As a flexible and familiar technology, email can be a powerful support to learning. Users are better able to concentrate on the content of an exchange when they are not confused or distracted by the technology involved. Modern email software also makes it easy for users to attach and exchange files. Free email accounts are now available from a variety of sites on the Web . Mailing list technologies extend the simplicity of email to groups.
Lists are message distribution tools.
From the subscriber's perspective, list traffic looks like email . But a message sent to the list address is automatically sent to everybody who has subscribed to the list. Mailing lists are a simple technology from the user's perspective. Users access lists with their email software. The complexity is on the server end.