Replying by email

Can someone (preferably the list owner) please clarify whether it is possible to reply by email to posts? My attempts to reply, either to snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com or to 'list', using Thunderbird, fail. There are so many responses in this thread (which is good) that I find it overwhelming and disruptive of other work, to keep replying via the web.

This is a USENET

Won't work, because this is a USENET group, not a google group, and evil google simply very poorly shoehorned USENET into google groups and left it at that. Which is why google groups is simply the absolute worst interface with which to read and respond to USENET postings.

Since you indicate you are using Thunderbird, which includes a built in ability to access NNTP groups (i.e., USENET) why don't you just register yourself an Eternal September account

If you get at the group from Eternal September via Thunderbird the e-mail option works. I only use it when I'm sorting out threading, and have been known to send an e-mail when I meant to post something to the group.

Hi John - here's a response via Thunderbird and Eternal September.

Bill Sloman, Sydney

reply to sender only option

Access it via Eternal September (free) and a mail/usenet client. I used to use AIOE (also free) until it went belly up.

This is Usenet, not google groups (and much older), nor a mail list. It uses the nntp protocol. Thunderbird supports it just fine.