Technology and Community

Scholars, community activists, business people, techies and others will address the problems and possibilities of new technology this week at the Southern California Conference on Technology, Employment and Community at Cal State L.A.

Experts, including Cutting Edge “Innovation” columnist Gary Chapman, will discuss the benefits and headaches of new technology and strategies for delivering the best of what the digital revolution promises. The public is invited to share its thoughts about providing computer access to poor communities, privacy on the Internet and other issues.

Information Age neophytes will have access to a hands-on computer lab where they can experiment with software programs, surf the World Wide Web and learn to take advantage of global information access.

The conference runs Thursday through Saturday. Registration is $25 for individuals, $10 for students and the unemployed, and free for the Cal State L.A. community. For more information, call (213) 343-3200 or visit https://web.calstatela.edu/techconf/home.htm

THIS WEEK

* Wednesday, 4 p.m.: Journalist Carl T. Rowan discusses his latest book, “The Coming Race War in America: A Wake-up Call.” America Online. Keyword: NetNoir

* Wednesday, 8 p.m.: David Guterson, author of the award-winning book “Snow Falling on Cedars,” goes online to answer questions. America Online. Keyword: book report

* Thursday, 6 p.m.: Best-selling author Tom Clancy takes adventure to a new level with a CD-ROM game about a submarine. Internet. https://www.simonsays.com

* Thursday, 8 p.m.: Tune in for a live cybercast of America’s top unsigned bands as they perform live at the Palace in Hollywood. Internet. https://www.ticketmaster.com

COMDEX IN CYBERSPACE

* Comdex Fall ‘96, which begins today and runs through Friday in Las Vegas, will draw more than 200,000 information-technology professionals. To bone up on the show, start with Comdex Online at https://www.comdex.com. The site offers virtual tours of exhibits, conferences and special Comdex events, and provides background on who’s who and what’s what at the show. There’s also an electronic personal event planner to help you select and schedule events you’d like to attend. A definitive schedule of events is available at https://temp.comdex.com/old-root/html/daily/cf96/sched.htm

* Comdex rookies and veterans alike should check out Bob’s Comdex Tips & Traps at https://users.deltanet.com/~bobl/comdex.htm. Among his suggestions: Don’t try to visit more than 20 vendors a day, never pick up any materials until after lunch (they’re too hard to juggle with a lunch tray), and arrive early for keynote addresses.

* If you can’t be there in person, point your browser to the live Comdex Webcast at https://webcast.comdex.com. The site will showcase Comdex TV broadcasts, live chats with industry leaders, SpyCams, QuickTime clips and more. Consult the site’s calendar to find out when you’d like to log in.

* Plenty of industry news will be made during Comdex, and you can keep up with the latest at the Web sites of the big computer trade publishers. CMP, publisher of Computer Reseller News, offers TechWeb (https://www.techweb.com), which includes a regularly updated TechWire. C/Net (https://www.cnet.com) has nine categories of news in its News.Com section, including “Newsmakers” and “Rumor Mill.” ZD Net (https://www.zdnet.com), which publishes PC Week and ComputerLife, will also weigh in with news flashes. InfoWorld Electric (https://www.infoworld.com), the online version of InfoWorld, has set up an “On the Road” section to connect visitors to the latest news from the show floor.

* If you’re looking for something to do in Sin City besides attend a Comdex event, check out the “Top 100 Things to Do in Las Vegas” on the Comdex home page (https://www.comdex.com/old-root/html/daily/cf96/lv/guid100.htm). Diversions are broken down into categories like “Things You Might Not See Back Home,” “Pure Las Vegas Showmanship” and “If Your Feet Are Killing You.”

Site suggestions can be sent to cutting.edge@latimes.com