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