Odds are, you found out about This is True when a friend forwarded a copy to you with a suggestion that you subscribe. That is the main way we grew to a six-figure readership in over 200 countries. Like many small e-mail publications, our growth is down now that "the big guys" have discovered -- thanks to the very success of us "little guys" -- just how powerful e-mailed publications can be. They have huge ad budgets (provided by venture capital, not profits) to make them grow.

I'd like to ask you to return the favor of that friend who referred you to True: please tell your friends about us! You can forward a copy of one of the free issues with your recommendation, or just send them a note. And don't just tell them about True, but any other small e-publications you like. Some of the independent lists I like (links open up in new windows):

• I know Bob Rankin. Bob Rankin is a friend of mine. I'm no Bob Rankin. He and Patrick Crispen take turns driving the Internet Tourbus, introducing "riders" to interesting web sites. Stops include debunked myths, neat utilities, and more.

• Nerdy tipsheets? Yeah, we've got tips for you: Chris Pirillo's LockerGnome is filled with them, plus utility programs and shortcuts for Microsoft Windows users. On the Macintosh side, Adam Engst's TidBITS is a must-see. For MS Word and Excel, try WordTips and ExcelTips, both by Allen Wyatt.

• ResearchBuzz, Tara Calishain's weekly news on search engines and how to get the most out of them. Tara also does PR Bop, calling your attention to wacky press releases.

• You've heard of David Letterman's "Top Ten" lists? His lists really have 10 items on them. Chris White's Top 5 usually has a dozen or more, and they're often funnier than what Dave's TV writers can come up with -- mainly because it's T5 readers who provide the categories and the list items.

• Need family-friendly places to surf? Barbara Feldman's Surfing the Net with Kids reviews sites and offers pointers for giving your kids places to go that will have a positive influence.

• World Wide Words, Michael Quinion's exploration of the English language (and, sometimes, its weirdness -- a must-read if you're a word nut).

• Internet publishing veterans Jim & Audri Lanford offer several publications of interest. In particular, Internet ScamBusters helps you avoid online come-ons, and Your Inspirational Quote is what you'd expect.

  and...

• HeroicStories features short, inspiring, non-religious stories of cool people doing cool stuff. It's a nice contrast to the people you read about in True: dumb people doing dumb stuff! Created by (but no longer published by) Randy Cassingham.

Please be sure to support independent publications, and the best way you can do that is by spreading the word about us. You don't really want all your information and entertainment coming from Microsoft, Ziff Davis and AOL-Time Warner, do you?

Want More? Check out the archive of Randy's Bonzer Web Sites of the Week. A regular feature in True, the Bonzer site is usually a small, independent effort.

(If you publish a large -- at least several thousand subscribers -- independent general-interest e-mail publication, contact Randy with the details, referring to this page. Thanks!)