ListServ FAQ's 

A. ListServ knows that your mail reader is MIME compliant. The little envelope icon digests make it much easier to follow a thread because the subject of each post is right beneath the envelope. You can read the letters about a certain subject in the order in which they were posted instead of having to scroll through the digest. Or you can skip over a thread if it is of no interest.

If you want to receive the regular digest with the messages "in a row", send an email to ListServ@ParrotTalk.com

Type the following command on the first line of the email message form:

SET listname NOMIME

Please substitute the name of the list (such as Greys, Cockatoos, Asians, macaws) in place of the word "listname" in the above command.

Q. I'm getting too much mail from the list. Why can't I just get the mail I want to read?

A. You can!

When each digest goes out, you can receive an email from ListServ with the subject of each post, the length of each post, and the name of the author of each piece of mail sent to the list.

In order to select the posts that you wish to read, type the following command on the first line of an email message form and send it to ListServ@ParrotTalk.com

SET listname INDEX

Please substitute the name of the list (such as Capes, Amazons, Hawkheads, AskTracy) in place of the word "listname" in the above command.

To receive the posts you want to read, all you have to do is click on "reply", highlight and DELETE the posts you do NOT wish to read, and click on "send". ListServ will send you only the posts that you select. If you decide you wish to receive all of the posts, just click on "reply" and then on "send" and ListServ will send you all of the posts. ListServ will send you a letter explaining this again - just follow the directions.

Q. ListServ seems so complicated. How does it make the changes in my mail?

A. ListServ is a very powerful computer program. The first word in the command tells Listserv that you want to do something that will affect how it sends its mail to you. The second word in the command tells Listserv what list it is to make the change on. The third word in the command tells ListServ what to do.

Example: Set Greys digest

Set = Listen up ListServ! I want you to do something that affects the way I get my mail.

Greys = This is the list I want you to make the changes on.

Digest = I want to receive the digest instead of individual letters.

Q. I'm getting copies of my own posts. How do I stop this?

A. Send an email to ListServ@ParrotTalk.com Type the following command on the first line of the email message form:

Set listname norepro

Please substitute the name of the list (such as hawkheads, tiels, behavior) where it says "listname" in the above command.

Q. If I change my mail options so I don't get a copy of my posts to the list, how do I know whether they were posted?

A. ListServ@ParrotTalk.com can send you a short acknowledgement that it received your mail and that it has posted your mail to the list. If you want to receive this short acknowledgement, please type the following command on the first line of the email message form:

Set listname ack

Please substitute the name of the list (such as Bird911, breeders, TBCreadonly) for "listname" in the above command.

Q. How do I change my email address for my lists?

A. You can change your subscription from your old email address to your new email address through ListServ@ParrotTalk.com

Please type the following command on the first line of the email message form:

CHANGE listname your new email address here

Substitute the name of the mailing list (such as Greys, Asians, Cockatoos) in the above command for "listname". Please substitute your new email address for "your new email address here" in the above command. The CHANGE command MUST be sent from your OLD email address or the command will fail. Please read the letter that ListServ sends to you when you use this command.

If you are subscribed to more than one list, you can use what ListServ@ParrotTalk.com calls a "wild card" and it will make the requested email change apply to all of the lists that you are subscribed to. The "wild card" is the star character on the top row of your keyboard.

The command would be:

Change * your new email address here

Please substitute your NEW email address for "your new email address here" in the above command. ListServ will change your list mail from your old email address to your new email address on all of the lists that you are subscribed to if you use this command. Please read the letter than ListServ sends to you after you use this command.

Q. Is there another way to change my email address for the mailing lists?

A. You can make the change with ListServ@ParrotTalk.com when your email address changes by following the directions for subscribing and unsubscribing on the mailing list page. You can re-subscribe from your new email address and unsubscribe from your old email address.

Q. Does the wild card command work with the other commands?

A. Yes! You can change your options on all of the lists you are subscribed to at the same time. If you wanted to change them all to digest, the command would be:

Set * digest

The wild card command can be used any time you want to make a wholesale change to your subscription. If you wanted to go NOMAIL on all of your lists, the command would be:

Set * nomail

If you have any questions regarding your subscription, please contact me at Bobbi@ParrotTalk.com