LOST AND FOUND CYBERSPACE puter-generated dust. Perhaps the most effective such use of the net- works has been the "Chabad- Lubavitch in Cyberspace" project. "Many Jews are unaffiliated and in places you would not dream of," said Rab- bi Yosef Yitzchok Kazen, director of activ- ities for the on-line pro- ject. "They've asked for authentic Jewish material — and, often, the only way for them to get this is via computer." Chabad, he said, turns out more than 6,000 pieces of E-mail of the Chabad network's utility: Hours after the June 12 death of the Lubavitch rebbe, its circuits were humming with information from Chabad designed to help his followers cope with their loss. "Mail-Jewish," an In- • • ternet mailing list, fulfills many of the same func- tions for a broader spec- trum of Orthodox Jews. "Mailing lists" are forums in which mes- sages on selected topics are col- lected and then distributed by moderators who make sure par- every week to subscribers — all at no charge. It also has made ef- fective use of Internet "gophers" — a system that lets computer users anywhere in the world browse through available mater- ial in Chabad libraries. The Chabad network has transmitted some badly needed Jewish camaraderie to a Jewish student in a remote corner of Aus- tralia, helped a Jewish traveler in Sweden make a Shabbat connec- tion, sent a student in Poland a Haggadah just in time for Passover, and ships to a tiny Jew- ish community in Upper Manito- ba fresh religious material every week from Lubavitch headquar- ters in Brooklyn. Rabbi Kazen didn't cite what may be a more poignant example ticipants stick to the issues and avoid "flaming," network lingo for screaming and name-calling. Currently, Mail-Jewish goes to about 1,200 subscribers in rough- ly 20 countries, according to mod- erator Avi Feldblum of Highland Park, N.J. "Several list members tell me Mail-Jewish is one of their main sources of Jewish contact," said Mr. Feldblum. "The majority of the list is Orthodox, but there are several Conservative and Reform Jews, and a few non-Jews who are thinking about converting." Recent topics include Jewish messianism, Kabbalistic healing and the morality of government funding of religious institu- tions. ❑ DETRO IT J EWIS H NEWS PRO LU 48 Getting On Line 0 ne could write a book about entering the incredible world of computer network- ing. In fact, dozens of people have done just that. Two of the best are "The In- ternet for Dummies" by John R. Levine and Car- ol Baroudi and 'The Whole Internet" by Ed Krol. To be on the network, a modem and com- munications software are necessary. A 14,400- baud modem can be purchased for less than $150. Some Internet services, including E-mail and mailing lists, can be accessed through com- mercial on-line ser- vices, such as American Online. Oth- ers, such as Delphi, of- fer more complete Internet access, in- cluding Gopher and "FTP," a scheme for transferring ffies from remote systems to your own computer. For the most com- plete Internet access, sign up with a local full-service provider. For $20-$30 per month, you get virtu- ally unlimited Internet access. Many providers advertise in the busi- ness pages of major newspapers. But be- ware: Interfaces used by these services can cause high blood pres- sure for on-line begin- ners. Some local bulletin boards provide simpli- fied, reduced Internet access that may be all you need. Check with your local computer store or users groups. Once on-line, you can access: • MAILING LISTS: These are Internet pub- lications regularly distributed to subscribers for free. For all users, subscribe to Internet lists by sending a message to the official subscription address, in the following format: Subscribe, your first name, your last name. • USENET newsgroups: Open Internet fo- rums on more than 8,000 different topics. Drop in whenever you choose; read messages that in- terest you; reply if you want. • GOPHER: A tool for digging around re- mote computer systems from your home. This is Internet at its best: A way to explore the vast resources available on-line. Jewish resources on the "nets" include: • ISRAELINE AND ISRAEL-MIDEAST: Internet mailing lists published by the Israeli government and featuring daily news bulletins, Israeli domestic news features, digests of edi- torials in the Hebrew press, op-eds by Israeli opinion leaders and Israeli economic surveys. vm.tau.ac.il • IL-TALK A general-purpose bulletin board forum that provides a link between Israeli Jews and Jews around the world. Available as a mail- ing list (send subscription messages to: tauni- vm.tau.ac.il ) or as a USENET newsgroup on Internet. • HOLOCAUST: A mailing list maintained by the history department at the University of Illinois at Chicago for Holocaust scholars, ed- ucators and those interested in rebutting re- visionists. Academic and substantive. Subscription uicvm.uic.edu • SOC.CULTURE.JEWISH and SOC. CUL'IURE.ISRAEL . General debate and chit- chat on Jewish subjects. Orthodox, Conserva- tive and Reform slug it out on both. • TALKPOLITICS.MIDEAST emphasizes discussion and debate on Mideast issues. • MAIL-JEWISH: Serious discussions of is- sues from an Orthodox perspective. Substan- tive and issues-oriented. israel.nysernet.org • LIBERAL-JUDAISM: A mailing list for religiously liberal Jews. fagin@aero.org • CJ-L: Addresses concerns of Conservative Jews. uacsc2.albany.edu • CHABAD IN CYBERSPACE: Lubav- itchers offer many on-line publications and ser- vices. Use their Gopher to explore what's available: gopher lubavitch.chabad.org • JERUSALEM.: A project of the Jewish International Association Against Assimilation. Compiles information on worldwide Jewish events, kashrut in various cities, Israeli poli- tics, resources on Mideast peace process, infor- mation on Hebrew word processing and material from Israeli religious groups. Use its Gopher: gopher jeru salem 1. datasry .co . iL • M-DEBATE: Discussions on how to fight Christian missionaries interested in Jewish souls. jerusaleml.datasry .co. it • JEWISHGEN: Discussions about ge- nealogical research, lists of resources for re- searchers, pleas for help in locating relatives. Israel. nysernet. org • KESHERNET: an international bulletin board network featuring forums on Jewish matchmaking, politics, Halachah, Jews with disabilities and other topics. Register on-line and follow the menus to the Keshernet area. ❑ —J.B.