Most new users will have the same set of questions, so it is useful to keep a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the FTP site. The mailing list software on NetBSD.ORG can send out a short message when users subscribe; this message should point to the FAQ to reduce the number of repeated questions on the list. The FAQ should have the date when it was last updated, a table on contents, and a pointer to the distribution FTP site for those who obtained the FAQ from another source and want to insure that they have the most recent version.
The Linux community has recently started using SGML (the Standard Generalized Markup Language) for their documentation. Documentation written in SGML can automatically be converted to plain ASCII, troff, HTML, LaTeX, and Texinfo format. Look on sunsite.unc.edu in the directory /pub/Linux/docs for the conversion software.