To the Editor:
Thank you for featuring an article about LocalNet ("ValleyNet opens up the Upper Valley region to the Internet," Oct. 19, 1995). It is our first major newspaper article, and we were very excited about it. However, we would like to address three inaccuracies in your article about LocalNet.
First, the article reads: "Dowd said he is not entirely happy with LocalNet's services, and EBA's is considering switching to a new server that would be more dependable."
It "is a non-profit organization that is not staffed 24 hours a day," Dowd said. "Orders cannot be received when the system is down, and customers don't like that."
In both quotes Charlie Dowd is referring to the services of ValleyNet, not LocalNet. LocalNet provided the programming, design and support for the EBA's Online Ordering System. ValleyNet provides EBA's with their connection to the Internet and an e-mail account; this allows them to receive and confirm orders. In his quote, Dowd was referring to the difficulty he has had with this connection. In the article it very much appeared as though Dowd was dissatisfied with the services rendered by LocalNet. This is in no way a LocalNet service problem.
Which leads to our second issue. For the same grievances mentioned by Charlie Dowd, LocalNet has been doing its best to make clear the distinction between LocalNet and ValleyNet. Aside from sharing links between the two sites, LocalNet is completely separate from ValleyNet (and for that matter, from the College as well). We are a separate commercial entity that maintains a Local Internet Directory and provides full Internet site support to local businesses.
Further confusion between ValleyNet and LocalNet resides in the caption below the EBA's snapshot in the lower left corner of the page. ValleyNet does not offer a listing of all major restaurants in the Hanover area. However, LocalNet does provide a listing of businesses participating in the LocalNet Directory.
Finally, Matt Swett '94 is not an employee of LocalNet, he is a founding partner and is the majority owner of the business. Besides recognition for the work Swett has done in making the business a reality, this point is important because most people recognize that two business are too much for one person to handle. The article makes it appear as though Mitch Jacobs '94 is running both the Green Card and LocalNet. There are many students and local business owners that will be concerned about the quality of the service they will receive from someone who is overextended.
We would like to thank you for running an article on LocalNet, we appreciate the publicity that you have given us and we understand that it is difficult to keep clear some of these important distinctions. As you can understand, it is very important for LocalNet to maintain its reliable reputation and not to be associated or confused with the service reputation of other Internet businesses. We hope that there is some way for you to correct this problem.
