An Internet immune system
That's why many in the email list community think they'll survive, despite today's headaches. There is simply nothing that substitutes for the immediacy and simplicity of email, advocates say.
"I don't really see too many people dropping off lists," said Chapman, whose Great Circle Associates consulting firm still manages the Majordomo software. "Mailing lists serve a very valuable purpose. They come to you. Certain Web sites I do check, but you have to go check."
Administrators are finding ways around the problems. Spam filters on list servers, and tools that ensure only list members can send to the list, help keep unwanted email to a minimum. Automatic unsubscribe tools are helping reduce the amount of unwanted bounced messages.
Email software itself is getting better at filtering messages into folders, so that all list messages can be segregated away from spam. Web mail services such as Yahoo and Hotmail also support this feature.
Future-looking projects hold out hope of better improvements. Some programmers are working on pulling RSS and email into the same interfaces, eliminating what appears to be competition between the mediums today.
Others are looking at ways to help people wade through the morass of online discussions more easily. Microsoft's Smith has written about new interfaces that would help highlight important or heated conversations among thousands of messages, for example.
These and other innovations, such as better tools to deal with the problems of spam and spam filters, will help keep email lists and communities alive, he said.
"Machines have gotten us into this problem, and they're going to have to get us out," Smith said.
