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Internet Oddities, Screwball Applications, and Some Really Good Ideas

As mentioned previously, the applications for the Net are limited only by the technology and the human mind. There have been a number of recent announcements of Internet oddities and screwball applications. The author leaves the distinctions to the reader. By the way, many of these actually work; others probably will, someday.

Package Tracking is offered on the Web by Federal Express and UPS. The customers of both carriers can access the Web sites and get the latest status of packages, based on package tracking numbers. In combination, these 2 carriers report well over 400,000 status inquiries per month handled in this manner. The savings are in millions of dollars, compared to the costs of handling voice calls through an incoming call center.

Distribution of software, upgrades and bug fixes is a really good idea. In many cases, software is provided free-of-charge as a public domain release; subsequently, enhanced versions are provided commercially.

Online publishing has really taken off over last several years. A large number of major newspapers have developed Web sites to test the medium, but only two newspapers reported 1995 advertising revenues in excess of $100,000. Most of the technology publications have developed Web sites for online access to published articles and late-breaking news. Advertising revenues are not made public.

Virtual Reality and 3-D services are proposed and even offered, although on a limited basis. Silicon Graphics announced WebSpace (March 30, 1995), largely for home-shopping applications. The SG software is available, in test version, over the Net at no charge. Later versions are proposed to be available for $49.

CyberFairs are job fairs that allow companies to post job listings and recruit applicants online. Interactive communications are supported.

CyberGambling (Now there’s a constructive idea!) is now being offered by casinos. The casinos are able to circumvent U.S. gambling laws by placing their servers offshore. Users are required to have offshore bank accounts, as well, in order to deposit their winnings (Virtual Vegas is just what this country needs to tempt the shut-ins and elderly who are addicted to gambling.) At the time of this writing, it is unclear whether Gamblers Anonymous has a Web site.

Author’s Explanations

Lynx is a text-based Web browser that can be run from a UNIX shell account. Lynx displays only unadorned ASCII text, with no styling, pictures, graphics or other frilly stuff like that.

Digerati is an insider’s term for the digitally literate (digital literati). Such people also are known as NetHeads, Bit Flippers and GearHeads.

Grep refers to Generalized Regular Expression Parser, a powerful UNIX search utility. Grep is capable of searching a text document or program, finding and displaying or printing lines of text or code which contain a specific character string. If it doesn’t grep, it’s not a real computer, is an inside joke conceived by and for UNIX programmers.

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