HS FAQ 7

NOTE: This message was originally in conference “Home Education [FIDO]”

and was copied here by Ron Bowden.

NOTE: This message was originally in conference “Home Education [RIME]”

and was copied here by Ron Bowden.

Salutations from Ron Bowden:

Home Education – Frequently Asked Questions Page 7

From: Peter Kaminski <kaminski@netcom.com> I compile and distribute a list of public-access providers with IP services such as ftp, telnet and IRC — Netcom, World, WELL, etc. They’ll run on the order of $15-$30/month or so, and all have email and generally Usenet, usually along with lots of other stuff (Unix shells, programming tools, etc.). If you just need email and don’t want to spend that much, your best bet might be to look around for local BBSes — many of them are connecting up to Internet email and Usenet. Many of the commercial services (Compuserve, for instance) still charge per message — most are fine for low-volume use, but receiving a mailing list would end up being expensive. I heartily recommend the IP providers (live Internet access), though — there are terabytes of programs and data available via ftp, university card catalogs and other fun databases to access via telnet, real-time chat via IRC, ICB, and MUDs, and of course, quick email and Usenet access. N.B. about kids on the ‘net: mostly I think everybody should be able to poke around and discover things for themselves, but there are definitely places that are For Mature Audiences Only. (Maturity, of course, is a state of mind, not a calendar age.) Parents need to be sensitive to what, where, and who their kids are with on the ‘net, just as in real life. Anyway, my list — it’s the Public Dialup Internet Access List (PDIAL), and is available for free by sending email containing the command “Send PDIAL” to “info-deli-server@netcom.com”. Also available by ftp: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/info-deli/public-access/pdial and there is also an experimental hypertext edition (with the same data, just in hypertext) presented in MS Windows WinHelp format, available by ftp: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/info-deli/pdial-archive/pdial013.hlp

From: PHIKLEPP@ACS.EKU.EDU (Gene Kleppinger) Here is the list of active Free-Net communities. People elsewhere should check with their local libraries, schools and universities to see whether some form of telnet or gopher is available to the public, because anyone (regardless of age, etc.) can obtain a Free-Net account through these connections! I will be happy to supply further information, or you can send mail to the National Public Telecomputing Network (info@nptn.org). Buffalo, NY; Cincinnati, OH (no new accounts at present); Cleveland, OH; Columbia, MO; Denver, CO; Dillon, MT; Elyria, OH; Medina, OH (no telnet access); Peoria, IL; Tallahassee, FL; Traverse City, MI; Washington, DC; Youngstown, OH; Ottawa, Ontario; Victoria, British Columbia; Vaasa, Finland; Wellington, New Zealand.

12.1 Once they have access to the internet, what’s good?

From: PHIKLEPP@ACS.EKU.EDU (Gene Kleppinger) Besides using reference tools and everything else on CD-ROMs, I have no personal recommendations right now. But I do have one suggestion: assuming you have telnet or gopher, get to the University of Maryland’s Reading Room and look at what’s in Computers, under HomeEducation. (Gopher to U Maryland, or telnet to info.umd.edu and login as gopher; then choose Educational Resources, then ReadingRoom.) There’s a “report” there (dated October 1992) about Internet resources with educational themes; I believe it even mentions this mailing list. The appendix contains a long, annotated list of service providers, Internet educational forums and published literature. The report is available in electronic form from home-ed-request@world.std.com. It is 93K long, so be sure your mailbox has enough room: USING COMPUTER-BASED, TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES TO SERVE EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES AT HOME This recently released report addresses the use of computer- based, telecommunications services to meet educational needs at home — focusing on services for students in grade 7 through college (including adult education). The curriculum areas on which the report concentrates are mathematics, science, technology, engineering, and career education. The report was produced for the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation by Jay P. Sivin-Kachala and Ellen R. Bialo of Interactive Educational Systems Design, Inc., 310 West 106th Street, New York, NY 10025.