Mike's List is a free e-mail newsletter based entirely on a single proposition: technology is funny. 

My name is Mike Elgan, and I write, edit and publish the newsletter (although any errors are solely the fault of the Microsoft Corporation). My newsletter focuses on off-the-beaten-track stories that go unreported, underreported, or should never be reported by the mainstream press. If you're having trouble falling asleep, you can go here to read more about me and my career.  

The bad idea for this newsletter all started in 1997, when I began compulsively writing occasional technology oriented strange-but-true e-mail to friends and colleagues while I was the editor of Windows Magazine. It soon became an e-mail newsletter called "WinMag Mail," then the "Win Letter," which I sent to Windows Magazine readers who chose to subscribe online. I stopped writing the Win Letter in mid 1999 to devote my time to a startup web site called Portable Life, which crashed and burned in the Summer of 2000. After almost a year of not writing a technology humor column, I couldn't stand it any more and launched Mike's List on July 31, 2000. 

Mike's List is different. Like many, Mike's List is free. But unlike most, it's also ad-free and spam-free. You'll never see an ad or sponsorship and therefore no chance of commercial influence. Mike's List is totally independent. All expenses are paid for out of my own pocket, or out of the pockets of my readers who chose to make a voluntary contribution. I don't make any money on it. Why? Well, because I live in Silicon Valley, and throwing away good money and never expecting profit is what we do here. The other reason I do it is to build an audience of tens of thousands of warped readers interested in the same sick stuff who can help me find obscure stories. 

It's easy to join the list. Just click on the "join" link above. It takes about 5 seconds to subscribe because you won't be asked any information except your e-mail address. And, importantly, it's just as easy to unsubscribe: Click on the "cancel" link for easy instructions. 

If you have any other questions about Mike's List -- or if you have a good story idea -- please drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you!