Heya! I'm trying to join the newsletter and I'm kind of confused by the thing with the google group and joining the group and how I want to get emails... ( I fear this will turn other people off too). Have you thought about maybe doing a newsletter over mailerlite or even substack?
Hola! Thank you so much for reaching out <3 I realize that I never talked fully about why I chose to go the GG route, so I'm taking this as an opportunity to do that, and I hope you don't mind.
For the first part of your Q:
The way that the Google Group thing works is just that you join it and then you're good to go! You don't ever need to go back to that page again if you don't want to. You'll receive the emails (newsletters) just by being a member of the group. It's basically the same functionality as a normal newsletter. (With the caveat that it requires a google account, I believe.)
Screenshots under the cut of what it looks like to get a newsletter from the Google Group.
For the second part of your Q:
My answer got a little long and probably way outside the scope of your Q, so here's a TLDR in case you don't want to hear the Origin Story lol:
I'm trying this out partly as an experiment, but I'm giving it a genuine run, especially since it works exactly the same from the reader's POV. Unless it proves to be disastrous (and it very well may be if most people let me know they aren't joining specifically because it's GG), I may keep this newsletter for a year or more. Ideally when my subscriber count gets big enough, I'll move to a "better" newsletter app which has more features for analytics and such, or give Substack a go because I've also had my eye on that (thanks for reminding me of it!). I did at some point have a TinyLetter but I didn't feel very satisfied with it, and maybe that was just because I also just wasn't using it how it was meant to be used (my fault for sure).
But my number of newsletter subscribers is low (ilyasm <3) and I feel that if there will ever be a time I can try something like this out, it's now. It might be an absolutely terrible idea, but I won't know for sure until I give it a go, right? ^^'
Now onto the aforementioned Origin Story. There are 4 main reasons I chose to work with a GG as a newsletter. (If you're interested at all by the idea of a GG as a newsletter, this might also be of interest to you.)
1: It looks the same from the subscriber side of things.
I signed up to it with a personal email and this is what it looks like to get a newsletter from it:
This is what it looks like inside (I did zero formatting for this trial email haha):
And at the bottom you do have a link to unsubscribe (you also have that up above, if you noticed). For newsletter subscribers that only want to engage via email, that's all there is to it.
But for anyone who wants to engage on the GG, at the bottom there's also a link to see the Conversation (newsletter post) on the GG, which takes you to a page like this:
Normally, it should be set up so that everyone can reply to a newsletter post. Right now, none of the members have posting permissions, simply because there are some issues with that (see below), so the Conversation part of things is limited.
Anyway, the fact that it works the same for subscribers as any other newsletter was the most important thing to me, because whatever happens in the background, I didn't want the experience to be so alien to subscribers that they just Nope away from it. Granted, the first step of signing up is different enough that, as you pointed out, some people will still be turned off by it, but that can't be helped as I can't change the mechanics of the sign-up.
...That I know of. Will keep digging.
2: I was intrigued by the Conversation features in GG.
I thought it meant readers would be able to reply both privately to me (we've tested this and they can) - a functionality most newsletters provide - and publicly to each other in a forum-type way (turns out, this is problematic for many reasons, the biggest of which is that it could be a nuisance to get an email every time someone replies to someone, but there are a variety of other issues there, like the fact that anyone can post anything and it would send - like a newsletter - to all subscribers, so that's not a feature I'm using).
3: I wanted to know why more writers aren't using it in this way.
GG is a free app connected to your Google account. Lots of writers work with Google Docs, share their stuff through Google Drive, organize their writing using Google Sheets, collect beta reader feedback via Google Forms, and so on.
So I thought, why isn't anyone using GG as a newsletter, especially when starting out? It felt almost like a logical step to me, despite the obvious lack of analytics and other features (CTR, automated emails sent out to new subscribers, etc.). It could still function as a newsletter, so why was nobody even considering it?
Again, it'll probably end up being not the best idea, but I think I'll at least try it out before I make up my own mind about it.
4: It keeps your inbox clean & acts as an archive.
So, once you've read a newsletter, you might delete it. A few months later, you might realise, Oh, I could actually really use that resource Hyba linked in that one newsletter email... which I deleted! No worries; head on over to the GG and all the newsletters are listed there, like an archive. I found that to be a nifty feature, so I just thought I'd throw that in there. ^^
Although, I'm not sure how retroactive it is. As in - if you join now, can you see all the past posts I ever made on the GG? In other words, do you have access to all the past newsletters from before you subscribed? Hopefully someone will let me know, haha.
I also tried deleting conversations to see if that notifies people (it doesn't) and if people can still reply to the email that was sent with that post (the post was too old and nobody had it on email lol, so jury's still out on that one).
Major Cons so Far
No analytics other than how many reads a conversation/post (newsletter) has gotten. That's alright, but I have no idea how many people are clicking through on the links and such, so that's not the best thing for someone trying to grow as an author.
No automated email that is sent out to new subscribers. It would be cool to be able to create a Welcome to the Newsletter post and set it so that it can send as an email to every new subscriber, but that's not an option. Unfortunately, if you're a new subscriber, you've got radio silence until the end of the month, when the next newsletter comes out ^^' I'm not too sure if new subscribers can see older posts directly on the GG (any new subscribers out there willing to chip in?), but that might be a potential workaround.
Confusing and limited 'conversation' feature. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find a lot of info about how to fiddle around with the settings and only allow members to reply to posts instead of giving them the permission to also make posts. I also would prefer that if there is a reply to a post, it doesn't then send out an email notification to everyone that a reply has been made. This is purely for the 'community' side of things on the GG, not something that alters the way the newsletter as a newsletter works. But it was one of the selling points for me to give GG a go, so I'm still fiddling around with it in hopes that I can make it work.
Anyway, lots of troubleshooting, lots of interesting things to check out, still giving it a go, some mistakes might be made, and definitely it will turn some people off for sure, since it's markedly different in many ways. However, I hope that beyond that, people will realize that it's the same thing as any other newsletter at heart.
If it definitely bothers a potential subscriber and it's a total deal-breaker, then that's definitely a bummer for me, too, but as I said before, I'm not thinking of it as a permanent newsletter solution.
Actually, now hold onto your hats, Google Groups wasn’t really Google Groups. Um. There were groups on Google, true, but for the most part Google Groups was Google’s portal to something called Usenet.
YOU CAN REPLACE GOOGLE GROUPS FOR FREE!
Google Groups were never Google Groups, they were Usenet groups. Google didn’t create them, certainly didn’t control them. They simply gave you access to them. And you can still get access to all those groups. For free.
See the beauty of Google Groups was that it was one-stop-shopping. You just signed into Google, which you probably already were for gmail and personal content, then if you pointed your browser to Groups you were there. So Google Groups made Usenet convenient.
More convenient.
Before Google Groups and now today, with Google Groups murdered off, you need two things to read and write to those same groups you could reach with Google alone. You need a “Client” to read and write to the groups.
A “Client” is a program or app you load onto your computer. This lets you access groups – read them, post new messages. If you’re on an Apple machine then your choices are limited here but a really good one is Mozilla’s Thunderbird.
CAREFUL!
It’s easy to get discouraged with Thunderbird. It just won’t work! And then the next day, give or take a day, assuming you followed instructions and did everything right, it will suddenly work. And keep working.
BUT YOU NEED SOMETHING ELSE!
So you need a client – a program – to read groups and post to them. But you also need access to a Usenet server – a machine where all the groups and their messages are stored.
Think of it like email, because that’s what it’s like: You open your email “Client” – whatever you use to read & write email – and it connects to a server, downloads your new emails. Then when you write an email this “Client” connects to that server again, uploads it and sends it to the next machine.
Over simplified but, Usenet (what you thought of as Google Groups) works the same way. Thunderbird is a “Client” that attaches to the server, like the way your email app attaches to the mail server, so all that’s missing is a server for Thunderbird to connect to.
Here’s one:
www.eternal-september.org
Eternal September Usenet Server
eternal-september.org
Create an account. It’s free. It’s very easy. They’ll give you the address of the server – the address you configure in Thunderbird – and they’ll mail you a username and password.
PLENTY OF INSTRUCTIONS ONLINE!
You can Google “Thunderbird eternal september” and find advice on getting it all to work. But, like I said, be warned: As far as I can tell I did everything right and it still didn’t work. It was frustrating. It was maddening. And then suddenly it worked and I don’t know what if anything I did differently. So be prepared for that.
And this was the case for me, on Apple. There are other “Clients” available for you if you’re on Windows. Forte Agent is a good one, but they’re like $27 a year. On the bright side, if you don’t mind spending a few bucks to replace Google Groups, Forte Agent will sell you a “Client” and the Usenet feed (the server access): One Stop Shopping. Should make configuring the app a lot easier!
Migration Options For Yahoo Groups (Where Do We Go From Here?)
[This not a comprehensive review of all the migration or storage options]
[Please refer back to the website version (linked here), as it will be updated with new options as they arise]
If you plan to migrate your mailing list you will need to decide
Can the new home import existing archives of messages and files?
Will the Group/Mailing list platform permit adult material or copyrighted material? “Adult material” can include any depictions of sexual activity, even implied sexual activity and may prohibit text (fanfic). Likewise, most Terms of Service prohibit the inclusion of copyrighted material
The short version: For adult or copyrighted content, your best options are Dreamwidth Communities or Squidge.org Mailing lists as both allow the widest range of adult material and supports transformative use. If your mailing list does not depict any sexual activity or does not involve copyrighted material, you can spend $220 to migrate to Groups.io and then use their free groups. You can also start a new mailing list on Google Groups as long as it does not touch on non-con, incest, underage, or bestiality. Both Dreamwidth and Google Groups will require that you download and store your existing message archives and files/photos elsewhere. Finally, there are chat rooms like Slack or Discord that could be used to start a new fan space, also without any of your Yahoo groups existing messages or files .
Vazamento de dados expõe falhas em grupos do Google
Tóquio, Província de Tóquio, Japão, 18 de abril de 2025, NHK – Informações pessoais foram expostas publicamente na internet devido a configurações incorretas em grupos do serviço Google Groups, usado para compartilhamento de arquivos e comunicação em equipe.
Criado nos anos 2000, o Google Groups permite a criação de comunidades virtuais, nas quais administradores podem gerenciar membros e…
Actually, now hold onto your hats, Google Groups wasn't really Google Groups. Um. There were groups on Google, true, but for the most part Google Groups was Google's portal to something called Usenet.
YOU CAN REPLACE GOOGLE GROUPS FOR FREE!
Google Groups were never Google Groups, they were Usenet groups. Google didn't create them, certainly didn't control them. They simply gave you access to them. And you can still get access to all those groups. For free.
See the beauty of Google Groups was that it was one-stop-shopping. You just signed into Google, which you probably already were for gmail and personal content, then if you pointed your browser to Groups you were there. So Google Groups made Usenet convenient.
More convenient.
Before Google Groups and now today, with Google Groups murdered off, you need two things to read and write to those same groups you could reach with Google alone. You need a "Client" to read and write to the groups.
A "Client" is a program or app you load onto your computer. This lets you access groups -- read them, post new messages. If you're on an Apple machine then your choices are limited here but a really good one is Mozilla's Thunderbird.
CAREFUL!
It's easy to get discouraged with Thunderbird. It just won't work! And then the next day, give or take a day, assuming you followed instructions and did everything right, it will suddenly work. And keep working.
BUT YOU NEED SOMETHING ELSE!
So you need a client -- a program -- to read groups and post to them. But you also need access to a Usenet server -- a machine where all the groups and their messages are stored.
Think of it like email, because that's what it's like: You open your email "Client" -- whatever you use to read & write email -- and it connects to a server, downloads your new emails. Then when you write an email this "Client" connects to that server again, uploads it and sends it to the next machine.
Over simplified but, Usenet (what you thought of as Google Groups) works the same way. Thunderbird is a "Client" that attaches to the server, like the way your email app attaches to the mail server, so all that's missing is a server for Thunderbird to connect to.
Here's one:
Eternal September Usenet Server
Create an account. It's free. It's very easy. They'll give you the address of the server -- the address you configure in Thunderbird -- and they'll mail you a username and password.
PLENTY OF INSTRUCTIONS ONLINE!
You can Google "Thunderbird eternal september" and find advice on getting it all to work. But, like I said, be warned: As far as I can tell I did everything right and it still didn't work. It was frustrating. It was maddening. And then suddenly it worked and I don't know what if anything I did differently. So be prepared for that.
And this was the case for me, on Apple. There are other "Clients" available for you if you're on Windows. Forte Agent is a good one, but they're like $27 a year. On the bright side, if you don't mind spending a few bucks to replace Google Groups, Forte Agent will sell you a "Client" and the Usenet feed (the server access): One Stop Shopping. Should make configuring the app a lot easier!
Weekly output: teen social-media use, Google Maps Timeline privacy, journalism as a career, spam texts, Google Groups to dump Usenet
The last more-or-less full work week of the year is about to start, and I know I’ll be working the week after that to meet the last deadlines I have in 2023.
12/11/2023: Teens Are Online ‘Almost Constantly,’ Usually on These Apps, PCMag
I got an advance look at this Pew Research Center study on teenage social-media use and found it enlightening–including the part where the teenagers in the study…
