there was any space available during the time of her holiday in Bermuda.

Only one, Mazarine By the Sea in Pembroke, sent a reply. My friend had got the e-mail addresses from the Department of Tourism brochure listing places and rates.

This is a poor response to a tourist request compared to elsewhere. It shows a complacency toward the tourist and that needs to be changed. When I travelled in the US or the UK, the e-mail replies and information I received was a key factor in which place I made bookings with.

On the Internet there are a variety of sites listing accommodation in Bermuda.

While many places, large and small, have free "800'' telephone numbers for visitors coming from the US and Canada, there was a lack of e-mail addresses for the tourist to get information from.

I checked Bermuda.com (www.bermuda.com), Bermuda Online (bermuda-online.org), KeyGuide.com (keyguide.com), Virtual Bermuda (www.bermuda.bm) and Department of Tourism (www.bermudatourism.org) sites and only the Royal Palms gave out an E-mail address on the Internet site.

If a tourist is searching the Internet, telephone and fax numbers and e-mail are appropriate information. The e-mail is important as the surfer then has the option of dashing off a quick e-mail rather than having to wait, get off the Internet, dial in and get the information.

Potential customers may want to know about facilities for the disabled or for children, how close the beach is, and whether there is space.

That can be done by telephone, but e-mail is convenient. And I don't think it will be too much work for management at these places to answer the e-mail.

They may even build up set replies to various questions and copy them into the e-mail when required. It's all a matter of service -- giving the customer the option.

Long-distance telephone provider TeleBermuda International is the next company in the series about the Year 2000 compliance of companies listed on the Bermuda Stock Exchange.

TeleBermuda general manager James Fitzgerald said the company plans on being compliant in the second quarter of this year. The company has completed an inventory of all systems, and has replaced or upgraded software. TeleBermuda has been testing its network through simulation of the rollover from 1999 to 2000.

Since the company is fairly young many of the systems and services are already Year 2000 compliant. So as to keep customers and suppliers informed the company is launching a Web site before the end of March to provide progress reports.

Customers can E-mail TeleBermuda at y2k ytelebermuda.com for more information.

Consultant Claude Bourke is in charge of the Year 2000 programme and the working group. He reports directly to Mr. Fitzgerald.

February 15 is Windows Refund Day. A grassroots consumer movement called the Windows Refund Centre is calling on users of Microsoft Windows operating system to request refunds en masse in a test of the end-user license agreement. The group says the license is scarcely honoured by Microsoft and the PC manufacturers.

Last year Geoffrey Bennett in Australia bought a Toshiba laptop and decided to turn in the Windows 95 as the license offered him a refund if he didn't want the pre-installed operating system. Mr. Bennett is a user of the free Linux operating system.

Microsoft's typical end-user license agreement reads, ".. .promptly contact PC Manufacturer for instructions on return of the unused product(s) for a refund.'' Mr. Bennett fought for four months. Toshiba originally told him to return the notebook computer but not the software by itself. But Mr. Bennett stuck by his computer. He was finally given AUS$110 for not using Microsoft's software.

If you're a Linux user here's your chance to stand up against Microsoft. The protest of course goes right to the heart of the anti-trust suit Microsoft currently faces in the US courts.

If you can't return the operating system and can't buy a computer (other than an Apple) without the Microsoft software that to me is an unfair monopoly situation. The Linux system is a grassroots challenge to Microsoft domination.

The Windows Refund Day is the logical continuation of that challenge.

Quote of the week: Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan said the huge gains in the stock prices of Internet companies made sense. He justified his remarks before the Senate Budget Committee with the comment that it was possible that some of the high-flying companies will eventually succeed in making a profit.

"Some of these small companies which have stock prices going through the roof will succeed and they very well may justify even higher prices he said."The vast majority are almost sure to fail. That's the way the markets work in this regard.'' Of course his remarks sent Internet stock players into a frenzy, driving prices even higher.

Decree of the week: The Mormon church has banned its missionaries from using E-mail and faxes to communicate with families and friends overseas.

Missionaries are only allowed to phone home on Christmas and Mother's Day and can send a letter once a week.

The ban fits in with the Mormon's belief that too much communicating may distract from missionary work.