Technical Writers' Mailing Lists

The TWIN (Technical Writers of India) mailing list has crossed 1,000. As the founder and owner, I wanted to stop the list a few years ago when it had touched 675, because I was afraid it would touch 1,000 within a few months. I had other reasons for wanting to stop the list. But the voice of the members prevailed and I handed over the list to the current owner. Why did I start the list? Well, I saw that Indian technical writers (and others), were making a fool of themselves on Techwhirl (a list with around 4,000 members then, today perhaps it has 8,000) and other lists. A professor from a reputed institute in Bangalore had asked about a problem of printing on the list. I was embarrassed. I said, why not restrict this ignominy to ourselves and started the TWIN list.

Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2003). Articles>Writing>Mailing Lists>Technical Writing

TECHWR-L: A History and Case Study of a Profession-Specific Listserv List    

Until Spring 1993, technical communicators had few Internet resources of their own. They could find common ground in forums oriented toward specific word processing programs and other tools of the trade, but they had no place to discuss profession-specific, rather than tool-specific, issues. TECHWR-L was founded that spring, and the growth, development, and response to the list has been remarkable. Most significant, however, is the effect that TECHWR-L has had on individual technical communicators worldwide. It demonstrates that the Internet can and should be used to provide more focused and comprehensive resources to technical communicators in the future. This case study outlines the growth and development of TECHWR-L, discusses some of the more controversial aspects of the list, and outlines how TECHWR-L or some other focused forum could prove an even more valuable resource for the profession.

Ray, Eric J. Technical Communication Online (1996). Articles>Collaboration>Mailing Lists>Technical Writing