Rating: 
Summary: An Absolute Must Read If You Plan On Being Successful
Review: If you have not yet joined the E-Mail Publishing Revolution, I would suggest that you take a look at it. There is a great book on E-Mail Publishing available titled: Poor Richard's E-mail Publishing: Creating Newsletters, Bulletins, Discussion Groups, and Other Powerful Communication Tools. When I began The Machinist Information Exchange Web Site, I thought that if I built it they would come, like in the popular movie (The Field Of Dreams). Well guess what? They didn't! I knew immediately that I would have to do something differently. That is when The Machinist Information Exchange Newsletter came into being. I will be honest with you. I made very many mistakes in the beginning. I only wish that I would of had Chris's Book back then because it would have saved me a lot of grief. Now that I have read it I would have to say that it is an absolute must read if you plan on being successful on the internet and especially in e-mail publishing. This book at any price is money well spent and quite possibly the best investment you will ever make in your online business. The 362 page book is a paperback filled with detailed information, tips and useful URL links that will help you to be a success in your e-mail marketing campaign. It is very easy to understand and an interesting read. Chris stresses the ethical way of doing things and not only denounces the cancer of SPAM, which affects us all in a negative way, but tells you why it is bad for you and your business. Learn from the man that is a great success at doing what he is writing about. Chris Pirillo is the publisher of Lockergnome, one of the largest e-mail newsletters of all time. Book Review By Gary Pinson GPinson@yahoo.com
Rating:
Summary: Silicorn Savvy
Review: Mastering email publishing is like growing corn, to use an Iowa analogy. There are different kinds of each, different ways to "grow" them, various methods of determining the success of each and ways to produce hybrids to get better results. Making the e-mail publishing business work for you can be done two ways. You can go it alone and suffer the torture of trial and error, or you can avoid the stupid way and listen to everything our small-statured friend, Chris Pirillo has to say. Poor Richard's E-mail Publishing is THE book that speaks to the subject of producing an e-zine, newsletter or whatever else you plan to put out via internet e-mail. Taking someone else's advice and experiences to heart doesn't make you a copycat, it makes you smart. After all, taking a doctor's advice when you've hacked off a limb while harvesting the corn is a smart idea, right? When you open the front cover of this book, a bright shining light will emit from the pages. That's the Lockergnome's wisdom glowing from the pages within. Soak up the light of the first 4 chapters that cover the basics and guide you through what e-mail publishing is all about and what you need to get started right without offending your readers. The book next goes into the guts of e-publishing, covering topics such as managing a website alongside your newsletter, setting up your internet domain, how to handle subscriptions and the details of actually getting your newsletter out the door. The level of detail Chris provides is suitable for virtually anyone already familiar with how to simply send an email. That's nearly everybody these days! Once you're off the ground, you'll still need a little hand-holding to avoid the costly mistakes that many others have learned the brute-force way. Specifically, how to handle the various types of e-zines. Should you use plain text, HTML, a discussion group, etc.? These questions are answered, giving the pros and cons of each and into which situation each best fits. Ok, so you've learned everything there is about how to create a fantastic e-zine. Time to learn how you can benefit from all of this. If you do this simply to edify a particular topic, then you're done... happy e-mailing! Many, however, want to make a little cash on the side, or even start a new career in the e-mail publishing business. To do this, you'll need the help of professional list services and probably some advertising in your publication as well. Chris deftly dodges the flying bullets there too, showing you where to look, what to look for, and when to duck so bad practices, or crummy service offerings don't put you out of the game. The most engaging part of the book is the last 1/3 that is chock full of detailed experiences and advice from other successful e-mail publishers that Chris knows. Reading about how various operations have implemented what Chris explains throughout the book is invaluable. There are some fantastic ideas in there that are all meant to help you become the next Lockergnome! Is that all? Nope! The Appendices cover yet another 80 pages that list various service providers, software packages, e-mail applications, lists of other electronic publications and even fifty great e-publishing tips. The completeness and depth of the knowledge that Chris displays via Poor Richard's E-mail Publishing far outweighs what you could learn on your own, so buy this book if you're even half-serious about putting out an e-mail publication of some sort. You won't be sorry you did! -Furo
Rating:
Summary: Offers a Fresh and Exciting Perspective of E-mailing!
Review: Poor Richard's E-mail Publishing written by Chris Pirillo offers a fresh and exciting perspective of e-mailing that deserves our serious attention. Pirillo sets forth many compelling arguments for e-mail being oftentimes a superior form of marketing than elaborate Websites and newsgroup participation. He demonstrates throughout the book that members of the online community can share a variety of topic information with other persons online through this medium. Pirillo provides his readers with many fine examples of how e-mail can be used to provide instant publishing of information for a variety of reasons. Forms of e-mail publishing (e-publishing), discussed in the book includes special announcements, bulletins, discussion lists, newsletters, and press releases. These forms of communication can serve individuals, organizations, and companies in a variety of ways, such as keeping others informed of news, alerting them of problems, calling them to action, selling them a variety of merchandise, and pointing them to existing Websites for further information on any given matter. If we stop to consider just how many times we have received software update announcements from companies (I get plenty), online newsletters from special interest groups (I get a law newsletter), and news about new products from companies we do business with (I get new book lists from publishers), we can see that e-publishing can become a powerful marketing tool for any business, organization, or person. Pirillo spends a generous amount of time guiding his readers through the processes of creating newsletters and discussion lists, perhaps the two most popular forms of e-publishing. He advises his readers on many of the do's and don'ts of creating, managing, and promoting them. Coverage includes developing content, formatting, linking, advertising, partnering with others, and handling problem people who would abuse these broadcast mediums. Readers will learn from the personal examples provided in the book on how e-publishing can greatly benefit them. Pirillo suggests viewing a variety of newsletters and he provides a directory of e-publications at the back of the book for easy reference. These will suit the tastes of a wide range of personal interests and are representative of the kinds of publications we can create ourselves. He also provides listings of recommended software programs and services to get his readers up and running. This book is highly recommended for anyone desiring to promote an online or off-line business, a non-profit organization, or who simply want to share information about a particular topic. This book is easy to read, it's packed and highly informative, and it will enhance one's marketing efforts!
Rating:
Summary: Chris nails it!
Review: Real world experience and advice, told from the electronic trenches. Chris Pirillo does an amazing job with Lockergnome (his daily Windows newsletter). This book spares no details in how to publish a successful email newsletter.
Rating: 
Summary: "Poor Richard" communicates the fun of email publishing
Review: Say you want a volume that will teach you to build email communications with a regular audience - not just email marketing, but email newsletter publishing.
Poor Richard's Email Publishing isn't written by any Richard; it comes from the word processor of Chris Pirillo, known to many PC users for his Lockergnome newsletter of PC tips. Pirillo began using the Internet before www. was invented, and refuses to yield to the Web's flashy seductions. He titles his third chapter "Why E-mail? Little Glamor, Plenty of Results". And he doesn't yearn for email to succeed the Web as an electronic commerce nirvana. His target is the person with something to say, rather than something to sell. Pirillo's email argument is the same one made for "push technology" back in 1997, except that email's compelling in a way push wasn't. "Web pages rely on people to visit and revisit them," he explains. "E-mail messages will sit in your mail account and wait for you to retrieve them". The book works best for complete email newcomers. A lengthy primer will educate anyone who ever wondered what that Bcc: box does in their email software. Other chapters step you though configuring email accounts and teach you "How to Communicate without Spamming". And Pirillo happily admits to making errors; indeed, his book quietly chronicles his own development from email amateur to expert. So readers get a highly accessible volume. The same readers must remain ignorant about topics which Pirillo never spent time exploring. Many CGI scripts will let your server send your email newslettter. But Pirillo concentrates on dedicated list server software and list management service providers, which he used as his newsletter evolved. Other analytical gaps grate too: the effects and eccentricities of Web-based e-mail; the behaviours of the key Netscape and Microsoft mail clients; soliciting advertising to support your emails; the weaknesses of HTML email and the promise of the MHTML format (MIME Encapsulation of Aggregate HTML Documents), which will package the images up with the HTML email text. Poor Richard's E-mail Publishing, then, falls just short of being the comprehensive guide to email newsletter management. It succeeds, though, in a broader purpose: to tell of the excitement of communicating each day, week or month with an audience whose continuing attention tells you that you're helping them. Pirillo communicates this unique thrill well. But most readers new to mailing lists will gain greatest pleasure from reading the seven "Publishers' Stories", tales of email newsletter publication by everyone from Mercury Mail founder John Funk to Randy Cassingham, who every week collects and distributes bizarre news stories in the column called This Is True. Most of these people made mistakes, just like Pirillo; all of them had fun.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad, but not spectacular either
Review: The book did have some great tips and ideas, but it was also a bit too wordy and was aimed at a non-technical audience. If you are going to write an ezine, you should know the basics of e-mail and at least how to create a simple web page. But I can only imagine it was a very difficult task trying to write a book that everyone can benefit from, regardless of their level of geektitude. But overall I found the book to be very good, and I definetely like Chris's style. Chris did a nice job. I am definetely torn between 3 and 4 stars, but I have to go with four due to the fact that Chris obviously spent a great deal of time and really did try to have something for everyone in the book. I *DID* learn a lot from it, too, and I think that a lot of his advice was down to earth and practical. Definetely buy it, but remember it isn't a technical end all. I don't think you will be disappointed. Good Job Chris.
Rating:
Summary: A MUST READ for all potential e-publishers
Review: This book is cram packed with interesting and informative information about e-mail publishing. Chris' experience with Lockergnome was balanced and enhanced by the excellent chapters by other e-mail publishers. One of the key things for me was that the need to plan, utilise industry strength technology solutions and automate as many of the administration functions as possible right from the start. An excellent book. My copy has yellow highlighter marks all through it. It made great vacation reading (much to my wife's displeasure!!)
Rating: 
Summary: Poor Rehash of Poor Richard Trash
Review: This book was a poor excuse for a definitive guide. Poor Richard rehashes are...well....<yawn>...kind of like Sam's Publishing IT books being definitive guides on how to fix a network in 10 days.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't throw away your money
Review: This is truly a terrible book - very thin on usable content. Further, the author, Chris Pirillo, writes like a high school "valley girl." It is a prime example that the Internet allows anyone - despite how dumb they are - to venture, and in this case, publish their opinions. Don't waste you money. And for the author, become a cheerleader!
Rating:
Summary: Don't throw away your money
Review: This is truly a terrible book - very thin on usable content. Further, the author, Chris Pirillo, writes like a high school "valley girl." It is a prime example that the Internet allows anyone - despite how dumb they are - to venture, and in this case, publish their opinions. Don't waste you money. And for the author, become a cheerleader!
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