Software to Support E-Mail Distribution Lists

There are several software packages specifically designed to manage e-mail distribution lists: Mailman, LISTSERV®, and MajorDomo. But before investing in these tools, you should consider whether standard e-mail programs such as Outlook® or Pine® will satisfy your group's list needs.

Microsoft® Outlook® or Pine®

The simplest way to create an e-mail list is to draw e-mail addresses from an existing list, like the contacts in Microsoft Outlook or the Pine address book. This option is best for small lists that do not change membership frequently because you will have to maintain the list yourself without any kind of automation. The list also cannot be easily shared because only one person will have the master, up-to-date list of names.

In your e-mail program, you can create an alias for a distribution list that references individual e-mail addresses. When you send e-mail to the alias, your mailing program translates it into the individual e-mail addresses, which are what your recipients will see when they get the messages. To protect member privacy, use blind carbon-copy (BCC) messages to the alias to suppress the members' e-mail addresses.

For help creating a distribution list in Outlook, open Outlook, click Help > Microsoft Outlook Help and search for "Create a group in the Address Book."

For help creating a distribution list in Pine, see UW Computing and Communication's tutorial.

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