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Email Discussion Groups

Many technical communicators keep their skills and their wits sharp by subscribing to one or more of the many email discussion group lists that have sprung up on the Internet. These lists range in size from a few dozen to two or three thousand members world-wide. They provide news and opinions and they offer list members the opportunity to express themselves. On the other hand, many technical communicators join lists merely to read the posts. They seldom if ever post themselves. These people are known as lurkers.

All lists follow a similar procedure for joining, and we make the process easier for you by providing an email template addressed to the appropriate computer. Typically, all you are required to do is put the word SUBSCRIBE and your name in the body of the message and send it. Do not add a subject line. Do not say please or thank you.

SUGGESTION. When you are accepted for membership in a list, the computer will send you a message with discussion group procedures on it. Create a special folder in your incoming email and put this message into it. If the day comes when you need to cancel your membership, you will want to refer to it.

Techwr-l (pronounced "tech-whirl"): Techwr-l (www.techwr-l.com) is the largest and certainly the oldest email group for technical writers. This is a general technical writing discussion list open to all pertinent topics. If you stray, you will hear from the list owner, Eric Ray. Visit their web site for more information about the list, or to subscribe.
HATT: The Help Authoring Tools & Technology eGroup is an on-topic online community for help authors and is the place to turn with your questions about online documentation. Features include a running archive that you can skim to locate your subject of interest. Mohawk Valley Chapter STC member Bill Swallow formed HATT in July of 2000, and it became the facility of choice when Humber College, which previously had hosted the popular WINHLP-L, found it no longer had the capacity to do so.
Subscribe via their web site (www.egroups.com/group/HATT). If you cannot access the site or only want to interact with the community via email, write hatt-subscribe@egroups.com.
WINHLP-L: See HATT above. Visit the WINHLP-L archives (www.documentation.com/archives/winhelp-l/winhelp-l.html).
Framers List: Majordomo@FrameUsers.com. For users of Adobe Frame Products. Message should read: subscribe Framers < your email address >. To receive the list in digest form, message should read: subscribe Framers-Digest < your email address >.
Utest List: Join via the Usability Professionals' Association web site (www.upassoc.org).
Copyediting-L: To subscribe, send a message to listserv@listserv.indiana.edu with this command on the first line of the body of the message: SUBSCRIBE COPYEDITING-L Firstname Lastname. "Firstname Lastname" is your real name. Do not add your email address or any other text.
Information Design: InfoDesign web site (www.informationdesign.org).
Information Design Cafe: InfoDesign-Cafe-request@list.design-inst.nl. Listowner is Yuri Englehart of Amersterdam. Members from Europe and the U.S. give it a Continental flavor. To subscribe, your message should read: subscribe.
STC Information Design SIG: majordomo@stc.org. For STC Information Design SIG members only. Message should read: subscribe stcidsig-l < your email address >

Online Resources

Email Discussion Groups

General Resources

GUI Design

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)

Indexing

Information Design

International Technical Communications

Intranets

JavaScript

Marketing Communications

Office Politics

Medical

Online Help

Presentations

Web Design

Extensible Markup Language (XML)