The Online World

The number of services is enormous. It takes time to find the

truly interesting stuff.

- Knowledge is power.

- A large personal network gives you a punch.

- The value of information, and of having a good time.

Knowledge is Power --------- My wife has a rare and dangerous kidney disease. One day her doctor joined us on an online research session to look for experiences and advice in other countries. We sat down in my office in Norway. I turned on my personal computer and started a communications program. After some keypresses, we could hear the attached modem dial the number of CompuServe, a North American information utility. (A modem is a piece of equipment that converts computer signals to and from sound codes, so that data can be sent by phone.) It took just a few seconds to make the connection. Soon, a greeting scrolled over our screen, followed by a menu of available choices.

For an introduction to practical telecommunications, check out appendix 2 and 3. Appendix 1 lists major services mentioned in this book.

We selected "Health" and the "Data Base for Rare diseases." This gave the address of an American foundation for "cysts in kidneys," which is the name of her disease. My wife made contact, and has since received regular reports of research results and experiences gained in the field. We sent an open request for help to an electronic forum for doctors. The result was several useful responses. We searched a magazine data base for medical articles containing the key word "kidney." Paper copies of the most interesting finds arrived by mail after a few days. My wife gave them to her hospital doctor as background reading. Kenya Saikawa is paralyzed. He communicates with his PC and modem using light key strokes and Morse code. Online communications allows Kenya to be in regular contact with people outside the walls of his Tokyo hospital. We met online in a "Handicap Club" on a computer center called TWICS in Tokyo. He was there to exchange experiences with others with disabilities. The club is a personal support group for those in need of help. CompuServe's Cancer Forum has a similar function. "It's a blessing that I can visit here 24 hours a day," one visitor said. "When I'm unable to sleep at night, I often sit down by the PC to read and write messages to others." The forum is like a family. The file library is full of information about cancer. Members can just go in there and pick up whatever they want to read. Dave Hughes from Old Colorado Springs, Colorado in the United States has had a long career as a professional soldier. He has fought in places like the Yalue river in Korea and Vietnam's jungle. When he retired, he became a political online force. "I'm using the new tools of the individual mind to change the world," he says. Native American Indians are among those, who have benefited from Dave's energy and knowledge. He has helped them show their culture to the outside world in a graphical form. Vladimir Makarenkov from the Crimea in the Ukraine is manager in a company called VINKO. In early 1993, he distributed an offer of partnership with foreign companies through the mailing list E- EUROPE. VINKO is into aluminium processing. He wrote: "From our own production we can offer some one metals and aniline dye for cotton, viscose, wool, silk, leather. We are interested in deliveries of chemical production (gamma acid, H- acid) and not quickly deteriorating foods (food concentrates, canned food etc)." George Pavlov is Planning and Reporting manager at an American computer manufacturer. Daily, he logs on to online services to monitor industry product announcements and daily news from several electronic sources. It helps him stay ahead of rapid technological developments. Semafor A/S in Arendal, Norway, produces modems and other types of telecommunications equipment. They operate an electronic bulletin board for customers, users and prospects. Anybody can call in to get information about products and offerings. If they need help, they can leave a message to Semafor A/S day and night. A response will be waiting for them, when they call back. Eduardo Salom heads Software Plus SA in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He discovered the online world in 1988, and uses it to find information that can help his company develop industrial applications. The Norwegian civil engineer Kai Oestreng regularly calls specialized online computer clubs to discuss his computational needs, fetch programs and monitor developments. Mary Lou Rebelo was born in southern Brazil. Today, she is married to a Japanese and lives in Tokyo. She teaches Portuguese and works as a translator. The modem enables her to keep in touch with others around the world interested in Portuguese and Spanish language and culture. Mike Wright teaches at St. Andrew's College in Grahamstown, South Africa. He integrates the online world in his teaching to motivate his students. His classes are involved in international projects with schools all over the globe. In August 1991, the "Old Stalinists" made a coup d'etat in the Soviet Union. The news media were silenced, but they forgot the country's many bulletin boards. Early one morning, a foreign caller picked up the following messages from a Moscow BBS:

From: Valery Koulkov

To: All Msg #560, 00:42am

20-Aug-91

Subject: Moscow, August 19, 23:00

Some news from the square news RSFSR white building, 23:00. Local inhabitants are very welcome for the people guarding 'white building', they carry food and some garments to the square. Approx. 8 tanks stand by the house under the RSFSR flags! There is an information that 'white house' is surrounded by the soldiers from Vysshee Desantnoye uchilische from Ryazan. The people are not so desperate than some hours ago. There are more and more people.

From: Stas Stas

To: Alexey Zabrodin Msg #562, 02:53pm

20-Aug-91

Subject: Russia In Agency news

I have sent two files RIA4.txt & ria5.txt

It's msgs of Russia Information Agency

Spread it as much as you can!!!

From: Andrew Brown

To: All Msg #563, 06:31pm

20-Aug-91

Subject: What's happening?

I am a journalist on the London Daily newspaper *The Independent*,

and I am trying to discover whether this technology, like fax

machines, is being used for independent communication now that the

censors have clamped down on everything else.

Can people describe what is happening, and what they see? Something similar was done on Compuserve during the Gulf War, by subscribers who where in Israel and were able to describe Scud missile attacks without censorship.

Andrew Brown

Select: 564

From: Valery Koulkov

To: All Msg #564, 00:52am

21-Aug-91

Subject: Moscow events

There is shooting near the American embassy and RSFSR state building. Informer said (by phone) that he saw several victims (shot and killed under the tanks. there is fire near the RSFSR building. Moscow, August 21, 1:15 am

Telecommunications played a role in this historic event. While CNN televised the coup, it was not the images, but the words of men like Yeltsin that held sway for Russian citizens. Within hours of Yeltsin's statement in defiance of the coup leaders, handbills reproducing his statement papered the walls of the Moscow metro and Leningrad houses.

You can! ---- Online communication is not just for the privileged or those with a special interest in computers. It is for you, me, everybody. There is much to learn in the "online land," and the medium is fascinating. It makes learning fun. You can learn about how to use your computer, about your profession, other people's views about whatever, and more. Often, you will find reports about experiences and know-how that it is hard or impractical to get in other ways. Some users go online to learn how to do things better. Teachers want to give their students a better and more motivating learning environment. Architects, engineers and companies want increased competitiveness and sales. They seek timely information about competitors, technologies and tools, partners and trends. You can take a Masters Degree in Business Administration while sitting in front of your computer at home. You can join online seminars arranged by local or foreign educational institutes. You can even study at night, when the rest of your family has calmed down. Some build their own educational programs supported by data bases, online forums and associations of various kinds. You may feel helpless when in hospital, or when visiting your doctor. Knowledge about your disease will make you better equipped to handle the situation. The online resource is just keypresses away, and knowledge is power. To get this power, you'll need to know what you can get from the online world. This book is filled with examples of what is available, and practical tips about how to use the offerings.

A large personal network gives strength -------------------- Most of us belong to one or several networks. They consist of persons that you can call on whenever you need help. Your network may be private, like in your family. You may be member of various associations, or be part of a group of people with common interests within a company or organization. The modem allows you to be part of more personal networks than you can possibly cope with in the "real world." Besides, it's much easier to develop personal networks in the online world. We have used words like "clubs" and "associations." By this we mean groups of people interested in helping You and in participating in what You happen to be interested in. Today's communications technology lets us participate in networks in other countries at a very low cost. Many describe it as participation "beyond time and space." Write a message and send it to a person in your network. It arrives in his/her "mailbox" within minutes (sometimes seconds) and stays there until the recipient wants to read it. This built-in ability to send messages to other people's electronic mailboxes reduces the power that time and geographical distances have over our lives. A friend in a remote country gets out of bed nine hours after you, but keeps going well into what, for you, is the next morning. No problem. You can send letters when you're awake and receive replies when you're asleep. You can pick up and read your friend's messages the next day or whenever you feel like doing it. That is how two people as far apart as Arendal, Norway and Beijing, China could be involved in the development of this book. Sometimes "real time" discussions are important. Consider the following example. CompuServe has a Diabetes Forum. You can call there any time, day or night, seven days a week. Whenever you feel like it. You will always find someone to chat with who understands and shares your problems. Real-time chatting may become expensive, but you are free to decide your level of involvement. If you think that $10 spent is enough, then just stop there.

What is the point? --------- Thousands of commercial and noncommercial online services offer over 5,000 online databases. These infobases are repositories of electronic information. They contain full-text and reference books, magazines, newspapers, radio and TV shows, reports, and more. In 1992, BiblioData (USA) found that around 4,000 titles (i.e., magazines, newspapers, etc.) were available online in full-text. You will find facts and figures about almost anything in the online world. The world has over 100,000 public bulletin board systems (1993). Most are small information centers, running on personal computers using a simple computer program and modems. People call in to read messages and information, retrieve free software, or just to have a good time. Most BBSes are free. Some charge a small annual fee. The largest board has 213 telephone lines, seven gigabytes of storage for letters, conferences, computer programs, and more (1993). Mind you, 7 gigabytes is a lot. It is equivalent to more than 7,000,000,000 characters, or a whopping 12,000 copies of this book! The entrepreneur sees the online world as a new, profitable playground. Many of them have made it their profession to search for information for others, and they earn a good living doing so. Others advertise and sell products and services by modem. Some set up their own online services to sell knowledge and know- how, be it of aqua culture, wine production, marketing, or about the petroleum offshore market. In business, it pays to be one step ahead of the competition. Early warnings of customers' needs, competitors' moves, and emerging opportunities can be turned into fortunes. It can reduce potential losses and help develop businesses in more profitable directions. Turn this to your advantage. Build your own early warning system that monitors online information sources and networks.

Have fun ---- The online world has an abundance of joke clubs, dramatic adventure games with multiple players, and large archives filled with computer game software. You can transfer these programs to your personal computer and be ready to play in minutes. Others may feel more entertained when things get "interesting." Surely, those calling Moscow in August 1991 for news about the coup must have had a strange sensation in the stomach. Some online users react quickly when dramatic events occur. They go online to read the news directly from the wires, from Associated Press, TASS, Reuters, Xinhua Press, Kyodo News and others. Usually, the online news is coming directly to you from the journalists' keyboards. Often, you heard it here first. Other people prefer to socialize. They meet in online "meeting places" to debate everything from Africa and the administration of kindergartens to poetry, LISP programming and compressed video for multimedia applications. It has been claimed that increased use of online networking in a country can effect social changes within politics, economics, communication and science. It can support democratic tendencies, the transition to a market economy, the formation and support of businesses, the spreading of interpersonal and mass communication, the forging of invisible colleges among scientists, and breaking-up of traditional and closed information systems developed in some societies. No matter whether your application is useful or just a pastime, online services queue up to help give your life a better content. Some people fear that language might be a problem, and in particular if English is not their first language. Don't worry. You are in the driver's seat. If something is hard to understand, just log off to study the difficult text. Take your time. Nobody is watching. Will you being member of the online world make you rich? Probably not. On the other hand, it most certainly provides the opportunities to help you achieve such a goal, no matter how you define the word "rich."