Distribution List Primer

How do I use my Distribution List?

For the following discussion, assume you have request a course distribution list which only you can send to, and that list is named thusly:

Display Name = CLAS101 (12345) Fa04 - DL
Email Address = clas101_12345fa04_dl@mail.ku.edu

Note: If you use one program (like Outlook) at work, and another program (like Outlook Express) at home, then you'll need to pay attention to both sections.

Outlook Users

Sending email to a Distribution List is no different from sending an email to anyone else on campus.  Open up a new message, add the Distribution List name to the To field, write a subject and the body of the message, and click Send.  when the Distribution List is typed into the To field, Outlook should recognize it as an official email address and "resolve" or underline it like it does for addresses to individuals.  You can also look for the list in the Global Address Book and add it to your outgoing message. 

Non-Outlook Users

If you use an email program other than Outlook, like Outlook Express, Eudora, etc., then the email message needs to be addressed carefully so the Exchange server knows to accept and pass your email along to your list.  Precise direction for addressing email differ from one program to the next, but they all have enough in common that the general description below should help you address the email

  1. Open up a new email message.
  2. In the To fiel, type the full email address of your Distribution List (i.e. clas101_12345fa04_dl@mail.ku.edu).
  3. Enter a subject and type your email message.  Click Send when you are ready.

Sounds easy, doesn't it?  The problem is it sometimes won't work.  After a minute or so (or the next time your email program checks for new email), you may discover a message from "System Administrator" telling you that you don't have permission to send to that list.  Why?  It's your list, right?  The reason why almost certainly lies in the way you've configured your email program.

When you send to a list (any list on Exchange), the Exchange system must decide if you're allowed to do such a thing.  If you use Outlook or Outlook Web Access, you've logged in to the system with a username and password, and Exchange knows ecatly who you are.  If you send email from another program (Outlook Express, Eudora, etc.) Exchange has no way of verifying that it is a correct address.  Exchange needs to be able to identify you by your actual email address.  The From field in your email program must be set to what your actual From address in Exchange is set to.  If you are uncertain what your From address is set to, you can check this through the Manage Exchange Account option on the Online Information Management page. 

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Some of the people on my list say they're not getting my list mail. Why?

There are a number of variables that could cuase this problem  Here are a few that might solve this problem for you.  If none of these work, please contact dlist@mail.ku.edu (or by phone ?).

First response: Does the list member have an Exchange account?

If a person has an Exchange account, all Distribution List email will go to that Exchange mailbox, even if the person has registered a completely separate email address with KU. Here's an example...

Joe is a student in CLAS 101. Joe has set his Hotmail acccount (joe@hotmail.com) as his registered email account with KU.  For most purposes on campus, this is his primary, official email contact point.  Last semester one of Joe' professors wanted her students to get an Exchange account so they could use Public Folders.  Joe did so, and now he has an Exchange account, joe@ku.edu.

When email is sent to Joe's class, that email will go to joe@ku.edu not to joe@hotmail.com.  If Joe doesn't check his Exchange account anymore, then those emails are just sitting there waiting to be read.  Meanwhile, Joe thinks he isn't getting the mail since ti never arrived at his Hotmail account. 

Joe has a couple of options available to him at this point:

  1. Get used to checking his Exchange email account. He can do so with Outlook Web Access if he doesn't want to configure an email program to do it.
  2. Establish email forwarding on his Exchange account. Using the Manage Exchange Account option on the Online Information Management page, Joe can set his Exchange mailbox to forward any incoming mail to his Hotmail account. This way he can continue to check email in only one place.

Second response: Did the list member confirm the registered email signup?

If the list member does not have an Exchange account, then list email will go to the registered email address instead. Anyone on campus can "register" an official email address at KU using a web page, but it's a two-step process. Occasionally, people skip the second step, and the email is never properly registered. Result: Person doesn't get included in Distribution Lists.

Solution: Re-register the desired email address on the KU Online Services web page. Soon after, the user will receive an email at that address asking them to confirm the registration. If the user does not receive this email, the email address probably wasn't entered correctly. When the confirmation email is received, the user should "Reply" to that email, and make sure that the text of the confirmation message is included in the reply. There is a code number in the email message that our system uses to identify this email registration. Once the reply to the confirmation has been received, the email is well and truly registered, and the user should be included on all appropriate Lists.

The directions for how to respond to this confirmation email are all spelled out in that email message. Several thousand students have completed this process without difficulty, so cases of not-quite-completed email registration are probably rare cases of students deleting the confirmation message without reading it first. The instructions on the web page and in the email itself are quite clear about the need to reply to the confirmation message.

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How can I tell who's on my list and who isn't?

Is the List a class list, or is it a List made up of people according to some other criteria, like department code, declared major or interest, etc.? Is the list membership visible or hidden from users on Exchange? Do you use Outlook?

There are three methods by which you can check to see who's included in an Exchange Distribution List. Which one is best for your situation will depend partly on the answers to the questions above.

Method 1) Outlook Address Book

If you use Outlook, you can use the Address Book to try to see the list of members.  One exception is if the list membership is hidden.  If so, you won't gain anything by using this method because you won't be able to view the list of members.

Exception to the exception: If you teach a class and the list in question is a list for that class, then, as the instrucotr you will be able to use the Address Book to check list membership.

In general, when a list membership is hidden, nobody in the system can see who's included in the list. That goes for the list members themselves as well. In certain situations, however, it's extremely helpful for a particular person to be able to check the list membership (like a teacher of a class, for instance), so those lists are configured in such a way that a single person (or a very few people) can view the list membership, even though it's hidden from everyone else's view.

To view the Properties of your Distribution List in Outlook's address Book:

  1. Click the Tools menu and select Address Book.
  2. The Address Book dialog box appears.  Make sure Global Addrses List is chosen in the Show names from the: pull-down menu. 
  3. The Address book display every item in the Exchange system.  Distribution Lists can be identified by the way they're displayed.  All List items are in bold face type and have an icon on the left of two people's faces ()
  4. Locate the list in the Address Book.  It may help to type in the first few letters of the name in the Type Name or Select form list: box.  Doing so will skip you down to the appropriate section of the alphabet.
  5. Highlight the list and choose Properties from the File menu at the top of the Address Book dialog box. 
  6. A dialog box with the properties of the list appears.  The General tab provides you with the information you need.  It displays the list name and an alias if it has one assigned to it.  Depending on how the list is configured you may or may not see the names of members.
    • If the Members box is blank, then the membership is hidden.
    • Members who have Exchange accounts are listed by name, and there is no icon next to their names
    • Members who do not Exchange accounts, but who have registered email addresses, also appear by name, and have a globe icon  next to their names. 
    • Distribution Lists can include other lists.  If this is the case, the additional Lists are identified by their icon: .
    • If as List member has un-listed their email addres, that is the person has asked that the address not be included in directories at KU, then you won't be able to find the person by name. 
  7. Click OK to close the properties dialog box.
  8. Close the Address Book when you are done.

Method 2) Web Roster for Course Distribution Lists

This method will only help you if the List in question is a Course List, one which you signed up for via the Course Distribution List web page.  To view who is in your list and who isn't, go to the Web Roster for the course in question

For course instructors looking up information on a class list, this is by far the most reliable method.

When you reach the page showing you all the students' names, ID's, and email addresses, this is the page that will answer most of your questions. In particular, any student who does not have an email address displayed is not on your list. Everyone else is.

The question which isn't resolved on this page is what address, exactly, is the List using? The Roster only shows registered email addresses. If the student has an Exchange account, however, then all List mail is directed to that Exchange account, not to the registered email, even if the registered email is different. So, because there is an email address listed at all next to a student's name, you can be assured that student is on your list. For information about how having an Exchange account affects things, see the above discourse on students who say they're not receiving List email.

One other piece of information you get on the Roster page is quick identification of students who've hidden their email addresses. If you looked up the List membership using Outlook's Address Book, but didn't find many of the students you expected to see, pay special attention to the students on the Roster who have the circle-slash icon ( ) next to their email addresses. These are the students who you may not have been able to spot in the Address Book because they're hidden.

Also look for "No Email Registered" entries, of course, since these students are certainly not receiving your List email.

Method 3) Contact Dist. List Administrator

When all else fails, you can ask the List Administrator (dlist@mail.ku.edu) to generate a report of who exactly is in your list.  This report provides a listing of names and addressed for your list.  You'll be able to tell from that listing who has an Exchange account and who doesn't.  The report cannot tell you who'e missing from the list.  If you have a class list, the Web Roster is your best bet for answering that particular question.

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