Obtaining Text Version of BList

Obtaining the Plain Text Version of the BList via E-mail
The plain text version of this hypertext document is available via e-mail in two formats: as an ASCII text file or as a attached zipfile. To obtain a plain text version of BLIST via e-mail, type the line GET BLIST INFO in the body of an e-message, and send it to LISTSERV@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU

Please note that the plain text version of BLIST is a very long file, so if your ISP has imposed a size limit on incoming e-messages, you may receive a blank e-message, a truncated e-message, an error message, or no response at all. You may, therefore, want to retrieve an index of the lists contained in BLIST, rather than the entire list.

To receive a list of the lists contained in the latest revision of BLIST type the line: GET BLIST SHORT in the BODY of an e-message, and send it to: LISTSERV@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU

Keep in mind, however, that you can always retrieve the zipfile, blist.zip, which contains the plain text version of BLIST via anonymous ftp from the /pub/poehlman directory at ftp://ftp.clark.net or via telnet from the "Blindness-Related Information" file library of NFBNet, which is located at telnet://nfbnet.org

Obtaining Roger Myers' List of Blindness-Related Mailing Lists Via E-mail
To obtain the latest version of Roger Myers' list of blindness-related e-mailing lists via e- mail, send an e-message to: LISTSERV@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU In the body of your e-message, type: get maillist info or get maillist info blindfam The list is kept in the archives of the BLINDFAM e-mailing list and is updated monthly, or as needed.

Liszt: A Searchable Directory of E-mail Discussion Groups
Liszt is the largest searchable directory of e-mail lists, containing listings for (at last count) 53,988 listserv, listproc, majordomo, and independently managed lists from 1,803 sites. The following list of terms illustrates the range of valid queries recognized by Liszt. Valid Queries: baseball baseball texas b*ball or f*ball html or java or "cgi" india not indiana "bad art" "art" not (rock or game or tattoo) Liszt's URL is: http://www.liszt.com

Vivian Neou's List of Lists
Located at http://catalog.com/vivian/interest-group-search Vivian Neou's "List of Lists" is an excellent directory of special interest group e-mailing lists. An ASCII version of "List of Lists" is available via ftp from ftp://sri.com/netinfo/interest-groups.txt The ASCII version of the "List of Lists" is also available via e-mail.

To receive a copy of the directory via e-mail, send an e-message to: mail-server@sri.com In the body of the e-message, type: send interest-groups The ASCII directory is extremely long, however, so if your ISP places a size limit on incoming e-mail, you may not receive the entire list, or - worse - you may receive an empty e-message!

The Global List of Public LISTSERVs
There are two ways to obtain a list containing the e-addresses of public LISTSERV- administered e-mailing lists. The easiest is through the web, using CataList, which is located at: http://www.lsoft.com/lists/listref.html The global list is also available via e- mail. However, there are currently 9,147 public LISTSERV lists in existence, and a full listing would result in a file more than 27,500 lines long - an estimated 918k of data. Therefore, it is not possible to obtain a single e-message containing a complete listing of all the public LISTSERV-administered lists in the world.

Thus, if you do not have web access or prefer to receive this information via e-mail, it is necessary that you tailor your query by using a search string. For example, if you wanted to query the Global List of Public LISTSERVs for all of the LISTSERV-administered lists pertaining to blindness, you would send the following command: LIST GLOBAL BLIND to the following e-address: LISTSERV@SEARN.SUNET.SE Multiple requests, such as: LIST GLOBAL BLIND LIST GLOBAL DISABIL are also valid.

When composing a query, it is important to remember that:

1. Only part of a word is necessary to execute a search. The term "BLIND," for example, will return lists centered on blindness as well as those that discuss venetian blinds and the band Blind Melon.
2. Search terms must be at least three characters long.
3. The software that executes the search does not recognize wildcards. If you attempt to execute a search using a wildcard, such as an asterisk, you will receive an error message. Keep in mind that, depending on the search terms you submit, your query may result in an enormous e-message. If your ISP has imposed a size limit on incoming e-messages, you may receive either a blank e-message, a truncated e- message, or no e-message at all, and you will have to resubmit a query using a more specific search term.