The following information may not be working or in use any longer, since it includes technologies long forgotten. They are kept in place for historical purposes.

Usenet newsgroups

Newsgroups dealing with fractal images and related information. Their availability will depend on the usenet groups available on your server. (Many ISP have dropped usenet access altogether –including mine– and I never looked for an alternative to read these now mostly historical resources, so I don’t know anything about their current status).

A tool for reading old posts (text only) is the UsenetArchive.com database. It’s not a comprehensive archive at all, but some recoverable posts go back as far as 1991.

Mailing lists

There were several mailing list to which anyone could subscribe to. Some of these lists are probably dead, or receive —extremely— few posts lately, since people prefer other means of communication now. Some additional programs not included in here maintain their own dedicated lists too, so don’t forget to check their home pages to find out is they offer one. List that usually run from the Fractalus.com server may be down right now (indefinitely).

  • FRACTAL-ART, The Fractal Art Discussion List
    This mailing list is centered in the discussion of all aspects of fractals as art, including artists, software, galleries, museum curators, art marketers and brokers, printers, art collectors, etc.
    subscribe: send email to fractal-art-subscribe@lists.fractalus.com. Leave the subject line blank and put subscribe fractal-art in the body of the message.
  • FRACTINT, The Fractals and Fractint Discussion List
    This mailing list is for the discussion of fractals, fractal art, fractal algorithms, fractal software, and fractal programming, specifically related to the Stone Soup Group’s Fractint generator.
    subscribe: send email to majordomo@xmission.com. Leave the subject line blank and put subscribe fractint in the body of the message.
  • PHILOFRACTAL, The Fractal Philosophy Discussion List
    This mailing list is for the discussion of fractal philosophy, including science and religion, and the way they relate to fractals.
    subscribe: send email to philofractal-subscribe@lists.fractalus.com. Leave the subject line blank and put subscribe philofractal in the body of the message
  • ULTRA FRACTAL, The Ultra Fractal Discussion List
    This mailing list is open to all interested in F. J. Slijkerman’s “Ultra Fractal” program.
    subscribe: send email to ultrafractal-subscribe@lists.fractalus.com
  • APOPHYSIS, The Apophysis Discussion List
    This mailing list is recommended for all users of Mark Townsend’s Apophysis generator. Continuous discussion about bug report and fixes, suggestion from users and general comments.
    subscribe: send email toUsenetArchive.com.

Discussion groups

The following online fractal-related discussion groups are but a selection of the most active ones (at least in the past). As with mailing lists and newsgroups, discussion groups of this sort may be out of favor as well (especially those associated with defunct Yahoo Groups).

  • FRACTAL-WORLD
    “The purpose of this group is to provide a forum to share ideas and imagery relating to the world of fractals. All forms of fractals and fractal applications are welcomed.”
  • Apophysis Fractals
    “This group is for users and admirers of the best fractal generating program out there… Apophysis. This is a great place to share your scripts, suggestions, flame files, gradients, images, links, and enthusiasm witn other like-minded fractal artists.”
  • xENOdREAMs · XenoDream users
    “A forum for technical support and discussion of XenoDream 3D IFS fractal graphics software.” To subscribe: click here.
    fractals · Fractal images and information
    “A club for sharing information on fractals (no matter how complex). Feel free to load your favourite fractal images in the photo albums.”
  • FEUsers · Fractal Explorer Users
    “This group is specifically for those using the Fractal Explorer program. It is a place to share fractal images, both raw as well as post-processed with other graphic programs. It is hoped that members will also share their FE “spot files” with other members. NOTE: spot files should be sent as a ZIP file only! Discussions, questions, tips, and tricks about fractals, Fractal Explorer and printing fractals are encouraged.”
  • chaospro · Discussion about ChaosPro
    “This list is for users of ChaosPro. You can ask for help, post new formulas or parameter files, suggest new features, discuss with others (including the author) about ChaosPro.” To subscribe: click here.
  • cnfractal_music · CNFractal Music Forum
    “The CNFractal Music Forum addresses issues concerning this new Art Form, where we are, where we are going,advice on using the software tools to produce it. […] We also discuss other forms of Algorithmic Music and issues related to the production of Computer Music.”
  • fractalvision · Fractal art, geometry, links, and updates
    “Fractals as art? Yes fractal generation is an art form, and this list is for fractal artists to gain exposure and share their work and ideas with others. Many topics are focused upon, use of fractal generators, formulation, and post-processing.”