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BLACK AND BLUE OVER RECENT TELECOM BILL
The US Congress passed a new telecommunications bill last week criminalizing the transmission or posting of indecent material on the Net. The online uproar may have already reached you. Two campaigns are underway to protest what the American Civil Liberties Union calls an unconstitutional attack on the guarantee of free speech. Voters Telecommunications Watch (VTW) and the Center for Democracy and Technology are calling for "Interactive Days of Mourning", and hope to persuade Web page maintainers to change their backgrounds to black. Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is asking maintainers to incorporate a blue ribbon to show support for free speech. The issue will undoubtedly be decided in court. VTW says many online users plan to deliberately break the new law. VTW: "http://www.vtw.org/" EFF: "http://eff.org/blueribbon.html"
NETSCAPE RELEASES NAVIGATOR 2.0 AND NETSCAPE GOLD BETA
The long-awaited Netscape Navigator 2.0 release is finally upon us. You'll want to read the press release for complete details and for links to information about sofware plug-ins and Java applets. Java support is available in Windows 95/NT and all Unix versions, but not in Windows 3.1 or Macintosh. New on the block is Navigator Gold, a Windows 95/NT browser with HTML editing features. There's a contest for best pages created with the new software. The prize - cash. Well, if our stock was worth $150, we'd do that to. Netscape's FTP sites are swamped, but you get a list of mirror sites to try when you connect. Navigator PR: "http://www.netscape.com/newsref/pr/newsrelease82.html" Gold Beta PR: "http://www.netscape.com/newsref/pr/newsrelease78.html" FTP: "ftp://ftp.netscape.com/"
WANT SOME DIRT ON THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TELECOM BILL?
Election years bring the Web's political sites into view. The Skeleton Closet serves up dirt on American national political figures to inform, and possibly shock, voters with info about their elected officials in the hope of prompting the election process to produce better selections. It should be noted that some reports come from unverified, anonymous sources. The site dishes real dirt, but with an ugly design that makes it hard to view. The maintainer, Real People For Real Change, is a non-affiliated, independent political action committee. "http://www.realchange.org/"
Fans of the daily comic strip Doonesbury rejoice; creator G.B. Trudeau actively participates in a Web site intended to present political issues and candidates vying for votes. The Doonesbury Electronic Town Hall is full of opinion polls ("as accurate as they are pointless") and analysis of the current events that will influence US voters come November. The well designed site also offers interactive chat rooms where you can discuss everthing from the history of the comic strip to current media. This is not only an informative site, but a socially conscious one, something that has always been reflected in the Doonesbury strip. It's well worth your ISP charge. "http://www.doonesbury.com/"
HOLLYWOOD IN YOUR FACE: SCRIPTS, SCRIPTS, AND MORE SCRIPTS
For many of us, this site - besides the Web itself - comes 20 to 40 years too late. If we'd had it, more of us would be Hollywood scriptwriters. Drew's Scripts-O-Rama links to scripts scattered around the world. Be prepared to wait, for as Drew points out, "links are moody." Still, it's free film school. Remember "Aliens"? James Cameron's first draft is only a click away. "Die Hard", "Jurassic Park", "Total Recall", "Pulp Fiction" - there's so much raw and polished material available, this gateway ought to be on every creative writer's hotlist. A new section, "Screenwriters on the Internet", is designed to give budding Stallones exposure on the Net by providing links to their full-length screenplays. Bravo! "http://home.cdsnet.net/~nikko11/scripts.htm"
No beans about it - the mouthwateringly delightful Burrito Page offers one of the more unique ways to measure your personality and burrito savvy. Just select your favorite fillers (beef, cheese, cilantro, etc.) from the illustrated form, and you'll soon know exactly where you stand - at least with Mexican food. On the side, you'll find several burrito-related sites. "http://www.infobahn.com/pages/rito.html"
What did Marilyn Monroe, Albert Einstein, and Napoleon Bonaparte have in common - aside from a fondness for French pastry? They were all left-handed, as were all of the candidates for the US presidency in 1992. Are you curious to know if you're truly left-handed? Take the thoughtfully provided test. For more interesting trivia regarding left-handers, some myth-busting, and addresses for left-handed merchandise, go to the Left-Handed Universe. And no, we won't include any left-handed compliments. "http://www.xs4all.nl/~riksmits/pg001e.htm"
The question before you is, "Are you game?" The game in question is Jumanji. This site serves as Sony's promotional Web page for the movie of the same name, starring Robin Williams. Backstage information, cast info with plenty of good graphics, and photos make it worth a visit. It even allows you to play an online version of the game. It loads fairly quickly. The free screensaver is also neat, but takes forever to retrieve. "http://www.spe.sony.com/Pictures/SonyMovies/Jumanji/index.html"
Surf here for an interesting and controversial look at the modern practice of firewalking, including amazing photos, articles, and excerpts. Some of the photos record two record-breaking firewalks. Whether you are a believer or a skeptic, this site will provide more fuel for your fire. The design suffers only from the limitations of being Netscape-centered, and from the all too common practice of using backgrounds that make text difficult to read. Blaze on over and burn some bandwidth. "http://heartfire.com/firewalk/homefire.html"
Dear Boss: You're right. We're spending way too much company time at World Village, which calls itself "a virtual community designed for the home computing experience." But do you provide software reviews, online games, humorous articles, interviews, shareware, kid stuff, and other entertaining goodies? World Village does. In fact, we have access to a members-only region and to "Bald Guy's MultiMedia Site of the Week". We never received even an invitation to your boardroom. Multimedia Cafe has the company cafeteria beat. And what's our measly salary compared with the prizes we can win there? We quit. If you need us, you can find us at World Village. It's been nice, boss, but it's going to be nicer. Many happy returns. [LN - This one has a spine. Give him the password to the executive VR environment. The moist one. - AB] "http://www.worldvillage.com/"
January 1, 2000 represents either another banal new year complete with new hangover or a plague that will haunt computer programmers for days. The Talk 2000 Forum deals with the approach of that year and the social and personal implications that will arrival with it. The forum offers a bi-monthly newsletter, "Let's Talk 2000", that details some of the plans being crafted worldwide to celebrate the advent of the new millenium. The Talk 2000 Forum Web site contains electronic conference rooms, FAQs, and lists of resources - both Web and print - that concern themselves with the effects of the crossover to the next thousand years. But doesn't anyone realize the millenium really ends December 31, 2000? "http://humnet.humberc.on.ca/talk2000.htm" E-mail: talk2000@rmii.com
The HMKES Movement page is a perfect example of how the Net encourages exploring any personal fetish you fancy. The powerful key term "Hvor Mye Koster En Skolisse?" in Norewegian means, "How much is one shoelace?", and details shoelace philosophy to an exhausting extent. The translation of the phrase in 14 different languages and the list of prices for just one lace in a variety of places are the by-products of the philosophy that tying your shoeslaces is really only he knotting of ONE lace. Yes, this simple understanding has blossomed into a huge undertaking. Self-described as "zany" and hilarious", it is amusing. Or should we say bemusing. Or something. "http://home.sol.no/edlund/hmkes/"
GOOD WASTE OF TIME FOR WORDSMITHS AND TRIVIA FANS
What a great way to waste time: an entire home page focused on word games, complete with a link to the Worthless Word of the Day. The day we visited this site, we learned that a calembour is a pun. As for the games, well, they're not exactly gonna compete with Scrabble. Games include Crambo and Stinky Pinky, both the types of rhyming games that are good for long car trips when you haven't got anything else to do. "http://www.primenet.com/~hodges/susplace.html"
ONLINE VALENTINE
This Valentine's Day site is the perfect solution for the Net-bound among us who can't tear themselves away from their terminals long enough to even to buy a greeting card. This company has actually gone out and bought real cards for you to choose from. Pick one, write a note, and they'll print up your message and mail it off. Pretty easy, huh? And in case this approach can't do it for you, check out advice for the lovelorn from the Love Mechanic on duty, or content yourself with an illustrated romance story. "http://www.valentine.com/"
Sugarplums, from the editor of the World Food site, provides many ways to combine food, love and sex. Recipes for romantic meals, aphrodisiacs and arousing aromas, flower foreplay, and more - all just in time for V-day. There's a whole lot here, but it's all in pink. "http://www.w2.com/docs2/act/food/sugarplums/holidays.html"
Valentine's Forever is a site where you can post your love message for the world - and hopefully your loved one - to see. Even more cloyingly, you can play audio love songs, test your love quotient with a quiz, or take the ultimate plunge and propose marriage over the Net. Reading the purple prose could soften even the hardest heart. Cupid's Links is an uneven but large collection of commercial and public pages that can be found out there in the wild, wild Web. "http://www.invision.net/cupid"
You want to win your love with witty prose, romantic poetry, or a perfect love letter, but your creativity and elegance with words are only slightly less graceful than a tap-dancing hippo with the runs? Well, zip on over to the Love and Romance Home Page, where they generously provide snippets and longer works of prose and poetry for you to use. Most of the site is under construction, but what's there could help. Hey, we can't all be Brownings, can we? "http://home.navisoft.com/loveandromance/index.htm"
For trivia lovers, this Valentine's Day game involves answering trivia questions on various love-related topics and being rewarded with tiles that form an image of a famous poem. Sweet and simple. "http://equity.stern.nyu.edu/Valentine/"
PICK A PECK OF PERFECT PRESENTS
The Perfect Present Picker will help you choose a gift for any occasion for any person. Simply enter their profession, interests, personality type, lifestyle and other defining characteristics from the simple framed menus and a selection of gifts magically appears, complete with prices and ordering info. It worked pretty well when we tried it. "http://perfect.presentpicker.com/"
A photo tour of Cambodia on CD-ROM is the goal of BlackBird Software, who set up the site. In the meantime, they have given us a good sampling of their work in compact images, with the choice to load the full-sized pics. Their brief comments and pictures leave the viewer wanting to experience the full range of sights and emotions to come on the CD, which, we guess, is the point of the exercise. "http://none.coolware.com/entmt/cambodia/cambodia.html"
For those who have ever dreamt of castles and Camelot, here is a nice spot. Castles on the Web is one man's act of devotion to his favorite hobby. Visit the Castle of the Week. Learn the difference between a bartizan and a belvedere in the castle glossary. Keep abreast of worldwide castle events and tours. Each castle has its interesting bit of history and a nice photo. Visitors can ask all manners of castle-related questions via the Castle Quest. "http://fox.nstn.ca/~tmonk/castle/castle.html"
Time Out Net features city guides for Amsterdam, Berlin, London, Madrid, New York, Paris, Prague, Rome, and San Francisco. Listings, updated weekly, include arts and entertainment, city-centric reports, features, and classified ads. Note that you must register to access the site. You also need to enter your password each time, but for those planning a trip to one of the featured cities, these prerequisites are worth the time. The New York section, for example, includes everything from restaurant and museum information to where to get a haircut to links to additional New York Internet sites. "http://www.timeout.co.uk/"
MetroBeat is a must-see if you're looking for something to do in NYC. Although the graphics are a little slow, the search engines and options are super. You can look at just today's events or browse the next seven days. You can choose to search for clubs that play '70s disco at dawn or jungle grooves where fierce dancing rules. And if it isn't listed here, use the input forms to add your info or make requests. "http://www.metrobeat.com/"
BOSTONWEB HAS RIGHT IDEA, EXECUTION COULD BE IMPROVED
You'll find plenty to browse here, and they even give you a choice right up front of HTML 3 or HTML 2 pages. Once you get beyond the cute art and the graphics that are too wide for almost any screen, there's some good info on the Boston area. Area maps are being updated and the airport map with airline listings is convenient. A dozen or so restaurants with mini-menus are listed, as are another dozen shopping pages marred by an obscuring background. Worth a stop if you're curious about Boston. "http://www.bweb.com/"
Every serious traveler needs a resource like Hotel & Travel Index Online, a companion site to Travel Weekly. Getting info on any of the 5,000 hotels, resorts, and bed-and-breakfast establishments linked to this site is a breeze, as along as your Internet connection isn't jammed with traffic. Navigation to the right phone number is so easy your kids could make reservations for you. You can search by hotel chain or by geographical region. It's quick and efficient. It may be time to say good-bye to your travel agent. "http://www.traveler.net/htio/"
Kilroy Moot's Devotronic Bandbox will automatically generate a clever name for your heavy metal or alternative group. You might come up with something like "Wombat Latecomers", "Forklift Sleepies", or even "Instant Messiah". Give it a whirl. "http://www.ict.org/~kanis/band/"
The Unofficial Jack Russell Terrier Site offers all the news and notes that even the most fanatic Jack Russell terrier lover could crave. Of course it's unofficial - so's the breed. "http://users.aol.com/JackRus/"
LEAVING LAS VEGAS, OR ANYWHERE ELSE
Ever wondered how far your salary would go if you lived elsewhere? Three easy entries here - two city codes and your annual income - et voila. A Chicago $40,000, for example, equals $66,291 in Honolulu. The database is updated every quarter and speaks frames, so Netscape's your best bet. "http://www.homefair.com/homefair/cmr/salcalc.html"
SCANNING THE GLOBE FOR OPEN-AIR MARKETS
Ever get the urge to obtain your oranges outside? How about to acquire your asparagus al fresco? Then you'll appreciate Openair Market Net, an online guide to farmers' markets, street markets, flea markets and the like. "http://homepage.interaccess.com/~mar/openair.html"
WWWAD's ON is a spanking brand-new, digitized promotional site and online shopping guide featuring a variety of durable and non-durable goods. Whether you're interested in advertising, shopping, or browsing, stop by. "http://www.wwwadson.com/"
Visit Volition if you have marketing in your blood or you just want a potpourri of hotlinks and a chance to win free stuff. A Web version of a supermarket handout, it's designed for consumers with time to surf and linger - its strength and its weakness. "http://www.volition.com/"
MICROSOFT SHIPS EXPLORER BETA FOR MAC AND WINDOWS 3.1
Until now, only Windows 95 users had access to Microsoft's Explorer Web browser. The software is freely available at the Microsoft Web site. Word is that the final versions will ship by the second quarter of 1996, and will also be free. Now everybody will be able to ignore it. "http://www.microsoft.com/"
EARTHTIME CLOCK PLUG-IN FOR WINDOWS 95/NT NETSCAPE 2.0
Those clever folks at Starfish (ex-Borland, of Sidekick fame) have produced a neat little plug-in module for Netscape 2.0. It's a clock which shows the local time and date of eight global locations and displays a daylight map of the world. It's great if you want to avoid or assure annoying your overseas friends with late-night phone calls. A free demo is available at their site. "http://www.starfishsoftware.com/feature/feature.html"
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