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 JOYA'S WEB PIX
July 17, 1996
Net mag review
Today's feature is a review of the most popular Internet
magazines&emdash;what's in them, what isn't in them, and which ones
are worth picking up. Since the Internet virtually exploded last
year, there has been a surge of new 'net magazines appearing monthly
on the shelves. In Montreal, not only will you find Canadian and U.S.
mags, but also mags from France and the U.K. They can be somewhat
hard to distinguish, as most of their names use net in them. Recently
I've been doing my own comparison, and here's what I've found.
The mags I'll be reviewing today are Internet Underground, Yahoo!
Internet Life, net, NetGuide, and the net. Didn't I tell you they all
sound the same?
- Internet
Underground is a magazine published in a suburb of Chicago
by some young entrepreneurs just out of college. The magazine is not
page-heavy, but boy they sure cram a lot into their pages. By focusing
on the underground of the net, they cover a lot of non-mainstream
topics and web sites that ordinarily wouldn't make other net mag editors
blink an eye. From prisoners who use the net to make plights for justice,
to a profile of the guy who maintains the alt.spleen newsgroup, Internet
Underground is a hip, happening way to find interesting and kooky
sites on the Web. A steal for $5.95, Internet Underground is definitely
worth a look, if not a subscription (that is, if you can afford the
U.S. money order). 8/10
- Yahoo! Internet
Life is brought to you be the same people who run
Yahoo!, the search engine. Internet Life is more of an all-around
guide to the web, a magazine paranoid parents would let their kids
read. Nothing scandalous in here, but a good resource for all your
basic computer, sports, and arts interests. Comes with a CD-ROM featuring
their picks of the month, as well as some free software. Not bad at
$5.95. 5/10
- net
magazine is out of the U.K. and it packs a punch. The thickest net
magazine I've ever seen, net has it all. If you don't mind the fact
that most of their ads are for British eyes only, then jump right
in. Recently the net's cover story was dispelling internet myths,
in particular where women are concerned. They featured women's sites,
and interviewed both women and men on topics like technophobia, online
harassment and the reality of women's positive contributions to the
net community. A huge section is devoted to reviewing all kinds of
web sites from around the world, and they've picked some keepers.
A bit pricy at $8.95, and no CD-ROM, but a good investment nonetheless.
9/10
- NetGuide
is a more products-focused magazine out of the U.S. that caters to
the "what-can-I-buy-so-my-web-site-will-be-more-cool" crowd. It reviews
a slew of products and the reviews themselves are informative, but
if you don't have the money then is there really any point? The actual
part of the magazine that talks about the web and web sites is severely
lacking and uninteresting at best. The businessman's internet magazine,
I'd say. Nicely priced at $4.99, but the enclosed disk only had a
trial subscription to America Online. Who needs it? 4/10
- the net
magazine in a new one out of California that caters to most everyone
who's surfing the net. They've had stories like how to find people
online, how to build your own web site and how to get the most from
your web browser. A lot of how-to stuff, but that's important when
you consider that the first time people get online they don't know
much, and need something to get them started. An excellent web site
review sections, with clear categories and ratings systems. net magazine
sells for $5.99 including a CD-ROM full of goodies. 7/10
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