managers-digest-owner@GreatCircle.COM> Reply to: List-Managers@GreatCircle.COM To: list-managers-digest@GreatCircle.COM Subject: List-Managers-Digest V8 #207 Date: Sun, 21 Nov 1999 13:51:24 -0400 (EDT) From: "A. Shettle" <RED_TREK@DRYCAS.CLUB.CC.CMU.EDU> Subject: Accommodating low-end technology and social conditions Istvan Berkeley -- I got the impression from your recent post on Listmanagers that you run a mailing list with many subscribers in developing nations. I am one of the listowners for a mailing list, called deafintl, that not only has subscribers in developing nations but is specifically targeted at them -- the purpose of my list is to give people a place to share information, ideas, news etc. related to the empowerment, education, and social advancement of deaf and hard of hearing people in developing nations. Although many (I think most) of my subscribers seem to be in the United States or other developed nations, I consider those in developed nations (esp. deaf leaders) to be the target of deafintl and I'm always looking for anything more I can do to make it a bit easier for them to join the list and participate in it. I see deafintl as not simply a discussion list but as a tool of empowerment for deaf leaders in developing nations. I have posted some of these general questions on this list before, but I thought I'd post again in any case, partly because I figure there must be a new batch of listmembers who might have ideas that didn't come up before and partly because now that I know a bit more about the various challenges some of my subscribers face than when I started I can ask more intelligent questions. What challenges have you faced with your list in terms of making it more accessible to those using low-end technology, etc.? How have you been able to resolve these issues (or have you)? Do you think there is, realistically, anything a listowner can do about barriers to active participation that go beyond the merely technological? Some examples from my own list: 1) In my list, people who want to join must follow up subscription request with a confirmation (i.e., must send two e-mail messages). For various reasons, many of my subscribers in developing nations are not able to log in very often and can't stay logged in for long when they do. That means a simple subscription that should take minutes from beginning to end can take weeks or even months, assuming no listowner interference, if they aren't able to hang around long enough to wait for the computer to send them a request that they confirm their wish to join the list. I know it can be a good idea to have this two-step subscription process to prevent mail bombing and so forth, but I worry that it may be inadvertently keeping out some of the people I want most on my list. Any suggestions how to make the process friendlier? 2) In many (the majority?) of countries around the world, including developing nations, they have to pay for each and every local phone call; in some cases, they have to pay for each minute they're on the phone. That means hooking up to the internet can get expensive. I know one way to deal with this is for the end users to download their e-mail so they can read it off line, then write their e-mail the same way and upload it when they're ready to send it. However, I keep meeting people in/from developing nations who have no clue how to upload or download and who didn't even realize this was a possibility. This is frustrating to me because that means deafintl is probably losing a lot of valuable contributions from listmembers who think it would be too expensive for them to post actively to deafintl. I know there are many software programs, etc. etc. etc., for uploading/downloading. Can anyone think of a relatively simple way for me to help my listmembers learn about uploading/downloading etc.? (Keep in mind that not all of them have web access for the simple reason that the computers they're using simply can't handle the memory load.) Is there some kind of universal uploading/downloading help file that I could send to listmembers on request that could help them figure out what software they have in their computers (I think some of them don't even know) and what they need to do to use this software, or that can explain how to get ftp software if they find they don't have it already? 3) Another challenge that listmembers in developing nations face is, of course, the general poverty and poor economic circumstances. Salaries are so low that a number of my listmembers have to take two jobs just to support themselves (one listmember tells me that the salary from one of her jobs goes almost entirely to her rent; she needs the other job just so she can eat and clothe herself). Unfortunately, this means that some of the listmembers who have the most hands-on experience and knowledge to share with the list are too busy to post anything! I suppose there isn't really anything I can do about this as a listowner, but I thought I'd take a shot in the dark and ask if anyone has any brilliant notions I hadn't thought of. Andrea Shettle red_trek@drycas.club.cc.cmu.edu (a co-listowner for deafintl)
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