Christ Church -- FAQ: What is a FAQ?

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
with answers

What is a FAQ?

FAQ is an acronym for "Frequently Asked Question(s)". FAQ documents are very commonly used on the Internet for maintaining and providing answers to questions that are asked regularly. Actually FAQ is a little ambiguous. It may refer to a single frequently asked question, as in "Why did you ask that question...again <sigh>. Don't you know it is a FAQ?". Or it may refer to a whole list of FAQs -- with answers -- compiled as a useful resource, like this document. That is the context in this section. They are generally topical, and may be approached as a good starting point for finding answers to questions of interest to you.

"FAQs have become a form of contemporary literature - an art form spawned from the Internet. Today you'll find FAQs popping up just about anywhere - that is, anywhere there are frequently asked questions, and frequently answered answers. Anyone can write a FAQ, many people read them, and everyone benefits." (1)

Many FAQs are maintained in connection with a specific forum (i.e. any place where people regularly "gather" to exchange ideas and information). In this context, it is intended to stem the stream of repeat questions from newcomers who may not know that their question has been asked and answered regularly. This is probably the most common use of FAQs.

For example, if you wanted to join a discussion on Christian music you might go to the usenet newsgroup rec.music.christian and read their "Welcome to rec.music.christian FAQ". Or maybe their "Christian RADIO FAQ" has the information you're after. (These FAQs would be posted regularly in the newsgroup rec.music.christian, and can also be viewed at The Internet FAQ Consortium. The FAQs from the rec.music.christian newsgroup can be seen at rec.music.christian Newsgroup FAQs.)

Many FAQs are not associated with a specific forum like a usenet group, but were created simply as a resource for those seeking information. If information on black holes is what you're after, you might try the "Black Holes FAQ" Or let's say it's April 14th and you are just getting started on your tax return. Maybe the IRS's "Frequently Asked Tax Questions And Answers" is what you need. The last three are not associated with any specific forums (though arguably related), but are produced and made generally available in an effort to be helpful. This is the spirit of the Internet.

There are many FAQs on many topics floating around the Internet. A search on Dec 16, 1998 of Yahoo! (one of many web search services) yields 130 Yahoo! Categories, 3007 Web Sites, and 1,055,994 Web Pages dealing with FAQs. And if that's not enough for you, another web search service, AltaVista, finds 18,490,762 Web Pages. There are FAQs available on innumerable topics, and in many different formats. Many are available as html (a web document), plain text (no formatting), word-processing documents (e.g. MS Word), and other formats. Many can be viewed directly on the web, downloaded to your own computer to view off-line, e-mailed directly to you, etc. They can be found on individual sites, and many can be found in repositories which collect and catalog them.