List Members FAQ

Why is Yahoogroups rejecting my HTML messages?

Q: I am a member of a group at Yahoo and I tried to post a message and Yahoo rejected it, said I couldn't post HTML messages but I didn't, what's going on?

A: A couple things are happening, first the group is set to strip attachments, second you posted a message either in rich text format (RTF) or HTML and it didn't include a plain text part. This happens alot with Hotmail users because Hotmail doesn't follow Internet protocols while most email programs and webmail providers do follow proper protocols.

When you send a message in true plain text, there's only one part to it, the plain text of your message. But when you send a message in rich text or HTML, most email programs or webmail interfaces send the message in two parts, one plain text part and one rich text/HTML part. On lists that strip attachments, Yahoo sees the rich text/HTML part as an attachment and removes it. If your email program or webmail interface didn't send a plain text part, then there's nothing left to post to the list once the rich text/HTML is removed.

To prevent Yahoo from rejecting your messages to groups, check the options for your email program or webmail interface and set it to send in plain text only. For more specific instructions on all kinds of email programs, check out the How to Post in Plain Text website.