Autoresponder Evils?

[Rick Chadderdon]

Jethro R Binks wrote:
> Well, since you asked.
>
> Most sensible autoresponders will only send one message within a period of 
> time to a particular correspondent, so 'flooding' one correspondent is 
> impossible (from one autoresponder anyway).
>
> If you want to design a sensible autoresponder, 


I didn't ask, I complained.  :)  I know what is generally considered to
be a "sensible" autoresponder, and I don't care much for them, either. 
I will allow that they are far less annoying than something which will
spray out unlimited responses, but I've yet to see one configured to
send out only one response per *domain*.  Without that, a joe-jobbed
domain with a large number of user accounts can end up absorbing
thousands of unwanted autoresponses, one for each valid email address. 
Flooding one correspondent is bad, but flooding my mail server at all is
also bad. Autoresponders shift the burden of work that should belong to
their owners to those who are have to deal with the unwanted messages
they send out.

I find that most people who defend autoresponders are in a way akin to
the spam pundits who say, "Just hit delete!"  As long as they can do
what they want to, they have no care about how it affects those who did
not ask for their email.  Minimizing their impact is nice and all, but I
don't think most people would want me to dump my garbage on their front
lawn - even if I only did it once a week.  Using an autoresponder that
you *know* will send out unwanted mail is deliberately using the
resources of others without their consent.

If asked, "What else am I supposed to do to solve this problem?" all I
can say is, "Don't make your problem mine."


> Autoresponders will never go away, and there is no reason why they should.
>   

I agree with the first half of that sentence, but until they stop
sending messages to people who don't want them, I strongly disagree with
the rest.  I suppose this is pretty off topic for the list, and the
second time that people defending autoresponders have brought me to this.

Rick