WHENEVER ANYONE SAYS “INFOR-mation Superhighway ” or “Internet,” some of us tend to picture Central at rush hour: hot, miserable, crowded, irritating, and incomprehensible. Still under major construction. No way of knowing from one day to another how to get on and off, or at which entrances and exits.
That’s what I thought until two friends did me an enormous favor. They’d been nag, nag, nagging me to get on the Internet, and I’d been saying, yeah, yeah, yeah, like, well, later on.
I was unwilling to admit that I’d been teading about the Net with all the comprehension of the RCA Victor dog, cocking my head from side to side and occasionally putting my paws on my ears and furrowing my little doggy brow.
Rather than taking my prevarications and procrastinations as an honest answer, these guys dug down in their own wallets and shelled out the money (cheap) to pay for my access subscription. They in effect decided to gently force me down the on-ramp and onto the new Information Superhighway.
Guess what: It doesn’t hurt a bit. Here’s how little you need to know.
Q. What is the Internet?
A. That question has been incompletely answered in every book or article that tries to do the subject justice. All these publications admit they are shy of the mark, and all of them sound rather like they are calling AT&T “a whole bunch of wires lying around all over the country.” Safest to say the Internet is the sum of the world’s computers’ innerconnectivity, but that still doesn’t tell you…
Q. What is on all those computers?
A. Almost everything you can think of, and a whole lot more besides, and beyond that, more than you can imagine. The question will not be completely answered within your lifetime-and if it is, by the time the answer arrives, it will have changed dramatically. Don’t worry about it. Just get on it.
Q. What do I need in order to get onto this Internet ?
A. A computer, a modem, a phone line, a communications program, and an access landscape portraits a sense of significance and purpose previously reserved only for historical and religious subjects. The exhibit focuses on the development of Cole’s ideas. Through May 28. Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m. Anion Carter Museum, 3501 Camp Bowie Boulevard, Fort Worth. Information: 817-738-1933.
THE BATH HOUSE CULTURAL CENTER. Eastfield College Juried Student Show. April 1-15. Tuesday-Sarurday, 10 a.m.-6p.m. Public reception April. 1. 6 p.m.-8 p.m. The Bath House Cultural Center, 521 East Lawther, Dallas. Information: 214-670-8749.
BIBLICAL ARTS CENTER EXHIBITS. Golgotha: Works By Bruce Herman- Sixteen paintings depict the Passion of Christ. Through April. Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. The Biblical Arts Center, 7500 Park Lane, Dallas. Free to the public. Information: 214-691-4661.
BridwELL LIBRARY EXHIBIT. Miniature Literature: The Stanley Marcus Collection Of Miniature Books. Full-length classics that fit in the palm of the hand make up this one-of-a-kind collection. Through May 26. Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-l1 p.m.; Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Elizabeth Perkins Prothro Galleries, Bridwell Library, SMU Campus. Information: 214-768-3483.
CARLYN GALERIE EXHIBIT. Profiles of Women. Artists provide their interpretations of women of the ’90s through diverse media including glass, ceramics, jewelry, and fabric. Proceeds from the exhibit benefit The Family Place. Through April 23. Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m. Carlyn Galerie, Preston Center, 6137 Luther Une, Dallas. Information: 214-368-2828.
DALLAS MUSEUM OF ART EXHIBITIONS. Encounters 6: Rachel Hecker and Peter Halley. As part of the”Encounters”series, this exhibit juxtaposes the works of two painters who focus on social issues. Through April 2. Beyond The Tanabata Bridge: A Textile Journey in Japan. Featuring images from Japanese myth and legend that have been woven into clothing and coverlets, this exhibition explores the visual statements of the functional textiles. The J.E.R. Chilton Galleries. Through May 28. Gold Of Mycenae. This rare collection of 20 pieces of ancient Mycenaen jewelry dating to the Greek civilization of the Bronze Age features gold ornaments, rings, bead necklaces, and figures of two goddesses and a charioteer. April 1 through May 28. Textiles From Indonesia. A selection of 15 highly decorated Indonesian textiles that serve as essential components of festivals, weddings, and other ceremonial occasions. April 1 through July 30. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thursday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Saturday, Sunday, and holidays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Dallas Museum of Art, 1717 North Harwood, Dallas. Information: 214-922-1200.
DALLAS MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY. Skulls: Photographs by Francois Robert. Black-and-white photos of various skull specimens such of 140worksincluding ritual objects, metalandstone sculptures, textiles, and paintingson palm leaf, paper, and textiles. Through May 28. Tuesday through Thursday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Friday, noon-8 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.’5 p.m.; Sunday noon-5 p.m. Kimbell Art Museum, 3333 Camp Bowie Boulevard, Fort Worth. For information and tickets: 817-332-8451.
MANDALAY SCULPTURE GARDEN. The Texas Sculpture Association sponsors this month-long competition that includes many internationally known sculptors. April 12 through May 10. On the grassy areas between Lake Carolyn and Williams Square, Las Colinas. Information: 214-320-0828.
MCKINNEY AVENUE CONTEMPORARY (MAC) MUSEUM. Analogs Of Modernism. Artist and critic Tom Moody curates an exhibit featuring four artists’ re interpretations of the vocabularies of the modem art movement. April 7 through May 21. Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. McKinney Avenue Contemporary, The Gallery, 3120 McKinney Avenue at Bowen, Dallas. Infor mation: 214-953-1622.
MODERN ART MUSEUM OF FORT WORTH EXHIBITION. History And Memory: Paintings By Christopher Brown. Bay-area artist Christopher Brown uses historical and contemporary photos to produce his innovative canvases. Through April 16. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m.. Modern An Museum of Fort Worth, 1309 Montgomery Street, Fort Worth- Information: 817-738-9215.
PAN AMERICAN ART GALLERY. Haiti-1948 To Today. Works inspired by the gods of the voodoo religion hang side by side with contemporary works by such artists as Marilene Phipps and Edouard Duval-Carrie, April 28, grand opening. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday by appointment. Pan American Art Gallery, 3303 Lee Parkway, Dallas. Information: 214-522-3303.
SMU MEADOWS MUSEUM. Images Of Penance, Images Of Mercy: Santos And Ceremonies Of The Hispanic Southwest, 1860-1910. Representing biblical figures fundamental to Christian worship in the Hispanic world, the painted wood “santos” illustrate the presence of the Catholic Church and its impact on Hispanic traditions of North America. Through May 21. Monday, Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thursday, 10a.m.-8 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Meadows Museum, SMU campus, Dallas. Information: 214-768-2 516 weekdays; 214-768-2740 weekends.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS ART GALLERY.
Gender Myth And Exploration. This exhibit presents a range of works, mostly by Texas artists, that address often controversial gender issues. April 13 through May 10. Monday and Tuesday,11 a.m.-8 p.m.; Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. University of North Texas Art Building, Mulberry at Welch Streets, Denton. Information: metro 817-267-0651 or metro817- 565-4316.
ing about?
A. See the chart on page 25 for a list of providers. You’ll need one if you are in it for the long haul- and trust us, you probably will be. The Internet is addictive. We have yet to talk to anyone who said, “Oh, 1 was on it for a while, and decided to get off. Went back to ’American Gladiators’ reruns and never looked back.” That just doesn’t happen. It is currently a very competitive, cutthroat market here in Dallas, and prices are only going to come down in the foreseeable future. Depending on how you configure your package, it’ll probably be cheaper than cable TV. And with far more to offer, informa tionally.
Q. Could you please explain about internal vs. external modems, and different modem speeds, protocols, and standards, such as V.32, V.34, and so on?
A. Nope. Not gonna. There is way too much stuff out there right now to know- more, in fact, than you need to know in order to be Netting. Much of this “over-know” is a deliberate attempt by manufacturers to make you think you “have to have” the latest editions of the most sophisticated equipment. So, no. We won’t.
Q. Well, could you at least tell us a bare-bones minimum?
A. Yes. You need a modem that runs at 14,400 baud or upwards. Considerations of “bauds” are meaningless except in relation to each other. You could creep along at 9600 or even 2400 and maybe get by, but you’d only be getting by. Many bulletin boards now reject outright anybody who tries to log on with anything running as slow as 2400, and that prohibition will likely rise to include the 9600s. The best bet is the very fast 28,800 {or 28.8, in com-puterspeak). These run around $200, while the slower (by exactly half) 14,400s (or 14.4s) cost only about $80 and are perfectly serviceable for most people’s needs. One or the other will do.
Some among the savvy maintain that the externals are better, because they do not subtract from the computer’s power supply. Other experts, including me, maintain that having both the modem and its various wires all tucked away neatly inside the box is worth the loss of power. Desk clutter is still a major problem in this “paperless age” they keep promising us is just around the corner.
Q. What other software do 1 need to be “on the net?” A. Strictly speaking, other than your communications program (Q-modem Pro, ProComm Plus, Smartcom, Telix, whatever), none. The above service-providers are outfitted with their own software.
Q. What do I get with a basic account? A. If you have a basic account with, say, Texas Metro Net or Computek, two highly regarded local providers, you are logging on to their computers at the remote location and manipulating their software, the results of which are sent back to your computer’s screen. That’s with a basic account. And with a basic, plain-vanilla account, you can do everything that needs doing, until you want to do it faster and prettier-and you also know what it is you are doing.
Q. How do 1 select a provider?
A. Depends on what you want. For basic services, we cannot help but notice that many computer professionals have chosen Metro Net, but we’ve heard nothing particularly bad about the rest. If price is your object, shop around-and ask about long-term discounts. The percentages given for these vary widely from service to service, and can be substantial for those willing to shell out for a full six months or a year.
Q. What if I want something more than just the basics?
A. You will, sooner or later. But you should wait until you Jo. The Net is way, way, way too big to just rush into, and trying to gobble it all up at once is going to lead only to disappointment, overwhelming feelings of inadequacy, and overpaying people for services you are not yet competent to use. So start slow, with the basic service. Play. Leam to send and receive e-mail. There will be plenty of on-line help for these things; if there’s not, sign on with another provider. They are almost as easy to “switch” as are AT&T, Sprint, etc. And keep in mind something well-nigh miraculous: Once you have subscribed to one of these on-ramp services, anybody anywhere in the world with access to a computer and a modem can send messages to you, and vice versa.
Then, as you’re getting your Net legs, learn to look at, say, the Usenet News groups. These are menu-accessible groups of people of like (though, often, sick) minds who are sending each other open letters about things of mutual concern-everything from the relatively benign alt.cook-ing.apple.pie to the eyebrow-raising alt.sex.zoophagia. It’s a good idea to penpal around for a while. Don’t hesitate to ask for advice from older Netheads. And watch D Magazine for reports on Internet-iana. Which brings us to the most important rule of all.
Q. What, pray tell, is the most important rule of all?
A. Glad you asked. Find a mentor-someone who has been down this road ahead of you and is kind enough to point out the speed traps, speed bumps, and detours. Ask them about their opinions on the various services as well; most of them have been to several providers as they shopped around for the best deals.
Q. What other arcana am I going to encounter?
A. A hunch. FTP sites, for example. (Stands for “File Transfer Protocol,” but never mind.) These are “sites” (actually, other computers) that you can log into through the Internet. You can look at their files, download them, etc The array of computers that allow you to browse through their contents is mind-boggling.
After that, you will encounter various automated search programs that will roam the world to search, at your pleasure and convenience, these files and postings. These searchers go by names like Archie, Anarchie, Veronica, etc. They are in effect the fingers by which you may do some serious walking through, literally, quadrillions of gazillions of by-golly-zillions of bytes of information.
Q. Are these the “infobots” I pretended to know about at the office the other day?
A. Yes. You really don’t need to know much more than you pretended to know in order to use them, beyond their command language-the symbols you type to make them do their tricks. Tell these infobots what you want, and they head out into the ether to get it. Putter around in the garage trying to remember what it was you went out there to do until these unforgetful searchers “corne back,” chock full of info.
Q. I have heard a lot about “flaming.” What does that mean? Does it hurt?
A. It means, essentially, that there are jerks in the world, and when they cast off their corporeal, photographable, next-door-neighborial day-to-day physical identities and enter the virtual world, where all you see is their writing and an address, they become even bigger jerks. The same bozos who gave you grief in grade school for not knowing everything there was to know about, say, baseball, will now give you grief for not knowing everything there is to know about the Net and will make fun of the fact that you are, relative to them, a “newbie.” I gnore them. Or flame ’em back. But don’t take them seriously.
Q. What is Netscape? Mosaic?
A. These are programs that, sooner or later, you will want, because they are currently the best keys to full exploration of the net. As Windows allows you to look at your computer from a graphical and user-friendly point of view, Netscape and Mosaic allow you to more easily and effortlessly see the graphics and other niceties of the Net. You will need what is jargonishly referred to as a SLIP/PPP account in order to use these software programs, and these cost a few dollars a month more.
But yes, there will come a moment when you will want these things. There will come a moment, after you have them, when you will become just flat awestruck over this new technology, and wonder how you got along without it. Talk about your McLuhanesque Global Village -kids, we have arrived. My own moment came not too long ago when I found my cyberself in Wellington, New Zealand, browsing through city records. And then in Austin, foraging around in the Lege. And a few minutes later, shooting the breeze with a reporter at the Washington Post. And then arguing with a Norwegian about, of all things. His Country’s vs. Our Country’s military superiority. And checking in with an old friend of mine from The Dallas Morning News who’s now on a fellowship to Yale. She’s run into a serious shortage of Mexican food and also wanted a jam-balaya recipe.
And a second or two later, I had actually launched several ICBMs at Moscow…just kidding about that last one, which brings us to the last question.
Q. Can I break the Net?
A. Absolutely impossible. As a matter of fact, the basic architecture was designed by the Department of Defense, to allow the free flow of electronic information to continue in any event, including nuclear warfare. Like the best inventions, the Net is a wondrous contradiction in terms: An absolutely impervious yet servile servant.
Q. What is it gonna cost me not to be on the Net?
A. The answer is well-nigh incalculable. In 10 years or less, it will be tike not having eyes or ears.
