For Immediate Release:

GLASSSINE SURFER JOINS WITH VIRTUAL STAMP CLUB TO PROVIDE TOP INTERNET SITE FOR PHILATELIC NEWS, INFORMATION, DISCUSSION

The Virtual Stamp Club and the Glassine Surfer announce the beginning of a major new partnership, a new form of stamp collecting Web site that builds on the complementary strengths of two of the Internet's most widely-known philatelic destinations.

Together, the VSC and GS plan to match and merge online stamp collecting services, starting with the merger of message boards and discussion forums within the VSC.

The Virtual Stamp Club, the Delphi service's original and longest-running stamp collecting forum, is managed by Lloyd A. de Vries, a columnist for Linn's Stamp News and Global Stamp News. Chartered as Chapter #1461 of the APS while on the old GEnie online service as The Stamp Collecting RoundTable, it was the first electronic chapter of any major philatelic organization in the world. It has established a reputation for often being first with philatelic news, and strong in discussion.

Mills had run the Stamp Collecting Web site at About.com until late 2001, when that service drastically pruned its offerings. He then moved his message board to the Delphi.com service.

Mills writes the monthly "Glassine Surfer" column in "The American Philatelist," the journal of the American Philatelic Society. His Glassine Surfer Web site contains hundreds of pages of philatelic links and stamp collecting articles. Both online and off, his work educates and informs stamp collectors.

The GlassineSurfer.com and VirtualStampClub.com Web sites will continue to operate independently as separate sites but with increasing crosslinks between them.

"It seemed silly to have two philatelic discussion forums," said de Vries. "Mike's site and the About.com forum were great places to go for the basics of stamp collecting, while we were strong in news, so it's a good fit."

"The Glassine Surfer has always been about what's best for stamp collectors on the Web," said Mike Mills, "and this partnership of the GS and the VSC will be great for all stamp collectors, both for beginners and long-time glassine surfers."

The VSC message board can be reached at http://forums.delphiforums.com/stamps. Glassine Surfer chats (Sociable Stamp Society, APS chapter 1527) are held Sunday and Wednesday evenings at 8 p.m. Eastern at http://www.glassinesurfer.com/chat.shtml, while Virtual Stamp Club "meetings" are Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. Eastern at http://forums.delphiforums.com/stamps/chat.

For more information, contact de Vries at Lloyd@virtualstampclub.com or Mills at Mike@glassinesurfer.com