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Technology Stocks : COMS & the Ghost of USRX w/ other STUFF -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Moonray who wrote (13066)	2/25/1998 12:56:00 PM
From: jhild	Respond to of 22053

Caution: I visited their website, and found it loads about as fast as it takes an ICBM from Murmansk to reach the East Coast. Russian Army Goes From Front Line To Online 11.57 a.m. ET (1658 GMT) February 25, 1998 MOSCOW - The doors of Russia's long-secretive Defense Ministry creaked open on Wednesday when it launched its own Internet website after a battle between old-school officers and those with an eye on the future. "We operate a policy of openness at the Defense Ministry,'' a press service spokesman said by telephone. "We would prefer to issue our information direct to the public rather than have it distorted.'' As the four-color home page appears on the screen, visitors see the ministry's coat of arms, including the impressive Russian double-headed eagle, on a mottled brown background. The page title reads: "The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.'' To the left there are burnished gold click-on buttons offering links to sections on the ministry, Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev, his general staff, the structure of the armed forces, careers in the military, history and publications. So far the site (http://rian.ru/mo/mo.htm) is only in Russian but work is already under way to build new pages in other languages. The first should be ready later in the year. "We are trying to force the pace,'' the spokesman enthused. "But our problem is we have too few people who can work with the Internet. We are training military personnel to use it.'' He said the ministry also lacked the right equipment - a common problem in a vast, underfunded force already grappling with sweeping reforms, staff cuts and low morale. "Wired'' officers have been struggling for years to persuade more conservative colleagues to allow the site. "The simple fact that this home page has appeared on the world computer network is an extraordinary event,'' the daily newspaper Kommersant said. "For five years there was a battle inside the military organization.'' "Yes, of course that's the case,'' the ministry spokesman said. "But the point is that the Internet is the future. The more people get to know about each other the better.'' An important factor that seems to have tipped the balance was the growing list of official Russian websites, including one for President Boris Yeltsin and his Kremlin administration. Those hunting for secrets on the ministry site will be disappointed. Only non-classified material is being posted. Perhaps one day there will be links to other countries' sites. "You don't happen to know whether the U.S. Defense Department has a website?'' the spokesman asked. foxnews.com