BTN: Birmingham Telecommunications News COPYRIGHT 1990 January 1990 Volume 3, Issue 1 Table Of Contents ----------------- Article Title Author Policy Statement and Disclaimer................Staff Editorial Column...............................Idiot-In-Chief Atta Boy & Then Some...........................Mark Maisel A FidoNet Tutorial.............................Larry Odom Berlin Wall Interview..........................Karsten Propper Review & Overview of ProDoor 3.1...............Ricky Morgan Profile: Randy Hilliard.......................Chris Mohney Amiga On The Loose.............................Richard Foshee Is There A Dark Contagion......................Percy Peabody Insights: A Modest Proposal...................Ron Albright A Look Into The Twilight Zone..................Richard Kushner Book Review....................................Karsten Propper Message Board..................................Barry Bowden Known BBS Numbers..............................Staff EzNet Multiple Echo List.......................Staff ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Disclaimer and Statement of Policy for BTN We at BTN try our best to assure the accuracy of articles and information in our publication. We assume no responsibility for damage due to errors, omissions, etc. The liability,if any for BTN, its editors and writers, for damages relating to any errors or omissions, etc., shall be limited to the cost of a one year subscription to BTN, even if BTN, its editors or writers have been advised of the likelihood of such damages occurring. With the conclusion of that nasty business, we can get on with our policy for publication and reproduction of BTN articles. We publish monthly with a deadline of the fifteenth of the month prior to publication. If you wish to submit an article, you may do so at any time but bear in mind the deadline if you wish for your work to appear in a particular issue. It is not our purpose to slander or otherwise harm a person or reputation and we accept no responsibility for the content of the articles prepared by our writers. Our writers own their work and it is protected by copyright. We allow reprinting of articles from BTN with only a few restrictions. The author may object to a reprint, in which case he will specify in the content of his article. Otherwise, please feel free to reproduce any article from BTN as long as the source, BTN, is specified, and as long as the author's name and the article's original title are retained. If you use one of our articles, please forward a copy of your publication to: Mark Maisel Editor, BTN 221 Chestnut St. BHM, AL 35210-3219 We thank you for taking the time to read our offering and we hope that you like it. We also reserve the right to have a good time while doing all of this and not get too serious about it. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Editorial by Mark Maisel Welcome to the new year and I hope that one of your resolutions will be to religiously read BTN each month and that when quizzed, you wil be able to answer any question put to you regarding any issue. Even if you don't read every issue, you ought to read this one. It is even bigger than the Christmas issue which left me absolutely amazed. Since editors world wide are using their columns this month to act as pundits for the coming decade or to say goodbye to the past one, I will do what you expect and completely forget that business. I have absolutely nothing to say in the way of any predictions or "I told ya so's" this time. No, not me. I won't even mention the time that I told Randy... but I digress. This issue has a great variety of articles to choose from though I recommend reading all of them. We start with my report on some very odd behavior on the part of Tom Egan. To say any more would spoil the surprise. Larry Odom, sysop of I.S.A. BBS, expands on a previous article by Howard Duck, sysop of Duck Pond, on FidoNet. He also provides new information for anyone who is interested in becoming a member of this network. If you have ever wondered how FidoNet manages to connect over 5000 bulletin boards together with mail and file service, now is your chance to find out. Events in Eastern Europe have been in the news for the last few months, particularly the dismantling of the Berlin Wall. Karsten Propper, wanting to hear a personal perspective from an affected German, interviewed his father on this event. Mr. Propper shares his feelings with us and helps provide better understanding of the feelings of many Germans on this issue. Ricky Morgan follows with the continuation of his series on ProDoor 3.1 and devotes this month to file transfer options. Don't miss it if you want to experience the great flexibility ProDoor offers in this area. Guess whose name got pulled this month: Randy Hilliard. Chris swears that it was a random pull from the hat and Randy does his best to answer the ProFile questions. Ole Randy told Chris that he had not experienced such test anxiety since his last blood test. Richard Foshee steps up to bat for the Amiga again, this time expanding on an article by Kelly Rosato on multitasking. Richard describes multitasking on the Amiga and explains some of the concepts behind this ability. The next article, written by Percy Peabody, deals with the darker side of telecommunications. He expands on and shares his feelings about an article detailing the use of bulletin boards by violent and racist groups that appeared in a recent issue of PC Computing. Ron Albright offers us all a modest proposal for bringing computer literacy to our children that bears your attention, particularly if you own more than one computer. Thanks to the wandering eyes of Dean Costello, we have a re-print from ST Report by Richard Kushner that is a not quite so fictional as he would have you believe story about the computer wars of the early 1980's. Karsten Propper reviews another book for us in the science fiction genre so take a look and see if he knows what he is talking about. We close the issue, at last, with our regulars, Message Board, The Known BBS List, and the EzNet Echo List. I hope that you will enjoy this issue. Please leave public comments on EzNet. To the many contributors, thanks once again! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Atta Boy & Then Some by Mark Maisel It was recently brought to my attention that our resident "Evil Nazi", Tom Egan, Remote Sysop of The Matrix, has been behaving in ways that are sure to get him booted from "The Bad Guys In America" listing. I don't really know how to tell you folks this but I assure you that it is true. While driving back to town from a job in Montgomery, Tom happened upon a most unusual sight. As he approached an overpass, he saw a woman fall, hit the highway next to the car in front of him, and bounce into his path. He quickly managed to stop his car and proceeded to turn it around to face the oncoming traffic. He parked his car about 1/4 mile behind the woman with his headlights on to warn cars to get out of the lane. He then rushed back to the woman to see what could be done for her. As cars stopped to offer help, he asked them to call for emergency aid and an ambulance. He then put his Red Cross emergency training to work, I didn't believe it either, and went on to keep the woman immobilized until help could arrive. Tom reasoned that the woman most likely had some broken bones and possible spinal damage so he worked to hold her still. He told me that the woman tried to get up so he had to be very careful to keep her down yet not aggravate her injuries further. In addition, he kept up a steady stream of talk to try and calm her and keep her from going into shock. After help arrived, Tom came back home and reported the days events to his wife and to me. She and I were impressed to say the least. As time passed, Tom was told by the people at the hopsital that the woman broke both legs, one ankle, one arm, and also had sustained spinal damage. Tom was also told that the woman would most likely experience a complete recovery due to his efforts at immobilizing her. If not for Tom, the woman probably have become paralyzed. One thing Tom never has found out is why the woman fell from the overpass. I felt that this story deserved to be shared with you all and that it certainly demonstrates that there is some good in everyone, even an "Evil Nazi" like our Tom. So next time he logs you off, messes up your game, or message pointers, consider his heroics and let him have his fun. You might also leave Tom an "Atta Boy" message next time you are on The Matrix and let him know how proud you are of him. Editor's Note: The woman has since been released from the hospital and will recover fully.mm ----------------------------------------------------------------------- A FidoNet Tutorial - by Larry Odom Sysop of ISA-BBS of Birmingham Section 1 Overview The Levels of FidoNet Coordinators Region 18 Coordinator and In-State Listing 2 Sysop Procedures How to get a node number 3 Network Communications Node list distribution Newsletter distribution Network mail distribution Echomail Distribution and Symbolic Listing Overview - FidoNet is an amateur electronic mail system. As such, all of its participants and operators are non-paid volunteers. From its early beginnings as a few friends swapping messages back and forth, it has now grown to (November 89) over 5000 different systems on four continents. FidoNet is large enough that it would quickly fall apart of its own weight unless some sort of structure and control were imposed on it. Multinet operation provides the structure. Decentralized management provides the control. The Levels of FidoNet - FidoNet nodes are grouped on several levels. These are as follows: o FidoNet; This indicates the entire public amateur mail network, as administered by the International FidoNet Association, and as defined by the weekly node list. o Zones; A zone is a large geographic area containing many regions, and covering one or more countries and/or continents. o Regions; A region is a well defined geographic area containing nodes which may or may not be combined into networks. A typical region will contain many nodes in networks, and a few independent nodes, which are not a part of any network. o Networks; A network is a collection of nodes, usually in a relatively small geographic area. Networks coordinate their mail activity to decrease cost and increase mail throughput. o Hubs; A hub is a subdivision of a network that assists in network management by routing mail to, and by coordinating for, a collection of nodes in that network. In general only the larger networks will have hubs. o Nodes; A node is a single FidoNet address, and is the smallest recognized unit of FidoNet. o Points; A point is a node on a private network which is accessible through a node on FidoNet. Each subdivision at each level is managed by a coordinator. A coordinator is a person who coordinates the technical aspects of network mail. This entails both administrative and technical tasks, which will be described later. The following levels of coordinators are currently recognized: o The International Coordinator; The International Coordinator compiles all of the node lists from all of the regions and creates the master node list, which is then distributed over FidoNet. o The Zone Coordinator; A Zone Coordinator maintains the list of administrative nodes in his zone and accepts node lists from the Regional Coordinators in his zone. He compiles these lists to create a zone node list, which he then sends to the International Coordinator for inclusion in the master node list. A Zone Coordinator is also responsible for overseeing any zone gateways in his zone. o The Regional Coordinator; A Regional Coordinator maintains the list of independent nodes in his region and accepts node lists from the Network Coordinators in his region. He compiles these lists to create a regional node list for his region, which he then sends to his Zone Coordinator. A Regional Coordinator does not perform routing services for any nodes in his region. o The Network Coordinator; A Network Coordinator maintains the list of any nodes in his network that are not served by a hub and accepts node lists from the Hub Coordinators in his network. He compiles these lists to create a network node list for his network, which he then sends to his Regional Coordinator. A Network Coordinator is also responsible for forwarding any mail addressed to nodes in his network. o The Hub Coordinator; A Hub Coordinator maintains the list of nodes in his hub and sends it to his Network Coordinator. A Hub Coordinator is also responsible for forwarding any mail addressed to nodes in his hub. o The Sysop; A Sysop formulates his own policy for running his board and dealing with his users, so that will not be discussed in this document. However, a Sysop must also mesh with the rest of the FidoNet system if he is to send and receive mail, and that will be discussed here. These levels act to distribute the administration and control of FidoNet to the lowest possible level, while still allowing for coordinated action over the entire mail system. Administration is made possible by operating in a strict top-down manner. That is, a coordinator at any given level is responsible to the coordinator immediately above him, and responsible for everyone below him. For example, a Regional Coordinator is solely responsible to his Zone Coordinator for anything that may or may not happen in his region. From the point of view of the Zone Coordinator, the Regional Coordinator is totally and completely responsible for the smooth operation of his region. Likewise, from the point of view of the Regional Coordinator, the Network Coordinators are totally and completely responsible for the smooth operation of their networks. If a coordinator at any level above sysop is unable for any reason to properly perform his duties, he can be replaced by his coordinator at the next level up. For example, if a Regional Coordinator is failing to perform his duties, then his Zone Coordinator can appoint a new Regional Coordinator to replace him. The primary responsibility of any coordinator is technical management of network operations. Management decisions should be made strictly on technical grounds. Region 18 Coordinator & In-State Host Listing - Type Node Board's Name Phone Number City Baud ==== ==== ============ ============ ==== ==== REGION 18 SouthEast/Caribbean 1-919-274-5760 AL FL GA MS NC SC T 9600 HOST 373 Rocket City Net 1-205-880-7723 Huntsville AL 9600 HOST 375 Central Alabama Net 1-205-279-7313 Montgomery AL 9600 HOST 3602 BHAMnet 1-205-822-0956 Birmingham AL 9600 HOST 3607 North Alabama Net 1-205-355-2983 Decatur AL 9600 Sysop Procedures - A sysop of an individual node can pretty much do as he pleases, as long as he observes the mail events, is not excessively annoying to other nodes on FidoNet, and does not promote the distribution of pirated copyrighted software. National Mail Hour is the heart of FidoNet, as this is when network mail is passed between systems. Any system which wishes to be a part of FidoNet must be able to receive mail at this time. A system which is a member of a network may also be required to observe additional mail events, as defined by his Network Coordinator. Failure to observe the proper mail events is sufficient grounds for any node to be dropped from FidoNet. Network mail systems generally operate unattended and place calls at odd hours of the night. If a system tries to call an incorrect or out of date number, it could cause some poor citizen's phone to ring in the wee hours of the morning, much to the annoyance of innocent bystanders and civil authorities. For this reason, a sysop who sends mail is obligated to obtain and use the most recent edition of the node list as is practical. The exact timing of National Mail Hour is set for each zone by the Zone Coordinator. In the United States, National Mail Hour is observed from 0900 to 1000 Greenwhich Mean Time (GMT) every day, weekends included. In each of the United States time zones, this would be as follows: Eastern Standard Time 4 AM to 5 AM Central Standard Time 3 AM to 4 AM Mountain Standard Time 2 AM to 3 AM Pacific Standard Time 1 AM to 2 AM Hawaii Standard Time 11 PM to Midnight FidoNet does not observe daylight savings time. In areas which observe daylight savings time the FidoNet mail schedules must be adjusted in the same direction as the clock change. Alternatively, you can simply leave your system on standard time. How to get a node number - You must first obtain a current node list so that you can send mail. You do not need a node number to send mail, but you must have one in order for others to send mail to you. The first step in obtaining a current node list is to locate a FidoNet bulletin board. If the sysop of any FidoNet system does not have a node list available for downloading, then he can probably tell you where to get one. Once you have a node list, you must determine which coordinator to apply to. The coordinator of any network or region is always node zero of that network or region. A Hub Coordinator will always be indicated in the node list by a "HUB" prefix. You should apply to the lowest-level coordinator that covers your area. For example, if you are located within the hub of a network, then you would apply to the Hub Coordinator. If there is no network that covers your area, then you would apply to the Regional Coordinator for your region. Your application for a node number must be sent to the coordinator by FidoNet mail, and must include at least the following: 1) Your name. 2) The name of your system. 3) The city and state where your system is located. 4) The phone number to be used when calling your system. 5) Your hours of operation. 6) The maximum baud rate you can support. Your coordinator may want additional information. If so, he will contact you. Please allow at least two to three weeks for a node number request to be processed. Node list distribution - The node list is posted weekly on Saturday, along with a "difference file" giving the changes for the week. It is your responsibility to obtain the difference file from your coordinator every week and to distribute it to the coordinators below you. The method of distribution is left to your discretion. It is also desirable that you make it available for downloading by the general user, but this is not required. Newsletter distribution - The newsletter, called FidoNews, is published weekly on Monday and is distributed as an archive named FNEWSvnn.ARC, where "v" is the volume number and "nn" is the issue number. It is your responsibility to obtain this archive from your coordinator every week and to distribute it to the coordinators below you. The method of distribution is left to your discretion. It is also desirable that you make it available for downloading by the general user in both archived an unarchived form, but this is not required. Network mail distribution - It is your responsibility to ensure that network mail in your area is operating in an acceptable manner. Exactly what this involves will depend on what level you are at, and will be discussed in more detail below. Echomail distribution - Echomail is one of the most exciting parts of FidoNet. Echomail places you in contact with thousands of users throughout the world on many varied topics. Below is the September 89 listing for echos carried on the FidoNet backbone. If you are interested in the complete file which list the details of each echo, including echo moderator, volume of traffic and detailed description of the echo subject, you may download the file ECHOLIST.ZIP from ISA-BBS at 205-995-7739 1200/2400/9600 24hrs or if your a Fido node just File Request ECHOLIST. Below you will find a listing of echos and a brief description of the associated topics. FidoNet EchoList 910 Symbolic Area Name Cross-Reference Listing as of: 10/01/89 Symbolic Area Name Conference Title -------------------- --------------------------------------------------------- 3RIVERS Three Rivers Chatter ABLED disABLED Users Information Exchange. AD&D Advanced Dungeons and Dragons ADOPTEES Adoptees Information Exchange AIDS/ARC AIDS/ARC ALROTISS American League Rotissiere Baseball AMIGASTAND Amiga Standards Workshop AMIGA_PROG Amiga Developper's and Programmer's Conference AMY_POINT Amiga Point operations and TeleCommunications Discussions ANIMED ANIMED ARC_WARS Compression Program Users Information Exchange ASIAN-AMERICAN Asian-American Forum ASIAN_LINK Asian general link ASKACOP2 Ask A Cop Conference ASKATECH National Technical Q&A GroupMail Conference AT&T AT&T Systems International Support Conference ATHENS_SYSOP Athens / Northeast Georgia Open Sysop conference AUDIO Music and Sound AVIATION Aviation related discussions. BASEBALL National Baseball discussions/Trading Cards Conference BBSSYSOP National BBS Sysop GroupMail Conference BEAMMEUP National Star Trek Discussions GroupMail Conference BLATZ Gzorniblatz: The National GroupMail Support Conference BLINKTALK Visual Disabilities Echo BROADCAST TV & Radio Broadcasting Echo CANMAC Canadian Macintosh Echo CONSULTING Consulting International Conference CONTROV Controversy Forum COOKING Cooking CPAA Computer Pilots Assoc. of America CPMTECH CP/M Technical Forum CUSS Computer Users in the Social Sciences CVPCUG Champlain Valley PC Users Group DATAFLEX Dataflex echo conference DBASE Database topics, techniques, & advice. DBRIDGE DBRIDGE DCJOBS Metropolitan Washington Jobs Conference DEAR_MARY Gay/Lesbian Advice 'Column'. DEVELOPE National BBS/Mailer/Utility Developers GroupMail Conferen DIABETES Diabetes discussions and support DIRTY_DOZEN The Dirty Dozen echo DTP Desktop Publishing ECHO_REQ Echo Requests conference EDUCATOR Education International Conference ENDING-HUNGER HUNGER Conference ENTREPRENUER New Business Start-Up Support FANDOM Science Fiction Fandom Discussions FCC Radio and Data Telecommunications Regulation FDECHO Regarding FrontDoor, the E-mail system FEMINISM Feminism and Gender Issues FIREARMS Firearms FLEET Starfleet National Echo FLO For Lawyers Only GroupMail Conference FLT_ACAD Starfleet Academy FLT_COMM Starfleet Communications FLT_OPS Starfleet National Operations FLT_RPG Starfleet National Role Playing Game FLT_TREK Starfleet On Star Trek FONTASY The FONTASY Echo GAMING Gaming EchoConference GAY_ADS Gay Classifieds and want ads GDASYSOP Greater Danbury Area Sysop Conference GRAPHICS GRAPHICS (IBM) HAM Ham Radio Operators' Conference (General) HAMRADIO National Ham Radio Enthusiasts Conference HIKING Hiking, Mountain Climbing, and Camping Echo HOME-N-GARDEN Home and Garden Echo HOMEAUT Home Automation Forum HOME_REPAIR Home Repair Echo HPHH Hi-Powered (i.e. Hewlett-Packard) Hand Helds HS HS HST HST HST-SALE HST-SALE HS_MODEMS High Speed Modems 9600+ HYPERION Hyperion Beyond the Gate ICGAL Issues Concerning Gays and Lesbians INTERCOOK International cooking INTERUSER International forum, where borders doesn't matter JLASER JLASER Support Conference JOBS Jobs & Employment Conference JOBS-NOW Current Job Openings KIDS Kids International Echo Conference KINKNET KinkNet Adult Echos KINSEARCH Kinsearch Data Base KRISHNA Krishna conscious/Vedic topics LAN Local Area Networking LAPTOP National Laptop Computer Discussions Conference LASERMASTER LaserMaster Support Conference LASERPUB Desktop Publishing International Conference LIBERTY Libertarian Politics -- Theory and Practice LRN-NEWS Local National Regional News MAC_GAMES Macintosh Entertainment/Education MAGICKNET Neopaganism, Witchcraft, and Magick Conference MAINFRAME Mainframe computers MAPPING MAPPING MARTIAL_ARTS Martial Arts Conference MEADOW Opus Sysop Information Echo MEDFILES Medical File Echo MEDLIT Medical Literature Echo MENSA International Mensa Echo Conference METAPHYSICAL Neopaganism, Witchcraft, and Magick Conference--Magazine METRO-FORUM Metro-Forum MICHIANA Northern Indiana/South-Western Michigan CHIT-CHAT MOVIES New & Old Movies & TV discussions MUNDANE Neopaganism, Witchcraft, and Magick Conference--Chatter MUZIK Music Discussion MWM Metropolitan Washington Mensa Echo Conference MYSTERY Mystery books and stories NJ-SHORE New Jersey Shore NLROTISS National League Rotissere Baseball OBJECTIV Objectivism OPUS National OPUS Sysop GroupMail Conference OR.POLITICS Oregon Issues and Ballot Measures PACKET Ham Radio Operators' Conference (Computer-based technique PARCOM PARish COMputing: using computers in the Church PCB_NET PCBoard general sysops conference. PDP-11 DEC PDP-11 Hardware/Software Echo PDREVIEW Public Domain & Shareware Software Reviews PITTNET Pittsburgh Sysop Conference PNWMAC Pacific Northwest Macintosh Users Conference POLICE Law Enforcement Officers Nat'l Echo POSTSCRIPT PostScript Support Conference. QMX_XRS Quickpoint Mail eXpress and eXpress Response System suppo QM_BETA QM discussions. QM_ECHO QM support and discussions QNX Quantum Software's QNX Operating System QUICKBBS QuickBBS Support QUICKPRO QuickBBS Sysop's ONLY Echo R15_CHAT Region 15 User/SySop Chat RAINBOW DEC RAINBOW conference for users of Digital's Personal RECFRP Role Playing Games RECORDS Music and Records Discussion RECOVERY Addictions recovery related discussions REGION11 Region 11 Sysops conference ROCKROLL Rock & Roll Discussion GroupMail RONDACK Adirondack Regional Echo SCUBA Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus SEADOG SEAdog Front-End Mailer program SEAPUPPY SEAdog Front-End Mailer program SEARCHLIGHT SearchLight BBS Owner's Echo SEATAC SEAssociates Technical Area Conference SF Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature SFCON Science Fiction Convention Organization SFFAN Science Fiction and Fandom SHAREWRE InterNetwork Shareware Discussion Conference SHORTWAVE Shortwave listeners conference SINCLAIR Sinclair Users Unite! SINGLES Singles - Adult discussion for people 21+ years old SMART SMARTWARE Conference STAMPS National Stamp Collecting GroupMail Conference STARGAZE Astrology Echo, How And Why STARTREK National Star Trek Discussions GroupMail Conference STRATAC Strategy & Tactics Echo STTNG Star Trek: The Next Generation SUBSPACE Fleetnet SysOp's Echo SYSLAW SYSLAW SYSOP Sysop National Echo Conference SYSOP227 Net 227 Sysops conference SYSTEM3X National IBM Mini Computer GroupMail Conference TALLY-NET Tallahassee NetWork Chatter Echo TECH Hardware/Software general discussion conference TELIX Telix Users Information Exchange TEXTUNES TexTunes Music Exchange Echo THI_CVA Brain Injury TH_ING Treasure Hunting and Collecting TI-ECHO TI home computer discussions. TPBOARD TPBoard BBS Topics TVRO Satellite Television Receive Only VAX VAX conference for users and managers of Digital's VAX VENTURA Ventura Publisher Support Conference VIDEO VIDEO production VT_DEBATE Net 325 Debate Conference VT_GENERAL NET 325 General Conference VT_PROCHOICE Net 325 Pro Choice Conference VT_PROLIFE Net 325 ProLife VT_SALE Net 325 For Sale Conference VT_TECH Net 325 Technical Conference WANT_ADS National Non-Commercial For-Sale/Want Ads Conference WAR-ROOM Tallahassee Network War-Room WARGAMES National Wargamer's GroupMail conference WATSON The WATSON Echo WELMAT Welmat Support Echo WHO Dr. Who & British SF-TV WILDRNSS Wilderness Experience WRITING Writing and Publishing ZMODEM ZMODEM If you are a sysop of a local bulletin board, or a prospective sysop interested in acquiring echomail for your system, you should contact the local Net Echomail Coordinator (NEC). For the phone number of the NEC and Fidonet host in your area, see the Host List above. For more information about participating in Fidonet mail activities leave a message with your voice number to your local Fidonet Host Sysop. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Berlin Wall Interview by Karsten Propper The Berlin wall is down, and some people will remember it more than others will. My father is one of those people. I have interviewed him on his feelings toward the event. His name is Peter Propper. Karsten: Where in Germany were you born and what side of Germany was it on? Peter: I was born in the small town of Kohlhohe. It is now under Polish rule. It would now be on the eastern side of the wall. When I was born there in 1940, it was under German administration. It has been administered by Poland since 1945. Karsten: When you lived in Germany, it was a united country, tell me your feelings toward the separation. Peter: The Berlin wall was built in 1961, and was a true indication of the way the Communists decided to rule that side of Germany. They wanted to make it perfectly clear that that part was under communist regime. They didn't want to let anyone out or in. The monumental and typical indication was the building of the wall in Berlin. To see this country of the Third Reich, and a beautiful city like Berlin, which up to 1945 had been the capital of Germany, to see it divided, to know about the families that had been ripped apart was terrible. The ones that couldn't make it to the west had to remain in the east. It was hard to commute, and was just a big hardship to deal with losing both the war and their family. Karsten: Did you have any relatives in the East? If so, how did you feel about being separated from them? Peter: I was relatively young when I came to the western side. I had not known them well at all, and had no emotional attachment to them. I knew that it had been a great-aunt and a great-uncle. They had not gotten to the western side in time as we had. They are both dead now, so I have no more relatives in the eastern side. Karsten : I would now like for you to discuss your feelings toward the tearing down of the wall. Peter: It indicates that the younger generation of the east block countries has been rebellious. It has indicated by their rebellious action that they can't take communist rule any more. They have mainly through exposure through the media from the west as to how prosperous it can be in a capitalistic country. The tearing down of the wall is a perpetuation that the fight against communism in east block countries is under way and that it will be a matter of time before these countries will have some sort of a democratic government. The tearing down of the wall is a big symbol to me and is like having a bunch of hands shake the ones of the western. It is like having found again long-lost friends. I think it is a matter of time before the two countries unite. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Review & Overview of ProDoor 3.1 of 10-08-89; Copyright (C) 1987, 1989 Samuel H. Smith by Ricky Morgan File Transfer Before I get started into this months subject, let me correct an oversight. In last months Overview I neglected to point out a couple of important things that you should know about when working with ProDoor. First your terminal software should be configured for ANSI support or you're going to have some problems in dealing with ProDoor, also if you can't display 80 columns, you may find it difficult in working with the displays and full screen editor that ProDoor affords you. There may be still other problems that you could run into that I'm not aware of. To cover my hinney even further, let me say that, the commands that will be reviewed here are based on PCBoard (R)-Version 14.0/D and ProDoor version 3.1 (Registered) as they exist on the Crunchy Frog BBS. Different boards run different revisions, but most of the commands will apply with only small variation. If you have problems in PCBoard, Help can be obtained by paging the SySop, (!only kidding!), by typing H from the Command prompt, and you will have access to the help menus. In ProDoor help is as easy as typing a question mark (?) at the command prompt. We all call Bulletin Board systems for different reasons, the messages, the people, the arguments, the anonymity and certainly to get FREE software (of course it may not always be free, as often times there is a registration fee and this is only fair). So far I have found two separate ways to obtain this software. The first involves developing a relationship with a respective SySop, then visiting him in the pretense of writing articles and while he's busy lecturing on the benefits associated with being a SySop, you covertly suck the files out of his computer as you suck down his food and drink; smiling all the time and nodding appreciatively at the proper time to show you respect his wisdom. The other way is to Download them directly from his computer to yours over the phone lines. This way may be faster and easier but you don't get the food and drink, plus you will have to actually Upload files at sometime in the future, as most SySops frown heavily at file leeches (people who download files without uploading files); this also, in it's own way is only fair. If you opt out for the Download option, you will want to be able to Download in the fastest and most efficient manner and hopefully avoid getting duplicate files, as sometimes people will upload files, changing the names to make them look different (it happens) and in defense of the SySop, he does not always have the time to review each file upload as carefully as he would like. All this out of the way, let's get started. As I have said, ProDoor supports PCBoard compatible commands; with enhancements. Most notably ProDoor allows you to stack commands to greater extent that PCBoard. All this says is, if you are familiar with the command set of PCBoard, you won't have to re-learn a whole new command set to take advantage of ProDoor. I had hoped to avoid an extensive Command comparison, but the extent of commands and the diverse experience that each person has with the BBS is going to force me into some comparisons. I'll try to keep them short and as informative as possible without (hopefully) getting boring. (F)ile Directories ------------------------------------------------------------------------ This command, basically the same under ProDoor as in PCBoard, allows you to view a listing of the files available. After selecting (F), a listing of the file directories available will be shown - usually grouped by category. To view one or more of the directory listing files, enter the number to view. Multiple listings can be viewed at the same time by entering several numbers at the same time. Again stacking the commands are acceptable under both PCBoard and ProDoor. Subcommands: (#) (D) (L) (N) (R) (U) (V) (Z) (NS) (#) the directory number to view (R) Re-lists the directory menu (U) Display Upload Directory (V) View contents of a compressed file (Note: the (V) parameter is not always available under PCBoard and if it is may only support viewing file that have .ARC extensions. For a better description of (V) see the commands (VX) and (F V) listed below.) (NS) displays request in non-stop mode So the command, F 1 2 3 NS under either will get you a non-stop listing of file directories 1, 2, and 3. (L)ocate Files by Name ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Allows you to search the file directory listings for filenames which match those you are looking for. You can also use valid DOS wildcards in your filename request if you are unsure of the exact name. Again all subcommands are supported in PCBoard and ProDoor. Subcommands:(filename/wildcard) (A) (U) (NS) (filename/wildcard) is the filename to scan for (A) scans all available file directories (U) scans only the available upload file directories (NS) displays listing in non-stop mode So to find all files that begin with BTN, you could enter the command, L BTN*.* A NS. This would search all available directories for any file starting with BTN, with any extension (.zip, .arc, .txt, etc) and give you a non-stop listing. (N)ew Files by Date ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This will display file listings based on a date scan of when the file was placed on the system. Matching files are those found which have a date equal to or later than that requested. Subcommands: (date) (A) (U) (NS) (date) is a valid date in mmddyy format (no spaces!) (A) scans all file directory listings (U) scans only upload file directory listings (NS) displays output in non-stop mode ProDoor adds a couple of extra options here. You may specify directories to search, i.e., N 3 4, (which searches Directories 3 & 4) or N S A, which will search for files new since the last time you were on the system. (Z)ippy Directory Listing Scan ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Allows entering a word or words (20 characters max) which will be checked against all text in the directory listings for a match. The text you enter can be in either UPPER or lower case letters, since the software is NOT case sensitive and will find any matching text - regardless of the case of the letters. Commands and subcommands, again, are both supported in PCBoard and ProDoor. Subcommands: (text) (#) (A) (U) (NS) (text) is the text you wish to search for (#) is any valid directory number (A) scans all directory listings for the text input (U) scans only the upload directory(s) for the text (NS) displays screen output in non-stop mode As you exercise the above commands and become familiar with their operations, you will, no doubt, locate a file that you would like to download. From past experience with downloading files from BBS's there are two commands that, I think, are well worth getting very familiar with. For example, you locate a good game, that from description, sounds like something you would like to have. You Download it, unarchive it or unzip it, what ever, and run the program only to find that you already have a copy of the same program that you got off another board; under a different name. Crying to the SySop that you want your download credits back probably ain't going to get it. The way to avoid this problem is to use either of the following commands. (F V)iew-File View and Extract (optional) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Available under ProDoor only, this allows you to list contents of any ZIP file and optionally view the text files without downloading. It is also possible to "extract" parts of a ZIP file into FROGS1.ZIP (this is a system defined name for the file you build and will vary from system to system) for downloading. If you View a file, or extract parts into the system file for downloading the file will automatically be flagged for downloading and will stay with you until you download it or exit ProDoor. An example of usage would be: F;V;file (file=name of file you wish to view) This will give a verbose listing of component files within file.ZIP. The system will them prompt you for text viewing or extraction of component files. In short you can now unarchive the files on-line, view the associated text file (generally Documentation files) and get a good idea about what it is you are downloading. No more Russian roulette with file transfer. (VX)quick Quick view/extract ZIP file contents ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Much the same as F V function this will allow you to view the text files in an ZIP file without downloading. It is also possible to "extract" parts of a ZIP file into FROGS1.ZIP for downloading. Usage would be: VX file (file=name of file you wish to view) This will skip the verbose listing and goes directly to text view and extract function. Let me clarify 'Extract' at this point. You may, under ProDoor using the (F V) or (VX) functions, extract selected files from the files that have been compressed. Lets say that you want to download a program that has lengthy document files archived with it. You're the adventuresome type and you don't want to waste download credits getting something as mundane as document files explaining the operation of the program. With (F V) or (VX), if done properly, you may move selected files into a system temporary file for downloading later. In other words, it allows you to get only the files you want from within an archive. ( I don't recommend downloading the programs without the Doc.'s. I simply used this as an example.) This lead us up to the next command available under ProDoor. (REPACK) Files for compression. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Re-pack ZIP file with maximum compression. This selection will re-compress a selected ZIP file and store the result in FROGS1.ZIP. Not all uploaded file are packed or archived with maximum compression. Using this will allow you to squeeze every byte possible to save on those download ratio's. Also, if you don't use the archive utility that the file is saved under, you can specify an alternate format to convert files to a format you can use. Examples: REPACK TPC14.ARC LZH ;convert .ARC to .LZH format REPACK PRODOR30.ZIP ZOO ;convert .ZIP to .ZOO format Currently The Crunchy Frog will support, extraction, viewing and repacking between ZIP, ARC and LZH formats. You should check with the system you use most to determine which formats are supported. (TEST) zip validity ----------------------------------------------------------------------- If you are worried that the file you want may be corrupted or if you attempted to download it and couldn't, or you did download it and the program doesn't work, you may want to try Test. It will test the validity of a ZIP file. This ONLY tests the integrity of the ZIP archive function. It doesn't test for viruses or defective files compressed as such. It will merely assure you that the file you are trying to get was compressed properly. Usage is: TEST Filename The system will test the integrity and report to you of any problems encountered. I've covered a lot of territory and all we've talked about so far is looking at files and determining if you want them. By now you're probably thinking, 'Wasn't this article supposed to be about File Transfer?' Yes it was (and is) and now I'm getting into Uploading and Downloading; but first.... We know how to locate files and manipulate them so that we are sure it is the file we want. Now we Download, right? Nope, you have to tell the system with protocol you want to use. HUH? This is a review of ProDoor and not transfer protocols so all I will say about the subject of protocol is this...your system's protocol must match the system's protocol that you're calling or else it won't work. *(I'll leave a review of protocols to more competent people.) *Editor's Note: See BTN002, BTN013, and BTN015 for excellent coverage of the various transfer protocols.mm (T)able of protocols ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This command lists the protocol driver program command lines used to implement the various protocols. The estimated efficiency of each protocol is included in this report. These are SySop selectable so your system may list different ones. ProDoor itself can support up to 100 different protocols. Because of size I'm cutting out the command line for each, as it's not needed in this context. Transmit Zmodem Batch. (90%) Transmit Zmodem Batch (PCP). (85%) Transmit Zmodem Resume Aborted D/L. (90%) Transmit Ymodem Batch. (88%) Transmit Xmodem-1K (Old Ymodem). (88%) Transmit Slow Xmodem/CRC. (80%) Transmit Slow Kermit Batch. (60%) Transmit Window Xmodem. (88%) Transmit Qmodem-1K-G (Full flow). (95%, MNP) Transmit Ymodem-G (registered dsz only). (95%, MNP) Receive Zmodem Batch. (90%) Receive Ymodem Batch. (88%) Receive Xmodem-1K (Old Ymodem). (88%) Receive Slow Xmodem/CRC. (80%) Receive Slow Kermit Batch. (60%) Receive Window Xmodem. (88%) Receive Xmodem-1k-G (full flow). (95%, MNP) Receive Ymodem-G (registered DSZ only). (95%, MNP) Just for the sake of comparison; let's look at the protocols available under PCBoard. PCBoard selectable Protocols: (A) Ascii (Non-Binary) (C) Xmodem-CRC (CRC) (F) 1K-Xmodem-G (Full flow) (G) Ymodem-G (DOOR 1 only) (O) 1K-Xmodem (Old Ymodem) (X) Xmodem (Checksum) (Y) Ymodem Batch (DOOR 1 only) (Z) Zmodem (DOOR 1 for batch transfers) (N) None You will notice that even from PCBoard, the SySop has chosen to restrict the use of Ymodem-G, Ymodem Batch and *Zmodem to DOOR 1, which is ProDoor. This leaves you with only ASCII (only good for text transfer), Xmodem-CRC, 1k-Xmodem-G, 1K-Xmodem, and Xmodem to choose from; all good protocols, but in the ever changing world of BBS communications, not the best or fastest. *Editor's Note: Crunchy Frog does allow Zmodem from PCBoard but only for single file transfers.mm I'm not trying to take pot-shots at PCBoard here, it is a very good program; PCBoard supports up to 26 different protocols and is extending the list with each new release. The object is ProDoor offers more. Once you've told the system what protocol to use you can start downloading. ProDoor will step you through the transfer or you can stack the commands. (D)ownload file(s) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- "Downloading" refers to moving files from the system you're calling to your system. You can also "stack" (S)tart or (G)oodbye after the last filename to immediately start the transfer. Examples: D Filename ;download file, you will be prompted if further info is needed. D Z Filename ;Download using Zmodem protocol D filename S ;immediately start download of files D file1 file2 G ;immediately start d/l of files, goodbye at end (U)pload file(s) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Move files between your system and the board that you are calling. Examples: U filename ;upload file, you will be prompted for further info. U Z file1 file2 ;upload using Zmodem It's really simple once you get the hang of it. I have (in the interest of length), tried to keep this short but I see it hasn't worked. The best advice I can give you at this point is try the commands for yourself and see what happens. I think you'll find that the more you use ProDoor the more you'll like it. Next month I'll try to cover the Message Utilities. ProDoor 3.1 Copyright (C) 1987,1989 Samuel H. Smith. PCBoard is a registered trademark of Clark Development Company. --- * Via ProDoor 3.1R ----------------------------------------------------------------------- PRO FILE by Chris Mohney The Pro File is a short, half-serious biographical sketch given to various computer telecommunications personalities around Birmingham. Victims are selected randomly from a group of names put into the notorious Hat. Anyone who thinks himself brave or witty enough may petition for admittance to the Hat by leaving E-Mail to me (Chris Mohney, most boards around town) to that effect. Anyone who wishes to suggest more questions or sneakily nominate someone without their knowledge may take the same route .... --------- Pro File on RANDY HILLIARD --------- Age: 35 Birthplace: Birmingham, Al Occupation: Industrial HVAC serviceman My hobbies include: Computers, motorcycles, reading, writing, & sex as an art form. Years telecomputing: 3 1/2 Sysop, past/present/future of: Channel 8250 My oddest habit is: Co-editing this rag. My greatest unfulfilled ambition is: Becoming a wealthy philanthropist The single accomplishment of which I am most proud is: Illegal in at least 5 backward states. My favorite performers are: Boston, Kansas, Heart, Linda Lovelace The last good movie I saw was: Dream A Little Dream The last good book I read was: Bawdy Babes & Lusty Lasses If they were making a movie of my life, I'd like to see my part played by: Silverlock My pet peeves are: People in check-out lines who wait till the cashier rings their purchase up and then look like "What! I have to pay for this? Well, let me find my wallet." Have your money ready, geez. When nobody's looking, I like to: Write sordid tales of demented adventure. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Amiga On The Loose by Richard Foshee (C) 1989 Focus On: Multitasking NOTE: I am not an expert on the Amiga, this is just information as it has been explained to me, any error's are apologized for, but feel free to correct me.. (Perhaps in your own BTN article?) Recently Kelly Rosato scribbled into text the toutings of various multitasking programs, and options of multitasking with the IBM systems. So I thought that I'd follow the wagon and see if I couldn't describe how the Amiga's multitasking operating system does its wonders. And with that said, the hard part begins. The entire line of Amiga computers use as it's main processor, the Motorola 68000 (With the exception of the Amiga 2500, which uses the Motorola 68020). However in the game of multitasking, the main processor has little to do with it, since the Amiga's are blessed with four extremely important custom chips. Three of these chips are the Agnus, Denise, and Paula chips. The Agnus chip is the one that assumes control over most of the machines graphic work, although all of the three custom chips have some graphic functions to perform. The Agnus chip receives information from the 68000 chip, then takes total control of rendering all graphic work, while the 68000 remains free to do whatever else is asked of it. I mentioned earlier that the Amiga has four custom chips, this is somewhat of an inaccuracy, but the machine does have a fourth chip that plays a HUGE graphic role, and this is a Blitter chip (Which lot's of other companies are scrambling to put into their machines). The Blitter chip helps the Agnus chip tremendously in all graphic functions. But enough of the custom chips, this article is about multitasking, right? All other computers that use some sort of multitasking routines, rely on some sort of software, I.E. Widows, or Desqview. (Although new operating systems for the IBM now have multitasking built in, I.E. Unix). The Amiga was designed from the beginning to be a multitasking machine, and to be upwardly compatible with newer Motorola CPU chips. Once the CPU receives information to perform a task, it sends this information to whichever custom chip is responsible for performing that task, then the CPU has nothing left to do. It (The cpu) get's onto the system bus, sends the information to its custom chips, then get's off the bus, and can then perform other tasks. Unlike some of the multitasking programs for other machines, the Amiga's style of multitasking let's all programs run concurrently. So there is no program 'pausing' while it does a single task. All programs that are loaded into the Amiga, are assigned a priority (Which is user changeable from -127 up to 128 (128 being the highest possible priority)). All programs are then processed in accordance to their priority, although this might lead someone to believe that the lower priority programs might be held, this is not the case, the priorities simply tell the machine which programs to give MORE attention to, the programs with lower priorities would still be running, albeit a bit more slowly. Unless otherwise specified, all programs that are loaded, will have their priority assigned at 0, which would make all programs receive equal time from the machine. Personally, I have a disk with all kinds of programs that I use a lot, or are helpful to me, this disk automatically runs a total of 14 programs, from its startup-sequence (IBM equivalent AUTOEXEC). Some of the programs that are run are, a Virus Checker, a Mouse Accelerator, a Shell program, a Disk Buffering program, and a great variety of other programs that perform specific functions. All of them run at 'Full Speed', as if they were on a single tasking machine, with little or no slow down. The Amiga is capable of running as many programs simultaneously, as it has available memory. While Bill Gates (Chairman of MicroSoft) says that "True multitasking won't work in a 1MB system" he fails to say that the Amiga is capable of multitasking in FAR LESS memory, or that his own companies program "Amiga Basic" will also multitask admirably with extremely low memory requirements. Multitasking on a 256K Amiga, is QUITE possible, and runs very well. He was of course talking about OS/2, which takes more memory to load itself into, than most Amiga users have ever DREAMED of owning. And while Apple is currently working a a 'great' new operating system for their 680x0 based machine(s), guess what is missing, MULTITASKING, although we all know how impossible is it to multitask the Motorola 680x0 chips, don't we, to bad no one told Commodore. Anyway, I've gone on long enough, and have probably not explained this very well, but if you have any further questions please fell free to ask (Corrections are also accepted!). ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Is There A Dark Contagion? by Percy Peabody Foreword: The opinions expressed within this article are not necessarily the views of the editors of, nor of any of the other contributors to the BTN newsletter. They are my own opinions,and shall remain so, and due to the possibly volatile nature of the content, I will remain anonymous as did the author of the original article which inspired this one. The concept of this article is excerpted from the article entitled DARK CONTAGION in the December issue of PC Computing Magazine, so I can only give credit to the pseudonym of Peter Stills for any quotations I may make from the article. While looking through the latest issue of PC Computing, browsing through the reviews of the new 486 machines which were the headliners, a very large and bold title caught my eye, which was DARK CONTAGION, under which there was a youth clad in a dark flight jacket, donning a ball cap on a nearly shaven head, and the Swastika emblem affixed to the lapel of the jacket. Then I read the red subtitle which read "Bigotry and Violence Online." Being caught somewhat off guard by this, I gave it a better look to see to see what this was all about. Basically, the article was an expose' on the use of BBS's for the cause of recruiting membership in and actually planning activities of such radical right groups as the Skin Heads, the KKK, W.A.R. (White Aryan Resistance), the Neo-Nazis, just to name a few. It went on to describe the linking of such activities to the deaths of three youths in Bethesda, Maryland last December from accidental explosion of a homemade bomb, the recipe for which the youths obtained from such a board, and the announcement of "purges" and beatings and killings, and for the multi-node systems, the logging of chat activities where membership was actually encouraged to beat the homeless with baseball bats rather than set their clothing afire. Essentially, the article was almost praise to the technical advancement of such groups, and the education of the users of such systems of the limitations of the law, yet at the same time pointed to the handicaps of the FBI in the investigation of the cases related to propagation of dissent via the electronic systems thanks to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986, and the Wire Tap Act of 1968. Point blank, if a message is earmarked as private, then it cannot be used as evidence against the sender or receiver in criminal cases, and according to the Wire Tap Act, interception of such private mail requires a court order for wire tap for it to be classified as evidence in a case. Of course, in the case of having a court order to wire tap someone's private phone, the lessor of the line must be notified of the tap, so there goes the good stuff. The article stated that the majority of the activity was done under assumed names anyway, so how is the FBI to trace the"handle" to an actual person? With the recent uproar in the use of, versus the disallowing of, handles on the local BBS's, it roused my curiosity. Is there some ulterior motive for the use of handles in the Magic City? Is this scourge of a favorite pastime of mine closer to home than I like to think? Now some like to consider the BBS a harmless hobby, and the means for enrichment of one's software library with programming donated as public domain and/or shareware. How harmless is this hobby if it is the means of distribution of propaganda for racism, or the shareware happens to be the recipe for car bombs? How harmless is it if it is instruction on the proper application of a baseball bat to make sure the skull is properly split on the first blow? Leonard Zeskind, research director for the Center for Democratic Renewal, dubbed the white supremacist techno-junkies as "a Klan without robes" and that the "electronic networks represent a high-tech twist on the early white-sheet days of the Ku Klux Klan." When in high school, I prepared a term paper on the KKK based on historical research, the origin of which had nothing to do with racism. The origins of the KKK was actually a college fraternity, here in the south in an unnamed town, which was founded shortly after the Civil War, whose primary goal was to thwart the Carpetbaggers' derogating of the Southern State's inhabitants. It was twisted to secretive racism in the 20's,long after the demise of the Carpetbagger's day, by the disagreement with the new federal laws imposed granting more rights to Blacks in the South. The primary activity was in the larger cities of the South, but soon spread to the rural areas by the increase in membership in the Klan, and the essentially unchecked placement of members in higher ranking political positions. Not until the sixties, would the real awareness of this problem come to an explosive head, and be realized by the riots and demonstrations, and ultimately the forced integration of schools. I remember these times well, being escorted home from grammar school by armed police, and nightfall curfews. A lot of concern is expressed on the abuse of drugs and abortion rights, but I think there is a more impending doom looming over the heads of our society, related closely to the recent increases in youth crime and racist activity. Organizations such as the SkinHeads are now boasting national memberships of 3500+, and growing, and now have the technology to schedule "social events" nationwide within a day's time via the use of networking software and private BBS's. Are we again returning to those times of violence, with better,more sophisticated information systems, which also includes the hacking of police computers, gaining access to schedules of police activity on certain cases, therefore, forewarning of nearing threat to the movement? Is there really a DARK CONTAGION worse than any software virus ever dreamed of being? To me, this is clearly a shadow on the BBS community as I know it, and it really disturbs me to think that perhaps some of the people behind handles in our telecomputing community may indeed be SkinHeads or Neo-Nazis. Back boards, secured conferences,limited access due to obscure reasons, leave considerable doubt as to the intentions of the operation of a Bulletin Board Service. Locally, we have a network which can spread a single message across some 15 services in the Birmingham area overnight. This linked with some of those 15 services also using national nets will add another day to the propagation of a coded announcement, so if I wanted to alert someone in Washington, DC of the upcoming "party," then I have only 4 days to wait for a reply at the outside, unless I log on to the particular board carrying the national net, in which case, I have only 2 days wait if the receiving party is monitoring for mail from me. I do hope the System Operators of the boards running the national nets do not think I am pointing any fingers, as I have seen nothing that indicates such activity, but then again, would anyone be so bold as to participate in this type of activity on a board that is not known to be secured? And can I really see all of what is going on behind the scenes, meaning is there a door to a back board for the membership of such groups on some of the local BBS's? I don't know, and don't really want to. The intent of this article is not to stain national nets or the systems that carry them, merely to ask questions that have arisen in my mind since reading that article. I have personally met persons of many creeds, moral beliefs, and religious choices, and have yet to see anything out of the ordinary along the lines of white supremacy or racism of any sort. I hope this is because it just isn't here, and that I have a well founded hope and faith in the local systems to be free of this sort of bigotry and hatred. But after reading that article, it begins to make me wonder if I am living in some sort of a pipe dream that this type of activity has not infested the telecomputing community in Birmingham. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Insights: A Modest Proposal by Ron Albright I remember my first computer with almost (operative word "almost") the same sense of excitement that I did my first kiss or my first...well, car. It was June, 1981. In the early stages of the "Home Computer Price Wars." It was a terrific time for new computer buyers. The "Home Computer" was the watchword and the major players in this low-end market were Texas Instruments, Commodore, Timex-Sinclair, and Atari. I have purposefully excluded IBM and Apple whose products were well outside the price range of the casual enthusiast. The major products were the TI 99/4A, the Commodore 64 and VIC-20, the Timex- Sinclair Z80, and the Atari 400 and, later, 800. I went to a local Service Merchandise store, like millions of other parents with the idea I was going to get something to help educate the kiddies on what was surely to be the "Wave of the Future," computer literacy. What I really was after was a computer for me. I was seduced by the idea that a computer would somehow make my life easier and more fun. After some teeth-gnashing and second guessing, I bought the TI machine - at $329, the 16K silver-and- black console had it "all." I wasn't at all sure what it "all" was, but the ads featuring Bill Cosby confirmed that the 99/4A did, and that was good enough for me. I plunked the money, bought a couple of cartridges (one for the kids - "Munchman," a PacMan clone) and one for me ("Tax and Investment Record Keeping"). I was told I needed a disk drive, so I dropped another $500 or so for that. I was ready for an adventure that has yet to end. After convincing my wife that it was "for the kids," I proceeded to lock the door to my office and began learning about "computing." I bring all this up now because I think we all owe so much to these pioneering little machines. I know I do. Probably many of you started with one machine and have since moved up and on to another, more powerful model. The little TI (which I eventually and over the course of the next 4 years must have spent $2500 expanding with modems, RS232 interfaces, printers, memory expansion, and software) taught me 90% of what I now know about computers. When I upgraded to an IBM clone in 1986, the knowledge I had come by using the /4A stood me well in this new genre of machines. I thought I was use a few axioms carried on with me from the TI to show you just what these "Classic Computers" have left us. 1. Computers seldom die; they just get unplugged. The very same console I bought in 1981 is still running. Plug it in and it lights up and computes just as well as it did when I popped open the box. Sure, I have replaced the keyboard (the keys started sticking and displaying 20 "A"'s when I only wanted one), but nary a chip, solder, or diode has faulted. 2. Computers are not terribly fragile. I learned early on, not to be intimidated by computers. Since I could get a replacement for the TI for $25 when they went out of production, I got more and more brave when it came to "pooping the hood" and taking a look. I installed cards, hot-wired cables and modems, and replaced keyboards without a bead of sweat. When I got my new, shiny IBM, I never lost the hacker's mentality. When others, new to computers, got their IBM's, they hired "experts" to install boards for them, and paid exorbitant prices for cables and memory upgrades. A whole new industry arose. Since I had cut my teeth on a pioneer, I simply kept doing on my $2500 monster what I was doing on my $25 bargain- basement TI. I would hesitate to guess how much money I have saved by being a "pioneer" (you know, the ones you pass on the trail of computing lying at the side of the road with arrows in their back?). I owe it all to the TI. 3. Basics are basics; concepts are concepts. The (now) rudimentary editor that I used with the TI taught me all the basic of word processing. I mean, folks, there are only a few ways you can cut- and-paste, block-copy/move, set margins, etc. When I stepped over to WordPerfect, what I carried with me from "TI-dom" allowed me to start a quantum leap ahead of the new computerists. Ditto for spreadsheets, databases, and telecommunications. Power and speed may change, but concepts do not. With these tenets in mind, I think I have a solution to the problem of computers in the schools. We all know there are too few and we all know it is due to cost constraints. In most U.S. schools, there are 20-30 students per computer. If the students are lucky enough, they get an hour or two per week on the keyboard. We know that is not enough but can't afford to improve it. Why don't we try this: Given that A. Computing is computing - regardless of the brand name stamped on the cover, and that B. Basic software concepts are constants (how to do the functions are not but are not related to the computer, themselves), and C. Computers are hardy devices that will, with a modicum of care, last probably a decade, then: Why don't we start a program to revive the "orphan" (defined as out of production) computers of the world? Let's start PTA-driven drives to ferret out these closeted classics and move them into the schools where they belong. Let's make PTA membership dues payable by donating a computer - any computer - to the school. The owners will get a tax write-off and the schools will get a warm CPU. Let's get the children out in the neighborhoods - not selling Christmas wrapping paper or candy - but asking people to go into their attics and resuscitate their old computers for their local schools. Let's plug these up all over the classrooms and turn the kids loose on them. Instead of "Computer Labs" - a sequestered, hallowed hall where all the school's computer lay enshrined (and unused) - let's have them all along the walls of every classroom. Plugged in and ready to roll. Lay a few software packages (probably cartridges and an occasional cassette tape), and Viola! Purists will argue that this will never work. A teacher cannot be expected to know the idiosyncrasies of a dozen different brands of computers and can never teach the class to use such a potpourri of OS's. I say, correct! Why try? I tell you what I think. If you have the computers around, have them plugged in and give the students time to use them, the teacher can sit back and watch. The children will become expert in no time. They will teach each other. Ever try to learn a Nintendo game? How to jump, shoot, dodge, find secret doors, etc. I never can. But give one to one of my 9 year old twins, and within 30 minutes they are on board number 12 and racking up points in the high 6 figures. Children approach computers differently. we want to know "why" - they only need to know "how." They find out by trial and error and move on....and on, and on. Computers are not barriers to them. They are fun and they are tools. How many computer classes have ever taken a computer apart? I dare say, probably few. With the lil' orphans, they can whip out a Phillips head and go at it. Find out what makes them tick. What's the harm? I think it will work. I think it's an idea so simple that it's been overlooked for much too long. With millions of TI's and VIC-20's, Coleco ADAM's, and Sinclair's stored in the attics and closets of America, there are plenty to get the classrooms up to speed in no time. I think it's time we started. I have a TI 99/4A I'll donate today. I'll keep the other two for the twins. What about you? For comments: CompuServe 75166,2473 Ron Albright GEnie RALBRIGHT 1160 Huffman Road DELPHI INFOINC Birmingham, AL 35215 MCI MAIL RALBRIGHT ----------------------------------------------------------------------- A Look Into The Twilight Zone by Richard Kushner, Jacksonville Atari Computer Group via ST Report, downloaded from Delphi. EDITOR: I can't publish this article. It is much too outlandish for anyone to believe. AUTHOR: Well, how about if I make it sound like a fairy tale ? EDITOR: We could try that. But, really, it's so far beyond belief, that even as a fable it strains all credibility. AUTHOR: Yeah, I know. Too bad it's all true. This is a fantasy... Pure Fantasy! ---------------------------------- Once upon a time there was a widget maker named Nelson Brindell. He loved to tinker and, from time to time, managed to invent something that someone was interested in selling (and buying). One day he invented a widget that hooked to the Video Box, so that people could play games on the Box. And people liked it very much, and made Nelson a wealthy man. So successful was Nel- son that, as it often happens, a large company (in this case, the Wilson Sisters company) offered him lots of money to buy his com- pany. And he sold it and went off to invent more widgets (even- tually producing ones that walked, talked, and even made pizza). Now the Wilson Sisters had an idea that they could capitalize on Nelson's work to make his widget into a product to compete with the Avocado, a well known character manipulation device invented by those famous brothers Stephen, Woz, and their other brother Darrel. And they named their device Katanga, a Sanskrit word having no English equivalent. And many grew to love and support the Katanga and heap abuse upon the Avocado and its ilk. And people liked the Katanga very much and all was well. For a while, at least. For on the other side of town the Admiral Tool and Die Company, headed by John Trample, thought it could use its cunning methods for cutting corners to make an Admiral device that would do everything the Katanga and Avocado could do, but at half the price. And they proceeded to do just that, and mayhem descended upon the world of widgets, with prices dropping faster than... well, faster than just about anything you could imagine. And many grew to love the Admiral and heap abuse upon the Katanga (not to mention the Avocado). Now pay attention, because the story gets very confusing at this point. So confusing, that if this were a soap opera, the next paragraph would take at least six months to tell. (Diagrams of all the moves and counter moves are available upon written re- quest and payment of a $5.00 handling fee). Ray Major, who dreamed up the Katanga, left Wilson Sisters and invented a better Katanga, which he called the Freundlich. While he was doing this, John Trample left Admiral T&D (claiming that the state of Pennsylvania was not big enough for all of his fami- ly) and bought the Katanga from the Wilson Sisters... lock, stock and barrel (a move applauded by the Wilson Sisters, who wanted to get back to their first love, vaudeville). Hiring the designer of the Admiral, Hashnish Shirka, (by luring him away from his former company), Trample set out to build a better widget, the Super Katanga. Not to be outdone, Admiral T&D hired good old Ray Major and his Freundlich to do battle from their side of the city. And so you are faced with the totally implausible situation, where lovers of the Katanga now support the Super Katanga, which actually comes from the Admiral T&D Company, and the lovers of the Admiral now gather around the Freundlich, even though it ac- tually comes from the Katanga Company (by the way of the Wilson Sisters, who, by the way, opened at the Atlantis Casino in early March, to rave reviews). If you are still with me, I have a pro- position for you, that concerns a certain bridge that is rumored to be for sale... EDITOR: I'm really sorry. I've read the article over and it stretches logic too far. AUTHOR: Gee, it is, after all, the August issue and maybe you can pass it off as a spoof ? EDITOR: As an Author, you know there must be an element of truth in satire, or it fails. AUTHOR: But Sir, the story is true, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent. EDITOR: Gimme a break. Do you think I was born yesterday? Why not see if MAD Magazine is interested? Just go away and leave me alone ! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Book Review Karsten Propper In my last report I wrote that for this review, I would analyze the book "Prison Ship". The book was so badly written that I never even finished it. I've decided to do a different book instead. The book that I will analyze is "The Seventh Swan" by Nicholas Stuart Gray. The story is actually a continuation of a Grimm fairy tale. The tale tells about how seven brothers are turned into swans by an evil spell. The only way for them to be changed back is by their sister weaving a special shirt for them. She runs out of cloth and the last shirt lacks a sleeve. So at the end of the tale, one brother is left with a right arm and a left swans wing. The book tells of his adventures afterward. The beginning of the book starts with a big dance. One specific boy has a heavy plaid draped around his left arm. He overhears the whispers about his wing, and runs out of the room crying and ashamed. This boy is Alasdair. You are then introduced to Ewen, his personal bodyguard. He is used to the crying and moaning that comes from Alasdair, and has learned to put up with it. Fenella, his dance partner, is angry with Alasdair, and runs up to his room. You are then introduced to a bard, who was also a magician. He is a hunchback. He tells Fenella that the only way to save Alasdair is to go to a special well and call on the Bocan, a repulsive monster who owns the area. The attempt bombs out, and Fenella is turned to a toad by the Bocan. only way to release her from the spell was for Alasdair to recognize her with- out being told specifically who she is. This signals on a chain of events that end up with Fenella being half changed, having a toad's head, but a woman's body. To change her to a normal head, true love must be seen in her by Alasdair or Ewen. Ewen finds it first, half converting her to a cross between a regular head and a toad's. At the end of the story, true love is found at last by Alasdair with the following remark. "If you had ten heads, all hideous, you would still be my Fenella." I really liked the book. It was well written, and has many humorous parts in it. I liked the idea of continuing a fairy tale, which is one of the reasons I bought it. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Message Board by Barry Bowden JANUARY 1990 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 22 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 January 1 New Year's Day January 6 FAOUG January 7 BIPUG January 8 BACE January 9 CCS (C64/C128) January 13 Birmingham Apple Corps January 14 BCCC January 15 BEPCUG January 16 CADUB Martin Luther King's B-Day January 18 CCS (Amiga) January 23 CCS (C64/C128) January 28 BCCC BEPCUG CCS Birmingham East PC Users Group Commodore Club South Jefferson Sate Jr. College Springville Road Library Ruby Carson Hall, Rm 114 2nd & 4th Tuesday (C64/C128) 3rd Friday, 7-9 PM 3rd Monday (Amiga) Paula Ballard 251-6058 (after 5PM) 7:30-10 PM Maurice Lovelady 684-6843 BCCC BIPUG Birmingham Commodore Computer Club Birmingham IBM-PC Users Group POB 59564 UAB Nutrition Science Blg Birmingham, Al 35259 RM 535/541 UAB School of Education, Rm 153 1st Sunday (delayed one week 2nd and 4th Sundays, 2 PM if meeting is a holiday) Rusty Hargett 854-5172 Marty Schulman 967-5883 BACE FAOUG Birmingham Atari Computer First Alabama Osborne Users Enthusiast Group Vestavia Library, downstairs Homewood Library 2nd Monday, 7 PM 1st Saturday, 1PM Benny Brown 822-5059 Ed Purquez 669-5200 CADUB Birmingham Apple Corps CAD Users of Birmingham Homewood Library Homewood Library 10 Office Park 3rd Tuesday, 6:30PM-8:30PM Mountain Brook Bobby Benson 791-0426 2nd Saturday, 10:30 AM Informal get together every Saturday, Kopper Kettle, Brookwood Village at 9 AM J. Jenkins 823-1968 If you belong to or know of a user group that is not listed, please let me know by sending E-Mail to me thru EzNet or on The Bus System BBS. Please leave the group name and a contact person/phone number. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Known BBS Numbers For The Birmingham Area NAME NUMBER BAUD RATES SUPPORTED MODEM TYPE *American BBS 674-1851 300, 1200, 2400 *Bus System BBS 595-1627 300, 1200, 2400 *Byte Me 979-2983 1200, 2400 Cat House 854-5907 300, 1200, 2400 *Channel 8250 744-8546 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 HST, V.32 *Crunchy Frog 956-1755 300, 1200, 2400 D3 Systems BBS 663-2759 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 HST, V.32 +Duck Pond BBS 822-0956 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 HST, V.32 Elite Fleet 853-1257 300, 1200, 2400 Gizmo's Atari BBS 854-0698 300, 1200, 2400 +I.S.A. BBS 995-6590 300, 1200, 2400 *Joker's Castle 744-6120 300, 1200, 2400 *Little Kingdom 823-9175 300, 1200, 2400 LZ Birmingham 870-7770 300, 1200, 2400 *Magnolia BBS 854-6407 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 HST Penny Arcade 226-1841 300, 1200, 2400 ProSoft Systems BBS 853-8718 300, 1200, 2400 Role Player's Paradise 631-7654 300, 1200, 2400 Shadetree BBS 787-6723 300, 1200, 2400 Sperry BBS 853-6144 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 Hayes *ST BBS 836-9311 300, 1200, 2400 The Connection Node 1 854-9074 1200, 2400 The Connection Node 2 854-2308 1200, 2400 The Islands BBS 870-7776 300, 1200, 2400 The Matrix Nodes 1-4 323-2016 300, 1200, 2400 The Matrix Node 5 251-2344 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 HST The Outer Limits 969-3262 1200, 2400, 9600 HST *The Professional's Board 856-0679 300, 1200, 2400 Twilight Zone 856-3783 300, 1200 Willie's DYM Node 1 979-1629 300, 1200, 2400 Willie's DYM Node 2 979-7739 300, 1200, 2400 Willie's RBBS 979-7743 300, 1200, 2400 Ziggy Unaxess 991-5696 300, 1200 Boards with a "*" before their name are members of our local network, EzNet, and public messages left in the EzNet Conferences of any of these boards will be echoed to all members. Boards with a "+" before their name are members of FidoNet, an international network that provides a variety of public forums as well as private mail services all over the world. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- EzNet Multiple Echo List EzNet now supports multiple conference echoing but there are a few things you should be aware of regarding private mail. A. You have one 'address' for private mail. If you are registered for private mail on Channel 8250 and someone sends you a private message in the Writers conference from Crunchy Frog it will wind up in the Writers conference on Channel 8250 as it should. However, if you were registered for private mail on Magnolia and someone sends you a private message in a conference that Magnolia does not support (echo) then the message will wind up in the twilight zone. B. If you go by a handle on one BBS and your real name on another even if the private message goes where it is supposed to, you will not be able to read it because it is addressed to someone else as far as PC Board is concerned. PC Board has no way of knowing that Red Foxx and John Doe are the same person. No tickee, no washee. Advice on sending private mail: If you don't know if the person you are sending private mail to is registered for private mail then keep a copy of the message in case you have to find an alternate route. EzNet Central will delete your private, undelivered message and inform you that the user you attempted to reach is not registered for private mail on any EzNet Node. This is a list of the current echoes that I am aware of. More are in the making and will be posted in future issues. If you are a sysop and are running an echo not listed for your board, please make us aware of it so we may correct it next issue. Eznet Program IBM Adult Scitech BTNWA American BBS ........ * ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... .. Bus System BBS ...... * ..... * ..... * ..... ..... * ..... * .. Byte Me ............. * ..... * ..... * ..... * ..... ..... .. Channel 8250 ........ * ..... * ..... * ..... ..... * ..... .. Crunchy Frog ........ * ..... ..... * ..... * ..... ..... * .. Joker's Castle ...... * ..... ..... ..... * ..... ..... .. Little Kingdom ...... * ..... * ..... * ..... * ..... * ..... .. Magnolia BBS ........ * ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... .. Professional's Board * ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... .. ST BBS .............. * ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... ..