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COM NET NEWS
Vol. 1 No. 5 August
Part 1--Original and Other News
>From the Editor
Starting with this issue of COM NET NEWS, I am requesting donations from
readers to help defer the costs of production of this newsletter. I am
requesting a donation of $35 per year. Non-U.S. subscribers, please send
donation in U.S. currency. But, please note that this is a request--you will not
be dropped from the subscription list if you don't contribute. Also, I will
continue to post COM NET NEWS on various listservs and the it may be
freely distributed among groups for noncommercial purposes.
The request for donations is due to the time and other costs incurred in
putting together COM NET NEWS. It is hoped that you feel that it is of value
to you, and you can be assured that I will continue to better COM NET NEWS.
As a reminder, this issue of COM NET NEWS reflects the suggestions of
several subscribers. COM NET NEWS now contains a Table of Contents,
and, the newsletter is broken down into two parts--Part 1--Original and Other
News; and Part 2--News from Other Newsletter Sources, e.g., Edupage. The
two parts will be emailed to you as separate messages.
Richard W. Bryant, Editor
RW Bryant Associates
Advanced Technology Market Research & Com Net Consultants
P.O. Box 1828
El Prado, NM 87529
Tel/fax: 505-758-1919
rbryant@hydra.unm.edu
******************************************************************
******************************************************************
ORIGINAL AND OTHER NEWS
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advice to Community Network Systems Designers
ArtNet Launched in New York City
La Plaza Discusses Community Networks with Major Foundations
Roadmap for the Information Superhighway
Business Sources on the Net
Nursing Legal Consultants Online
National Archives Gopher Addition
Funds for Noncommercial Info Highway Programs in Jeopardy
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADVICE TO COMMUNITY NETWORK SYSTEM DESIGNERS
This article was posted by Frank Hecker on Communet on 11 July 1994. It
provides some interesting advice for developers of community network
systems.
***************
The recent discussion and debate about system software for community
networks has prompted me to post the following "advice;" it is a revised
version of some work I did towards a proposed CapAccess long-term technical
strategy.
I agree with Miles Fidelman and others arguing for an "Internet-centric"
view of community networking, at least as far as technology is concerned.
I can in fact see the logic in Jack Rickard's and others' position that BBS
technology is more appropriate and ubiquitous and will be the entry point
into the internet for most users; however I do not see that as an argument
for building community networks on top of BBSs. To the contrary, I think
that what will happen is that BBSs will rapidly evolve to incorporate
Internet technology and standards; they will then be suitable as access
points into an Internet-based community network.
Without further ado, some advice for community network system designers:
* Make use of current readily-available personal computer technology to
maximize interactivity and ease of use for typical end users.
In the coming years the majority of potential community network users
(whether at home, work, school, or public access sites) will have the use
of personal computers typical of those sold in the last couple of years,
e.g., either 386 or better IBM-compatible PCs running Microsoft Windows or
Apple Macintoshes running System 6 or System 7. Design your system to
make use of the power of such personal computers, especially their ability to
support a graphical "point and click" interface and to mix text and
graphics in "WYSIWYG" documents.
This allows you to take advantage of modern personal computer interfaces to
support a higher level of "point and click" interactivity, to make
operations easier to use, and to enable your community network to offer at
least a basic level of multimedia support (formatted text and graphics) for
the majority of potential users. It will also make possible additional
levels of multimedia support (e.g., sound and video) for public access
sites and for individual users who have access to the required personal
computer hardware and software.
* Use TCP/IP and related Internet protocols everywhere you can, to maximize
interoperability among community network components and with external
networks both public (e.g., the Internet) and private (e.g., institutional
LANs and WANs).
Use TCP/IP exclusively for all communications among "back-end"
community network components such as central computer systems, routers,
and terminal servers. Also use TCP/IP for communications between your
community network and institutional networks belonging to your partners,
and for communications between your community network and the
worldwide Internet. (If your partners don't know what TCP/IP is, educate
them.) Finally, wherever possible extend the use of TCP/IP all the way to the
end user, whether they are on a personal computer at home, work, or school,
or on a community network workstation at a public access site.
This maximizes interoperability between all the systems concerned. It also
allows the introduction of higher-speed networking technologies (e.g.,
ISDN, "cable Ethernet") where feasible without affecting existing
applications and services. When TCP/IP capability is extended to the user
it makes possible a wide range of new services far beyond simple terminal
emulation; these services can in turn make use of the full power of present
and future personal computer technology.
* Avoid closed, proprietary software solutions and wherever possible use
freely available software developed and maintained by the Internet
community (or commercial versions of such software) in order to maximize
the interoperability of community network services with standard services
already available on the Internet.
Build community network services (e.g, electronic mail, online conferencing,
etc.) on top of standard Internet services implemented by software packages
already widely in use and available with minimal or no restrictions. Avoid
proprietary software if it is not based on or does not interoperate easily
with standard Internet services and protocols. Avoid internal software
development beyond simple customization and integration of existing
components.
This will give your community network a base level of product capability
that has been "field-proven" in the Internet community and is continually
being developed and enhanced. This in turn will save you the time, money,
and effort necessary for internal software development, making better use
of limited funds and technical expertise and reducing the project risks.
(It will also reduce the chance that your chosen software will be
"orphaned" by its supplier.)
Using freely-available packages for software distributed to end users and
user sites will save your community network money and avoid software
licensing and distribution problems. It will also help promote equity of
access by lowering the cost of the necessary software for end users using
home personal computers.
Finally, using popular existing software maximizes the range of systems on
which the software will run, allowing your community network more choice
of hardware platforms for both central systems and end-point systems (i.e.,
what users see), and promoting interoperability with other groups using the
same software.
* Use a system architecture which distributes functions to multiple systems
and can be scaled in order to meet the needs of growth with minimal impact
on users of the system.
Wherever possible and appropriate use technical mechanisms such as
Gopher and the World Wide Web which are inherently distributed in nature,
so that you can start with only a few systems and add additional systems as
needed without changing the interface to the users. In cases where you need
to maintain centralized services (e.g., a central timesharing host) for some
functions or classes of user, endeavor to find ways to "internally"
distribute such functions so that they can be hosted on multiple systems in
the future.
* Leverage existing efforts by commercial companies to bring Internet
access to individuals and small businesses, in order to expand the
connectivity options for individuals and organizations who wish to use
community network services, and to help foster the growth of commercial
Internet and NII access for the general public.
Work to ensure that community network services are available to users who
already have partial or full Internet access, using Internet tools and
services with which they are already familiar. Where appropriate, also
encourage the use of commercial Internet public access providers to provide
connectivity for community network users (individuals or organizations).
This will broaden the reach of community network services by making them
available to anyone who has partial or full Internet access, without regard
to how they acquired such access. (This would extend also to users of
commercial services such as America Online which have implemented or are
implementing Internet gateways.)
Finally, by making available more information and services of interest to
the local community and increasing the accessibility of such information
and services via commercial Internet public access providers, your
community network will encourage the growth of such commercial
providers and thereby help hasten the advent of universally-available low-
cost Internet and NII access for the general public.
* Add value to existing Internet-related services where you bring unique
resources to the task, and thus make best use of the knowledge and
expertise of your community network and your partners.
Use standard Internet services (e.g., the USENET conferencing system and
add community network content to them where you can provide unique
value not already present (e.g., custom online conferences for specialized local
issues, or area- specific contributions to other online conferences).
This allows you to avoid duplicating the efforts of others in cases where
usable content or services already exist. You can then leverage these
existing resources and spend more time on content and service creation
specifically directed to local concerns.
Finally, you can use these services to disseminate all types of community
network-related information, whether general or originated by your
partners.
* Assist your partners with the technical skills necessary to become not just
community network and Internet users, but community network and
Internet information providers, thus helping them to develop the full range
of skills that will empower them to use the Internet and emerging NII to
serve their clients and the general public.
Provide a technical environment that supports your efforts to train your
partners to be effective community network content and service providers,
and a technical training program that will assist your partners in becoming
familiar and productive with new community network and Internet
technologies. This training should cover both using your community
network and the Internet and also providing content and services on your
community network and the Internet.
This will enable your partners to begin future independent efforts to provide
NII-based information and services, and in turn free your community
network to work with additional new partners.
Source: Frank Hecker (hecker@access.digex.net)
ARTNET LAUNCHED IN NEW YORK CITY
ArtNet is a new commercial Manhattan-based BBS devoted to viewing,
discussing, and promoting art. The system was designed by and is run by New
York City artists. The system provides a graphic-user interface, NovaTerm
3.1
by Resnova). ArtNet will provide a number of features including:
-message forums including file attachments
-file libraries with thumbnail images
-chat and multi-node conferencing
-Internet email including file attachments
-an editor.
Currently, ArtNet is developing:
-"artists' studios" in which artists may set up their own piece of
cyberspace with its own window
-"gallery districts" in which each gallery creates a storefront with full
BBS functionality
-"museums" ArtNet is negotiating with the Guggenheim museum
-"international digital art registry" which will be created using a
World-Wide Web server
-"opportunities listing" service to provide information on grants,
competitions, exhibition opportunities, etc.
At the first open meeting on 12 July, approximately 25 people were in
attendance, including artists, teachers, writers, and publishers. Most seemed
to be quite enthusiastic about the project and saw ways that they could utilize
the system. A number of individuals suggested that the art discussion forums
and ready access to art-related information such as the section on grant
information, competitions, exhibition opportunities, and being able to buy art
supplies online would be very valuable to them.
ArtNet founder, Remo Campopiano, noted that two of the principal missions
of ArtNet is to be easy to learn and use, and to present art "in-context."
ArtNet plans to have a home page on a Web server sometime during the Fall
of this year. The organization also plans on setting up regional ArtNets
around the country which will be gatewayed to each other. The first site
outside of New York is in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The ArtNet concept is particularly interesting because of its attempt to show
art in-context. This means that the artist can display his or her art work as it
would be displayed in a gallery or studio. The viewer can essentially view the
art as if walking through a real gallery. And the artist can create a gallery
space
to their own specifications. The gallery show can be viewed via "self-running
projector" software (Astound multi-media software for show presentations),
which runs the show and fades from image to image.
The basic membership fee is $10 per month for one hour per day and no
storage capacity. A studio costs between $25 and $30 per month with 5
megabytes of storage space.
ArtNet and Remo Compopiano can be reached at: 212-321-3928 or email to:
remoc@echonyc.com
=========================================================
LA PLAZA TELECOMMUNITY DISCUSSES COMMUNITY NETWORKS
WITH MAJOR FOUNDATIONS
During a recent trip to New York City, La Plaza Vice President, Richard
Bryant, contacted several major foundations based in the region. These
included: The Carnegie Corporation, the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller
Foundation, the Markle Foundation, and the Annenberg Foundation.
Unfortunately, none of these charitable foundations showed any interest in
community networks. This was particularly surprising for the Markle
Foundation and the Annenberg Foundation. Markle's major enformation
superhighway talk in the media. Of course, most of the discussion in the
media is related to commercial activities and regulatory matters. When was
the last time you read about a community network in the New York Times or
any other major newspaper? Although community nets are beginning to
provide many services throughout the U.S. and other parts of the world, very
little attention has been paid to these organizations.
To editorialize a bit, perhaps it is time that anyone with any foundation
contacts ring them up and start educating these people about community
networks. Once the major foundations realize the potential that community
nets can have in education, community advancement, healthcare, and other
areas, perhaps they will begin providing some funding to support these
worthy endeavors.
Source: "La Plaza--News from the Mountain" Vol. 1, No. 5, August, 1994.
=========================
ROADMAP FOR THE INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY
ROADMAP on LISTSERV@UA1VM.UA.EDU
The Roadmap for the Information Superhighway Interactive Internet
Training Workshop will provide free Internet training workshop open to
anyone who wishes to subscribe. The entire Roadmap workshop will take
place on the ROADMAP list (ROADMAP is a distribution list, not a
discussion list).
The Roadmap workshop sessions will cover: E-mail; Listservs,
Majordomo, Listproc and other distribution systems; Usenet; FTP;
Archie; Gopher; Veronica; Address Searches; WAIS; WWW; and many
other topics. As a number of ROADMAP subscribers only have e-mail
access, the Roadmap workshop will also teach how to access many
Internet tools (FTP, Archie, Gopher, etc.) using E-mail.
The first Roadmap for the Information Superhighway workshop will
begin in *OCTOBER 1994*. To subscribe, please send the following
command in the BODY of your e-mail letter to LISTSERV@UA1VM.UA.EDU
on the Internet:
SUB ROADMAP yourfirstname yourlastname
For example:
SUB Roadmap Bill Gates
Owner: Patrick Crispen <PCRISPE1@UA1VM.UA.EDU>
===============================================
BUSINESS SOURCES ON THE NET
Business Sources on the Net has a nice collection of documents that
identify business resources on the Internet. The Introduction
(option 1) was not working when I was there. The site is located at
Kent State University.
--> 1. An Introduction to BSN.
2. BSN.ACCOUNTING.
3. BSN.COMPUTER.
4. BSN.ECONOMICS.
5. BSN.FINANCE.
6. BSN.GENERAL.
7. BSN.INVESTMENTS.
8. BSN.LOCATION.
9. BSN.MANAGEMENT.
10. BSN.OPERATIONS.
11. BSN.PERSONNEL.
12. BSN.STATISTICS.
Type=1+
Name=Business Sources on the Net
Path=D-1:11404:Business Sources on the Net
Host=refmac.kent.edu
Port=70
URL: gopher://refmac.kent.edu:70/1D-1:11404:Business Sources on the Net
********************************************************************
I do not represent this site...I just found it and thought it would
be of interest. I make every attempt to identify the point of origin
on every site I find. If I have made an error, please let me know.
Also, I assume everyone reading this post will access the site via
gopher. I have no idea (and do not attempt to find out) if the site
supports public telnet access.
Source: Forwarded from: From: Gleason Sackman
<sackman@plains.nodak.edu>
From: David Riggins, Gopher Jewels Project
david.riggins@tpoint.com
====================================================
NURSING LEGAL CONSULTANTS ONLINE
(Washington D.C.)-- Nursing Legal Consultants, a national nursing legal
consulting group provides attorneys with the following services:
- Reviewing and analyzing medical records
- Providing expert testimony
- Researching medical and nursing literature
- Identifying standards of care
- Collaborating in the preparation of pertinent legal pleadings
Nurse consultants are experts in their area of practice and have
graduate degrees with specialty certification.
Contact: Legalnurse@aol.com
=================================
BOOK REVIEW--"The Network Nation"
Forwarded from: "Arthur R. McGee" <amcgee@NETCOM.COM>
The MIT Press
55 Hayward Street
Cambridge, MA 02142-1399
Robert V. Prior, Editor - Computer Science prior@mitvma.mit.edu
Maureen Curtin, Int'l Promo. - curtin@mit.edu
"The Network Nation", Hiltz/Turoff, 1978/1993, 0-262-58120-5, U$24.95
This book was originally published in 1978. It was intended as an
interdisciplinary study of this new communications medium known as
computer conferencing (CC) or computer mediated communications (CMC).
Fifteen years later, the authors decided to reissue the book--with almost
no changes!
Turns out to have been a sound decision.
The authors have made a remarkably timeless work in an area of tremendous
technological change. If not for the warnings in the preface to the
second edition, it would probably be some time before even the astute
reader realized the anachronisms of terminals as opposed to personal
computers or workstations, 300 bps modems, and mainframes supporting
thousands as opposed to networks supporting millions.
Part of the value is the breath of topic. Basic concepts, social
processes, cultural impacts, public access, research to be done, human
interface studies, economics, politics and the human experience of
communications are all brought together here. The scholarship is
thorough. The writing is lucid. The analysis is prescient and
insightful. (Each chapter starts with an excerpt from the mythical and
futuristic "Boswash Times": some of the articles are startling in their
accuracy. All are amusing and thought-provoking.)
The original book was visionary. I appreciated the irony of the ending of
the preface to the first edition. This foresaw that by the mid-1990s the
home terminal would be as prevalent, and as commonly used, as the
telephone. The original book entreated you to imagine that you were at
breakfast with a cup of coffee-substitute (shades of the "Hitchhiker's
Guide to the Galaxy"!) heated on your solar stove and beginning to read
your computer-generated daily news--in 1994! Well, solar stoves are a
rarity (especially around Vancouver) and it was afternoon, but I had
already read "news" for the day, plus all my email and digests. I am,
however, a rarity, myself. Even though Vancouver is a fairly well
"connected" community, only two others in my townhouse complex have
modems, and neither has access to the Internet.
The authors recognize this as their major mistake. If they had to make
one, that is undoubtedly the preferred one. As they note in the preface
to the new edition, everything they foresaw originally will probably come
to pass--it may just take a little longer.
They also note, in discussion of the fact that CMC is taking longer than
expected, the social inertia which resists changes to power and authority
at all levels of society. It is instructive that the illustration they
use comes from a corporate boardroom. Corporations have embraced the
new
data bases, financial modeling and record keeping capabilities of the
computer. They have been less pleased with the active, slightly anarchic
and socially powerful tools of computer mediated communications. A word
of warning to boardrooms-- those who fail to master the new technologies
for fear of losing place will likely lose all to those who master the
technologies because of having nothing to lose.
An excellent book; a classic in the field, yet it points to the future of
a society as shaped by computer communications.
Copyright Robert M. Slade, 1994 BKNTNATN.RVW 940331
===================================================
NATIONAL ARCHIVES GOPHER ADDITION
The Center for Electronic Records is pleased to announce an
addition to the National Archives Gopher server
(GOPHER.NARA.GOV). Now available are fifteen additional files
with a wide range of descriptive information about various
electronic records in the custody of the Center. These files
supplement descriptive information about the Center and its
services that previously have been available.
These reports cover topics such as World War II electronic
records, 1970 Census summary statistic files, records relating
to federal civilian employees, electronic records relevant to
research on Latin America and the former Soviet Union, and
electronic records from the Internal Revenue Service and records
from the President's Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger
Accident. Finally, we have also posted descriptions of the
casualty records in our custody from the Korean and Vietnam
conflicts.
The additional descriptive information is at the following path:
\Information About NARA Holdings
\Information About Records Retained by Washington DC Area
Repositories
\Electronic Records
\Reference Reports and Descriptive Handouts (7 files)
\Casualty Records (electronic) - (8 files)
I hope this information is useful. If you have any questions,
contact me at the Center for Electronic Records (NSXA), The
National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College
Park, MD 20740-6001. The telephone number is (301) 713-6645.
I can also be reached via Internet at tif@cu.nih.gov or BITNET at
TIF@NIHCU.
Source: THEODORE J. HULL, Archives Specialist, Center for Electronic
Records (301) 713-6645.
===================================================
FUNDS FOR NONCOMMERCIAL INFO HIGHWAY PROGRAMS IN
JEOPARDY
From: cme@access.digex.net (Center for Media Education)
*** ACTION ALERT *** from People for the American Way
******************************************************************
The Issue
The National Telecommunications and Information
Administration's [NTIA] grants program is designed to encourage a
broad range of organizations -- non-profits, schools, hospitals,
libraries, state and local governments -- to plan and develop
advanced systems that utilize the emerging information
superhighway.
Congress has an historic opportunity, and a responsibility
to guide the development of our National Information
Infrastructure. Many of the emerging telecommunications
technologies will open the door for all Americans to obtain vast
information resources. NTIA grant projects promise to provide
increased access to education, health care, cultural, public
information, library, economic or other services. The NTIA
grants program is a central component to ensuring that the
information superhighway will provide more than movies on demand
and endless home-shopping channels.
Funding for this year's NTIA grants program was $26 million.
This was clearly insufficient to satisfy the demands of the 810
requests from a diverse range of organizations for funding
totaling $562 million. Recognizing the importance of developing
non-commercial applications for the information superhighway, the
President asked for $100 million for FY 1995 and the House
increased the NTIA grants program funding to $70 million. The
Senate Appropriations Committee, however, approved a $18 million
reduction of the NTIA grants program from the proposed budget of
$70 million. It is critical that resources are spent on
developing non-commercial applications for the information
superhighway. The potential of the Information Age to improve,
inform and educate our citizenry must not be overlooked.
Legislative Timing
The House recently passed an appropriations bill which
increased the funding for the NTIA grants program to $70 million.
On the House floor, Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) proposed an amendment
to reduce funding of the NTIA grants program by $22 million.
Fortunately, this amendment was not adopted by Congress.
The Senate Appropriations Committee, however, approved
funding for the NTIA grants program at $52 million -- an $18
million reduction. It is imperative that Congress realize the
importance of fully funding the NTIA grants program.
Action Request
* Call your representatives and senators immediately! Urge
them to support the full $70 million appropriation to the
NTIA grants program that was already passed by the House.
* The key Senators on the Appropriations Subcommittee on
Commerce, Justice and State are:
Chairman Hollings (D-SC) (202-224-6121)
Ranking Minority Member Domenici (R-NM) (202-224-6621)
Senator Inouye (D-HI) (202-224-3934)
Senator Bumpers (D-AR) (202-224-4843)
Senator Lautenberg (D-NJ) (202-224-4744)
Senator Sasser (D-TN) (202-224-3344)
Senator Kerrey (D-MA) (202-224-6551)
Senator Stevens (R-AK) (202-224-3004)
Senator Hatfield (R-OR) (202-224-3753)
Senator Gramm (R-TX) (202-224-2934)
Senator McConnell (R-KY) (202-224-2541)
* The key Representatives on the Appropriations Subcommittee
on Commerce, Justice and State are:
Acting Chairman Mollohan (D-WV) (202-225-4172)
Ranking Minority Member Rogers (R-KY) (202-225-4601)
Representative Carr (D-MI) (202-225-4872)
Representative Moran (D-VA) (202-225-4376)
Representative Skaggs (D-CO) (202-225-2161)
Representative Price (D-NC) (202-225-1784)
Representative Kolbe (R-AZ) (202-225-2542)
Representative Taylor (R-NC) (202-225-6401)
* Write a letter to your member of congress.
Please distribute widely.
- - --
Anthony E. Wright cme@access.digex.net
Coordinator, Future of Media Project Center for Media Education
=====================================================
****************************************************************
COM NET NEWS SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
Please send an email message to Richard W. Bryant, Editor &
Publisher at:
rbryant@hydra.unm.edu
indicating that you wish to subscribe. You will be put on the e-
mailing list for the following month. COM NET NEWS is published only in
electronic format. Subscription donation checks or money orders should be
sent to the address below.
****************************************************************
COM NET NEWS is solely under my editorship, and is unrelated and
independent of the La Plaza Telecommunity, of which I am vice
president. The editorial comment is my own and does not reflect in
any way on La Plaza.
You may reproduce or publish any parts of COM NET NEWS and
distribute it electronically or in paper format for noncommercial purposes.
However, any reproduction or publishing of COM NET NEWS material must
be accompanied by the following reference:
>From COM NET NEWS:
Richard W. Bryant, Ph.D., Editor & Publisher
RW Bryant Associates
Advanced Technology Market Research & Com Net Consultants
P.O. Box 1828
El Prado, NM 87529
Tel/fax: 505-758-1919
rbryant@hydra.unm.edu
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
******************************************************************
******************************************************************
COM NET NEWS
Vol. 1 No. 5 August
Part 2--News from Other Newsletter Sources
>From the Editor
Starting with this issue of COM NET NEWS, I am requesting donations from
readers to help defer the costs of production of this newsletter. I am
requesting a donation of $35 per year. Non-U.S. subscribers, please send
donation in U.S. currency. But, please note that this is a request--you will not
be dropped from the subscription list if you don't contribute. Also, I will
continue to post COM NET NEWS on various listservs and the it may be
freely distributed among groups for noncommercial purposes.
The request for donations is due to the time and other costs incurred in
putting together COM NET NEWS. It is hoped that you feel that it is of value
to you, and you can be assured that I will continue to better COM NET NEWS.
As a reminder, this issue of COM NET NEWS reflects the suggestions of
several subscribers. COM NET NEWS now contains a Table of Contents,
and, the newsletter is broken down into two parts--Part 1--Original and Other
News; and Part 2--News from Other Newsletter Sources, e.g., Edupage. The
two parts will be emailed to you as separate messages.
Richard W. Bryant, Editor
RW Bryant Associates
Advanced Technology Market Research & Com Net Consultants
P.O. Box 1828
El Prado, NM 87529
Tel/fax: 505-758-1919
rbryant@hydra.unm.edu
****************************************************************
****************************************************************
NEWS FROM OTHER NEWSLETTER SOURCES
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Educom
New Virus Lurking
Phone Numbers for Life
Information Highway on G-7 Agenda
A Shakeout for On-line Services?
Yellow Pages for the Web
CNN Wants "Talkback" from the Net
Electronic Morgues
US West Buys Atlanta Cable Systems
IBM in Hong Kong
Satellite ISDN
GNN Offers Personal Finance Center
Freenets Raise the Ire of Commercial Providers
Newton Goes Wireless
Targets Technology
Internet Statistics
Bypassing the Music Industry
Fighting Music Bandits on the Information Highway
NBR Online
Scouting Around on the Net
Patent Titles by Email
Brazil's a Hotbed for Computer Sales
Electronic Public Information Newsletter
One-Fifth of Public Libraries Have Internet Access
Editorial Comment
Freenets Raise Ire of Commercial Providers
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FROM EDUCOM
NEW VIRUS LURKING
A new virus capable of disabling computers can infect any computer
using the MS-DOS operating system, according to the U.S. Energy
Department. `KAOS4,' as the virus is called, has spread quickly through
software downloaded from USENET, and the primary symptom is a freeze-up
as the system is booted. Check your command.com file for new files that
contain the word `KAOS4' if you suspect contamination. (Chronicle of Higher
Education 8/10/94 A17)
PHONE NUMBERS FOR LIFE
AT&T's True Connections plan offers you a phone number for life (at
least as long as you pay your bill). The new "500" area code numbers will
enable subscribers to program their existing phone numbers to follow them
wherever they go. The numbers could ring in sequence -- e.g., at the
office, then at a cellular phone, then at home. Pending FCC approval, the
new service will be available in September. (Washington Post 7/8/94 F1)
INFORMATION HIGHWAY ON G-7 AGENDA
During preliminary talks by the Group of Seven nations this
weekend, the Clinton Administration will propose topics for a
telecommunications conference to be held within the coming year. The
agenda will include making information from public libraries readily
available to each other's citizens electronically and developing common
international standards for transmitting data and video signals. (Washington
Post 7/8/94 F2)
A SHAKEOUT FOR ON-LINE SERVICES?
Some analysts are predicting a glut of information services on the
net, and the v.p. and general manager of Delphi says, "There's a shakeout
on the horizon. The numbers are growing rapidly, but they won't be high
enough to accommodate all the companies who are coming into the market."
The 10 largest revenue producers among the online services brought in
approximately $500 million last year. (New York Times 7/12/94 C1)
YELLOW PAGES FOR THE WEB
An MIT graduate student has developed the closest thing so far to
Yellow Pages of commercial activities on the World-Wide Web. Commercial
Services on the Net (http://tns-www.lcs.mit.edu/commerce.html) currently
consists of an alphabetic list of 60-80% of the existing commercial Web
sites. The developer plans to add a search capability and a category
breakdown. (Internet Business Report 7/94 p.3)
CNN WANTS "TALKBACK" FROM THE NET
A new one-hour CNN program hopes "to use technology to bring us
closer together. The cable station is making deals with MCI and CompuServe
that will allow two-way communication with viewers, and the MCI-CNN
link will provide teleconferencing based on compressed video sent by phone
lines. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution 7/11/94 A1)
ELECTRONIC MORGUES
Newspaper "morgues" have been replaced by computer-supported
editorial information centers, managed by librarians. At the Miami Herald,
for example, the librarian runs her operation from the city desk, where she
gathers background on the stories being reported. Librarians say the rise in
number of databases has increased the importance of their jobs, "because
reporters often suspend their customary skepticism when dealing with
electronic material." (American Journalism Review July/August 94 p.39)
U S WEST BUYS ATLANTA CABLE SYSTEMS
U S West has sneaked into BellSouth's backyard and snatched up two
companies that together control 65% of the cable television market in
Atlanta. The deals, valued at $1.2 billion, translate to about $2,500 per
customer, which is high for the industry, but the president of U S West's
multimedia group justifies it: "This property has cash-flow characteristics
which are far in excess of industry norms." The company will invest an
addition $700 per subscriber over the next three or four years as it
upgrades existing systems. (New York Times 7/16/94 Y15)
IBM IN HONG KONG
IBM and Hong Kong Telecommunications Ltd. will test a
video-on-demand system in Hong Kong this fall. The trial will start with 50
homes, and expand to 400 subscribers by the end of the year. (Wall Street
Journal 7/15/94 B3)
SATELLITE ISDN
Orion Atlantic will offer satellite-delivered ISDN service by
year's end. Tariffs are expected to be similar in structure to terrestrial
ISDN: a one-time installation fee, monthly equipment rental and per-call
charges. (Data Communications 7/94 p.18)
GNN OFFERS PERSONAL FINANCE CENTER
O'Reilly & Associates' Global Network Navigator has added a
Personal Finance Center to its list of services; the Center will offer
annotated links to personal finance resources on the Internet, such as
15-minute-delayed stock quotes, stock and mutual fund data in chart form,
and 1994 SEC filings (http://gnn.com). (Internet Business Report 7/94 p.7)
FREENETS RAISE THE IRE OF COMMERCIAL PROVIDERS
State-supported projects to provide citizens with Internet access
for little or no money are upsetting commercial service providers who want
to sell that same access for $20 or so a month. A NYNEX official noted the
company "does not oppose the use of public libraries and other facilities
to disseminate access to the Internet." But when a university hooks up a
FreeNet and provides access to commercial entities, "we think that's bad
public policy and a waste of taxpayer funds." (Chronicle of Higher
Education 7/27/94 A19)
NEWTON GOES WIRELESS
Harris Corp. has teamed with Apple to develop a wireless
communications system for the Newton Message Pad. (Tampa Tribune
7/25/94 Business & Finance p.12)
TCI OPENS EDUCATIONAL TRAINING FACILITY
Tele-Communications Inc. recently opened a teacher training
facility in Colorado. The J.C. Sparkman Center for Educational Technology
offers teachers, students, administrators, school board members and parents
training in emerging communications technologies. (In Motion 7/94 p.13)
GREGORIAN TARGETS TECHNOLOGY
Brown University's Vartan Gregorian has been traveling the country
looking for worthy projects to endow with some of philanthropist Walter H.
Annenberg's $500 million. Among the projects targeted for largesse is one
to develop an electronic reference library with 1,000 titles, that
eventually would be available to every high school in the country.
Gregorian describes the project as "just in a germinal stage." (Wall Street
Journal 7/26/94 B1)
INTERNET STATISTICS
Internet Info reports that as of July 15, there were more than
17,000 company domains registered with the Internet. Predictably the
companies with the "heaviest" presence (defined as 25 or more networks)
were primarily defense contractors and telecommunications firms. California
had the largest concentration of .com activity. (info@internetinfo.com)
BYPASSING THE MUSIC INDUSTRY
Two seniors at the University of California - Santa Cruz offer
would-be rock stars a way to get their music distributed electronically to
millions without ever signing a record contract through their Internet
Underground Music Archive. (Details 7/94 p.118)
FIGHTING MUSIC BANDITS ON THE INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY
The Recording Industry Association of America is lobbying Congress
to approve a copyright law that would provide royalties to recording artists
and record companies for music that is digitally transmitted. Current
copyright law provides royalties only to songwriters and publishers. (Wall
Street Journal 8/2/94 B1)
NBR ONLINE
PBS's "Nightly Business Report" is going online, providing
transcripts, market analysis, business news briefs, personal finance tips
and expert commentary through America Online. Subscribers will be able to
post messages to NBR reporters and guests on the show. (Broadcasting &
Cable 7/25/94 p.34)
SCOUTING AROUND ON THE NET
InterNIC Information Services has a new free publication called the
Scout Report that provides useful information to assist educators and
researchers in using the Internet. For instance, a recent issue explained
how to connect to information servers at various research labs and
universities. To subscribe, send e-mail to majordomo@is.internic.net with
the message: subscribe scout-report. Mosaic users can connect to
http://www.internic.net/info-guide.html. (Chronicle of Higher Education
8/3/94 A16)
PATENT TITLES BY E-MAIL
A free weekly patent update service allows patent searchers to
retrieve a list of all patents (mechanical, chemical, or electronic) issued
by the Patent Office during the previous week. For info:
patents@world.std.com. (Internet Business Journal July-August 94 p.7)
BRAZIL'S A HOTBED FOR COMPUTER SALES
Brazil's become the Latin American magnet for computer companies
from around the world, with $10.7 billion in sales this year. "I believe
that Brazil is doubling its hardware and software every two years," says
the general manager of Borland International's Brazilian subsidiary. (New
York Times 8/6/94 Y13)
=============================
SUMMARY OF ELECTRONIC PUBLIC INFORMATION NEWSLETTER
VOL. 4, NO. 13; July 1, 1994
EPIN: For more information on the complete ELECTRONIC PUBLIC
INFORMATION NEWSLETTER and subscription rates contact:
James McDonough
Electronic Public Information Newsletter
epin@access.digex.net
Tel:/Fax: (301) 365-3621
ONE-FIFTH OF PUBLIC LIBRARIES HAVE INTERNET ACCESS
Of all public libraries, 20.9% currently possess an Internet
connection, although only 12.7% of that total provide public access
terminals for patron use, according to a new study released this
month by the National Commission on Libraries and Information
Science (NCLIS). Public Libraries and the Internet: Study Results,
Policy Issues, and Recommendations, which was prepared for the NUCLEUS
by Syracuse University Professor Charles McClure, University of
Wisconsin-Madison Professor Douglas L. Zweizig, and Syracuse
University Doctoral Student John Carlo Bertot, noted that bigger
libraries located in urban areas tended to be better connected to
the Internet than smaller libraries from rural areas. The report
was based on a survey of 1,495 libraries (with 1,148 responding)
that was conducted from January through March.
EDITORIAL COMMENT
In the article from Edupage "Freenets Raise Ire of Commercial Providers,"
NYNEX links the development of freenets and their frequent association
with universities and state funds as "...bad public policy and a waste of
taxpayer funds." The NYNEX official also noted that the company "...does not
oppose the use of public libraries and other facilities to disseminate access to
the Internet."
Commercial providers are not going to be put out of business by "freenets" or
other community-based networks. Freenets and most other community
networks provide very limited security for messaging and other services. One
of the commercial provider's main services should be high levels of security
for their customers. Recently, the issue of security came up during a
discussion about an Albuquerque, NM commercial provider that was not
providing any security, yet charging significant fees for limited access.
Commercial providers, if they are to be successful, must provide unique
services, as well as simply Internet access. Freenets and community networks
provide public access and a public service, typically with limited specialized
services, but they are essentially free for the public to utilize. It is absolutely
imperative that the public have free access to the Internet and related
services
at some level or we are going to have even greater divisions in our society.
One has access to books at the public library, yet publishers and booksellers
have not gone out of business because of the free public library system.
Commercial television networks have not gone out of business because of the
Public Broadcasting System and public access cable channels. To complain
that
freenets and community networks will drive commercial Internet providers
out of business is nonsense and very misleading. It would appear that greed is
more the issue than "...bad public policy and a waste of taxpayer funds."
************************************************************************
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