Directory Format

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Title:

The title will give an introduction to what the mailing list/factsheet is about. The title along with the subject it is indexed in will give you information to help you make a decision about subscribing.

Examples of Mailing List titles:

"Building, maintaining or administering a WWW site"

"Discussion list for Model railroad hobbyists"

"The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche"

Examples of Factsheet titles:

"Reducing salt in your diet"

"Landscaping ideas for your front yard"

"Recipe: Salmon with Pears, Apples and Limes"

Format:

Possible Types for this Section:

Mailing List: Mailing list that you can participate on until you unsubscribe. Mailing lists are forums that allow people to discuss similar interests with large audiences. You can also receive various announcements, news, electronic journals, and more.

Factsheet: Factsheet that you will receive one time, until you request it again. Unlike mailing lists, factsheets are not sent to you on a continuous basis. A factsheet is a one time transmission of information on a particular subject.

Frequently Asked Questions: Frequently asked questions (FAQ) that you will receive one time, until you request it again. A FAQ is a useful guide for new members of mailing lists. It helps to answer a new users questions so current members of the mailing list do not have to see redundant messages constantly reappear from new members.

Mailing List/Factsheet: Classified as both a mailing list and a Factsheet. You can either receive it once as a factsheet, or subscribe to its mailing list and receive it continuously.

Digest Available: The mailing list has a digest available. A digest is a collection of messages from the mailing list that are sent out to you in an "electronic newsletter". They are either sent out when the number of stored messages reaches a certain file size, or after a certain time limit. Depending on list activity, a digest could be received daily or weekly. Advantage: helps keep your email organized. Helps save you money if your on-line service charges for incoming mail. Disadvantage: you do not receive messages as they are sent out.

Moderated: The mailing list is moderated. All messages will first be reviewed by a person, the moderator. The moderator decides which messages will be sent out to the members on the mailing list. Advantage: the moderator filters out the redundant and unrelated mail. Disadvantage: since moderators are volunteering their time, messages might take some time to be sent out to the members on the mailing list.

Unmoderated: The mailing list is unmoderated. All messages will automatically be sent to all members on the mailing list. Advantage: resembles a "live" forum closer than a moderated mailing list. Disadvantage: you will receive all redundant and unrelated mail as well.

Examples: Format: Mailing List [Moderated] [Digest Available]
Format: Mailing List [UnModerated]
Format: Factsheet

Language:

Optional field. If present, this field will display cases where English is not the only language (about 20 lists) or where English is not supported at all (about 10 lists).

Example: Language: English & German

Subscription Address:

The subscription address is Hyperlinked. If your WWW browser supports mail, this address will appear in your mailer's "Mail To" option after selecting this hyperlink. Over 1,200 of the sites use the major programs to manage their mailing lists, such as LISTSERV, Majordomo, and Mailserv, to name a few. The remaining sites are run with other programs or without such programs.

Example: Subscription Address: majordomo@location

Subscription Method:

This field will describe what should be included in your mailer's subject and/or body. If "Ask for Subscription" is present, this indicates that the list is managed by a person and not by software. In this case you should include a message asking to added to their list.

Examples: Subscription Method: Body = SUBSCRIBE LISTNAME first-name last-name
Subscription Method: Subject = SUBSCRIBE
Subscription Method: Body = Ask for subscription

Owner/Moderator:

Optional field. The owner/moderator address is Hyperlinked. If your WWW browser supports mail, this address will appear in your mailer's "Mail To" option after selecting this hyperlink. Along with this address will be the owner's/moderator's name if available.

Example: Owner/Moderator: listowner@location Ken WebAddict

FTP Address:

Optional field. The FTP address is Hyperlinked. There are over 5,500 entries with associated File Transfer Protocol (FTP) addresses.

Example: FTP Address: ftp://location/directory/

WWW Address:

Optional field. The WWW address is Hyperlinked. There are over 4,000 entries with associated World Wide Web (WWW) addresses.

Examples: WWW Address: http://location/directory/document.html
WWW Address: gopher://location/

Newsgroup:

Optional field. The Newsgroup address is Hyperlinked. There are over 400 entries with associated Newsgroup addresses in the news: format.

Example: Newsgroup: newsgroup.name

Keywords:

This field defines where the entry is indexed. Some entries can appear in more than one subject if appropriate.

Examples: Keywords: History
Keywords: Sports, Electronic Texts/Journals
Keywords: Software - MS Windows

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