CYBER

 

 MIKI THOMAS

et me take this moment to

I make an exciting
announcement. Out in the
Mountains has its own mailing
list called VTPRIDENET.
People all over the state are
enjoying this list and making real
connections with one another.
“A mailing what?” you may ask.
Does this mean I will be inundat-
ed with junk mail or disturbed at
suppertime by a telemarketer
begging me to chamge long dis-
tance carriers‘? Is a mailing list
the same‘ thing as a BBS, chat

‘1’l‘0“[7€17’l 81’

conversations

room or a newsgroup?

Actually, the mailing list is
not a list of OITM subscribers
that is sold to direct marketing
frmrs to fill up your snail mail
box full of future recyclables. It
is also not to be confused with
BBS’s, chat rooms, or news-
groups although they are all
forms of person-to-person com-
munication on the Internet.
Using the mailing list as an
example, I hope to clear the air
about what each of those terms
mean.

A mailing list is a focused dis-
cussion group disseminated

souRcE MATERIAL:

To learn more about mailing lists, BBS’s, news-
groups, and chat rooms, check out the following
books and magazines. Net Guide was published
by Michael Wolfe & Company but from what I
understand it is no longer in the publishing busi-
ness. Too bad because the introduction to Net
Guide was excellent in describing the many
aspects of the Internet. Harley Hahn practically
invented the lnternet guide book and his Internet
and World Wide Web Yellow Pages are indis-
pensable resources. PC Novice every so often
publishes guides to the Internet, World Wide
Web, and various web browsers that are easy to
read and inexpensive. You can find those in the

magazine racks.

\\\\Ill

V

alt

Cast your vote for a winner this
November when more than a few
planets traverse strategic
Scorpio to electable Sag. But
don’t let victory go to your head,
cousin; there are transits to both
Pluto and Saturn this month that
will prick any inflated ego. By
the end of the month, you could
be eating crow rather than
turkey.

ARIES
(IVIARUII 21 - APltl 20)

Feeling lost? Proud Rams may be
forced to adjust their personal com-
passes this November when even
minor tremors on the job reverberate on
the Richter scale. Reestablish your per-
sonal magnetism by the 13th when
lucky Jupiter changes course but be
prepared to overturn some established
life tenets after the 20th. A new broom
sweeps clean or at least pushes the
dust around.

TAURUS
(APltl 21 - MAY 21)
Gay Bulls are hot to trot this November
but should be careful not to trot into
their own smelly piles. Friendships may
be strained around the 10th when your
party hearty proclivities upset pals’
plans. By the 20th, you realize that the

COIOOUOIOIOIOCOOIO

Mziwé/£4

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3. 7A&

dreamboat who cruised into your port
may be a destroyer. However you hap-
pen to pack a fairly big gun yourself.

GEMINI
(MAY 22 - JtlllE 21)

It's difficult to climb the corporate ladder
when you have family ties that tightly
bind.The straight jacket loosens around
the 10th but then queer Twins are faced
with partnership issues as Pluto con-
juncts the Sun around the 20th. If it’s
not one thing it's another, cousin;
Maybe all you need is a little quiet time
away from all the stuffed turkeys and
baked hams.

CANCER
(JllllE Z2 - JULY 28)

Pink Crabs don’t usually shoot from the
lip, but you can’t help it this November.

‘ lnnocuous things you let slip before the
13th hit global proportions and overturn
the landscape. This may not be a bad
thing, friend; Sometimes you have to
burn down the old shack to build a new
pink palace. Expect major changes at
work around the 20th. You may move
from worker ant to queen bee.

LEO
(JULY 24 - AUGUST 28)
Love for sale? Check the price before
you buy, queer Lion. Gutsy Jupiter over-

through email. To join a mailing
list, you would have to sub-
scribe. In the case of the VTPRI-
DENET, mailing list, you can
either look for on the
www.queemet.org web site or
email to .majordomo@queer-
net.org.

Because these lists are operat-
ed by computers, you need to
type specific instructions in your
message. So, to subscribe to
VTPRIDENET, you need to type
“subscribe vtpridenet,” in the
message body without the quota-
tion marks of course. Then you
will receive a message from the
administrator asking to confirm
your subscription to VTPRI-
DENET. This is to assure the list
operator that you really want to
be on the list and weren’t sub-
scribed by a ‘friend.’ Follow the
given instructions to a tee or else
you would be dropped even
before you even start.

Once you confrnn, you will
receive a welcome message giv-
ing you instructions regarding
commands and nettiquette, as
well as more information about
the list. It will also give you the
email address used to join in the
discussion. Usually that address
is different than the address used
for subscribing or unsubscribing
to a list. It is a good idea to print
this message because you don’t
want to be on the receiving end
of a flame because you sent
“unsubscribe” to the discussion
address and not to the adminis-
trator’s.

On the other hand, you have
BBS’s and newsgroups that are

charges you before the 13th but will
exceed your wildest temptations after
that. Play hard compadre, but recognize
your limitations; the Sun conjuncts
Pluto around the 20th and delivers
more fun than you can easily handle.
Exactly how much can you handle, pal?

VIRGO

(AUGUST 24 - 8EPTElllBElI 23)
Expect to deal with the yin yang of rela-
tionships during the first two weeks of
November. How much of yourself are
you prepared to give up to form a part-
nership? Mergers and acquisitions may
take place towards the end of the
month, possibly resulting in a change of
residence. isn't it about time you gave
up that naugahyde day glow orange
ottoman?

LBIM
(SEPTEMBER 24 - UGIUBHI Z3)

Feed your inner soul this November.
Nirvana can be attained through a
heaping bowl of ice cream...or is it
through frenetic exercise... or is it
through contemplative meditation?
Crack the cosmic egg after the 13th
when Jupiter goes direct. Well-placed
words pack a punch after the 20th. Fire
off a media missive that catapults the
rainbow cause. You’ll be heard it you
shout Out. '

 
    

For everv hustetl uh marriage or
child molester caught in the act.

there are millionsarountl the
World “ehattint|" ahout wholesome

activities

also focused around a particular
topic. The difference between
them and a mailing list is how
they are disseminated through
the Internet. A BBS or a bulletin
board system is often accessible
through either a telephone num-
ber or telnet. It is one way that
some net surfers have found to
access the Internet cheaply.
BBS’s are sometimes operated
by a local individual or group so
that any information or discus.-
sion is usually geographically
focused. If you are lucky, the
sysop or systems operator would
be able to add “echoes” or BBS’s
from other areas so that not only
are you able to “talk” to people
in your area, you can also join in
discussions around the world.

Newsgroups make up what is
known as the Usenet. The Usenet
is not a part of the Internet per se
and is only accessible if the
Internet provider or BBS has
newsfeeds offering a number of
available newsgroups you can
subscribe to. Subscribing to a
newsgroup is as simple as click-
ing on its name. To read news-
groups, you need a newsreader
that either lists posts, i.e. mes-
sages, chronologically or by
thread. Because the Usenet is not
based in a huge monolithic cen-
tralized computer, posts do not
always appear the minute they
are sent. You are at the mercy of
how often Internet providers
pick up posts.

' Chat roonrs are perhaps the
most controversial aspect of the
Internet if only for the bad press
they have gotten. However, for

=‘~\\\ll//

it

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SCOBPIO
(OCTOBER 24 - lll0UEllllBElt 22)

Everything you value will be held up for
inspection’ this November. What you
find is that what you value the most in
your life doesn't cost very much. Such
revelations abound after the 20th.
Before that, gay Scorps may become
too wrapped up in meeting others’
expectations. Remember, you only have
to live up to your own standards, low
and lurid as they may be.

SAGTFTARIUS
(lll0UfllllBElt Z3 - Uftlfllllltfll 22)
The trade off between a happy home
life and a demanding career makes
itself evident in early November.
Balance is everything gay Sag so jug-
gle those balls and smile a lot. All may
tumble though around the 20th when
your Sun conjuncts Pluto. Volcanic
changes occur especially in how you
appear to others. is piercing your fore-

head a fashion statement?

CAPNCORN
(DEGBVIBEH Z3 - .llUllllAltY 20)
How accurate is your intuition? Gay
Caps may be tempted to go to the Outer
limits through most of November but
will find static on the psychic line before
the 20th. No matter what though, open

gwtwr/4

/

 

every busted up marriage or
child molester caught in the act,
there are millions around the
world “chatting” about whole-
some activities like flower
arrangement and such. Chat
rooms operate in “real time,” that
is, the here and now. There’s no
waiting for responses to your
message or post. You get
responses instantly, as if you are
having a conversation. The most
popular protocol used in most
chat software is IRC or Internet
Relay Chat. It allows you to
access any IRC charmel in the
Internet. Depending on the soft-
ware you use, you cam hide your
identity as you enter a chat room
through the use of cartoon char-
acters and handles (think CD
radio). You can also respond to
the nature of the discussion by
clicking on one of several car-
toon faces representing such
emotions as amusement and
boredom.

I, myself, have had good
experiences with mailing lists
and newsgroups. The Internet
has allowed me to connect with
others with similar interests.
Thanks to one mailing list, I now
have a cyberpal from England
with whom I exchange emails.
Newsgroups about music have
helped me locate information
about obscure Calypso singers.
Indeed, no other communica-

tions medium could accomplish .

what a few strokes on the key-
board could do in a matter of
minute-s in terms of reaching the
world. V

'5

\\V f ;l$
ii \\\ /7///flit.

up lines of communication with family
members after the 13th and make this
Thanksgiving an all Out affair, thanks to
Jupiter. Only the turkey should be
stuffed and trussed.

AQLIANUS
(-lAlllUAltY 21 - FEBltUAltY 19)
You are voted most likely to this
November when spicy Mars opposes
expansive Jupiter. But all that hot unfet-
tered sex will prove to be more expen-
sive than first thought both emotionally
and fiscally. Aqueerians reassess their
social circle after the 20th. Are you
kanoodling with the A list or with some-
thing lower on the alphabet? (But if A
stands for asshole, buy another vowel.)

PISCES
(FEltltUAltY 2|) - MAIIUH 20)

Pink Fish may experience an expan-
sion this November thanks to unbridled
Jupiter. it clothes no longer fit, buy a
new wardrobe and call it a new look.
Check out the progress of your career
after the 20th when Pluto unleashes
transforming changes and, dare I say.
once in a lifetime professional opportu-
nities. Please be kind to all of us drones
in the mailroom.

(c) 1998 LlCHTENSTE|N,All Rights Reserved. For Entertainment Purposes Only For best results, read both your Sun sign and ascendant. For a tree calculation of your ascendant, send birthdate, time, place name of this publication and s ase. to
LICHTENSTEIN. PO B. 1726, Old Chelsea Station. NY, 10011 Check out my website AcoessNewAge com/Stargayzer