And now, the news... What's new on-line

BIX

30 TAB Book Clubs Online: You've probably seen magazine ads for The Computer Book Club and The Computer Professionals' Book Society. These are sponsored by TAB Books. This division of McGraw-Hill (BIX's parent company) is now online on BIX, taking orders and answering questions from members and prospective

35 members. The club conference is moderated by Tammy Ray and Jeanette Shearer. You can check them out by typing JOIN TAB.BOOK.CLUBS.

CompuServe

Dell Computer Forum: Dell Computer Corporation has opened a

40 product support area on CompuServe. The Dell 65 area is part of the

PC Vendor D Forum. Type GO DELL or GO PCVEND to take a look.

Minitel Link to CompuServe

CompuServe bolstered its position in Europe by making some of its

45 services available via France's national Minitel system in July. French Minitel users have access to an extra-cost service that is essentially a

'limited edition', English-language version of CompuServe. Among the services available are software and database downloads. E-mail and message-base posting are not available to Minitel users.

50 Delphi

Hobby Group Expands: DELPHI'S Hobby Shop special-interest group continues to expand its areas of interest. The most recent additions to the database and group topics are Antique Auto, which focuses on classic vehicles, and Autotech, where you can learn about

55 new cars and technology. Type Go GROUP.

Vocabulary

It all comes down to (line 6) - It is a question of

two dozen (line 12) - about twenty-four

checking out (line 19) - examining

is moderated by (line 35) - is run by

bolstered (line 44) - strengthened

Task 3 1 Do you think the English in the text is: a formal?

b neutral?

c informal?

2 Do you think this article originally appeared in: a a computer magazine?

b a general magazine for young people?

c a general magazine for adults?

d an online bulletin board?

e the science page of a newspaper?

Give reasons for your choices.

Task 4 Fill in the gaps in this summary of the first part of the text. Each clue is an anagram. The first and last letters are correct.

In my opinion, there is no single 'best' online service. The choice depends on your ______________________ (prltacuair) needs and preferences. Most users have their own

_____________________ (ftrvaioue), but this can prevent them from seeing the ______________________ (agtvndaaes) of other services. Each one offers something which is either _________________ (uqinue) to that service, or which is _________________ (bteetr) than the same features on other services. So, when considering an online service, decide whether its features ______________________ (cosrernopd) to what you need. Until all services are ___________________ (iilktneernd), most of us will need to ____________________ (cunoitne) using more than one.

Task 5 Make these words negative by adding the appropriate prefix from those given below. The first one has been done for you.

in- un- im- dis-

1. infrequently

2. ___loyal

3. ___advantages

4. ___specific

5. ___like

6. ___real

7. ___probably

8. ___available

Task 6 Match each word or expression in the first column with a synonym in the second column

1 but

2 while

3 still

4 for my part

5 eventually

6 until then

a ultimately

b however

c whereas

d nevertheless

e personally

f meanwhile

Task 7 Translate the last passage of the text (beginning ' So, the real answer to the question …' lines 17 - 25) and the two final news items (Minitel Link to CompuServe / DELPHI lines 43 - 55) into your own language.