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Private Notes
A look inside the computer hacker culture. Features interviews with well-known hackers; Dan Farmer, author of a hacker program called "SATAN" and Aleph1, whose web site was hot linked in the recent break-in of the CIA homepage. Also features members of the Cult of the Dead Cow, an elite hacker organization, and a guide to hacker web sites. Shot on location at the Coffee.Net in San Francisco.
A look at various web sites that focus on aliens and unidentified flying objects. Guests include Dan Plonsie, webmaster for berkeley.edu, a site that has lots of information about UFOs and spacey topics; Jerry Bjornson, head of Abductees Anonymous, an organization for people claiming to have been abducted by aliens; and "Chris" (also known as Schwa Head) who reviews several flying saucer sites including MUFON and Schwa Corporation.
The early internet became an instant hit with political organizations and movements that had previously felt shut out of the mainstream press. This program looks at several examples of how the web was being used for political advocacy. Maureen Mason shows us the Institute for Global Communications web site which includes links to PeaceNet, EcoNet, ConflictNet, LaborNet, and WomensNet. Eric Hughes, the founder of Cypherpunks, a group working to preserve privacy on the net through encryption, explains the Cypherpunks Manifesto. Jory Bell demonstrates the Anarchists Press web site, akpress.org.
The early days of the web provided an outlet for people who wanted to explore ghosts, vampires, werewolves, and other scary things. This program looks at several such sites. Guests include Lady Caroline (Carrie Carolin) who runs cascade.net, a portal for Gothic sites and links to sites dealing with magic, haunted houses, Halloween, the paranormal and the occult. Vinnie Corella and Phil Simon show off their site, stepcross.com and the game Bad Mojo in which you go through life as a cockroach. Rowan Fairgrove is a witch and guides us through various witchcraft sites on the web including the Covenant of the Goddess.
The internet quickly became a home for special interest groups, among them, women. This program looks at several early web sites focused on women's issues. Sites covered include lesbian.org, fatgirl.com, fatso.com, WomensNet, diva.com, creative.net (a site for the Exotic Dancers Alliance), and bitchmag.com.
An episode of the Net Cafe series dealing with online games and sites about gaming. Includes Quake, Full Throttle, TEN (the Total Entertainment Network), Meridian 59, and MUD sources (Multi User Dimension). Includes a CyberBlast segment, an early experiment in downloading software through the television signal.
As web designers tried to make the internet look more like the "real" world, they experimented with three dimensional online environments. This program looks at several early examples. Mark Pesci explains VRML, the virtual reality modelling language. Chris Stuart demonstrates blacksun.com, a web site that uses VRML technology. Annette Louden demonstrates construct.net, an online environment for building VRML sites. Rick Denny and Skuli Mogensen of OZ, Inc. demonstrate their 3D web tools for building avatars.
Musicians were immediately hooked on the web, seeing its potential as a community builder and a creative outlet. This program looks at several early music sites including fogworld.com, the site for Fog City Records. Also turntable.com, a site that pioneered enhanced CDs and worked with such groups as the Beastie Boys. Michael Moroney, creator of virginrecords.com, guides us through his site and several music fan sites. Also featured is Severe Tire Damage, the first band ever to perform live on the internet. Josh Gabriel demonstrates Mix Man software, one of the first software programs that enabled music novices to create their own mixes.
Hollywood quickly discovered the web as a tool for promoting films. But filmmakers have also discovered the web as a new medium for sharing information and distributing their creative output. This program looks at several Hollywood oriented web sites including atasite.org, the site for the Artists Television Access organization; a site devoted to the film "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"; and lowres.com, a site that runs an online film festival. Ed Martinez, a Hollywood special effects expert, guides us through web sites focused on special movie effects. Also a demonstration of Stephen Spielberg's Directors Chair, software that lets you create your own movies and run a Hollywood production studio.
