1527 lines
61 KiB
Plaintext
1527 lines
61 KiB
Plaintext
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Surfing the INTERNET: an Introduction Version 2.0.2 December 15, 1992
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c. 1992 Jean Armour Polly. Material quoted from other authors was compiled
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from public Internet posts by those authors. No copyright claims are made
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for those compiled quotes. Permission to reprint is granted for nonprofit
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educational purposes. Please let me know if you find this compilation useful.
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This first (much shorter) version of this appeared in the June, 1992 Wilson
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Library Bulletin. Please include this entire copyright/copy notice if you
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duplicate this document. Updates may be ftp'd:
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ftp nysernet.org (192.77.173.2)
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login anonymous
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password name@machine.node
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cd /pub/resources/guides
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Please choose the most current version of surfing.the.internet.
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Please send updates and corrections to: jpolly@nysernet.org
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Today I'll travel to Minnesota, Texas, California, Cleveland, New Zealand,
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Sweden, and England. I'm not frantically packing, and I won't pick up
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any frequent flyer mileage. In fact, I'm sipping cocoa at my Macintosh.
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My trips will be electronic, using the computer on my desk, communications
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software, a modem, and a standard phone line.
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I'll be using the Internet, the global network of computers and their
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interconnections, which lets me skip like a stone across oceans and
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continents and control computers at remote sites. I haven't "visited"
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Antarctica yet, but it is only a matter of time before a host computer
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becomes available there!
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This short, non-technical article is an introduction to Internet
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communications and how librarians and libraries can benefit from net
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connectivity. Following will be descriptions of electronic mail,
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discussion lists, electronic journals and texts, and resources available
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to those willing to explore. Historical details about the building of the
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Internet and technical details regarding network speed and bandwidth are
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outside the scope of this piece.
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What's Out There Anyway?
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Until you use a radio receiver, you are unaware of the wealth of
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programming, music, and information otherwise invisible to you.
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Computer networks are much the same. About one million people
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worldwide use the Internet daily. Information packet traffic
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rises by 12% each month.
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About 727,000 host computers are connected, according to a January, 1992
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report (Network Working Group Request for Comments: 1296) by Mark K. Lottor.
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So, what's all the excitement about? What's zipping around in that fiber
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and cable and ether, anyway?
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On my electronic adventure I browsed the online catalog at the University
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Library in Liverpool, England, leaving some "Hi there from Liverpool, New
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York" mail for the librarian.
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I downloaded some new Macintosh anti-virus software from Stanford's
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SUMEX archive.
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Then I checked a few databases for information needed for this article, and
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scanned today's news stories.
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I looked at the weather forecast for here in the East and for the San
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Francisco Bay area, forwarding that information to a friend in San Jose
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who would read it when he woke up. The Internet never closes!
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After that I read some electronic mail from other librarians in
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Israel, Korea, England, Australia and all over the U.S. We're
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exchanging information about how to keep viruses off public computers,
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how to network CDROMS, and how to reink inkjet printer cartridges,
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among other things.
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I monitor about twelve discussion groups. Mail sent to the group
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address is distributed to all other "subscribers". It's similar to
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a round-robin discussion. These are known variously as mailing lists,
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discussion groups, reflectors, aliases, or listservs, depending on what
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type they are and how they are driven. Subscriptions are free.
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One of these groups allows children and young adults all over the world to
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communicate with each other. Kids from Cupertino to Moscow are talking
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about their lives, pets, families, hope and dreams. It's interesting to see
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that Nintendo is a universal language!
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Teachers exchange lesson plans and bibliographies in another group, and
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schools participate in projects like the global market basket survey.
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For this project, students researched what foods a typical family of four
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would buy and prepare over one week's time. Their results were posted to
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the global project area, where they could be compared with reports from kids
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all over North and South America, India, Scandinavia, and Asia. It opened
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up discussions of dietary laws, staple foods, and cultural differences.
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Other lists explore the worlds of library administration, reference,
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mystery readers, romance readers, bird-watcher hotlines, cat enthusiasts,
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ex-Soviet Union watchers, packet radio techies, and thousands more.
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There is even a list to announce the creation of new lists!
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The Power of the Net
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A net connection in a school is like having multiple foreign
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exchange students in the classroom all the time. It promotes
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active, participatory learning. Participating in a discussion
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group is like being at an ongoing library conference. All the
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experts are Out There, waiting to be asked.
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Want to buy a CDROM drive? Send one query and "ask" the 3,000 folks
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on PACS-L (Public Access Computer Systems list) for advice. In a few
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hours you'll have personal testimonies on the pros and cons of various
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hardware configurations.
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Want to see if any libraries are doing anything with Total Quality Management?
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Ask the members of LIBADMIN and you'll have offers of reports, studies,
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personal experiences and more. How do you cope with budget cuts: personnel
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layoffs or materials? Again, LIBADMIN use allows shared advice.
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Here is one story about the power of the net. At Christmas, an electronic
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plea came from Ireland. "My daughter believes in Santa Claus," it began.
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"And although the `My Little Pony Megan & Sundance' set has not been
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made in three years, she believes Santa will prevail and she will find one
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under her tree." Mom, a university professor, had called the manufacturer
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in the US, but none were available. "Check around," they said, "maybe
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some yet stand on store shelves." So Mom sent the call out to the net.
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Many readers began a global search for the wily Pony as part of their own
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holiday shopping forays.
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Soon, another message came from Dublin. It seemed that a reader of the
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original message had a father who was a high-ranking executive in the toy
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company, and he had managed to acquire said pony where others had failed!
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It was duly shipped in time to save Santa's reputation.
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Part of the library's mission is to help remove barriers to accessing
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information, and part of this is removing barriers between people.
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One of the most interesting things about telecommunications is that
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it is the Great Equalizer. It lets all kinds of computers and humans
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talk to each other. The old barriers of sexism, ageism, and racism
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are not present, since you can't see the person to whom you're "speaking".
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You get to know the person without preconceived notions about what you
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THINK he is going to say, based on visual prejudices you may have,
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no matter how innocent.
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Well, almost without visual prejudice. Electronic mail is not always an
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harmonic convergence of like souls adrift in the cyberspace cosmos: there
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are arguments and tirades (called "flames"). Sometimes you get so used to
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seeing a frequent poster's electronic signature that you know what he's
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going to say before he says it!
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Smileys
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One problem with written communication is that remarks meant to be humorous
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are often lost. Without the visual body-language clues, some messages may
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be misinterpreted. So a visual shorthand known as "smileys" has been
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developed. There are a hundred or more variations on this theme-
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:-)
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That's a little smiley face. Look at it sideways. More Smiley info may
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be found via anonymous ftp at many places, including the following:
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ftp nic.funet.fi
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cd /pub/misc/funnies/smiley.txt
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FTP is introduced later in the text.
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What a range of emotions you can show using only keyboard characters.
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Besides the smiley face above, you can have :-( if you're sad, or :-<
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if you're REALLY upset! ;-) is one way of showing a wink. Folks wearing
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glasses might look like this online: %^).
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But for the most part, the electronic community is willing to help others.
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Telecommunications helps us overcome what has been called the tyranny
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of distance. We DO have a global village.
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Electronic Newsletters and Serials
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Subscribing to lists with reckless abandon can clog your mailbox and
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provide a convenient black hole to vacuum up all your spare time. You
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may be more interested in free subscriptions to compiled documents known
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as electronic journals. These journals are automatically delivered to your
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electronic door.
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There are a growing number of these. Some of the best for librarians are
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listed below. To subscribe to these journals you must know how to send an
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interactive message to another computer. This information is well-
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documented in the resources listed at the end of this article. Telnet and
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ftp
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are introduced further along in this article.
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ALCTS NETWORK NEWS
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(Association for Library Collections and Technical Services)
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Various ALA news, net news, other items of interest to librarians. Send the
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following message to
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LISTSERV@UICVM.BITNET
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SUBSCRIBE ALCTS First Name Last Name.
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Current Cites
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Bibliography of current journal articles relating to computers, networks,
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information issues, and technology. Distributed on PACS-L, or connect
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remotely via
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TELNET to MELVYL.UCOP.EDU (192.35.222.222);
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Enter this command at the prompt: SHOW CURRENT CITES.
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Further information: David F. W. Robison, drobison@library.berkeley.edu.
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EFFector Online
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The online newsletter of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. All the hot
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net issues are covered here: privacy, freedom, first amendment rights.
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Join EFF to be added to the mailing list or ftp the files yourself from
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ftp.eff.org (192.88.144.4)
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They are in the /pub/eff and subsequent directories.
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Hot Off the Tree (HOTT)
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(Excerpts and Abstracts of Articles about Information Technology)
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TELNET MELVYL.UCOP.EDU (192.35.222.222); Enter command:
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SHOW HOTT. Further information: Susan Jurist, SJURIST@UCSD.EDU.
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Network News
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An irreverent compendium of tidbits, resources, and net factoids that is a
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must for true Internet surfers. To subscribe, send the following message to
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LISTSERV@NDSUVM1.BITNET
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SUBSCRIBE NNEWS First Name Last Name.
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For more information: Dana Noonan at noonan@msus1.msus.edu.
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Public-Access Computer Systems News
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and The Public-Access Computer Systems Review
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Sent automatically to PACS-L subscribers. See above. For a list of back
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issue files, send the following message to:
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LISTSERV@UHUPVM1.BITNET
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INDEX PACS-L
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To obtain a comprehensive list of electronic serials on all topics, send
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the following commands to:
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LISTSERV@UOTTAWA.BITNET
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GET EJOURNL1 DIRECTRY
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GET EJOURNL2 DIRECTRY
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For further information, contact Michael Strangelove:
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441495@ACADVM1.UOTTAWA.CA.
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Remote Login to Internet Resources: TELNET
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One step beyond electronic mail is the ability to control a remote computer
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using TELNET. This feature lets you virtually teleport anywhere on the
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network and use resources located physically at that host. Further, some
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hosts have gateways to other hosts, which have further gateways to still
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more hosts. How can you be in two places at once? It sounds more
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confusing than it is. What resources are available? Here is a sampling of
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some of the fare awaiting you at several sites:
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Cleveland Free-net
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Freenets are the progeny of:
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Tom Grundner, Director,
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Community Telecomputing Laboratory
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Case Western Reserve University
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303 Wickenden Building
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Cleveland, OH 44106
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216/368-2733 FAX: 216/368-5436
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Internet: aa001@cleveland.freenet.edu
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BITNET: aa001%cleveland.freenet.edu@cunyvm
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and the folks at:
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National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN)
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Box 1987
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Cleveland, OH 44106
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216/368-2733 FAX: 216/368-5436
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Internet: aa622@cleveland.freenet.edu.
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Free-nets are built around a city metaphor, complete with schools,
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hospitals, libraries, courthouses, and other public services.
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Academy One recently held an online global simulation of a series of major
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space achievements. 16 schools (from five states and four nations)
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participated. Here are several of the descriptions of their projects:
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"VALKEALA HIGH SCHOOL VALKEALA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
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Valkeala, Finland (sa124@cleveland.freenet.edu)
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Acting as Space Shuttle Discovery taking the Hubble Telescope into space.
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These Finnish students will be in communication with students in Estonia,
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relaying their reports."
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"DR. HOWARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Champaign, IL
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(cwilliam@mars.ncsa.uiuc.edu, cdouglas@ncsa.uiuc.edu)
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Dr. Howard School (25 students in 3rd/4th grade) will be simulating the
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Challenger 2 launch. They are being assisted by the National Center for
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Supercomputing Applications."
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"ST. JULIE BILLIART SCHOOL Hamilton, OH
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(ba542@cleveland.freenet.edu)
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Simulating a NASA Tracking Station in Florida. They will be
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posting hourly weather reports about the conditions in Florida
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around Cape Kennedy. This information is vital to the recovery
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of the Friendship 7 capsule and crew. Students have taken an
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interest in Space Junk and will be posting additional reports
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on the various probes which were used to test the surface of
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the moon and how all of that junk is now becoming a hazard to
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current and future space exploration."
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Another Free-net resource is Project Hermes. This service provides
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copies of Supreme Court opinions in electronic form to as wide an
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audience as possible, almost as soon as they are announced.
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The Court's opinions can be sent directly to you or you may download the
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files directly from any NPTN community computer system.
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The Free-nets also provide weather, news, and gateways to other resources.
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To access the Cleveland Free-Net (where all this is being held) simply
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telnet to:
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freenet-in-a.cwru.edu 129.22.8.82
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or 129.22.8.75
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or 129.22.8.76
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or 129.22.8.44 and select "visitor" at the login menu.
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MELVYL
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Catalog Division of Library Automation
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University of California
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Office of the President
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300 Lakeside Drive, 8th floor,
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Oakland, California 94612-3550
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415/987-0555 (MELVYL Catalog Helpline)
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E-mail: lynch@postgres.berkeley.edu
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The MELVYL catalog is the union catalog of monographs and serials
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(periodicals) held by the nine University of California campuses and
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affiliated libraries. It represents nearly 11 million holdings at UC,
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the California State Library, and the Center for Research Libraries.
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The MELVYL catalog also provides access to MEDLINE and Current
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Contents as well as a gateway to many other systems. Access to some
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databases is restricted under a license agreement to the University of
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California faculty, staff, and students. Telnet:
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MELVYL.UCOP.EDU (192.35.222.222)
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CARL
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Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries
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777 Grant
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Suite 306
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Denver CO 80203-3580
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303/861-5319
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E-mail: help@carl.org
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CARL offers access to the following groups of databases: Academic and
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public library online catalogs, current article indexes such as UnCover
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and Magazine Index, databases such as the Academic American Encyclopedia
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and Internet Resource Guide, and a gateway to other library systems.
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Access to some items is limited. Telnet:
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pac.carl.org (192.54.81.128)
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MICROMUSE
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This is how Barry Kort (aka `Moulton'), Visiting Scientist at Educational
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Technology Research, BBN Labs, Cambridge, MA describes MicroMuse at M.I.T.
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"MUDs (Multi-User Dimensions) or MUSEs (Multi-User Simulation
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Environments) are virtual realities which offer a rich environment for
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synergy, community, collaboration, and exploratory discovery."
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"Players connect to the host computer, adopt a character and personality of
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their choosing, and enter into the synthetic world, consisting of a web of
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connected rooms and movable props."
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"Everything (rooms, movable objects, connecting passageways, and
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players) has a description (typically a few lines of text) which
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are displayed when a player looks at it."
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"Actions such as picking up or dropping an object, and exiting to an
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adjacent room also generate a short message appropriate to the action."
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"At MIT's AI Lab, MicroMuse features explorations, adventures, and
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puzzles with redeeming social, cultural, and educational content.
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The MicroMuse Science Center offers an Exploratorium and Mathematica
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Exhibit complete with interactive exhibits drawn from experience with
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Science Museums around the country. The Mission to Mars includes an
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elaborate tour of the red planet with accurate descriptions rivaling
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those found in National Geographic."
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"Elsewhere on MicroMuse, one can find an outstanding adventure based on the
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children's classic Narnia; a recreation of the Wizard of Oz adventure built
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by a gifted 8-year old; a challenging Logic Quest; and a living model of the
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science fiction genre `The DragonRiders of Pern' by author Anne McCaffrey."
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If you would like to explore MicroMuse, you may connect as follows from
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your local host computer:
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telnet michael.ai.mit.edu [18.43.0.177]
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login: guest [no password required]
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tt [TinyTalk client program]
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connect guest [Connect to MicroMuse]
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BBS.OIT.UNC.EDU
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Telnet to BBS.OIT.UNC.EDU or 152.2.22.80.
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Type launch at the login message.
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It's a must. Not only can you read Usenet Newsfeeds, but you can use
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LibTel, a scripted telnet gateway to access both US and international
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libraries plus such things as Data Research Associates Library of Congress
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catalog, the Ham Radio Call Book, the National Science Foundation, the
|
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Weather Server, Webster's dictionary and thesaurus, and more.
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Remote Access to Files (FTP)
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FTP or File Transfer Protocol is what to use to retrieve a text file,
|
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software, or other item from a remote host. Normal practice is to ftp
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to the host you want and login as "anonymous". Some sites use the
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password "guest" while others require that you put in your network
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address as the password. Some popular ftp sites follow:
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SUMEX-AIM
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This archive at Stanford (sumex-aim.stanford.edu or 36.44.0.6) houses a
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plethora of Macintosh applications, utilities, graphics and sound files.
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SIMTEL20
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(simtel20.army.mil or 192.88.110.20) at the White Sands Missile Range in
|
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New Mexico contains a similar archive software for MS-DOS computers.
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An FTP visit to the Network Service Center at nnsc.nsf.net (128.89.1.178)
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is a gold mine of documents and training materials on net use. See further
|
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information on this in the "Resources for Learning More" section of this
|
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article.
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Project Gutenberg
|
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|
|
The primary goal of Project Gutenberg is to encourage the creation and
|
|
distribution of electronic text. They hope to get ten thousand titles
|
|
to one hundred million users for a trillion etexts in distribution by
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the end of 2001.
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Some of the many texts available now include Alice in Wonderland,
|
|
Peter Pan, Moby Dick, Paradise Lost and other texts in the public domain.
|
|
Many of these texts are availablevia ftp:
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ftp mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (128.174.201.12)
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cd etext/etext92 [for 1992 releases] [etext93 is available for testing now]
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cd etext/etext91 [for 1991 releases] [This file should be in it]
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cd etext/articles [for Project Gutenberg articles and newsletters].
|
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Most are also available from quake.think.com (192.31.181.1); /pub/etext,
|
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from simtel20, and from many other sites.
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For more info try Gopher as in the following section or contact:
|
|
Michael S. Hart, Director
|
|
Project Gutenberg
|
|
National Clearinghouse for Machine Readable Texts
|
|
Illinois Benedictine College
|
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5700 College Road
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Lisle, Illinois 60532-0900
|
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INTERNET: dircompg@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu
|
|
CompuServe: >INTERNET:dircompg@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu
|
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Attmail: internet!ux1.cso.uiuc.edu!dircompg
|
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BITNET: HART@UIUCVMD
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Travel Agents:
|
|
Archie, Gopher, Veronica, WAIS, Worldwide Web and More
|
|
|
|
There is so much information on the net, it's impossible to know
|
|
where everything is, or even how to begin looking. Fortunately,
|
|
some computerized "agents" are in development to help sort through
|
|
the massive data libraries on the net.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Archie
|
|
|
|
Peter Deutsch, of McGill's Computing Centre, describes the archie server
|
|
concept, which allows users to ask a question once yet search many
|
|
different hosts for files of interest.
|
|
|
|
"The archie service is a collection of resource discovery tools that together
|
|
provide an electronic directory service for locating information in an
|
|
Internet environment. Originally created to track the contents of
|
|
anonymous ftp archive sites, the archie service is now being expanded to
|
|
include a variety of other online directories and resource listings."
|
|
|
|
"Currently, archie tracks the contents of over 800 anonymous FTP archive
|
|
sites containing some 1,000,000 files throughout the Internet. Collectively,
|
|
these files represent well over 50 Gigabytes (50,000,000,000 bytes) of
|
|
information, with additional information being added daily. Anonymous ftp
|
|
archive sites offer software, data and other information which can be
|
|
copied and used without charge by anyone with connection to the Internet."
|
|
|
|
"The archie server automatically updates the listing information from each
|
|
site about once a month, ensuring users that the information they receive
|
|
is reasonably timely, without imposing an undue load on the archive sites
|
|
or network bandwidth."
|
|
|
|
Unfortunately the archie server at McGill is currently out of service.
|
|
Other sites are:
|
|
archie.ans.net (USA [NY])
|
|
archie.rutgers.edu (USA [NJ])
|
|
archie.sura.net (USA [MD])
|
|
archie.funet.fi (Finland/Mainland Europe)
|
|
archie.au (Australia/New Zealand)
|
|
archie.doc.ic.ac.uk (Great Britain/Ireland)
|
|
|
|
More information avaiable from:
|
|
UNIX Support Group
|
|
Computing Centre
|
|
McGill University
|
|
Room 200
|
|
Burnside Hall
|
|
805 Sherbrooke Street West
|
|
Montreal, Quebec CANADA H3A 2K6
|
|
514/398-3709
|
|
peterd@cc.mcgill.ca
|
|
|
|
|
|
Internet Gopher
|
|
Gopher (or go-fer): someone who fetches necessary items from many locations.
|
|
|
|
Login as gopher after you telnet to consultant.micro.umn.edu and enjoy
|
|
having a computer do all the work for you. Almost. Gopher is still in
|
|
experimental mode at many gopherized sites. Still, it is one of the best
|
|
ways to locate information on and in the Internet.
|
|
|
|
Besides archie, the gopher at consultant.micro.umn.edu includes fun and
|
|
games, humor, libraries (including reference books such as the Hacker's
|
|
Dictionary, Roget's 1911 Thesaurus, and the CIA World Fact Book), gateways
|
|
to other US and foreign gophers, news, and gateways to other systems.
|
|
|
|
VERONICA: Very Easy Rodent-Oriented Net-wide Index to Computerized Archives.
|
|
|
|
Very new on the scene is VERONICA.
|
|
Here is some information from Steve Foster about it.
|
|
|
|
"Veronica offers a keyword search of most gopher-server menus in the entire
|
|
gopher web. As Archie is to ftp archives, Veronica is to gopherspace.
|
|
Unlike Archie, the search results can connect you directly to the data source.
|
|
Imagine an Archie search that lets you select the data, not just the host
|
|
sites, directly from a menu. Because Veronica is accessed through a gopher
|
|
client, it is easy to use, and gives access to all types of data supported
|
|
by the gopher protocol."
|
|
|
|
"Veronica was designed as a response to the problem of resource discovery
|
|
in the rapidly-expanding gopher web. Frustrated comments in the net news-
|
|
groups have recently reflected the need for such a service. Additional
|
|
motivation came from the comments of naive gopher users, several of
|
|
whom assumed that a simple-touse service would provide a means to find
|
|
resources `without having to know where they are.'"
|
|
|
|
"The result of a Veronica search is an automatically-generated gopher
|
|
menu, customized according to the user's keyword specification. Items on
|
|
this menu may be drawn from many gopher servers. These are functional
|
|
gopher items, immediately accessible via the gopher client just double-
|
|
click to open directories, read files, or perform other searches -- across
|
|
hundreds of gopher servers. You need never know which server is actually
|
|
involved in filling your request for information. Items that are appear
|
|
particularly interesting can be saved in the user's bookmark list."
|
|
|
|
"Notice that these are NOT full-text searches of data at gopher-server sites,
|
|
just as Archie does not index the contents of ftp sites, but only the names of
|
|
files at those sites. Veronica indexes the TITLES on all levels of the
|
|
menus, for most gopher sites in the Internet. 258 gophers are indexed by
|
|
Veronica on Nov. 17, 1992; we have discovered over 500 servers and will
|
|
index the full set in the near future. We hope that Veronica will encourage
|
|
gopher administrators to use very descriptive titles on their menus."
|
|
|
|
"To try Veronica, select it from the `Other Gophers' menu on Minnesota's
|
|
gopher server (consultant.micro.umn.edu), or point your gopher at:
|
|
Name=Veronica (search menu items in most of GopherSpace)
|
|
Type=1
|
|
Port=70
|
|
Path=1/Veronica Host=futique.scs.unr.edu"
|
|
|
|
"Veronica is an experimental service, developed by Steve Foster and
|
|
Fred Barrie at University of Nevada. As we expect that the load will
|
|
soon outgrow our hardware, we will distribute the Veronica service
|
|
across other sites in the near future."
|
|
|
|
"Please address comments to: gophadm@futique.scs.unr.edu"
|
|
|
|
Is this the new world order of automated librarianship?
|
|
|
|
|
|
WAIS
|
|
|
|
Wide Area Information Servers (pronounced ways) allows users to
|
|
get information from a variety of hosts by means of a "client".
|
|
The user tells the client, in plain English, what to look for
|
|
out in dataspace. The client then searches various WAIS servers
|
|
around the globe. The user tells the client how relevant each hit is,
|
|
and the client can be sent out on the same quest again and again to
|
|
find new documents. Client software is available for many different
|
|
types of computers.
|
|
|
|
WAIStation is an easy to use Macintosh implementation of a WAIS client.
|
|
It can be downloaded from think.com as well as a self-running MediaTracks
|
|
demo of WAIStation in action. Kahle also moderates a thoughtful WAIS
|
|
newsletter and discussion group, often speculating about the future of
|
|
libraries and librarians.
|
|
|
|
Info from: Brewster Kahle, Project Leader
|
|
Wide Area Information Servers
|
|
Thinking Machines Corporation
|
|
1010 El Camino Real
|
|
Menlo Park, CA 94025
|
|
415/329-9300 x228
|
|
brewster@Think.COM
|
|
|
|
|
|
WorldWideWeb
|
|
|
|
Tim Berners-Lee describes the Web this way: "The WWW project merges
|
|
the techniques of information retrieval and hypertext to make an easy but
|
|
powerful global information system. The WWW world consists of documents,
|
|
and links. Indexes are special documents which, rather than being read,
|
|
may be searched. The result of such a search is another (`virtual')
|
|
document containing links to the documents found. The Web contains
|
|
documents in many formats. Those documents which are hypertext,
|
|
(real or virtual) contain links to other documents, or places
|
|
within documents. All documents, whether real, virtual or indexes, look
|
|
similar to the reader and are contained within the same addressing scheme.
|
|
To follow a link, a reader clicks with a mouse (or types in a number if
|
|
he or she has no mouse). To search and index, a reader gives keywords
|
|
(or other search criteria). These are the only operations necessary to
|
|
access the entire world of data."
|
|
|
|
Info from: Tim Berners-Lee
|
|
WorldWideWeb project
|
|
CERN
|
|
1211 Geneva 23, Switzerland
|
|
Tel: +41(22)767 3755 FAX:+41(22)767 7155
|
|
email:tbl@cernvax.cern.ch
|
|
|
|
Hytelnet
|
|
|
|
Peter Scott, the creator of HYTELNET, sends this recent update:
|
|
"HYTELNET version 6.3, the utility which gives an IBM-PC user instant-
|
|
access to all Internetaccessible library catalogs, FREE-NETS, CWISs,
|
|
BBSs, Gophers, WAIS, etc. is now available. You can get it via anonymous
|
|
ftp from: access.usask.ca in the pub/hytelnet/pc subdirectory. It is
|
|
listed as HYTELN63.ZIP."
|
|
|
|
"Version 6.3 is a major upgrade. Much redundant information has been
|
|
deleted, and errors have been corrected. New subdirectories have been
|
|
added, which has meant that many files now have a more meaningful home.
|
|
Also all the new/updated files created since Version 6.2 were incorporated."
|
|
|
|
"Note: the UNZIPPED files total over 1.2 mb but remember, you can always
|
|
edit out any information you do not need, in order to save space.
|
|
Information from Roy Tennant follows, slightly edited, describing how to
|
|
obtain HYTELNET 6.3 from the ftp site (thanks Roy)::"
|
|
|
|
"TO RETRIEVE HYTELNET:
|
|
At your system prompt, enter:
|
|
ftp access.usask.ca or ftp 128.233.3.1
|
|
When you receive the Name prompt, enter: anonymous
|
|
When you receive the password prompt, enter: your Internet address.
|
|
When you are at the ftp> prompt, enter: binary
|
|
At the next ftp> prompt, enter: cd pub/hytelnet/pc
|
|
Then enter: get hyteln63.zip
|
|
|
|
After the transfer has occurred, either proceed with the instructions
|
|
below to retrieve the UNZIP utility (which you need unless you already
|
|
have it) or enter: quit
|
|
|
|
The Hytelnet program is archived using a ZIP utility. To unarchive it,
|
|
you must be able to "unzip" the file. If you have the file PKUNZIP.EXE,
|
|
it will unarchive the HYTELN63.ZIP file (see below for instructions).
|
|
If you do not have it, you may retrieve it by following these instructions:
|
|
|
|
TO RETRIEVE PKUNZIP:
|
|
Use the above instructions for connecting to:
|
|
access.usask.ca At the ftp> prompt, enter: binary
|
|
Then enter: cd pub/hytelnet/pc
|
|
Then enter: get pkunzip.exe
|
|
After the transfer has occurred, enter: quit
|
|
|
|
TO DOWNLOAD IT TO YOUR PC:
|
|
Because of the plethora of PC communications programs, I will not attempt
|
|
to give step-by-step instructions here. You should check the instructions
|
|
for your software for downloading a *binary* file from your Internet account
|
|
to your PC.
|
|
|
|
TO UNARCHIVE HYTELN63.ZIP:
|
|
Make a new directory on your hard disk (e.g., mkdir hytelnet) Copy
|
|
PKUNZIP.EXE and HYTELN63.ZIP into the new directory Make sure you
|
|
are in that directory, then enter: pkunzip HYTELN63 It will then
|
|
unarchive HYTELN63.ZIP, which contains the following files: HYTELNET.ZIP
|
|
READNOW. The file READNOW gives full instructions for un-archiving
|
|
HYTELNET.ZIP. Simply put, you **MUST** unZIP the file with the -d
|
|
parameter so that all the subdirectories will be recursed.
|
|
|
|
To use HYTELNET, you should refer to the instructions in the release
|
|
announcement by Peter Scott, or to the README file included with the package."
|
|
|
|
"PLEASE NOTE that I offer the above instructions as a service for those
|
|
who are unfamiliar with the steps required to download and use files from
|
|
network sources. I cannot be responsible for any local variations in these
|
|
procedures which may exist. Please contact your local computer support
|
|
staff if you have difficulty performing these tasks."
|
|
|
|
"The UNIX/VMS version, created by Earl Fogel, is available for browsing
|
|
by telnet to access.usask.ca login with hytelnet (lower case).
|
|
For more information on this version contact Earl at: fogel@skyfox.usask.ca."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
How to Get Connected
|
|
|
|
Now that you're interested in what resources are available, how does one go
|
|
about getting connected? Time was that you needed a standard, dedicated
|
|
connection to the Internet. Then you needed a robust computer system and
|
|
a couple of zany gurus to keep it all running. And once a year you could
|
|
expect an invoice in the $30,000 range to keep the data flowing.
|
|
|
|
These days, anyone can connect, from small libraries and non-profits to
|
|
individuals. (and of course commercial-mh) And the prices are affordable.
|
|
|
|
There is a NSFNet acceptable-use policy you must agree to adhere to
|
|
if your traffic passes through NSFNet. It is available from the NSF
|
|
Network Service Center.
|
|
|
|
Contact your regional network first to see what services might be available
|
|
to you. A list of regional nets can be obtained from the NSF Network
|
|
Service Center (address below), or check with a local college or
|
|
university's academic computing center. A university may be able to give
|
|
you a guest account on its system for educational purposes.
|
|
|
|
Access to electronic mail alone is roughly $20 a month at this writing.
|
|
Additional capabilities, including telnet and ftp, cost more, and it will
|
|
cost $2,000 or more per year if you want to operate your own host system.
|
|
The good news is that the costs are spiraling downwards. Here are a few other
|
|
methods of connecting to the net. Many more are listed in the "must-have"
|
|
books at the end of this article.
|
|
|
|
CERFnet
|
|
The California Education and Research Federation (CERFnet) has announced
|
|
DIAL N' CERF USA. It allows educators, scientists, corporations, and
|
|
individuals access to the Internet from anywhere in the continental US.
|
|
|
|
A toll-free number, 1-800-7CERFNET (1-800-723-7363), provides subscribers
|
|
with the capability to log in to remote machines, transfer files, and send
|
|
and receive electronic mail, as if they had a standard, dedicated connection.
|
|
The cost of this toll-free connection is $20 a month with a $10 per hour
|
|
usage fee and free installation. There is an installation charge of $50.
|
|
|
|
CERFnet
|
|
California Education and Research Federation
|
|
c/o San Diego Supercomputer Center
|
|
P.O. Box 85608
|
|
San Diego, CA 92186-9784
|
|
800/876-CERF or 619/534-5087
|
|
help@cerf.net
|
|
|
|
|
|
Performance Systems International
|
|
|
|
PSI offers several permutations of network connectivity, including low-end
|
|
email-only accounts, dial-up host connectivity on demand, and dedicated
|
|
connections. Costs are competitive and performance is reliable. PSI has
|
|
POPs (points of presence) in over forty U.S. cities.
|
|
|
|
PSILink, email and delayed ftp, is $19 a month for 2400 baud service or
|
|
below, $29 per month for 9600 baud service.
|
|
|
|
GDS (Global Dialup Service) includes telnet, rlogins at $39 a month,
|
|
2400 baud, 24 hour access.
|
|
|
|
Host DCS (Dialup Connection Service), at about $2000 per year,
|
|
includes a full suite of internet activities (mail, news, ftp, telnet).
|
|
|
|
Performance Systems International, Inc.
|
|
11800 Sunrise Valley Dr. Suite 1100
|
|
Reston, VA 22091
|
|
800/82PSI82 or 703/620-6651 FAX: 703/620-4586
|
|
info@psi.com. All-info@psi.com generates an automatic reply response
|
|
containing summaries of various PSI products.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Software Tool & Die
|
|
|
|
Software Tool & Die offers The World, a public access Unix system:
|
|
The basic rates are $2 per hour and a $5 monthly account fee.
|
|
Services offered by The World include internet electronic mail,
|
|
USENET news, ClariNet -UPI, AP, and satellite news services,
|
|
real-time chat, Unix Software, Archie, the Online Book Initiative
|
|
(a publicly accessible repository for freely redistributable
|
|
collections of textual information, a net-worker's library.)
|
|
AlterNet Access - Users have access to AlterNet via ftp/telnet.
|
|
The World can also be accessed over the Compuserve Packet Network.
|
|
You do not have to be a Compuserve subscriber to use this network,
|
|
but you will be billed for its use.
|
|
|
|
The WORLD
|
|
Software Tool & Die
|
|
1330 Beacon Street
|
|
Brookline, MA 02146
|
|
617/39-0202
|
|
|
|
Daniel Dern also provides the following definitive information file on
|
|
how to get connected:
|
|
Daniel Dern's Short Answer to "How do I get a list of Internet
|
|
Service/Access Providers for Individual Accounts":
|
|
|
|
For a list of Internet Service Providers contact:
|
|
|
|
NSF Network Service Center (NNSC)
|
|
BBN Laboratories Inc.
|
|
10 Moulton St.
|
|
Cambridge, MA 02238
|
|
617/873-3361
|
|
nnsc@nnsc.nsf.net
|
|
|
|
The NNSC info-server utility can also automatically e-mail you a copy of
|
|
this list and other documents. Simply send an e-mail message to:
|
|
info-server@nnsc.nsf.net
|
|
|
|
with the following text in the body:
|
|
|
|
request: nsfnet
|
|
topic: <topic-here>
|
|
topic: <topic-here>
|
|
request: end
|
|
|
|
You don't need to put anything in the subject line.
|
|
|
|
"referral-list" gets you the NNSC's referral list of Internet Service
|
|
Providers based in the U.S. (possibly providing international service).
|
|
This is generally agreed to be the most comprehensive and least-biased list.
|
|
"limited-referral" gets you the NNSC's referral list of Internet providers
|
|
for "limited service," which includes Dial-Up IP, Internet E-mail.
|
|
|
|
"help" (recommended) gets you the Help document for the info-server facility.
|
|
|
|
For a list of dial-up-accessible Public-Access Internet Hosts (Unix BBSs
|
|
that can do telnet, ftp, etc., that can you can access by calling from
|
|
your PC and modem), see the PDIAL list, maintained by Peter Kaminski.
|
|
Kaminski periodically posts an updated version to the usenet groups
|
|
alt.bbs.lists and alt.bbs.internet; also, the most recent edition may
|
|
be obtained by sending e-mail to:
|
|
kaminski@netcom.com
|
|
with the
|
|
`Send PDIAL'
|
|
|
|
in the subject. To be placed on a list to receive future editions
|
|
automatically, send e-mail to:
|
|
kaminski@netcom.com with `Subscribe PDIAL' in the subject.
|
|
|
|
The `nixpub' list is a frequently updated list of Public-Access unix
|
|
Systems -Unix-based BBSs usually carrying usenet news, supporting e-mail
|
|
connectivity to the Internet, and with some mix of local archives, multi-
|
|
user games, etc. The full list is long (over 1,000 lines). To get a
|
|
current copy of `nixpub' as an automatic e-mail reply, Send a message to
|
|
`nixpub@digex.com' (no subject or message text needed), or to
|
|
`archive-server@cs.widener.edu' with message body of one of these:
|
|
|
|
send nixpub long
|
|
send nixpub short
|
|
send nixpub long short
|
|
index nixpub
|
|
|
|
The nixpub and nixpub.short lists are regularly reposted to the USENET
|
|
comp.misc and alt.bbs groups
|
|
|
|
Info from: Daniel P. Dern Free-lance technology writer
|
|
P.O. Box 309
|
|
Newton Centre, MA 02159
|
|
617/969-7947 FAX: 617/969-7949
|
|
ddern@world.std.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
Resources for Learning More
|
|
|
|
|
|
CERFnet Network Information Center (NIC)
|
|
|
|
This is a repository for many eclectic internet guides and RFC (Requests
|
|
For Comments) from many sources, including the famous, if technical
|
|
"Hitchhiker's Guide to the Internet." These may be obtained via anonymous
|
|
ftp to nic.cerf.net (192.102.249.3).
|
|
Call the CERFnet Hotline at 800-876-CERF for assistance.
|
|
California Education and Research Federation
|
|
c/o San Diego Supercomputer Center
|
|
P. O. Box 85608
|
|
San Diego, CA 92186- 9784
|
|
800/876-CERF or 619/534-5087
|
|
help@cerf.net
|
|
|
|
|
|
CICNet Resource Guide
|
|
|
|
Over 200 pages of Internet resources, published June, 1992. Copies are
|
|
$27.00 from CICNet, Inc.
|
|
Attn Kim Schaffer
|
|
2901 Hubbard Pod A
|
|
Ann Arbor, MI 48109.
|
|
313/998-6103 FAX 313/998-6105
|
|
info@cic.net
|
|
|
|
|
|
"The December Lists"
|
|
|
|
"Information Sources: the Internet and Computer-Mediated Communication"
|
|
Compiled by John December (decemj@rpi.edu)
|
|
Here is part of his information file on this excellent resource:
|
|
|
|
"This document or updates are available via anonymous ftp.
|
|
Host: ftp.rpi.edu
|
|
file: /pub/communications/internet-cmc
|
|
|
|
PURPOSE: to list pointers to information describing the Internet,
|
|
computer networks, and issues related to computer- mediated
|
|
communication (CMC). Topics of interest include the technical, social,
|
|
cognitive, and psychological aspects of CMC.
|
|
|
|
AUDIENCE: this file is useful for those getting started in understanding
|
|
the Internet and CMC; it compactly summarizes sources of information for
|
|
those who are already exploring these issues.
|
|
|
|
ASSUMPTIONS: to access many information sources listed here you must
|
|
have access to and know how to use anonymous ftp, email, or USENET
|
|
newsgroups. Some files are in TeX or PostScript format.
|
|
|
|
Contents:
|
|
Section -1- THE INTERNET AND SERVICES
|
|
Section -2- INFORMATION SERVICES/ELECTRONIC PUBLICATIONS
|
|
Section -3- SOCIETIES AND ORGANIZATIONS
|
|
Section -4- NEWSGROUPS
|
|
Section -5- SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY"
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette"
|
|
|
|
Brad Templeton's (brad@looking.on.ca) satirical and hilarious piece on
|
|
how NOT to behave on the net. Emily Postnews, foremost authority on
|
|
proper net behaviour, gives her advice. There are many places to ftp this
|
|
file, and it is appearing on many gophers. One place to get the file is by
|
|
ftp to ra.msstate.edu (130.18.80.10)
|
|
Location: /pub/docs/words- l/Funnies
|
|
|
|
The file is called emily.postnews. Here is a sample:
|
|
|
|
"Dear Miss Postnews:
|
|
How long should my signature be?
|
|
-- verbose@noisy
|
|
|
|
A: Dear Verbose:
|
|
Please try and make your signature as long as you can. It's much more
|
|
important than your article, of course, so try to have more lines of
|
|
signature than actual text. Try to include a large graphic made of
|
|
ASCII characters, plus lots of cute quotes and slogans. People will
|
|
never tire of reading these pearls of wisdom again and again, and you
|
|
will soon become personally associated with the joy each reader feels
|
|
at seeing yet another delightful repeat of your signature. Be sure
|
|
as well to include a complete map of USENET with each signature, to
|
|
show how anybody can get mail to you from any site in the world.
|
|
Be sure to include Internet gateways as well. Also tell people
|
|
on your own site how to mail to you. Give independent addresses
|
|
for Internet, UUCP, and BITNET, even if they're all the same."
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Incomplete Guide to the Internet"
|
|
|
|
The "Incomplete Guide" was compiled by the NCSA Education Group,
|
|
dated September, 1992. It is also available for anonymous FTP at:
|
|
|
|
ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu in the /misc directory
|
|
|
|
This excellent manual is a must.
|
|
It even covers SLIP connections and use of Eudora.
|
|
|
|
Here are some comments about it from cfarmer@ncsa.uiuc.EDU (Chuck Farmer):
|
|
"The first half of the text is devoted to the mechanics of telecommunications,
|
|
how to connect, what to do once you are connected, etc. The second half of
|
|
the manual is devoted to current telecommunications projects, past successful
|
|
projects, and resources. The resources include FTP sites, open BBS's and
|
|
networks, Free-Nets, subscription services, and where to get more information
|
|
on each resource. This resource was complied by the Living Lab program
|
|
(NSF funded) at NCSA as an attempt to encourage the proliferation of HPCC
|
|
use in the K-12 classroom. We welcome your comments and suggestions.
|
|
|
|
For further information:
|
|
National Center for Supercomputing Applications
|
|
605 E Springfield Ave.
|
|
Champaign, IL 61820
|
|
217/244-6122
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Library Resources on the Internet:
|
|
Strategies for Selection and Use" 1992.
|
|
RASD Occasional Paper no. 12, selling for $18 to members,
|
|
$20 for nonmembers. It can be ordered from:
|
|
ALA Order Services
|
|
50 E. Huron
|
|
Chicago, IL 60611,
|
|
800/545-2433
|
|
|
|
Electronic versions available via FTP
|
|
ASCII file from:
|
|
host DLA.UCOP.EDU (128.48.108.25)
|
|
directory /pub/internet/Libcat-guide
|
|
|
|
host FTP.UNT.EDU (129.120.1.1)
|
|
directory /pub/library/libcat-guide
|
|
|
|
WordPerfect 5.1 file from:
|
|
host HYDRA.UWO.CA (129.100.2.13)
|
|
directory libsoft/internet.com
|
|
|
|
Merit's Cruise of the Internet
|
|
|
|
This attractive overview looks great on a Macintosh.
|
|
I have not seen the Windows version.
|
|
|
|
From the README text: "Merit's `Cruise of the Internet' is a computer-
|
|
based tutorial for new as well as experienced Internet `navigators.'
|
|
The Cruise will introduce you to Internet resources as diverse as
|
|
supercomputing, minorities, multimedia, and even cooking. It will also
|
|
provide information about the tools needed to access those resources."
|
|
|
|
ftp to NIC.MERIT.EDU /internet/resources. There are Macintosh and
|
|
Windows versions, and README text files to explain installation procedures.
|
|
|
|
A Cruise of the Internet
|
|
Version 2.01 for Apple Macintosh computers
|
|
December 1, 1992
|
|
|
|
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
|
|
This tutorial will run on any color Macintosh which is capable of
|
|
displaying 256 colors.
|
|
|
|
To run the Cruise tutorial you will need:
|
|
|
|
- A Macintosh II, LC or Quadra series computer
|
|
- 8-bit color and any color monitor (12" minimum)
|
|
- System 6.05 or 7.x
|
|
- Approximately 3 MB of disk space
|
|
- 4 MB RAM is recommended
|
|
- Internet connectivity and software that does file transfers via FTP.
|
|
|
|
A Cruise of the Internet
|
|
Version 2.0 for IBM-DOS and DOS compatibles running Windows
|
|
October 28, 1992
|
|
|
|
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
|
|
This tutorial will run on any IBM-DOS or DOS-compatible computer
|
|
which is equipped to display 256 colors at an aspect ratio of 640 x 480.
|
|
|
|
To run the Cruise tutorial you will need:
|
|
|
|
- An IBM-DOS or DOS-compatible computer
|
|
- XGA- or XGA-compatible adapter set to display 256 colors at 640 x 480
|
|
- Microsoft Windows(TM) version 3.1
|
|
- Approximately 1.5 MB of disk space
|
|
- 2 MB RAM minimum
|
|
- Internet connectivity and software that does file transfers via FTP.
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Mining the Internet"
|
|
|
|
The Net as mine metaphor is a popular theme. Tunneling through the
|
|
network matrix in search of gems and ore is not far from fact.
|
|
Sometimes it is hard work, and a lot of it is working in the dark.
|
|
|
|
There is a guidebook called "Mining the Internet", available from
|
|
University of California at Davis. Here is how the Gold Country Mining
|
|
|
|
Instructions begin:
|
|
"Jist durn tuckered o' workin' eight t' five for a salary. ain't you?
|
|
An' you wanna set out for parts unknown. You're hankerin' for an a'venture.
|
|
Come'n then go `Mining the Internet' with me, father of Clementine
|
|
(that's my darlin'), and I'll tell you some old timey tales and
|
|
introduce you to a new resource for students, faculty, and staff called
|
|
wide area networking 'Taint goin' to hurt you any, and the prospect looks
|
|
good for a lucky strike."
|
|
|
|
"Mining the Internet" and "Using the Internet A&B" available from:
|
|
Computing Services
|
|
University of California
|
|
Davis, CA 95616-8563
|
|
916/752-0233.
|
|
Or electronically by anonymous ftp from
|
|
ucdavis.edu (128.120.2.1)
|
|
directory /ucd.netdocs/mining
|
|
|
|
|
|
NSF Network Service Center (NNSC)
|
|
|
|
NSF Internet Tour HyperCard Stack--borrow a Macintosh long enough
|
|
to view this, worth the effort! Includes net history, net maps,
|
|
net poetry and lore. Free.
|
|
|
|
They also publish a very complete Internet Resource Guide ($15).
|
|
Many items, including the HyperCard Tour to the Internet, freely
|
|
available by anonymous
|
|
ftp from nnsc.nsf.net
|
|
|
|
NNSC
|
|
Bolt Beranek and Newman Inc.
|
|
10 Moulton Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
|
|
617/873-3400
|
|
nnsc@nnsc.nsf.net
|
|
|
|
|
|
New User's Guide to Unique and Interesting Resources on the Internet 2.2.
|
|
|
|
Available from NYSERNet (New York State Education and Research Network).
|
|
It is over 145 pages and lists some 50 sources. OPACS, databases,
|
|
information resources, and more. The New User's Guide is available
|
|
in hard copy at the cost of $25.00. (NYSERNet Members: $18.00)
|
|
It is available electronically at
|
|
nysernet.org (192.77.173.2)
|
|
in the directory
|
|
/pub/resources/guides
|
|
|
|
It is called the new.user.guide.v2.2.txt
|
|
|
|
For more information:
|
|
NYSERNet, Inc.
|
|
111 College Pl.
|
|
Syracuse, NY 13244-4100
|
|
315/443-4120 FAX 315/425-7518
|
|
info@nysernet.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
NorthWestNet User Services Internet Resource Guide
|
|
|
|
NorthWestNet has released a 300-page guide to the Internet, covering
|
|
electronic mail, file transfer, remote login, discussion groups,
|
|
online library catalogues, and supercomputer access.
|
|
|
|
Copies may be purchased for $20.00 from NorthWestNet.
|
|
It is also available via anonymous ftp:
|
|
ftphost.nwnet.net
|
|
in the directory
|
|
/nic/nwnet/user-guide
|
|
|
|
NorthWestNet
|
|
15400 SE 30th Place, Suite 202,
|
|
Bellevue, WA 98007
|
|
206/562-3000 FAX: 206/562-4822
|
|
|
|
|
|
"There's Gold in Them Thar Networks! or Searching for Gold in all the
|
|
Wrong Places" written by Jerry Martin at Ohio State University. This
|
|
document is available via Internet message to Infoserver@nnsc.nsf.net.
|
|
Once inside the message area, give the following commands to retrieve the
|
|
document: REQUEST:NSFNET
|
|
TOPIC:NETWORK-TREASURES
|
|
REQUEST: END
|
|
|
|
|
|
"The Yanoff Lists"
|
|
|
|
"Special Internet Connections" Compiled by Scott Yanoff.
|
|
This is an indispensable weekly list of network resources
|
|
available using telnet and ftp.
|
|
|
|
It includes a few Online Public Access Catalogs, chat lines, weather
|
|
servers, Campus Wide Information Systems, and reference resources.
|
|
Send e-mail to the list manager (Scott Yanoff) at:
|
|
yanoff@csd4.csd.uwm.edu
|
|
or
|
|
ftp to csd4.csd.uwm.edu
|
|
The filename is inet-services.
|
|
|
|
|
|
How to Find out More About Discussion Lists
|
|
|
|
Thousands of discussion groups, LISTSERVs, and mail reflectors exist on
|
|
the Internet. Here are several ways to find lists of interest to you.
|
|
|
|
LISTSERVs available from NYSERNet.org
|
|
Nysernet.org hosts over 20 lists, including folk_music and PUBLIB for
|
|
public librarians. Send a LIST GLOBAL command in an interactive
|
|
message to our host. For example:
|
|
|
|
To: LISTSERV@nysernet.org
|
|
Subject:
|
|
Message: LIST GLOBAL
|
|
|
|
The SRI NIC Maintained Interest-Groups List of Lists
|
|
This is available by FTP from ftp.nisc.sri.com (192.33.33.22) in the
|
|
directory /netinfo/interest-groups.
|
|
|
|
The SRI NIC list-of-lists is also available via electronic mail. Send a
|
|
message to mail-server@nisc.sri.com with the following line in the
|
|
message body:
|
|
Send netinfo/interest-groups
|
|
Example:
|
|
To: mail-server@nisc.sri.com
|
|
Subject:
|
|
Message: Send netinfo/interest-groups
|
|
|
|
|
|
The List of Lists
|
|
|
|
A comprehensive list-of-lists can be obtained from some larger host
|
|
computers running LISTSERV software, by sending a LIST GLOBAL command
|
|
in an interactive message. This will return a "one line per list"
|
|
list of all lists known to that host as of that date.
|
|
For example:
|
|
To: LISTSERV@VM1.NoDak.EDU mail
|
|
Subject:
|
|
Message: LIST GLOBAL
|
|
|
|
The global list can also be searched online.
|
|
For details send LISTSERV the command INFO DATABASE
|
|
|
|
|
|
Network Accessible Database Server
|
|
|
|
Only available on the LISTSERV@VM1.NoDak.EDU is a searchable interest
|
|
groups database. For example, to search of the databases for lists
|
|
on "cats" you would send the following statements (copy them exactly into
|
|
your mail message to the LISTSERV):
|
|
|
|
//DBlook JOB Echo=No
|
|
Database Search DD=Rules
|
|
//Rules DD *
|
|
Select cats in lists
|
|
index
|
|
Select cats in intgroup
|
|
index
|
|
Select cats in new-list
|
|
index
|
|
|
|
These statements search the global LISTSERV list of lists ("in lists"),
|
|
and the local copy of the SRI-NIC Interest Groups ("in intgroup"), and
|
|
the archives of the "new-list" list ("in new-list"). Send LISTSERV the
|
|
command INFO DATABASE for more information.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The 5th Revision of the Directory of Scholarly Electronic Conferences
|
|
|
|
This resource is available at LISTSERV@KENTVM or
|
|
LISTSERV@KENTVM.KENT.EDU and via anonymous FTP to
|
|
ksuvxa.kent.edu
|
|
in the
|
|
library
|
|
directory.
|
|
|
|
This announcement is extracted from the ACADLIST README FILE
|
|
|
|
"This directory contains descriptions of 805 electronic conferences
|
|
(econferences) on topics of interest to scholars. E- conference is the
|
|
umbrella term that includes discussion lists, interest groups, e-journals,
|
|
e-newsletters, Usenet newsgroups, forums, etc. We have used our own
|
|
judgment in deciding what is of scholarly interest -- and accept any advice
|
|
or argument about our decisions. We have placed the entries into
|
|
categories by deciding what the *dominant* academic subject area of the
|
|
electronic conference is."
|
|
|
|
"The 5th Revision involves an attempt to make it easier to feed the
|
|
Directory into HyperCard(TM), dBase(TM) and other database programs.
|
|
The first step in this effort has been to use field labels for each part of
|
|
each record. We've also reduced the size of each record by trying to keep
|
|
topic information between 25-50 words (some are still bigger). Advice on
|
|
this topic will be gratefully accepted at dkovacs@kentvm.kent.edu."
|
|
|
|
"In addition, information about editorial policy and archive availability
|
|
and frequency have also been included in each record. Where possible the
|
|
information in each record has been checked for currency and accuracy by
|
|
checking the LISTSERV header in the case of LISTSERV based e-conferences
|
|
and contacting the moderators of other kinds of e-conferences."
|
|
|
|
"The field labels are as follows:
|
|
LN: (e-conference name)
|
|
TI: (topic information)
|
|
SU: (subscription information)
|
|
ED: (edited? Yes or No)
|
|
AR: (archived? if Yes, frequency, private=subscribers only)
|
|
MO: (moderator, editor, listowner, manager, coordinator, etc.)
|
|
IA: (`official' institutional affiliation)."
|
|
|
|
"Topic descriptions are taken in whole or part from the descriptions
|
|
provided by each listowner, editor, moderator or coordinator to the
|
|
New-List, the List of Lists, and the Internet Interest Groups file."
|
|
|
|
"Any errors are the responsibility of the compiler of the Electronic
|
|
Conferences for Academics Files. If you can provide corrections or
|
|
additional information about any of these electronic conferences,
|
|
please contact:
|
|
|
|
Diane Kovacs (Bitnet) DKOVACS@KENTVM (Internet)
|
|
DKOVACS@KENTVM.KENT.EDU
|
|
|
|
These files are available on the Directory of Scholarly E-Conferences:
|
|
ACADLIST README (explanatory notes for the Directory)
|
|
ACADSTCK HQX (binhexed, self-decompressing, HyperCard Stack of
|
|
entire Directory - Keyword searchable)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE1 (Anthropology- Education)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE2 (Geography-Library and Information Science)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE3 (Linguistics-Political Science)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE4 (Psychology-Writing)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE5 (Biological sciences)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE6 (Physical sciences -now includes Academic Computing
|
|
and Computer Science)
|
|
ACADLIST FILE7 (business, Academia, news)
|
|
ACADWHOL HQX (binhexed self-decompressing Macintosh M.S. Word
|
|
4.0 document of all 7 directories)
|
|
ACADLIST.CHANGES (Major additions and deletions)
|
|
|
|
How to retrieve the abovefiles via mail
|
|
|
|
1. Send an e-mail message addressed to LISTSERV@KENTVM or
|
|
LISTSERV@KENTVM.KENT.EDU.
|
|
2. Leave the subject and other info lines blank.
|
|
3. The message must read: GET Filename Filetype
|
|
(e.g.,filename=ACADLIST filetype=FILE1 or HQX or whatever)
|
|
4. The files will be sent to you and you must receive them.
|
|
5. If you need assistance receiving, etc. contact your local Computer
|
|
Services people.
|
|
|
|
How to retrieve the files via anonymous FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
|
|
|
|
FTP to KSUVXA.KENT.EDU
|
|
1. when prompted for `USERID,' type ANONYMOUS.
|
|
2. Your password will be your actual userid on your local machine.
|
|
3. Type: cd library
|
|
4. Type: GET Filename.Filetype (e.g., filename=ACADLIST
|
|
filetype=FILE1 or HQX or whatever)
|
|
5. The files will be transferred directly into the directory you ftp'ed
|
|
from at your site.
|
|
|
|
|
|
New Lists and List Changes
|
|
|
|
New lists are being started every day, and old ones fade away.
|
|
To find out bout these changes, join the NEW-LIST mailing.
|
|
Here is part of their Welcome message:
|
|
|
|
"The `NEW-LIST' list has been established as a central address to post
|
|
announcements of new public mailing lists. In addition, `NEW-LIST' might
|
|
be used as a final verification before establishing a list (to check for
|
|
existing lists on the same topic, etc.). However, be sure to check sources
|
|
such as the Internet List-of-Lists (SIGLIST or INTEREST-GROUPS list),
|
|
LISTSERV GROUPS, and the LISTS database on the major LISTSERVs
|
|
(we have the LISTS database on NDSUVM1)."
|
|
|
|
"We will gladly rebroadcast New List announcements, final list proposals
|
|
(to avoid conflicts or redundancy), or emergency announcements about the
|
|
availability of some list.
|
|
|
|
|
|
List Review Service
|
|
|
|
These folks subscribe to and monitor a list for awhile and then report on it
|
|
to everyone else. It's a great idea and a useful way to "sample" a list.
|
|
Here is the subscription information. Email its author to be added to the
|
|
List Review Service list, BITNET ADDRESS: SRCMUNS@UMSLVMA
|
|
|
|
LIST REVIEW SERVICE ISSN: 1060-8192 Published bi-weekly, when school
|
|
is in session, by The University of Missouri, St. Louis Libraries.
|
|
Raleigh C. Muns, editor.
|
|
For more information:
|
|
Thomas Jefferson Library
|
|
University of Missouri St. Louis
|
|
8001 Natural Bridge Road
|
|
St. Louis, MO 63121
|
|
314/553-5059
|
|
|
|
|
|
Internet Library Guides
|
|
|
|
Three different Internet library guides are available to help both
|
|
beginning and experienced OPAC users.
|
|
|
|
Art St. George's Internet-Accessible Library Catalogs and Databases includes
|
|
directions for Internet libraries and Campus Wide Information Systems as
|
|
well as dialup libraries and bulletin boards in the United States.
|
|
Available from:
|
|
ariel.unm.edu
|
|
/LIBRARY/INTERNET.LIBRARY
|
|
|
|
Billy Barron's Accessing On-line Bibliographic Databases contains a number
|
|
of useful features such as guides to local OPAC escape sequences and commands. FTP to ftp.unt.edu
|
|
(129.120.1.1)
|
|
/LIBRARY/LIBRARIES.TXT
|
|
|
|
Dana Noonan's A Guide to Internet/Bitnet comes in two parts. Part two is
|
|
about Internet Libraries. It is an easy to use guide to many national and
|
|
international OPACS and their login and use instructions. (available via
|
|
anonymous ftp from vm1.nodak.edu then CD NNEWS (although nnews may not
|
|
show up on the directory menu, it works.) A printed version is available
|
|
for $10 from Metronet. For more information:
|
|
Metronet
|
|
226 Metro Square Building
|
|
Seventh and Robert Streets
|
|
St. Paul, Minnesota 55101
|
|
612/224-4801 FAX 612/224-4827
|
|
|
|
|
|
Must-have Books for the Internet Surfer
|
|
|
|
Kehoe, Brendan. (1993). Zen and the Art of the Internet: a Beginner's
|
|
Guide (2nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. The first edition is
|
|
available for free from many FTP sites (see below) This version has about
|
|
30 pages of new material and corrects various minor errors in the first
|
|
edition. Includes the story of the Coke Machine on the Internet. For much
|
|
of late 1991 and the first half of 1992, this was the document of choice
|
|
for learning about the Internet. ISBN 0-13-010778-6. Index. $22.00
|
|
|
|
To ftp Zen 1.0 in a PostScript version:
|
|
ftp.uu.net [137.39.1.9] directory /inet/doc
|
|
ftp.cs.toronto.edu [128.100.3.6] directory /pub/zen
|
|
ftp.cs.widener.edu [147.31.254.132] directory /pub/zen as zen-1.0.tar.Z,
|
|
zen-1.0.dvi, and zen-1.0.PS
|
|
ftp.sura.net [128.167.254.179] directory /pub/nic as zen-1.0.PS
|
|
It is also available to read on many Gopher servers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Krol, Ed. (1992). The Whole Internet User's Guide & Catalog. Sebastopol,
|
|
CA: O'Reilly & Associates. Comprehensive guide to how the network
|
|
works, the domain name system, acceptable use, security, and other issues.
|
|
Chapters on telnet/remote login, File Transfer Protocol, and electronic
|
|
mail explain error messages, special situations, and other arcana. Archie,
|
|
Gopher, Net News, WAIS, WWW, and troubleshooting each enjoy a chapter in this
|
|
well-written book. Appendices contain info on how to get connected in
|
|
addition to a glossary. ISBN 1-56592-025-2. $24.95
|
|
|
|
|
|
LaQuey, Tracey, & Ryer, J.C. (1993). The Internet Companion: a
|
|
Beginner's Guide to Global Networking. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
|
|
Beginning with a forewordby Vice-President Elect Al Gore, this book
|
|
provides an often-humorous explanation of the origins of the Internet,
|
|
acceptable use, basics of electronic mail, netiquette, online resources,
|
|
transferring information, and finding email addresses. The In the Know
|
|
guide provides background on Internet legends (Elvis sightings is one),
|
|
organizations, security issues, and how to get connected. Bibliography.
|
|
Index. ISBN 0-201-62224-6 $10.95
|
|
|
|
|
|
Marine, April. (1992). INTERNET: Getting Started.. Menlo Park, CA: SRI
|
|
International. This book has an international overview, and includes things
|
|
the others don't, such as an index to all the RFC's (Request for Comments),
|
|
Internet organizations, source information for the TCP/IP CD ROM, and
|
|
the answer to "who is in charge of the Internet?" (No one is. The Internet
|
|
is a cooperating group of independently administered networks. Some groups
|
|
set basic policy though.) ISBN 0-944604-15-3 $39.00
|
|
SRI
|
|
333 Ravenswood Ave.
|
|
Menlo Park, CA 94025
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tennant, Roy, Ober, J., & Lipow, A. G. (1993). Crossing the Internet
|
|
Threshold: An Instructional Handbook. Berkeley, CA: Library Solutions
|
|
Press. A cookbook to run your own Internet training sessions. Real- world
|
|
examples. Foreword by Cliff Lynch. ISBN: 1-882208-01-3 $45.00
|
|
Library Solutions Institute and Press
|
|
2137 Oregon Street Berkeley, CA 94705
|
|
510/841-2636 FAX: 510/841-2926
|
|
|
|
|
|
Magazine
|
|
|
|
Matrix News, the monthly newsletter edited by John S. Quarterman.
|
|
Subscriptions are $30 per year. for a paper edition, $25/yr for an online
|
|
edition. Matrix News, Matrix Information & Directory Services, Inc.
|
|
(MIDS)
|
|
1106 Clayton La.
|
|
Suite 500 W
|
|
Austin, TX 78746
|
|
512/329-1087 FAX: 512/327-1274
|
|
mids@tic.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
Organizations
|
|
|
|
CNI Coalition for Networked Information
|
|
1527 New Hampshire Ave., NW
|
|
Washington, DC 20036
|
|
202/232-2466 FAX: 202/462-7849
|
|
info@cni.org
|
|
|
|
CPSR Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility
|
|
PO Box 717
|
|
Palo Alto, CA 94302
|
|
415/322-3778 FAX: 415/322-3798
|
|
CPSR Newsletter, annual Computers, Freedom and Privacy Conference, poster
|
|
("Technology is driving the future-- it's time to find out who's steering.")
|
|
cpsr@clsi.stanford.edu
|
|
|
|
EFF The Electronic Frontier Foundation, Inc.
|
|
155 Second St.
|
|
Cambridge, MA 02141
|
|
617/864-1550 FAX: 617/864-0866
|
|
Publishes the EFFector in online and print editions. T-shirts,
|
|
bumper stickers ("I'd rather be telecommuting"; "ISDN: Make it so.";
|
|
"CYBERNAUT")
|
|
eff@eff.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
Internet Society
|
|
1895 Preston White Drive
|
|
Suite 100
|
|
Reston, VA 22091
|
|
703/620-8990, FAX 703/620-0913
|
|
Annual conference, quarterly Internet Society News.
|
|
isoc@nri.reston.va.us
|
|
|
|
=============================================
|
|
For more information about this article:
|
|
Jean Armour Polly
|
|
Manager of Network Development and User Training
|
|
NYSERNet, Inc.
|
|
111 College Place
|
|
Syracuse, NY 13244-4100
|
|
315/443-4120
|
|
FAX: 315/425-7518
|
|
jpolly@nysernet.org
|
|
=============================================
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