RELATIONSHIP THAT STARTED ON THE ROCKS 
HAS LED TO A PUBLISHING GOLD MINE

	CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., June 11 -- What began as "sweat" labor
-- lugging rocks to a drainage ditch -- has evolved into a
publishing collaboration that has produced multiple bestsellers on
World Wide Web topics.  In the newly published "The 10 Secrets for
Web Success," the authors reveal themes that have allowed such
pioneers as Yahoo founders David Filo and Jerry Yang to become a
major presence in the electronic communications medium.  (Yahoo is a
Web indexing system.)
	Written by Bryan Pfaffenberger, an associate professor in
the division of technology, culture and communication at the
University of Virginia's School of Engineering and Applied Science,
and David Wall, a U.Va. graduate, the book offers more than
practical advice on how to create dynamic, content-rich Web sites.
It captures the principles of effective Web publishing through
interviews with those who were among the first to appreciate what
the new medium demanded.
	The authors explain in the book a new way of thinking that
creates Web success.  "College kids can create Web sites that get
millions of hits per day while corporations, stuck in conventional
ways of thinking about the media, just don't get it.  The Web is a
new publishing medium which crosses the boundaries that formerly
separated broadcasting and print-based media and personal
communications, such as the telephone and postal service.  The
people who design the most successful Web sites create publishing
ventures that are community-building communication systems," said
Pfaffenberger, author of five bestsellers on Web topics and more
than 40 books on personal computing.
	A key theme in the new book is "dancing on the possibilities
of convergence," which explores the coming-together of broadcasting
and personal communications.  By examining this convergence, the
authors provide insights into the new technologies, creative
processes and marketing strategies that contribute to a company's
success in going online.
	The convergence theme also reflects the mentoring
relationship that began when Pfaffenberger hired Wall, then an
undergraduate English major, to move rocks in his yard. While
sweating over the rocks, Pfaffenberger discovered that Wall was a
serious writer and quite knowledgeable about technology. After
discovering their mutual interests, they have collaborated on such
popular books as the "World Wide Web Bible" and "Publish It on the
Web!" 
	For the 10 secrets book, Wall conducted interviews and wrote
portraits of the people behind the most interesting Web sites and
technologies. 
	"My background is in anthropology and the history of
technology.  Both have the same principle: you don't really know
what's going on until you do painstaking research, which involves
suspending your preconceived assumptions and learning everything you
can about the subject.  David's background in journalism and his
ability to ask penetrating questions perfectly complimented my
background. Our collaboration is the product of a successful
mentoring relationship.  Faculty can make a huge difference in the
lives of undergraduates by helping them think through their
possibilities," Pfaffenberger said.
	Wall, a former business editor at the Cavalier Daily, one of
two U.Va. student newspapers, has written or contributed to five
books. A successful freelance writer who is a frequent contributor
to the Bloomfield Business News, Wall has become a sought-after
author in the computer book publishing field.  
	"That's an impressive outcome for a process that started
with hauling a bunch of rocks," Pfaffenberger observed.
###
June 10, 1996

	NOTICE TO REPORTERS, for a review copy of "The 10 Secrets
for Web Success," call the U.Va. News Office at (804) 924-6857.
Bryan Pfaffenberger can be reached at (804) 974 6095 or via
bp@watt.seas.virginia.edu.  Television reporters should contact our
TV News Office at (804) 924-7550.