  Reality Bytes  Blurring the line between gaming and life,
alternate reality gaming is on the rise  Fans of Lost - their
fragile minds addled with conspiracy theories about a bunch of
models (and one fat bloke) stranded on a tropical beach -
recently arrived at the brink of orgasm over a Channel 4 advert.
"The Hanso Foundation. Reaching out to a better tomorrow,"
droned the voiceover. Because of its tenuous connection to the
hit TV show, thousands logged on to Hanso's website and phoned a
corresponding telephone number. In doing so, they walked
straight into the arms of alternate reality gaming.  Crossing
the boundaries of fiction into, ahem, the desert of the real,
alternate reality games - ARGs - such as The Lost Experience
incorporate coded websites, newspaper ads, real-world treasure
hunts and bothersome 4am phone calls from in-game characters.
What's more, they're infecting PC gamers like a medieval pox
plague.  "People compare alternate reality gaming and its
passionate online communities to MMOGs like