TOPNETSURFER DIGEST
More Signal, Less Noise Volume 06, Issue 35
Sunday, October 15, 2000
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BREAKING SURF
Nobels
IgNobels
Mojo Nation File Trading
Draft International Treaty on Cybercrime
Ski Everest 2000
US Picks New Encryption Standard
Noisy Salon
Cassini at Jupiter
Fountains of Solar Fire
Clinton vs. Lazio vs. Reality
NewsML: New XML Standard for Markup of News Stories
New Security Policy from CERT
Silicon Valley: an Update
ONLINE CULTURE
TheBurglar.com
Cyber-Capitalism vs. the Neolithic
Spam Blacklist Organization MAPS Sued Again
THREAD WATCH
You, Too, Can Be a Photointelligence Analyst
Snuffing out the Sims
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Film Review Site with Ambition
Anybody Got a Spare Fermion Exciter?
BOOKS & E-ZINES
Netsurfer Recommendations
A Clockwork Onion
Great Expectations Met at This Dickens Site
How to Good-Bye Depression
E-Zine from the Longest Undefended Border in the World
Computer Security
The Online Club for the Avid Reader
SURFING SCIENCE
Is It Real or Is It Legend?
The Origins of Words and Their Changing Usage
The Journal of Young Scientists
Science and Reference for Kids
SOFTWARE
PHP 4.03 Released
OTHER LINKS
BOOK REVIEWS <http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/books/>
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR <http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/letters/>
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BREAKING SURF
BS1Nobels
Every year, tension mounts among contenders for the world's most
prestigious awards, awarded in memory of Swedish industrialist Alfred
Nobel. The winners of this year's prizes - literature, physics,
chemistry, economics, physiology or medicine, and peace - have now been
announced. Go to the Nobel Web site to find out not only who won but
why, as the site and links do a great job of explaining just why the
various selection committees voted the way they did. Wow your friends!
Impress strangers with your knowledge! The site provides good background
on the winners and discoveries, and you can look at both news releases
and webcasts of the announcement of most awards. Links to the Nobel
lectures are promised as well. Penetrating a little deeper, you'll
discover links to further reading and advanced information in PDF
format. This is a well-organized one-stop shop for Nobel things.
<http://www.nobel.se/announcement/2000/index.html>
http://www.nobel.se/announcement/2000/index.html
<http://ad-adex3.flycast.com/server/click/NetsurferDigest/internetnews/1
23>
BS2IgNobels
Every year, tension mounts among contenders for the world's least
harmful awards, awarded for achievements that "cannot or should not be
reproduced". The winners of this year's prizes - psychology, literature,
biology, physics, chemistry, economics, medicine, computer science,
peace - have now been announced. Go to the IgNobel Web site to find out
not only who won but why, as the site and links do a great job of
explaining just why the various selection committees voted the way they
did. Wow your friends! Impress strangers with your knowledge! The site
provides good background on the winners and discoveries, and you can
look at both news articles and webcasts of the awards. Links to the
IgNobel lectures are unfortunately lacking. Penetrating a little deeper,
you'll discover links to further reading and advanced information in
HTML format. This is a well-organized one-stop shop for IgNobel things.
<http://www.improb.com/ig/ig-top.html>
http://www.improb.com/ig/ig-top.html
BS3Mojo Nation File Trading
Yet another network for the trading of files on the Net has sprung up.
The startup Mojo Nation seeks to address one of the major problems with
trading networks such as Gnutella. Most people don't reciprocate trade,
but only download files. Thus, network costs and responsibilities fall
disproportionately on those who do offer files. In the Mojo vision,
traders earn currency called - you guessed it - mojo, that essentially
buys downloads. The more you offer, the more you can download. The
system, designed by former Yahoo employee Jim McCoy, is in the beta
testing stage. Salon has an in-depth article about the site and an
interview with McCoy. Recent coverage from Salon and Slashdot has
apparently overloaded some of Mojo Nation's servers; take that into
account when you test their software.
Story:
<http://www.salon.com/tech/view/2000/10/09/mojo_nation/index.html>
http://www.salon.com/tech/view/2000/10/09/mojo_nation/index.html
Mojo Nation: <http://www.mojonation.net/> http://www.mojonation.net/
BS4Draft International Treaty on Cybercrime
The Council of Europe has just released the second revision of a
proposed international treaty on cybercrime. David Banisar of
SecurityFocus has a blistering review of the proposed treaty and notes
that none of the extensive feedback based on the original draft made it
into this version. The proposed treaty - Banisar calls it "a
monstrosity" - reveals a rabidly authoritarian world view in which
anyone who runs a computer network would be forced to install
Carnivore-like eavesdropping facilities for the convenience of the
government. Nasty stuff indeed, and deserving of wide circulation as an
example of where the legal winds are blowing.
Treaty: <http://conventions.coe.int/treaty/EN/projets/projets.htm>
http://conventions.coe.int/treaty/EN/projets/projets.htm
David: <http://www.securityfocus.com/templates/article.html?id=98>
http://www.securityfocus.com/templates/article.html?id=98
BS5Ski Everest 2000
Rarely stopping and never taking his skis off, on October 7, Slovenian
Davo Karnicar became the first man to ski Mount Everest. It took his
team four days to reach the summit and it took Davo five hours to ski
there at 29,028 feet to base camp at 17,000 feet. The Extreme Ski
Everest site that covered the achievement hosts movies of Davos
adventure, pictures, interviews, and Everest lore. Davo's first attempt
in 1996 failed and cost him two fingers to frostbite. This time, he
dodged breaking ice and the frozen body of an unidentified climber to
emerge unscathed. Davo, a ski instructor, has already skied Mont Blanc
and Annapurna in the Himalayas.
Extreme Ski Everest: <http://www.everest.simobil.si/>
http://www.everest.simobil.si/
Davo: <http://www.slo-sport.org/vs/DKarnicar_e.html>
http://www.slo-sport.org/vs/DKarnicar_e.html
BS6US Picks New Encryption Standard
Rijndael (pronounced Rine-doll) is meant to replace the aging DES
encryption standard. The Rijndael standard evolved out of a three-year
encryption competition which saw an international cryptographic
community effort to attack a variety of possible algorithms. Rijndael
wound up the winner with a good balance of security and low
computational cost. You can expect a lot of commercial users to adopt
this new standard, particularly in the financial sector. Details about
the algorithm are available on the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)
home page.
Rijndael: <http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/releases/g00-176.htm>
http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/releases/g00-176.htm
AES: <http://csrc.nist.gov/encryption/aes/>
http://csrc.nist.gov/encryption/aes/
BS7Noisy Salon
Salon has re-launched MP3Lit.com, acquired earlier this year, as Salon
Audio, where you'll find everything audio that Salon has to offer. The
noisy stuff includes weekly audio columns, book and DVD reviews, a
program called "The Word", readings from hundreds of authors,
interviews, and more. Indeed, it would be a challenge not to find
something interesting here, so eclectic and creative is the subject
matter. So, tune in with RealAudio or an MP3 player and listen up. If
you're not sure just how to listen to audio files and are too
embarrassed to ask, a link way down at the bottom of the page leads to a
helpful how-to. Of course, you get typical, frank, uninhibited Salon
stuff here, folks, so if you dont fancy the occasional #!$%, or if it
grates more on the ear than on the eye, you might just choose to mosey
on elsewhere.
<http://www.salon.com/audio/index.html>
http://www.salon.com/audio/index.html
BS8Cassini at Jupiter
The Cassini spacecraft, on its long, clever, celestial mechanical
journey through space, will make its closest approach to Jupiter at
10.03:38.6 GMT December 30, 2000. It's already snapping pictures as part
of this millennium flyby of the giant planet, a couple of which are now
available here (the latest color picture is a beauty) with more to be
added as NASA receives and processes them. The older Galileo spacecraft
is already snooping about the area, but Cassini, launched October 15,
1997, is headed much farther, to an orbital rendezvous with Saturn.
Watch the journey unfold here. If it's not reasonable to expect a replay
of the stunning wonders that the Voyager spacecraft revealed about the
solar system, there are bound to be new details and some surprises in
store for this mission. Educators might be interested in the opportunity
for lesson plans related to the flyby - see the Education link for
details.
Cassini: <http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/jupiterflyby/>
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/jupiterflyby/
BS9Fountains of Solar Fire
The NASA Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE), a solar
research satellite, has been sending back fantastic images of our star.
TRACE produces high spatial and temporal resolution images of coronal
loops on the surface of the sun and has captured arches of super-hot gas
in images of unprecedented clarity. NASA has posted the images, along
with movies, animations, and complete mission information for TRACE. The
movies are especially impressive.
<http://vestige.lmsal.com/TRACE/> http://vestige.lmsal.com/TRACE/
BS10Clinton vs. Lazio vs. Reality
Dunno if you caught that Hillary Clinton/Rick Lazio debate Oct. 8 (we
were too busy cleaning our toes that night). In a debate to help decide
which candidate will occupy a New York seat in the Senate, the moderator
relayed a question from a viewer that asked the two how they feel about
federal bill 602-P, which allows the US Congress to levy a five-cent
surcharge on all e-mail messages. Now, you and I know that bill's an
urban legend, but apparently the three of them on TV did not. Even each
campaign's spin doctors, ready to pounce on every nuance of their
opponent with an e-mail campaign as the debate went on, failed to point
out that 602-P doesn't exist. The New York Times has more details, which
it'll trade for registration.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/09/technology/09SPAM.html>
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/09/technology/09SPAM.html
BS11NewsML: New XML Standard for Markup of News Stories
NewsML v1.0 has been officially approved by the International Press
Telecommunications Council (IPTC). NewsML is an XML-based standard for
all aspects of multimedia news creation, storage, and delivery.
Everything a recipient might need to know about the content of the
provided news can be included in NewsML's structure. This is of interest
to webmasters who must deal with generating or receiving news feeds. A
number of high-profile news organizations have declared their intention
to start using this standard to send out news.
Press release: <http://www.iptc.org/IPTCNewsMLPR.htm>
http://www.iptc.org/IPTCNewsMLPR.htm
NewsML: <http://www.iptc.org/NMLIntro.htm>
http://www.iptc.org/NMLIntro.htm
IPTC: <http://www.iptc.org/> http://www.iptc.org/
BS12New Security Policy from CERT
CERT has adopted a new policy about disclosing security problems. In the
past, the widely followed security alert organization has generally not
disclosed security problems until fixes have been made available. Under
the new policy, CERT will disclose problems 45 days after it hears of a
security hole whether the hole has been fixed or not. Security experts
are divided philosophically on how to approach disclosure. One camp
feels that disclosing details of security holes simply encourages
widespread attacks. Another camp feels that early disclosure is the best
way to force vendors to issue rapid fixes. In this case, CERT seems to
be taking middle ground, allowing vendors some time to fix their
software before sounding the alarm. CERT's policy change may be moot,
since most security exploits are frequently openly discussed in forums
such as SecurityFocus as soon as they are found.
CERT: <http://www.cert.org/faq/vuldisclosurepolicy.html>
http://www.cert.org/faq/vuldisclosurepolicy.html
SecurityFocus: <http://www.securityfocus.com/>
http://www.securityfocus.com/
BS13Silicon Valley: an Update
Now that the investment world has returned to traditional concepts like
assets and value, what's the mood of Silicon Valley, the epicenter of
the technological goldrush? According to the Economist, post-correction
Silicon Valley is faster, still venture-capital rich, expensive, and
under intense pressure from its burgeoning wealth. A reasonably accurate
portrait of our own Netsurfer back yard.
<http://www.economist.com/business/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=387664>
http://www.economist.com/business/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=387664
ONLINE CULTURE
OC1TheBurglar.com
One of the promises politicians make of the Internet is that it brings
people together. Indeed it does, though sometimes in a weird, monkey's
paw kind of way. In one case, TheBurglar.com brings together victims of
robbery with the people who have their property. A user can register as
a victim or as the euphemistically alluring "finder/buyer". The
anonymous "finders" register for free, while the victims pay $5.95 for
the privilege of looking for their stuff. Insurance companies can browse
listings of missing property by specific geographic areas. There's one
eensy-weensy fly in the ointment - the service deals with the exchange
of stolen goods, and so may be illegal. The Register has some background
on the site, which has recently expanded from the US and Denmark into
the UK.
TheBurglar: <http://theburglar.com/default_frame.htm>
http://theburglar.com/default_frame.htm
Register: <http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/1/13875.html>
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/1/13875.html
Monkey's paw: <http://www.gate.net/~madonia/monkeypa.htm>
http://www.gate.net/~madonia/monkeypa.htm
<http://ad-adex3.flycast.com/server/click/NetsurferDigest/monbiz/123>
OC2Cyber-Capitalism vs. the Neolithic
The primitive Yanomami tribe of the Amazon is the victim of
cybersquatting and they're not happy about it. A Florida woman has
offered to sell Yanomami.com to the tribe for $25,000. The .org, .net
and .br (Brasil) versions of the Yanomami domain names are also held by
unaffiliated organizations. A non-profit group which supports the tribe
has been contacting the domain name holders to get them to donate the
domains to the tribe. If nothing else, this story illustrates just how
deeply awareness of the Internet has penetrated to even the most
primitive cultures on our planet.
<http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,39354,00.html>
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,39354,00.html
OC3Spam Blacklist Organization MAPS Sued Again
This is the third lawsuit to be brought against the Mail Abuse
Prevention System (MAPS) recently. MAPS is a blacklist of domains which
generate spam. Numerous ISPs and other organizations block mail from
domains on the MAPS list, so it is a big deal. Over the last several
months, lawsuits and threats of lawsuits have been flung at the
organization. A Merc story details the latest. MAPS claims it is no more
than a consumer review that simply renders an opinion about the spamming
domains, an opinion fully protected by the First Amendment. The suing
companies generally try to claim defamation in these lawsuits, and a
trial would go a long way to resolving the legal status of MAPS. An
important legal battle worth watching.
MAPS: <http://www.mail-abuse.org/> http://www.mail-abuse.org/
Merc:
<http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/indepth/docs/maps101300.htm>
http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/indepth/docs/maps101300.htm
THREAD WATCH
TW1You, Too, Can Be a Photointelligence Analyst
The ol' Thread Watch section has been moribund lately, but we found two
great Usenet threads recently. This first one uses a Terraserver picture
in lieu of a bona fide reconnaissance photo - it's an overview of USAF
Plant 42 (Palmdale Airport, Calif.), which at the time of the snapshot
(1994) hosted several USAF machines. The thread asked readers to take a
look and try to pick out all the aircraft on a TerraServer map, which
zooms to one-meter resolution. You'll be able to find SR-71s, B-1
bombers, and even a B-2 or two, among others. Look in
rec.aviation.military <news:rec.aviation.military> and search for
"Photointelligence". Or use Deja. Or do it yourself at the map linked
below.
<http://terraserver.microsoft.com/image.asp?S=13&T=1&X=250&Y=2394&Z=11&W
=2>
http://terraserver.microsoft.com/image.asp?S=13&T=1&X=250&Y=2394&Z=11&W=
2
TW2Snuffing out the Sims
Remember norns? That original concept - of nurturing virtual beings -
seems to have been assimilated Borg-style by Maxis in their game, The
Sims. Really, who talks about norns anymore? In NSD 4.22, we mentioned
those who wished to play cruel gods, torturing their norns for the heck
of it. Not surprisingly, despite a new game, people still feel the need
to treat their pet people - uh, aren't they called dolls? - like Job, or
worse. A recent thread in comp.sys.mac.games.strategic
<news:comp.sys.mac.games.strategic> hosts a discussion of those who
want to off their Sims. You really ought to read it for the comedy, even
if you have no interest in playing house. By the way, the only two
reliable ways to snuff a Sim are to put it in a cell without food or to
remove the ladders from the steep-walled pool while it's swimming.
The Sims: <http://thesims.ea.com/index.phtml>
http://thesims.ea.com/index.phtml
NSD 4.22: <http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/v04/nsd.04.22.html>
http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/v04/nsd.04.22.html#OC1#OC1
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
AO1Film Review Site with Ambition
Movie reviews help you decide which movies to see and which to avoid.
While many review sites capitalize on celebrity status or literary
excellence, CinemaReview.com emphasizes service: interactivity, based on
weekly exit polls at movie theaters; and customization for informed
decision making. For example, movies receive ratings by moviegoer age
and sex. You can browse predefined movie lists or build custom searches.
Custom searches ask you to choose between three levels of detail of
elements such as profanity, drugs and alcohol, and comedy. You probably
won't get this much detail from your local newspaper or TV station.
CinemaReview.com offers other rarities such as production notes,
multiple pull-down search options, and references to movies' receptions
at film festivals. The site wants "to become a major player in the
future 'video on demand' service" and plans to distribute a print
publication at theaters and to video renters. Ambitious, but we're
impressed by what is here already.
<http://www.cinemareview.com/> http://www.cinemareview.com/
<http://ad-adex3.flycast.com/server/click/NetsurferDigest/entertainment/
123>
AO2Anybody Got a Spare Fermion Exciter?
>From the hypothesis that you never know when you'll need a good
Gravitron Detector springs the company Complete Fabrications, serving
all your space-time continuum manipulation needs. This marvelous
tongue-in-cheek site purports to offer ritual objects that assist
scientists in their pursuit of quantum physics. Be sure to mouse over
all eight, since each has a variety of views available. For a taste of
the humor, the Quantum Flask has the following disclaimer: "Opening this
device will release high energy quanta, which when freed from
containment will decay into lower energy particles with an attendant
release of radiation." Don't you just hate it when that happens?
<http://www.peconic.net/members/mjaffe/default.htm>
http://www.peconic.net/members/mjaffe/default.htm
BOOKS & E-ZINES
NBRNetsurfer Recommendations
Items our staff likes and you might too. Click on the image or title to
order at a hefty discount from our affiliate Amazon.com, and send a few
pennies our way as well.
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/014028088X/netsurferdigest>
The Salon.Com Reader's Guide to Contemporary Authors
Laura Miller (Editor), Adam Begley (Contributor)
Penguin USA (Paper); ISBN: 014028088X
If you love to read but the words "literary criticism" make you run for
the hills in a state of gibbering madness, you'll surely love this book.
Salon.com, one of our favorite e-zines, put together this eclectic and
highly entertaining guide to modern authors. The author entries are as
much fun to read as the books they talk about - sometimes considerably
more so. Opinionated, sometimes irreverent, sometimes adoring, the guide
will surely expand your reading horizons and at the same time provide
you with material to whip out at the next cocktail party while trying to
impress the opposite sex - with your literary savvy that is. A true
reader's delight.
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0201604426/netsurferdigest>
Programming Windows Security
Keith Brown
Addison-Wesley Pub Co; ISBN: 0201604426
A big book - with a big font - about a big subject. Clearly, Windows
security is a critical topic for both programmers and sysadmins, and
this book may well be the best single-volume work on the subject. The
focus is on Windows NT/2000 and covers areas such as IIS, COM+,
Kerberos, ACLs, logon sessions, and more. An essential bookshelf item
for serious Windows programmers.
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375404538/netsurferdigest>
Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth
Chris Ware
Pantheon Books; ISBN: 0375404538
This excursion into comic-book-as-literature territory is definitely for
adventurous readers. On the face of it, it's a depressing story of a kid
with a bleak life. However, the artistry of this work far transcends the
subject matter, both in the manner of its telling and in the stunning
visual design of the book. Perhaps the best way to recommend this work
is to say that it appeals to a well developed sense of literary and
artistic aesthetics. There is little doubt that this is indeed high art,
and as such surely worthy of attention from those of our readers to whom
art is important.
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/netsurferdigest>
BEZ4A Clockwork Onion
BBspot just might hit the proverbial spot for geeks fed up after an
eight-hour-plus day spent explaining things to less-than-computer-savvy
coworkers. BBspot is a faux news site, very similar to the Onion, except
that it has a more technical bent. For instance, there's a breaking news
story on AOL's new 1000-hour a month online plan (you do the math).
Another story entitled "Blue Screen of Death Wanted in Murder of
Overclocker" is a good touchstone: if you don't know what overclocking
is or can't make an educated guess, you probably won't get most of the
humor on the site. If you understand, it'll be right up your alley.
<http://www.bbspot.com/> http://www.bbspot.com/
<http://ad-adex3.flycast.com/server/click/NetsurferDigest/shopping/123>
BEZ5Great Expectations Met at This Dickens Site
Want to talk to Charles Dickens about social reform? You can, sort of.
You can ask an expert on the famous writer, or explore Dickens's London
with an interactive map. Speaking of Victorian London, Dickens
biographer Peter Ackroyd said, "If a late 20th-century person were
suddenly to find himself in a tavern or house of the period, he would be
literally sick - sick with the smells, sick with the food, sick with the
atmosphere around him." (Thank god for vanilla air freshener.) From the
gruesomeness of the city ("Until the second half of the 19th century
London residents were still drinking water from the very same portions
of the Thames that the sewers were discharging into") to his journalism
and writing career, all of Dickens's cultural influences and influential
achievements can be found at this site. Check out Chuck.
<http://www.fidnet.com/~dap1955/dickens/index.html>
http://www.fidnet.com/~dap1955/dickens/index.html
BEZ6How to Good-Bye Depression
We were so thrilled about the butt-squeezing exercise that we thought
we'd share it with everyone. This book says "practicing bowel movement 6
times and constricting the anus 100 times daily enables a 70 years old
man make ** three times in succession without drawing out and to grow 20
years younger with a beautiful light in his abdomen." We enjoyed the
erratic censorship as well as author Hiroyuki Nishigaki's enthusiasm for
his cures. "How to Goodbye Depression" is his second book should provide
anyone with interest in the subject all they need to know about whether
his book will address the particular problem they have.
<http://hometown.aol.com/nishigaki3/index.htm>
http://hometown.aol.com/nishigaki3/index.htm
BEZ7E-Zine from the Longest Undefended Border in the World
The Log Cabin Chronicles don't have anything to do with those gay
Republicans, but everything to do with living outside the confines of
the Big City, any Big City. Reaching out from the wilds of southern
Quebec, John Mahoney and Jane Goyette present, among other things, the
tale of "Bill Gardyne and His Knives", the pleasures of grits and
bird-spotting, and the three-year-old ongoing serial called "Hell's
Elongated Bells". Along their five-year Internet journey they've
attracted writers like Peter Black, David Square, and Karen Eryou, who
write about everything from obscure laws in Quebec to fresh asparagus.
Like a country cousin of Dave Egger's McSweeney's, the writing is sharp
and just sometimes-off-center enough to keep you interested.
<http://www.tomifobia.com/> http://www.tomifobia.com/
BEZ8Computer Security
If you're not into computer security, you should be. The pundits refer
to Al Gore's invention as the Information Superhighway and if you don't
think computer security is important to you, you're road pizza waiting
to happen. Counterpane's founders quickly came to the conclusion that
there is no cure for idiocy. In any corporate setting, users will
invariably find ways to circumvent security. So they moved to a
risk-management strategy involving real-time monitoring and rapid
response. "The minds of cops and criminals are similar," says one
founder. "You can't teach that mentality." True enough. And who better
to safeguard your systems than one with an eye on how to break into
them? Here's the e-zine.
<http://www.counterpane.com/crypto-gram.html>
http://www.counterpane.com/crypto-gram.html
BEZ9The Online Club for the Avid Reader
By joining ClubReading, not only will you have access to the latest
reviews of books by readers but you can also join discussions about
books online and set up your own reading list that others can browse and
use themselves. We joined and read reviews of latest releases and
discovered that the latest in a favorite series is a fizzer (poor
editing) and that not everyone loves Hunter S. Thompson's "Fear and
Loathing in Las Vegas" as much as some of us do. Well shucks, we know
it's toxic - that's part of the joke.... Anyway, a worthwhile venture
that needs some tweaks in terms of layout.
<http://www.clubreading.com/> http://www.clubreading.com/
SURFING SCIENCE
SCI1Is It Real or Is It Legend?
The Web is the bane of the gullible. It's so easy to create and spread
convincing tales that are totally untrue that the Web is soon going to
be shut down by their sheer mass (not really, but we swear by
hyperbole). The W3C, the real Web authority, has even said so (hmm,
maybe it's not so hyperbolic). We know because we got an e-mail warning
us of exactly that and asking us to pass the warning on to 25 friends
(ah, definitely true then). About.Com is a gathering of informed opinion
and fact sorted by subject and tied together. Their Urban Legends
section is filled with well-researched and written tales of net hoaxes
and true urban legends (e.g., the baby crocs in NYC sewers, not to
mention bill 602-P). The site search engine makes searching easy and
effective, and the extensive links to further information provide a
wonderful opportunity to waste lots of time. The only drawback is the
site doesn't always have the latest and greatest. For example, the first
potato server isn't listed yet.
<http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/>
http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/
<http://ad-adex3.flycast.com/server/click/NetsurferDigest/scitech/123>
SCI2The Origins of Words and Their Changing Usage
English. Ya gotta love it. What other language would tolerate words like
synecdoche and metonymy, especially when they mean almost the same
thing? Where else could the tongue trippingly trip over a perfectly good
word like hebesphenomegacorona (an irregular solid figure with 21
faces), but find "lagniappe" in the name of a restaurant? Go visit the
World Wide Words site if you're a crossword puzzle fan, a follower of
William Safire, or you really need to know the difference between hoo-ha
and brouhaha and the derivation of "Fat lady sings, it ain't over till".
Word histories and curiosities galore, along with a weekly newsletter.
We'll meet you after for a facemail session and a game of dwile
flonking.
<http://www.worldwidewords.org/> http://www.worldwidewords.org/
SCI3The Journal of Young Scientists
The Journal of Young Scientists (JoYS) is an ambitious undertaking - an
online 'zine aimed at the 15 to 25-year-old crowd with the intent of
making science mainstream. The editors believe that science is not
something you study in a sterile white lab coat in pursuit of an
occupation; it's a lifestyle. They intend to make this a worldwide
movement, with correspondents from Togo, the Czech Republic, and Zambia,
just to name a few. JoYS's first big deviation from "normal" Web pages
is the horizontally scrolling layout, but with a readership skewed to
early adopters, we don't believe it'll be a problem. We wish the table
of contents were clickable, and we're not entirely sure why the site is
password protected. With articles about genetically engineered produce
and one entitled "How to Land on Mars in Six Steps, Just in Case the
Autonomous Onboard Software Fails You - Print This Page and Keep It with
You at All Times", it's easy to see why this could be a catchy little
concept.
<http://joysnet.com/> http://joysnet.com/
SCI4Science and Reference for Kids
We went straight to Major Disasters and Accidents, behind the World
link, and discovered that since 1976, there have been 13 destructive
major oil spills. We cruised through for some homework help, settled
gravely in the Math section and snuck into Fresh Baked Fractions before
romping around with Fraction Jackson, the resident puppy, and making our
way through a few quizzes on the way (all the time noting how beer has
killed our brain cells).
<http://www.factmonster.com/> http://www.factmonster.com/
SOFTWARE
SW1PHP 4.03 Released
The new version of the popular Web programming tool includes
security-oriented fixes and enhancements, other new features, and bug
fixes. The authors strongly urge users to upgrade to this release.
Details, as usual, on the Web site.
<http://www.php.net/downloads.php> http://www.php.net/downloads.php
<http://ad-adex3.flycast.com/server/click/NetsurferDigest/compconsumer/1
23>
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