Venturing down a road littered with dot-com disasters, the widow of revered pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock and some Silicon Valley financiers officially kicked off a Web site and "parenting media company" yesterday.

Executives at the Dr. Spock Co. say they have learned the lessons of the Internet meltdown and won't base too much of the business on the Web site. Instead, chief executive Doug Lee said the company wants to be "the Martha Stuart of parenting," producing content with Dr. Spock's trusted name for books and television as well as the Internet.

Dr. Spock Co., based in Menlo Park, has raised $12.8 million. Spock's widow, Mary Morgan, is in charge of the publishing division and a member of the board.

Lee said he hopes to make the Web site a subscription-based service.

Reprinted with permission from The Associated Press