Actually, Tony (and Jay), smartgroups can be accessed via their web front
end, OR if users prefer can receive messages via email. I like that
flexibility. Members do, however, have to sign up. That's a two-step
process: first you have to register with smartgroups, then you have to
"join" the particular group(s) you want to participate in.

Overall, smartgroups has been pretty good. The things I like about it:
1. it's free
2. there are no pop-ups, poo-unders, or other ads inserted within your
messages; there is just one small banner ad at the top of your page - I can
live with that.
3. users can choose whether to access mesages via the website or through
email
4. there are other free features such as photo albums, file uploads, a group
event calendar, even "voting"
5. it's simple to set up, simple for users to join (even techno-phobic
geezers, for the most part)
6. to a limited degree, it can be "hacked" to incorporate things that they
hadn't really designed into it (more on that below)

The things I don't like about it:
1. in the past, they occasionally went offline for a few hours, sometimes
for a few days, with no warning at all. Fortunately, they seem to have
addressed the problem, and they have not gone offline for any significant
time in nearly a year
2. they do not provide any meaningful support
3. it's limited in some ways - if you have ambitions to turn it into a fancy
website, it's generally not possible in any simple way

Overall, it's a good alternative to Yahoo groups. Before starting it, I
looked all over for something that would meet my needs but came with the
minimum of hassles.

You might want to take a look at the group I started, "Pacific Northwest
Flying"

Note that there are two ways to access the site now:
1. the original (old) URL which is a direct link to the smartgroups-based
discussion groups:
http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/pnwflying
(this is the standard way smartgroups expects you to access the group)

The sign-up process is not particularly difficult; click the "First Time
Visitors" button for all a user needs to know.

and....

2. a new, more broadly designed "portal" site I recently created, which
incorporates the smartgroups discussion group into a larger site that has
other "sections":
http://www.pacificnorthwestflying.com/

Stop by and check out the setup sometime (even if you do live back there in
the flatlands

If you have any questions about setting up a group feel free to ping me.
Good luck.


David Herman
N6170T 1965 Cessna 150E
Boeing Field (BFI), Seattle, WA
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Visit the Pacific Northwest Flying Forum:
http://www.pacificnorthwestflying.com/




"tony roberts" wrote in message
news:nospam-9F6235.17394811092004@shawnews...
Check out

http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/pnwflying

Run by our ownDavid Herman.
It doesn't email but it gives a message board and lots of other features.
A big advantage of starting a site there is that it is free.


HTH

Tony

--

Tony Roberts
PP-ASEL
VFR OTT
Night
Cessna 172H C-GICE

In article ,
(Jay Honeck) wrote:

A year ago I started an airport support group called "Friends of Iowa
City Airport" to help save our threatened airport. It has now grown
to over 170 members, and sending memos, updates and emails to such a
large group has become unwieldy.

For a variety of reasons I would like to stick with a web-based
(rather than Outlook or Outlook Express email) solution. I have looked
at using Yahoo Groups, but have rejected them as being overly
complicated to "join." (Many of our members are getting up there in
years, and even basic email can be a challenge for them, let alone
trying to figure out how to "join" a Yahoo group.)

I am looking for a way to send "group" email updates to large numbers
of members. Unfortunately, my ISP's (Mediacom) group email software
is so laced with anti-Spam measures that it is essentially useless to
me. (The killer: It limits the number in a group to 25 or less, etc.)

What say the group? Anyone got any recommendations? Is there a group
email site on the web that is flexible and powerful enough for what I
need?

Thanks!
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"