New Web Site!
Brent N. Hunter
I have recently made my home page available to the public. It
contains lots of pointers to cool sites on the net. I believe that
it is a great starting place for people new to the net as well as
those who already know their way around but would like a list of
useful and interesting sites to surf to.
The URL is
http://www-bprc.mps.ohio-state.edu/cgi-bin/hpp?brent.hunter.html
Please let me know what you think if you visit! And please let me
know if you have any ideas, comments or suggestions.
Happy Surfing!
Brent Hunter
bhu...@interramp.com
---------------------------------------------------------
Brent N. Hunter
Bhu...@interramp.com
Check out my new WWW home page at:
http://www-bprc.mps.ohio-state.edu/cgi-bin/hpp?brent.hunter.html
"In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice, but in practice,
there is."
Miles Abernathy
Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
exploring the World Wide Web?
"Surfing" on a web, net or mesh seems like an oxymoron, or at least a
non-obvious usage.
Thank you!
--
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
_ Miles Abernathy, N5KOB = I have a spelling checker.
| |__ mi...@mail.utexas.edu = It came with my PC.
_| | POB 7580, Austin TX 78713 = It plane lee Marx four my review
\ * / University of Texas @ Austin = Miss steaks aye kin knot sea.
\/ tel. (512) 471-6521 U.S.A. = (from mini-JIR)
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Jay Farrell
mi...@mail.utexas.edu (Miles Abernathy) wrote:
> > ... list of useful and interesting sites to surf to....
>
> Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
> exploring the World Wide Web?
>
Was it, perhaps, in tribute to Vint Cerf, a founder of the Internet?
--
Jay Farrell http://www.netaxs.com/~jayfar/
jay...@netaxs.com
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"Wonder How A Po' M*ther F*cker Feel"
-- Joshua Jordan (1919-1993)
William F Phillips
Jay Farrell <jay...@netaxs.com> wrote:
:In article <miles-25129...@slip-1-2.ots.utexas.edu>,
:mi...@mail.utexas.edu (Miles Abernathy) wrote:
:
:> > ... list of useful and interesting sites to surf to....
:>
:> Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
:> exploring the World Wide Web?
:>
:Was it, perhaps, in tribute to Vint Cerf, a founder of the Internet?
Dunno, but Netsurfing was around before the Web...
--
___ ___ _ | Bill Phillips
(/__) . /) /) (/__) /_ . /) /) . _ _ | ShoeString Projects
/__) (__(__(___ / / )_(__(__(__(_ /_)_/_)_ | =DTP=Graphic Design=
( ( ( | =Computer Consulting=
Thomas Dowling
>Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
>exploring the World Wide Web?
>"Surfing" on a web, net or mesh seems like an oxymoron, or at least a
>non-obvious usage.
If memory serves, "Surfing the Internet" was an article written several
years ago (1989 or 1990 is my guess) by Jean Armour Polly, then a public
librarian in upstate New York, and now an Internet trainer at Nysernet.
Thomas Dowling
University of Washington Engineering Library
tdow...@u.washington.edu
Kurt Mundinger
>
> > ... list of useful and interesting sites to surf to....
>
> Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
> exploring the World Wide Web?
>
> "Surfing" on a web, net or mesh seems like an oxymoron, or at least a
> non-obvious usage.
>
> Thank you!
I always thought it came from "channel surfing"
Just like you can flip around on the TV, you can skip to different
internet sites and services.
Kurt Mundinger
http://iquest.com/~cshuffle/
pp00...@interramp.com
In article <miles-25129...@slip-1-2.ots.utexas.edu>,
<mi...@mail.utexas.edu> writes:
> Path:
interramp.com!psinntp!newsserver.pixel.kodak.com!news.ltw.org!newshost.marcam.c
om!usc!hookup!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!geraldo.cc.utexas.edu!slip-1-2.ots.utexas.e
du!user
> From: mi...@mail.utexas.edu (Miles Abernathy)
> Newsgroups: comp.infosystems.www.misc
> Subject: Origin of "Surf" to Describe Web Exploring?
> Date: Sun, 25 Dec 1994 14:38:04 -0600
> Organization: University of Texas
> Lines: 18
> Message-ID: <miles-25129...@slip-1-2.ots.utexas.edu>
> References: <3dilgv$d...@www.interramp.com>
> NNTP-Posting-Host: slip-1-2.ots.utexas.edu
> X-Newsreader: Value-Added NewsWatcher 2.0b20.0+
>
> > ... list of useful and interesting sites to surf to....
>
> Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
> exploring the World Wide Web?
>
> "Surfing" on a web, net or mesh seems like an oxymoron, or at least a
> non-obvious usage.
>
> Thank you!
>
on cable tv....
Greg
Benjamin Garrett Scheie
mi...@mail.utexas.edu (Miles Abernathy) wrote:
>Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
>exploring the World Wide Web?
>
>"Surfing" on a web, net or mesh seems like an oxymoron, or at least a
>non-obvious usage.
Although I cannot provide any *references* to the first usage of the term,
I assume it began out of the cyber-fiction genre, which tends to construct
alternate physical realities to represent computer networks. Sometimes
abstract, sometimes representational. The term surf probably came about
from associations with "ocean of information, information tidal wave" or
any other similar associations that could be made. In addition, there is
the desireable link between "net-surfers" and "real surfers". Real surfers
could be considered a radical or fringe element of society, with special
tools (surfboards) and skills that allow them to do something that most
individuals consider difficult (if not dangerous). This image needs only
slight modification to romanticize the "net-surfer".
Anyway, that's my two-cents.
Philip Elmer-DeWitt
(Benjamin Garrett Scheie) wrote:
> In article <miles-25129...@slip-1-2.ots.utexas.edu>,
> mi...@mail.utexas.edu (Miles Abernathy) wrote:
>
> >Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
> >exploring the World Wide Web?
The first time I came across it was a piece entitled "Surfing the Wild
Internet" by Tom Mandel at SRI International, who grew up (water) surfing
in Hawaii. It's available on the WELL gophersite and is probably dated. Or
you could ask the author, man...@well.com
--
Philip Elmer-DeWitt p...@well.com
TIME Magazine p...@panix.com phil...@aol.com
Read TIME on America Online, where we get paid to take abuse.
TIME's newest venue: http://www.timeinc.com/
Rob Miracle
>In article <miles-25129...@slip-1-2.ots.utexas.edu>,
>mi...@mail.utexas.edu (Miles Abernathy) wrote:
>>Does anyone know the origin of "surf" as the common verb to describe
>>exploring the World Wide Web?
>>
>>"Surfing" on a web, net or mesh seems like an oxymoron, or at least a
>>non-obvious usage.
>Although I cannot provide any *references* to the first usage of the term,
>I assume it began out of the cyber-fiction genre, which tends to construct
[Good Description Deleted]
That is a very good description of the background of net-surfing. The
point that I want to make is that surf does not equate to the web. The
Web has made it easy for others to surf, nothing more. Actually, I would
argue that the Web is more like "wind-surfing or sail-boarding" as compaired
to real surfing.
To do real net surfing, you need to know how things operate, the quirks of
Gopher, how to get odd bits of information out of FTP etc. Its learning
the sites and how they inter-relate to each other. Whats on Gatekeeper
and whats on wuarchive???
With the web, you barely have to remember sites, you just click on a hot
link to what you want.
Just my two cents....
Rob
--
Rob Miracle = Email: r...@mpgn.com
Tantalus Inc. = Alt: Lewe...@aol.com
Key West, Florida =
"You have a problem? I have a plan!" -- Anton Devious
we...@stsci.edu
> Although I cannot provide any *references* to the first usage of the term,
> I assume it began out of the cyber-fiction genre, which tends to construct
> alternate physical realities to represent computer networks. Sometimes
> abstract, sometimes representational. The term surf probably came about
> from associations with "ocean of information, information tidal wave" or
> any other similar associations that could be made.
If I remember my cyber-fiction correctly, you also saw the term
"cyberspace cowboy" associated with the people who really knew the ins
and outs of the cyberspace (Yes, I am obvously referring to "Neuromancer").
I don't know about you, but I can't really picture cowboys surfing!
It would be quite fascinating to track down how this term came into use. I
use it practically everyday and I have never thought about where it came
from. As I used to say when I was a teacher, "Good Question! Good
Question"
I'm off to catch another "wave".....(or should I say "doggie"???)
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Wenz |
we...@stsci.edu | "I urge you to dream - I did, and one
| day I found myself standing on the
| surface of the moon."
| - Gene Cernan
|
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Hypervigilance
>
>In article <scheie-2712...@scheie.pr.mcs.net>, sch...@mcs.com
>(Benjamin Garrett Scheie) wrote:
>
re the use of "surfing"...
TV "channel surfing" using a remote? (several years, now)...
which then came into use by IRCers and spread via these
intrepid net explorers?
Just a thot.
Happy New Year!