FidoNews is the official newsletter of the International FidoNet
Association, and is published weekly by SEAdog Leader, node 1/1.
You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
FidoNews. Article submission standards are contained in the file
FNEWSART.DOC, available from node 1/1.
The contents of the articles contained here are not our
responsibility, nor do we necessarily agree with them.
Everything here is subject to debate.
Table of Contents
1. EDITORIAL
Trials and Tribulations of a Software Publisher
2. ARTICLES
Amigo or Amiga?
Computer Addiction
A word from the author
A New RS-232 Standard in the Making!!
3. COLUMNS
Notes from Abroad
Rainbow Corner
The World of Computing: Super Macs and Israeli Magazines
4. WANTED
ProtoCall Needs BBS Sysops!
5. FOR SALE
Entertainment Software for your PC!
Public Domain Software Library Sale!!
ProtoCall National System Goes Online
Special Offer to FidoNet Sysops
6. NOTICES
The Interrupt Stack
FidoNews Bugs
New release of PKSCrypt Public Key Encryption System
Synchronous Modem Test Sites needed
It's not easy being a software publisher. Even a small one.
Probably the hardest part is getting noticed. There are so many
companies publishing software these days that it's tough to get
anyone to pay any attention to you. Of course, it can be done.
All it takes is money. Where have I heard that before?
If you haven't got money, then it gets rough. In theory, all you
need to do is build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a
path to your door. In practice, that isn't usually true.
The shareware concept is helping there. (No, this isn't another
shareware editorial. Well, not exactly. Sit down right now and
write out checks for all of the shareware you're using. End of
commercial.) I've spoken to a few other shareware authors lately,
and it does seem that it is finally becoming a viable way to
market a product. Two weeks ago I'd have said that not more than
a half dozen shareware authors actually got anywhere. Now I'm
not so sure. There might just be quite a few people out there
getting by on shareware income, which is good.
I tend to be cynical. When we first released ARC I didn't think
anybody would pay for it. When the first check came in I was
astounded. We were torn between cashing it and framing it. (We
compromised; we cashed it and framed a Xerox copy.) I've been
pleasantly surprised, over and over. People are better than I
ever would have imagined.
And yes, the user supported software concept works both ways.
The new compression stuff in ARC 5.0 took a lot of work. I
wouldn't have done it if I hadn't known that people cared.
I was asked recently what it takes for a shareware product to
"succeed". I said all the usual, it has to be good, and do
something popular, and be cheap; but then another thought came to
me. You have to be serious. You have to seriously treat the
product as a commercial offering, with all that that entails. It
means doing the customer support, answering the letters and the
phone calls, being responsive to users' needs, and everything
else. It's not enough to slap a shareware notice on it and let
it go. You have to be willing to follow through. If you don't
take it seriously, then nobody else will, either.
As a side note: Our printer swears that we'll have the SEAdog
manuals by this Wednesday at the latest. We'll start shipping as
soon as we get them. Meanwhile, I've seen the SEAdog manual
covers. You've gotta see them to believe them. They're, well,
They're distinctive. I'm actually not sure whether I like them
or not. But they're certainly eye catching.
Everyone by now knows about the Amiga. Of course, there are
still those that can't pronounce it right. They say Amigo,
Omega, Ammago, etc. It's not that tough a word to pronounce, but
alas, some Commodore folks STILL have problems. In fact, I was
at our Users' Group meeting (MCUG) watching a Commodore official
demonstrate the then unreleased Amiga. After he was done, the
president of our club decided to say a few words about the Amiga.
What did he say? He said "Omega." I think several people were
ready to scramble his brains, at least I was!
Anyway, the Amiga marks Commodore's first effort to break
into the business arena of computers. They have tried hard to
give the Amiga its own image and not one of Commodore. They have
even go so far as to politely as magazine reporters and others to
refer to the Amiga as "the Amiga from Commodore," not the
"Commodore Amiga." But can Commodore be successful?
The Commodore 64 and Vic 20 were the computers to actually
put Commodore on the map. Color AND sound for under, gasp,
$1000! The sound is still unrivaled by many a computer, save for
the new Amiga. Of course, back then was the good old days of
Jack Tramiel, then he decided to leave and purchase Atari. The
new Commodore has managed to botch everything up. Remember that
Plus/4 and the Commodore 16? They were supposed to replace the
64, ha! That was new Commodore's first mistake.
Their second mistake was the Amiga. No, not the computer.
It's a masterpiece of work. I am referring to their marketing.
Of course the Amiga could compete with the IBM PC on a pure
technical level. But who are they fooling? The IBM PC is THE
computer for business. Whether it is a good or bad machine, it's
entrenched in the daily lives of American business. So why does
the new Commodore still try to compete with the IBM PC, let alone
IBM PC AT? They're stupid.
Now look at Atari with Jack Tramiel. He has come out with a
$999, 1 megabyte computer that rivals the Amiga. Well,
technically it is inferior, but at that price who cares? Atari
has so far been smart. They've attacked the Macintosh and Amiga.
They don't really seem to be worried about the IBM PC. What I
mean is that they are selling to the home, not the business. But
who does Commodore continue to put in all their comparison
charts? The IBM PC, IBM PC AT, and the Macintosh. You will
never see the Atari ST's in a Commodore comparison chart. But
who do you see in the Atari comparison charts? The Amiga and the
Macintosh and yes, the IBM PC AT, but you'll notice they included
Fidonews Page 4 7 Apr 1986
the Amiga.
Let's face it, if you put a base model IBM PC, IBM PC AT,
Amiga, Macintosh, and Atari 520 ST together the overall better
one is the Amiga. Remember I said BASE model. The Amiga has
excellent graphics, sound, and built-in multitasking. It's also
faster than all of them except for the ST (8.00 MHZ) and the
Macintosh (7.63 MHZ). But when you include the Amiga's (7.16
MHZ) coppers (co-processors) it is overall faster except for pure
number-crunching. Now IBM users, here's where you win out. The
IBM has the following features: (1) a financially sound company,
(2) 100% IBM compatibility, (3) lots of third-party support, (4)
and lots of your employers may use IBM's so you can work somewhat
at home.
In fact, this is another place where Commodore has screwed
up. $600 for IBM compatibility? Then, if you want it to actually
run as FAST as an IBM, you must buy the Enhancer ($100 to $200).
That's ridiculous. On top of all this, I have heard that the IBM
Emulator is less than 95% compatible. For the price of Amiga/IBM
compatibility, you could purchase a Tandy 1000 or a bare Tandy
1200 that is MUCH more compatible.
As far as the Amiga and the Macintosh go, well. With the
original Macintosh, the Amiga obviously is far superior. I don't
know about the newer Macs though.
The main thesis of this article, though, is really whether
the new Commodore is doing an adequate job of advertising and
marketing the Amiga. I think they are doing the worst they have
ever done. My main qualm about the Amiga is its price: $2000 for
512K, monitor, drive, and computer/OS. This is ridiculous if
they want to succeed. As you know, Commodore is on its last legs
unless they do something drastic. The 1040 ST from Atari just
may be the final straw that breaks the camel's back.
Please send any responses to me at Uticom (120/5) or on
QuantumLink to "MikeR1" or to "CommoLore".
I'd like to see if any of you fido nuts can identify with the
following story. Believe it or not it's all TRUE.
Computer addiction is a word that was not in my vocabulary six
months ago, but since I discovered modems well...
It all started on a warm night in July 1985. I decided to buy a
computer so the kids could practice math, spelling, etc. (sound
familiar?)
I decided to buy a Commodore 64 because the software was
plentiful and cheap. I know CBM seems to be a taboo word in the
Fido Net, but keep reading you might learn something.
First, the kids started asking for more programs; then, my wife
got hooked on CBM graphics (games). Four months later I began to
wonder, if there was a cheaper way to get new programs to keep
them all happy.
That is when someone at work mentioned the local bulletin board
system as a source. I gathered my pennies and went to the local
Target Store and purchased the only modem they had at the time
(one called Modem Master). The directions in the manual seemed
simple and the software's menu screens seemed "friendly" right
from the start, so off I went into the world of the bulletin
board.
After several near misses with "kiddy pirate boards", I happened
upon a phone number for Fido Grapevine 123/4, so I called. I did
not find any CBM software, but I did find a whole new world. The
world of Fido Net.
At first, I was overwhelmed by the system, but thanks to the
novice prompt default I soon became good at moving through,
commenting on, and entering message conversations.
Next, came text file transfers like the Fido Newsletter. This is
where the Modem Master software let me down. I could download a
file alright, but when I tried to read or print the file all I
got was a bunch of graphic characters on the screen or the
printer.
I must have made dozens of phone calls, trying to find out why,
but no one could tell me (I didn't know about the Commodore Users
Group in town). Finally one night, Earl Bates (Sysop 123/4) and
I were comparing the ASCII codes of his Tandy 1100 and my
Commodore. BINGO! I discovered CBM ASCII (PETASCII to some). I
looked and looked for an ASCII translator program but I could not
find one. Finally, I decided that I'd write my own (I have
software degree). I did and it works, slow, but it works. Now I
could print those files, wow, was I proud!
Fidonews Page 6 7 Apr 1986
Next, enter a new Fido board in town called Fido Hydrant (123/6).
Bingo again, there on my screen were several terminal programs
that supported automatic ASCII translation. My search was over
(or so I thought).
I suspect many Fido Sysops are not familiar with "other" types of
computer systems other than the big namers (IBM, Compaq, etc.);
therefore, I will try to explain PETASCII as I know it. PETASCII
is a non industry standard ASCII code that Commodore Business
Machines, Inc. came up with to support many of their personal
computers. The major differences between industry standard ASCII
and PETASCII as viewed on the screen are:
1) Upper and lower case reversal - this occurs because the
character codes for PETASCII upper case characters are the
same as industry standard ASCII lower case characters.
Upper case characters in the industry standard ASCII
translate to the graphics character set on the C-64.
2) CBM 64 does not require a line feed after a carriage
return; therefore, any text file uploaded to a standard
ASCII board will be seen as one long line rather than as
intended (line length less than 80 characters). Any text
file download from a standard ASCII board to a C-64 will
appear double spaced.
If any C-64 users reading this are in need of terminal programs
that support automatic translation I suggest they either download
CBTerm from the CBSig on Compuserve or call Fido Hydrant 123/6 in
Memphis (901) 353-4563 24hr; also, if there are some sysops out
there who have C-64 users on their board that are having the same
trouble as I did I suggest you do your non-IBM'ers a favor and
provide these files for them to download. Hydrant has several
terminal programs available that do automatic ASCII translation
and support both x-modem and punter protocol. In addition,
CBTerm also supports disk to disk downloading and uploading.
This allows the C-64 user the luxury of downloading files longer
than their buffers will allow. Buffer downloading on the C-64 is
usually limited to around 30 to 40 thousand bytes. Fido
Newsletters are longer than this!!
It was just about this time that I learned of a new modem that
was within my price range. It was called the 64 Modem and
supported auto dialing. This was a real eye opener. I no longer
had to stay glued to the computer while trying to check into
Fido!
Everything seemed fine because now I had a Fido board that
supported CBM and the files were keeping everyone happy, until I
ran into a file that was so long I did not have enough time to
download it.
It was about this time that I learned of a new 1200 baud modem
that supports Hayes commands (Commodore Model 1670). I finally
saved enough pennies to buy one ($186.00) and rushed home to try
it out. To my disappointment, CBTerm would not run it, so I
Fidonews Page 7 7 Apr 1986
started a search for another terminal program. After many
downloads and searching I finally discovered that the reason that
CBTerm would not run the 1670 properly was because I had both my
disk drives online at the same time. CBTerm will operate at
either 300 or 1200 baud and WILL operate the 1670 modem properly
IF only one 1541 disk drive is hooked up! In a few weeks I will
try to provide a detailed look at CBTerm for the CBM user, but
for now I will just say that it is the best terminal program I
have used to date.
So now I'm stuck with 1200 baud (fastest the C-64 will run), high
telephone bills, and computer widow for a wife.
I doubt that this story is one of a kind. If you would like to
comment send Fidomail to Fido Hydrant 123/6 or Fido Grapevine
123/4.
Phone numbers for the above two boards are shown below:
The Hydrant BBS 123/6 (901) 353-4563
The Grapevine BBS 123/4 (901) 683-8168
It's probably old news, but Fido 125/1, the old "Fido
#1", is temporarily dead. An actual hard disk crash; aluminum
shavings inside the drive. Not too good. Not only that, I broke
the machine while trying to fix it, so I tossed it in a closet
and took the opportunity to take a long needed vacation from
running a BBS.
The vacation is temporary; Fido will be up again once I
replace the hardware. I'm building a computer to use.
(Industrial, not commercial grade components: Intel Multibuss
based, 300W supply, hard disk no floppies, no CRT, fan and
automotive air filter.) Since I don't have a DTC Host Adapter to
bolt the Xebec to the buss, I gotta rewrite my ROM, and write a
parallel port driver, which of course I keep putting off.
Anyone have a Data Technology Corp. DTC-86 Host Adapter
for the Multibuss? I'll pay a reasonable sum for one. New, used,
I don't care. If I get one, I can have the machine up in a week,
otherwise it's whenever I get around to writing and debugging
yucky drivers. Either postoffice me a note (2269 Market St. #118,
San Francisco, CA 94114) or FidoNet me at 1/0.
On an unrelated subject: I'm glad to see the HELP and BUG
nodes are up. Thanks to all the volunteers. In a few weeks, go
check out the number of messages on all of them, all at once.
Then imagine only two or three people answering all of those.
Ugh. It was our own fault, however, we never made it clear just
how much work it was. Things change.
Which brings me to the real point: many, many people have
requested from me protocol specs and such things on FidoNet
compatibility issues. I'd really really like to write them, but I
know I will never get to it.
For example, I wrote a FIDOLIST program, that generates a
human readable FIDOLIST.TXT from the node list. Its really nice
and fast, but I found that there were keywords in the node list
that I didn't understand! Now that's not a problem. Things
should get repaired and updated as needed, and I'm glad someone
else did it instead of me (the HUB keyword had me baffled).
This stuff has gotta get documented, in some "official"
way, or we are going to be in SERIOUS trouble very soon.
FIDOMAIL.DOC was a nice start (my first pass at a FidoNet
protocol spec) but its poorly written, and now out of date, as it
doesn't have pickup and poll in it.
How about this: we start some new IFNA region nodes:
FidoNet Protocol SPECS
File Transfer SPECS
NodeList SPECS
Fidonews Page 9 7 Apr 1986
FidoNet Protocol SPECS would generate and maintain
something that describes in some detail the FidoNet protocol,
plus fill in some of the missing parts (like the undocumented
boundary conditions). The FIDOMAIL.DOC file is a rude start, and
I'll gladly fill in what I can for missing details. The person(s)
involved here should be high level techie: message packet
attribute bits should be allocated and defined from here, and
future protocol expansions, which I have in my head, should be
written up. I will continue to maintain FIDO_???.EXE, and changes
to packet formats, message header bits, etc, need to be
coordinated. We already ran into one of those messes already, we
don't need to a second time!
File Transfer SPECS is pretty simple: it should cover
XMODEM, TELINK and KERMIT file transfer protocols. Not really a
big deal, since these are documented currently, but not all in
one place. Also we need one set standard reference docs, that we
refer to for all FidoNet related stuff, and not just whatever
ancient file someone finds laying about.
NodeList SPECS is to cover the things like the node list
keywords and their additions and changes, plus probably keep the
software for things like the new Diff file format. Right now
we're pretty safe, but this could get out of hand very easily.
There are many more things that are SPEC related that
need to be covered, these are just the biggies.
Tim Pozar and I talked to Erik Fair, in Berkeley, a high
level Unix wizard and UUCP/Arpa expert, and all around excellent
person. We found out that even though FidoNet is an email system,
but not a "packet switched" system (my fault for the faulty
terminology, I don't know anything about traditional telecom)
FidoNet has many high level features and structural advantages
that are now holding back UUCP net. We have the advantages of
Arpa's "host tables" (our nodelist) and the damn high efficiency
that comes from paying for your own phone bills!
We really need to keep things improving. We have a hot
network, even though it's not getting the recognition it
deserves. FidoNet is greater than the sum of its parts,
obviously: the software is necessary but not enough; the human
structure is what makes it run!
It is amazing how smoothly and quickly the HELP and BUG
nodes went together. I take it as an indication of the size of
the need it filled. The SPECS nodes won't be gobbled up so
quickly, but will provide long term insurance. First of all, we
will be the only ones doing such things, so the rest of the BBS
world will turn to us for specs. We're building an expertise base
here, we might might as well do it purposefully instead of
haphazardly, so that we all can benefit.
I found this on a well-known mid-western BBS. Thought I'd share
it with all my good friends at FidoLand.
Juan E. Jimenez, 103/511, 1/110
Micro Consulting Associates
Newport Beach, California
DL-232 -- A New Standard
by Dave Lyons
(CompuCenter Iowa: JoeApple; CompuServe 72177,3233)
I may never understand how the designers of the RS-232 "standard"
for serial communication managed to use 25 wires where only 3 are
really necessary. Maybe they made a deal with the companies that
make cables, connectors, and switch boxes. I just don't know.
Well, I thought of a few things that the RS-232 standard lacks,
and since there are already so many extra signals, a few more
can't hurt anybody, right? Heck, let's go for 50-pin connectors
and cables and add the following new signals. (Just to make sure
this isn't compatible with any old equipment, all OLD signals are
moved up one pin number (Carrier Detect becomes 9 instead of 8,
etc., and pin 25 goes to pin 1).
Pin Name Description
--- ---- -----------
26 XCAT Should be connected to chassis of devices. Used
with the next two signals, this provides protec-
tion against cats who haven't learned not to walk
on floppy disks or serial equipment. This signal
should supply about 2000 volts (at a VERY low
current level; wouldn't want to HURT the cute
little thing, just teach it not to walk on
anything in the computer room).
27 CATGND Cat ground. Used with pin 26. This signal
should be connected to another part of the
chassis or the tabletop.
28 CTD Cat detect.
29 SD Self-destruct. This signals causes the device to
destroy itself.
30 SDACK Self-destruct acknowledge. Acknowledges that the
device has destroyed itself.
31 VADIC This signal indicates to a computer that the
device on the other end is a modem that uses
VADIC protocol. (Note: CompuCenter Iowa users
should jumper this signal to SD and then buy a
decent modem.)
Fidonews Page 11 7 Apr 1986
32 STBIT1 Stutter bits. With pin 33, sets the number of
"stutter bits" (0 to 3 of them) to be included
before each byte transmitted. This may reduce
the number of people who feel inferior to compu-
ter equipment by showing them that computers have
problems communicating with each other.
33 STBIT2
34 CABR Cable ready. It's not enough to know that the
Data Set is ready (DSR) and the Data Terminal is
read (DTR). We also need to know that the CABLE
connecting them is ready.
35 GRR Gremlins ready. Not everybody knows it, but
there are little green guys inside most modern
computer equipment. Most of the time they sleep,
but other times they cause trouble. The next 6
signals are for dealing with gremlins.
36 220A Used with pin 37, supplies 220 volt power for the
gremlins' air conditioning. On hot days when
gremlins can't sleep, applying power to these
pins may solve your problems.
37 220B
38 110H 110 volts, hot side. When the 220 volt power
doesn't help and gremlin problems persist, use
this with pin 39 to supply 110 volts for the
gremlins' TV and video game center.
39 110N 110 volts, neutral side.
40 MOON Indicates the phase of the moon. Sometimes
solves mysterious problems.
41 LHI Pins 41 through 45 can be used to implement the
"like" protocol when the normal RTS/CTS protocol
isn't enough. This one means "Like HI" and is
used to establish a connection.
42 LHTY2 Like HI to You Too. Acknowledges pin 41.
43 LLTT Like Listen To This. Requests permission to send
data.
44 LOK Like OK. Grants permission to transmit data.
45 LWOW Like WOW. Acknowledges receipt of data.
46 HEY Pins 46 to 50 may be used to implement the
"Eighties" protocol when RTS/CTS and "Like"
protocols won't do the job. This signal is
similar to RTS (Request to Send).
Fidonews Page 12 7 Apr 1986
47 NP No Problem. Acknowledges HEY.
48 HUH? Signals that data was not received correctly
(possibly wrong number of stutter bits).
49 YEAH Acknowledges data received.
50 KMG365 Like YEAH, but for avid Emergency One fans.
That makes 50! Let's hear your suggestions for MORE serial
signals. Maybe we can get 100 and REALLY make the cable
manufacturers happy.
As Fido grows I think that countries must become self supporting
in handing out node numbers. I will be doing the central
coordination to prevent total chaos. The question is when to
start this. As a CC gets a USA compatible (fast) modem a country
or part of it can become a separate net, getting mail from the
USA directly. From an organizational point of view this good,
but it suffers on cost aspects if the number of nodes in a
country is low and/or international mail is on a low level.
Messages are cheaper if you pack them into one packet. So it all
depends on how much mail is send between countries and to and
from the USA. At the moment it is not a big problem anyway, but
if you have thoughts about this point let us know through this
newsletter. The best solutions will emerge from the discussion I
hope.
Our board at 500/1
------------------
This board is run (payed for) by the Dutch hobby computer club
(HCC), a club with 23000+ members organized in local clubs and
computer/operating system orientated user groups. We publish a
monthly magazine (35000+) with more than 100 pages each month
mostly filled by articles from our members. 500/1 is used as a
collection point for these articles. Also the communication
between the central board, the professional workers at our office
in utrecht and the 300+ local officials have become a problem
that we try to solve with this board and a Fido in Utrecht. In
principal the central board of the HCC has decided to have a Fido
installed for as much local HCC clubs and user groups as
possible. There is money available for about 12 boards but as
being a democratic club, the final approval of our Fido plans
must be done on a general meeting in September. We are actively
seeking sponsoring of local boards and are approaching the
government for some money. (The managers of the Ministry of
Education have already had some demonstrations on 500/1). In
November we have the annual HCC-days (2 days of computer shows
with more than 35000 people attending last year) and we hope to
announce the Fido_net_HCC then loud and clear. We are heavily
promoting Fido in the news with continuing articles in our own
magazine (first one in September) and in other magazines (2
articles on Fido appearing in October in a small and a very big
magazine (PCM). Radio will give a Fido report in the first week
of September. We also give out press releases.
This board will be devoted to coordination and collecting
articles and will not have much software online after the local
Fido's have started.
I had planned to review the first package in "Project Transport".
The package I picked to test was a $15 per module accounting
package for the IBM and compatibles. At $15 each for General
Ledger, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, Payroll, and
Inventory, or $50 for all 5 packages, I figured if they work,
they should be a terrific buy. Using the "IDrive" IBM compatible
disk drive from Suitable Solutions (408/725-8944), I transferred
the programs onto Rainbow diskettes, then installed the General
Ledger on my hard disk. The installation process went fine, with
no problems reported, but when I ran the G/L, some of the screens
were a bit garbled. The program still appears to be usable, but
I decided to forestall a thorough review until I try the program
on my COLUMBIA. If the same thing happens, then it's the
software, not the process of transporting it over to the Rainbow.
If, in the meantime, you figure it's worth the $15 (plus $5
shipping and handling) to find out for yourself, give MCBS a call
at 713/444-6269. You will, however, need someone with an IBM or
compatible to copy the double sided disks to single sided format
(which the Rainbow can then read directly).
One of the problems with "Project Transport" is that if it is
successful, there is going to be a need to convert programs which
are most often supplied on double sided disks, into single sided
format. To address this problem, I'm trying to arrange with some
of the user's groups for some volunteers with the proper
equipment. For a nominal donation (perhaps a dollar or two per
disk) which will go into the group's treasury, a user's original
purchased software disk would be copied onto user supplied
Rainbow formatted disks. So far, there doesn't seem to be a lot
of interest on the part of user's groups in participating, but in
the next few months, I'll be speaking to several groups here
along the East coast, and hopefully, will garner some assistance.
As usual, I'm still behind in answering the mail, but I have
noticed a lot of questions lately on modems. Rather than just
gloss over the subject, I'm doing a feature article on using a
modem with your Rainbow. This should appear in a few months, and
will discuss speed (baud rate), parity, setting your comm port &
parameters, using comm software, and a few other goodies. In the
interim, if you have a specific question or problem, leave a
message for me on the RAINBW_CORNR Fido board (914/425-2613). I
don't promise to have all the answers, but I'll try to help.
One question that comes up with a fair amount of frequency
concerns modem speed. I keep getting asked whether I recommend
2400 baud modems over the slower 1200 baud modems. The answer to
this is not cut-and-dried. It depends to a large extent on how
much use you make (or anticipate making) of communications.
Right now, a 2400 baud modem can cost several hundred dollars
more than a 1200 baud modem. If you only use your system for an
occasional call to a local BBS, or a computer service which
utilizes one of the packet switching networks (such as TymNet or
Fidonews Page 15 7 Apr 1986
Telenet), then save your money, buy the less expensive 1200 baud
modem. If, however, you are like me, and tend to spend hours
dialing boards around the country, then spend the extra money on
a high speed modem. Not all boards support 2400 baud, and even
if the one you are calling does support this speed, the phone
lines don't always cooperate. But over the long run the tendency
in the industry is always toward greater speed and power. It may
cost you a bit more now, but you will be buying a bit more time
before your equipment becomes obsolete.
You might also want to check with A.T.& T. about their "Reach Out
America" program. This lets you dial anywhere in the continental
U.S.A. for a flat fee of $10 for the first hour, and $8 and
change for additional hours. Of course there are restrictions,
such as having to make these calls after 11 P.M. or on the
weekends, but you might save some money. It's worth a look. See
you next week.
THE WORLD OF COMPUTING
written by Reuven M. Lerner
FidoMail 107/33
Welcome to another edition of The World of Computing! As the
title in the Table of Contents suggests, this time, I'll be
mainly discussing the new "Super Macintosh," and some Israeli
magazines that I recently had a chance to read.
As you probably noticed, there has been a little time between
the last column and this one. I'm kind of new to deadlines, but
hopefully that was the last time I'll miss them.
If you're a careful reader, you may have noticed that I
promised last week to discuss "the words we use." I had a little
something prepared, but as the magazines seemed to fit that
description, I decided to hold off on computer words until
another week.
The big news in January was the announcement of the Macintosh
Plus by Apple. Everyone knew about it, right down to how it
looked, but John Sculley acted as though he didn't realize that,
and announced it as if the new machine was a surprise to us all.
When Apple first brought out the Mac, they intended for it to
be in the office where IBM PC's had taken hold. Unfortunately,
that failed miserably. Apple was forced to change their
strategy, and publicly said that they would not compete with IBM
any more.
Now that they've come out with the Mac Plus, what can they
say? It's the machine that they should have come out with in the
first place (but then, improvements and updates always are).
Every reviewer said that it needed more memory, a better
keyboard, expansion slots, larger capacity drives, and at least
two drives.
Well, they finally got what they were waiting for. Almost
exactly two years later, the Macintosh Plus has 1 Megabyte of
memory (that's a thousand K for those who don't know; one
Gigabyte is 1,000 Megabytes), like it should have been given.
I'm sure someone out there is saying, "Hold on! Didn't Apple
listen to the reviewers and add memory to give it 512K?" Well,
they did, but why didn't they add more? People would have gladly
paid for it (they paid other companies for memory upgrades, why
not Apple?).
Computer users are a strange breed. We always want more
memory, whether or not our computers can use it or not. We want
to have as much memory as is possible, plus another few hundred
K. Apple should have realized this when they originally brought
out the Mac, and made their basic model with 512K, and their
advanced model with 1 or 2 Megabytes.
Anyway, the next complaint was the keyboard. As Jerry
Fidonews Page 17 7 Apr 1986
Pournelle put it in BYTE, if anyone else had designed a small
keyboard with nonstandard keys and no special-function keys (i.e.
ESC), no one would have bought it! But since it's Apple, they
must know what they're doing, and thus it's okay.
WRONG!! Just because the Mac is a special machine doesn't
mean that it needs a strange keyboard! Users should feel as
comfortable on a PC as they do on a Mac, especially with the
keyboard. I've used many machines which could have been improved
a lot either by the layout or by the feel of the keyboards.
Making keys with oddball names and taking others out is a real
no-no. As far as I know, the ESCape and other keys like it are
on the new Mac Plus, as is a numeric keypad and cursor keys.
Lots of people also complained about the disk drives. First
of all, they held too little. For a graphics-oriented machine,
where each pixel is more than one byte (like on other computers),
400K drives are not nearly enough. 800K drives are good, but only
if they're faster than the old ones. Any Mac user can tell you
what a pain it is to wait for the machine to boot a disk.
The last important thing about the Mac Plus is the SCSI, or
Small Computer Standard Interface. John Dvorak of InfoWorld says
that it's pronounced "scuzzy." Besides the pronunciation, there
are a few other drawbacks to the SCSI.
First of all, who says that it's going to be standard? It's
supposed to be for hard drives. Hyperdrive connects inside the
machine, and therefore has no use for the interface. Others use
the serial port, and would require an upgrade.
Secondly, it's too little, too late. If they wanted to make
any real impact, they would have done it last year, when they
introduced AppleTalk, the LaserWriter, and the Mac XL (aka Lisa).
Now, no one's going to use it except for Apple (even their drive
doesn't use it yet). And besides, there's only one. Apple and
IBM users have a hard time squeezing the most out of their five
to eight slots...what can you do with just one?
The Macintosh Plus is a great idea, but, unfortunately for
Apple, it's a little late.
Israeli Magazines
This past week (right now, it's March 5th), one of the
members of my family as well as several of my friends went to
Israel for a 5-day conference. When he came back, he gave me
three computer magazines from Israel. Two of them were called
"Anashim Umichashvim", or "People and Computers", and the other
was just plain "Michashvim", "Computers".
As Israel was occupied by Britain until its independence in
1948, there's still a lot of English used in publishing.
However, it surprised me to see how much English was really used
Fidonews Page 18 7 Apr 1986
in the magazine. Names of computers were frequently given in
English, as were words like "JUYSTICKS" \[sic\]. At one point,
values were hand-written onto the magazine.
People and Computers is put out by CW Communications, the
same people who do InfoWorld (an excellent magazine, by the way).
Thus, it didn't surprise me when the cover was very much like my
magazine-format InfoWorlds at home.
There are two versions of P&C put out in Israel -- one is a
monthly that looks like the old InfoWorld magazines (from October
1984 to August 1985), and another is a weekly that is mainly a
trade journal, telling business people when shows are.
One of the articles caught my attention (I guess the
headline-makers are doing their job) when I saw it in the Table
of Contents. It was entitled "1986: The Death of the Personal
Computer." Incidentally, the word for computer in Hebrew is
Michashev, from the word "thought", even though they don't
actually think (yet).
The article outlines the computer used in Israel and what
will happen with them. It's interesting to note that Israel uses
many of the same types of computers available in Europe, for
instance, the Commodore PC10 and PC20, their IBM-compatibles. I
also saw the IBM PC G and the IBM PC DD, neither of which I know
anything about (except from the specs list on one of the pages),
except that the PC G has been discontinued because there are no
more.
The author of the article predicts success with the Amiga and
520 ST, and the death of CP/M. I have to differ on two of the
three points. I don't think that the Amiga will really make it
to the point that the 520, and certainly not the 1040 ST will.
Both of the Atari machines have more base memory than the Amiga
for much less money, and these days, that really makes a machine.
As to the death of CP/M, I doubt that highly. Many people
use CP/M and continue to use it every day. I, for one, use it
more than I use my other computers, since I'm so used to its feel
(although MS-DOS comes kind of close). As reported in InfoWorld,
a company is thriving selling old CP/M software that no one else
thinks is worth the effort any more.
That about wraps up my section on computers in Israel. In a
few weeks, I hope to compare their review of Excel with an
American magazine's.
Corrections
Every columnist everywhere I read makes mistakes, so why
should I be any different? I've received some mail, and although
I responded in person to them, I'll explain in a little more
detail what I did.
Fidonews Page 19 7 Apr 1986
First of all, I have a message from Mike Harrington, of the
Blue Telegraph in Seattle. He wanted to know if I could drop the
copyright notice at the bottom of the column, to keep in the
spirit of the public domain.
After receiving his letter, I realized that he was absolutely
right in what he said. If you look at the bottom of this week's
(and future week's) column, you'll see that I now give full
copying rights, so long as there is not profit made. However,
there is still a copyright on it, much like many public-domain
utilities. If anyone has any comments, just write to me.
I also received a letter from Bob Spivack, of Spiv's Fido in
San Jose, California. Bob gave the real reasons why IBM chose
the 8088, and I'll condense it here.
Intel created the 8086 before the 8088, but since companies
didn't need the extra 16-bit hardware for their products and
peripherals, they weren't buying it as fast as Intel thought they
would. Intel then designed a chip that was identical to the
8086, but utilizes an 8-bit data and I/O bus instead of 16-bit.
IBM chose the 8088 instead for most of the same reasons: the
speed and expandability of the 8086, but with the ease of
interfacing with 8-bit memory and peripherals.
If any of you spot mistakes, don't hesitate to write me and
point them out! I try to be as accurate as possible, but I am
still human.
Well, I'm really out of space for this week, so let me just
remind you how open I am to suggestions and comments. Just send
mail to me either through FidoMail at Fido 107/33, or at 21 Old
Westbury Road, Old Westbury, NY, 11568. Until next time, happy
computing!
(c)1986 Reuven M. Lerner. All Rights Reserved. Permission
is given to copy this column so long as it is for non-profit use.
If you wish to use it for other than non-profit use, write to the
author at 21 Old Westbury Road, Old Westbury, NY 11568, or at
FidoMail 107/33.
Tom Zelinski, Coordinator
Interplay, Incorporated
(Through Node 109/622, Peter Thomas)
ProtoCall Needs BBS Sysops!
ProtoCall is a new nationwide system available thru Tymnet
starting on March 25th. It's an economical and entertaining
answer to more expensive national systems that are available and
features a VERY unique Talk/CB, SIGs, and other features. At
$3.60 per hour/300 baud and $4.80/1200 baud, it is one of the
most reasonably priced national systems available anywhere!
We recognize that local BBS's in the U.S. can be a powerful
advertising medium for us and we're looking for Sysops to post
messages and bulletins on their BBS's advertising our new system!
In return, ProtoCall will open an account for you on our system
and give you 5 hours online time FREE! We'll also list your BBS
on our data base and give you access to our special BBS Sysop's
SIG. AND, for every new account that we open as a result of your
ad, you'll receive an additional HOUR of online time FREE!
ProtoCall recognizes all of the hard work that BBS Sysops
must do to keep their systems online. And this offer is our way
of thanking you for making telecommunications the popular medium
that it is. If you're interested, please call us (Mon-Fri, 2 PM-
12 Midnight) at (800) 826-3286 to set up your Sysop's Account.
PLEASE pass this special offer to every Sysop/BBS in your
area. We're counting on you to help us make ProtoCall the success
we know it will become!
Join the growing number of BBS Sysops who have FREE access to
ProtoCall! Call us today fo all the details. Remember, this
costs you nothing! Call today!
=================================================================
FOR SALE
=================================================================
ENTERTAINMENT SOFTWARE FOR YOUR PC!
SUPERDOTS! KALAH!
Professional quality games include PASCAL source! From the
author of KALAH Version 1.6, SuperDots, a variation of the
popular pencil/paper DOTS game, has MAGIC and HIDDEN DOT
options. KALAH 1.7 is an African strategy game requiring
skill to manipulate pegs around a playing board. Both games
use the ANSI Escape sequences provided with the ANSI.SYS
device driver for the IBM-PC, or built into the firmware on
the DEC Rainbow. Only $19.95 each or $39.95 for both
exciting games! Please specify version and disk format.
These games have been written in standard TURBO-PASCAL and
run on the IBM-PC, DEC Rainbow 100 (MSDOS and CPM), CPM/80,
CPM/86, and PDP-11. Other disk formats are available, but
minor customization may be required.
BSS Software
P.O. Box 3827
Cherry Hill, NJ 08034
For every order placed, a donation will be made to the Fido
coordinators! Also, if you have a previous version of KALAH
and send me a donation, a portion of that donation will also
be sent to the coordinators. When you place an order, BE
CERTAIN TO MENTION WHERE YOU SAW THE AD since it also
appears in PC Magazine and Digital Review.
Questions and comments can be sent to:
Brian Sietz at Fido 107/17
(609) 429-6630 300/1200/2400 baud
Public Domain collection - 300+ "ARC" archives - 10 megs of
software and other goodies, and that's "archived" size! When
unpacked, you get approximately 17 megabytes worth of all kinds
of software, from text editors to games to unprotection schemes
to communications programs, compilers, interpreters, etc...
This collection is the result of more than 10 months of intensive
downloads from just about 100 or more BBS's and other sources,
all of which have been examined, indexed and archived for your
convenience. Starting a Bulletin Board System? Want to add on
to your software base without spending thousands of dollars? This
is the answer!!!
To order the library, send $100 (personal or company check,
postal money order or company purchase order) to:
Micro Consulting Associates, Fido 103/511
Post Office Box 4296
200-1/2 E. Balboa Boulevard
Balboa, Ca. 92661-4296
Please allow 3 weeks for delivery of your order.
Note: No profit is made from the sale of the Public Domain
software in this collection. The price is applied entirely to
the cost of downloading the software over the phone lines,
running a BBS to receive file submissions, and inspecting,
cataloguing, archiving and maintaining the files. Obtaining this
software yourself through the use of a computer with a modem
using commercial phone access would cost you much more than what
we charge for the service...
Please specify what type of format you would like the disks to be
prepared on. The following choices are available:
IBM PC-DOS Backup utility
Zenith MS-DOS 2.11 Backup Utility
DSBackup
Fastback
Plain ol' files (add $50, though, it's a lot of
work and takes more diskettes...)
Add $30 if you want the library on 1.2 meg AT disks (more
expensive disks). There are no shipping or handling charges.
California residents add 6% tax.
For each sale, $10 will go to the FidoNet Administrators.
Tom Zelinski, Coordinator
Interplay, Incorporated
(Through node 109/622, Peter Thomas, SysOp)
ProtoCall National System Goes Online
ProtoCall, a new national online leisure system available
through Tymnet, will be available on March 25th! ProtoCall
features the most unique Talk/CB areas available anywhere! Tired
of signing onto "Channel 1" or "Line 17" on other national
systems? Why not sign into the Town of Remote and walk our
streets? Drop into a singles bar and meet people? Take someone
to a lonely beach for private conversation? Go to the Remote
Airport and fly to the "Caribbean"? You can create and describe
your own private room for your special rendezvous! Anything is
possible!
ProtoCall also features Electronic Mail, Special Interest
Groups, and informational data bases too. And the best news is
that ProtoCall costs less than ANY other system available
nationally! During evenings, weekends, and holidays, access is
only $3.60 at 300 baud and $4.80 at 1200 baud. And, there is no
sign-up fee or any other hidden costs involved.
If you sign-up today, ProtoCall will give you FIVE HOURS
FREE online time! There is no obligation for this, but you must
register with us. And, we also are offering a special 2-for-1
sign-up special. For every hour that you purchase, we'll give you
another hour free! These offers are limited, so please call us
today! Call (800) 826-3286 between 9AM and Midnight.
Join the growing number of users who have chosen the newest
and most economical national telecommunications system available
today! ProtoCall!!!
SEAdog Electronic Mail System
Special Offer for FidoNet Sysops
System Enhancement Associates, the makers of the popular ARC file
archive utility, are proud to announce the release of the SEAdog
electronic mail system.
SEAdog is a PC-based electronic mail system which is fully
FidoNet compatible. In addition to all the functionality of
FidoNet mail, SEAdog adds the following:
o User directory support, for automatic lookup of node numbers
o Return receipts
o Audit trails
o Message forwarding, with or without a retained copy
o Twenty four hour mail reception
o High priority mail for immediate delivery
o The ability to request files and updates of files from other
SEAdog systems.
o No route files needed!
o A full screen user interface that our beta test sites fell in
love with!
SEAdog is NOT a bulletin board system, but it can be used as a
"front end" for Fido (version 11q or later), allowing you to add
the full functionality of SEAdog to your existing system.
SEAdog normally sells for $100/node, but for a limited time only
we are offering SEAdog to registered FidoNet sysops for only $35!
Orders may be placed by sending a check or money order to:
System Enhancement Associates
21 New Street, Wayne NJ 07470
Or by calling (201) 473-5153 (VISA and MasterCard accepted).
12 Apr 1986
The Next Occasional MetroNet Sysop Meeting, to be held in West
Milford, New Jersey. Contact The Wizard at node 107/16 for
details and directions.
19 May 1986
Steve Lemke's next birthday.
24 Aug 1989
Voyager 2 passes Neptune.
If you have something which you would like to see on this
calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1/1.
The Node Number given in FidoNews Volume 3, Number 12 for the
Shuttle Poem was wrong. The number given was 109/612. The correct
number is 109/606. The Peom was written by a Science Teacher at
the Maret School in Washington, DC. As he is not a user on
109/606, any message regarding the poem should be addressed to
the SYSOP of 109/606.
Synchronous Modem Test Sites Needed
-----------------------------------
A major communications manufacturer is looking for test sites for
it's new line of asynchronous/synchronous 2400 baud modems. If
you are presently using a remote synchronous communications
system (via a synchronous modem) on an IBM PC or true compatible,
please contact Ray Lecours at (203) 758-1811.
