Once upon a time, two cave people from distant valleys bumped into each other in a small village. "Hey," said one to the other, "small world, isn't it?" A few thousand years later, that expression has taken on new meaning. When Columbus finished what the Vikings had started, the world was reduced to a ball that could be travelled in a couple of years. In the early days of planes, trains and automobiles, Jules Verne cut that down to 80 days -- give or take. Now, in the current virtuality of microchips and fibre optics, when people can transport images and information from one side of the globe to the other in microseconds, GEnie has shrunk the world to the size of a modem. And opened up a whole universe of possibilities. Information is the fabric that makes up that universe, binding it together. GE Mail, GE Mail to Fax, Internet access, research databases, market sources and evolving technologies are just a few of the informational tools you, as a GEnie member, have at your fingertips. With the number of companies, industries and people worldwide embracing new information technology, professionals on the cutting edge enjoy a huge creative and competitive edge. GEnie gives them that edge. TheFog: The Ultimate 411 Call Known around GEnie as TheFog, his bio states that his real name is Foggy and that "he was born in Chicago sometime after World War II but before Kennedy was elected President." He says his IQ is roughly the same as his bowling average; at 176, he's a pretty average bowler. Long before discovering GEnie, TheFog discovered the world. As a child, he travelled to more countries than most kids can find on a map, hanging his hat in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Viet Nam, Hong Kong, Australia, the South Pacific Islands and Hawaii, before finally settling in Ventura County, CA. He also discovered a knack for diversity. He was a chef at the age of 18, spent five years working vice squad narcotics, and became an accomplished musician -- singing with Cory Wells of Three Dog Night and jamming with groups like the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Canned Heat, and Cream -- before settling down to more arcane pursuits. Like building successful businesses. After only four years in the executive search industry, TheFog founded his first company, the Interalia Corporation, where he served as Chairman until 1982. Over a 20 year span he became a pioneer in database design and retrieval systems, and developed the industry's first computerized online interactive recruiting system. Today, TheFog is President of a company with interests ranging from executive search to commercial advertising and publishing. He produces and directs multimedia, creates computerized art, publishes the animated DiscMas(tm) cards, and produces an animated comic strip, 'Fog's View.' In his spare time, he's a consultant for information technology systems, interactive media training and research projects, copyright investigation, and ethical standards and procedures relating to privacy issues. Succeeding in so many endeavors demands a serious advantage. TheFog found one, in GEnie. All of his businesses use GEnie for email and fax services, and a growing number are using GEnie to communicate through the Internet. He points out that sending a fax through GEnie can actually be cheaper than making a toll call. And GE Mail is so efficient, he encourages all of his customers to use it. "GEnie has made a big dent in our FedEx and overnight mail expenses," he reports. "And I mean significant." GEnie also plays a key role in research and information retrieval. Whether it's historical, legal, medical, business or marketing data, "GEnie is the FIRST place we go for everything," he emphasizes. "It's the ultimate 411 call." There are many other uses -- art and animation approvals, script developments, product demos. But speed and security are GEnie's greatest assets. In one instance, TheFog recalls sending revisions to a report back and forth between a director in Philadelphia, an East coast corporate office, and a sales manager driving along a highway in Florida, all in a matter of 20 minutes using GE Mail and faxes. "I remember life in the fast lane in the 70's," he sums up, "but this infobahn is awesome." Kathryn Ptacek: No More Tired Fingers Kathryn Ptacek's roots are less exotic, but no less distinguished. She grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico, graduated with distinction from the University of New Mexico in 1974 with a B.A. in Journalism, and was a student of award-winning mystery writer Tony Hillerman and well-known Young Adult writer Lois Duncan. She shares a 110 year-old Queen Anne Victorian home with her husband, dark fantasy novelist Charles Grant, and two cats. Somehow, she finds time for other activities, like reading and needlepoint. But just in case you think she's too conservative, you should also know that she enjoys coloring books, collects cat whiskers and unusual teapots, and has a large collection of gila monster memorabilia. Kathy sold her first novel in July 1979, and quit her day job to become a full-time novelist. Her keyboard has been smoking ever since. A member of Horror Writers of America and Sisters in Crime, she's the author of a historical fantasy series, numerous historical romances, "The Hunted," a suspense novel published by Walker Books & reprinted by Berkley in paperback, and five horror novels, including "In Silence Sealed" and "Ghost Dance." She has been awarded both the Gold and Silver Medal Medal by the West Coast Review of Books, and has been a Bram Stoker nominee in short fiction. She has edited no less than three anthologies -- the critically acclaimed Women of Darkness and its companion Women of Darkness II (both Tor), and Women of the West (Doubleday). She's penned numerous essays, articles and reviews, writes a quarterly anthology review column for Cemetery Dance and does a market report for Horror Magazine and the Horror Writers of America. She may not have travelled to exotic places, but editions of her books have journeyed to England, Japan, Norway, Sweden and Germany, while her short stories have appeared in countless anthologies and publications. Since discovering GEnie on the advice of a friend, it has become an integral part of her professional life. She is an active participant in the Writer's Ink and the SFRT1 RoundTables, where she inspires other writers with encouragement, hints and helpful advice. And she uses GE Mail and information resources to help compile and produce her monthly newsletter, the Gila Queen's Guide to Markets. Kathy's popular newsletter provides detailed market information to writers and artists all over the world. In the bad old days, before GEnie, guidelines were sent to her and had to be re-typed manually. Now, they're scanned and uploaded to her ready for formatting, saving hundreds of hours of typing, "and some very tired fingers." The Guide's primary mission is to provide up-to-date, immediate information on rapidly-changing markets. Without GEnie, it would be next to impossible to publish regularly. "GEnie has allowed me to get information on magazines and book publishers almost as it happens," Kathy explains. "The immediacy of GEnie lets me get information first-hand and quickly, so that I can make my deadline, and so that I can update markets literally within minutes of sending my newsletter to the printer." She still uses print sources, but has come to rely on GEnie more and more. "I'm not sure now how I managed to work so long without GEnie," she says. Her recovered fingers agree. Howard Wooten: Music Production to Existential Philosophy Howard Wooten was born with a guitar in his hands & a blues riff on his mind. He began his career in the 4th grade as a participant in an elementary school program in Tucson, Arizona and never looked back. Howard started out with the trombone, but switched to the guitar when he was 15, "mainly because the girls didn't dig Trombone players," he says with a grin. Whatever the motive, he discovered a true affinity with the new instrument, and was soon exploring his talents with local garage bands -- an experience shared by many talented musicians. He went on to study music at the University of Arizona, earning a Degree in Music Performance and Composition before moving to the bright lights of L.A. in 1973 to study guitar with studio musician Howard Roberts. He returned to Tucson, joined up with grammy award-winning jazz vocalist Diane Schuur in 1977, and set off down the long and winding road to creative success. He toured with Diane for 4 years, and continued performing with her in concerts in the Southwest until 1986. In 1989, Howard performed with Joel Grey in the touring production of "Cabaret" and in 1990, played in the Young Artists Festival at University of Arizona. He is a member of the Tucson Jazz Orchestra, the Arizona Commission for the Arts' Jazz Menagerie and the Arizona Theatre Company, and is a regular performer the Westin's La Paloma Resort. Howard's formidable list of compositions and credits include an electronic score for "Carthage, A Mirror of Antiquity," a PBS presentation for the New York Museum of Natural History; original compositions for the La Jolla Human Services Institute instructional video series; the theme for the PBS presentation, "Mount Graham"; Synthesizer Variations, a PBS Electronic Music Video; the original theme for the PBS Astronomy series, plus original compositions for over twenty commercial television productions. "My next project is the Whales Alive benefit at Maui, Hawaii this month," he says. "I've been hired to play behind whatever acts are brought in, from Kenny Loggins to Pat Boone." Meanwhile, he's started writing music for a jazz oriented CD which should see release next year. In between odd bouts of sleep, he has found time to do custom synthesizer programming for the Arizona Opera Company and Arizona Theater Company, teach Jazz History for the Arizona Commission for the Arts, appear as a guest instructor in Music Theory and Guitar for Project MORE, and give private guitar lessons. Fortunately, he found a place that gives him the power to focus his creative energies, the opportunity to explore new horizons, and the freedom to do it whenever he wants -- GEnie. Since joining GEnie over five years ago, Howard has become an assistant sysop on the MIDI RoundTable, and Music Direcor for LiveWire's multimedia production team. But the MIDI Composers Workshop (MCW) on the Bulletin Board has become his professional Nirvana. "The MCW has developed into a tight-knit family that discusses anything from music production to existential philosophy," Howard says. "It's a no-holds-barred atmosphere with an accent on music." The Category is still quite new, still developing; members have a voice in shaping the workshop to their own needs. "I wanted an area where persons with similar interests could freely share ideas, tips and techniques," he explains. GEnie has done that, bringing composers and musicians from all over the world together in a dynamic, creative environment dedicated to musical expression. GEnie also serves as a huge resource base for things like synthesizer patch banks, new audio samples, and industry contacts. What used to be impractical or even impossible is now as simple as turning on a modem. And Howard manages to get a bit more sleep. Three people with differing backgrounds, interests and professions, all with one thing in common -- GEnie. Through GEnie, each has increased productivity, saved time, improved performance, and scaled new heights of artistic expression. Someday, two aliens from distant planets will bump into each other in a GEnie Real-Time Virtuality Conference. One of us will adjust the image on our VR headset, and say, "Small world, isn't it?" Yes, but it's a big universe.