History of the Internet Hunt
----------------------------

The Internet Hunt was a idea that I got sometime in 1991 when I began
to realize the enormous variety and volume of information available
via what I will call the Net (Bitnet, Usenet, The Internet, etc.).

I have a fondess for exploring the Net, traversing little known
routes, and discovering valuable information resources.  I suspected
that others might as well.

I suppose my initial ideas were based on the type of search exam that
most library-school students have to go through during a class in
Basic Reference, namely, "Here's a set of questions, here's the
Library's reference collection.  Answer these questions.  You have one
hour"

Some of us enjoyed this type of challenge in library school.  We
called it "The Thrill of the Hunt".  I thought, "Why not try doing
something similar with the Net?"

I bounced the idea off a few people, most notably Paul Evan Peters,
and Craig Summerhill, both of the Coalition for Networked Information.
They had encouraging comments, and I set it aside as an interesting
project to work on... sometime.

Late this summer (1992), I got involved in a discussion on one of the
mail lists that I subscribe to.  The topic was formal vs. casual
instruction in training for network resources.  There were many who
felt that an all ecompassing guide to the Net, coupled with formal
classroom instruction was the best way to train Net users.

I came down squarely in the opposite camp, arguing that the wide
variety and extreme dynamism of the Net made it almost impossible to
pin down in this way, and that what we really needed to have people do
was "get their hands dirty".  Experience, I felt, was the only answer.

These thoughts resurrected my Network searching idea.  I had little
difficulty pulling together an extremely diverse set of questions.  I
picked a handful of listservs and newsgroups to send it to.  I named
it after our old library school challenge.

The Hunt was an immediate small success.  There were a few individuals
who enjoyed the challenge, but most Net users were interested in
getting their hands on the answers.  They wanted to see how the
explorers found their way around.

The Hunt has really accomplished two things:

1. It helps Net users to realize the vast and varied amounts of
information available on the Net.

2. It helps more novice users, or Net "settlers", understand how to
move around using the "trails" that the more experienced Hunt players
have "blazed".

Where does it go from here?  Your guess is as good as mine.  As long
as I always have a few players, I'll continue to take the time to dig
around and see what new resources I can uncover.  There's certainly
enough raw material out there.

Rick Gates - 1/5/93