Many print and broadcast journalists have asked me for information about myself or about these groups. This page will provide them with that basic information.
Tell us about yourself and your family.
My wife and I moved to Israel from Brooklyn just a few months after our big son was born, in 1974. That son is now married and we now have a grandson. Another son is studying in a Yeshiva. My oldest daughter is completing her MA. She teaches English in an Israeli elementary school. Another daughter studies English in a college, and a third daughter is in high school. My children are bilinguals and feel equally comfortable in both Hebrew and English.
Surely, these groups are not a source of income for you or your family. Where do you work?
I teach in an Israeli college. In the past, I have worked as a librarian, as a junior and senior high school teacher, and as an editor and translator.
Why did you start these discussion groups?
That's a difficult question to answer.
I started Jewish Computing at the end of 1998 because I was interested in the topic. The topics for the other groups developed almost by themselves, as a result of the discussion on the groups or by requests from subscribers. I had no idea that they would grow to the degree of popularity that we have experienced or that they would cover so many topics or locations.
How do you publicize the groups?
Subscribers have been the main source of publicity. Feature articles and broadcasts in the mass media have given them a tremendous boost.
E-mail is a friendly medium. Subscribers to the groups tell their friends and acquaintances about them. In addition, information about the groups is splashed all over the Internet. Some subscribers have put up posters about the groups in their local Jewish institutions. These small, simple, letter-sized or A4-sized posters are distributed by e-mail as simple word processor files.
There is no charge for joining these groups. How can you afford to run this many groups without any compensation?
Yes, money is indeed a sensitive issue.
These groups are no longer a part-time hobby. They are now a serious venture, and they now belong to the worldwide Jewish community. The time has indeed come for sponsors to adopt and fund one or more of the groups.
There are many groups on this website...
Right. And that's just the public groups. I also run private groups for various organizations and individuals. Private groups are not publicized, and they are not open to the general public.
How much time do you spend on these groups and the website?
I now spend 50-60 hours per week on the groups and the website. They are now my biggest project - by far.
I do have to allow time for my day job, and I won't compromise on the time that I give my family. However, it doesn't leave much time for sleep.
Do the groups still have room for growth?
Definitely. That will depend on my locating an outside sponsor for the groups.
A great deal of routine, administrative work can unquestionably be done effectively by others. After I locate the requisite funding, I plan to begin serious and worthwhile groups in other fields of endeavor, as an even greater service to the worldwide Jewish community.
People usually run groups in their own area of competency. However, these groups cover a very wide range of topics. Are they all in your field of expertise?
I have degrees in English, psychological counseling, and in librarianship. I now teach editing and translating. That covers most of the groups which require a specific background.
A notable exception is the Jewish Parenthood group. I was asked to run this group, since there was a great need for experts and for those who have a need for their services to have a forum to discuss these issues. I started that group because there was a need to fill that void.
Please tell us more about your computer skills. How did you make the website, and how do you field computer questions?
Actually, I have no background in computers, and I never took a computer course. That trivial detail doesn't stop me from teaching computers now, however. I also taught myself how to develop this website. That knowledge gives me the flexibility that is needed in order to make immediate editorial or layout changes myself, at my own convenience, without relying on others.
How did this concept get started?
I started one group, Jewish Computing, in order to gain more information for a course that I was teaching in a local college. As topics became more diverse, I decided to create a spinoff, called Hebrew Computing. The demands of the subscribers actually led to the full range of groups that we have today.
And why me? Well, nobody else is going to do it, and it is very, very clear that it is a service to the worldwide Jewish nation. If I'm able to create a community of Jews who can speak courteously to each other on such a wide range of professional topics, then it's clearly an important venture to undertake.
Who is your competition?
There are other Jewish discussion groups, but I would not consider them competition. It is rare indeed to find a moderated group, since that involves so much of the moderator's time.
Shamash is an organization that hosts a series of Jewish groups. At last count, they had a total of 370 groups - and not all of them are active, and I don't personally know of any that are moderated. Most of those groups are sponsored by specific groups that want to promote their own affairs. They have thus resolved the issue of sponsorship, but not of openness, objectivity, and independence of the groups and of the discussions.
On the other hand, our Jewish Groups hosts and moderates nearly 9% of that number of groups (using a different service). That unquestionably places these groups as the largest such entity in the world.
Do you publicize these groups with public appearances?
Yes, but only in Jerusalem. If you are planning to tour Jerusalem with a group, you are welcome to add my lecture to your trip agenda. Be sure to let me know at least two months in advance, so that there will not be any scheduling conflicts.
What is the next stage of expansion for the website?
Languages. I'm looking for volunteers to translate a summary of this website into the major languages spoken by Jews around the world. A volunteer is now working on the Spanish version. I also need volunteers to place information about these groups on all of the local national and
international search engines.
Is there anything else we should know about you?
Perhaps. However, you can learn a lot by looking through this website. Here are some additional facts:
Listed in Who's Who in the World, Millennium Edition.
Nominated for the International Who's Who of Professionals.
