ROUND TWO: THE REAL RUSSIAN ELECTION
With the first round of the Russian election over, the real action is about to begin and you can follow it on this great election page. You'll find recent news, insightful background analysis, explanations of the second-round voting process, poll results, and entertaining quotes. It's part of the Ekskursii site, where serious netsurfers will want to check out the bearishly massive collection of Russian links under "Web resources for Russia and the FSU". Russian politics can be highly entertaining, making the US process seem positively virginal by comparison. It seems that by law, Russian elections must be held on a Sunday or holiday. Boris Yeltsin would rather have them in the middle of the week to boost urban pro-Yeltsin voter turnout. So naturally, Yeltsin wants a law passed declaring Wednesday, July 3 to be a holiday. Sitcom material, don't you think? Elections: "http://users.aimnet.com/~ksyrah/ekskurs/electpres.html" Ekskursii: "http://users.aimnet.com/~ksyrah/ekskurs/russlink.html"
ZODIAC KILLERS, PAST AND PRESENT
Police say they may have accidentally caught a suspect in the notorious New York Zodiac murders of the early 90's. CNN has a succinct summary of that story. The New York Zodiac killer shot as many as nine people, one fatally, and taunted the police with letters threatening to kill one person under each astrological sign. He was believed to pattern himself on the enigmatic, never-caught California Zodiac killer who took credit for 37 murders in the late 1960s. Two sites cover the unsolved California killings. Zodiac Killer Research (ZKR) has a chronology of the crimes, copies of the cryptic Zodiac letters, and even tries to link the Zodiac to the Unabomber. The Zodiac Murderer page (ZM) has an intriguing picture comparison of the California killer with a possible suspect. CNN: "http://cnn.com/US/9606/19/zodiac.killer/index.html" ZKR: "http://bayarea.net/~restech/zodix.htm" ZM: "http://204.137.220.111:80/users/zychow/"
NETSCAPE ANNOUNCES NEW ADVERTISING INITIATIVE
Netscape, claiming 80 million hits per day on its Web site and 38 million users, has just announced a new advertising program. They've reduced their online advertising rates to "incent trials and to further increase the reach of the program". Oddly, one of their new sales reps will be America Online. You can check out their rate card on the Advertising Opportunities page. An interesting sales trick is that to qualify for one of their ad programs (NetSearch), you must be running a Netscape server. The company also announced a number of new tools to let clients more easily manage and track their advertising activity. PR: "http://www.netscape.com/newsref/pr/newsrelease164.html" Ads: "http://home.netscape.com/ads/index.html"
VERIFONE ANNOUNCES INTERNET MERCHANT SOFTWARE
Yes, it's still vaporware (available "third quarter of 1996") but significant because it previews where VeriFone is going. In case you don't know, VeriFone makes those merchant credit-card readers that swipe your cash - er, card. A major force in the credit-card verification business, VeriFone is likely to define what merchants will be using on the Net. They'll be shipping separate software packages for bank, merchant, and consumer. Merchants will be asked to pay $1,500, silly given that a PC system can do the same thing for $200. Better read this if you want to open up your own commercial Web site. "http://www.verifone.com/pr/pr000073.htm"
MILLION DOLLAR WEB CRAWL SWEEPSTAKES FROM GNN
You've heard of a pub crawl. Well this is a Web crawl. Though not nearly as intoxicating, it could net you a cool million. That's $25,000 per year for 40 years, which after taxes should just about cover upgrading your hardware to keep up with software bloat. Surf the commercial sites which are participating, fill in a form, and click the "I want a million bucks!" button. Each time you do, you enter the contest. The winner will be chosen randomly in September. Brought to you by America Online, via GNN. "http://million.dollar.gnn.com/"
AND A MILLION'LL BUY A NIFTY SITE, BUT NOT A DECENT MANUAL
The word on the street is that the GameTime Challenge site cost $1 million to develop but apparently that's not enough moola to let you clearly explain what the site is all about in a FAQ section. Then again, "the street" in this case is just their own press release. We do find out that they have lots of hardware, Netscape servers, and plenty of insurance. The point - we think - is that you get to play various convoluted sports betting games ("You'll be presented with 10 Major League games. Pick the winner and the over/under on runs scored for each game. If you pick all 20 correctly, you win.") for $3.75 per week and a looooong shot at winning some cash. It's kind of like gambling but you know ahead of time you'll lose the $3.75. Basically a sport-stat junkie hangout. "http://game-time.com/"
The venerable newspaper, famous for breaking the Watergate story and required reading in our nation's capital, has finally decided to hit the Web after an attempt at a proprietary online system went nowhere. The Post has the complete text of the paper online and plans to charge a subscription in a few weeks. It's a pretty good effort with an occasional sense of humor. Look around the software reviews for the special Washington scenario add-on modules for the SimCity 2000 game called "Budget Crisis" and "Traffic Crisis". Your chance to "run Washington better than Mayor Barry, Congress or the financial control board." "http://www.washingtonpost.com/"
Recently, cereal producers/robber barons Kellogg, Post, and General Mills have all made the evening news for drastically cutting the price of America's favorite breakfasts. It's a no-holds-barred war for the hearts and minds of sleepy consumers. Naturally, this social upheaval piqued our interest, so we hit the Web and found the fanatic cereal fringe. Start at the Cereal Hall of Fame, an "on-line guide to Breakfast Cereal Culture" and steel yourself for Flake World and its "Grain God Gallery". Cereal haters should skip these and head directly to the psycho-intestinally disturbing Cereal Killer page. Hall: "http://198.3.117.222/" Flake: "http://www.flake.com/" Killer: "http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/6146/"
CHLORINE, COWS, AND THE SEXLESS INTERNET
We don't get all that many letters to the editor, and most of those we do get are from people who either want to subscribe, unsubscribe, or get written up in the Digest (read the FAQ, folks). Occasionally though, we do get the odd compliment (quite a few actually) and a more thoughtful or entertaining piece of e-mail. So, starting with this issue we'll include a periodic Letters to the Editor section. Laurie Nyveen, our hard working cut-meister, will share a piece of his considerable mind with those of our readers who are so desperate for human contact that they are compelled to write to the Digest. In this outing, he tackles all the issues which titillated your eye in this headline and more. Enjoy - Arthur "http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/letters/letter.02.19.html"
The Internet Developer's Association is a nonprofit organization for Internet content developers which aims to help professionals meet peers, share knowledge, and promote the industry. The site has info on joining or forming a local chapter, upcoming events and conferences, member bios, and job leads, as well as a newletter and special reports. Until June 30, membership online is free. "http://www.association.org/index.html"
How do you tell one Internet scam from another? Is $1,000 excessive for a domain name registration? If you don't know the answers, you should put your trust and e-mail address into the hands of a company called NETrageous. In return, you'll receive its free newsletter, ScamBusters, an interesting little newsletter with a few tidbits and useful information. You can check out a sample issue before signing up. "http://www.scambusters.com/"
An annual International juried digital photography exhibit is not big news, but Digital Photography '96 has some great work. Not your traditional photography exhibit, the site illustrates the effects of combining photography with computer manipulation. It showcases 38 artists. A big bonus is that the Web presentation has been optimized with the netsurfer in mind. You even have the option to view the site without frames. We covered the 1995 site, and look forward to returning next year. "http://www.bradley.edu/exhibit96/"
"Cappuccino and poetry are no more! Long live salsa and the spoken word!" This rallying cry belongs to a group of performers who have turned California taco shops into "contemporary cultural centers". They perform music, poetry, prose, ritual, and storytelling in the unlikely environment of Mexican food joints. This selection of their poems reveals the predominantly Hispanic sensibilities of the artists, arising from experiences within the California Hispanic culture. Some poems are in Spanish. There are also brief, sometimes entertaining biographies of the performers. Thoughtful non-Hispanic readers will find the site a rewarding contrast to their own cultural sensibilities. "http://multiple.insertions.com/mi_html/contrib/writing/iv08.htm"
The Artsee Media site combines an image gallery of featured female artists, creative writing snippets, a lesbian comic serial, and power tips on investing in the stock market in an attempt to enlighten visitors in many ways. This "simmering cauldron of women's creative ideas" is fine fare, for an audience of these particular tastes. The site is undergoing a makeover (their phrase, not ours). "http://www.artseemedia.com/"
Mindbreaker Studios has compiled for your viewing pleasure an eclectic and ever-evolving selection of surreal works of art. The computer renderings toy with psychology, sex, religion, and color. Some images may be disturbing to children and sensitive viewers. You get the picture. "http://www.phoenix.net/~bcarr/mbs.html"
Come here to download royalty-free meshes from the 3D-Cafe. Categories range from aircraft to anatomy to horror. Don't know what a "mesh" is? Then you will probably have little need for the downloadable IPAS routines and you'll likely pass on the extensive collection of shareware (including a utility to convert from 3DS format to DXF, POV, WRL, NFF, and PSB). A hardware section, sparsely populated at press time, exhibits some scanners and allows online ordering. If you're looking for scintillating images, you'll find one teaser on the front page; otherwise leave this site to the designers. "http://www.baraboo.com/3dcafe/"
NETSURFER BOOK REVIEW: "CREATING WEB PAGES FOR DUMMIES"
Among our staff, we found one soul eager to climb out from the pit of Netsurfer staff writer anonymity. The trade-off was that she had to write book reviews. Congratulations, Joanne Eglash - you're the first writer to be mentioned by name above those credits way down at the end of this page. Her first review, "Creating Web Pages for Dummies", by Bud Smith and Arthur Bebak (IDG Books Worldwide 1996, ISBN 1-56884-645-2), is ready. ARTHUR'S DISCLAIMER: Although I am one of the authors of this book and the long-suffering publisher of this e-zine, I knew nothing about the review until it was forced upon me by my staff. Honestly. They will pay for this.... "http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/books/book.02.19.html"
THIS ONION BRINGS TEARS OF LAUGHTER
The Onion, a satirical online newspaper, has no mercy, thank goodness. The writers twist every topic, from women's rights ("Governor Approves 24-Hour Waiting Period for Women Voters") to religion ("Christ Returns to NBA") to losers ("Bassist Fellated"). They boast they're "Number One with News" and when it comes to wit and sarcasm, they're definitely right. These are the people who wrote the "Clinton Sends Vowels to Bosnia" essay that has circumnavigated the Net a few thousand times. And that's one of the lesser pieces. "http://www.theonion.com/"
Greg Bulmash's Humor Page is a worthy addition to the great, unwashed mass of humor lists out there. The site contains the GBHP Advisor, a daily humor column that deals with subjects as mundane as mid-life crises and as esoteric as transmogrification ("I Wanna Be a Dog"). It can't be easy coming up with a daily humor column, but the pressure to continually be both funny and strikingly cynical seems not to have affected Bulmash's wit one iota. E-mail subscriptions to the Advisor are available at the following address. Be sure to have only "Subscribe" as your subject. E-mail: gbhp@ix.netcom.com "http://www.javabooks.net/~gbhp/"
WHAT'S ANOTHER WORD FOR NETSURFER?
A clever HTML edition of the famous Roget's Thesaurus is now online. Whether you can never think of the right word or you just want a better one, Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases can ease your brain cells' burden. One little catch - it's the 1911 edition. Particularly useful is the "Find" search engine, which is amazingly fast and fruitful. We entered "frustrate" and Roget matched us with "hindrance" and "failure" in about five seconds. We immediately felt like less of a failure, were grateful to Roget for being the opposite of a hindrance, and were relieved of our sense of frustration. "http://www.thesaurus.com/"
WWWIZ THROUGH THE HIGH TECH WORLD
WWWiz Magazine is not just your standard e-zine. From its colorful graphics to its nicely paced prose, this magazine is a fascinating compilation of stories on numerous aspects of the high tech world. You can read about Java, get the latest Web news, and find info on everything from "Traveling over 55" to "WWWiz Kid: Coasting through the Internet." We also enjoy the Pippi Longstocking-like buttons. "http://wwwiz.com/"
If you're an author, a poet, a literary luminary, or jes' a dude who digs readin', you'll want to bookmark the Writer's BBS. The home page offers links to a discussion forum, literary sites, interactive Web games, and information about writers' events. Don't miss the free home pages for authors link. Delve into the mysteries of "Beating the Black Plague" (a poem), explore the short story, "The Congressman Who Went Looking for Trouble", and via Project Gutenberg enjoy once again Lewis Carroll's "The Hunting of the Snark." "http://www.clever.net/writersbbs/"
HEADACHES AND THE PLANTS OF PERU
Headaches are a pain, especially the rip-snorting, nauseous migraines that hurt so bad they make you bang your arm against a wall as a distraction. Yes, we've been there. For that reason, we were attracted to the Plants of the Machiguenga page, which highlights Ethan Russo's search for headache cures among the traditional herbalism of that Peruvian tribe. The "Peru Log" describes the voyage through the rainforest. Pics of native flora, fauna, and villagers are accompanied by informed and entertaining narrative. Whether you're a headache sufferer, a pharmacological researcher, into alternative medicine, a philanthropist (Russo needs funding), or you just appreciate neat Web pages, it's worth a visit. Serious students might also like the online article from the Journal of Ethnopharmacology. "http://www.montana.com/manu/"
Developed and delivered by the National Institute for Science Education, the Why Files presents the science behind the headlines and everyday life. Slickly produced, and clearly and cleverly written for a general audience, the Why Files accomplishes its goal to make science more approachable. A recent lead picks up on the bumper summer crop of mosquitoes on the US east coast and delves merrily into the lifestyle of the little bloodsuckers. In addition to feature stories, the site offers a forum for discussions and a spot for sports brainteasers ("Two basketballs, one inflated and the other flat, are dropped from the top of the backboard. Which one hits the floor first?"). If you've got the X-Files bookmarked, fairness dictates you touch base with reality and visit the Why Files every now and again. "http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/"
LET'S GO TO THE ZOO TO SEE THE ANIMALS - OR READ ABOUT THEM
Here is everything you every wanted to know about the San Diego Zoo and much more. The Zoological Society of San Diego pages are loaded with great art, and lots of words and descriptions. But we usually go to the zoo to see the animals. The animal pictures, although great shots, were mostly small - we'd like to have the option to see larger versions. The lack is somewhat made up for with a good selection of links to other sites. "http://www.sandiegozoo.org/"
If you're one of those folks who always want to know the latest weather news, check out the Weather Now offerings. You can get the scoop on the most recent thunderstorms, hail, wind, and all that cool and sometimes wet and sometimes hot - wow, all these great options! - stuff. "http://members.aol.com/weathernow/"
This comforting site is a unique guide for baby boomers with elderly parents. With today's complex Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security issues, there's an overwhelming amount of information to consider. ElderCare provides an extensive list of e-sources, a caregiver newsletter, an advice column, a helpline, and chat sessions with the ElderCare Lady. "http://www.mindspring.com/~eldercare/elderweb.htm"
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