BKINTCMP.RVW   951011
 
"The Internet Companion", LaQuey, 1993, 0-201-40766-3, U$12.95/C$16.95
%A   Tracy LaQuey internet-companion@world.std.com tracy@cs.utexas.edu
%A   tracy@mojo.ots.utexas.edu tparker@cisco.com
%C   1 Jacob Way, Reading, MA   01867-9984
%D   1994
%G   0-201-40766-3
%I   Addison-Wesley Publishing Co.
%O   U$12.95/C$16.95 +1-800-822-6339 +1-617-944-3700 Fax: +1-617-944-7273
%O   bkexpress@aw.com
%P   262
%T   "The Internet Companion", 2nd Edition
 
Your humble reviewer must abjectly admit to prejudice in delaying the review of
the second edition of this book.  The first edition was highly promoted and of
questionable value.  While this second version follows the same structure and
contains much of the same material, the additions make it an almost completely
different work.
 
Unless the reader is quite dedicated, the thicker volume is no longer in the
"read it in one sitting" class.  The increase in usefulness and accuracy,
though, is well worth it.  The smaller "Zen and the Art of the Internet" (cf
BKZENINT.RVW) will provide a somewhat faster start, and Comer's authoritative
"The Internet Book" gives more insightful background, but "The Internet
Companion", pitched at the mass market, is now a reasonable overview for the
begginer.
 
The last part of chapter three, dealing with "Netiquette", always was good and
is still possibly the best I've read.  Not merely a list of rules, it tells the
reader *why* a short reply might be offensive.
 
Chapter four raises issues associated with finding information.  There is still
some confusion between generic functions, such as ftp and telnet; specific
services, such as archive and WAIS; and sites such as a specific Freenet or a
supercomputer centre.  The overall orgainization has been enhanced, however,
and additional material makes it more useful.
 
Chapter five deals with more "social" Internet topics, and a bit of net
culture.  The security isn't bad; even the few paragraphs on viral programs are
realistic.  There is a reprise on how to find someone's email address.  (The
advice on the use of partial names with the usenet-addresses server at MIT may
be technically correct, but the wording is somewhat misleading.)
 
Chapter seven, "UNIX on the Internet: a Survival Guide", is pitched just right
for the novice user.  The applications chosen; vi, pico, elm, pine and tin; are
widley used and likely to be encountered.  (If I might quibble, though, for the
novice uploader "cat > filename" can be enormously helpful.)
 
Whenever I give a "beginner's guide to the nets" seminar, the one invariable
question is "how do I get access?"  This is what chapter seven tries to
address.  In a work of this size a definitive answer isn't possible, but the
background information here should be helpful.
 
copyright Robert M. Slade, 1993, 1995   BKINTCMP.RVW   951011

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