Full text online version at www.nyupress.org/netwars.

Who will rule cyberspace? And why should people care? Recently stories have appeared in a variety of news media, from the sensational to the staid, that portray the Internet as full of pornography, pedophilia, recipes for making bombs, lewd and lawless behavior, and copyright violators. And, for politicians eager for votes, or to people who have never strolled the electronic byways, regulating the Net seems as logical and sensible as making your kids wear seat belts. Forget freedom of speech: children can read this...

Yesterday's battles over internet turf were fought on the net itself: today's battles are fought in government committees, in Congress, on the stock exchange, and in the marketplace. What was once an experimental ground for electronic commerce is now the hottest part of our economic infrastructure.

In From Anarchy to Power, Wendy Grossman explores the new dispensation on the net and tackles the questions that trouble every online user: How vulnerable are the internet and world wide web to malicious cyber hackers? What are the limits of privacy online? How real is...