ON THE INTERNET: Sabre Foundation's updated Ukraine: FAQ Plus

by Bohdan Peter Rekshynskyj

Many things have changed since the days I first wrote about the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project on the Internet. But, first, a little review. The term FAQ is an acronym meaning "Frequently Asked Questions." This is a document, created on the Internet, used to address questions repetitiously asked by newcomers subscribed to a particular forum (or newsgroup). This provides a resource and enables others to deal with new topics of discussion without having to address the same old issues again and again as new users join. The Ukraine FAQ Plus Project was envisioned to go beyond such a basic FAQ.

It has succeeded in that goal, to the extent that it is recognized as one of the top 5 percent of all Internet sites by Point Communications, which rates and reviews them. They, literally, surf (search or browse) the net (or listen to suggestions) and rate the material they find.

According to the information on their web-site, Point Communications uses three criteria when they rate a particular site: Content: how broad and deep is the information? Is it accurate, complete, and up to date? Presentation: Is the the way the information is displayed aesthetic? Colorful? Is it easy to use? Does it lead visitors through the information nicely, utilizing video, audio and original graphics? Does it break new ground? Experience: This is the key rating, according to Point Communications. They write: "Is this fun? Is it worth the time? Will we recommend it to friends? All things considered, does this site deliver the goods?"

Then they create lists for people to browse the top 5 percent of those sites. Here is what they had to say about the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project:

"Ukraine has been around for centuries as an independent state, then a divided territory since the Tatars waded in, later shared by Muscovy and Poland, and eventually back to independence. This page answers nearly any question one might pose about the nation, its people, or culture. Sabre Foundation, a non-profit group active in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, sponsors this page by Bohdan Peter Rekshynskyj, who has pieced together this project from plenty of sources. Some highlights: The Ukrainian Weekly, an American-based publication, and the cultural section, with its biographies of Ukrainian composers like Maksym Berezovskyi. Law and business links round out a great resource."

Point Communications (whose Internet address is http://www.pointcom.com/) also produces a guide to current events happening on the Internet as well as news about it. In addition, the Ukraine based Kyiv "Freenet" site has established a link to the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project on its main page.

What is available?

Many sections comprise the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project. I shall give a brief summary of each as it appears on the main page (or screen):

• About Ukraine: Basic information, maps, entries from the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, and information on the Ukrainian diaspora.
  
  
• Business/Commerce in Ukraine: Business and contact information in Ukraine, such as "Directory of Business Contacts," "List of Business Services Available in Ukraine" and "Country Marketing Plan for Ukraine." USAID documents may be accessed here as well.
  
  
• Culture: Art and articles by noted authors on many facets of Ukrainian culture.
  
  
• Current Events: The latest news about Ukraine and the Ukrainian diaspora. The Ukraine FAQ Plus Project is proud to present an exclusive preview from The Ukrainian Weekly here every week.
  
  
• Economics: International Ukrainian Economic Association and a sample article from the journal Ukrainian Economic Review.
  
  
• History: This is the latest addition to the Ukraine: FAQ Plus archive. Documents include bibliographies from selected texts and an on-line version of "The Ninth Circle: In Commemoration of the Victims of the Famine of 1933."
  
  
• Language: Classification chart of languages of the former Soviet Union and a transliteration chart provided by the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute.
  
  
• Law: Full-text of the official State Department English translations of the Ukrainian Copyright Law and Trade Relations Agreement Between U.S. and Ukraine. Ukrainian Legal Foundation (Kyiv) publications are also accessible via this page. The text of the constitutional agreement between the Supreme Council of Ukraine and the president of Ukraine may be found here.
  
  
• Organizations, Institutions and Libraries: Web pages for the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute and Ukrainian Legal Foundation; general information from such institutions as the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, Center for Strategic and International Studies, American-Ukrainian Advisory Committee, Project on Economic Reform in Ukraine, University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Shevchenko Scientific Society and others.
  
  
• Publications: Bibliographies, bulletins and newsletters (such as Perspectives of Contemporary Ukraine, published by the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute); publication catalogues, course syllabi and other documents and articles.

Some highlights

• The Ukrainian Weekly has been on the Internet since July 1995. A small preview of each issue's top stories is available for those subscribers who just can't wait to see what the new issue has in store for them. There was one instance in which I noted that a person from Ukraine was the first to read a preview of The Ukrainian Weekly. This preview is generally available on Friday each week. See the "Current Events" section of Ukraine FAQ PIUS.
  
  
• Under Project Director Tania Vitvitsky, Rebecca Schneider and Vedder Wright of the Sabre Foundation have created web pages for other organizations including, the Harvard University Research Institute, Canadian Institute for Ukrainian Studies, the Ukrainian Legal Foundation in Kyiv and others. See the "Organizations" section.
  
  
• The "History" section features a book titled "Ukraine in Foreign Comments and Descriptions from the VIth to XXth Century" by Volodymyr Sichynsky, which may be accessed.
  
  
• Zenon Feszczak ([email protected]) has created a series of pages including audio clips for the pop-group The Ukrainians. As with other material on the FAQ, copyright permission was obtained beforehand. This is the authorized web site for The Ukrainians. See the "Culture" section.
  
  
• Ukrainian recipes from a 1928 cookbook published in Lviv are available in the "Culture" section.

On the main page there is a section that will let you see events on Ukraine's national calendar for the current day.

Who uses the FAQ?

Although the vast majority of people who access the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project are from the United States and Canada, in recent months there have been visits from people in Kharkiv, Kyiv, Ivano-Frankivske and Lviv. We have registered visits also from Australia, Brazil, the U.K., Germany, France, Israel, the Czech Republic and even South Africa, to mention a few.

The Ukraine FAQ Plus Project exists on two computer sites: one sponsored by the Sabre Foundation located in Massachusetts and the other sponsored by this author in New York City. Combined statistics for the month of January 1996 show the project delivered over 350 megabytes of information pertaining to Ukraine.

The Future

Whither now? There are a number of exciting developments in store for the project. Ranging from implementation of new computer technology to new content, major changes are in store. If you are on the Internet, watch for announcements to the major Ukrainian groups and be sure to visit the Ukraine FAQ Plus site often. Submissions are welcome.

The Ukraine FAQ Plus Project has as its major sponsor the Sabre Foundation, which in addition to supplying material for the project also graciously provides funding for part of the computer resources which houses the FAQ. There have been numerous contributors to the project.

Important Internet addresses pertaining to the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project are as follows:

• The URL (Uniform Resource Locator or "address" for the layman) for the Ukraine FAQ Plus Project is: http://world.std.com/~sabre/UKRAINE.html Please note that UPPER/lower case is important here for this address.
  
  
• The Sabre Foundation may be reached at [email protected] or 617-868-3510.
  
  
• Submissions and questions should be sent to [email protected] or [email protected]

Please note that the number of Internet web sites dealing with Ukraine seems to grow everyday. There are a number of excellent sites in addition to this one, I will cover those in a future article.

Bohdan Peter Rekshynskyj is a computer consultant working in the financial industry on Wall Street. He also provides consulting services dealing with the Internet. He may be reached via e-mail at [email protected] r by phone at (212) 475-6097.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, February 18, 1996, No. 7, Vol. LXIV

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