If she decides she wants someone else to facilitate the session, anannotated list of inhouse and outside facilitators is presented to choose from. The HTML hot links allow her to check their calendars for availability, check their fees, and phone or E-mail any of them immediately.

The entire session takes about one hour, and could have been done over several days, if she were interrupted during it, or chose to do it that way.

Any fees for the services used are charged to her Internet account, including fees associated with accessing fee sites such as the Centre for Creative Leadership, the video server, and the Covey Leadership Centre.

Still, for many companies, the explosive popularity of the Internet frightens as it attracts. History has shown that revolutionary technologies not only spark entire new industries, they also can topple seemingly entrenched ones. Besides, the resistance to change will always be present.

There is not a business in the world that shouldn't feel threatened, if it does not get on to the Internet. The credo is: Get linked or be left out. Sceptics abound. The Internet, they say, is chaotic, frustrating and intimidating. Only those lucky enough to be able to afford a high speed connection can really enjoy the multimedia side; for those using a modem it simply takes too long.

Finding what you want can be maddeningly slow; in an ocean of information, sense and understanding is often lost in a flood of random facts and rhetoric. Moreover, you need a computer equipped with some telecommunications link to use the Internet in the first place, which excludes many offices and homes. How many homes or offices have a PC and how many of these are connected to a phone?

All this may be true, but new software is making it easier to use computers and surf the Net. Hundreds of companies are developing software and services to make sense of the sea of data available online. Equipment is becoming more widely available and above all, costs are falling. And most important of all the services of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited, who are the Internet Service Providers, are improving. Their collaboration with telephone companies is also on the upswing. VSNL now has a corporate culture.

Whoever you are, you can be a part of the Internet. And once you're connected, you can behold the fabulous sites in cyberspace. Some suggestions: keep trying when you're frustrated, keep looking when you can't find it, and keep your sense of humour. You probably couldn't ride a bicycle perfectly the first time you tried either!

The world of the Internet is immense, and so, too, is the body of information about it. The biggest task is sorting out what you, the new Internet user, most needed to know to get started. There is a listing of resources available it gives you places to look for even more information.

Hopefully, you're excited about further adventures. You are yourself with a map, the rules of the road, and the keys to the kingdom. And then enjoy your Internet journey!

The world has never seen a technology like this before. The concept of `Data Dialtone' will happen. Networking as widespread as the telephone and as indispensable.

E-Mail: bhavani@bom6.vsnl.net.in.