Lists Pro's and Con's

What are the pros and cons of email lists versus discussion boards ?

[email lists]
pros
- email lists require login to read messages
- email is the most popular form of communication on the web
- messages can be sent to everyone on the email list with ease
- files can be attached and sent with emails
- you can browse lists anonymously with having to signup unlike email
cons
- email lists are text only
- does not provide an immediate answer
- public email lists can send more than a reasonable amount of emails per day
- may contain off topic replies and may be offensive to some

[discussion boards]
pros
- can post pictures
- posts can be formatted and more visual
- groups can be more specific
cons
- you have to login to read some discussion boards
- does not provide an immediate answer
- discussion boards are kept on one server and can go down for a variety of circumstances

Are there certain kinds of communication or purposes more suited to one than the other ?

[email list]
- easy to contact all members in one go and quickly

[discussion boards]
- allow pic’s to be posted and formatting of text
- you can post and view via web browser software such as IE or FireFox

Information from
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/newsgroup1.htm