VPAT Information for LISTSERV 17.5

• Chapter 3: Functional Performance Criteria
• Chapter 5: Software
• Chapter 6: Support Documentation and Services

Chapter 3: Functional Performance Criteria (FPC)

Chapter 4: Hardware

LISTSERV is software only, therefore the Hardware section has been removed as it does not apply.

Chapter 5: Software

Chapter 6: Support Documentation and Services

Remarks and Explanations

For most of the supported accessibility criteria, the "Remarks and Explanations" are as follows.

Since the purpose of using LISTSERV is to send and receive email messages, it is assumed throughout this document that anyone who would need to use LISTSERV is able to use email. The functions of LISTSERV are invoked by sending text email commands to special email addresses on the LISTSERV server, or through the use of a command line or terminal emulator. The choice of interface being used for communication is solely at the discretion of the user. It is further assumed that a person requiring assistive technology will be using an appropriate client that supports it.

An optional Web-based user interface is available for use with LISTSERV on all operating systems. The Web Interface (also known as "WA") provides an alternative method of interacting with LISTSERV to perform some (though not all) of its functions. The Web Interface is not required for using LISTSERV, and site maintainers may choose not to install it even on the platforms where it is supported. Since the Web Interface may or may not be available, it is not considered for the purpose of this document and is addressed in a separate VPAT document. See the VPAT for WA.

There are several types of LISTSERV users, and interaction with LISTSERV is dependent on the type of the user.

Subscribers

List subscribers are people who have requested and have been granted permission to subscribe to a particular mailing list so that they may receive the email messages sent through the list.

List subscribers need to perform the following tasks:

• Receive email messages that are distributed through LISTSERV. L-Soft can make no statement about the accessibility of the messages sent through lists. LISTSERV distributes the email messages that are sent to it, and accessibility is in the hands of the (other) users who post the messages to LISTSERV.
• Depending on the list setup, subscribers may also post messages to be distributed to other subscribers. This is done by composing the message in an email client and sending it to the LISTSERV list address.
• Subscribe to a list, sign off from a list, or query or change their subscription options of a list that they are subscribed to. This is done through plain-text commands sent to a special "command" email address. All replies from LISTSERV are sent through email in plain text. For some list-related messages, the list owner has the option of configuring LISTSERV to send HTML mail instead. In those cases, accessibility is the responsibility of the list owner.

For subscribers, accessibility requires the use of any accessible email client of the subscriber's choice. If available and depending on the list configuration, subscribers may also have the option of using the Web Interface to perform some of the above tasks.

List Moderators

List moderators review messages posted to "moderated" mailing lists to determine whether the content of the message is consistent with the goal of the list and approve the messages to be distributed to the list's subscribers.

List moderators need to perform the following tasks:

• Receive approval requests for email messages that were posted by subscribers of a moderated list. L-Soft can make no statement about the accessibility of the messages themselves. By default, the approval requests are in the form of a "multi-part" or "MIME" message. The first part is in plain text and contains a standard text provided by LISTSERV explaining how the message may be approved. The second part is in plain text and contains the plain text part (if any) of the message awaiting approval. The last part contains the message awaiting approval in its entirety, including any attachments or HTML parts. If MIME messages are inaccessible, it is possible to configure individual lists to send the approval requests as a monolithic text message, but this is only recommended for lists that are configured not to accept postings with attachments as these can only be retrieved with a MIME-compatible email client.
• Approve messages to be posted by either forwarding them to the list or by sending a text command to LISTSERV via email.
• Reject messages actively by sending a text command to LISTSERV via email, or passively by allowing the pending approval to expire (no action required).

For list moderators, accessibility requires the use of any accessible email client of the user's choice, preferably one that can handle MIME messages. If available and depending on the list configuration, list moderators may also have the option of using the Web Interface to moderate.

List Owners

List owners are the administrators of a list. They determine list policy and behavior, and may add, delete and modify subscriptions to the list.

List owners need to perform the following tasks:

• Change the behavior of the list by sending a plain text command through email to LISTSERV to get the current configuration (the "list header"), which is returned in a plain text email, and then making changes to this plain text list header and returning it to LISTSERV via email.
• Add, remove or change options for subscribers. This is done by sending plain text commands over email. All replies from LISTSERV are sent through email in plain text.
• Modify plain text templates to customize certain messages sent to subscribers relative to the list. This is performed by sending a plain text command through email to LISTSERV, which sends the current templates (if any) to the list owner in a plain text email. The list owner sends the template back to LISTSERV as a plain text email after having modified it within the email client.
• List owners may also need to perform the same tasks as subscribers or list moderators, above.

For list owners, accessibility requires the use of any accessible email client of the list owner's choice. If available, list owners may also have the option of using the Web Interface to perform some of the above tasks.

LISTSERV Site Maintainer

LISTSERV site maintainers are typically the system administrators for the server on which LISTSERV is running. As such, their normal duties require them to have direct access to the server from a console, including entering commands at a command line prompt on the console or from a terminal emulator. Such duties also generally include editing text files.

Therefore, in addition to assuming the availability of an accessible email client, for the site administrator, we can also assume the availability of an accessible text editor and an accessible terminal emulator or console.

LISTSERV site maintainers need to perform the following tasks:

• Install and configure LISTSERV. Installation on Windows requires the ability to run Windows installation programs, which is one of the normal duties of a system administrator. Installation on Unix requires an accessible terminal emulator or console with command line access. Configuration requires an accessible text editor.
• Ensure that LISTSERV is up and functioning correctly with a working connection to the Internet. This requires the ability to read and search plain text log files as well as plain text error messages received over email. It also requires system and network administration skills.
• Create new lists. This is done through plain text email messages sent to the command address.
• Optionally, customize sitewide mail and web templates. This requires the ability to send and receive plain text email messages, and in the case of web templates, a good knowledge of HTML coding.
• Site maintainers may also need to perform the same tasks as subscribers, list moderators and list owners, above.

For site maintainers, accessibility requires the use of any accessible email client, text editor, and console or terminal emulator of the administrator's choice. If available, site maintainers may also have the option of using the Web Interface to perform some of the above tasks.

Documentation

Documentation for LISTSERV is available from the L-Soft web site at http://www.lsoft.com/resources/manuals.asp. It is provided primarily in the following formats:

• HTML for simple navigation and online reading using any accessible web browser of the user's choice.
• PDF for downloading and reading offline using any accessible PDF reader software, or producing hardcopy using any suitable replication device (e.g. a laser printer, Braille embosser, or similar).
• Plain-text; some documents can be retrieved through email commands and delivered to the user's email client.

These formats are widely compatible with assistive technologies used by people with impaired ability to access a computer system.

About These Assessments

This page was adapted from the Product Accessibility Template® Version 2.0, dated October 2017.

The purpose of the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template is to assist federal contracting officials in making preliminary assessments regarding the availability of commercial electronic and information technology products and services with features that support accessibility.

The first column contains the lettered paragraphs of the subsections of the Section 508 standards. The second column describes the level of support for the provisions in that paragraph (ITIC's suggested language is used). The third column contains any additional remarks and explanations regarding specific features of the product that provide the support.