>Why isn't the Smithsonian looking at developing a greater presence by >using Mosaic? I realize that there are people out there whose only access >to the Internet is via AOL and Compulsive, but there are other vendors >that provide true, direct Internet access -- Delphi being one of them -- >and Mosaic would allow the same, if not better, access to the images. IMNSHO. I just want to clarify that "direct" internet access is neither cheap nor easily come by (at least for US residents). Mosaic requires TCP/IP on the client computer. You can _only_ get this with either a direct connection or a SLIP connection. Delphi and the other inexpensive services provide dial-in terminal session access to a UNIX machine. You have "full" Internet access, but not "direct" access. You can't run Mosaic or any of the other nifty software in "native-client-mode" (my own term) from those services. It is inexpensive, but it is not the kind of service those at a university or other organization with a direct connection enjoy. To get a direct connection, I have to use SLIP (serial line internet protocol) and pay a service which provides a SLIP server, in my case JVNCnet, the regional Internet provider (a for-profit corporation). They have the most reliable service and the best value I have found for a full SLIP connection. Their fee is $100/month plus phone charges. I am not near a metropolitan area o I have to pay long distance charges of $10/hour for about 7 hours a month. I am sure that JVNCnet makes a tidy profit on these fees. My fees are worth it to me for what I get as I move towards getting the Museum a direct connection, but for most people, AOL and other "commercial" services provide a real service in providing a cheap, graphical way to get connected. Is the response on this list simply a manifestation of the PIMFY syndrome? (a knd of opposite of NIMBY: "Please, In My Front Yard.") Those with access to the Internet have an atonishing array of information available to them. You can't have it all. Personally, I applaud NMAA in choosing AOL as a means for their initial foray into electronic access. Guy Hermann | Mystic Seaport Museum | Gentle breah of yours my sails [log in to unmask] | Mystic, Conn., USA | Must fill or else my project fails