Technical Writer List Frequently Asked Questions

Participating the Techwr-L email discussion group is pretty painless.  We've compiled the answers to the most common questions below.

What happens to the TECHWR-L Email Discussion List now that the Community Forums are live?

We have no plans to integrate the systems due to a design flaw in the Forums email delivery system. The two systems will run separately. Those who prefer email on our TECHWR-L Email List and those who prefer online using the new Community Forums

Will my email discussions be recorded and public in an archive?

Yes, all email discussions are part of our public archive which is located on this website.  We have well over 300,000 different discussions available to Google, Bing, Duck-Duck-Go, and any web crawler that wants to index us.  We share these questions so that others who have the same question can easily find the answer. 

How do I subscribe to TECHWR-L?

Send a message (content and subject do not matter) to: . When you receive the confirmation email, follow the instructions in that email to complete the process. If you do not receive a confirmation email, contact us.

How do I unsubscribe?

Send a message (with any or no content) to: When you receive the confirmation email, follow the instructions in that email to complete the process. If you do not receive a confirmation email, contact us.

How do I post messages to the TECHWR-L list?

Send a message to:

Please note that the first postings from a new member are moderated. This helps reduce the "post and go" spam issues, and also catch some messages that people didn't really intend to post. Even if you've been on the list for years, but you've changed your address, postings will be moderated--the server has no way to know that you're the same person after a change of email address. We are not informed of who adds or leaves the list so if you do change your address, please contact us and we'll update the system. We normally remove moderation after a week or so of posts for new members.

Send us a message with questions. Also note that messages sent to TECHWR-L are archived and are available to the public. Please take care not to send postings that you would rather not have associated with your email address.

How do I read TECHWR-L through a browser?

You can read TECHWR-L through the archive address at http://www.techwr-l.com/archives/.

How do I temporarily stop message delivery?

Send a message to . Include the command set delivery off  to stop message delivery, or set delivery on to restart delivery. You can put the command either the subject line or the body of the message. This is useful for keeping the volume of messages in your mailbox to a minimum when you will be away from your computer and email for any length of time (such as vacation or holidays). Contact us with any questions.

How do I change message delivery to Digest mode?

Send a message to . Include the command set digest plain or set digest mime (where each message is an attachment inside the message, along with a summary table of contents) to receive messages in digest form, or set digest off to receive individual messages. You can put the command either the subject line or the body of the message. Rather than get messages one at a time, you can get messages grouped together. On a moderately busy list, this typically means you get one email per day, although it may be more or less frequent depending upon the list. Contact us with any questions.

How do I avoid getting duplicate messages?

Send a message to . Include the command set duplicates off to stop duplicates of your messages from being sent, or set duplicates on to receive all copies of the messages. You can put the command either the subject line or the body of the message. One common reason you may get multiple copies of a mail is that you have used a "reply all" function to send mail to both the list and some number of individuals. You can set your subscription to check and see if you are in the To: or CC: lines of the message, and delivery one copy to you. Contact us with any questions.

How do I have a message removed from the archive?

One of the significant value that TECHWR-L provides to the community is a historical record of the issues and themes of the profession over the years, including the more interesting or contentious issues. As a general rule, postings are not removed from the archives. Please use care in your postings, and not to post messages that you might later regret. If there are significant extenuating circumstances with a specific posting, please contact us we'll work through some of the options.

How do I get help with my subscription?

Contact us and we'll do our best to help you.

Rules & Expectations • Frequently Asked Questions • Manage Subscription • Email Archives

About TechWhirl

TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.

For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.

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