From: hibbett@prcs3.decnet.philips.be Subject: RE: sci.virtual-worlds Date: Thu, 2 May 91 11:36:25 +0200 Bill writes... > INTO THE 21ST CENTURY >Keywords: seminar, Doug Engelbart >Message-ID: <1991Apr22.180049.23440@informix.com> >Lines: 256 > [Vast amounts of Engelbart trumpet blowing removed] > >REGISTRATION: > > $900 rcvd by Jun 4, $975 after Jun 4, includes continental break- > fast, lunch, & refreshments Tue/Wed/Thu, reception & dinner > Tue/Wed, plus all seminar materials. Refund requests must be made > by Jun 4. > Wow! Brilliant advert! I'll buy one! Bob - How much does sci.virtual_worlds charge for adverts? Seriously though, I was a bit peeved. If I want ads, I'll buy Byte. I thought this news group was for comment, and find the link between virtual_worlds and this money making exercise a bit tenuous. Am I a minority? If so, I'll stop complaining. Mike. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mike Hibbett | Philips Radio Communication Systems Ltd Tel: INT + 44 223 358985 Ext.3310 | St Andrews Road, Cambridge, CB4 1DP, England ----------------------------------+--------------------------------------------- Philips DECnet: PRCS3::HIBBETT | EUnet: hibbett@prcs3.decnet.philips.be -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [THE MODERATOR RESPONDS: Mike's complaint is in the minority but deserves consideration nonetheless. Why post a commercial announcement in the newsgroups? There are several reasons which persuaded me to post this one. [First, much of what is discussed here is commercial. As this is a general newsgroup and not an academic cloister, I feel it is valid to hear what is going on in the professional and business worlds, as well as in the academic and corporate laboratories. In fact, from the reports we are seeing posted, which may give a distorted impression, that is where most of the action is. [Second, any activity of Doug Englebart, in my opinion, merits the attention of the community. It certainly ranks up there with the doings of Timothy Leary, another significant contributor to the lore of our field. Englebart is the Father of Interactivity. How he blows his horn is as interesting to me as the fact that he does it at all. Also, if you look through the propaganda, you will find many interesting intellectual tidbits indicative of Englebart's current thinking. That's worth the read. [Third, on the matter of cost: the SRI seminar taking place later this year, if one signs up for the optional VR training, almost equals the Englebart session in cost, yet it raised no objections. Ours is a pricey field because the level of interest is so high. Englebart commands a high price because he's shown what he can do. [Fourth, if the level of promotion gets turned up too high, there's always the k command to dispatch the unworthy messenger! [My policy will be to permit and encourage the posting of materials that portray progress in our field or in cognate fields. Unless there is an obvious scam being perpetrated or an "advert" is strictly that and contains no substance of worth -- a difficult call, as students of the sociology of advertising will tell you, postings such as this one will continue. However, if they are long, I do request that they be so annotated in the Subject: header. [Finally, I should note that Englebart did not post the message to this newsgroup; I did. Now you know the reasons why. Comments are welcome. -- Bob Jacobson]