PetBunny Discussion List:
Listserv FAQ

Written by Simeon ben Nevel

So in the process of moving my pages over from the horrible people over at nunet (who bought magpage and gutted it completely) I thought I'd update them a little. While searching for the updated Petbunny FAQ to put on here, I found another FAQ. Apparently, a post forwarded from Petbunny to the genx mailinglist started a meme on that list. Perhaps it's the fever, but I find this quite mindboggling. Mindboggling enough to actually write a paragraph here about it.

The updated Petbunny Charter is being maintained by Simeon at http://www.sonic.net/~snevel/petbunny/pbchart.html.

Addresses

• 1A) How do I send commands to the PetBunny list-server?
• 1B) How do I send messages to the other PetBunny subscribers?
  • This is an *important* distinction! Sending commands to the list address is embarassing for you and annoying to list-members because *everybody* sees a copy of your mistake AND frustrating in that you will not accomplish what you need.
  • All commands to the list-server MUST be sent to the listserver address NOT the PetBunny list itself!! The listserver address is:
    listserv@lsv.uky.edu
  • The commands go into the body of the message, the subject doesn't matter. You can send multiple commands in one message, but they must each be on a separate line. Trim off your .sig if you don't want to get a bunch-o error messages from the list server.
  • Messages intended for delivery to the other subscribers of PetBunny MUST be sent to the list address:
    petbunny@lsv.uky.edu

How do I subscribe to PetBunny?

• This is not as silly a question as it sounds.... people have gotten unsubscribed for no apparent reason.
• Subscription to PetBunny is a two-step process. First, send the command:
  subscribe petbunny first_name last_name (Not all listserv mailing-lists require the two-step procedure)
• The listserv will send you a confirmation message. This is to ensure that your e-mail address (as determined by the listserver) actually works.
• You MUST respond to the confirmation message within 48 (I think) hours. Usually, just using your reply function and adding the single word "OK" without the quotes in the body of your reply works. In any event, read the confirmation message and follow the instructions. If you miss the deadline, just send another subscribe command.
• Once the listserver receives your confirmation, you will be subscribed to PetBunny. Congratulations!!! You've joined a marvelous group of rabbits and people (aside from the occasional flame-fest ;-) ).
• You will also get an important informational message.
  KEEP IT AND READ IT!!! KEEP IT AND READ IT!!!

How do I get off of PetBunny permanently?

• Send the command:
  signoff petbunny

What's a digest, how do I get it, how do I stop it?

• The default mode of operation is for you to receive a separate copy of *each* message to PetBunny. Some people find this overwhelming. The alternative is to receive a "digested" version of the list. This means that you will get your PetBunny fix batched together in a single message. You will get at least digest per day. If the volume is especially high, you might get more than one digest.
• To receive the digest, send the command:
  set petbunny digest
• To go back to getting individual postings, send the command:
  set petbunny mail
• Note for America On Line subscribers
  • Only the first 2K of a digest will be readable while browsing your mail. The *entire* digest is actually attached as a file. You will have to download the file and read it using some sort of text browser. This is NOT a PetBunny problem, just a function of how AOL has chosen to implement it's software.

• To temporarily suspend reciept of PetBunny, send the command:
  set petbunny nomail
• To resume your daily PetBunny fix, send the command:
  set petbunny mail

• Well.... you certainly could. But you should be happy to know that you don't have to. You can get the listserver to send you the e-mail address of any PetBunny subscriber (except the concealed ones) by sending the following command:
  scan petbunny a_part_of_the_persons_name_or_address
  • For example:
    scan petbunny aol.com
    will get you a response listing every on PetBunny subscribed from America on-line.
    scan petbunny olga
    will get you a response listing everybody on PetBunny with "olga" as any part of the full name or email address. So you might get:
    someone@somewhere.com -- Olga Smith
    olga@somehwere.else.com -- Brian Adams
    JohnDoe@foo.volga.de -- John Doe
    in response.
  • As you can see, this command can be used to find fellow rabbit-slaves at your service or site or even country (but see the review command below)
  • Now sometimes the address you have (or get via the scan command) doesn't work. In that case a broadcast to PetBunny at large might be your only choice.

• Well, in the world of the internet, nothing is *really* private. A Unix hacker with sufficient motivation can probably figure it out. And of course, the list-owner probably knows (or can find out) who is subscribed.
• That said, the command:
  set petbunny conceal
  will hide your name from the scan, stats and review commands. If you want to reveal your name after all, use the command:
  set petbunny noconceal
  
• Of course, if you ever actually post anything to the list, your address is revealed for the world to see.

• Lots and lots of nice people and their bunnies (several of whom post when no one is looking)!!!! If you want to get more specific information, use the command:
  review petbunny
  
• The response to this will be a loooong list of everybody (except the concealed folk) subscribed to PetBunny. You can get this list sorted several ways; by country, full name, userid or node id (domain name). Use the commands:
  
  • review petbunny by country
  • review petbunny by name
  • review petbunny by userid
  • review petbunny by node
• You can even combine sorts, for example:
  • review petbunny by (country node)

• But of course.... Use the command:
  stats petbunny
  
• You'll get a loooong response listing each person who has ever posted to PetBunny and how many postings they've sent to the list. It will also tell you how many total postings have been made and the average number per day. All statistics are complete, starting from the day PetBunny was founded. Ya wanna know who *really* posts the most? Now you can find out.
• Note: This function has not been activated on the new server [Laura's note: this is a *VERY* good thing for some of us]

• This is going to be the longest section, mail failure can have many (and even simultaneous) causes.
• If you're not getting *any* mail from anybody, talk to your systems administrator, there might be a system problem.
• If it's only the PetBunny mail you're not getting, try the following:
  1. Send the help command to the listserver. It might be that some link between you and lsv.uky.edu has gone down. If you never get a response to the help request, I have no idea what to do.
  2. If you *do* get a response to the help command, check to see if you are still subscribed by sending the command:
     query petbunny
     The response will either indicate that you are not subscribed (in which case follow the instructions in question (2) above) or tell you what your current subscription options are (Conceal, repro, digest etc).
  3. If the query tells you that you *are* subscribed, but you're *still* not getting PetBunny mail, try dropping a note to the list-owner, Bill Tricomi btricomi@cdr.wisc.edu, or routine listserv questions can be directed to Simeon instead.

repro/ack means that you'll get *two* pieces of mail each time you post. Not recommended unless you *really* like a full mailbox.

How do I change my subscription address?

• This is kind of clumsy. Unlike majordomo mediated lists (where you can specify an e-mail address on un/subscribe requests) you must use the signoff command (see question 3) from your *old* address and then resubscribe from your *new* address (see question 2)

Finding old messages

• 12A) How can I retrieve older copies of PetBunny postings?
• 12B) How do I retrieve archive files?
  • Maintenance of archives is optional for listserv mediated mailing lists. Unfortunately, archives aren't maintained for PetBunny.
  • For those of using this FAQ as a resource for dealing with other mailing lists, I will include generic instructions for how to retrieve files from a listserv archive.
  • Send the command:
    index list_name
    The response to this will be a message listing the files available for retrieval.
    Then, send the command:
    send list_name file_name
    to retrieve the actual document in question

Miscellaneous stuff...

• If you want to learn more about the listserver options/functions, try the following commands:
  help
  info refcard
  

Copyright Notice:

Ha, ha.... There is none. I hereby release the contents of this FAQ, whole or in part, to the public domain. Spread it as far as you can. Print it out. Xerox and nail it to utility poles across the country. Put it on a CD. If you make any money distributing this FAQ, I don't care (but contributions to my bunzes salad fund are graciously accepted =:3)

Salad fund contributions can be sent to Simeon (but I took off his email address because spam has become such a huge problem.

To Petbunny Homepage