Aliza Sherman, a.k.a. Cybergrrl, has made it her mission to make more women comfortable with technology and active online. To that end, she's written a book for every woman who's ever considered connecting to the World Wide Web, even if her only experience with a computer is seeing one on somebody else's desk. Those with any computer experience at all will probably want to skip over elementary paragraphs here and there. But computer novices will appreciate that Sherman assumes almost no computer knowledge beyond the difference between a keyboard and a monitor. Better yet, she returns to the basics throughout the book so that readers who prefer to skip around to different topics can avoid confusion no matter where they start to read.
Although the book focuses primarily on the World Wide Web, Sherman doesn't ignore the rest of the online world. She provides an introduction to electronic bulletin boards, e-mail, Gopher, FTP, and commercial online services. She also addresses the myths of cyberspace hazards, providing safety tips, information on handling online pests, and ways to filter out objectionable material. Her explanatory material is non-jargonistic, clear, and sensible.
As Sherman gets deeper into what's available in cyberspace, the emphasis on women's interests grows. She offers frequent examples of the benefits of online life, told in the words of women who've experienced them. These include making friends, socializing when housebound, making professional connections, finding mutual support, exchanging information on social causes, and much more. Particularly interesting are the interviews with several of the Web's female pioneers. There's also a mini-directory of Web sites of particular interest to women, featuring topics as diverse as health, parenting, investing, sports, career, social causes, and literature.
From Publishers Weekly
Web-site creator and marketer Sherman, chosen by Newsweek magazine as one of the "50 people who matter [the] most on the Internet," presents this guide to help women and girls gain greater access to the Internet. Sherman herself initiated "the first search site for women's websites and information online called Femina at http://www.femina.com." Writing under her "online alter ego" Cybergrrl!, she provides a wealth of information for novice Netizens covering such basic topics as accessing the World Wide Web, e-mail, chat, safety tips, Netiquette and the necessary surfing hardware and software. One chapter is devoted entirely to girls, while several are concerned with issues of special interest to women, such as forums for expectant mothers and networking with other women. The irony of this successful effort to bring the Net closer to females is that the information here is basically generic, of virtually equal use to males. Those who get past the corny title will find this handy manual to be a great resource. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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