F I D O N E W S -- Vol.10 No.41 (10-Oct-1993)
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| A newsletter of the | |
| FidoNet BBS community | Published by: |
| _ | |
| / \ | "FidoNews" BBS |
| /|oo \ | +1-519-570-4176 1:1/23 |
| (_| /_) | |
| _`@/_ \ _ | Editors: |
| | | \ \\ | Sylvia Maxwell 1:221/194 |
| | (*) | \ )) | Donald Tees 1:221/192 |
| |__U__| / \// | Tim Pozar 1:125/555 |
| _//|| _\ / | |
| (_/(_|(____/ | |
| (jm) | Newspapers should have no friends. |
| | -- JOSEPH PULITZER |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Submission address: editors 1:1/23 |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Internet addresses: |
| |
| Sylvia --
[email protected] |
| Donald --
[email protected] |
| Tim --
[email protected] |
| Both Don & Sylvia (submission address) |
|
[email protected] |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| For information, copyrights, article submissions, |
| obtaining copies and other boring but important details, |
| please refer to the end of this file. |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
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Table of Contents
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1. Editorial..................................................... 1
2. Articles...................................................... 2
Censorship in Fido (zzzzzzz)................................ 2
Electronic Magazines - Even More Information!............... 5
Privacy in FidoNet? [Yes, SecureMail!]...................... 6
3. Fidonews Information.......................................... 8
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Editorial
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FidoNews 10-41 Page: 2 10 Oct 1993
I am astonished. Five minutes after the snooze went out the
door last week, I realized that I had misnamed the archive due
to a typo. I expected several hundred letters to the editor as
is wont to happen when a technical change is made. But no.
Zippo. Not one. Now I am wondering DOES ANYBODY READ THIS?
C'est la vie.
The Kitchener/Waterloo area, where we live, has a very large
Mennonite population. The old order brethren have forsaken
most of the modern amenities of life, and still farm with
horses, live without electricity, and live the way most did a few
hundred years back. I lived out on a farm in the heart of that
country for a few years, and have many fond memories of sitting
beside a woodstove with my neighbours and talking lifestyles,
philosophies, and the trials af calving.
I am a techno-freak, with a living-room heated by a network
of computers ... that never seemed to matter much.
We receive letters often that are addressed to us, not to
the snooze, and often they take issue with an editorial.
Something that often happens, and that I cannot understand, is
the assumption that many make ... that because I believe in one
thing for myself, that I must want others to believe the same
thing for themselves.
I believe the world works progressively when many people
express many things. That I speak out on one issue does not
mean that I agree with everything that I did not speak against,
nor does it mean that I hold other viewpoints as being less valid
than my own. I, this individual who is me, have chosen a specific
viewpoint as my own, for this particular moment.
i read a story about Ghandi and Neru. i'm probably misquoting,
but this is how i remember it: Nehru took issue with
Ghandhi because he said one thing one day, and another thing
the next day. Gandhi explained that he had learned something
since yesterday. There are two kinds of truth: one which is
ultimate but ineffable, and another which is a tool for living
that can be honed and refined by experience.
On with the experiment...
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Articles
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Censorship in Fido (zzzzzzz)
by Steven Haslam [Lord Cadvridoc The Haz] @ FidoNet#2:250/229
Censorship in Fido (yawn); you know where your PageDown key is ;-)
I usually keep my mouth shut. On reading Snooze 10,40 I duly
applied my extension of the five-minute rule (five days, like) but
I *still* wanted to write.
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 3 10 Oct 1993
"What got you, kid?" you may ask. (You may be either more or less
polite at your own discretion). To confound the people who know me,
and would predict otherwise, I'll tell you.
Why why why do people get upset when people talk about things that
offend them? "Why am I forced to listen to this?" "Why must I watch
this?" Folks, if you had a *life* you wouldn't have to! Have you
got nothing bettern to do then "cry and moan and complain?" As Mr.
Dampier says:
>We should be using the same approach we use with offensive TV
>programs: if you don't like what you see, turn the channel.
The people who can't agree with this fall in line with Manuel's
image of the congresswoman in Free Luna (Robert Heinlein; "The Moon
Is A Harsh Mistress"). I'll quote it for some light relief:
`Thing that got me was not her list of things she hated, since she
was obviously crazy as a Cyborg, but fact that always somebody
agreed with her prohibitions. Must be a yearning deep in human
heart to stop other people from doing as they please. Rules, laws-
always for _other_ fellow. A murky part of us, something we had
before we came down out of trees, and failed to shuck when we stood
up. Because +not one_ of those people said: "Please pass this so
that I won't be able to do something I know I should stop." Nyet,
tovaisschee, was _always_ something they hated to see neighbors
doing. Stop them "for their own good"- not because speaker claimed
to be harmed by it.`
`Listening to that session I was almost sorry we got rid of Mort
the Wart. He stayed holed up with his women and didn't tell us how
to run private lives.`
But we get:
>And if your TeleVision receives nothing but smut and violence, do
>you sell your T.V., or do you send a complaint to the offending
>stations asking them to shape up?
Mr. Butler, I watch TV incredibly rarely. I have far better, more
productive things to do than slouch in front of the idiot box
destroying my eyes. Last time I watched TV for more than an hour at
a stretch was election night (April 9th 1992 (1992!)). You might
consider this.
And if it is just smut and violence (which I might be quite happy
to watch ;}), I'd find something better to do. Even going for a
walk is better than watching TV.
Perhaps, Mr. Butler, could you please try and understand the
argument presented more thoroughly. Mr Dampier is stating that
although the people who *now* judge echoes are responsible, there
is no guarantee that others, in the future, would be so.
>If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 4 10 Oct 1993
But, people always misunderstand other people. After all, if they
didn't, they wouldn't communicate as much; the most interesting
part of communication is increasing your understanding of other
people.
This is the sort of thing that Manuel was annoyed about:
>And yes, gay or lesbian talk is AUTOMATICALLY adult in nature. Why?
>Because, IMHO, teens shouldn't be practicing homosexuality! What
>kind of precedent does that set for our youth? That it's alright to
>CHOOSE your sexual nature?
(This is it. This is the paragraph that *REALLY* got on my wick.)
Mr. Shirk. What else should people do? Yes, it is all right to
choose. Why should it be otherwise? You are demonstrating perfectly
exactly what myself and Mr. Dampier wish to illustrate; some people
are self-important, officious and short-sighted. And if one of
these people is given power (where they generally stay, since the
three adjectives certainly apply to most "democratic" governments)
..
I'm not homosexual. However, I bitterly resent *ANYONE* trying to
tell me that I'm not allowed to be my way by choice, even if they
try to tell me to be what I already am. It's the principle of the
thing. Another quote, to illustrate ("Keys, Kings and Kompanies",
Worm Runner's Digest; Robert Sommer):
`Imagine that you receive a note in the morning's mail, "Sir, you
can go anywhere in the world except Utica and Syracuse." How would
you feel under those circumstances, assuming that you had no desire
to visit Utica or Syracuse? I think you'd be quite angry and ask
yourself why you were forbidden to visit these places. You'd
probably forget that you didn't want to go there and being
wondering "Why don't *they* trust me, and what is there in Syracuse
and Utica that I shouldn't see? What right do they have to tell me
not to go to Syracuse and Utica? Do they think I am going to steal
something or kill the mayor?" You would also feel that you had lost
something and actually you'd be correct. Basically, your _right_ to
visit Utica and Syracuse had turned into a _privelege_ granted at
someone else's discretion.`
You might say "Being a backbone echo isn't a right", and I'd agree
with you. It isn't. But it isn't a privelege to be granted and
retracted at a whim, either. Certainly, in this region, there are
three simple rules for an echo to qualify (At least moderate
traffic level, three nodes in region, two nets in region AFAICR)
and I haven't heard (and don' want to hear) of backbone status
being refused or retracted for any reason other than loss of
interest, causing traffic level/linked nodes to drop below a given
threshold.
>We could have focused our attention on the real problems in this
>country <like health care> instead of wasting our time on gay
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 5 10 Oct 1993
>rights those first few months.
If a government can not deal with a simple issue like the second,
it has no chance on the first (which isn't, from my (admittedly
limited) understanding of Yank politics).
Yours etc., >> THE HAZ <<
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Electronic Magazines - Even More Information!
Written By: John Giannini
1:119/50
I wanted to inject some additional information concerning Todd Jacob's
article on E-zines in Fnews issue 1039, and report one possible
inaccuracy.
In the article, Todd indicates that he knows of only one "commercial"
electronic magazine, and reports it to be "Eeek-Bits". However, while
Eeek-Bits is not PD or shareware, it isn't commercial either. The
magazine is available free to anyone who calls the home board for that
magazine. here is part of the "cover" screen for that publication:
"This publication is protected by all U.S. & International Copyright
Laws! NO Part may be changed or reproduced w/o express written
permission from The Publishers! Eeeeks is FREE, BUT YOU MUST REGISTER
to have it on a BBS!You may NOT upload it to any BBS on a regular
basis without the express written permission of the Publishers. Eeeek
BITS! is NOT PD or Shareware"
The magazine is "copyrighted" as it says, but it is the automatic
copyright granted to any electronic or print magazine, even if it is
not submitted explicitly for copyright to the US Copyrights office. I
believe it is called "implied copyright" or "works in progress"
copyright. Anyhow, the fact it is copyrighted does not mean that it
is automatically "commercial". A "commercial" E-zine would seem to me
to be one that charges the sysop (or charges it's target market) for
the product.
By this definition, several important E-zines were not included in Mr.
Jacobs list. BOARDWATCH MAGAZINE, BBS CALLER'S DIGEST, and USA TODAY
are three examples of truly "commercial" electronic magazines. Each
comes in an electronic flavor, or a print (newsstand) flavor. If a
sysop wishes to carry one of these electronic magazines, he must pay
for them, and usually the fee is quite high. Something like #395.00 a
year for USA TODAY I think, and BOARDWATCH is close to that.
Distribution by diskette is also a valid E-zine format. Daniel
Tobias's company SOFTDISK (1:380/7) has been putting out THE BIG BLUE
DISK commercially for quite a long time, since at least 1885. This
magazine is not released via the net, but through book and magazine
dealers. Local bookstores/magazine stores in our area used to carry
it. There was no "print" equivalent, and I believe it is still in
publication. Each issue comes in a plastic case, with a color insert
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 6 10 Oct 1993
as it's "cover". Each issue contains two or three diskettes. There
used to be at least 3 other electronic magazines distributed this way
as well, from what I can remember. Some are still going.
There is also an E-zine called MODEMNEWS, which used to be a nicely
laid out ansi magazine. It used to come as one .EXE file, which when
ran, would display the entire contents of the mag in spectacular ansi
graphics. The (ansi) ads in this magazine were truly fascinating.
ModemNews has recently changed it's look and focus, and is now a
showcase for other not-so-widely-circulated electronic magazines, such
as SUNLIGHT THROUGH THE SHADOWS, or SUB SPACE NEWS (a Star Trek e-
zine), both of which are free. The new focus for the home BBS for
ModemNews is now to features many issues of these magazines; it is a
clearing house for any and all free electronic magazines, and I am
looking forward to seeing how that board will grow.
Finally, it should be noted that one of the first true national
"general interest" E-zines (except for Fidonews, of course) was
INFOMAT, beginning publication back in 1985. Each issue was devoted
to computer news, communications, entertainment, and reviews. INFOMAT
sadly ceased publication in late 1991. The second oldest E-mag I know
of is K-SAT NEWS, a monthly devoted to the satellite SIG crowd. This
has also been going since 1986. And locally, in California, we used
to have the NOOSELETTER, which was published by one of the west coast
"star" nodes, from way back in 1984, till about 1987. I forget the
name of the person who put it out, (Ed something?) but he used to run
Nerd's Nook in the Bay Area, and was very involved with Fido and Opus
in those early years. Lastly, there used to also be the OPUS GAZETTE
which came into existence in 1985, and was targeded for those folks
who used to run OPUS. The Gazette was pretty widely distributed as I
recall, back when OPUS was the most fancy BBS package around. (I
still have back issues of all of these).
Anyway, I thought the readers of Fidonews might be interested in this
extra information concerning E-zines, and I am interested in any
information that could augment this info.
John Giannini, SysOp, Moonshadow BBS
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Privacy in FidoNet? [Yes, SecureMail!]
by: GK Pace Region 18 SecureMail Host 1:374/26
In a recent article, and various messages floating around, we in
FidoNet recieved some criticism from "our InterNet cousins" for our
lack of privacy in FidoNet. I share the concerns that those who deny
this basic right are wrong, but none the less defend their right to
run their respective systems as they (personally) deem appropiate.
There are differences between the InterNet, and the Fidonet, not the
least of which is our success in developing a substantial network
based upon Anarchy and Volunteerism. (Stated with pride!)
Before all of you who oppose privacy and/or the use of encryption in
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 7 10 Oct 1993
FidoNet get the idea that I support you, keep in mind that I firmly
disagree with you... I defend your personal right to make your own
decisions, and to operate your system as you see fit, but I also
disagree with any/all who fail to respect privacy. The rights to
choose, and the rights to privacy are intertwined... we must protect
both or risk the loss of both.
Enough on that subject... now for the good news:
There IS privacy in FidoNet... not universally (yet) but it does
exist, and its acceptance/use is growing! It is being nurtured by
those who are participating in the SecureMail Routing System.
What, you ask, is the SecureMail Routing System?
Perhaps the following extracts from the SecureMail Statement of
Purpose can best provide the answers.
=====================================================================
Definition:
SecureMail can be defined as a group of FidoNet Sysops who have
volunteered to provide an alternative E-Mail routing service within
the FidoNet Network. The SecureMail System is a component of the
FidoNet Network. SecureMail is not an alternative, separate, or
distinct network.
=====================================================================
Thats right folks, we are not an "AlterNet" or "OtherNet", we are
FidoNet... Sysops running FidoNet Nodes who have volunteered to
provide a service...
A service? What service?
=====================================================================
Statement of Purpose:
The primary purpose of Securemail, and reason for its creation is
the desire for providing increased privacy in the routing of FidoNet
E-Mail.
=====================================================================
Thats right... we provide an alternate means of routing E-Mail,
routing thru those who have accepted the SecureMail principals.
SecureMail principals? What are they?
=====================================================================
Operational Practises:
Each SecureMail Host has agreed to route E-Mail (referred to as In-
Transit mail) in a manner which provides the highest degree of privacy
technically possible. Some variances can be expected, as the
technical characteristics of each system differ, however each
SecureMail Host strives to provide the best service possible.
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 8 10 Oct 1993
Specific operational practises include:
- In-Transit mail shall not be read. Note that some systems do not
provide the ability to restrict a Sysop from viewing In-transit mail.
In such cases the Sysop makes every effort to avoid noticing the
content of such E-Mail as they scan thru their message bases.
- The content of In-Transit mail shall not be disclosed, or given to
anyone but the addressee, except as required for routing thru the
SecureMail System.
- All SecureMail Hosts agree to route any In-Transit mail they
receive. In-Transit mail that cannot be delivered shall be returned
to the sender along with a brief explanation of why it could not be
delivered.
- In-Transit mail shall not be censored. Routing of In-Transit mail
shall not be refused for any reason even remotely associated to the
content of such E-Mail. Note: how could it be if it isn't read in the
first place?
=====================================================================
Ok... so how do I find SecureMail?
Most of us who operate the SecureMail System have User Flags
assigned to our respective FidoNet Nodelist entries. The flags used
are:
RSMH = Regional SecureMail Host.
NSMH = Net SecureMail Host.
There is also a SecureMail Routing Map available which lists the
current SecureMail Hosts and the areas they serve.
SecureMail is growing, but it is not complete. Volunteers to Host
areas not presently covered are cheerfully accepted <grin>.
For further information, Freq the file SECUREML.ZIP from my system,
(1:374/26) or contact any SecureMail Host.
Privacy... to fail to defend it, is to loose it... lets not lose
it!
-gk
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Fidonews Information
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FidoNews 10-41 Page: 9 10 Oct 1993
------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION ----------------
Editors: Sylvia Maxwell, Donald Tees, Tim Pozar
Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell, Vince Perriello,
Tom Jennings
IMPORTANT NOTE: The FidoNet address of the FidoNews BBS has been
changed!!! Please make a note of this.
"FidoNews" BBS
FidoNet 1:1/23
BBS +1-519-570-4176, 300/1200/2400/14400/V.32bis/HST(DS)
Internet addresses:
Don & Sylvia (submission address)
[email protected]
Sylvia --
[email protected]
Donald --
[email protected]
Tim --
[email protected]
(Postal Service mailing address) (have extreme patience)
FidoNews
172 Duke St. E.
Kitchener, Ontario
Canada
N2H 1A7
Published weekly by and for the members of the FidoNet international
amateur electronic mail system. It is a compilation of individual
articles contributed by their authors or their authorized agents. The
contribution of articles to this compilation does not diminish the
rights of the authors. Opinions expressed in these articles are those
of the authors and not necessarily those of FidoNews.
Authors retain copyright on individual works; otherwise FidoNews is
copyright 1993 Sylvia Maxwell. All rights reserved. Duplication and/or
distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use in
other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or FidoNews
(we're easy).
OBTAINING COPIES: The-most-recent-issue-ONLY of FidoNews in electronic
form may be obtained from the FidoNews BBS via manual download or
Wazoo FileRequest, or from various sites in the FidoNet and Internet.
PRINTED COPIES may be obtained from Fido Software for $10.00US each
PostPaid First Class within North America, or $13.00US elsewhere,
mailed Air Mail. (US funds drawn upon a US bank only.)
INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via FTP from ftp.fidonet.org, in
directory ~ftp/pub/fidonet/fidonews. If you have questions regarding
FidoNet, please direct them to
[email protected], not the
FidoNews BBS. (Be kind and patient; David Deitch is generously
volunteering to handle FidoNet/Internet questions.)
FidoNews 10-41 Page: 10 10 Oct 1993
SUBMISSIONS: You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
FidoNews. Article submission requirements are contained in the file
ARTSPEC.DOC, available from the FidoNews BBS, or Wazoo filerequestable
from 1:1/23 as file "ARTSPEC.DOC". Please read it.
"Fido", "FidoNet" and the dog-with-diskette are U.S. registered
trademarks of Tom Jennings, and are used with permission.
Asked what he thought of Western civilization,
M.K. Gandhi said, "I think it would be an excellent idea".
-- END
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