F I D O N E W S -- Vol.11 No.19 (09-May-1994)

F I D O N E W S -- Vol.11 No.19 (09-May-1994)
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| A newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 |
| 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. |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
========================================================================
Table of Contents
========================================================================

1. Editorial..................................................... 2
2. Articles...................................................... 2
lanolin nightmares.......................................... 2
Files in AFDN's ABLEFILE Area........................... 7
FidoNet vs. InterNet........................................ 8
Requim For A Fidonet Sysop.................................. 8
Miscellaneous Ramblings..................................... 9
Bananas in wonderland, part II.............................. 11
Life In The Slow Lane....................................... 13
3. Fidonews Information.......................................... 14
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 2 09 May 1994

========================================================================
Editorial
========================================================================
Here we are, breaking a rule again. We stated a few months
bak (or was it a year ago?) that we would print no more policy
documents in the snooze. However, we are now attempting to put
a policy together for region 12. Since that is our region, and
*I* happen to be on the committee, the time has come to change
editorial policy. A first draft is included in this issue. Doc
is worried that we will wake up with a hangover to find the
document adopted as submitted.

i spent a fair chunk of one day this week discovering that, yes,
there ARE fido nodes in Montanna. We hope to head there,
eventually.
and...

here's a lovely question if any UUCP gurus have the time to write
an article: (from our inbound)

"One of the big problems for bbs' is getting the internet
directed mail out with the proper UUCP gate (which you
addressed). Then secondly, the costs of long distance will
prevent many from activating the NetMail gate for users. That is
the hurdle I am trying to address. For example, in Dallas, I
know of no bbs that has their outgoing UUCP door turned on as of
yet. So, the users may see all of the NewsGroups but not respond
to them."

We have a play to go to in about twenty minutes, so this
editorial is a wrap.
========================================================================
Articles
========================================================================
lanolin nightmares
by Doc Logger

1. TITLE: (amateur policymongers probably don't realize the
importance of leading off with at least one "tit"... capture
their imaginations and their hearts and minds will follow)

The title of this document shall be:

"Policy 33.5 - The Final Insult,

otherwise known as:

"Mom! Mom! He/she dissed me and I'm gonna whump his/her
sorry ass with this policy document until he/she either
apologizes or else gets locked in a room and forced to
listen to John Denver singin' 'Rocky Mountain High' until
her/his ears bleed."

2. PURPOSE: The purpose of this policy is to create more
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 3 09 May 1994

policy. The Region has recognized quite clearly that if more
policy were created then, incredibly, we'd have more policy.
If we had more policy, then we would definitely need even
more of it to expand upon the previously created policy.
Hell, in no time at all, this policy stuff would be breeding
on its own and provide sustenance to unemployed cod
fisherman.

3. DEFINITIONS:

AcetyleneMail: The polite staple of inter-sysop
communication which must include, at a minimum, at least one
demand that the recipient engage in an act of
self-replicating his/herself. It is entirely appropriate to
substitute the preceding with a suggestion to the recipient
that they engage in an act of procreation with anyone having
the surname: "Off."

Cod: Humiliated trout. Not to be confused with the
traditionally refrain of grunt sysops to *C-beings which
loosely paraphrases into: "Who named you Cod?"

Beer: The official sysop monetary unit. Debts can be
satisfied upon payment of these units, and *C-beings are
obligated to buy grunt sysops copious quantities of this
particular resource.

CRPs: Mistakenly identified as "Cost Recovery Plans", these
are really guileless attempts to extort money from Grunt
Sysops. The money is expended on fast women and loose cars.

Echomail: A system of distributing the latest gnarly-rad
path lines, and logoff macros, by "K00L D00DZ" which are
rivaled by Sea Slugs for their intrinsic wit. Also, any
quote of the preceding is considered "echomail" and the high
fibre content helps to improve echomail regularity.
Humungous amounts of megabytes of this stuff are
sporadically sent throughout the Region. All of this
echomail was spawned by one message which was entered in
1985 and everyone has been quoting the shit out of it ever
since.

Grunt Sysops: A strange infestation which has plagued
Fidonet for years. No one has figured out what sort of toxic
spray would be effective in eliminating them. The freshly
hatched sysop-beings, shortly before mastering the basic
skills of mailers and echomail distribution, plaster
messages all over the known universe announcing yet another
new net.. one that promises some feature so outstanding that
it probably isn't replicated in more than 500 of the
existing 600 Fidonet echomail areas.

Hubs: Dwarf-like creatures who live in tinfoil lined,
darkened caves, where their multi-node, Lan-based, 69
gazillion baud modems, poot forth echomail. Hubs are
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 4 09 May 1994

recognizable from the fact that their plastic pocket pen
protector mounted pagers beep whenever they receive an
inbound mail packet. Hubs secretly dream about bringing the
entire Sports Illustrated Swimsuit modeling group to gaze at
the diode arrays winking from every corner of their
kleenex-piled rooms.

NECs: Pituitary challenged Hubs who can often run a mailer
for almost a whole day without having the system crash. NECs
spend hours explaining batch files to bored and miserable
people everywhere. NECs have LAN work-stations in their
bathrooms where they do their best work.

Nets: Nets are largish containment devices used to bag
various *Cs who have run amok. These are not to be confused
with "Network" which is also herein defined.

Netwar: An exchange of pleasantries between sysops
culminating in at least a dozen threats of policy
complaints, filled diapers, and about 20 megs of brainlessly
quoted text.

Networks: Are collections of nodes who have mastered the
incredible mentation powers to remember the same sequence of
digits. Networks are loosely centred on geographic areas
within easy mortar range of each other.

Network Coordinators: (see also "Mazola & Bondage") Network
Coordinators are selfless individuals who are reluctantly
railroaded into wearing a large bullseye on their foreheads
for the amusement of grunt sysops who are bored and have
already painted the cat.

Region: The region shall encompass that area in Canada lying
to the east of the Manitoba border (unless they lower their
taxes and sell cheaper beer) and continuing past the welfare
states in the Atlantic provinces to whichever dead cod
happen to wash up on the beaches of Sable Island. The Region
shall also include the Free Republic of Quebec, but only
insofar as it does not impinge upon their God-given right to
rant endlessly about their contused and paranoid cultural
identity.

Regional Coordinators: The larval stage of Small Animal
Psychologists. These beings are to be humoured and indulged
since their are obligated to buy rounds of beer for all
sysops at social gatherings. Regional Coordinators can be
identified by the horrible sucking noises they make while
applying Vulcan lip-locks to the ZC's nether bits. After
weeks of sheep and sleep deprivation, these poor souls can
be spotted, buck naked in the moonlight, howling for more
policy.

Technical Standards: A basepoint for launching into some
sort of penis-envy type message comparing baud rates, how
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 5 09 May 1994

many terrabytes of online GIFS can be shot through the phone
lines, or how some moron has pissed away a small fortune on
a Pentium chip so that they can display messages at 14
million times their visual comprehension rate. I mean, let's
face it, if you happen to have cute blossooms, nobody is
going to give a damn whether your mailer works... in an
ideal world, your mail would get hand-delivered.

Users: Like, get serious wouldja? Screw 'em if they can't
take a joke.

4. Official Titles:

In this Region, a group of sick minds will choose some
relatively innocent soul and propel the poor sucker into the
job of Regional Co-ordinator. The Regional Coordinator shall
have all the powers biologically granted to bread mold, but
otherwise can be safely ignored.

The Region shall be hacked up into small fiefdoms, called
"Networks" which shall elect mascots, order pizza in bulk
quantities, and participate in the annual Node Draft to
choose the players for the upcoming Netwar season. Nets will
dragoon someone into being the Network Coordinator who will
be obliged to either undergo spontaneous human combustion
before a full term is served, or else stand for re-election
to the particular purgatory for which they are ideally
maladapted.

Network Coordinators will not be surprised to discover that
they commune directly with either God or if they want to go
right to the top; to Luke.

Network Coordinators are entitled to screech that "they need
a really big net." Judging from their post electoral
behaviour, most grunt sysops would agree with their
appraisal, and might further suggest a cell of the padded
variety as well.

Any grunt sysop who has stood in the blinding white light of
their own ego too long is entitled to pile nine or ten
listings of their own number into the nodelist and appoint
themselves as Net Coordinator. They will be entitled to
exhibit multiple-personality disorderly conduct and
pontificate about "what their net wants." Spray misting
these lost souls with regular doses of crystal-meth is
advised.

5. Elections: Anyone who actually wants a title in Fidonet
should be put in a bottle and sent out into the Japanese
current. If their lives are so incomplete without the fame
of a Fidonet title, then they should be encouraged to get
their pictures on milk cartons, but don't elect the poor
bastards because they'll inflict bad grammar on you until
you lie in a pool of drool, clutching your "I Adore My 64"
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 6 09 May 1994

button, babbling about the good old days when men were men
and sheep were not particular.

6. The Netwar Season: The netwar season shall commence
nanoseconds after the election of each new Regional
Coordinator. A season can be kick-started to a promising
beginning by any Regional Coordinator who campaigns on some
sort of "peace" platform. Like, nudge nudge, wink wink, we
all *deplore* the fights in hockey games, so we'll be sure
to take these kind of lame promises just as seriously.
(snicker)

(Incidentally, don't trust any candidate who quotes Arlo
Guthrie in "Alices Restaraunt" and says "I wanna kill. I
wanna kill. I mean, I wanna see blood and guts and veins in
my teeth. I wanna kill. KILL! KILL!" because these are the
kind of milquetoasts that probably brake for whales and will
screw up a perfectly good netwar season with their puerile
sniveling for calm. C'mon, fess up... you tryna tell me that
you forked out five grand for a BBS system that was just
gonna bring in the DOGTALK echo?

At the beginning of each season, grunt sysops will make
irrational decisions about who they hate at the moment, and
will bounce up and down in their cribs, asking to be picked
by their most favoured Network Coordinator. Top draft
choices will always be those sysops who are prepared to
nitpick the hell out of issue that occurred way back in the
late fifties.

Network Coordinators should not ignore the "specialty teams"
that make netwars so fascinating. Getting one of those
tight-assed weenies who quotes every obscenity that comes
down the turnpike and then appends some cloacally-challenged
moralizing, should be counted as almost as important as the
wankers who brag that they are the very first to be running
the "new" Fido Version 1.01 software. The latter can be be
guaranteed to smoke out some peckerwood who counter-brags
that he/she has been running that version for three
nanoseconds longer.... under Windows, no less.

A truly successful Netwar season can be measured by the
logarithmic expansion of new nets, and the number of
excitable, intrigue-filled, phone calls that Lesley-Dee
makes.

7. The Stirring Conclusion: Just as this policy document was
about to end. Just as Luke in his X-wing fighter was about
to drop the Neutron bomb down the exhaust shaft and put this
puppy out of it's misery. Just as the Bikersluts were about
to perform peculiar ablutions in the lap of the good Rev.
Visage. Just as your RETURN button was begging for mercy
like some spaghetti flogged, Jesse H-type
combination fax machine and gratification device... just at
that moment... a rock fungus will burst it's spore pod and
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 7 09 May 1994

some flatlined-on-the-EEG sysop will suggest that "we really
oughta have lots more policy."

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Files in AFDN's ABLEFILE Area
Dennis McClain-Furmanski,
1:275/429 Moderator, APPLE EchoThrough an agreement with the
Handinet BBS and sysop Warren King, file distribution for the
Apple echo will be handled through AFDN's ABLEFILE file echo.

These files will be of interest to anyone using an Apple
IImachine; all versions will be supported to the extent that the
files are available. This is a filebone file echo and is on
Planet Connect. Sysops wishing to support Apple II users can
areafix this file area.

Traffic will include these files after sufficient notice has
beenpassed, primarily through this article. Traffic will begin
one weekafter this article appears to allow time to areafix.
Expected volume will be 750K the first month, and up to 500 K per
monthmaximum after that. This is of course in addition to the
regular traffic in this area, MS-DOS executable programs for
adaptive/assistivetechnology of use to computer users with
disAbilities.

Requests for particular programs or kinds of programs, questions
about using particular programs distributed, problems, and other
communications concerning the Apple files should be directed to
me at the above address, or in public through the APPLE echo.
Programs for distribution should be sent as file attaches to me
at this address also.

The first month's distribution will consist primarily of both the
Apple standard archive program, ShrinkIt, as well as archive
programs for various other formats. Other utility programs of
proven use will be included, as will two terminal programs, one
for each operating system, ProDOS 8 and GS/OS. Next months's
files will include 2QWK!, the QWKcompatible offline reader for
Apples, and other utilities. Apple based adaptive/assistive
technology programs will be made available as theyare collected,
and/or copyright releases are obtained.

It is not necessary to carry the Apple echo to obtain these
files, but it is suggested, in case there are user problems. The
Apple echo isavailable on the Zone 1 backbone, areaname APPLE.
It is also available in zones 2 and 6; please netmail for most
recent links in these areas if you cannot find one.
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 8 09 May 1994

FidoNet vs. InterNet

by Bud Jamison (1:202/1010)

Real time, or YOUR time?

I'm not surprised that Andrew Guy is leaving Fido. It seems
obvious that he wants something different (not necessarily more)
than what Fido provides. However, he would seem to think that
what he wants is what everyone wants (or needs).

As a Fido user since its inception, and sysop/co-sysop of
Fido BBS's for over 3 years, I think I can safely say that not
all users WANT interactivity. Many are more than happy to log
onto their favorite Fido BBS once every 3 days (or less often),
and find info from their selected echos, there when THEY want it,
and without all the signatures (encouraged graffiti?) that
plague the UseNet messages. Some Fido users are also Internetters,
that way they can get the best of both worlds, the 'feel' on
InterNet, and the more friendly (and semi-controlled) Fido.

Why should it be any other way?

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Requim For A Fidonet Sysop

1984 - 1994

'Twas not from age did I expire,
Nor up in smoke in my house fire,
Not bullet ridden in a far rice paddy,
Nor by some mugger in New York City.

For if I had would justice have been served?
No not quite, but a place would have been reserved.
For had old age set in I would have been ready,
In the case of the fire, my courage rock steady.

In the case of the paddy did I fire back,
In the case of the mugger, spirit to fight did I not lack,
But instead did Brutus come upon me,
As a friend to warn and comfort me.

And while all the senators were gathered 'round,
They did smile, and laugh and clown,
And under the guise of being a friend,
Did they conspire to bring an end to an end.

For as my hand was extended in greeting,
In forum that resembled an electronic meeting,
Did a knife plunge deep into my back,
From not one, but many who in courage did lack.
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 9 09 May 1994

For not their accuser did they meet face-to-face,
In a public forum, with an austere place,
But byte-by-byte, thus did they rend,
The killing of a friend, a friend to the end.

How easy it is to kill, in darkness of the night,
A faceless person, to stripe away their rights,
How pious and righteous did they pontificate,
Washing their hands of the subject, dealing not with his fate.

For once in a decade he did stand his ground,
Again for his beliefs did he not turn around,
Fighting against tyranny and injustice my times,
He's now reduced to these final lines.

I'd made my peace many years ago,
Corny as it may seem, in an army hospital row,
I'd made another commitment that I'd remember,
When I was born on that day, in the month of December.

In some electronic paper called Fidonews,
That loyal readers had nicknamed the Bent Byte Snooze,
On some back page place, done in a hurry,
Read and see my obituary.

To the many thousands of people I've communicated with over the
years, without exception, each and every one I still considered
a friend may you all grow together in this electronic hobby. I
sleep, perchance to dream again the dream born ten years ago, to
become one with the net.

- Randy DeVaux AKA RanD

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Miscellaneous Ramblings

by Matt Ion
Assorted thoughts on recent articles...

Well, finally, some stuff to comment on, in FNEWS 1117 and 1118. I've
actually received a request from a higher power for more submissions,
since that Censorship one in 1105 (hey S, I like to re-read that one
myself now and then :), so here we go. I warn you now, though: I have
no idea at this point, exactly who or what I'm going to single out from
the past two issues, and I have no intention of backtracking once I've
typed something, other than maybe to correct a hideous splelnig misteak.
It's 4:35am and I'm in one of THOSE moods.

First off, I can relate to 1117's Editorial, in particular the bit about
Sylvia's/Donald's(?) 1-meg 286. Granted, mine's borrowed and there's
very little sentimental attachment to it... I use various high-power
computers at "work", most loaded with OS/2, and I've become quite used
to multitasking, such that I find myself hitting CTRL-ESC on a regular
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 10 09 May 1994

basis on this DOS beastie while waiting endlessly for it to complete
some task. Thing is, it didn't cost me anything, and it's better (okay,
it's MORE USEFUL to what I do) than my trusty old C-64, so I use it.

I really enjoyed Michael Johnson's "On Othernets and Standards" piece
(also in 1117, for anyone who's keeping track). It seems some people
just have to rebel against the standards purely (and obstinately) for
the purpose of rebelling against standards that don't seem to fit their
expectations or need to show off the power of their computing hardware.

I know of a couple BBSs now that don't allow callers at less than
19.2kbps. Heck, there are plenty around that don't allow callers under
14.4k or 9600. This, I don't understand. I allow 300 baud callers on
my board; all callers get the same amount of time. If they want to use
a slower modem and download less, that's their problem. If they have a
14.4k and can suck down 24 times as much in the same amount of time,
goodie for them. I couldn't care less, really.

For that matter, this whole deal over what compression scheme to use for
echomail seems pretty pointless. Considering V.42bis provides up to 4:1
(75%) data compression, seems to me most mail would move almost as
quickly uncompressed as it would packed with PKZIP -ex. Other than the
need to prove one's virility by compressing stuff tighter than anyone
else, I see no real-world advantage to this. It's a pain hubbing for a
net that likes to use ARJ, since there's only limited ARJ support for
OS/2... especially considering that PKZIP 2.04 has been shown to
compress a fraction of a percent better than ARJ. That alone should be
enough reason for these people to switch! :)

Only one thing I need to take Mike to task about:

MJ> Something to think about the next time you feel smart because you
MJ> can post high-bit ascii character art or some of that RIP
MJ> |08S|07H|03I|01T|00.

RIP graphics won't break anyone's mail processors like hi-ASCII and ANSI
can (the primary reason they aren't permitted in Fido echoes). RIP
codes are composed entirely of ordinary, everyday 7-bit ASCII
characters. At worst, someone sees what we see above (I can decipher
what that says, BTW, so don't think you're TOO clever! :)

Moving on to 1118...

To Gary Gilmore ("Is Fido overweight?"), good call as well. My nodelist
processor (FastLst) doesn't choke on bad flags, but I can well imagine
that some do. One guy in these parts runs something that plucks out the
lines with non-standard flags, then posts them to the RGN17 admin echo
on a regular basis. Pretty interesting, some of the stuff that pops up.
One guy actually had two different mailer flags in the same entry!

And finally, to Andrew Guy ("So Long, Thanks For All The Mail")... sorry
to see you, or anyone, leave for such nit-picky reasons. You sound like
one of those people Mike Johnson was talking about in 1117. Consider
this: if you were one of those CoCo users who was suddenly cut out of
the net because someone else decided you were too archaic to be allowed
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 11 09 May 1994

to participate, would you then want to have anything to do with FidoNet,
ever again, even if you soon thereafter upgraded to hardware capable of
bowing to everyone else's wishes? How would you feel if your precious
PC suddenly died and you were left with only a CoCo and couldn't get
into your beloved Internet?

One financial institution here north of the 49th has the slogan, "We got
to be Canada's largest bank, one customer at a time." Yeah, Fidonet is
an organization topping 28,000 members... and it got there one member at
a time. The whole idea is to connect as many people in as many places
as POSSIBLE. Excluding users of older technology is contrary to that.
Including them does NOT automatically exclude you; that is YOUR choice.

The inclusion of the individual IS the good of the whole. It is the
basis for everything FidoNet is. We're not talking the HAPPINESS of the
individual, mind you, but the INCLUSION of the individual, since there
will always be malcontents no matter what anyone does to please everyone
else (refer back to MJ's article). FidoNet is the sum of all its parts.
Amputating one part, or several little parts, because the bigger parts
think they're useless, is counter-productive. Might as well hack off
your little toes, since they don't seem to do much other than make it
hard to fit shoes. Whoops, what's that? Finding it a little more
difficult to balance now? Hmmm...

Okay, enough ranting. I have a thought to add to my censorship article,
particularly the portion of use of language. Is it okay for me to say
my dog is a "son of a bitch"? Can I tell my pastor?

See ya in the funny papers,
Matt Ion -- 1:153/7106
aka [email protected]

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Bananas in wonderland, part II

by JoHo von Loco, 2:270/17@fidonet

> Not sure what this article is all about, but I guess that's in
order considering the author, he's usually pretty confused :-) I
just walked through six or seven issues of the 'Snooze and came
across the editorial where the word p***y was used and the follow-
up complaint about how much of a catastrophy it is/was. Someone
wrote another follow-up article which I think made several good
points.

Why is it that *ssh*le, f*ck, etc. are "acceptable", whereas
replacing the * character with the real one isn't? This one has
always been a mystery to me. In the US (and probably other places),
similar methods are used in real-time broadcasting where the
infamous "beep" is used to "filter" part of the "blasphemy". Now,
can someone please show me one six-year old kid who watches cable
television frequently that doesn't know what is really being said?
This is sooo pathetic (IMHO).
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 12 09 May 1994

There are morons running around with semi-automatic rifles (and yes,
hunting with full-metal jackets or hollow-tips seems to be a "great"
idea to me), revolutionary ideas, selling drugs, more murders,
rapes, und so weiter, "than you can shake a stick at"; and you're
worried about kids finding out a (and depending on how it's used,
condescending) nick-name for the human anatomy, or a cat? Uh..

Censorship can't possibly work, specially not in CyberSpace, but
education can. I'd take kids running around screaming words
implicating sex, even if they're cursing, than shooting at each
other with BB guns.

> Clipper.. a weird concept. I don't understand how anyone in their
right minds (which, granted, excludes most politicians) could
accept that their government is even thinking about implementing
something like "SkipJack". I can't wait to see the EU trying to
pull that one over here. Then again, maybe they already have..
By the way, did anyone see the movie "Sneakers".. I don't quite
know why, but somehow that reminds me of Clipper.

> FidoCons (those held in the US).. yeah, I miss them too (hi Chris)
:-). This year, I'll finally get my sorry backside over to 1BBSCON
and meet some people I haven't seen for a long time. But I've
heard rumours that the concept is mostly this "very serious
attitude". Time shall tell, I guess TJ won't be there, huh? :-)

> ISDN, yeeha! Finally a decent way to transport data (dial-u). All
I need now is for the Luxembourg PTT to get their act together and
stop trying to suck as much money as possible from their Bank
customers, using leased lines, before they go ahead with the "test
phase" that should have begun in March.

> The Story of FidoNet ([email protected]).. that'll be an interesting
one. Anyone know when it's scheduled to be finished? Uh.. "When
it's ready" by any chance? :-)

> More AKAs? I guess it's time to give up on that one.. yeah yeah,
yeah.. I know, I should have done it a long time ago. It's just
that I still can't figure out why you need a completely different
nodelist, 3-4 AKAs, etc. to set-up a "network".. what's the big
deal? We have routing.. right? Most "Tick" and "EchoMail"
processors allow you to configure who will receive what, right?
So.. uh.. never mind.. I've obviously missed something (again :-)

> Latest software versions - whatever happened to that "database"
or listing?

> Software Piracy in FidoNet? Nah, it isn't piracy, because it hasn't
been proven in a court of law.. "and nothing else matters".

> Virtual Reality.. I was thinking the other day (after too much
Coffee obviously) about how we could implement VR in FidoNet or the
BBS world. Some sort of interactive EMSI over ISDN or V.34 links
with the user having to download the "known BBS habitat" the first
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 13 09 May 1994

time he/she calls and then be able to actually walk through the
system, beer cans and all.. and talk to other users currently on-
line. Now that WOULD make for pretty decent on-line games
(finally)! Hey, hands off! Patent Pending ;-)

1994.. oh.. right.. ah yes, let's do the Packet-Type 14814.428 "thang"
first.

<sigh>.. Hey Ho, Hey Ho, it's back to coding we go..

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Life In The Slow Lane
Jim Redelfs, 1:285/14
([email protected])

Ah, yes! The "Me Too Syndrome" wrests another from our midst.

In his article "So Long, Thanks For All The Mail" [FidoNews Vol.11
No.18 (02-May-1994)], Andrew Guy lamented the stagnation of FidoNet
and, in explanation - if not defense - of his leaving the network,
explained that he would instead hook into Internet. Gee. What a
surprise. (yawn)

Guy explained how he would accomplish that feat: He will be using a
"SL/IP (Serial Line/Internet Protocol) connection to the Internet.
Under SL/IP, I can have a virtually unlimited number of data
channels flowing in parallel, downloading files, chatting to
others, and receiving mail, all at the same time, all out of the
one connection."

I don't know about you, but I am impressed. Almost.

One of the aspects of this hobby that I learned early on is that it
is comprised of a large portion of "propeller-beanied" computer
nerds whose primary thrill is writing modem drivers, tweaking just
one more CPS out of their file transfers, and pursuing their
never-ending quest for that latest and greatest hardware item.

What I have also learned is that, for many, the cost of their hobby
is of little or no concern to them.

In that regard, I must admit a bit of jealousy. With a sizeable
mortgage in a cliche suburban setting and three teenage daughters,
I am spending just about as much money AND time on this addicting
hobby as I can STRETCH to justify. Mrs. MacWidow (my wife, Leslie)
puts up with it - just.

So Andrew Guy, after a whole two years of enduring a stagnant
FidoNet, is leaving us for a better world.

All I can say is good-bye, good luck and - have fun. I'm sure
you'll find a plethora of new and daunting technical challenges to
keep you occupied as you play with your SL/IP toy by chatting while
you ftp BIGBOOBZ.GIF concurrently. I'm sure the hardware, software
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 14 09 May 1994

and telcoware required to play in that field will keep you busy for
a long time.

I am content to read messages from moderated echo conferences and
do my little part to keep the mail flowing to-and-from my Macintosh
using that antiquated ARC format, the cost of which is minimal -
and recently dropped substantially by virtue of Planet Connect.

Face it: FidoNet can be quite boring, technically speaking. It
works, and usually reliably. Sure, the NodeList occupies 2.5mb on
my now-small 210mb hard-disk drive, but so what? Sure, we could
shake the network to its foundation by implementing some New
Improved<tm> technology, but what would we gain? Individual,
heavy-volume nodes might save a few bucks in a year's time, but at
what cost to the sanity and (frequently rocky) status quo?

I am a member of NET_285 and a cost-sharing cooperative
administered by the most boring bunch of people you could imagine.
They're friendly, helpful and have no desire to be net.gods.

FidoNet works, is affordable, and I'm having a good time in it.
But, obviously I must be missing something.

Good luck in the fast lane, Andrew. Wave at us as you go by. Or
perhaps you'll spend most of the time in the garage with the hood
up.

JR

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========================================================================
Fidonews Information
========================================================================

------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION ----------------

Editors: Sylvia Maxwell, Donald Tees
Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar
Tom Jennings
"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)
FidoNews
128 Church St.
Kitchener, Ontario
FidoNews 11-19 Page: 15 09 May 1994

Canada
N2H 2S4

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 1994 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 would like a FAQ, or
have questions regarding FidoNet, or UUCP<==>FidoNet gateways, please
direct them to David Deitch (1:133/411@fidonet) at
[email protected].

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,
Charley .K. said, "Tell everyone you know I had a great day!".
-- END
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