From: higgins@dorsai.org (John Higgins) Subject: Net-Letter Guide 7/10 Version: 1.4 Message-ID: Followup-To: alt.internet.services Last-Modified: 1994/07/10 Summary: Guide to interesting newsletters Organization: The Dorsai Embassy, New York, NY Date: Sun, 10 Jul 1994 21:15:40 GMT Archive-Name: newsletter-guide Lines: 346 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- -=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=NET-LETTER GUIDE-=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- -=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-= A newshound's guide to newsy periodicals available through the Internet. Updated July 10, 1994 Copyright 1994 John M. Higgins (higgins@dorsai.dorsai.org) All rights reserved. Additional copyright information at bottom. +Additions (usually stuff that's been around a while, but only recently discovered because I'm an idiot): +AIDS Information Newsletter; +AsiaInfo; +Bits And Bytes (misc. computers); BONG (journalism); +Education Policy Digest; +Legal Bytes (computer law); +Navnews (U.S. Navy); Patent News; Physics News Update; +Somalia News Update; +What's New (physics) Seeking info on: -=-=-=-=-=-=-THE BEST NET-LETTERS-=-=-=-=-=-=- Late Show News (TV); Fitz's ShopTalk (TV); Edupage (Infotech); Computer Underground Digest; AIDS Daily Summary; RFE/RL Daily Report (E. Europe) -=-=-=-=-=-=- WHY THE GUIDE?: My favorite things on the Internet are informative, high-quality newsletters. The quality of info contributed to what Mitch Kapor describes as the Net's "gift economy" is amazing. However, despite some excellent e-pub guides, tracking down good NEWSY letters can be frustrating because they get lost in the flood of zines and very technical pubs. So this list aims to point people to the news-oriented net-letters with somewhat broader appeal. It's not intended to be as comprehensive as other guides, but helpful nevertheless. The list is tremendously biased toward e-mail delivery. Very technical and fanzine newsletters are not included because they are well covered by other guides. Don't necessarily expect to find the latest, startup letters on this list. I'm starting to hold back on listing new publications until they demonstrate a consistent publishing schedule. Subscribing to a letter that fails to keep its promises is annoying; even it's free. If the net is indeed a community, even volunteers follow through on commitments. GIMME FEEDBACK!! This is just 40 or so encountered Gopher-trolling and from tips. Some are well-known, others are not. Send me your favorite net-letters, particularly if you're the editor. Include any subscription and archive information. HOW TO GET THE NET-LETTER GUIDE: E-mail (higgins@dorsai.dorsai.org; SUBSCRIBE NET-LETTER); Usenet (alt.zines, alt.etext, misc.writing, rec.mag, alt.internet.services, and the *.answers groups). Fishing for other arrangements. (Any volunteers?) Far more exhaustive lists of electronic publications include: *The E-Zine-List by John Labovitz: FTP (etext.archive.umich.edu: pub/Zines/e-zine-list); Gopher (etext.archive.umich.edu: Zines/e-zine-list); WWW (http://www.ora.com:8080/johnl/e-zine-list/). *The giant e-pub archive: (ftp.etext.org; gopher.etext.org; www.etext.org) *Factsheet Five-E; Gopher (gopher.well.sf.ca.us). ---------------------------------Media-------------------------------- FITZ'S SHOPTALK: Daily dispatches on the TV business, both networks and local stations by media headhunter Don FitzPatrick. Primarily summaries of wire-service and major newspapers, but also includes some full-text reprints. Fairly short. How to get it: E-mail (shoptalk-request@gremlin.clark.net, SUBSCRIBE YOUR@ADDRESS). LATE SHOW NEWS: A guy who obviously stays up way too late puts out a weekly newsletter on the late-night talk show wars. It's biased toward Letterman but contains surprisingly good industry dirt on Leno, Conan, etc. (even for those of us writing about television for a living). Short. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@mcs.net; SUBSCRIBE LATE-SHOW-NEWS YOUR@ADDRESS), Usenet (alt.fan.letterman and rec.arts.tv), FTP (ftp.mcs.net:/mcsnet.users/barnhart/letterman). +BONG -- The official newsletter of the Burned-Out Newspapercreatures Guild which appears to consist of a single witty and bitterly cynical Dayton Daily News reporter. Sample commentary on today's headlines: "So how come Nicole Simpson's dog, and the renter of her ex-husband O.J. Simpson's guest house, were both named Cato?" Short. How to get it: E-mail: (bong-l@netcom.com; SUBSCRIBE BONG-L YOUR NAME) ARTNEWS: Synopsis of the print media's coverage of the art world, collectors, museums, artists, art and government. Very promising, but suffering multiple startup glitches. Be patient, or wait until August to subscribe. How to get it: E-mail (artnews-request@arttrak.metronet.com; SUBSCRIBE). CABLE REGULATION DIGEST: Weekly summary of news on cable regulation published by Multichannel News. Moderate length. How to get it: E-Mail, distributed to the TELECOMREG mailing list. (listserver@relay.adp.wisc.edu, SUBSCRIBE TELECOMREG YOUR NAME); FTP (ftp.vortex.com:pub/tv-film-video/cable-reg); Gopher (gopher.vortex.com) SKYGUIDE: This monthly's from a Brit who doubtless watches too much TV. The Euro cable and satellite television scene. Concentrates on BSkyB but also romps off onto the continent. How to get it: E-mail (bignoise@cix.compulink.co.uk; SUBSCRIBE SKYGUIDE YOUR@ADDRESS), Usenet {preferred!} (alt.satellite.tv.europe). SATNEWS: Bi-weekly on satellite television broadcasting worldwide. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@tqmcomms.co.uk; SUBSCRIBE SATNEWS YOUR NAME); Usenet (rec.video.satellite). SATELLITE JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL: One issue featured usual sat news plus an Iranian cleric's "fatwah" banning home dishes and how Pakistanis evade government censoring of Miss Universe pagent broadcasts. Fairly short. How to get it: Usenet (rec.video.satellite); FTP (itre.uncecs.edu: /pub/satellite/sj); WWW (http://itre.uncecs.edu/misc/sj/sj.html) SATELLITE NEWS DESK: Yet another satellite TV letter. The surprising thing is that they're all pretty high quality. Headline news from British satellite newsletter Transponder. Moderate length. How to get it: E-mail (editor@trponder.win-uk.net) CYBER-SLEAZE: Overhyped and a bit tedious, Cyber-Sleaze is composed of low-grade gossip and put out by former MTV VJ Adam Curry. This address may not be good for long (since Curry's being sued by MTV for trademark infringement). Short, thankfully. How to get it: E-mail (csleaze@mtv.com) ------------------------------Infotech-------------------------------- EDUPAGE: Tasty tip sheet on information technology and media issued three times weekly. Quickie summaries primarily of newspaper articles, primarily from the majors. Moderate length. How to get it: E-Mail (listproc@educom.edu; SUB EDUPAGE YOUR NAME). CYBERWIRE DISPATCH: Very high quality coverage of the Internet and cyberspace, particularly looking at the various miscreants tromping around the net. Editor Brock Meeks (a real reporter for Communications Daily in civilian life) became famous by getting sued for libel by a "make.money.fast"-type. But will SOMEONE get this man a listerver? At the very least post it to Usenet. Short. How to get it: E-mail on the Com-Priv mailing list (comp-privacy-request@pica.army.mil; SUBSCRIBE COM-PRIV); Gopher (gopher.well.sf.ca.us) HOTT: Hot Off The Tree re-emerged with a lot of self-hype promising articles on latest advances in computer, communications, and electronics technologies. Great stuff, but only part one of the first gigantic issue arrived here and and one of the principals hasn't responded to several e-mail messages. Oh well... How to get it: E-mail (listserv@ucsd.edu; SUBSCRIBE YOUR@ADDRESS HOTT-LIST). +BITS AND BYTES -- Good computer miscellanea. But why do so many publications grab stuff from Edupage? On the long side. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@acad1.dana.edu; SUBSCRIBE BITS-N-BYTES); FTP (ftp.dana.edu: /periodic; Gopher (gopher.dana.edu: Electronic Journals). NETWORKS & COMMUNITY: The emphasis here is on "community" in Internet-land. Short and less techie than you might expect. Too much excerpting from other net sources, particularly Edupage. How To Get It: E-Mail (rre-request@weber.ucsd.edu; SUBSCRIBE YOUR NAME) Gopher: (gopher.well.sf.ca.us or gopher.nlc-bnc.ca). COM NET NEWS: Newly-launched letter on community networking -- as in public access on the highway -- by a technology market research guy. Not very newsy, but thoughtful. Fairly short. How to get it: E-Mail (contact rbryant@hydra.unm.edu). PRIVACY FORUM: Tidbits about threats to privacy from government snoops to credit agencies. Good commentary. Moderate length. How to get it: E-Mail(privacy-request@vortex.com); FTP {ftp.vortex.com}; Gopher {gopher.vortex.com}. COMPUTER UNDERGROUND DIGEST: The latest news on cyberspace issues. CUD's best when screaming about the latest hacker or BBS raid, good when picking apart government policy issues. And give 'em credit, they haven't reprinted the entire agenda for some upcoming computer conference (YAWN!!!) in a few months. Moderate length. How to get it: E-Mail (listserv@vmd.cso.uiuc.edu, SUB CUDIGEST YOUR NAME); Usenet (comp.society.cu-digest); FTP (etext.archive.umich.edu: /pub/CuD/; or ftp.eff.org: pub/Publications/CuD). EFFECTOR: The Electronic Frontier Foundation's membership newsletter, great for telecom policy updates. Short How to get it: E-mail: send request to brown@eff.org; FTP (ftp.eff.org); Usenet: {preferred!~} (comp.org.eff); Gopher (gopher.eff.org). RISKS FORUM: Tidbits about the risks computers present in society. One edition touched on industrial espionage, data escape from prison, and a strange tale of e-mail stalking. Moderate length. How to get it: E-mail (risks-request@csl.sri.com); Usenet {preferred!} (comp.risks); FTP (crvax.sri.com). CURRENT CITES: A monthly letter for library technology, composed of pointers to magazine articles. On the dry side, partly because of its format. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@library.berkeley.edu; SUB CITES YOUR NAME); FTP: (ftp.lib.berkeley.edu:/pub/Current.Cites). --------------------------------Policy-------------------------------- +LEGAL BYTES -- A strong review of computer law issues by Austin law firm George, Donaldson & Ford. The big snag is it only comes out quarterly, so don't expect the latest news. Long. How to get it: E-mail (gdf@well.sf.ca.us) RACHEL'S HAZARDOUS WASTE NEWS: Good but lengthy weekly letter from the Environmental Research Foundation. (Who's Rachel?) How to get it: E-mail (erf@igc.apc.org; include name, phone # plus e-mail AND postal addresses. Fund-raising pitch to follow, no doubt.); FTP (ftp.std.com: /periodicals/rachel) Gopher (gopher.std.com) DAILY REPORT CARD: A great summary of news in K-12 education. Very newsy. Recently cut back to thrice-weekly and comes out of the National Education Goals Panel. How To Get It: E-Mail (listserv@gwuvm.gwu.edu; SUBSCRIBE RPTCRD YOUR NAME). +EDUCATION POLICY DIGEST: Put out by educational publisher Scholastic Inc., EDPOL addressing edu-politics, aimed primarily at teachers. Not bad. How to get it: E-mail (listproc@scholastic.com; SUBSCRIBE EDPOL-D YOUR NAME) CHOICE-NET REPORT: This sort-of-weekly comes of the California Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League-North, culled from clips and announcements. Short and pretty good stuff. So far, they've kept it very newsy (Who needs preachy?). How To Get It: E-Mail (dtv@well.com; SUBSCRIBE CHOICE-NET); Gopher: (gopher.well.sf.ca.us); Usenet (alt.activism, talk.abortion, soc.women). INFORMATION POLICY ONLINE: Counterprogramming the privacy advocates, IPO come from the Information Industry Association and covers legislation regarding government restriction on information. Too little real news, too many items about the direct mail industry's lobbying. But a welcome counterpoint to the net's generally one-sided privacy debates. (I'm a reporter; I WANT your driving records!) Moderate length. How to get it: E-Mail (iiaipo-request@his.com; SUBSCRIBE YOUR NAME) TRADE WEEK -- Digest of newspaper and magazine stories on international trade by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Strong, brief overview. Also publishes companion letter on NAFTA. How to get it: E-Mail (kmander@igc.apc.org; SUBSCRIBE TRADE-WEEK YOUR@ADDRESS) +NAVNEWS: The Navy News Service is an internal newsletter published by the U.S. Navy. News-lite, properly sanitized for the troops. One issue discussed consideration of a 2.6% pay increase, a program track for seamen to rise to the rank of admiral, and how one ship finally introduced pay phones at sea. Moderate length. How to get it: E-mail (navnews@opnav-emh.navy.mil; SUBSCRIBE YOUR@ADDRESS; Gopher (marvel.loc.gov; Government Information/Federal Information Resources/Information by Agency/Military Agencies) ----------------------------Science/medicine-------------------------- +PHYSICS NEWS UPDATE: Digest of physics news items from the American Institute of Physics. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@aip.org; SUBSCRIB YOUR NAME) +WHAT'S NEW: News, mostly tracking government research funding, compiled by The American Physical Society. Sample headline: "DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE BEGINS SHOOTING HOSTAGES!" Short and good stuff. From:whatsnew@apsedoff.bitnet +PATENT NEWS SERVICE -- More news wire than newsletter, this is an excellent service on patents, both regular news bulletins and lists of new patents. How to get it: E-mail (patents@world.std.com; HELP) AIDS DAILY SUMMARY: A great clipping service from the Center For Disease Control, the kind of stuff Internet cheerleaders can brag about (because it's about the real world, not just insular cyberspace). High volume. How to get it: E-mail (ben@maggadu.queernet.org; SUBSCRIBE DAILY SUMMARY YOUR@ADDRESS); Usenet (sci.med.aids). +AIDS INFORMATION NEWSLETTER: A lengthy, technical bi-weekly put out by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs AIDS Information Center in San Fransisco. Known on usenet as the VAMC Newsletter. Good quality, but needs a listserver. How to get it: Gopher (gopher.niaid.nih.gov; VA AIDS Information Newsletter; Usenet (sci.med.aids) HICNet MEDICAL NEWS DIGEST: Something painless from a dentist. Broad bi-weekly newsletter on medicine by Health Info-Com Network, put together by dentist David Dodell. One week featured sleep apnea and snoring plus hemlock (!) The downside is conference announcements (OK, on things like techniques for identifying corpses, but they're still conference announcements!). How To Get It: E-Mail (mednews@stat.com); FTP:(vm1.nodak.edu). RSI NETWORK NEWSLETTER: For and by victims of repetitive stress injury (e.g. carpal tunnel syndrome). How to get it: E-Mail (majordomo@world.std.com; SUBSCRIBE RSI); FTP and Gopher (world.std.com:/pub/rsi). CFS-NEWS: Chronic fatigue syndrome sufferers. Moderate length. How To Get It: E-Mail (listserv@list.nih.gov; SUB CFS-NEWS YOUR NAME). LYMENET: Launched to rise above Usenet flame wars, LymeNet Newsletter explores research and treatment of Lyme disease, a mysterious and fairly disabling disease prevelant in the Northeast. Moderate length. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@Lehigh.edu; SUBSCRIBE LYMENET-L YOUR NAME); Usenet (sci.med); FTP (ftp.Lehigh.edu: /pub/listserv/ lymenet-l/Newsletters). NASA DAILY: NASA and other space news. How to get it: E-mail (pds-listserver@space.mit.edu; SUBSCRIBE YOUR NAME); Gopher (world.std.com:News); WWW (http://delcano.mit.edu/) -------------------------------Foreign News----------------------------- +ASIAINFO HEADLINE DAILY NEWS -- Daily offering 30-40 headlines from Asian markets plus 3-5 brief articles. The business-oriented headline service is bait to lure $$$ subscriptions for a full news report. (A great idea!) The free version is a good sampler, but so-so as a stand-alone pub. How to get it: E-mail (listserv@asiainfo.com; SUB HEADLINE Your Name) RFE/RL DAILY REPORT: News on Eastern Europe popped out by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Very cool, but heavy volume. How to get it: E-Mail (listserv@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu; SUBSCRIBE RFERL-L YOUR NAME). CHINA NEWS DIGEST: Very active news service on China and various ex-pat communities in several flavors: Global (daily), US, Canada, Europe & Pacific, and a magazine in some Chinese dialect. High volume. How to get it: E-Mail (cnd-info@cnd.org; INFO) +SOMALIA NEWS UPDATE -- Irregularly published but good; comes out of Sweeden. How to get it: E-mail (bernhard.helander@antro.uu.se and ask nicely) BANGLADESH NEWS DIGEST: Newsy compilation with clips from publications and Reuters plus summaries of BBC World Service and Radio Netherlands. Much better than the more common digested newsgroups. How to get it: E-mail (dwright@metz.une.edu.au) -=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=- Copyright 1994 John M. Higgins. This list may be redistributed provided that the article and this notice remain intact. This article may not under any circumstances be resold or redistributed for compensation of any kind without prior written permission from John M. Higgins. That includes publication by magazine or CD-ROM. But if you're interested, talk to me. --30--