Digital Money & Transactions The Electronic Frontier Foundation's Digital Money & Transactions archive contains a plethora of aging but still informative and useful papers and treatises on the subject of digital cash, secure transactions, encryption, and related topics. Whether you wish to begin using digital dollars or simply find out more about this banking wave of the future, this vault of information is a good starting point. Many of the papers here are works or derivative works by David Chaum, founder of DigiCash, who is credited as pioneering "most of the ideas surrounding digital money." reviewed: 10/10/96 Go to this site

DigiCash DigiCash offers a vast, deep array of well-organized and easily navigable information about its ECash system and electronic commerce in general, tutorials, and, yes, links to participating merchants around the world. The graphics are colorful and attractive, to boot. The majority of the merchants hawk graphics files such as fractals, though some do dabble in three-dimensional goods (books, jewelry, water filtration systems, even used cars). This is one of the obvious advantages of digital cash: the ability to buy abroad without visiting the currency exchange. reviewed: 10/10/96 Go to this site

The Virtual Beggar Don't think you'll be able to escape solicitation in the digital age. One of the first panhandlers in cyberspace, The Virtual Beggar doesn't care whether you throw 10 cents or 10 dollars in digital cash his way. "I promise not to put your donations to good use. I'll probably use the money to feed one of the habits that helps keep me here on the streets." Lest you assume the high rating we are giving this site is tongue-in-cheek, though, be assured there is a great deal of substance behind the opening graphic of outstretched hands. One click into the site, you'll find a listing of links to sites containing information about homelessness and related issues such as San Francisco's Glide Memorial Church, Dorothy Day House, and St. Vincent de Paul Village. It's a clever means of drawing attention to the concept of stewardship, even when the resources entrusted to us are bits and bytes rather than bank notes. reviewed: 10/10/96 Go to this site

Digital Cash and Monetary Freedom The INET '95 Hypermedia site is a repository of conference papers, including "Digital Cash and Monetary Freedom" by Jon Matonis. This paper clearly explains the economics of the issue as well as the fundamentals of secure transactions. reviewed: 10/10/96 Go to this site

CyberCash Green (or should we say olive?) is the predominant color at CyberCash. The software here lets you make secure transactions with your cybercredit card. Sites accepting this currency include the official site for Charlie Sanders, who's raising funds for his Senate campaign in North Carolina, and the usual array of retailers, including steak and wine merchants. reviewed: 10/10/96 Go to this site