Matthew Jones
Although you can find some great deals at auctions, locating and attending them can be a full-time job, especially since many auctions are held in out-of-the-way places. To avoid this problem, you can visit the World-Wide Web sites mentioned in this article and participate in online auctions, which allow you to bid on everything from servers to diamond rings. After picking up a few products at rock-bottom prices, you can check out this month's network resources and games. You can even purchase a new product with all of the money you saved. (See "Product Snapshots".)
ONSALE (http://www.onsale.com) claims to offer the world's largest auction, specializing in computer equipment, consumer electronics, and sporting goods. At this web site, you can bid against other people for brand-name products such as Compaq computers, Xerox copiers, and Wilson golf clubs. To bid for a particular product, you view the bids that have already been placed to ensure that your bid is among the highest, and then you enter a bid by the posted deadline.
When this deadline arrives, the people with the highest bids are allowed to purchase the product for the amount of their bid. For example, suppose that you placed a bid of U.S. $300 for an IBM ThinkPad 380E. If 100 of these laptops were available and your bid was among the 100 highest bids, you could purchase the laptop for U.S. $300.
If ONSALE doesn't have the computer equipment you need, you should stop by Going Once (http://www.goingonce.net). Going Once auctions off the latest hardware and software, including workstations, printers, and modems. You can search for a particular product by using the search engine, or you can browse the list of product categories. You can also enter a weekly contest. If your name is drawn, you win a free product.
FirstAuction (http://www.firstauction.com) offers a wider range of products than Going Once. In addition to bidding for computer equipment, you can bid for jewelry, housewares, tools, and other products. These products are available through a typical online auction format or through "flash auctions," which are unique to FirstAuction. Flash auctions are 30-minute auctions with a minimum bid of only U.S. $1. Because flash auctions come and go before you know it, you should check the online schedule of upcoming flash auctions to ensure that you don't miss your chance to bid for the products you want.
Novell recently unveiled its long-awaited technical support forums on the Internet (http://support.novell.com/pforum). If you have a question about Novell products or if you need help with a networking problem, you can post a question on the Novell Support Connection forums at no charge. One of the networking experts who volunteers as a Novell Support Connection system operator (SysOp) will then post an answer to your question--usually within 24 hours.
To access the Novell Support Connection forums, you must register as a forum member by completing the online registration form. You must also create a user profile, which allows you to customize the way forum information appears on your monitor.
After you have registered as a forum member and have created a user profile, you can log in to the Novell Support Connection forums using the username and password you specified during the registration process. You can change your password and your user profile at any time from the login screen.
USCF Chess from Interplay Productions is the only computer chess game that is endorsed by the U.S. Chess Federation (USCF). If you have ever dreamed of becoming a nationally ranked chess player, USCF Chess can make your dreams come true. By playing USCF Chess, you can receive an official USCF national ranking. USCF Chess includes advanced artificial intelligence technology that analyzes your chess skills as you play, assigning you a ranking based on these skills.
Don't let this ranking capability intimidate you, however: USCF Chess is an excellent game for chess players of all skill levels. Beginning players can use the game's training options to learn the basics of chess, and intermediate players can analyze strategies and discover new moves by reenacting famous chess tournaments between grand masters, such as Bobby Fisher and Gary Kasparov. Advanced players, on the other hand, can take the ultimate challenge by playing timed games against the computer or against other people.
USCF Chess includes a library of more than 300,000 opening moves and recommended strategies that you can use. In addition, USCF Chess includes a strategy tutorial and an online manual that covers the evolution of chess and offers profiles of the greatest grand masters in history.
USCF Chess is available for Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0. You can play USCF Chess with one other person over a modem or a serial connection.
You can purchase USCF Chess through retail channels at the suggested retail price of U.S. $49.95. For more information about USCF Chess, visit Interplay Productions's web site (http://www.interplay.com/games/uscf.html). You can also call 1-800-468-3775 or 1-714-553-6655.
Front Page Sports: Ski Racing from Sierra Online is a simulation game that allows you to compete in some of the most challenging ski events in the world and to ski on some of the most difficult courses in the world--all from your computer. With Front Page Sports: Ski Racing, you can compete in one or more of the following events: downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super G, and all around. You can also compete in multiple events at each of six virtual ski resorts.
The virtual ski resorts are based on actual ski resorts, such as Mount Bachelor in Bend, Oregon and Whistler Mountain in Vancouver, British Columbia. You can customize weather and snow conditions, changing visibility and speed to make these courses even more challenging.
After you have selected events, you can begin skiing on modeled 3-D courses that have been rendered in accurate detail. As you ski, you can view amazing graphics such as gate flags and cheering crowds, as well as trees, rocks, cliffs, and other photorealistic scenery. You can even get ski tips and course overviews from a digital replica of world-champion skier Picabo Street.
Front Page Sports: Ski Racing is available for Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0. You can play Front Page Sports: Ski Racing in standalone mode only. However, Sierra Online plans to release add-on software that supports multiplayer mode later this year.
You can purchase Front Page Sports: Ski Racing through retail channels at the suggested retail price of U.S. $49.95. For more information about Front Page Sports: Ski Racing, visit Sierra Online's web site (http://www.sierra.com/titles/ski/skiindex.html). You can also call 1-800-757-7707 or 1-425-649-9800.
NetWare Connection, April 1998, pp.45-46