By mid-1998, Netscape finished remaking its site from a browser information center into an Internet portal. After over nine months of development, the new Netcenter provides (discussed in the September 5, 1997 Scout Report) a directory (originally provided by Excite!), annotated links organized into categories, along with continually updated news features. For those still interested in the...

In 1996 Yahoo added this enhancement to its popular Internet directory service. It's People Search allows you to find telephone numbers and email addresses by entering a search form. The telephone directory is supplied by Database America (the provider of the Switchboard.com database), and the email interface directly queries Four11.com.