ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, May 16, 1996 TAG: 9605160138
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: COMPUTER BITS
SOURCE: FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
America Online, which too often lately has been a pain to access, might be something to avoid completely tonight.
That's because millions of Trivial Pursuit fans are expected to try out the new version of Trivial Pursuit Interactive. Beginning at 10 p.m. they will attempt to set a world record for the largest number of players in a single trivia game.
AOL's more than 5.5 million members, plus an estimated 15 million gamers in 3,000 restaurants and taverns across the country will be able to compete against one another.
Trivial Pursuit debuted on the service Tuesday. Air Warrior by Kesmai, the latest version of the multiplayer air combat simulation, also is being added this week.
Zap us an E-mail if you played, (biznewsroanoke.infi.net) and share the experience.
Vacation time is picture-taking time, which means now is time to check out Kodak's web site, especially its 10 points of advice.
You can learn how to take better photos with tips on how to prevent things like red eyes and shadows.
Expect to spend some time at this address (kodak.com). In addition to serious photography instructions, it has the "Serious Fun" stop with moving images, information on five Olympic hopefuls and a contest that gives you a chance to win a one-time-use camera.
And just how do you eliminate red eyes in photos of people and animals?
Don't position flash too close to the subject. Turn on lights in the room, move the flash as far away from the subject as possible or have the person avert his or her eyes from the light.
Another new site web, sponsored by the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, is located at plasticsurgery.org. It's a source of fun facts on what turns out to be a very old profession.
Examples:
* Plastic surgery dates to 800 B.C. when skin grafts were used in ancient India.
* A Virginian, Dr. John Peter Mettauer, did the first cleft palate operation in the New World in 1827.
The history of plastic surgery is good enough to inspire a term paper. And the "FAQ" (Frequently-Asked Questions) section includes some juicy bits such as why the "plastic" in plastic surgery.
The answer: It comes from "plastikos," Greek for mold or shape.
Also a nice touch here is a questionnaire asking for suggestions for improvement.
Computers, it turns out, are a good reason for employees and bosses to get along. A study by two professors at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania concluded that pay goes up for each group when the other's use of computers increases.
Earnings of production workers increased 3 percent annually when their managers' use of computers doubled. And only half of the increase was attributable to greater skill on the part of the workers.
The study suggests that introduction of computers in a company frees its employees to take on more complicated duties, which, in turn, often increases their salaries.
Managers benefited even more. Their earnings climbed by 3.5 percent when the production workers doubled their use of computers.
Phyllis Eisen, who directs human resources for Washington-based National Association of Manufacturers, said she was not surprised that the pay of supervisors increased as the subordinates' use of computers grew.
``With downsizing, there are fewer supervisors and they are being pushed by bonus plans to require front-line workers to do more with customer service,'' Eisen said. ``To whatever extent computers and technology improve customer service, that's going to improve bonus pay.''
Travelers will find it worthwhile to check out insideflyer.com to keep up with the top 10 ways to earn frequent flier miles or to play the latest bonus miles game (out of date info Wednesday, however).
LENGTH: Medium: 83 linesby CNB