Whether in homes, businesses or schools, computers are potentially more powerful than ever because they can be linked to virtually any source of stored information through modems that convert data, like photos and text, into electronic signals. It does not have an operating system but would like to turn its Navigator browser into one. Netscape also hopes to outflank the PC by wiring other devices, such as phones and TVs, to the Net. Internet Explorer 3.0, developed in just six months and distributed free on the Net, is Microsoft's latest browsing tool. Expect a slicker enhanced version, Explorer 4.0, by Christmas.
Navigator still dominates the market and has tremendous loyalty among early users.
The Internet is like the phone system, which ties callers from around the world together via a web of data-transmission lines. On the Net, giant computers, called servers, are linked together via telephone lines and fiber-optic cable. TCI, Hearst and other companies are joining Netscape in an effort to develop their own hi-speed distribution system for the Web. The first trials of this technology will begin later this month. The real work on the Net is done by special server computers that ladle out data like line cooks in a cafeteria.