A Mailing List Muddle

If you read last week's issue of the RoseBouquet you probably picked up that I was having some problems with my usual way of sending it out. I'm determined to find a better way by the end of next week.

I don't delete emails as a rule; I squirrel them away. On this computer I can go back to 2005, but I'm sure I have some earlier than that on my backup disks.

At the beginning I used some free software I could install on my computer and create my subscribe forms there, and also send out my weekly ezines. Then I began to run into problems with that script, and decided that maybe I had out-grown that kind of stuff. When a friend recommended a site where I could get 30 days free, and then pay just $17.95/mo. for as many mailings lists of any size without ever having to pay more. For many years I've consider that a great deal.

However, in the last couple of years there have been some glitches, and when I tried to contact the man who runs that business he did not reply. Not even when I replied to his emails begging me for my feedback.

There were times I tried to set up a new mailing list to go with one of my other websites, and his system would NOT accept my sending email because I did not get his authentication email. So I could not use them. I was busy with other things so I sighed... and let it go.

Now the last two Tuesdays, I have had trouble logging in. (Last week it took over half an hour, but then could not move on to my next step by clicking anything in the main menus!) Now that may have been a problem with Firefox, because when I tried in Chromium and Opera, or Konqueror (other browsers) I could easily login, immediately, but when I wanted to over-write the previous issue the new one those browsers wanted to pop up some editing software, several choices, with which to do that. But they were all new to me, and I didnt' want to take time to learn how to use them in a place where I was used just pasting in the new email over the old one, change the subject line and date, and hit "Save" - then go to the other screen to specify when I wanted it to go out. Like, Today!

Yes, I know that you may prefer to just add more recipients to your email list, or use Bcc (Blind carbon copy) so that the recipients don't get free access to all your other friends' and relatives' emails. But such emails are often seen as spam and therefore blocked. So using a mailing list service is smarter. It is just frustrating when suddenly, or gradually, that service no longer works as it once did.

So... last week I did a bit of browsing and have found three other mailing list services - each has a free trial period or even a totally free account if your list is not more than 100 emails. I hope to find/make time to check and see if there is a free list that I can install and run myself - just of better quality than the one I used some years ago.

My monthly payment is due, and will be automatically billed to my credit card on Feb. 3rd, so I'm hoping to have found a new mailing list home-base before then, and close out my account at the one that made me rather antsy the last few weeks.

Hopefully, you will see no hitch, but perhaps a new look n' feel either next Tuesday, or for sure the one after that, Feb.7th.

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