This paper reports on a study examining what critical information in the Hazardous Materials Information eXchange (HMIX), a national electronic bulletin board sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is of value to local government officials who have a need for the information. HMIX has two features: the bulletin board feature allows users to view listings of current hazardous materials news items and information about emergency management, training, resources, technical assistance and regulations; and the message exchange feature allows communication among users. Six users out of a total universe of 100 were surveyed by telephone to determine how HMIX was being used, what design features they liked, and what changes they recommended. The results of the survey suggested that the users of a technical bulletin board have very different needs than users of a more socially-oriented service. Technical users are willing to browse for technical information but would strongly prefer organizational and navigation schemes that would allow them to access a system, quickly scan for information, and exit. Based on this response, visual cues for technical bulletin board services should be designed to allow quick identification of categories of information and to signal similarities or differences in main menu or submenu topics. (KRN)