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Netsurfer Digest: Vol. 05, #17

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Jun 5, 1999, 3:00:00 AM6/5/99
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<B><FONT SIZE="+1" COLOR="#FFFFFF"><A NAME="TOP">NETSURFER DIGEST</A></FONT></B>
<BR><B><I><FONT SIZE="-1" COLOR="#FFFFFF">More Signal, Less Noise</FONT></I></B>
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<FONT SIZE="-2">Volume 05, Issue 17</FONT><BR>
<FONT SIZE="-2">Friday, June 04, 1999</FONT><BR><BR>
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<FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=-1><B>BREAKING SURF</B></FONT>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=5 CELLSPACING=5>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#BS1">FBI Site Denial-of-Service Attacks Affect Commercial Sites</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#BS2">South African Elections</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#BS3">The Cox Report on Chinese Spying</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#BS4">Anonymous Servers Not So Anonymous with Java/JavaScript Enabled</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#BS5">A Second Suit While Microsoft Pants</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#BS6">First Entire Legit Album from Big-Name Band Available for Download</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>

</TABLE>
<FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=-1><B>SURFING SITES</B></FONT>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=5 CELLSPACING=5>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS1">Jesus Is Coming - Look Busy</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS2">Forgive Me, Digital Priest, for I Have Sinned</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS3">Fibber and Molly</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS4">The Boroughs of East Anglia</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS5">Slide Rules</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS6">Steam Engines</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS7">Everything but the Opera Glass</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#NBR">Netsurfer Recommendations</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS12">Personal Heroes of the 20th Century</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS13">What Do You Want to Say to the Future?</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS14">Elaborate Prank Phone Calls</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS15">What Number, Puh-Lease?</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS16">Online Bookmarks Community</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#SS17">Fax Appeal</A>
</FONT></TD></TR>

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<FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=-1><B>ONLINE TRAVEL</B></FONT>
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<A HREF="#OT1">The Scottish Dialect</A>
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<A HREF="#FJ1">Google Me This</A>
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<A HREF="#FJ2">Streaming Media</A>
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<A HREF="#FJ3">Got Pics?</A>
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<A HREF="#FJ4">World Webcam Map</A>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#FJ5">Dog Breeds</A>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="#FJ6">Lost and Found... Maybe</A>
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<P><B><FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE="+1">BREAKING SURF</FONT></B></P>
<P><B>
<A NAME="BS1">FBI Site Denial-of-Service Attacks Affect Commercial Sites</A></B></P>

The successful attacks launched last week against the FBI Web site after
the agency raided hackers had an impact far beyond what the attackers may
have intended. MSNBC covered the story well, and Wired followed up: after
the raids, parties unknown launched a huge denial-of-service attack against
the FBI and other government sites and cracked and defaced numerous Web
sites. However, the media missed a major angle to this story. The nature of
denial-of-service attacks, massive numbers of accesses to the target site,
not only successfully forced the FBI Web site offline but affected the IBM
network which hosts it. As a result, major commercial Web sites also hosted
by IBM were faced with dismal to nonexistent performance during the better
part of the day as the attack brought the network to its knees - and for
these sites, every minute of downtime means thousands of dollars in lost
revenue. IBM and other major backbones only contained the attack by
filtering and diverted pockets destined for the FBI. At press time, the FBI
site was still down. Moral: even in cyberspace it matters who your
neighbors are. If your ISP hosts high-profile hacker targets, your site can
easily be caught up in the carnage. If you're quiet, you can hear the
lawyers stampeding to renegotiate hosting contracts.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
MSNBC: <A HREF="http://www.msnbc.com/news/273819.asp">
http://www.msnbc.com/news/273819.asp</A><BR>
Wired: <A HREF="http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/19955.html">
http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/19955.html</A><BR>

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<P><B>
<A NAME="BS2">South African Elections</A></B></P>

The legendary Nelson Mandela steps down as President and his handpicked
successor Thabo Mbeki takes the reigns. This is a very important election,
already a success in that nobody got killed. Still, South Africa has huge
problems, from crime to health crisis to conflict between ethnic groups
that verges on civil war. Will the country survive as a Western democracy
(and don't nobody write to say it's really a republic, OK?) or go the way
of Russian robber-baron capitalism or Central African chaos? Come back in a
couple of generations to find out. The South African newspaper Daily Mail
and Guardian (DM&amp;G) has the best coverage of events in that country.
Check out their profile of the new President Mbeki. The always fascinating
Frontline has an excellent online feature on Nelson Mandela, a companion to
its recent TV program "The Long Walk of Nelson Mandela".
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
DM&amp;G: <A HREF="http://www.mg.co.za/mg/">
http://www.mg.co.za/mg/</A><BR>
Profile: <A HREF="http://www.mg.co.za/mg/news/99jun1/1jun-mbeki.html">
http://www.mg.co.za/mg/news/99jun1/1jun-mbeki.html</A><BR>
Mandela: <A HREF="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/mandela/">
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/mandela/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="BS3">The Cox Report on Chinese Spying</A></B></P>

In political circles, the Cox report is old news - it was issued in January
and made the rounds in Washington months ago. An unclassified version of
the report saw daylight last week and immediately unleashed a flurry of
silly political posturing but by press time, the issue is pretty much dead
in the media. Most sensible people understand that this was just the
international equivalent of boys will be boys - everybody spies on
everybody else, so expel some diplomats already, tighten security, and get
on with life. Frankly, in the post-Cold War world, the fact that China can
make a better A-bomb is less damaging than its ability to devalue its
currency and plunge Asia into an economic dark age. Nevertheless, the
report makes for entertaining reading and is available online in several
venues. Yahoo offers a good summary of the media frenzy including multiple
links to the report itself.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
Report: <A HREF="http://hillsource.house.gov/CoxReport/report/welcome2.html">
http://hillsource.house.gov/CoxReport/report/welcome2.html</A><BR>
Yahoo: <A HREF="http://headlines.yahoo.com/Full_Coverage/US/China_Spying/">
http://headlines.yahoo.com/Full_Coverage/US/China_Spying/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="BS4">Anonymous Servers Not So Anonymous with Java/JavaScript Enabled</A></B></P>

It turns out it's pretty easy to trick the various anonymous Web browsing
services to reveal your IP address - and thus your identity - if your
browser has Java or JavaScript turned on. A posting on BugTraq shows how
this can be done. Two of the anon systems, Crowds and Onion, are less
susceptible to this problem. Read the problem description and check out the
links to several of the anonymous Web servers below. As long as we're
talking about anonymity, we also found this excellent technical paper on
how to protect your privacy on Unix. Essential reading for Unix users.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
The Problem: <A HREF="http://www.geek-girl.com/bugtraq/1999_2/0129.html">
http://www.geek-girl.com/bugtraq/1999_2/0129.html</A><BR>
Anonymizer: <A HREF="http://www.anonymizer.com">
http://www.anonymizer.com</A><BR>
Bell Labs: <A HREF="http://www.bell-labs.com/project/lpwa">
http://www.bell-labs.com/project/lpwa</A><BR>
Naval Research Laboratory: <A HREF="http://www.onion-router.net">
http://www.onion-router.net</A><BR>
Aixs: <A HREF="http://aixs.net/aixs/">
http://aixs.net/aixs/</A><BR>
Crowds: <A HREF="http://www.research.att.com/projects/crowds">
http://www.research.att.com/projects/crowds</A><BR>
Onion: <A HREF="http://www.onion-router.net/">
http://www.onion-router.net/</A><BR>
Anonymizing Unix: <A HREF="http://www.infowar.co.uk/thc/files/thc/anonymous-unix.html">
http://www.infowar.co.uk/thc/files/thc/anonymous-unix.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="BS5">A Second Suit While Microsoft Pants</A></B></P>

While the US Justice Department tussles with Microsoft over
anti-competitive practices in the trial you all know about, the software
behemoth faces a lesser-known civil suit alleging similar tactics in the
operating system race that raged during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
This highly readable legal document traces the history of a war Microsoft
allegedly waged to crush the DR-DOS of rival Digital Research - now owned
by Caldera, which has brought the suit - as Microsoft sought to solidify
its operating system preeminence. Excerpting e-mails sent among Microsoft
execs to substantiate many of their charges, the brief alleges the
Microsoft crew spread rumors about bugs in DR-DOS, announced false software
updates to freeze consumer demand (the vaporware ploy), implemented
exclusionary licensing practices, and eventually integrated Windows and
MS-DOS to cut off competition. A jury trial is scheduled to begin January
17, 2000.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
Brief: <A HREF="http://www.calderathin.com/fullstory/factstat.html">
http://www.calderathin.com/fullstory/factstat.html</A><BR>
Lawsuit: <A HREF="http://www.calderathin.com/lawsuit/index.html">
http://www.calderathin.com/lawsuit/index.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="BS6">First Entire Legit Album from Big-Name Band Available for Download</A></B></P>

That's a lot of qualifiers up there.... Entire albums have been posted
online before, but most were pirated. This is a genuine
you-pays-your-money, you-downloads-your-music effort from Public Enemy, the
big-name rap group that must be quite used to being in the news. Their
newest album <I>There's a Poison Going On</I> can be had in MP3 or a2b
format for $8 and 48 MB of drive space. Record companies tremble in fear
when they see this kind of stuff. Previews of the songs are also available
if you're not sure you want to spend the download time.

<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.atomicpop.com/atomicpopmusic/PEdownloads.html">
http://www.atomicpop.com/atomicpopmusic/PEdownloads.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B><FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE="+1">SURFING SITES</FONT></B></P>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS1">Jesus Is Coming - Look Busy</A></B></P>

Its clean layout, strong writing, and unique niche market combine with a
sharp wit to make Ship of Fools quite possibly the best GeoCities site
we've seen. Consider it a sardonic take on the things that make you go
"hmm" if you're a Christian - perhaps more so if you're not. The site looks
at the definition of Christianity today in light of such activity as sites
that claim that "homosexuals are wicked" and Jerry Falwell's Tinky Winky
fiasco. You've heard of Mystery Shoppers? Try the Mystery Worshipper
column, which runs down the vital facts about local (mostly UK) parishes
from the comfort of the pews to the aroma of the after-service coffee.
Although the humor often borders on irreverence, the passion of the
staffers reveals the publication's true cybermissionary bent. They're even
taking their show on the road, presumably to teach congregations how to
fish for young Christians not easily caught in the widely-cast nets of the
What Would Jesus Do (WWJD) marketing blitz.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
Ship: <A HREF="http://www.geocities.com/~ship-of-fools/">
http://www.geocities.com/~ship-of-fools/</A><BR>
WWJD: <A HREF="http://www.wwjd.com/">
http://www.wwjd.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
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<P><B>
<A NAME="SS2">Forgive Me, Digital Priest, for I Have Sinned</A></B></P>

It has been over 1,800 days since my last confession. I have committed the
sin of nostalgic voyeurism. Many were the nights back in my undergraduate
days when I would come to you, my beloved Virtual Confession Booth, with my
copy of Mosaic to confess that I had taken the last cup of coffee and not
made a new pot. I must admit I wept today to discover that you no longer
existed. But there is hope. Your archives still remain and thus the memory
of you will never fade. Digital Priest: Do not worry, all shall be
forgiven. But to be absolved you must do the following penance: use your
modem at no higher than 300 bps for one week and read one entire 25 MB or
so Scroll of Sins and rank each entry. There are a dozen scrolls, and you
have to figure out the number system by yourself, following these clues:
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
Scroll 1: <A HREF="http://anther.learning.cs.cmu.edu/sinscroll.html">
http://anther.learning.cs.cmu.edu/sinscroll.html</A><BR>
Scroll 2: <A HREF="http://anther.learning.cs.cmu.edu/sinscroll2.html">
http://anther.learning.cs.cmu.edu/sinscroll2.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS3">Fibber and Molly</A></B></P>

Radio shows of the past still evoke warm memories in many people, and back
in 1935 one show was an all-time favorite in America - the domestic trials
and tribulations of Fibber McGee and Molly, which ran until 1959. This Web
site has collected enough show logs, scripts, stories and photographs to
please the most die-hard fan. If you're too young to remember them, try
downloading the MP3 files, each of which contains a complete show.
Surprisingly, after so long the humor is still fresh, the characters still
real and the music still highly enjoyable. Incidentally, check out the
excellent graphics on the site, which set the tone of the era and look just
beautiful.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.compusmart.ab.ca/agirard/fibber/79.htm">
http://www.compusmart.ab.ca/agirard/fibber/79.htm</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS4">The Boroughs of East Anglia</A></B></P>

The Medieval era, with its geographic centers of power losing control of
their peripheries, its turbulent social classes, its multiplying heresies,
and its obsession with vast stacks of almost incomprehensible
documentation, seems tailor-made for the Web. The Medieval English Towns
site, concentrating on the boroughs of East Anglia as they were hundreds of
years ago, tries to impose some order on the heterogeneous documentary
survivals of that period. It contains an excellent glossary of terms,
documents from various towns, and some overall explanatory material that
wrestles with the various groups contending for power and status. Images
are well-chosen, and the site loads quickly.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.trytel.com/~tristan/towns/towns.html">
http://www.trytel.com/~tristan/towns/towns.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS5">Slide Rules</A></B></P>

They were so elegant, so perfect, so clever, those slide rules of yore.
Made of plastic, of steel, of bamboo, they slyly modeled mathematical
functions like logarithms and sines in fine-ruled reality, so that a few
flicks of a thumb could perform deft calculations. And using them was an
art: lost now, alas, along with reading Incan quipu and flint knapping. The
Oughtred Society, named for the 17th century inventor of the slide rule,
does not want that art completely forgotten. At the Slide Rule Trading
Post, you can manipulate a functional Java slide rule and cruise a
celebration of Soviet calculators. The site is sparse just now but promises
a future for the slide rule fully as magnificent as its past.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.comcen.com.au/~adavie/slide/">
http://www.comcen.com.au/~adavie/slide/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS6">Steam Engines</A></B></P>

The people at the Scuola Media di Calizzano (which we presume is an Italian
new media student farm) like steam. They also know a great deal about it:
how steam energy was first harnessed, how the Industrial Revolution in
England was powered by hot water, and how all the famous engines worked.
They've gathered their knowledge into a comprehensive and well thought out
Web site, with some really good animations to illustrate how things work.
The usual tedious GeoCities pop-up windows have to be regularly swatted,
but it is worth persevering to discover some of the gems hidden in this
unusual Web site.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/6914/index.htm">
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/6914/index.htm</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS7">Everything but the Opera Glass</A></B></P>

If you think Lalique is one of the Teletubbies, the Glass Encyclopedia may
not be the spot for you. Then again, it serves to educate the masses on
collectible glass, from the ever-popular depression glass to the ornately
cut crystal stemware every couple signs up for in their wedding registry.
Along with a little history, each listing occasionally includes a list of
recent auction prices, a handy guide for new collectors. Be aware that the
"helpful references" offered on each page are basically just Amazon.com
partnership links, but at least the page designers have singled out some of
the best books on each topic.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.encyclopedia.netnz.com/">
http://www.encyclopedia.netnz.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P></P><TABLE CELLPADDING=10> <TR> <TD WIDTH=468 BORDER=2 BGCOLOR="#BFFFF4">
<BR>
<P><B>
<A NAME="NBR">Netsurfer Recommendations</A></B></P>

Items our staff likes and you might too. Click on the image or title to order
at a hefty discount from our affiliates Amazon.com and Beyond.com, and send
a few pennies our way as well.
<P>
<A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0553104837/netsurferdigest">
<IMG ALIGN=LEFT HSPACE=10 BORDER=0
SRC="http://www.amazon.com/covers/0/55/310/483/0553104837.m.gif">
<I>Noir</I></A><BR>
K. W. Jeter<BR>
Spectra; ISBN: 0553104837<BR><BR>
This noir cyberpunk epic comes from the author of the <A
HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0553577751/netsurferdigest">
Blade Runner</A> sequels. It's one of those occasionally difficult books,
at times a bit too stylistically baroque, but its texture and imagery
reach out to your medulla oblongata on a regular basis. Noir is
noir-ish to a fault, replicating the dark look of old films and the
verbal pistol-whippings of Raymond Chandler novels, and worth reading
because its dark world successfully extends the moribund cyberpunk
genera in new and interesting directions. Overall a good read for fans
of dystopian darkness, creative copyright violator punishment, and the
taste of betrayal in the morning.

</P><BR CLEAR=LEFT><BR>
<P>
<A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1569471339/netsurferdigest">
<I>Hokkaido Highway Blues: Hitchhiking Japan</I></A><BR>
Will Ferguson<BR>
Soho Press, Inc.; ISBN: 1569471339<BR><BR>
This side splitting travelogue follows a Canadian journalist who decided to
hitchhike from the southern tip to the northern tip of Japan, advancing
along with the front of blooming springtime cherry blossoms. Everybody Will
meets tells him that "Japanese do not pick up hitchhikers". Naturally, it
takes him only minutes to score his first ride, and off we go on this
highly amusing, occasionally lyrical journey into this fascinating cultural
landscape. The portraits of the people he meets are not always flattering
but are inevitably witty and insightful. A fun, fast read, perfect as a
summer vacation book, and not a bad guidebook to Japanese back roads if
you're thinking of visiting.

</P><BR CLEAR=LEFT>
<P>
<A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00000I0P0/netsurferdigest">
<IMG ALIGN=LEFT HSPACE=10 BORDER=0
SRC="http://www.amazon.com/covers/B/00/000/I0P/B00000I0P0.m.gif">
<I>No Exit</I></A><BR>
Blondie<BR>
Bmg/Beyond; ASIN: B00000I0P0 <BR><BR>
It's like the '90s never happened. Blondie's back and doing exactly what
made it such a lasting popular band - turning out melodious music which
sets you humming to yourself long after the album has ended. At least three
songs here can reach the top of the singles charts, and every song has
something to like. What's even nicer is that Blondie manages to do this
while delivering tunes in a variety of styles, ranging from New Wavey pop,
to rap, to jazzy swing, to ballad. Fans of Blondie will emphatically not be
disappointed, others are likely to get hooked. Great band, great melodies,
great album.

</P><BR CLEAR=LEFT><BR>
<P>
<A HREF="http://www.beyond.com/AF31458/PKIN021711/prod.htm">
<IMG ALIGN=LEFT HSPACE=10 BORDER=0
SRC="http://www.beyond.com/images/common/diamondmultimedia/pmp300_box.jpg">
<I>Rio MP3 Player</I></A><BR>
Hardware, with Windows Software<BR>
Diamond Multimedia<BR><BR>
With a $50 rebate at press time and Father's Day on the horizon, this may
just be the gift of choice, at least for those of you whose dads are into
that whole computer thing. Most of you have already heard of the Rio
player, which can download and store 60 minutes of MP3 format audio from
the Net. This puppy comes with headphones and a parallel port interface.
Looks cool, works great, and will forever be known as the seminal product
which assured the success of MP3.

</P><BR CLEAR=LEFT><BR>

<A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/netsurferdigest">
<IMG WIDTH=90 HEIGHT=29 BORDER=0
SRC="http://www.amazon.com/g/associates/amzn-white-button.gif"></A>
<A HREF="http://www.beyond.com/AF31458/"><IMG WIDTH=88 HEIGHT=31 BORDER=0
SRC="http://www.beyond.com/images/common/affiliates/w_88x31.gif"></A>
</TD> </TR> </TABLE>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS12">Personal Heroes of the 20th Century</A></B></P>

Want to tell the world about a family member who made a big difference in
your life? Newsweek.com invites you to submit a 500-word essay and JPEG for
"My Turn Family Heroes", a special section of its online magazine.
Newsweek.com will give your hero a customized Web page in an online
community. The best essays submitted by November 28 will appear in the
December issue of the print Newsweek. Starting June 9, the Web site will
feature a new "Spotlight Hero" every week. Recently, the Archive featured
two heroes, Grandma Harriet and Godfather Michael, praised, respectively,
by a 27-year-old grandson and 10-year-old goddaughter. Who says the Net
doesn't promote family values?
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://myturn.newsweek.com/">
http://myturn.newsweek.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS13">What Do You Want to Say to the Future?</A></B></P>

The Millennial Archive provides the people of the future with an
"uncensored window" into our lives, to reveal our attitudes, dreams, and
thoughts of the present. Weave your story into "this tapestry of humanity"
by sending in family histories, photos, and as much personal info as you'd
care to divulge. This great idea is weakened only by some of the pompous
and wearied voices providing their "visions" of the world. Considering this
is an "uncensored" view, we can't expect Plato, but we could hope for
proper spelling. One of many enthusiastic idealists calls each of us to "to
make a new freiend bafore this year is over" (sic), advice almost as good
as perceptive Philip's, which merely asks people not to eat yellow snow.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.millennial-archive.com/">
http://www.millennial-archive.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS14">Elaborate Prank Phone Calls</A></B></P>

Much amusement can be extracted from the discomfiture of others. Prank
phone calls, complaining of hamsters stuck in vacuum cleaners or pretending
to be smoking a joint while talking, are a popular way of raising a laugh
while making somebody else look stupid. The Arnett Tapes are prime examples
of this kind of humor, collected into Real Audio files which download and
play quickly. If you really want to, you can buy the CD. Warning: the Enter
button on the top of the page is an ad banner and has nothing to do with
the site.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://members.tripod.com/~thearnetttapes/grid1.htm">
http://members.tripod.com/~thearnetttapes/grid1.htm</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS15">What Number, Puh-Lease?</A></B></P>

We're always looking for new ways to search the Net. Web Search Reference
is a gateway to many familiar resources such as AnyWho, GTE Superpages, Big
Yellow, 411Locate, and Yahoo that helps you narrow your search in advance.
Choose a country, type of information (phone number, address, and e-mail
address), or both, and this site returns a list of appropriate search
engines. Scroll down, and you'll find the "Reverse Search" feature, which
lets you input a phone number, address, fax number, or e-mail address.
Simplicity of design belies its potential usefulness.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.searchreference.com/">
http://www.searchreference.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS16">Online Bookmarks Community</A></B></P>

The new Oneview service offers online bookmark indexing in a clear,
easy-to-use format. Loading quickly and full of help screens and tips, the
user screen can be organized into folders much faster than Internet
Explorer's system, for example. So what, you say? What makes Oneview
different from other online bookmark repositories is its community aspect.
Users can make links public, so everyone on the service can access them
through the search engine. Oneview also supplies news, updates, and useful
links to the users, and plans more features. Oneview is a highly efficient
way to manage your Web browsing, with portals in all major languages.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.oneview.com/">
http://www.oneview.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="SS17">Fax Appeal</A></B></P>

We recently profiled eFax.com (NSD 5.11), which allows users to receive
faxes by e-mail for free, but which lacks a provision for sending faxes.
Fortunately, a savvy reader led us to Fax4Free.com, a site that allows one
to send faxes either by composing or pasting text online or by uploading a
pre-existing Windows MS Word document. Faxes can be sent anywhere in the US
for free. An online address book and broadcast capacity flesh out this
advertising-based service. The site also promotes CallWave, a complementary
fax reception system that, like eFax.com, issues users a phone number and
delivers faxes as images.

<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.fax4free.com/">
http://www.fax4free.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B><FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE="+1">ONLINE TRAVEL</FONT></B></P>
<P><B>
<A NAME="OT1">The Scottish Dialect</A></B></P>

Did you know "cahoochy" is an old-fashioned word for rubber in Scottish?
(No doubt related to the French "caoutchouc".) Or that if some one is
"comstairy" then they're becoming quarrelsome, stubborn, or unruly? The
Scottish Dictionary is well organized and useful to those considering
travel to the region or an attempt to woo the Scottish babe/stud of their
dreams, but many of the sections are still under construction. Our advice
is to wait a couple of months, go to the gym and build up those
caber-tossing muscles, and then get back in there when the site is
finished, so you can have cool Scottish lingo bubbling forth from you like
cappuccino machine milk froth.

<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.ivanuk.force9.co.uk/index.html">
http://www.ivanuk.force9.co.uk/index.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P>
<!-- Netsurfer Digest Travel -->
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<P><B><FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE="+1">FLOTSAM & JETSAM</FONT></B></P>
<P><B>
<A NAME="FJ1">Google Me This</A></B></P>

Google is a no-frills, next-generation search engine that has won praise
for its intelligent searches. Confined to a relatively small database,
Google rates a site's value by analyzing how many other (high quality)
sites link to it, filtering out a lot of Net noise. Works for us.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.google.com/">
http://www.google.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P>
<!-- Netsurfer Digest Entertainment -->
<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JAVASCRIPT">
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<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JAVASCRIPT">
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//-->
</SCRIPT>
<NOSCRIPT>
<IFRAME SRC="http://adex3.flycast.com/server/socket/127.0.0.1:2800/iframe/NetsurferDigest/entertainment/123" scrolling="no" marginwidth=0 marginheight=0 frameborder=0 vspace=0 hspace=0 width=468 height=60>
<A target=_top HREF="http://adex3.flycast.com/server/socket/127.0.0.1:2800/click/NetsurferDigest/entertainment/123">
<IMG SRC="http://adex3.flycast.com/server/socket/127.0.0.1:2800/img/NetsurferDigest/entertainment/123" border=0 width=468 height=60></A>
</IFRAME></NOSCRIPT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="FJ2">Streaming Media</A></B></P>

Streaming Media World gives Web developers both a quick overview of
streaming media and detailed information about browsers, authoring
packages, hardware, and much more in this often cacophonous region of the
Net.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.streamingmediaworld.com/">
http://www.streamingmediaworld.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="FJ3">Got Pics?</A></B></P>

FreeFoto.Com offers 4,000 free pieces of online stock photography for
non-commercial use. All they ask in return is a link with their logo on
your page. It's especially useful to designers of sites having to do with
travel or nature, since many of their most popular photos are of outdoor
scenes.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.freefoto.com/">
http://www.freefoto.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="FJ4">World Webcam Map</A></B></P>

Just for fun, surf over to the World Map of Live Webcams to get an idea of
all the places you can see through the magic of computers. These are
outside cameras only so you won't have to sift through endless shots of
offices and bedrooms.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://dove.mtx.net.au/~punky/World.html">
http://dove.mtx.net.au/~punky/World.html</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="FJ5">Dog Breeds</A></B></P>

Need to know how tall a Bedlington terrier is? Or what colors Briards come
in? If there is anything you want to find out about any breed of dog, no
matter how obscure, this is the place to go.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/">
http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>
<P><B>
<A NAME="FJ6">Lost and Found... Maybe</A></B></P>

Here's another online lost and found clearinghouse, complete with some
advanced search features. Unfortunately, the nascent site has very few
items listed, so don't tear those pictures of Fido off the telephone polls
just yet.
<BR>
<FONT SIZE="-1">
<A HREF="http://www.thelostandfound.com/">
http://www.thelostandfound.com/</A><BR>

</FONT>

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<A NAME="CR"><FONT SIZE="-1" COLOR="#FFFFFF">CREDITS</FONT></A></TD>
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<TD VALIGN=BOTTOM ALIGN=LEFT BGCOLOR="#E0E0E0">
<TABLE><TR>
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<FONT SIZE="-1">
<B>Publisher:</B> Arthur Bebak
<BR>
<B>Editor:</B> Lawrence Nyveen
<BR>
<B>Contributing Editor:</B><BR>
<B>Production Manager:</B> Bill Woodcock
<BR>
<B>Copy Editor:</B> Elvi Dalgaard
<BR>
<P>
<B>Netsurfer Communications, Inc.</B>
<UL>
<LI><B>President:</B> Arthur Bebak
<LI><B>Vice President:</B> S.M. Lieu
</UL></P></FONT></TD>
<TD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR="#E0E0E0">
<FONT SIZE="-1"><B>Writers and Netsurfers:</B><UL>
<LI>Sue Abbott
<LI>Regan Avery
<LI>Kirsty Brooks
<LI>Marshall Camp
<LI>Judith David
<LI>Joanne Eglash
<LI>Alex Jablokow
<LI>Michael Luke
<LI>Elizabeth Rollins
<LI>Kenneth Schulze
<LI>Gavian Whishaw
</UL></FONT></TD></TR><TR>
<TD VALIGN=TOP COLSPAN=2 NOWRAP BGCOLOR="#E0E0E0">
<FONT SIZE=-1>
<HR><I>NETSURFER DIGEST</I> &copy; 1999 Netsurfer Communications, Inc.
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