Anna, Everyone on the list dosen't Need to read the mail sent between individual members on any list. That's an invasion of privacy! As I have explained, setting the default to send all messages to the list, makes it difficult for members to send a private message to another member.. The list is set properly now for best operation. Why do you want to read other peoples' mail? G. Lee Hearl Authentic Appalachian Storyteller Abingdon, Va.

G. Lee Hearl wrote: > Anna, > Everyone on the list dosen't Need to read the mail sent between > individual members on any list. That's an invasion of privacy! I'm obviously not Anna, but the purpose of a "discussion list" is to discuss! There are plenty of genealogy boards to post queries on and start private conversations, but few county/area specific discussion lists for East Tennessee exist. This is the only true discussion list dedicated to Washington County of which I am aware (feel free to point me in the direction of others if you know of them). Email sent to discussion lists, by their very nature are (or should be) for general discussion. Those who wish to converse in private have every right, as well as the control to do so. And if a discussion begins to go way off-course, it's easy enough to politely ask the posters to use private communication to continue their off-topic discussions. > As I have explained, setting the default to send all messages to the > list, makes it difficult for members to send a private message to > another member.. The list is set properly now for best operation. I respectfully disagree - the list is not set properly for best operation when you consider that it is a "discussion" list, not a bulletin board. That's why I brought the subject up - to help facilitate better onlist discussions. The way the lists defaults are set heavily influence how they are used (or not used in this case). Since this list's default is set to reply to the individual, that's what happens in most cases. Many potentially lucrative (information-wise) discussions are quashed simply because most occur off-list. Most of us never see the discussion past the initial query. This is an incredibly underused resource and we're just asking that the defaults be set to encourage active discussion about Washington County. > Why do you want to read other peoples' mail? I admit I don't understand this concern. No one who has commented here (or to me in private support) has suggested that they want to read each other's private mail. You have direct control over what you post and who you allow to see it. If you do not wish to share your information with the rest of us, that's entirely your choice. You can continue to converse with others on the list privately.