[Mailman-Users] Can Mailman be installed on a free python webhost?

[Mark Sapiro]

On 11/30/2013 07:48 PM, R. Sheng-Chieh Cheng wrote:
> 
> I am hoping to install a discussion mailing list. Mailman has
> what I want, but I question whether I can use Mailman. I do NOT
> have a mail server. And our group needs to live cheaply, so
> we are not buying one. There are a few free python webhosts.
> But I question whether I could install Mailman since the
> installation instruction says
>  1) add mailman to /etc/passwd
>  2) add mailman to /etc/group
>  3) install on /usr/local/mailman
> I doubt a free webhost would let me do this.


These things can be worked around, but there are other issues that are
more problematic.


> If positive, can I assume that I don't need to know python -
> just use ./configure & make install .


Yes, and no. you can just run ./configure with appropriate options.
You'll need --prefix=, --with-username=, --with-groupname=,
--with-cgi-gid= and --with-mail-gid=,  to work around the above. Also,
--with-mailhost= and --with-urlhost= are useful, but they can be
overridden along with most other defaults in mm_cfg.py. This is where
Python knowledge can be useful.  mm_cfg.py is where you put all your
local configuration stuff to override settings in Defaults.py. For the
most part it is straightforward

OPTION = value

stuff, but it is actually Python source and must obey Python syntax and
semantics.

Depending on what you can actually do on your hosted server, your major
stumbling blocks will probably be

1) setting up incoming mail delivery to Mailman
2) setting up the web server for Mailman

and possibly

3) delivering outbound mail from Mailman.

-- 
Mark Sapiro <mark at msapiro.net>        The highway is for gamblers,
San Francisco Bay Area, California    better use your sense - B. Dylan