Internet browsers were quite the newfangled invention. Imagine, the ability to add a variety of text and even pictures! Some of the very first sites published with the w-prefix were tourist departments and bureaus. I started playing with HTML at the time. There's hardly a thing in the world uglier than a an obsolescent, fifteen year old website.Little did I know that someday, I'd be doing more than cruising travel brochure-ish web pages. Now, I book most travel online. I just was re-introduced to hotwire.com. I think I signed up when it started but it wasn't possible to have a Canadian address. Now, it seems bigger and better. What a cool concept! In order to get a good rate, the name of the hotel is kept secret until after the customer has booked. This way, chains don't have to be seen ruthlessly underselling their own rates. I've been playing around with the site to see how it works. We're going to Washington DC during the third week of next month. I have to see if waiting till the very last minute pays off, or which time-frame offers the best bargains.