Welcome to the This Week In Doctor Who List
(posted 5th Apr 2001, 1:33pm - TWIDW post #0001)

This is largely a test message, to make sure the group is working properly. As of this writing, I recognize all the names in the members section, so I don't need to go into a long description about the birth of the This Week column in 1998, the patience of the readers during the early months, the format, etc. By the time I'd expect to have a large number of new readers who might want that information, the main TWIDW site should be up, and will handle those details.

What this group will do:

1. Provide instantaneous distribution of the This Week In Doctor Who column when it goes out Friday mornings (Eastern US Time)
2. Carry announcements of surprise schedule changes, big developments, etc.
3. Allow for reader polls on issues
4. Anyone can sign up for the group

What this group will not do:

1. Cover Doctor Who fandom in general. I don't have the resources to try duplicating the Doctor Who Alliance (http://www.drwhoalliance.com/ ), nor would I wish to try.
2. Be a discussion group. I intend to launch a discussion group in a few months, as I think a place to discuss Doctor Who on TV in the past, present, and future would be very useful. But this group will be strictly read-only, for info purposes.
3. Become the sole distribution point for the column. This Week In Doctor Who will still go out to rec.arts.drwho , Outpost Gallifrey, Nitro-9, The Wolves Of Fenric, and the Varos website. The column began in the rec.arts.drwho newsgroup, while Shaun, Siobahn, Roger, and Jason have done a great deal to help nurture it by including it on their sites. I look forward to continuing to provide This Week wherever it will be useful.

If there are any questions or concerns, please contact me at thisweekindoctorwho-owner@yahoogroups.com . And look for the next issue of This Week tomorrow morning.

Benjamin F. Elliott
This Week In Doctor Who