Date: Wed, 26 Nov 1997 01:52:34 +1200 From: David Harris Organization: Pegasus Mail, Dunedin, New Zealand Subject: Pegasus Mail for Windows v2.55 Pegasus Mail for Windows v2.55 is now available from the following sites: Via FTP: risc.ua.edu, in /pegasus (North America) ftp.let.rug.nl in /pegasus (Europe) ftp.usm.maine.edu, in /pub/network/pegasus (North America) pegasus.topnz.ac.nz, in /pegasus (South Pacific) If using a web browser, use these URLs: http://risc.ua.edu/pegasus http://www.let.rug.nl/pegasus ftp://ftp.usm.maine.edu/pub/network/pegasus ftp://pegasus.topnz.ac.nz/pegasus Both 16- and 32-bit versions are available: the filenames are WINPM255.EXE for the 16-bit version, and W32-255.EXE for the 32-bit version.V2.55 is identical to the v2.54 release except that it no longer generates the following headers in outgoing Internet mail: X-Mailer: Pegasus Mail [version] Comments: Authenticated sender is The reason these headers have been removed is because some Internet Service Providers and System Administrators have begun using them to reject or filter out mail in the mistaken belief that Pegasus Mail is a package designed for the distribution of "spam" (unsolicited bulk commercial e-mail). Clearly we cannot tolerate a situation where Pegasus Mail and its users are victimized through ignorance - the viability of the program could be in question if such indiscriminate rejection were permitted to occur. A part of the basis for this discrimination is a recent bulletin from CIAC (the U.S. Department of Energy's Computer Incident Alert service) in which Pegasus Mail was erroneously described as a bulk mail package. The author of that bulletin has now indicated that this was an error and that he will reissue the bulletin. Unfortunately, the damage has largely been done. We believe that the amount of mail affected by this kind of descriminatory filtering is very small at present, but are releasing v2.55 as a means of circumventing the problem where it arises. If you are not currently having any problems with rejection of your mail (the likely scenario for the vast majority of users) then v2.55 gains you no advantages over v2.54 and you need not download it. To say that I am angry and upset that it should be necessary for me to make this release is a terrific understatement - especially since I am currently the ONLY major e-mail developer with a strong anti-spam stance. It seems preposterous and ironic to me that I alone seem to have been singled out in this way. Now that spam has done me and my users real, personal damage, my loathing of it, and the people who so blithely dump it on the Internet without any concern for whom they may inconvenience or hurt has deepened, as has my resolve to find ways of doing what I can to combat it. But I stress that I believe firmly that spam is a social problem and cannot be overcome by technical means - it can only be dealt with through the normal channel of social regulation, the law. It is my hope that this will only be a temporary measure, and that I will be able to restore the X-Mailer header in particular in an upcoming revision, once this issue has been properly resolved. Pegasus Mail has carried its X-Mailer header proudly to all parts of the world for nearly eight years now, and I feel a profound loss at removing it. I appreciate the expressions of support I have received from my userbase in response to my previous postings on this matter - I apologise if many of you did not receive a personal response, but I was essentially overwhelmed by the volume. In light of this, although I am deeply appreciative of your solicitude, I would ask that you do not send me supportive messages for this announcement - I really, really need to get on and start doing some real work again, having effectively wasted more than a week struggling with these issues. Once again, my thanks to all for their ongoing support and for understanding the reasons why I have had to take such an unusual and painful step in making this release. -- David Harris -- Author/Owner, Pegasus Mail System. ------------------ David Harris -+- Pegasus Mail -------------------------- Box 5451, Dunedin, New Zealand | e-mail: David.Harris@pmail.gen.nz Phone: +64 3 453-6880 | Fax: +64 3 453-6612