A list owner is the owner and manager of
a mailing list. It is the list owner's responsibility to:
Configure the list so that it has the required
characteristics
Add and remove subscribers
Support inexperienced list subscribers
Deal with error reports: - owners should
remove or track down bad email addresses which cause
errors and slow down delivery of mail to the list
Promote and publicise the list: - if the
JISCMail list is going to be successful, people need to
hear about it
Encourage and sometimes direct, relevant
discussion. This may include dealing with subscribers
who disrupt the list in one way or another
In support of our policy on JISCMail and the Freedom of Information Act, we recommend that the list owner agrees with members of a list not to designate requests for information posted to the list as Freedom of Information requests
Monitor the list to ensure that postings are in accordance with the principles of The Data Protection Act and take appropriate action where necessary
Monitor the list to ensure that postings are in accordance with the list netiquette and all our acceptable use policies, and take appropriate action where necessary
Monitor the list to ensure that postings are not in breach of copyright (e.g. postings which are forwarded from another source without permission) and take appropriate action where necessary
Note: The Helpline is always happy to assist
or provide guidance on any of these tasks.
As a list owner you do not need to be
a computing expert. A certain familiarity with email and
the World Wide Web is all the technical experience that is
required.
List owners should, however, have an enthusiasm for the subject of their list,
the time to monitor their list regularly,
and a willingness to encourage discussion and promote the
list.
IS IT TIME CONSUMING?
The amount of time needed to run a list depends
on the type of list, how many members there are, the amount
of support they need, and how active the list is.
Regular
maintenance should take no more than 30 minutes a week depending
on size.
