Before we get into the meat and potatoes of today's column, I'd like to announce an opportunity for a few good men - and women - to take advantage of openings in my Computer Technician Training class at New Technology High School.

Yes, the class is ostensibly a high school class, but by its very nature as an Regional Occupational Program (ROP) course administered by the county, adults are welcome to join as well.

The class is free and takes place at New Tech on from 1:50 to 2:50 p.m. on Mondays and at Wednesdays and Fridays from 12:55 to 2:55 p.m. We study the ins and outs of the PC computer, including elementary repair, maintenance, upgrading and software installation.

When you finish the course in June, you'll receive a certificate of completion that can't help but look good on a rsum.

So, anyone of any age is welcome to call the ROP office at 253-6830 to sign up or simply come by the class in the Cisco Lab at New Technology High at 920 Yount St. near downtown Napa.

Now, last week we looked at streaming audio and video on the Net, and this week we finish up the topic.

These days, it's hard to think of anything other than the terror in New York and Washington, and many of the sources of audio and video on the World Wide Web are just as preoccupied. For example, I was pleased to find a great page of video links available at CNN, but currently all of them are painful echoes of the tragic events.

Still, a visit to CNN.com Specials at www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2001/trade.center/multimedia.rescue.html will demonstrate how a top-flight news service makes use of streaming media. On this page you'll find original footage of the attack on the twin towers of the World Trade Center and many other famous scenes in the days that follow. There are also links to a day-by-day presentation of the unfolding tragedy.

Though there are no current links to stories not connected to the terrorist attack, the quality of the selection is an indication that CNN is no doubt one of best ongoing sources of streaming media on the Net.

As I said last week, one of the great things about audio and video on the Net is the way it gives us a chance to view favorite TV shows or listen to radio segments that we somehow missed in our hectic schedules. For example, I've often gone to www.ebert-roeper-movies.com to view their popular movie reviews when I've been unable to catch their weekly show, "Ebert and Roeper and the Movies."

At their home page you can see a list of what they'll be reviewing on the upcoming show, as well as click on links to hear the movie reviews you missed last week. For faster loading, Ebert and Roeper offer only audio clips. Also, you can listen to segments for a variety of the special topic shows they host throughout the year, such as Cult Videos and the Sundance Film Festival.

One of the two major streaming media players is RealPlayer by RealNetworks at www.real.com. Not only can you find scads of streaming media at the Web site, but you can also access your fill simply by starting up the RealPlayer application and clicking on any of the channels on the scrolling built-in list of stations and sites.

The other major player is Windows Media Player from Microsoft. Its audio and video gallery is located at www.windowsmedia.com. Whether you like Microsoft Corp. or not, you'll have to admit this site may be the 800 lb. gorilla of streaming media. The site has sections on music, radio, movies entertainment, business, news, sports and more. I especially recommend the radio page, as it's got links to so many fine Netcasts. You can find any style you like.

Microsoft's true Radio Guide can be found at www.windowsmedia.com/radiotuner/. You can search the whole world for radio signals. Right now I'm listening to Japan's J-Wave, a hip bilingual radio station in Tokyo that I listened to regularly when I lived there a decade ago.

Finally, don't hesitate to search for your own sources of streaming media on the Net. They're everywhere.

Please keep an eye out for my TV show, called TV28 Dot-com, on cable channel 28 at 5:30 Mondays, and don't hesitate to email me at calross@napanet.net.