I’ve been working on an idea since last Fall, and it’s finally just about ready. It would have been ready this evening, except this is a holiday weekend. But I can’t wait to let you know about what it is:
True Business
True Milestone: Issue #666 Special
I started getting notes last month about whether I had “special plans” for issue #666. “Not that the number actually means anything, but it tickles me to have noticed the landmark,” noted one, Jordan in S.A., Australia.
Christmas, Premium Issues, and Independent Content
Typically, around Christmastime, I send the Premium edition of True to the free edition readers.
That’s Not Funny!
Now and then a reader will write to say they’re outraged by a story — that it’s “not humorous.”
Should Readers be Exempt?
My conversational style brings lots of response from readers. Usually, that response is intelligent, thoughtful, and sometimes even very entertaining. Now and then, the response is stupid, ill-thought-out, and sometimes even very entertaining. While I obviously love the first kind, it’s a lot more fun to deal with the second type.
True: It’s Not for Everyone
Some people even whine when I say maybe they wouldn’t like to upgrade. Really.
Here’s what I said in last week’s newsletter:
Professional Thieves
The 11 December issue was reruns from 1995 since I was down with the flu. One of those stories was this one (which dealt with trying to embarrass journalists into better writing so there aren’t so many errors in the paper). It was only the second “rerun column” ever in 11-1/2 years of weekly True issues.
Got GOOHFy
I think it’s an obvious concept, but Richard in (I think) Connecticut writes:
Live Free or Whine
After seeing my note from last week, and then seeing a paid ad for the Free State Project in True, Tim in New Hampshire wrote to complain:
True’s Ten Year Anniversary
This week’s issue marks a milestone: True’s Ten-Year Anniversary! It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years, since I feel like I’m just getting started.
When Taking Becomes Stealing
Free subscriptions. A free RSS feed. Free content for web sites with a new story every day. But for some people, it’s not enough: it pains me that some want more and more, and can’t abide by the simple rules in True’s Terms of Service in exchange for so much free stuff.
It’s a GOOHFy World
“You’ve caused a notable effect on cultural consciousness.” — that’s what one of True‘s readers said, one of hundreds and hundreds of you who wrote to say that Mike Peters’ popular Mother Goose & Grimm comic strip featured a “Get Out of Hell Free” card.
Self-Promotion and Other Funding Sources
True’s readers are a passionate bunch. Stephanie in Minnesota writes:
To URL, or Not to URL: That Was the Question
I did a test of including the URLs (when available) for every story in last week’s Premium edition, and asked readers to give me feedback: did they like it? Hate it? Or…?
Not Just Dumb, But Hella Dumb
When reviewing the logs for my autoresponders I sometimes find people arguing with them, even though the messages they get clearly say that they are an automatic response to the email they sent. I thought you’d like to see an example.
Rocket Science?
I personally assign very great value to “job satisfaction.” I mean, I’m a space nerd — I grew up watching the astronauts skipping on the moon — and managed to get onto the engineering staff of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, working 10 years there before I quit to devote full time to This is True.
Reduce, Reuse — Then Recycle
On Friday, we finally caught up with the pre-orders for the reprints of Volume 1 of the True book collection. One recipient complained: “I was bummed that my books came packaged with Styrofoam ‘peanuts’. I can’t believe that any world-conscious business would buy those dang things and pollute our planet! Can’t you use something else? There is a new product out that uses recycled newspapers, for instance.”
Steve Wozniak: a Satisfied True Reader
(Updated: See below.)
Stealing is Still Stealing, Even if It’s Easy
There has been a disturbing increase in theft online lately, of True and other material.
Niche Masters Who Can Kill You
by Randy Cassingham, Founder, This is True Presented to The Online News Summit II* Washington, D.C., May 19, 1998 Copyright 1998 by Randy Cassingham, All Rights Reserved. Megatrends author John Naisbitt coined the phrase “Global Paradox,” which he says is, “The bigger the world economy, the more powerful its smallest players.” In Online Media, the Global Paradox … Continue Reading