OnLine of Departure

Anyone publishing a magazine is presented with an interesting dilemma: how do you use the Web? One can simply put the entire print issue up on a web site, rationalizing that it is in a form different enough so that it does not compete with the hard copy version. Others, like The Game Report, do this, but wait for a year or so before posting. Some publications, such as Slate, appear online only and are available by subscription. Another model is using the Web to advertise the product. Some periodicals offer only parts of an issue, hoping to entice readers with their samples. Finally, the web site can be used to complement the print edition. James Werbaneth's OnLine of Departure members.aol.com/jwerbaneth/lod/lod.html) follows this model.

Werbaneth designed Inchon and Britain Stands Alone, developed games for Spearhead Games, and has written extensively on wargaming and military history. He may be best known for his Firepower series in the General. He also publishes Line of Departure, a board and computer wargaming review and analysis publication. LOD features game reviews which usually have more depth and context than normal in the genre. It also provides industry news, scenarios, variants, and strategy articles. In print since 1991, LOD is available from Werbaneth for $20 for four issues (POBox 508, Gibsonia, PA 15044).

OnLine of Departure supplements his print offerings. There is a comprehensive article index, the current issue's editorial, a subscription form and information, and the obligatory links. He also includes errata for games he has designed and developed. Finally, Werbaneth uses the site to expand his computer coverage. While LOD does review computer games, it is difficult to offer scenarios for them in a paper format. Hence, he publishes scenarios for computer simulations in downloadable form on the web site, after discussing them in the magazine. Right now, there are two scenarios for the Wargame Construction Set II: Tanks, and six scenarios for Talonsoft's Age of Sail. Since his interests range over most periods and forms of wargaming, it is safe to guess that more will follow. Overall, Werbaneth has found a good way to publicize his interesting publication and to give added value to subscribers.

The Military Web Ring

By any definition, the 20th Century is an age of specialization. People tend to get better at doing less and less. This dictum applies to military related hobbies, such as wargaming which itself divides into board, miniatures, RPG, CCG, and computer factions. In fact, the easiest way to start a flame war on Consim-L or some other group is to proclaim the innate superiority of one version over the others. In addition, there are many veterans, active duty personnel, collectors, buffs, merchants, current affairs analysts, and historians with a strong interest in military affairs.

The sheer size and scope of the Internet has enabled all of these groups to find comfortable niches for pursuing their interests. While the Web may bring people together, it often does so in discrete groupings. The Military Web Ring, at www.wargame.com/mwr.shtml, attempts to defy this trend. Simply put, the ring is open to any site which has a military theme. Although it only has thirty-three members for now, it offers a wider selection of site types than is normally found in other web rings. Members include virtually all of the kinds of interests mentioned in the preceding paragraph, and no one type predominates. In short, the ring, small as it is, has at least succeeded in attracting a variety of people united only by their interest in military topics.

Such an undertaking defies the current specialized mindset, prevalent both in society as a whole and on the Internet itself. The situation may prevent the Military Ring from ever reaching the size of the 250+ member Wargamer's Ring, but contrarians would do well to hope for its success. Society can never have enough Renaissance men, and uniting the smaller interest groups is as good a place to start as any.