Start you Internet business!
Imagine that every site in your local library were actually a gateway to another library and that each of those libraries had another two to fifty times as many volumes as the first one. That’s what makes the Internet such a treasure trove of information for your business. For starters, the Internet provides
■ Access to the Library of Congress and just about every major university library in the United States
■ Business-oriented databases such as Commerce Business Daily, the Federal Register, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Bulletin Board
■ U.S. and Canadian Census data
■ Supreme Court decisions
■ World health statistics
■ Security and Exchange Commission corporate financial reports
■ International weather forecasts (including up-to-the-hour satellite pictures)
■ United Nations information
■ And even transcripts of daily White House press briefings
The Internet has more than statistical data, however. The network’s lifeblood is its widely varying and often freewheeling discussion forums, split between public bulletin boards (called Usenet) and private electronic mailing lists. Both offer forums packed with experts discussing new developments in their fields. There are Internet discussion groups about almost anything you can think of— chemical engineering, entrepreneurship, computer programming, franchise opportunities, Eastern European trade and politics, semiconductor manufacturing, continuing employee education, and over 10,000 other forums.