A French Web site will begin offering books to download (for a fee) next month. According to a report on TechWeb, the site, oohoo.com will offer French classics, new works, and academic texts, for around US$2-3 apiece. Purchasers can read the work on their computer, print them out, or have the company print, then mail the work. The site intends to sidestep French law, which strictly controls the pricing of books, by claiming that each copy printed is a new edition, and not subject to regulation. The publisher hopes to have at least 300 titles available by the end of 1998.
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Where to send the donuts: Joining the entertainment-world trend set by such worthies as discovery.com and animalhouse.com, Real Entertainment, the producer of the television show COPS, has announced free email for users of its Web site. Users can impress their TV-fan friends with their very own @cops.com address, accessible whenever they log on to the site.(1.Apr.98)
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And chicks dig it: Television and video images may help soothe the ruffled feathers of caged hens and reduce their risk of accidental death, New Scientist magazine said on Wednesday.
Researchers at Scotland's Roslin Institute, where Dolly the sheep was cloned, showed hens and chicks video images for 10 minutes each day to see if it would calm their aggression. In just a few days they were hooked.
"As soon as the TV appears, they whiz across and spend time there," Roslin researcher Bryan Jones told the magazine. Images of fish and flying toasters had so far had the most calming effect.
The research is part of a British government-funded program to find ways of reducing animal aggression and anxiety, which can carry great commercial costs. (1.Apr.98)
