It's early November as I write this article, and even though Christmas is a good six weeks away, I (like many of you) have already begun to feel the hustle and bustle that usually occurs this time of year.
As the old saying goes, "It's better to give than receive." For the past year, we've tried to live up to that saying by giving Acupuncture Today to the acupuncture and Oriental medicine professions for free. The columnists in AT have given of themselves, donating their time and effort to help keep you informed and build your practice. And several practitioners have given of themselves by writing letters to the editor and submitting articles for publication.
Now, we have another little gift we'd like to share with you.
Our main goal at Acupuncture Today has always been to provide greater exposure for acupuncture and Oriental medicine, and to promote greater success for acupuncture practitioners by providing an open forum for the profession. When you think of an acupuncture newspaper, we want you to think of Acupuncture Today. Now we want to take it to the next level. When you think of an acupuncture website, we want you to think of acupuncturetoday.com.
In the past few months, our Editorial and Web Services departments have been busy putting acupuncturetoday.com together, adding articles and photographs and implementing a site that provides a wealth of information while still being easy to navigate. We have a variety of features already available online, including:
Archives and Graphs. Acupuncturetoday.com's Archives section includes free, downloadable copies of every article and graph ever published in Acupuncture Today. Articles are grouped by the issue in which they appeared; you may also search for a particular article using acupuncturetoday.com's search engine. You are welcome to print these articles to share them with patients, legislators or other practitioners.
Columnist Pages. Each columnist in Acupuncture Today has their own web page. Each page contains links to the columnist's most recent articles. Each columnist page also contains a brief biography, as well as a "Talk Back" forum, so that you can leave comments or ask questions about an article.
Site Map. The Site Map is a guide for first-time visitors. Users can visit the site map for a description of each section, then click on a link to access that particular section.
Discussion Forums. The Open Discussion Forum is an online meeting place for acupuncturists, students, patients and other health care providers interested in the profession. Here, users from around the world can share ideas and communicate with each other.
Links. The most recent addition to our site, the Acupuncture Links page provides links to state, regional and national acupuncture and Oriental medicine organizations; publications; institutions; and other health-related sites. If you belong to an acupuncture organization not currently on the list, you are welcome to submit your organization's link for inclusion.
More Features Coming Soon
But that's not all. In the next few months, we plan on revising and expanding acupuncturetoday.com to make it even more inclusive. Among the projects currently in development:
AcuPoll. Our popular AcuPoll feature, which debuted earlier this year, will be brought back in 2001. This important service will let you voice your opinion about the crucial issues facing acupuncture and Oriental medicine.
State and College News. In an effort to bring you more local news, we will introduce a new State and College News section. This page will deliver original articles and press releases from acupuncture institutions, as well as state and regional acupuncture associations.
AT Expo. A virtual exhibit hall, AT Expo will help bring acupuncture suppliers and practitioner. Here, you will be able to visit virtual exhibit booths to learn about acupuncture products and services, ask questions, request free samples, and learn additional information.
We have already made great strides in bringing Acupuncture Today to the Web, but as you can see, there is still plenty of work left to do. If you have not visited us online yet, I strongly urge that you take a few minutes to drop by the site and tell us what you think. We're always happy to hear from our readers, so if you have a suggestion, please call me or send me an e-mail message at the address below.
Just as Acupuncture Today is your publication, acupuncturetoday.com is your website. Let's make them work for you.
Click here for more information about Marilyn Allen, Editor-at-Large.