Forwarding mail by: gleick@pipeline.com (James Gleick) on Fri, 10 Feb 0:12 AM ------------------- Dear Pipeliners, I'm pleased to be able to tell you that the Pipeline has become part of a larger enterprise: Performance Systems International (PSINet), the nation's leading Internet access provider. That means two things immediately. First, PSINet has a state-of-the-art dialup network in many cities across the nation, and these will shortly be available to our users at a cost much less than our current out-of-town SprintNet surcharges. Second, PSINet plans to use our Internaut software as the basis for a national service--not to replace the New York-based Pipeline but to provide an alternative for out-of-towners who don't especially care about New York information and services. PSINet is a company a lot like ours--small (though not so small anymore), enthusiastic, fast-moving, and steeped in Internet history. The people there care about the Internet as an environment worth preserving even as it grows so explosively. And they admire what we've accomplished here at the Pipeline in forming a model online service. That's enough for now--there will be more information following along behind, but I wanted you to hear it here first. As for me--this isn't goodbye, exactly, but I have gotten a little behind on a book I was supposed to be writing . . . I am deeply grateful to all of you--staff and customers--for making the Pipeline what it is and for letting me get to know you a little bit. Jim -- James Gleick The Pipeline