Re: The f****** BBC

Martijn Koster <m.koster@nexor.co.uk>
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Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 13:55:19 --100
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From: Martijn Koster <m.koster@nexor.co.uk>
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Subject: Re: The f****** BBC 
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> I feel the need to vent after what I have just seen *grin*
> [report on BBC2's "The Net" deleted] ...
> Well anyway it plugged its WWW site (http://www.bbcnc.org.uk/) 

I was actually interested to see that they went that little bit
further than just reporting on something they're not involved in/
don't understand. But I doub't it will be anyhting major after
the programme cycle finishes.

> which to say the least is of poor quality. ... Anyway I wrote to
> the maintainer(s) with a few hints on how to improve it, but I just
> feel I needed to vent to a larger audience the BAD work that the BBC
> is doing for the Web as a whole.

I sent some comments too, no doubt things will improve as the number 
of suggestions increase.

> Which reminds me, according to the BBC the net consists of _just_
> the WWW, email and, get this, BBSs.. 

Yeah, the "BBS" terminology suprised me too, and you are correct in
saying they happily ignored the serious use of the Internet. They said
something like "The main ways of internet access are Demon and CIX,
although CompuServe is linking in too", which may reflect their target
audience, but isn't quite the whole story.

> Oh and the neo-nazis in Germany.

Yawn, well, at least they had somebody saying that it was a lot of
media hype and that there were issue of personal freedom involved.

> And who the hell was that guy, "The best known NetSurfer in the UK"?

Search me :)

> Finally what I want to know how much did the BBC pay to use the NCSA
> MOSAIC logo on various bits of the show? *grin* 

I wondered what they got from CompuServe & CIX for their free
advertising :)

> Yours, (marginally pissed off cos of the bad name the BBC are giving the
> web)

Don't overestimate any negative effect of this program. Most people
won't see anything as being wrong; they just see pretty screens and
get a glimpse of what is possible. 

I did miss the lack of information on the Internet itself: it doesn't
help if the general public thinks all that happens on the net is that
hackers look at pictures of dead dinosaurs :/

-- Martijn
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