Saying the words "Information Superhighway" to a computer professional, will generally bring you a smirk, since it is a phrase which really means nothing at all. It is much more useful to talk about actual networks and technologies that can be used today than it is to discuss high-concept metaphors.

So what does this have to do with wargaming the American Civil War? Well, there is a network out there called the Internet, and it carries a service called Usenet. And one corner of it is reserved for us. Seeing that the only barrier to having The Zouave distributed electronically to each of us with full-color scenario maps and photos is the fact that we don't all have the equipment at home yet. It is a good idea to start looking ahead to the future when we will. The ancients wargaming community is somewhat ahead of us, with the semi-weekly publication, The Electronic Hoplite, which recently published its one hundredth issue. It is only a matter of time before this publication is electronic as well, or at least has an electronic sister.

I'm not going to cover in detail how one gets access to the Internet, beyond saying that most commercial subscription services can provide access. Universities and community colleges also will give access to students (and non-students for a small fee). There are also users groups in many cities now that have banded together to sell their own access. In short, you have to look around, but it really isn't that big of a deal. There are literally dozens of ways to do it. The key phrase to ask your subscription service/system administrator/local college/local users group/computer store salesman is,"How can I get access to the Usenet newsgroups on the Internet?" Other Internet answers can be obtained from the book The Whole Internet, published by O'Reilly and Assoc.

Our corner of Usenet is called rec.games.miniatures. We currently share it with all the miniatures games; this includes fantasy, science fiction, Napoleonics, etc. The reason for this is that ACW gamers just don't generate enough traffic on our own to warrant our own group. All of these gamers co-exist pretty well, though; rec.games.miniatures is an extremely well-mannered group (compared to, say, talk.politics.mideast).

Rec.games.miniatures is a news group. This means that someone will post an article with a request for information, some unsolicited information that might be useful, or a response to a request. For example, an article might be titled, "HIS:ACW - Who Makes the Best 15mm Berdans?". The body of the article would say, "I'm trying to do the Johnny Reb scenario for Pitzer's Run. What 15mm Berdans are available, and what do you think of them?" You then post the article. (The actual mechanics of how you go about posting an article will differ according to what type of access you have to the Net).

It will appear world-wide in a couple of hours. You will then (hopefully) get a response either in the newsgroup, or via direct e-mail from some other hobbyist. And there are some pretty good human resources out there! Although the ACW community on the Net is fairly small at this point (compared to Ancients or the Command Decision folks, both of whom have their own electronic newsletters) -- it is certainly healthy. And you get a world-wide audience!

Rules

Like anything else, there are rules to be followed. The biggest one is to use the correct header information in your title. It should always start "HIS:ACW". That way, everyone knows that this article is directed at historical gamers interested in the American Civil War. Other categories are: "HIS:NAP" (Napoleonics), "GW:WFB" (Warhammer Fantasy Battles), "TERRAIN:" (general terrain, of interest to all), etc. If you make a mistake, it is okay; you are among friends here. But try to follow the rules.

Another rule that you need to keep in mind is the distribution field of your article. "HIS:ACW - Opinions Wanted for On to Richmond" is an article that should be posted world-wide. But "HIS:ACW - Any Fire & Fury players in St. Paul?" should only be distributed locally, since folks in New Zealand aren't really going to be interested in it. The specifics of your distribution feature will vary according to the software that you use for accessing the Internet. Just keep in mind that it exists.

Another thing to keep in mind is the nature of the media. As our normal interactions are mostly verbal, most people don't realize how much we all depend on non-verbal cues for meaning. Consequently, it becomes very easy to misconstrue the meaning of an article, especially when it comes to irony or humor. Once, in a polite gentleman's disagreement on some subject, I wrote "Now I'll leave you with the last word on this issue so we can move on to other things." My intent was to say, "You can have the last response." But the other guy read it as "I am the final authority on this subject; i.e., the last word." So be slow to take offense; usually the other person just expressed himself or herself poorly. And it doesn't hurt to put a smiley face (:-) or a big grin in your response either, to make your intent clear. Example: "My favorite part of Johnny Reb is the 'Listen for the Confederate boot squeekage phase. (:-)' " This indicates a certain fondness for the rules, while pointing out that they might be a little detailed for some. In short, a smile can change the meaning of a sentence, just like in real life!

A final note: It is always a good idea to include your Internet I.D. in your note. Some folks don't like to post to the Net, but they will send you a response directly. Here's hoping to see you on rec.games.miniatures, boosting the HIS:ACW traffic!

This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com