On rare occasions, this reviewer feels the compelling need to be of some use to the SGS. For the most part, this consists of sending out copies of these reviews to the subject of the review. So far, reaction has been favorable and the Society has even gotten a few extra links out of it.

Last November, the Strategist carried my review of Jim Dunnigan's personal web site and his Hundred Years War enterprise. (By the way, the review was reprinted in the December issue. I thought it was a decent review, but I am not sure why George thought it warranted another go.) The review went to Durmigan who seemed pleased with it all, but he also suggested that I look at The Strategy Page (www.strategypage.com). Actually, I had considered throwing TSP into the Dunnigan piece, but decided against it, mostly for reasons involving sloth. Still, far be from me to ignore a suggestion from The Great One, so here goes:

While Dunnigan's reputation among wargamers results from his hundred or so designs, he is also a skilled writer and editor. Strategy & Tactics under his direction was always worth reading. His innovative ways of presenting military history, and his always interesting take on defense issues often saved the magazine when the ,game was a loser. It can be said that his writing and editing has a very distinctive look and feel, so much so that it is very easy to pick a Dunnigan S&T out from those created by lesser wargame beings. Simply compare his 3W issues with those before and after to see what is meant here.

Alas, Dunnigan long ago decided that his future lay outside wargame design, probably because of the monetary thing. Much of this effort revolves around writing books, an activity which never got too far at SPI. In addition, one can find vintage Dunnigan at StrategyWorld.com, a web site run by him, longtime cohort Al Nofi, and others. Strateg World includes both by the Hundred Years War (see November 1999) and The Strateg Page sites.

The Strategy Page combines Dunnigan style S&T material with the kinds of stuff found in his books. The web site is divided into several sections. These include FYEO-How to Make War which consists of news items concerning military issues, and FYEO-Quick and Dirty Guide to war, information on current military conflicts, no matter how obscure. (Did you know that there is currently a Maoist revolt in Nepal?) Entries in both sections tend to be short, updated almost daily, and highly searchable. Stephen V. Cole, of the paper newsletter For Your Eyes Only and Starfleet Battles fame, does the How to Make War section. For $25 per year, one can also subscribe to an email newsletter which updates both sections daily. Other site areas include Al Nofi's CIC newsletter which consists of short historical articles similar to those found in S&T, Intel Center (longer military history and wargaming articles), Dirty Little Secrets (articles on various topics, some of them strange), book reviews, military humor, discussion boards, and extensive links.

The wargame section focuses on computer games as Dunnigan continues to evolve further from his roots. M. Evans Brooks provides comprehensive game reviews, an anthology of military and economic games, lists of suggested games for the hobbyist and military professional, and a history of computer gaming innovation. The area also has a reconu-nended reading list, links, and two humor sections.

Finally, and perhaps the most interesting part of TSP, is the Team Trackless Page. In TTP's words: Team Trackless is a volunteer, unclassified effort to use commercial wargames to test new doctrine and tactics for the new "trackless" (wheeled armored vehicles) brigades the US Army is experimenting with. Team Trackless members are all warclamers, and many are wargame developers and military professionals. The purpose of Team Trackless is to see if we can develop a faster way mili tary professionals to test new ideas using off the shelf tools. The project page has all the requisite information for getting involved in the effort. Maybe our wargame obsession is not such a colossal waste of time after all.

Peter L. de Rosa plderosa@altavista.com Academic Gaming Review www.gis.net/~pldr/index.html