[no save] .xgw-vgx, -gg xx -qgb. -qg- xx dM' !#I MM .... ....... ... |MM#. |M .... _MM__ MM MM !#"'q#, MMP"## MM |M'MM,|M dMP"`Mb MM MM. ... MM dgP'TM| MM` MM |M 'qM+M MM---"" MM 'M#,.,+P MM MM..dM|. MM MM |M YMM vMb..gy qMLjg ""` """"` '""`'"" """"` """"` """" '" '"" '"" ------------------------------------------------------------- C o m m u n i c a t i o n s C o r p. 124 King St. N., Waterloo, Ontario, N2J 2X8 800/USE-NETS What is ClariNet? ClariNet is a new electronic publishing network service that provides professional news and information, including live UPI wireservice news, in the USENET file format. ClariNet lets you read an "electronic newspaper" right on your own computer. You can also get timely computer industry news, technology related wirestories, syndicated columns and features, financial information, stock quotes and more. ClariNet gives you scores of professionally produced newsgroups for about the same price as the analogous paper publications -- but without advertising. Instead of dialing up to an online service with a slow modem to read online news, you get it delivered to your own machine, to read and search at your own convenience, with your own favourite tools, on your own high speed terminal -- and there's no meter running while you read. ClariNet news is provided using the USENET message interchange format, and available via UUCP and other delivery protocols. These formats are supported by a variety of packages for Unix and other systems. If you're already on USENET, you're ready to receive ClariNet with no extra effort. If you're not on USENET, we can help you get newsreading software, usually for free. How does it work? At ClariNet, we licence publications of all sorts for electronic distribution. For example, we collect news directly off the UPI wire, classify it and convert it into USENET format. In turn, generated articles are fed out on a regular basis to the UUNET hub machine, Anterior's Bay Area USENET hub and many other distribution points. You pick them up in USENET format and pay a subscription fee based on the number of readers at your site. (UUNET is a non-profit firm that exists to provide communications services to the Unix/USENET community. They have the highest-capacity system of this type, which is why we buy their services. Anterior runs a similar for-profit service in the SF Bay area.) You read your news using USENET newsreading tools. Small volume publications can also be sent via electronic mail. To ClariNews subscribers, we provide free use of the NewsClip programming language. This lets you filter your newsreading as finely as you desire. With special permission, you can even feed ClariNet publications to other sites -- in fact, we'll pay you to do this. Feed enough sites and your subscriptions will be free. What are the publications? ClariNews -- our "electronic newspaper," gathered live from the wire services of United Press International (UPI). ClariNews articles are distributed in one hundred newsgroups based on their subject matter, and are keyworded for additional topics and the geographical location of the story. ClariNews has everything from headlines to industry news to box scores to network TV schedules. ClariNews is divided into three main products: ClariNews-General -- our general news"paper" with news, sports and features. All major news, sports, weather and UPI feature articles, plus limited business and science/technology coverage. Coverage of US and international news, Washington and more. Around 400 stories per day, but categorized and headlined to help you read only what you want to read. Get your news and sports scores long before they show up in your daily newspaper. Also available is ClariNews-Canada, with regular newsbriefs on Canadian stories -- usually hard to find in the USA. For expatriate Canadians this is a must. TechWire -- special groups for stories on science and technology and the industries around them. Computers, Electronics, Telecom, Space, Aerospace, Defence, Biotechnology, Research, Education, AIDS and more. Around 30-40 stories/day. Coming soon: A daily report of the stock prices of computer industry stocks. ClariNews-Biz -- Business and financial stories. Economic indicators, corporate news, regular stock market reports, legal issues, government info, commodities and much more. Around 150 stories/day Newsbytes -- a daily computer industry newsmagazine, on your computer well before InfoWorld or PC Week can be on your desk. Gathered from 11 bureaus around the world. Newsbytes covers the IBM, Apple, Unix, Telecom and general computing worlds, along with coverage of trends, legal issues, industry news and reviews of new products. Delivered each business day. A delayed version, delivered weekly, is available in some areas at a reduced cost. Syndicated Columns -- ClariNet offers the finest in syndicated columns and features. Currently we offer: Dave Barry - America's Best Humour Columnist Mike Royko - Top rated opinion columnist Miss Manners - Light hearted advice on etiquette Kinsey Report - Q&A and information on sex Dozens of other features come with the UPI report. We want to bring more -- tell us what you like! Syndicated features are available via E-mail or Newsgroup. The full list of newsgroups is posted monthly to news.groups within the list of "Alternate Newsgroup Hierarchies." You can also find it at the end of this document. What does it cost? ClariNet publications can be purchased either with single subscriptions (for 1 or 2 people) or with a "site" subscription that covers your computer, LAN or facility. Each product has a "base price" that is the cost for 1 or 2 readers. For site subscriptions, we calculate a subscriber count based on the networking population of your site. Send us your best estimate of the number of people who read any kind of electronic news on your computer, including local discussions, and we can provide a quote. The more subscribers you have, the less you pay per subscriber -- as much as 88% less. Here are the base prices for the products, along with the percentages we use in calculating subscriber counts. If you don't currently use any form of electronic news, tell us the general user population of your systems, and we will work from that. Product Base Price Site Licence Percentage Full ClariNews $28/month 20% (Special Discount Ramp) News/Sports/Features $11/month 20% Canada $5/month 20% TechWire $11/month 25% Business News $16/month 15% N/S/F + TechWire $19/month 25% Daily Newsbytes $10/month 20% Typical Synd Column $9.95/year 30% (Available by E-mail) All Synd Columns $29.95/year 25% Packages ALL Products $35/month 25% (Special Discount Ramp) All but TechWire & Business News $22/month 20% As an example, here are the "site subscription" prices on these publications for a system with 100 netreaders. All prices are in US dollars per month: Product Price/Month Price/Netreader/Month ClariNews-General $91.3 $0.91 TechWire $102.3 $1.02 NewsBytes $83 $0.83 TechWire+NewsBytes $167.40 $1.67 Typical Synd. Column $9.62 $0.09 All Synd Columns $23.96 $0.24 ClariNews-ALL $162 $1.62 Everything! $203 $2.03 Prices are subject to change without notice to non-subscribers Write to info@clarinet.com for an exact quote. Prices are in U.S. Dollars. Discounts available on UPI info for non-US sites. Please note that Canadian customers must add G.S.T. after Jan 1. EDUCATIONAL PRICES: ClariNet educational prices provide a site licence for the entire campus. You can distribute it as you like within the campus (except to the newspapers or radio/TV station) -- even archive it in a full text search database for your library or use it within your school of journalism. The price is based on the full time enrollment of the institution: Under 5,000 $175/month 5,000 to 20,000 $350/month 20,000 and up $580/month (Borderline schools are judged based on how heavily networked they are.) SAMPLE PRICES: Here are some sample site licence prices for the package of all current products at different "networker" counts. For sites of more than 2 people, the 15-networker minimum applies. Networkers Price/month 15 (minimum) $52.50 25 $87.5 50 $133 100 $203 (as above) 150 $255 200 $308 500 $623 1,000 $1,043 (only ~$1 per user!) Can I see what it looks like? We'll be glad to give you a free two-week trial of any product, with no obligation. If you already connect to UUNET or another authorized feed site, we can set a trial up for you almost immediately, with no effort on your part. If you're not satisfied with the products at the end of the trial, send back the invoice (even by e-mail) and you will be charged nothing. "Keep those first issues as our gift to you." :-) Sample articles are posted regularly to the USENET group "biz.clarinet.sample." Contact us for more. What about feeding other sites? USENET works by having one site in an area feed other sites. ClariNet can work that way too. If you apply for permission, and you have the capacity to do it reliably, we will let you feed other sites. In fact, we'll pay you to do this by reducing your subscription fees by 10% of the fees we charge the sites you feed directly. You can either register with us to feed sites, or you can go out and find possible subscribers amongst the sites you already know. If you do that, we'll discount your price even further. Feed 7-10 similar sized sites in this manner and your subscription will be free. How do I subscribe? If you need more information, mail to info@clarinet.com. If you want an electronic order form and the full sheet of terms and conditions, mail to order@clarinet.com. You can also phone 800-USE-NETS or 519-884-7473. E-mail is easiest, but you may wish to use the phone to talk in person or give confidential information like UUCP connect info or credit card numbers. Internet users should be aware that certain commercial messages may not be appropriate for transmission over the internet. You can pay by check or credit card, or we can invoice site subscribers. There is a $1 discount per invoice if you allow electronic mail invoicing and pay promptly. We take Visa, MasterCard and Amex. You can also write to us at: ClariNet Communications Corp. 124 King St. N. Waterloo, ON N2J 2X8 How do I get a feed? Two easy places are UUNET and Anterior (Fernwood). Write to postmaster@uunet.uu.net for details on how to become a customer of theirs. They provide cheap communications, but do charge a $35/month administrative fee on top of their telecom charges. After that, they can feed you anywhere in the USA for as little as $5/hour. Fernwood has a $30/month administration fee and $1.90/hr rates for Palo Alto area customers. Write to postmaster@fernwood.mpk.ca.us. You can also get a feed from one of our existing customers in your area. Our net is growing. Contact us to see if we have a feed site in an area that you can call. You can also get a live feed over the Internet, if you are an authorized internet user. So long as the material has a valid educational or research use at your site, this is in fact what the Internet is for. If there is no feed point suitable for you, we will keep you on file and inform you when one shows up. Mail feeds are possible for very small publications like syndicated columns. On the other hand, the individual sending requirements can make this sort of arrangement expensive. In addition, you should be sure you have the permission of the sites that will pass the mail on to you. Do I really need more stuff to read? No. But we do think you can use your time better when you read professionally written and classified information -- information worth paying for. With NewsClip you can arrange so that each article you see is important to you and worth reading. Compare that to the time you spend on USENET or online services -- it might actually save you time and money. In fact, ClariNet could be the best reason to run USENET software on your machine -- or something that makes it even more worthwhile to all levels of your company. What are the terms and conditions? ClariNet products are offered under special terms. If you wish to subscribe, we'll send you the full sheet of terms and conditions. In general, the terms state that: You must not interfere with the operation of the ClariNet network (no forged control messages etc.) You must respect copyright, and not allow unauthorized access. You must pay your subscription fees on time. Some products may not be archived forever. (This does not apply to any current products) The rules are subject to change with 30 days notice. Customers may not re-sell or re-publish ClariNet products. (Some limited use on fee paying BBSs is allowed.) Articles must be kept intact. ClariNet is not responsible for information provided by outside information providers. Most products are offered on an as-is basis. (UPI is as-is) Customers are responsible for the cost of communication from a ClariNet feedpoint to their computer. What are the advantages of ClariNet? Many online services offer you electronic publications, including live newswires. The difference with ClariNet is that we deliver it to your computer. You don't have to dial up and read it with a 2400 bps modem, with a meter running. You get to read your news on your own machine, on your own time, and on your own high speed terminal. The subscription fee is quite low. General ClariNews at $10 a month is a bargain compared to many online services, where that $10 would buy less than an hour of newsreading per month. Best of all, the price is fixed, and can be fixed for several months in advance -- no hidden costs -- it's easy to budget. How can I handle 500 new articles of news each day? You can search the news on your own machine with your own tools. ClariNews is quite large, and you would not be expected to read all of it, just as you don't read all of a daily paper. Because ClariNews is headlined by professional editors, all it takes is a simple "=' (in RN) to make a quick scan of the headlines. Then pick and choose the stories you like. Or use a NewsClip filter program. ClariNews is highly keyworded. You can arrange to see only articles that describe topics, people places or companies that you are interested. Want to see only the computer stories that mention Sun Microsystems? -- no problem. There are hundreds of different keywords that the editors place on each article. Topics from AIDS to child abuse to televangelism to inflation to gun control can be tracked. Or, if it's just too much news, simply select our "TOP" news categories and get only the leading stories of the day, plus whatever special groups you have interest in. Our top news categories cover the type of news you would find in the first few pages of the news, sports, international and business sections of a typical newspaper. How fast can I get the news? We get the news right as it comes off the wire, and deliver it to UUNET within an hour. If you call UUNET regularly, or have an internet connection, you can get the news as it happens. Most evening papers close out just after noon. Many morning papers close out at midnight. ClariNews stories will beat the papers for you every time. NewsBytes closes after PC Week and InfoWorld and comes out before they are printed. That's the advantage of electronic news. Can I buy NewsClip without ClariNet? Yes! NewsClip is now available as Evalu-Ware. It was posted to comp.sources.misc, and can be 'ftp'd from uunet's ~ftp directory in the file ClariNet/nc.tar.Z What if my site can't join but users want to subscribe? If your sysadmin is willing to put the "clari" news articles in a special "group" that can only be read by people we authorize, we will be glad to bill individual users or groups of users. The discounts apply to each billing unit. (So if everybody wants to be billed individually, each pair pays the base price, but you can combine for a discount.) On small sites, even this security measure is not required. Check with your library to see if they have a standard policy on ordering publications. Finally, if due to budget bureaucracy you find that you can buy software but not electronic news, we can arrange to sell you NewsClip and give you ClariNet free.... (sigh). What if I don't have a Unix system? There are software packages available that handle USENET format news for many different operating systems. There are even a couple of free/shareware packages for the IBM-PC. You can arrange to ship your news to your IBM-PC at home or on the road, if desired. What more information can I get? Write to info@clarinet.com for more information. Here are some of the files of information that we have. Many of these files duplicate what's said in this file, however. feed - How to become a site that feeds other sites newsclip - Details on the NewsClip language order - How to place an order prices - Prices and user counts for ClariNet products (Note that we need the size of your site for a quote) techwire - Description of TechWire terms - Terms, conditions and network rules newsbytes - Description of NEWSBYTES computer news feature - Further info on syndicated columns For full samples, see the group 'biz.clarinet.sample' which regularly samples different groups from within ClariNet, or request a trial subscription of any groups you are interested in. If you can't get biz.clarinet.sample, or would like a set of samples from some group mailed to you, let us know. Regular Features: Aside from the expected stock & business reports, news briefs and sports page statistics that you find in every newspaper, here are some of the regular features you will also find in ClariNews: Editorial samples from around the USA. "Roadtalk" Car reviews "Backstairs at the White House" Religion Computer reviews Weather "Quirks in the News" "Today's People" Book Reviews & Best Selling Books Record Reviews & Charts Jazz Column "Broadway Boxscore" Almanac (This day in History, etc.) TV Highlights, TV Column & Neilsen Ratings "Scott's World" (Entertainment column) Video Reviews, Charts & First run box-office charts Sports Digest & Sports Transactions Baseball Scounting column & "Baseball Central" People in Business & This week in Business "The Past is Present" (Business perspective column) "Worth Mentioning" and "New products on the market" (Biz) ... and more ... Here is the list of current ClariNet groups: clari ClariNet Electronic Publication Newsgroups clari.news ClariNet UPI general news wiregroups clari.news.hot Temporary groups for hot news stories clari.biz ClariNet UPI business news wiregroups clari.sports ClariNet UPI sports wiregroups clari.tw ClariNet UPI technology related news wiregroups clari.nb ClariNet Newsbytes Information service Newsgroups clari.net ClariNet non-news newsgroups clari.canada ClariNet broadcast style news about Canada clari.feature Feature columns and products clari.feature.dave_barry Columns of humourist Dave Barry clari.feature.mike_royko Chicago Opinion Columnist Mike Royko clari.feature.miss_manners Judith Martin's Humourous Etiquette Advice clari.feature.kinsey Sex Q&A and Advice from Kinsey Institute clari.canada.newscast Regular newscast for Canadians clari.canada.briefs Regular updates of Canadian News in Brief clari.canada.briefs.ont News briefs for Ontario and Toronto clari.canada.briefs.west News briefs for Alberta, the Prairies & B.C. clari.canada.politics Political and election items clari.canada.gov Government related news (all levels) clari.canada.law Crimes, the courts and the law. clari.canada.trouble Mishaps, accidents and serious problems clari.canada.features Alamanac, Ottawa Special, Arts clari.canada.general Short items on Canadian News stories clari.canada.biz Canadian Business Summaries clari.tw.aerospace Aerospace industry and companies clari.tw.computers Computer industry, applications and developments clari.tw.defense Defense industry issues clari.tw.education Stories involving Universities & colleges clari.tw.electronics Electronics makers and sellers clari.tw.environment Environmental news, hazardous waste, forests clari.tw.health Disease, medicine, health care, sick celebs clari.tw.health.aids AIDS stories, research, political issues clari.tw.misc General technical industry stories clari.tw.nuclear Nuclear power & waste clari.tw.science General science stories clari.tw.space NASA, Astronomy & spaceflight clari.tw.stocks Regular reports on computer & technology stock prices clari.tw.telecom Phones, Satellites, Media & general Telecom clari.biz.commodity Commodity news and price reports clari.biz.courts Lawsuits and business related legal matters clari.biz.economy Economic news and indicators clari.biz.economy.world Economy stories for non-US countries clari.biz.features Business feature stories clari.biz.finance Finance, currency, Corporate finance clari.biz.finance.earnings Earnings & dividend reports clari.biz.finance.personal Personal investing & finance clari.biz.finance.services Banks and financial industries clari.biz.invest News for investors clari.biz.labor Strikes, unions and labor relations clari.biz.market General stock market news clari.biz.market.amex American Stock Exchange reports & news clari.biz.market.dow Dow Jones NYSE reports clari.biz.market.ny NYSE reports clari.biz.market.otc NASDAQ reports clari.biz.market.report General market reports, S&P, etc. clari.biz.mergers Mergers and acquisitions clari.biz.misc Other business news clari.biz.products Important new products & services clari.biz.top Top business news clari.biz.urgent Breaking business news clari.nb.apple Newsbytes Apple/Macintosh news clari.nb.business Newsbytes business & industry news clari.nb.general Newsbytes general computer news clari.nb.govt Newsbytes legal and government computer news clari.nb.ibm Newsbytes IBM PC World coverage clari.nb.review Newsbytes new product reviews clari.nb.telecom Newsbytes telecom & online industry news clari.nb.trends Newsbytes new developments & trends clari.nb.unix Newsbytes Unix news clari.net.admin Announcements for news admins at ClariNet sites clari.net.announce Announcements for all ClariNet readers clari.net.products New ClariNet products clari.net.talk Discussion of ClariNet -- only unmoderated group clari.news.almanac Daily almanac - quotes, 'this date in history' etc. clari.news.arts Stage, drama & other fine arts clari.news.aviation Aviation industry and mishaps clari.news.books Books & publishing clari.news.briefs Regular news summaries clari.news.bulletin Major breaking stories of the week clari.news.canada News related to Canada clari.news.children Stories related to children and parenting clari.news.consumer Consumer news, car reviews etc. clari.news.demonstration Demonstrations around the world clari.news.disaster Major problems, accidents & natural disasters clari.news.economy General economic news clari.news.election News regarding both US and international elections clari.news.entertain Entertainment industry news & features clari.news.europe News related to Europe clari.news.features Unclassified feature stories clari.news.fighting Clashes around the world clari.news.flash Ultra-important once-a-year news flashes clari.news.goodnews Stories of success and survival clari.news.gov General Government related stories clari.news.gov.agency Government agencies, FBI etc. clari.news.gov.budget Budgets at all levels clari.news.gov.corrupt Government corruption, kickbacks etc. clari.news.gov.international International government-related stories clari.news.gov.officials Government officials & their problems clari.news.gov.state State government stories of national importance. clari.news.gov.taxes Tax laws, trials etc. clari.news.gov.usa US Federal government news. (High volume) clari.news.group Special interest groups not covered in their own group clari.news.group.blacks News of interest to black people clari.news.group.gays Homosexuality & Gay Rights. clari.news.group.jews Jews & Jewish interests. clari.news.group.women Women's issues and abortion clari.news.hot.east_europe News from Eastern Europe clari.news.hot.iraq Gulf Crisis news clari.news.interest Human interest stories clari.news.interest.animals Animals in the news clari.news.interest.history Human interest stories & history in the making clari.news.interest.people Famous people in the news clari.news.interest.people.column Daily "People" column -- tidbits on celebs clari.news.interest.quirks Unusual or funny news stories clari.news.issues Stories on major issues not covered in their own group. clari.news.issues.civil_rights Freedom, Racism, Civil Rights Issues clari.news.issues.conflict Conflict between groups around the world clari.news.issues.family Family, Child abuse, etc. clari.news.labor Unions, strikes clari.news.labor.strike Strikes clari.news.law General group for law related issues clari.news.law.civil Civil trials & litigation clari.news.law.crime Major crimes clari.news.law.crime.sex Sex crimes and trials clari.news.law.crime.trial Trials for criminal actions clari.news.law.crime.violent Violent crime & criminals clari.news.law.drugs Drug related crimes & drug stories clari.news.law.investigation Investigation of crimes clari.news.law.police Police & law enforcement clari.news.law.prison Prisons, prisoners & escapes clari.news.law.profession Lawyers, Judges etc. clari.news.law.supreme U.S. Supreme court rulings & news clari.news.lifestyle Fashion, leisure etc. clari.news.military Military equipment, people & issues clari.news.movies Reviews, news and stories on movie stars. clari.news.music Reviews and issues concerning music & musicians. clari.news.politics Politicians & politics. clari.news.politics.people Politicians & Political Personalities clari.news.religion Religion, religious leaders, televangelists clari.news.sex Sexual issues, sex-related political stories clari.news.terrorism Terrorist actions & related news around the world clari.news.top Top US news stories clari.news.top.world Top international news stories clari.news.trends Surveys and trends. clari.news.trouble Less major accidents, problems & mishaps clari.news.tv TV schedules, news, reviews & stars. clari.news.urgent Major breaking stories of the day clari.news.weather Weather and temperature reports clari.sports.baseball Baseball scores, stories, games, stats clari.sports.basketball Basketball coverage clari.sports.features Sports feature stories clari.sports.football Pro football coverage clari.sports.hockey NHL coverage clari.sports.misc Other sports, plus general sports news clari.sports.motor Racing, Motor Sports clari.sports.tennis Tennis news & scores clari.sports.top Top sports news biz.clarinet Announcements about ClariNet biz.clarinet.sample Samples of ClariNet newsgroups for the outside world