It's been a while since I've written in these great pages, but that is not a sign that I don't enjoy it. Writing is my passion; hearing from all of you is wonderful, too.

Thanks to those of you who have been writing in. It's been great to hear some of you actually took my stock advice and have made healthy sums.

In college, one of my professors always told me not to ramble when I write. I've realized recently, though, that people actually pay to listen to me ramble. I won't argue that this makes sense, but it has encouraged me nonetheless. This is a ramble column both because we've got a lot to catch up on and because I know I can get away with it, thanks to the generosity of my audience.

-Stock Market-

First, the stock market. I've been wrong so far on only two counts. First, Number Nine visual (NINE). It's lost 67% of its value since I recommended it, but it was only a nine-dollar stock in the first place. At this stage, I've given up on Nine because their sales are lagging and they don't seem to care. Even their web site, as cliché as the Web now is, stinks. It seems like they've done nothing for 9 months. Sell and forgive me. California Microwave hasn't been a star, either. I can't explain it, but I recommend an exit here, too.

If you followed my advice on Netscape, Spyglass, and Netcom by selling short, you've probably doubled or tripled your money. If you bought puts, you have retired. These moves have been drastically downward. I believe the trend will continue with Netscape, but I think the time for gambling against the other two has passed. Also, if you followed my advice and bought Intel at $55, you're happy. Stick to Intel until it crosses $200 (it's splitting in summer, so make that $100) and then write me to see what I think. They'll slump around the time second quarter earnings are announced, but I see that as another buying opportunity.

What am I buying? Diamond Multimedia (DIMD) – good products, their stock price has been killed. Cascade Communications (CSCC), 3COM (COMS), and AT&T (T). These companies all have strong fundamentals, a great market, and a low stock price. Buy and hang on for a long time.

I rarely buy a company I don't understand, but I'm buying Idexx Labs (IDXX) for a couple of reasons. People I know and trust were buying this stock up to $49 when it lost 65% of its value in one day earlier in the month after an earnings surprise. It's now at around $9. They (Idexx) live up the road from me here in Maine, have lots of new products coming out (veterinary biotech) and I think they're headed for $20+ by fall.

I think AOL is going to offer $8 per share for CompuServe. It's trading at about $11 right now, and not really worth it. You could profit from buying puts before this comes to pass.

-The Internet-

The Internet is loaded with people that have no idea what they're talking about, but technology mimics reality and our culture is loaded with people like that, so… Newsgroups are going away. It stinks, but they are going away. What will replace them, you ask? Fortunately and unfortunately (ever read that book?) it will be Microsoft's Channel Definition Format. Now everyone can have his or her own web channel. Sounds cheesy, but it's going to work, and work well. Look into this stuff if you want to stay ahead of the curve.

E-mail stinks and no one is doing anything about it. I have a great idea. Why not make e-mail a full-blown "push/pull" Java application? You could add features like unsend, security, real read receipts, even e-postage as my friend Bob Metcalfe has recommended. I agree with him – and I think this is the way to do it. All a mail author does is compose a small Java app, and send a token to the recipient who pulls the application off the author's server and runs it. Less junk mail, more thought process. I like it, just keep the government out of it. I'm calling it TIMES for Token based Internet Messaging Standard. For more info, see the web site at www.vrbazaar.com/times/. Any college students want to take this up as a research project?

Cable modem access is about to be installed in my home. My city (Portland, Maine) is the third in the country to get this service from Time Warner. I must caution you about a little caveat – they are claiming to have 10 MBPS access. Be aware that this is per-segment speed. So, if everyone on your block is downloading GIFs at the same time, you might be wishing for your 28.8 modem.

-The Industry-

Does Microsoft's Internet Explorer 4.0 change the world? A little. Does it change the industry? A lot.

I've been using a beta for a couple weeks now, and it's clear they want to lift the wall between the local OS and the Internet. The entire computer is "browsable" and the browser is built at the OS level, not the application level as before. It alerts you when your favorite web sites have changed, and even downloads them while you're not using it. Further, you can have an "active desktop" by installing ActiveX objects directly as your desktop wallpaper and they are alive with your own customized web content. Neat, but I knew it was coming. This will force Netscape into niche playing within 18 months.

The next step is truly seamless integration between applications and applets that are somewhere else on the network. Microsoft will soon start delivering apps that are empowered like IE4 – "hot" libraries and programs that update dynamically. For example, imagine you're typing a document and you decide you want it translated to Italian. Clearly this is not a feature they should be shipping with each copy, but you could do some kind of "hot search" and instantly enable your program to do the conversion (for a small fee, of course).

The opportunities for entrepreneurs here are unlimited. Combining Microsoft's Channel Definition Format with their direction toward "hot" applications, just about any idea can be rapidly marketed and delivered. The CDF gives you a marketing vehicle and a delivery vehicle. If you happen to develop custom apps, new "wired" applications will give you an additional delivery vehicle. I also think we'll see ads in "wired" applications sometime soon. In much the same way a search engine like Yahoo! displays ads that are tuned to your search, an application might display ads that are geared to the work you're doing.

The industry is speeding up, not slowing down, and there are more business opportunities than ever. Please let me know what you're up to.

- About the Author-

A. Anthony Citrano, III is the former owner of Advantage Consulting Group in Portland, Maine and founder and former President of 3D Millennium Publishing of Portland, Maine, one of the first companies in the world to publish an electronic magazine on the Internet's World Wide Web. Over the years, he has appeared in national and local media as an expert on computers, telecommunications, the internet, and computer network security.

Citrano has appeared on NBC's Today Show, CNN Headline News, and several regional television stories. He has been featured in print mediums such as Inc. Magazine, The Seattle Times, Media Daily, East Side Week, Newsday, and more. He is a Contributing Editor for SYNAPSE Magazine and he authors business columns for Cybertown's Cybernews.

He currently works as Manager of Information Services for Maine Governor Angus King and he receives e-mail at: anthony@vrbazaar.com

Copyright 1997 - A. Anthony Citrano, III 1017 Words; First Serial Rights Granted to Cybernews / Cybertown