BTN: Birmingham Telecommunications News COPYRIGHT 1993 ISSN 1055-4548 September 1993 Volume 6, Issue 9 Edition 4 Table Of Contents ----------------- Article Title Author Policy Statement and Disclaimer................Staff From The Editor................................Scott Hollifield Letters to BTN.................................BTN Readers The Last Hegemony, Part 2......................Christopher Mohney Compact Disc Clubs.............................Jeff Vaughn A Conservative Estimate........................Bernie Starchaser Con Report: ONE BBSCON.........................James Minton Gamer's Corner: Syndicate; Buyer's Survey......Richard DeVaney Local Music In September.......................Judy Ranelli Cafe Spotlight: Mancha's.......................David Moss Electronic Frontier Foundation.................EFF press release Japanimation In Birmingham.....................Jeff Vaughn Special Interest Groups (SIGs).................Eric Hunt Known BBS Numbers..............................James Minton ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 Publisher, BTN 606 Twin Branch Terrace BHAM, AL 35216 (205) 823-3956 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. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- F R E E B I E : G E T I T W H I L E I T S H O T ! The following boards allow BTN to be downloaded freely, that is with no charge to any existing upload/download ratios. ADAnet One Alter-Ego Bus System The Castle Channel 8250 C.A.B. The Comfy Chair! Crunchy Frog DC Info Exchange Hardware Hotline The Holodeck Homewood's Hell Hole Joker's Castle Lemon Grove Lion's Den Martyrdom Again?! The MATRIX Milliways BBS The Outer Limits Owlabama BBS Owl's Nest Playground Safe Harbor Southern Stallion Starbase 12 Thy Master's Dungeon Weekends BBS (This list includes some systems which are not local to Birmingham and therefore not included on our BBS Numbers list.) If you are a sysop and you allow BTN to be downloaded freely, please let me know via The Matrix or Crunchy Frog so that I can post your board as a free BTN distributor. Thanks. *IMPORTANT!* Beginning this month, BTN is adopting an official "favored distribution policy" in regards to this list. Bulletin boards who offer BTN as a free download, with no file penalties, are listed here and receive each issue of BTN as soon after it goes to press as I can possibly upload it. I will *NOT* be uploading BTN personally to systems who are NOT on this list--instead, I now have a small staff of helpers to do that for me, and they will likely not upload BTN as fast as I will. We try to get BTN to all the systems we can, but if you would like to receive BTN and you are not getting it, please leave me mail on THE MATRIX or CRUNCHY FROG and let me know. Back issues of BTN are available on those boards as well. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- N E W S F L A S H ANSI AD CONTEST DELAYED YET ANOTHER MONTH! See "From the Editor" column. ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION PRESS RELEASE IN THIS ISSUE OF BTN! Everyone be sure to read this! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From the Editor by Scott Hollifield It's a gorgeous Sunday afternoon and I'm stuck in here doing *this* again. It's not just a nice day. It's one of those days where the very blueness of the sky comes filtering through your window along with the sunshine. It's the kind of day where you can only truly notice how nice it is from inside the house. Outside, people tend to take that kind of thing for granted. Not that I'm complaining. I'm an indoors-type person for the most part, so I can appreciate the situation from both sides. And it's a holiday weekend, so I can take my time to appreciate stuff like this. Some cynical people gripe that we spend too much time admiring the nice days of life and not enough time worrying about the really important bad things that are going wrong in the world. I think that the problems of the world will definitely take a back seat to me enjoying my nice today, though. Well, that's my excuse for an editoral, and I have little else to say other than that the "a" key on my keyboard won't shift properly, that I like the new David Letterman show, and that things are getting better every day despite what some people say. I'm proud to say that we have a fairly hefty little issue this month, one that's sure to tease 'n' please. Christopher Mohney continues his controversial three-part article on telecommunications and who really controls it; this month, he tackles some people you probably know. Hide the kids. If you've been paying attention to the news lately (or to The Matrix for that matter), you've probably heard about how the media has been paying more and more attention to BBSs and telecommunications, particularly about how bulletin boards have come under scrutiny of the law. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a group working to make sure that we get to keep our rights as BBS users and telecommunications users; they're doing some interesting stuff, so be especially sure to peruse their press release in this issue. We officially recognize Richard DeVaney as a new regular contributor this month by resurrecting the "Gamer's Corner" column title begun by Osman Guner some years ago. I only hope he can handle the responsibility. David Moss also begins what may be a regular feature here in BTN (and, as we all know, regular features means regular writers!): it's a restaraunt column called Cafe Review, and we look forward to our article pile growing well-fed as David himself does. In addition to all that, we have an exclusive report from ONE BBSCON in Colorado from our BBS Man Himself, James Minton. Jeff Vaughn has two articles this month, at least one of which will hopefully be of interest to everyone. Our old friend Bernie Starchaser is back with some opinions about the national economy. And our resident guitar-playin' fool Judy Ranelli is here to tell you club types exactly where to go and what to hear for maximum music moxie. As the News Flash for this month says, our ANSI BBS ad contest is still stuck in the larval stage; hopefully, it will be nurtured and grow into a presentable pup by next month and we'll be able to show it off to everyone. Until then, read this issue, then go away and live a fruitful life for about 30 days before coming back. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Letters to the Editor [Ha! An actual letter this month. Granted, it was sent in by someone who's written for us before, but I'll take what I can get. - Ed.] FROM: Damion Furi Scott: I don't remember the issue number, but one or two issues before I started writing for BTN I sent you a short note of congratulations for assuming the editorial helm with style. BTN #61 impressed me again. Chris Mohney did an excellent job of addressing a number of issues that have been nagging me off and on since I installed a modem in this blasted machine. I don't think he's right, but I thoroughly enjoyed the article and look forward to BTN #62 and 63. The majority of BBS users are casual users and enthusiastic hobbyists. No doubt it is easy for them to forget those of us that rely heavily on information exchange in order to make a living. And it is easy enough to forget or ignore most of the time. I think the only time it really hits them, and that only lightly, is when it's time to renew their subscription to The Matrix or one of the national services. To this extent, I think Chris has the issue in perspective. Beyond that point, I have a few problems with the article. For one thing, Chris seems to think that information packaging is a new thing. It isn't. We've had it since the first neanderthal tattletale received an extra helping of roast dinosaur haunch for his trouble. Furthermore, telecommunications has more than 150 years of history behind it; the modem was really nothing more than a minor exercise in cryptology after Alexander Graham Bell finished tying the wires together for his telephone. Telephone lines use an analog signal; all a modem does is translate digital to analog and back again. Modulation and demodulation. The technological explosion Chris refers to actually began in 1837 when Samuel Morse patented a functional telegraph system. In 1876 Bell filed patent on his voice transmission system. After that, there is a long list of patents filed for communications breakthroughs. The United States's launch of Telstar in 1962 was the last major contribution to the communications industry until microcomputers hit the scene. After that, there are no surprises. Forever after, the masses have the ability to be free *because* of the availablity of information available in channels that are going to be hellishly difficult--if not impossible --to regulate in any manner useful to governments. The hacker ethic notwithstanding, information has never been free. The price has simply increased with our ability to gather it, package it, distribute it, and apply it. "Information wants to be free" is a hacker delusion. Boiled down to basics, information has always had survival value and always will. Remember, knowledge is power. The more you know, the more power you have. Among the power brokers, even knowing a thing isn't enough; who knows it first knows the score - and wins the game. Chris analyzed this part correctly. But feeling sad about it strikes me as both pointless and contra-survival. There's a theory that says the primary difference between Man and his closest cousins is the ability to use tools. Well, a chimpanzee can be taught to use a monkey wrench and dolphins use what amounts to a typewriter. But monkeys eat bananas, and people eat information-- measured in wordage and bytes rather than calories. I think his comparison of information distribution to economics was right on the money, so to speak, and I'm looking forward to his analysis of the telecommunications community's impact on "normal" society. But can we drop the non-word "telelectronic" in favor of a real word such as "telecommunications"? ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ======================================================================== The Last Hegemony: An Information Age Cosmology ======================================================================== by Christopher Mohney -------------------- Preface to Part 2 -------------------- In this section, I will be naming names. The sole purpose for this is to provide support for the extended analogy used in this essay. No slanderous or libelous intent, no insidious agenda of character assassination motivates these words. Admittedly, some portion of the effectiveness of this section will be lost on those individuals who do not know of the names I'll be using. That's too bad, but I find the subject interesting enough that I'm willing to take that risk. Again, anyone who wishes to discuss this with me or send me legal notices of intent to sue may contact me at cmohney1@ua1vm.ua.edu. ------------------------------ Part 2: KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOR ------------------------------ For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate. - Albert Camus When people get together in groups, certain dynamics begin to evidence themselves. Among the most basic of these are the competing dynamics of conflict and consensus. Under the watchful eyes of Father Chance and Mother Choice, something like social evolution takes place, assuming the society survives. The telelectronic community has evolved particularly fast, because by its very nature the "rate of mutation" is geometrically faster than in its biological counterpart. This is because instead of biological reproduction, the genetic coin of the realm in the BBS world is of course information, interacting only with capital as various systems reproduce and evolve. When one looks at the various persona who've percolated around in the Birmingham BBS scene over the years, there are essentially three types of people. The vast majority are peasants, the support base for the community, the patrons of equipment dealers, subscription services and other species of information merchants. The second type are priests, who are often as not running boards themselves but are always concerned with the running of boards in general. The third and most recent type is the king, for whom a BBS is like as not a means to an end; yet, kings are much more likely to be running boards than priests. In fact, they may insist on it. There are, of course, exceptions. Some people do not fit this analogy exactly, tending to have considerable influence but fitting several of the three molds, or none of them. If nothing else, most everyone was at one time a peasant; it just comes with the territory. Some kings were formerly priests, and some priests were once kings or had aspirations in that direction. Still, discussion of overlapping can be safely delayed pending more thorough examination of the three primary types, via example. Of the peasant, there are too many to name and probably just as many subtypes. The peasant is the taxpayer, the junkie, the voter, the spear- carrier, the John Q. Public of the telelectronic community. There are many spokespeasants of note, but the peasantry is usually treated with as a dialectic force rather than a collection of individuals, as is any subject population. Typically, they are simply called the "users." The greatest principle of the dogma of virtuality implies an almost Platonic disconnection from the world of physicality - and since information, the currency of the virtual world, "wants to be free," there is no place for private ownership BY THE USER. The user simply "uses," and in return provides capital to whatever priests or kings supplies his local markets. Priests spend their time thinking about how to influence the mass of users, while kings attempt to discern how best to take advantage of current user society. Priests are many and varied. Examples of characters local to Birmingham (past and present) who fit this archetype are Ed O'Neill, Tim Straughn, Kathy Maisel, Tom Egan, Maggie Harden, Joe Kearley, Bill Freeman, Willie Moore ... the list could go on. There's probably a whole posse of them out there these days that I'm unaware of since I'm relatively removed from the nitty gritty of Birmingham. The priest is roughly equivalent to the itinerant sysop, cosysop, or high-profile user -- an example of the latter might be someone like Brett Thorn, myself, or the recently vanished Jet Thomas. However, plain vanilla priests are more equivalent to ascetic monks; a true priest is deeply concerned with the dual movement of capital and information as it affects his stake in the industry. As in Part 1, a brief tip of the hat to the pure hobbyist, however acknowledging that they affect the larger situation only in the capacity of additional peasantry. A priest must deal with a large base of peasants on a regular basis, in order to be as informed as possible and (eventually) to extract capital from them. A priest often is a sysop, or at least heavily associated with one and the operation of his or her BBS. A priest may run a free-access BBS, but that is a vanishing breed. The moment the priest begins to request a tithe, his or her niche in a functioning process of economic competition is assured. Success is not assured, though. Many priests fall back into the ranks of peasantry or convert to kings, for personal reasons as often as economic. The telelectronic priesthood is a harsh and demanding order. Of course, the priest par excellance could be none other than Rocky Rawlins, the Virtual Bishop of Birmingham. Given the rampant network interconnection that the Matrix is currently undergoing, Rawlins is probably responsible for more data flow than everyone else in the local telelectronic community combined. He is the Magic City's pre-eminent information merchant. America Online was one of the first boards to go subscription, despite a sentimental nostalgia that until only recently prevented the Matrix from becoming all-subscription. Rawlins now controls a thriving data business, and has expanded his personal diocese from just his old compatriot Tom Egan to a small army of underpriests such as Eric Hunt. As a whole, the Matrix is a dynamic locomotive of the virtual religion, with Rawlins as its methodical conductor. Kings are more uncommon than priests, being the most recent development in the evolution of the telelectronic community. There are a few good examples, but most likely the first king to appear in Birmingham would have to be Mark Maisel. While priests such as Rawlins have influenced the peasantry, Maisel has quite likely had the greatest influence of any one single person on the BBS's themselves. Maisel has previously spent time as both peasant and priest, in both cases being one of the first. It would be a mistake to assume that the relationship between king and priest is the same as priest and peasant; there is no vertical hierarchy that places a king like Maisel over a priest like Rawlins. They are simply two different animals, Rawlins and Maisel being the most accomplished local example of each. The goals and methodology of a king are quite different from that of a priest. While a king is more likely to run or have run a BBS, he possesses more of a user mentality. The king is less interested with influencing the peasantry for direct extraction of resources or capital than with utilizing the entire telelectronic community as a tool for personal ends. The king is a user on a grand scale. Hence Maisel's establishment of BTN, an attempt to carve out a personal niche that had nothing to do, directly, with gain of lucre or information. Scott Hollifield, the current editor, has inherited a bit of this and its attendant noblesse oblige, which amounts to a minor kingship of his own. Maisel has since turned his attentions in other directions and has done admirably well by using the experience gained both as a priest and a larval king to further his personal ends. Another note about another king, mostly because of the interesting repercussions he created. Bob Crawford was probably the second legitimate king that Birmingham has seen. Note that a king is merely a name assigned to this type; no assumption should be made that a region can have only one "king" any more than it can have only one priest. Crawford managed to attract a clique of a stripe that had failed to gel around Maisel, yet quite similar in structure to the "court" that was often joked about concerning Maisel's circle of intimates. People like Lurch Henson and Douglas Griffin ended up gravitating more to Crawford than to Maisel. Interestingly, Crawford and Griffin soon had an apocalyptic falling out over various matters both personal and economic - one might conjecture that Griffin longed for the role of Chief rather than that of Indian (Crawford even circulated a simplistic parody to explain his side of the situation, characterizing the telelectronic community as a medieval fairy tale--the feudal model seems to have a wide appeal). Much like Maisel occasionally did, Crawford frequently stages or participates in various events that increase his standing and reach. Like Maisel, he appears to be doing quite well; however, a certain abrasive cockiness in his character has prevented him from assembling a court to match the sheer size of Maisel's at its heyday. This is largely immaterial for his apparent aims at present, though. Given these three types, a final illustration of them all interacting is in order. No better example can be found than the recent furor over a Channel 13 television news story about digital pornography. When the story was being shot, Bob Crawford was named as a personable spokesperson. I have not seen the segment, but claims have been made that certain of Crawford's remarks were taken out of context or somesuch, and BBS's were represented in a less than positive light as purveyors of filth. Ignoring for the moment the empirical truth of that claim, an analysis of various reaction in the light of the above arguments proves quite diverting. First, consider what motivates Channel 13. They, too, are information merchants, but they have slightly different concerns than those of their virtual counterparts. A TV station has a set bandwidth; they can only cram a certain, fixed amount of information into their allotted time slots. Their goal is to sell advertising, and to get people to watch that advertising. To do this the information they broadcast between ads must be attractive and interesting. Some would even say sensational, as the Channel 13 story was often characterized; an interpretive distinction at best. In any event, the story was presented in such a way as to be most effective for the station's purpose, while functioning within the bounds of legality. So there we have it. The reaction from the peasantry comes quickly; some are outraged, some offended, some begin to pick at the factuality of the reporting or even its ethicality. The peasantry, as a whole, know when their borders are being threatened. Debates begin, get sidetracked, get censored by topic cops, all the usual furniture of a BBS debate. A few sporadic vows about letter writing or phone calls are made. Ultimately, sound and fury, signifying nothing. It's just the telelectronic community, talking to itself. Neither is there any reaction from the kings. Mark Maisel, by all reports, evinces only a clinical interest--at best, detached amusement. Bob Crawford is hip-deep in one of his own projects and does nothing more than voice some vicarious support. Where, then, does the real action come from? The priests, of course. From out of nowhere, almost everyone who ever even thought about being a sysop begins swearing mighty oaths about their pornography-clean systems. Some say little, but many admit that they will correct any problem that might exist. From the priests come the most virulent diatribes against Channel 13, for they recognize that television is in many ways a competing priesthood. And naturally enough, Rocky Rawlins is the prime instigator of the protest against Channel 13. He knows that his method of extracting capital from the peasantry is threatened by the accusations made in the news story. Caught in the unfortunate position of being in a business evolutionally too advanced for local ethics, Rawlins organizes the protest, thus presenting the telelectronic community as a united entity ready to tussle rather than just another information bank that competing information priesthoods can raid for raw material. Those who were morally outraged by the injustice of the story are rigorously toeing Rawlins' party line; moral outrage always originates in the dictates of a priest. As said previously, there are those who exist outside of this little analogy-set. Dean Costello is probably the most notorious; he might be analogous to a court jester in this scheme of things (a characterization that would please him, whether he admits it or not), but only in the truest sense in the function of the Fool. There are others, but for the most part, they have as little impact as pure hobbyists on the larger arrangement of things. So, there it is: a little bit of home flipped around and dressed up in new clothes. Too few people in the telelectronic community are willing to think in terms like these (in the larger sociological sense, not just this limited feudal model); too many are just willing to accept their roles as peasants. Be aware of who is doing what and consider what could really motivate such people as you know to act as they do. This virtual world will ultimately result in more than just a social revolution and the catapulting of the race into the Information Age. It will cause the birth of a new society altogether. The best place to watch this process gestate is, of course, the Internet. -------------------- Next: THE ANT FARM -------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Compact Disc Clubs: A Comparison and a Word of Warning by Jeff Vaughn Hello again. By now, any of you who've read my articles know that I'm really deep into music and music-related facts about bands and things. Well, here's a little something that's a bit different but also has something in common. Let's talk about compact disc clubs. BMG Music Service ----------------- In early 1990, I joined the ranks of a well-known CD club called BMG Music Service. This was probably one of the biggest mistakes of my life. It at least ranked in the top twenty. When I signed up, they offered eight tapes for a penny and allowed you to order two more at a really cut price. Okay, cool, I signed up. Within six months time, I must have ordered at least a hundred or more tapes from them. It lapsed on into 1991, and every month I would order two or three tapes from the club. Let's say that I had a rather large collection (and that's being modest). In September 1991, I moved into my first apartment and expeienced the wonderment of the compact disc player in my own abode. My roommate Glen had one. Well, after that, I was in gridlock and bought nothing but CDs. This is when the major trouble started. Glen and I ordered nine CDs in one month. It took over six weeks for the first CD to appear. Up until that time, BMG had been billing us and sending threats about collection agencies. We let it pass and paid the bill for the CDs. It was a disgrace. One of the CDs were cracked and the others looked almost as if another person had owned them for over a year. We were frustrated, but we're decently easy-going, so we let it pass again. The CDs worked, so, no big deal. Then it happened. We started getting bills about some CDs I ordered over three months prior and had sent them back to the company. Threats again about the bill collectors. I sent them back a letter explaining that we had returned the CDs over three months ago and that they must be out of their minds if they thought I was going to pay for them. Somewhere in the midst of it all, a package of tapes I had previously ordered showed up, or at least SOME of them. BMG wanted the entire bill paid before they would send the rest of the order. This was not the agreement or service I had signed up for. In that order, they sent me a tape (and this had happened before) that I didn't order. I sent it back to them explaining that I didn't order it and to clear it from my record. They sent me an outrageous letter saying, "WE DID NOT SEND THIS TAPE TO YOU! IT WAS NOT ON YOUR ORDER FORM! THIS TAPE ISN'T ONE OF OURS!" ("No kidding, Sherlock!" I thought.) Then someone with a scrap of intelligence must have decided to read the label on the tape that said "Manufactured BMG Music Service" because a letter came back that said, "our mistake". Not even an apology for their pompous attitude. Geez, what jerks! Well, I finally got fed up and just packed my last order back up and sent it back to them. You see, after I completed the introductory orders (6 tapes in 3 years), they were supposed to send me a "Valued Member" prize (like a Walkman or something) and give me discounts. It never happened. I also explained that to them in SEVERAL letter. It was pointless; the only valid view was theirs as far as they were concerned. The fact that they never came through on their part of the deal was of no interest to them. My final word to you is DO NOT order from "BMG Music Service". It is a bad experience that you don't need and the servies is terrible (that's being VERY nice on my part). I had thoughts of writing to the Better Business Bureau, but I figured there was no point to it. I had written them before and got no results. Columbia House -------------- In August of 1992, I joined the ranks of Columbia House. I was a little weary about them because of all the stories and rumors floating around about how Columbia House "screws" people. Much to my surprise, I found this was not the case. I got the first order back in two weeks. I finished my intrductory order and Columbia sent me my "Valued Member" card and I have used it ever since. The deliveries are quick, the staff is very nice if you are late on a CD payment, and the CDs are always in excellent shape. All my fear about Columbia House had been wiped away in less than a month. Since then, I have signed up six people to the service and none of them (that are fairly responsible about their billing) have had a single complaint about any of their orders. This is the kind of service I've come to expect since I've joined up with them. It is no less than any customer deserves. Now, I will say that all departments of Columbia House are not as reliable as they should be. I was given the offer to join their video club as well. I did so and ordered SEVERAL movies within two months. But, that old problem about sending the wrong movie showed up and I said, "No, not again". So I packed them all up and sent them back. Again, much to my surprise, Columbia House was very courteous about the whole thing and even sent me a free movie for being such a valued CD customer. I got my choice from about fifty movies for the freebie. Not a bad deal in the long run. I highly recommend Columbia House in any department over any other company because of the main fact that they are willing to admit mistakes and they treat you decently in the long run. They are very concerned about their reputation, it seems, because they have never given me a raw deal. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- A Conservative Estimate by Bernie Starchaser Greetings, all! This is my first of what will hopefully be many articles here in BTN. Finally back after a long Hiatus. Before I begin, I would just like to announce to everyone that I am now married (no groans!) to a lovely lady who says hello. Now on with the show. Understandably, there is a lot of talk roaring through the nets regarding Slick Willie and his "Income Reduction Plan". Now, you'll pardon my facetiousness for a moment while I tell you all just what I think of it. Any of you who are die hard liberals: I intend to pull no punches here. If you are a supporter of our current regime... uh, I mean administration, and you are offended by criticism of her... uh, I mean him, then I suggest you move on to the next article. That said, here goes... There are only a few main points about the Deficit Reduction Plan about which the public has been made aware. One of the most hotly debated of these is the income tax rate increase on persons making more than a certain amount per year. Now, at the time of this writing I do not have the exact dollar figure, but what it amounts to is that the already unfairly biased tax system is going to slap another disincentive on the successful. Many people no doubt think that this is just what needs to be done, although their personal principles to one side, I do not think they would be playing the same song if THEY were in the bracket getting soaked. Anyhow, here's a scenario for you to think about. It costs an employer, on average, about one-and-one-half times as much as an employee is paid, before taxes, to have that employee. This takes into account the employer portions of FICA and Medicare, benefits like insurance, administrative costs, State Unemployment Insurance, etc. Let's assume that we are talking about an employee who makes minimum wage. A full-timer would make 40 hours times $4.25 = 170.00 per week, or $8,840.00 per year. Tax increase isn't going to affect them, is it? No? WRONG! Because one of the major groups falling into the income category being increased are Small Business owners. Non-incorporated business owners must report their business earnings as PERSONAL INCOME, even though a relatively small portion of this would be considered discretionary. So back to our full time employee. It's going to cost that employer $13,260.00 to have that employee. That means, given a certain level of profit as a goal, every $13k more in taxes a small businessman must pay as a result of this plan is ONE JOB GONE! Whoops! Tax increase DID affect our little minimum-wage guy, didn't it? Let's assume our small businessman is a good guy, and he doesn't want to just drop the employee like a stone. So his other alternative is to increase his profit margin. This means cutting expenses and or raising prices. Both of THESE will also affect lower wage-earners, won't they? Not only that, but if he wasn't careful, either of these options COULD reduce his sales so that he must fire the employee anyway, or lay him off. In that case, the only ones who win are those who recieve the government benefits that the majority of the new taxes will be used for. And if prices increase enough, even THEIR money won't go much further than it did. It's simple enough for even the weakest mathematical mind that growth in the economy is the result of profitable business taking place. Equally simple, increased expenses in the form of more taxes = lower profits = no economic growth, and there's no two ways around it. (Any comments or inquiries are welcomed, and may be addressed to me on The Crunchy Frog BBS in the argument conference or sent via the internet to chris.phillips@the-matrix.com.) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- My Trip To ONE BBSCON (or How I Spent My Summer Vacation) by James Minton About a year ago I saw a review/ad in Boardwatch magazine talking about a BBSCON. I thought to myself, "Hmmm... Wonder what that could be about?" Once I read about it, I was hooked. I decided that I would have to attend the next one that would be held in August of 1993. I started scraping together my meager pennies and soon had enough money. For those that don't know what the ONE BBSCON is, here's a bit of background information. ONE BBSCON was started by ONE, Inc. founded by Phil Becker and Jack Rickard, both heavyweights in the BBS industry. ONE BBSCON was held in Colorado Springs, CO from August 25-29, 1993. There were over 137 educational sessions and over 100 vendor exhibits. The big day finally arrived. I, my wife, my mother-in-law and my wife's aunt loaded in the car and set off. Being that my wife has family in the Colorado Springs area, it was a good way for her to stay occupied while I entered BBS heaven. The trip took a little over 24 hours, mostly due to the fact that I'd never been any further west than the Mississippi River and wanted to look around a bit. We arrived August 23rd, just a little frazzled from the drive with no sleep, so the first item on the agenda was a nice long nap. On the 24th we did a little sight seeing. A ride to the top of Pike's Peak is a MUST if you ever get to Colorado Springs. Being born and raised in Alabama, I had never seen a REAL mountain. The city and the state are both very beautiful places. I got signed in and registered at the Broadmoor Hotel where the conference was held, picked up my compli- mentary tote bag (which would come in VERY handy in the next few days), BBSCON program guide, etc. At this point I was almost quivering with anticipation. Thursday, the 25th, finally came, and I hopped on the shuttle bus for the trip to the Broadmoor. The first session I attended was on CDROMS & BBS's, a pretty good seminar, gave me some good information on networking and CDROMS with a BBS. Next came the BBSing for Profit I & II sessions. By far these two had the highest attendance of any of the sessions given. Those sessions marked the end of the first day. I won't continue with a day by day listing of everything I did because it would take up a whole lot of space and there was actually way to much to remember! On Friday the Vendor Exhibits opened at 9 a.m. I was standing at the door at 8:45 in eager anticipation. I got to meet/talk to someone from all of the major BBS software companies. PCBoard, Wildcat!, Major BBS, Searchlight, Synchronet, and TBBS all were there with displays set up. By far the friendliest group was the Searchlight and Major BBS folks. The people from Zoom Telephonics held a party the night before and hinted at a BIG suprise to be announced today. I went over to their booth to see what they meant. Well, it was a big suprise: Internal Zoom modems 24.4k(v.fast) 14400 v.32bis with 14400 fax for only $99. No, that is not a misprint, $99. The external model was $119. Needless to say, I ordered two. I saw some people ordering in excess of 10-15. Across the aisle, not to be totally shut-out, the ZyXEL modem people had knocked a big chunk off their prices as well. Their U1496E external modem was dropped to $199 from the regular Sysop price of $299. I already owned one of their modems and really liked it so I bought two more of them. The other modem makers were present but I really didn't stop and look. Call me a modem bigot if you must. Now for a bit of a summary, for those that hate long articles, I'll rate how each company I talked to came across to me. PCBoard : Nice sales/support people, not many people around the booth most of the time. Most people I guess were still hanging around the Zoom booth ordering modems. No new features I hadn't already heard about. Wildcat!: I run Wildcat! BBS software and have been a loyal customer for a few years now. I was really disappointed at the way I was treated by the MSI staff. They were bowing and scraping to the people who hadn't bought anything yet, but to the people who owned their stuff already they acted kind of cold and aloof. All I wanted was a stinking t-shirt, to which they replied, "We can't give you one unless you buy something." Oh well... Nothing new from them. Searchlight : Definitely one of the nicest people I spoke to. I talked with the author of the software and he answered all my questions and even took the time to sit down and show me a demo. Their RIP graphics support is truly the best I have seen. RIP Menus on the fly, which means no more need for RIPaint unless you want it. Synchronet : Talked to their people for a few minutes just asking them about general features, etc. Very friendly and helpful. I think this software has a lot of potential and is growing better by the minute. Will be releasing a full blown OS/2 version in the fall. Major BBS : The folks were also very friendly and helpful. They also threw a really nice party which could have biased my opinion a little. I've always been impressed with how versatile this software is, if you have the cash. Lots of nice games coming out for their software from third party vendors. They were giving away t-shirts like crazy. I ended up with two. Telegrafix: Another friendly and helpful group. Their booth was crowded ALL the time. I went to their session on RIPaint and RIPGraphics and as soon as it was over, I bought a copy of RIPaint. Very nice software, even if it is a bit pricey. TBBS : I'm really not all that familiar with their software. Their booth was pretty crowded most of them time so I didn't get a chance to really examine their software. They were selling a demo copy of it for $10. Talk about money grubbing! Yet another vendor that threw a good party. IBM : They were GIVING AWAY copies of OS/2 v2.1 to everyone to try out. You have 3 months to evaluate it, and if you like it, you are supposed to make a note on your opening screen that you are running it. If you don't, it's a "shelf copy". It's free, so, what the heck, I got one myself. ZyXEL Modems : Threw a real nice party. Gave away a few modems and lots of tote bags. Very helpful and friendly. I still haven't been able to duplicate the 6000+ cps they were getting with the modems. They announced a new ZyCellular modem that looked really nice. Zoom Telephonics : They also threw a nice party. Got the most attention of anyone opening day with their modem specials. I heard a lot of people talking bad about their modems, but for that price with a seven-year warranty, how can you lose? I tried to go by just about every booth in the place. Some of them I just kept on walking by after picking up some literature. Others I stopped by and pestered with questions. USRobotics was there but hadn't marked down anything for the show. $1000+ for a modem?!? Please... The trip home was sheer torture. I had a trunk full of new toys and couldn't play with any of them. Overall, I would say the show was a definite pleasure to attend. I was hoping it would be worth the long drive, it was, and then some. I'm going to start saving for next year's. Maybe it'll be somewhere not so far away. I had hoped to find someone else there from Birmingham or even Alabama but couldn't find anybody. Were you there and I just missed you? If you are a Sysop and enjoy running a BBS, this is THE show to see. You won't be disappointed. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Gamer's Corner by Richard DeVaney This month: Syndicate by Bullfrog Productions Distributed by Electronic Arts (Demo available but not easy to find) I've got many things to cover this month so this review will not be as long as last month's article. Simply put, this is a great game. Cyberpunk at some of it's finest. Here is a summary. The time is somewhere in the near future. Governments have gradually lost power and corporations have taken over the world. Street warfare is a daily occurrence between rival corporations. A new device known as the CHIP (ooohh, original) has given these corporations (or should I say syndicates) the ability to control their forces by artificially stimulating their Intelligence, Perception, and Adrenaline by drug injections through the CHIP. You are an agent of a European Syndicate whose job is to remove the world of your rivals and truly have a global corporation. Folks, this is NOT a nice game. Those with a hyper-sensitivity disposition will find this game a little too violent. While hovering in your blimp, you control your four agents from an overhead view. This is not new to the gaming world and it does have one drawback. You cannot see into buildings that you might send your agents through and if you send your agents behind a building you cannot see them there either. They can still be tracked on your scanner but if an enemy agent is lurking behind there, it can be very difficult to hit him. Speaking of Hitting, Id made a warning for Wolfenstein called PC-13 for Profound Carnage. Such a warning should be used for this game. Enemy agents, police, and civilians die quite nastily in this game. This is not a game that glorifies death. Anybody that you, or an enemy agent hits falls over and proceeds to bleed on the pavement. If you happen to catch them with a flamer, they proceed to dance around while screaming before collapsing into a heap of ashes. Your agents are usually free to kill anyone they want, no matter if it's civilians or police. Despite that fact that you DO play a bad guy, I found this game to be extremely entertaining. The opening has some of the best graphics I have seen in a long time. The sound and music work to convey a very dark atmosphere. Another aspect to this game I forgot to mention is that you have to learn to control the taxes of your population or they will rebel. Your revenue is spent on research and with purchasing weapons. You start with simple weapons (shotguns, pistols and the favorite Persuadotron). Spending money on research will give you weapons like Uzi's, Mini-Guns, Lasers, Flamers and my favorite, the Gauss Gun. The Gauss Gun will is very good at blowing up things and killing people and later on in the game you will need it. In fact, later in the game you will wish you had even more powerful weapons because the game starts fairly easy but quickly becomes very hard. The last mission still thwarts me. However, when you finally conquer a territory, the game gives you a nice parade to watch with everyone 'celebrating' your victory (even though in the course of the mission you probably killed several civilians and law enforcement officers. Well with that out of the way it's time for the Official Gripe List(tm). 1. I mentioned this one earlier. The inability to see your agents when they are behind a building or inside a building. This can make things somewhat confusing if there is a firefight going on. 2. Perhaps I practice bad economics but it seems my territories aren't very happy with my tax rates no matter where I set them. (I yelled "I feel your pain" at my screen but that didn't help any.) 3. The computer voice that speaks when you choose an item or a agent. It took me about 20 games to figure out what he is saying. At first I thought he said "Syndicate" but turns out he is saying "Selected". Not much of a gripe but considering the detail of the rest of the game, Bullfrog could have done better on the voice. To the big board: + + + + + + + + + + 0 ^ 10 9.0 Summary: If you are looking for a game with excitement and a good dose of violence with a dark theme, then this is the game for you. Now on to my next subject: I have seen poll after poll after survey after survey of the best games to own but I don't ever remember a survey of WHERE to get those games. This is a survey to remedy this. You may reply in several ways. Cut ,snip, paste this section and send your reply in. Snail-mail them to: Game Survey c/o Richard DeVaney 3033D Panorama East Birmingham, AL 35215 or send them private Email to any of the addresses listed after the survey (preferably The Matrix). Answers will be posted in the October issue of BTN (or November if responses are slow) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PC Game Buyer's Survey 1. Where do you purchase most of your PC game software? ________________________________________________________________ 2. How would you rate the game software selection at the location you gave in question #1? (Scale 1 to 5, 1 poor - 5 excellent) _________ 3. How would you rate the service at the location you gave to question #1? (Scale 1 to 5, 1 poor service - 5 excellent service) _________ 4. How would you rate current PC game software prices: [ ] Unjustifiably high [ ] High, but justified due to pirating [ ] Fair, I don't object to prices [ ] Low, They could charge more but thankfully they don't. 5. Who is your favorite shareware game software distributor? ________________________________________________________ 6. If you are a member of an on-line service (CIS, America Online, Prodigy, etc.) and play their games, which is your favorite? (Please give on-line service name and game name.) On-line Service:________________________________________ Game Name:______________________________________________ 7. What is your favorite Bulletin Board System Door Game and where do you play it the most? (Please give BBS name and Game name.) BBS:_____________________________________________________ Game Name:_______________________________________________ Send your responses either to the snail-mail address above or private e-mail to any of the systems/addresses below. Thank you for participating. Coming Next Month: Cheat Codes for your favorite games. (Sneak preview: Make your corporation's name 'COOPER TEAM' and you get all the weapons and mega $$$....have fun) Questions or suggestions for a game YOU would like me to review can be sent to the following places: This is also the pickup places for survey answers. The Matrix The Outer Limits Crunchy Frog Internet:richard.devaney@the-matrix.com Fido Netmail:Richard DeVaney [1:3602/12] America Online: Htseeker ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Local Music in September by Judy Ranelli Wed. 8 NRBQ at Zydeco The happiest band on the planet. Everyone who loves them has a favorite member of the band. Come pick out yours. Thurs. 9 FUZZY SONS/50 POUND HEAD at The Nick Well, have you seen a stranger looking marquis than these guys/gals will have? Twirly musings with short skirts. Mon. 13 BIG DIXIE at The Nick I heckled them so badly that Don Tinsley leaned over to the mike to tell me to shut up. Well, the Helen Reddy songs weren't forthcoming, but if you have true rockabilly requests... Wed. 15 TUMBLING DICE at The Endzone (Tuscaloosa) Ex-Rolling STone and Friends. No dinosaurs here, though, just lots of gin and dirt under the fingernails. Thurs. 16 FREE BEER AND CHICKEN BAND at Dugan's Gets dumbest band name award. Worse than "Subject To Change" but if "Wise Owl" had made it out of the practice room they would win. Don't view this as a recommendation, by the way; I have no idea what they're like. A Week to Go to the Movies: Fri. 17-Wed. 22 Thurs. 23 MARCIA BALL at Louie Louie (new owners) Big, as in very tall, New Orleans lady will undoubtedly shake the walls to a packed house. Fri. 24 MR. BUBBLE/SHAME IDOLS at The Nick Well, everyone else will be there. Mr. Bubble is a reunion of original members. Shame Idols are Tim Boykin songs ver. 4. Friday Oct. 1 Here's a tough decision for you! We have MYSTIC WARRIOR at the Caribbean Cookhouse or SUGAR SMACK/MAN OR ASTROMAN at The Nick. You tell me. (For the uninitiated, Sugar Smack is the former Fetchin' Bones. Coool.) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Cafe Spotlight by David Moss THIS MONTH: Mancha's 1207 20th. Street So. 939-3304 Hours: 11 am - 11pm, Monday thru Saturday If you are ever in the mood for Mexican food, I have the place for you. Mancha's! You won't find "Atmosphere" at Mancha's. It is located in an old building on the Southside, which appears to have the same interior since it's beginning. You won't find a lavish amount of room at Mancha's; in fact, you may bump into the pool table as you walk in the door. The place could easily qualify as "a hole in the wall". You won't be greeted by a host or hostess. You won't find fancy linens on the tables. You won't see any fancy crystal glasses, or china that has been imported from England. You won't be waited on by a waiter in a tuxedo, in fact, you won't be waited on by a waiter at all. You have to get up and order your dinner from the counter. They will, however, bring it to you when it is ready. You won't hear any fancy music playing in the background, they play the "oldies." What you will find is some of the best Mexican food available anywhere. Like their Killer Whale; a Burrito Supreme smothered with homemade chili, cheese sauce, grated cheddar cheese and topped with sliced jalapeno peppers. ($5.09) Or their Nacho Supreme, fresh fried tortilla chips covered with chili, cheese sauce, grated cheddar cheese, lettuce, onions, sour cream, sliced jalapeno peppers and a corn shuck tamale. ($5.09) If you're in the mood for tamales, Mancha's has the best. Hand rolled and wrapped in corn shucks, a tradition at Mancha's for 60 years. The tamales are $ 1.25 each or $11.00 for a dozen. If you are the type that has a hearty appetite, then there's the Mexican Platter, included is a Burrito Supreme, Taco, Tamale, Nachos and refried beans. ($7.29) I've personally had the Tacos, and I easily consider them to be the best I've ever had. At $1.99 each, you could make a meal of them by their selves. Mancha's has a variety on the menu, including imported beers, as well as domestic (which goes very well with Mexican food). Mancha's is home to some of the best Mexican food anywhere. You don't have to get dressed up to dine there. Feel free to bring your cigarettes, because it is a smoking environment (rare these days). Overall, I enjoyed the experience very much. And I will be going back again, soon. Oh yeah, I forgot something. Mancha's makes a sauce named "Agent Orange", that is the absolute HOTTEST sauce you will ever try. I tried this sauce, and liked it so well that I bought two bottles ($3.00 each) to bring home with me. After I got home, I read the label, and it states the following: "Warning: Do Not Spill On Clothing, Cars and Floors, Can Be Used For Cleaning Coins or Removing Old Paint." If you find this sauce too hot to your liking, then they also make a hot sauce named "Nuclear" that is not as hot as "Agent Orange." For the person that can't tolerate any hot sauce, they also make a "Wimp" sauce. (You may want to start with the "Wimp" sauce and work your way up.) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ************************************************************************ General Information About the Electronic Frontier Foundation ************************************************************************ The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) was founded in July of 1990 to ensure that the principles embodied in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are protected as new communications technologies emerge. From the beginning, EFF has worked to shape our nation's communications infrastructure and the policies that govern it in order to maintain and enhance First Amendment, privacy and other democratic values. We believe that our overriding public goal must be the creation of Electronic Democracy, so our work focuses on the establishment of: * new laws that protect citizens' basic Constitutional rights as they use new communications technologies, * a policy of common carriage requirements for all network providers so that all speech, no matter how controversial, will be carried without discrimination, * a National Public Network where voice, data and video services are accessible to all citizens on an equitable and affordable basis, and * a diversity of communities that enable all citizens to have a voice in the information age. Legal Services EFF sponsors legal cases where users' online civil liberties have been violated. The Steve Jackson Games case, decided in March of 1993, established privacy protections for electronic mail and publications that are kept online. We continue to monitor the online community for legal actions that merit EFF support. EFF provides a free telephone hotline for members of the online community who have questions regarding their legal rights. Members of EFF's staff and board speak to law enforcement organizations, state attorney bar associations and university classes on the work that we do and how these groups can get involved. Civil Liberties EFF has been working to make sure that common carrier principles are upheld in the information age. Common carrier principles require that network providers carry all speech, regardless of its controversial content. Common carriers must also provide all speakers and information providers with equal, nondiscriminatory access to the network. Last year, the FBI introduced legislation to require communications technologies to be certified as open to lawful government surveillance before those technologies can be deployed. EFF organized a broad coalition of 39 computer, telephone and public interest groups to oppose this measure. EFF is working to convince Congress that all measures that support broader public access to information should be enacted into law. For example, the law that establishes citizen access to information, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), does not require government agencies to turn over the electronic version of information, which is often the most useful version. EFF supports an Electronic Freedom of Information Act and other legislation to make information more accessible to citizens. EFF supports both legal and technical means to enhance privacy in communications. We, therefore, advocate all measures that ensure the public's right to use the most effective encryption technologies available. National Network EFF has been working with policymakers to establish a national network, or network of networks, capable of transporting video images and data, as well as voice. Our "Open Platform Proposal" advocates a network that is accessible to all citizens at an affordable price. For the near-term, EFF supports the implementation of ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) technology. ISDN makes it possible for the current telephone network to be used to send voice, video and data at a low cost to consumers. EFF has written a white paper that describes ISDN applications that are currently available for use at home, school, the workplace and beyond. EFF has been working with policymakers on legislation that encourages individuals and organizations to create tools that make the Internet and the National Research and Education Network (NREN) easier to access and use. Community Building EFF, in conjunction with the Consumer Federation of America and the American Civil Liberties Union, coordinates and sponsors the Communications Policy Forum (CPF). CPF enables nonprofit organizations, computer and communications firms, and government policymakers to come together in a nonpartisan setting to discuss communications policy goals and strategies. 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We have our own Internet node, eff.org, which houses our ftp and gopher sites, as well as our discussion areas, comp.org.eff.talk and comp.org.eff.news. EFF also maintains a conference on the Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link (WELL). HOW TO CONNECT TO EFF Internet and USENET: General information requests, including requests to be added to the EFFector Online mailing list, can be sent to eff@eff.org. If you receive any USENET newsgroups, your site may carry the newsgroups comp.org.eff.news and comp.org.eff.talk. The former is a moderated newsgroup for announcements, newsletters, and other information; the latter is an unmoderated discussion group for discussing EFF and issues relating to the electronic frontier. For those unable to read the newsgroups, there are redistributions via electronic mail. Send requests to be added to or dropped from the comp.org.eff.news mailing list to eff-request@eff.org. For the comp.org.eff.talk mailing list, send a note to eff-talk-request@eff.org. 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OUR ADDRESSES Electronic Frontier Foundation 666 Pennsylvania Avenue, S.E., Suite 303 Washington, DC 20003 +1 202 544 9237 +1 202 547 5481 FAX Internet: eff@eff.org Until June 1, 1993, we also have an office at: Electronic Frontier Foundation 238 Main St. Cambridge, MA 02142 +1 617 576 4500 +1 617 576 4520 FAX Internet: eff@eff.org MEMBERSHIP IN THE ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION ============================================================= Print out and mail to: Membership Coordinator Electronic Frontier Foundation 666 Pennsylvania Avenue, S.E., Suite 303 Washington, DC 20003 I wish to become a member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. I enclose: $__________ Regular membership -- $40 $__________ Student membership -- $20 Special Contribution I wish to make a tax-deductible donation in the amount of $__________ to further support the activities of EFF and to broaden participation in the organization. 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January, 1993. ___ Decrypting the Puzzle Palace - John Perry Barlow's argument for strong encryption and the need for an end to U.S. policies preventing its development and use. 13 pages. May, 1992. ___ Crime and Puzzlement - John Perry Barlow's piece on the founding of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the world of hackers, crackers and those accused of computer crimes. 24 pages. June, 1990. ___ Networks & Policy - A quarterly newsletter detailing EFF's activities and achievements. 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However, we respect an individual's right to privacy and will not distribute your name without explicit permission. ___ I grant permission for the EFF to distribute my name and contact information to organizations sharing similar goals. The Electronic Frontier Foundation is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization supported by contributions from individual members, corporations and private foundations. Donations are tax-deductible. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Japanimation in Birmingham by Jeff Vaughn [Editor's Note: The following article reveals a number of plot details about the animated movie "Fist of the North Star". Skip this article if you don't want the story revealed to you!] Recently, a friend of mine who I used to work with happened to drop a copy of a video in front of me and told me to take a look at it. He said it was a "Japanimation" video. Now, I had heard of Japanimation, but really never seen anything more than cable flicks like RoboTech, Racer X, or Voltron when I was a kid. I am not sure if "Transformers: The Movie" was Japanimation or not, but there were a ton of Asian names in the credits of the movie. Anyway, getting back to the original idea I was working on. The flick was called "Fist of the North Star" and I LOVED it. I have to admit, it was on the unbelievable level, but that's what movies are for. "Fist of the North Star" is basically a post-Armageddon scene and features big time martial arts. There are three brothers involved in the movie among other main characters. * Ken, the Fist of the North Star. Ken is the one who holds the true title and is the main "good guy" of the movie. Ken was trained by an old man that taught him his martial arts skills and entitled him to be "Fist of the North Star". Ken seems to be the only one of the three brothers who holds any true values. * Jeckie, the younger brother. Jeckie is, of course, a bad guy but he's also the schemester who gets all the problems started and causes all the conflict in the movie. He's also is skilled in martial arts and has the inherent powers, but is nowhere near as powerful as Ken. Jeckie makes an attempt to kill Ken by tossing him off a cliff and cutting off a piece of the cliff to flatten Ken on the way down. Yeah, I said "a piece of the cliff". These are some mondo-powerful dudes. * Raal, the third and apparently oldest brother. Raal is the ultra-evil guy and he turns out to be the most powerful character in the movie. He almost kills Ken in the end, but some little girl with telepathic powers persuades him to let Ken live. Raal killed the teacher of the three and claimed himself Fist of the North Star. On the side of other characters, there are a few in name that have some signifigance. I don't recall all the character names. The funny thing is, when you see this flick, you'll swear you've seen the characters before. Japanimation has a habit of sticking with faces. * Ray, the one independant martial artist of the group. Ray has the unusual ability that his hands virtually slice through almost anything and they leave blue trace lines behind as he fights. It makes for cool special effects. Ray is looking for his sister who is kidnapped by one of the evil armies. * Shen, on time friend of Ken's. Shen is now convinced that only the strong survive and renders Ken pretty helpless in the very beginning of the movie. Apparently, he and Ken studied under the same teacher. I don't know if Shen claims the title "Fist of the South Star" or what, but he takes Ken's girl after seriously messing Ken up. Early in the movie, you come to find out that Ken did not die in the little cliff incident. Like I said, these are TOUGH dudes. The little girl appears and some of the bad guys try and kill her. She makes an empathic call to Ken (which she's not even met him yet--go figure). Ken walks out of the dust, chops a skyscraper, and as it falls, it breaks in half when hitting him on the head. I ended up laughing for ten minutes on that one. Ken just kinda keeps walking like nothing ever happened. He kacks the bad guys and saves the little girl and her young male buddy. Ray and Ken meet halfway through the movie and it turns out that Jeckie kidnapped Ray's sister. To make a long scene short, Ken and Jeckie have it out. Jeckie gets kacked. Ray ends up slicing and dicing Jeckie's personal little army and he and Ken walk out leaving the place in smoulders. The saying, "We came, we saw, we kicked arse" DEFINITELY applies there. Ken and Ray eventually split up. All the armies that Shen, Raal, and other independant lords of the land duke it out. Shen and Raal meet for a showdown. The last part I saw of it was Shen saying, "Alright. Let's get this over with". One thing I know is that Shen's army get totally wasted. Ken finally finds Shen's ruins of a city and walks right in. There's nobody to stop him cause the entire army got wiped out. SOMEHOW Shen lived and he's sitting on his throne when Ken walks in. Well, they get down to a VERY short confrontation and Ken kacks Shen. Shen sorta clears the air before dying to Ken. There's a few minutes of Raal and his army slaughtering a few other armies and Raal running into this giant who can turn himself to steel (look out Colossus). Without me telling you, you can probably figure that Raal wastes this guy without breaking a sweat. It just seems there is nothing that can take more than two punches from the Fist of the North Star. Raal ends up trying to crucify Ken's girlfriend for some reason or another and Ray walks in. They get into a small battle and the little girl does another empathic scream to Ken because she knows Ray isn't going to last ten minutes aginst Raal. Yep, Raal wastes Ray. Ken manages to get there and a few friendly words are said and Ray dies in Ken's hands. In the end, Ken and Raal finally duke it out. As I said in the begining, Ken loses. I must say that it was the longest lasting fight in the whole movie and they level the entire city in the process of it all. Not too bad. Now, I've done a little research into it all and come up with a few answers. If you want to buy any Japanimation titles, go to Lion and the Unicorn. L&U has about fifty titles to choose from (there Hunter, i finally gave you a good rating on something). If you want to just rent some of the Japanimation, go to Prime Time video in Hoover. I got the scoop from an Inverness Prime Time employee that the Hoover store is the only location you can find them at. [Editor's note: the Cobb Prime Time location in Homewood has a fairly extensive Japanimation section.] She explained to me that Prime Time was putting the titles up as an experiment and if all goes well, all the stoes will carry them. No other well known video stores really carry good Japanimation. Enjoy. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SIG's (Special Interest Groups), Computer Related ------------------------------------------------- BIPUG Alabama UniForum Birmingham IBM-PC Users Group Homewood Public Library UAB Nutrition Science Blg 1st Tuesday RM 535/541 Shawn Cleary 870-6130 1st Sunday (delayed one week if meeting is a holiday) Marty Schulman 967-5883 Birmingham Apple Core Informal breakfast meeting every Saturday, 9am - 11am @ Kopper Kettle, lower level Brookwood Village Mall Formal meeting held second Saturday of each month, location variable (to be announced at breakfast meetings and in the user group's newsletter "The PEEL".) President: Sam Johnston - 322-5379 Vice-Prez: Marie Prater - 822-8135 The SIG listing is being re-verified. If you know of an active Computer Related user's group, please let me know. I can be reached via Internet email at eric.hunt@the-matrix.com or drop me a note directly on the MATRIX. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Known BBS Numbers For The Birmingham Area Sysops, PLEASE check your listing to make sure everything is correct, especially the networks. Corrections should be mailed on the Matrix to James Minton or in a Sysop Comment on Outer Limits. *IMPORTANT* Starting this month a new BBS must be up and running for 60 days before being included in the list. I'll still take the information and verify the board as usual. Also, if anyone has any information about networks listed at the bottom with "uncertain at press time", let me know. NAME NUMBER BAUD RATES MODEM BBS SOFTWARE SUPPORTED TYPE ADAnet One (Nodes 1-3) 250-0013 1200-2400 PCBoard 14.5 [ez, fi, ad] ADAnet One (Node 4) 254-6050 2400-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, fi, ad] Alcatraz BBS 608-0880 300-9600 VBBS 6.0 [he, vi] Alter-Ego BBS 925-5099 1200-9600 USR HST PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn] Baudville (Node 1) 980-1089 300-2400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Baudville (Node 2) 991-2095 300-14400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Baudville (Node 3) 991-9144 300-2400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Baudville (Node 4) 995-0013 300-2400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Bus System 987-5419 300-2400 PCBoard 14.2 [none] Byte Me! 979-BYTE! 2400-14400 USR HST WWIV 4.12 [ez, th, al] Castle, The 841-7618 300-2400 Image 1.2 [none] Channel 8250 (Node 1) 744-8546 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, un] Channel 8250 (Node 2) 744-5166 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, un] Cherry Tree 681-1710 1200-14400 TriBBS 4.01 [none] Christian Apologetic 808-0763 1200-14400 V.32bis Wildcat! 3.55 [ez, wi, bc, ru] Crocodile Country BBS 477-6283 1200-16800 USR DS Searchlight 3.0 *RIP* [sl] Crunchy Frog (Node 1) 823-3957 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn, lu, ll] Crunchy Frog (Node 2) 823-3958 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn, lu, ll] Crystal Village 856-3749 1200-2400 ??? [none] Den, The 933-8744 300-9600 USR HST ProLogon/ProDoor [ez, mn, il] Digital Publishing 854-1660 300-9600 V.32 Wildcat! 3.01 [pl] Electro-BBS 491-8402 300-14400 V.32/42 ?? [fi] Family Smorgas-Board 744-0943 300-2400 PCBoard 14.5 [ez, fi, mj, bc, fa, ic, cf, cd, np, ag, ve, ad] Final Frontier 838-5634 300-14400 VBBS 6.10 [al, he, re, fn] Flip Side, The 798-3961 300-2400 Renegade 8.27 [none] Genesis Online(Nodes 1-6) 620-4150 300-14400 V.32bis Major BBS 6.11 [mr] Guardian, The 425-1951 1200-14400 V.42bis VBBS 6.0 [vi] Hardeman's BBS 640-6436 1200-14400 Wildcat! 3.51 [wi, di, bc] Hardware Hotline 631-6629 300-14400 V.32/42 PCBoard 14.5 [mn, fi, ca] The Holodeck BBS 663-7229 1200-9600 V.32 TriBBS 4.02 [cc] Intruder Enterprizes 969-0870 300-9600 V.32 VBBS 5.6 [vi, al] Joker's Castle 664-5589 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn, un] KickAxis BBS 733-0253 1200-14400 USR DS VBBS 6.0 [he] Lions Den 969-5733 300-14400 USR DS Wildcat! 3.60 [none] Lumby's Palace 520-0041 300-14400 VBBS 6.0 [he] Magic City 664-9883 300-14400 USR DS Wildcat! 3.55 [cc, di, tr, wi] Magnolia BBS 854-6407 300-14400 USR HST PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn] MATRIX, The (Nodes 1-14) 323-2016 300-2400 PCBoard 15.0 *RIP* [ez, mn, th, il, in, al, sh, sc, gl, ic, ri, fr] MATRIX, The (Nodes 20-23) 323-6016 9600-14400 USR DS PCBoard 15.0 *RIP* [ez, mn, th, il, in, al, sh, sc, gl, ic, ri, fr] MATRIX, The (Node 25-26) 458-3449 9600-14400 V.32bis PCBoard 15.0 *RIP* [ez, mn, th, il, in, al, sh, sc, gl, ic, ri, fr] MetaBoard 854-4814 300-14400 USR DS Opus CBCS 1.73 [fi, ad] MetroMac BBS (Node 1) 323-6306 1200-14400 V.32bis TeleFinder 3.1 [none] MetroMac BBS (Node 2) 252-0582 1200-14400 V.32bis TeleFinder 3.1 [none] Milliways BBS (Node 1) 956-3177 1200-2400 Major BBS 6.11 *RIP* [none] Milliways BBS(Nodes 2-6)956-2731 1200-2400 Major BBS 6.11 *RIP* [none] Missing Link 853-1257 300-16800 USR DS C-Net Amiga 2.63 [cl, cn] Neon Moon 477-5894 300-14400 TriBBS 4.0 [dx] Optical Illusion 995-9145 1200-14400 V.32bis VBBS 6.0 [al] Outer Limits (Node 1) 426-5611 1200-16800 ZyXEL Wildcat! 3.90 *RIP* [fi, do, ec, er, pn] Outer Limits (Node 2) 425-5871 1200-16800 ZyXEL Wildcat! 3.90 *RIP* [fi, do, ec, er, pn] Outer Limits (Node 3) 426-2939 1200-16800 ZyXEL Wildcat! 3.90 *RIP* [fi, do, ec, er, pn] Owlabama BBS 856-2521 1200-14400 GTPower 17.06 [gt, ez, mn, cc, tr, sc, ab] Owl's Nest 680-0851 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn] Party Line 856-1336 300-14000 V.32bis TriBBS 4.0 [cc, tr, di] Penny Arcade 699-4625 300-2400 Running Force! 3.75 [none] Playground 681-5070 2400-14000 V.32 TriBBS 4.0 [tr, di, cc, ez, al, fr] Posys BBS 854-5131 300-9600 V.32 PCBoard [none] Programmer's Shack 988-4695 1200-9600 HST DS Renegade [ae, di, ws, fi, it] Quiet Zone 833-2066 300-2400 ExpressNet [none] Razor's Edge 995-0412 1200-2400 VBBS 5.6 [he, al] Safe Harbor (Node 1) 665-4332 300-2400 GTPower 17.06 [gt, ez, mn, il] Safe Harbor (Node 2) 665-4355 300-14400 USR DS GTPower 17.06 [gt, ez, mn, il] Sam's Domain 956-2757 1200-14400 VBBS 6.0 [da, he] Safety BBS 581-2866 300-2400 RBBS-PC 17.4 [none] Southern Stallion 322-3816 300-16800 ZyXEL PCBoard 15.0 [an, ez, lu, pr, th] Sperry BBS 853-6144 300-2400 V.32/42b PCBoard 14.5 [none] ST BBS 836-9311 300-2400 PCBoard 14.2 [ez] StarBase 12 647-7184 300-2400 TriBBS 4.0 [ez, mn, cc] The Light 979-0368 300-14400 V.32bis PCBoard 15.0 [ch, nl] Thy Master's Dungeon 940-2116 300-57600 V.32/42b PCBoard 14.5 [fr] Torch Song 328-1517 300-9600 V.32 Wildcat 3.6 [pr, se, st, do] Weekends BBS 841-8583 2400-16800 USR DS Wildcat! 3.9 [ca] Willie's DYM (Node 1) 664-9902 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Willie's DYM (Node 2) 664-9903 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Willie's DYM (Node 3) 664-9895 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Willie's DYM (Node 4) 664-9896 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Ziggy Unix BBS 991-5696 300-1200 UNaXess [none] *RIP* = BBS Software is RIP Graphics capable. You must be using a RIP compatible term software to view them. RIPTerm or QmodemPro v1.50 are the only two I know of that support it at this time. RIPTerm is shareware and can be downloaded from most BBS's. QmodemPro is a commercial product. The two-letter abbreviations you see on the line below the names of many of the bbs' in the list signify that they are members of one or more networks that exchange or echo mail to each other in some organized fashion. ad = ADAnet, an international network dedicated to the handicapped ae = ANet, uncertain at press time ag = AgapeNet, a national Christian network, multi-topic al = AlaNet, a local network, multi-topic an = AnnexNet, an international network, multi-topic at = AdultNet, a national network, adult-oriented bc = BCBNet, a local network, religion-oriented bh = BhamTalk, a local network, multi-topic ca = CafeNet, a local network, restaurant/dining, recipes, etc. cc = City2City, a national network, multi-topic cd = CDN, a national Christian network for file distribution cf = CFN, a national Christian network, multi-topic ch = ChristNet, a national Christian network cl = CLink, uncertain at press time cn = CNet, multi-topic cy = Cybernet, uncertain at press time da = DateNet, uncertain at press time de = DevNet, an international network for programmers and developers di = Dixie Net, a regional network, multi-topic geared toward the south eastern United States do = DoorNet, a national network for the distribution of BBS doors ec = EchoNet, an international network, multi-topic er = ErosNet, an international network, adult oriented, files & messages ez = EzNet, a local IBM compatible network fa = FamilyNet, an international network, multi-topic fi = FidoNet, an international network, multi-topic fn = FrontierNet, uncertain at press time fr = FredNet, a regional network, political discussion ga = GameNet, a local network, uncertain at press time gl = GlobalLink, an international network, multi-topic gt = GTNet, an international network, multi-topic he = HellNet, a local network, multi-topic ic = ICDM, an international Christian network, multi-topic ie = Intelec, a national network, multi-topic il = ILink, an international network, multi-topic in = InterNet, an international network, linking businesses, universities, and bbs', multi-topic it = ITCNet, uncertain at press time ll = LlamaNet, a national network, freeform correspondence lo = LocalNet, uncertain at press time lu = LuciferNet, an international network, adult oriented ma = MAXnet, a local network, connecting WWIV and VBBS systems mj = MJCN, an international network for Messianic Jews mn = Metronet, an international network which echoes RIME, multi-topic mr = MajorNet, an international network, multi-topic nl = NewLife, uncertain at press time np = NPN, a national network for new parents or = OraNet, a national E-mail network pl = PlanoNet, a national network, multi-topic pn = PoliceNet, an international network, law-enforcement only pr = PrideNet, a local homosexually oriented network rf = RF Net, a national network for ham radio users and hobbyists ri = RIME, an international network, multi-topic rb = RoboLink, a national network, multi-topic re = RealityNet, uncertain at press time rp = RPGnet, a local network for role-playing games rs = RoseNet, a national network, technically oriented ru = RushNet, a national network for Rush Limbaugh fans sc = Science Factor Net, a national network, science and technology oriented se = SEC, a regional network, homosexually oriented geared toward the southeastern United States sh = Shades N Shadows Net, a national network for role-playing games sl = SearchlightNet, a national network, multi-topic sm = SmartNet, a national network, multi-topic sn = ShadowNet, a national network for role-playing games st = StudsNet, a national network, homosexually oriented te = TECHnet, a local network, hardware and utility oriented th = ThrobNet, an international network, adult oriented tr = TTN, a national network, multi-topic un = U'NI-Net, an international network, multi-topic ve = VETLink, a national network for military veterans vi = VirtualNet, an international network, multi-topic wi = WildNet, a national network, multi-topic ws = WishNet, uncertain at press time ww = WWIV-Net, an international network, multi-topic The following boards were unable to be verified and were dropped from the list: Asgard The Bone Yard Boy's Room Homewood's Hell Hole Lemon Grove Nirvana Venus BBS -----------------------------------------------------------------------