Valerie Cowan Surfs the Net

THE internet is growing all the time - and as anyone who has wasted an hour of online time searching fruitlessly for a particular site, it seems to be getting harder and harder to navigate.

New research seems to indicate that it really IS getting more difficult.

The study from NEC Research Institute in Princeton, New Jersey, says that only one sixth of the web can be found via a search engine, dramatically down from a third in a 1998 survey.

It seems that search engines simply cannot keep up with the deluge of new pages, which include thousands of personal sites added every day and, of course, business sites set up by companies eager to capture a slice of the boom in e-commerce.

Top of the list of 11 search engines was Northern Light, with 16%, but this is a great deal less than the top search engine last year, Hotbot, with 34%.

Costs of maintaining databases was blamed on the limited numbers, with the survey showing that there were now over 800 million searchable pages on the net.

The survey also showed that on average it takes six months for a new website to be indexed by a search engine.

Keep in touch with new phone

THE launch by BT of a multimedia payphone last week is good news.

The new phones, called Multiphone, will allow access to the internet and e-mail via a touch screen as well as ordinary telephone calls. The first was unveiled at Waterloo Railway Station in London. By March there should be 1,000 dotted around the country, at airports, motorway service areas and shopping centres.

Some services will be free - including access to train timetables, local area maps and news and sport.

Internet use will cost 10p a minute with a minimum charge of £1.

Malcolm Newing, director of BT Payphones, said: "While most people are aware of the internet and e-mail , this is the first time that everyone in the UK will have the opportunity to use online services 24 hours a day - whether or not they have access to a computer at home, school or in the office.

"Even better, the touch screen ensures that the Multiphone is easy to use, even by those who have never used a computer before."

Like I have said before, anything which improves access to the web is welcome.

Of course, BT could improve access even more simply by slashing the cost of calls to internet service providers - or making them free.

Site to cause a stir

COFFEE parlours are supposed to be the new pubs. US sitcoms like Frasier and Friends focus on a coffee house, with not a drop of alcohol in sight.

And the idea is becoming more popular in Britain, with specialist coffee bars opening in city centres around the country.

In the absence of your own branch of Central Perk, log onto Smell the Coffee, an online community for people who love coffee.

There are recipes for the perfect cappuccino and the perfect pastry to go with it, information about coffee from around the world and games to play while you're enjoying a cup. You can also chat to fellow coffee addicts online.

http://www.smellthecoffee.com/

Woodland Trust now online

IF you are looking for a day out during the summer holidays the Woodland Trust's new website should give you a few ideas.

The site has details of more than 900 sites around the country with exact map references and parking details. There's also an in-depth look at one woodland - until the end of the month it's one in Wales.

There is also information on the trust's stance on environmental issues, including genetic modification, badger culling and global warming. And of course there is details of how you can help the trust, a registered charity, conserve the UK's woodlands.

http://www.woodland-trust.org.uk

Des in res on the net

ANY celebrity worth his or her salt has their own web page these days.

But I was still surprised to find that Des O'Connor, perma-tanned chat show host and crooner, is officially online.

And I was even more surprised to find it while looking for comedians on a search engine.

His site is currently being updated to tie in with the new series of Des O'Connor Tonight.

But in the meantime there's a full discography, should you wish to fill in the gaps in your record collection.

http://www.des-oconnor.com/

Seen something interesting on the web? Let me know. Send an e-mail to vcowan@lancashire.newsquest.co.uk

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.