Gathering information

[anand84]

Well, can we put in here all possible sources of information from which we can build pages for our site. We may have passion about things, but I feel unable to find topic on my theme to write about. One idea is forums. Can somebody post other possible sources as well.

[treeline]

Email listservers.
Magazines. They have glossy pictures for inspiration.
Other websites in a different industry. If your thing is bicycles, look at what the truck and motorcycle guys are doing.
Yahoo's "Odd News" section.

[anand84]

Hi treeline

can you elaborate on email listservers? I did not get that..

[treeline]

Mailing lists.

Sometimes referred to as majordomo or listservers after the software that runs them. They exist for every imaginable subject. Basically, you submit your email address, and email starts arriving from all over the world on that subject. Some lists are moderated, some only allow members to post, and some are wide open. Sort of the email cousin of forums.

There's a lot of good give and take between participants, but there can also be annoying drivel. Any of this could inspire a good article.

Common questions asked (solutions are usually quickly supplied) just beg for an article with a clever title.

[jimbeetle]

Treeline mentioned magazines. We're lucky to have quite a few very large magazine stores in NYC and I head over to one whenever I need a bit of inspiration. If there are any number of folks interested in a topic it seems like there's a 'zine for it.

And if there's a magazine for a topic, you can bet there are some associations. A [keyphrase site:.org] search can turn up troves of information and contacts. And don't forget the .gov and .edu tlds for some specific types of info.