For Queer Mice
by BROWWWSER
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f you're a seasoned queer net surfer, you've
probably heard the news that Out.com, the online version of Out magazine, has called it
quits and vanished from the net. What's especially disturbing about this is that it was
supposedly the number one queer web site of 1996. Perhaps the gay marketing muscle
couldn't bench as much as we thought. Or maybe we're spending way too much time at the sex
chat sites. Whatever the reason, does the future look bleak for other queer mags with web
sites? I say no, and these sites should prove it.
The
Advocate recently revised and beefed up their site and it looks great. At http://www.advocate.com you can read articles and
excerpts from the latest issue plus news updates every weekday. Issue links will take you
to further reading about Advocate stories, and Milestones will refresh your memory of
queer history from their archives. Take the current Advocate Poll or see results from the
previous poll. Then register for their Idea Exchange and Forum. The Exchange is a message
board where you can view or post messages about news, opinions, current events, and more.
The Forum is a chat room that's free for everyone to discuss issues ("Ellen" was
the hot topic last time I visited). Chat with people from all over the world, like Bear33,
Sasha, ginger, ferret, Baker, and fqm2555 (me). At all magazine websites you can subscribe
to the paper magazine, but the web-only features make the Advocate site a definite
favorite bookmark.
Preview the current issue of Genre, the travel,
fashion, and oh-so-much-more magazine for gay men at http://www.genremagazine.com. Check out the cover
story and circuit preview or find out how to order back issues. Tweaked features a quick
blurb about what's happening in music, movies, books, and TV. Go shopping for skimpy
swimwear or hunky videos. Are you looking for a relationship or a quickie? Find out at the
Genre Relationship Quiz. This site was created by Gay Wired,
also a fabulous web site at http://www.gaywired.com.
For you lovely ladies out
there, point your browsers to http://www.gfriends.com/,
home of America's fastest-growing lesbian magazine, Girlfriends.
This bimonthly mag has lots to offer on its web site. Ask Doctor Dyke for lesbian health
matters, or have some Girl Talk with well-known author Pat Califia about lesbian
relationships and sex. Surfer Chick has links to grrrrl sites and multimedia reviews, and
then get your horoscope from the Sappho of the stars, Astrogirl. Send or read a letter to
the editor, use their lesbian resources and hotlist for more dyke spots on the web, and
preview the next issue of Girlfriends for more lesbian culture, politics, and sexuality.
The California-based magazine Frontiers has a full
website at http://www.frontiersweb.com. First
choose between the LA/National or San Francisco editions. Then see news, commentaries,
opinions, and articles from the latest print issue. Must-sees at this site include Tim
Barela's Leonard & Larry cartoon and Rick 'n' Dave's Excellent Video Review, sort of a
Mystery Science Theatre 3000 with adult porn videos. Their classified ads have everything
from announcements to videos with lots of models and masseurs in between. If you're
traveling that way, check out their LA and SF guides for helpful info too.
Another Bay Area guide for gays and lesbians is Q San Francisco at http://www.qsanfrancisco.com.
Besides the San Francisco guide, highlights include the Cyberlife column by Karen Wickre
about web travel resources and links, and the Traveler who will take you skiing in Europe,
tanning in Sydney, and stripping at San Fran's nude beaches. Your Food & Wine guru
will teach you recipes for that perfect summer party or that seduction dinner, plus what
wine matches your outfit. And don't forget to subscribe!
The "best in gay travel, entertainment, politics, and sex" can be found in
the Guide and at http://www.guidemag.com.
Their listing of gay accommodations, bars, and saunas range from Australia to the Virgin
Islands. Read news and features about politics, censorship, gay pride, interviews, and
more. If that's a little too tame for you, try Boyd McDonald's true sex histories or porn
reviews from "Alley Boys" to "Slip It In". I think you'll find
something of interest here!
POZ magazine is about health, hope, and HIV. This
sharp-looking site at http://www.poz.com is full of great
columns and articles from current and previous issues: medical news and items, policy and
culture, health, life, sex, and survival. Their profiles of HIV+ people like Tom Bianchi
and Thom Collins are heartwarming. Check it out.
These sites show that the web can be a great partner to magazines if they offer
features not available in the print version. Subscribe today!
