ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 11, 1996 TAG: 9604110002
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: COMPUTER BITS
ALL KINDS OF FACTS on health and medicine can be found on the Web - without permission from your PCP.
Whether you just want to browse the University of Virginia Medical School page or find out when aromatherapy classes will be offered on-line, the new Healthworld Online site is an information-wealthy place to visit.
The site has a bent toward alternative medical treatments, but it doesn't shortchange traditionalists. All of the country's medical schools are listed, and links are provided to their Web pages. There's even a section devoted to veterinary medicine. If you go there, check out the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in Blacksburg.
Healthworld is divided into specialty areas. The nutrition center discusses types of diets and eventually will show how to set up a kitchen for healthy dining. In the Public Health Center, there is information on public and private programs and a variety of data from the World Health Organization as well as the various levels of government.
The site is the brainchild of Dave Robertson, who is president, and Jim Strohecker, vice president. Robertson is an industrial engineer who has worked with a medical management company that operated hospital emergency rooms in Los Angeles, but who became interested in self-care when he suffered chronic fatigue syndrome. Strohecker is executive editor of "Alternative Medicine - The Definitive Guide."
Set aside a chunk of time on-line to visit this site: http: www.healthy.net. |-Staff report
Win95 bugs
No matter how many people love, or acquire, Windows 95, it's not yet perfect.
Someday when you least expect it - probably when something really important depends on it - Windows 95 may let you down. It might be a crash just as you reach that final level of Duke Nukem 3D, or maybe a new piece of expensive hardware will refuse to work with Windows. Always anticipate the worst with a relatively new operating system.
It's not that Win95 is a bad product. Although hard-core DOS users will grumble about missing the good ol' days when computer geeks were real computer geeks, the truth is that Windows 95 has made life simpler for millions of PC users. That doesn't mean it's perfect. Just look at any Windows discussion group.
Microsoft spent months running down bugs and eradicating them, but they didn't catch them all. In fact, the company has packaged a number of bug fixes in the recently released and diplomatically named Service Pack 1, which you can download at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/software/servpak1/sphome.html |-Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Learning chess
A decade ago, personal computers could play chess. Now, they're teaching the game.
Maurice Ashley Teaches Chess (Windows 3.1/Win 95; CD-ROM) is a fun way to learn. Ashley, chess commentator for the ESPN sports network, is the International Master who taught the Raging Rooks and the Dark Knights, the Harlem school teams that have won the National Junior High School Chess Team Championship. Ashley, 29, is the world's highest-ranked African-American chess player.
Younger players will like the way he brings the pieces alive as he compares the rook to a rhinoceros and the bishop to a water snake zig-zagging across the surface. To develop skills with pawns (``they're like ants at a picnic''), he uses the ``touchdown challenge'' to see how quickly the student can move the pawn across a practice board in the fewest moves.
There are four sections to the program: coaching, championship training, master games and playing. Users can go to or leave any section at any time.
At various points in the game, Ashley will show ``what would have happened'' had the chess players fallen for the traps set for them.
Ashley's program is a joint effort by Davidson & Associates Inc. (``Jungle Train'' and ``Math Blasters'') and Simon & Schuster Interactive Inc. (the publishing arm of Viacom Inc.) The program should be available at computer stores for $30 to $35. A 486-based computer with 8 megabytes of RAM running at 66 MHz is recommended. -The New York Times To submit information to Computer Bits or to comment, call 981-3393 or 981-3237, or send e-mail to skelly2180@aol.com.
LENGTH: Medium: 84 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Healthworld Online boasts a virtual village of servicesby CNBthat encourage "self-managed care." color.