Richard,
I understand everything you say, and where you're coming from, but as
things stand I really don't think the distinction between the member
list and the directory can be considered a privacy feature.
I don't think it is, primarily. I think the two features come from different needs.
The Members list comes about from the list admin's need to have a comprehensive list of the membership, with access to information about the members and controls for their subscription. That it can be shown to members is a bonus.
The Members Directory comes about from a request that members be allowed to share profile information with one another. Another distinction between them is that when a member views the Directory, the member does not necessarily see a list of all other members - only those who've chosen no share at least some profile info are shown.
I also don't accept that other email-based lists' inability to hide
members' email addresses from email recipients is any reason why
groups.io shouldn't do better if it can.
I agree with you, and have done what I can to move the idea forward.
... so I'm happy just to leave it at that rather than continue to
debate this. But it will continue to niggle me...
Hey, those niggling thoughts are sometimes where great ideas come from. I say nurture them. It might not hurt to bump this topic over in the beta@ group with a fresh perspective.
Not that Mark doesn't have plenty on his plate already. ;-)
Shal
Shal Farley