"[1] Publishers Weekly praised the depth of discussion in the book,[2] and Library Journal commented positively on the history and background imparted.

[11] Grossman attributes this conflict to "the Net's convulsions over the years 1993 to 1996, as it tried to assimilate huge numbers of new users who didn't share the culture that had been developing over the previous decade".

[1] She gives an analogy for the reader regarding those who would discuss and comment on the phenomenon of the Internet-based community without prior experience: "Journalists who don't use the Net themselves routinely make such egregious technological and cultural errors that you can only compare the results to what would happen if they were assigned to write about the interstate highway system based on their experiences at sea.... [I]f the police told you that prostitutes routinely and openly solicited truckers and other visitors to roadside rest areas and that therefore they were risky places for families to visit, you would probably believe them and write the story.... At the same time, after a while it's easy to lose perspective and forget that behavior which is common and tolerated on the Net seems shocking to newcomers.

"[5] The book delves into specific examples of organizations which attempted to enforce their perceived intellectual property from being distributed to websites on the Internet, as balanced against the ability of people participating in an online community to bring previously confidential material to light whilst stating it serves the public interest to do so.

[1] She recounts activism by Internet users against the Communications Decency Act, which was ultimately deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States.

"[1] Donna Seaman of Booklist wrote that Grossman, "vividly describes the virtual realm as a place of interconnecting communities every bit as complicated, exciting, and dangerous as any city.

"[11] Seaman concluded, "As Grossman relates Net lore and history, she traces its transformation from a textual, academic medium into a graphics-heavy promotional bonanza, a development that has caused the online population to double over the past three years to nearly 60 million users.

"[12] Publishers Weekly reviewed the book and recommended it for multiple types of readers, "Both newbies (newcomers to the Internet) and Netizens (old-timers) will find challenges and rewards in this witty, knowledgeable and timely report from the electronic front.

"[2] Publishers Weekly wrote positively of the amount of detail included in the book's discussion, "Journalist Grossman covers in considerable depth the battles now raging over the First Amendment rights, security, privacy and general standards of conduct in cyberspace.

"[2] Library Journal wrote of the success of the author's argumentation, "Grossman sets out to answer questions about the future of the Internet and how it will be regulated.

In showing how that process works in both historical and cultural terms, Grossman has written an intriguing account of the Internet's partial fulfillment of its seemingly limitless promise.