  For a few seconds a gamma-ray burst (GRB) becomes the brightest object in the
Universe, over-shining the rest of the Universe combined! Clearly this reflects
extreme conditions that are fascinating and worth exploring. The recent
discovery of GRB afterglow have demonstrated that we are on the right track
towards the resolution of this long standing puzzle. These observations have
confirmed the relativistic fireball model (more specifically the
internal-external shocks model). The prompt optical emission seen in GRB 990123
have demonstrated that GRBs involve ultra-relativistic motion. The breaks in
the light curves of GRB 990123 and GRB 990510 and the peculiar light curves of
GRB 980519 and GRB 980326 disclosed that these GRBs are beamed. I examine these
recent developments and discuss their implications to the models of the source.
I argue that the current understanding implies that GRBs signal the birth of
stellar mass black holes.
