FeaturesFebruary 3, 1998
CLICK & DOUBLE CLICK: INTERNET PROVIDES SURFERS FRONT-ROW SEAT TO GAMES IN NAGANO, JAPAN (COLUMN 74)
Cybertip: The February Beginning Internet classes are already filled, but registration is already under way for March. Two classes will be offered: March 9 from 7-9 and March 18 from 1-3 p.m. The cost is $10. For more information, contact Peggy or Joni at 335-6611...
JONI ADAMS AND PEGGY SCOTT
Cybertip: The February Beginning Internet classes are already filled, but registration is already under way for March. Two classes will be offered: March 9 from 7-9 and March 18 from 1-3 p.m. The cost is $10. For more information, contact Peggy or Joni at 335-6611.
The countdown is on. Three days to go.
Even if you don't have a ticket to the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, the Internet will gain you first-class admittance.
If you doubt the Internet's global impact, just jump aboard one of the hundreds of web pages geared to the Olympic games. The Internet is going all out for this year's Olympic games.
Let's start at the official site:
Peggy: This web site does its best to bring Nagano to your home. There's a daily snapshot from the city -- Monday a peek of the Crown Prince of Japan driving through the street.
Joni: It's a huge site -- 33,000-plus pages, and entire sections have been developed for each of the 83 competing nations.
Peggy: You also can download the latest VRML viewer to take your seat in one of five 3-D virtual venues at the village. If you have a ticket, you can get the view from your seat, or pick any seat in the house -- even where the judges sit.
Joni: If you have Internet Explorer 3.0, you must upgrade to 4.0 to use this. It doesn't mention Netscape, so we're assuming the 3.0 version is OK. You also need a PC, not Macintosh.
Peggy: You can chose your venue by name or by sport. The choices include: figure skating, two ice hockey venues, short track speed skating, ski jumping and regular speed skating. My husband will be thrilled to know he can watch ice hockey at two places.
Joni: The Kids Plaza offers fun for kids age 2-85. You can choose from stories, kid's pick, sports and activities, including an ice hockey game. Let's play. Watch out Peggy. Click out of the way -- you're going to crash.
Bam. Boom. Ouch.
Peggy: OK, I need my children to help me play this game. You need to triple click to make the goal. No goal.
Joni: The Olympics have no worry here. You can also choose from coloring book pages, Origami, digital postcards, trivia games and much more. CBS is broadcasting the games. Let's check out their huge site at
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Peggy: There's all kinds of good stuff here: the medal count, fast Olympic news, merchandise, forum, history, arcade, contests, KidZone and much more. As you might expect, there's a lot of emphasis on what's being televised on CBS.
Joni: You can download videos of the people of Nagano and a downhill run with A.J. Kitt. There's also a quick Olympic poll. Who should carry the U.S. flag: Todd Eldredge or Michelle Kwan? You can also learn all about bobsledding with the site's primer.
Peggy: What time is it in Japan? Nagano is 14 hours ahead of Eastern Time. Let the site do the math. Next stop, an Olympics site fashioned from CNN and Sports Illustrated.
Joni: Click on the Olympics choice on the left-hand side. Here you can find a photo gallery and Olympic features dating back to the '50s. You can read the all-time medal count now. Norway is the leader, followed by the Soviet Union and the United States.
Peggy: For those of us who need a little remedial sports education, SI and CNN have put together primers on all the sports including event basics and tips on who to watch. After this, I'll sound like I know what's going on. But if you have a favorite sport or athlete, the Internet likely has a web page devoted to the person or event. For example, young Tara Lipinski, the figure skating star, has her own page at
Joni: You can read Tara's diary, excerpts from her autobiography and even send her an e-mail message. If snowboarding is your sport, check out the International snowboarding Federation at
Peggy: You can read more about the "Lords of the Boards" and a discussion about whether the sport is ready for the Olympics. Maybe the luge is your sport. Learn more about it at
Joni: You can watch an animated demonstration of sliding techniques. You also can sound like a pro after reading the glossary and even learn about the clothing worn for luge. Or if you're interested in downhill skiing, try
www.sportsline.com/u/usskiteam
Peggy: This is the official site of the U.S. ski team. You can find skiing news and close-ups on the team athletes. You can learn more about cross country, alpine, free styling, ski jumping and snowboarding.
Joni: What's your favorite Olympic site on the Internet? E-mail us at click@semissourian.com
See you in Cyberspace.
Joni Adams and Peggy Scott are members of the Southeast Missourian online staff.
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