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
ARTSPEC.DOC, available from node 1/1.
Copyright (C) 1986, by the International FidoNet Association.
All rights reserved. Duplication and/or distribution permitted
for noncommercial purposes only. For use in other circumstances,
please contact IFNA.
SPECIAL BYLAWS VOTING ISSUE
Table of Contents
1. EDITORIAL
Time to Vote!
2. ARTICLES
IFNA ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION DRAFT
IFNA BY-LAWS DRAFT
disABLED - an Echo for the Handicap
Doug's Column
Registered programs and "canned" messages
SEAdog Nodes Get With It!
"Sponges" - Solution?
3. COLUMNS
Mike Ringer's Column
Nautical View Part 6: Shouldst Thou Notch Thy Disks?
4. NOTICES
The Interrupt Stack
For Sale: All Rights to Computer Game Program (GAGS)
Remember the draft bylaws we published awhile back? A lot of
people had some very good suggestions to make about them, and the
bylaws committee listened to those ideas and made a few small
changes. I haven't read through it in detail, but the biggest
change seems to be putting in a way to change the bylaws later.
It seems they forgot that one small detail the first time around.
So we're running the bylaws again this issue in their new,
revised form. The bylaws published in this issue of FidoNews are
what we are now voting on.
The last page of this issue is your official ballot. Run it off
on a printer, fill it out, and mail it in. Everyone who was
listed in node list 311 for 1986 gets one vote. If you're in the
node list twice, you still only get one vote. Ditto if two
people sysop one board, they only get one vote between them.
You have until 17 January 1987 to get your vote in to the CPA
firm that's counting them, but don't wait until the last minute!
Do it NOW, while you're thinking of it.
About the board elections: The interim board felt that it didn't
make much sense to vote for a board before we know for sure what
YOU want the board to be like, so we're holding off electing a
new board until we find a set of bylaws you like.
IFNA By-Laws and Rules Committee
Bob Hartman, Chairperson (132/101)
ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION FOR INTERNATIONAL FIDONET ASSOCIATION
Be it known that we, the suscribers, do hereby associate
ourselves as a body politic and corporate pursuant to the
statute laws of the State of Missouri regulating the formation
and organization of corporations without capital stock and the
following are our Articles of Association:
Article 1 - The name of our corporation shall be the
International FidoNet Association also known as "IFNA". The
corporation commenced its corporate existence as the
International FidoNet Association, when its Articles of
Association were approved by the Secretary of the State of
Missouri on August 13, 1986. The original Articles of
Association were subscribed by Kenneth H. Kaplan, Sally R.
Kaplan, and Mark S. Rubin.
Article 2 - The period of duration of the corporation is
perpetual.
Article 3 - The address of its initial Registered Office in the
State of Missouri is: 120 S. Central, Suite 1400, St. Louis,
Missouri 63105 and the name of its initial Registered Agent at
said address is: Mark S. Rubin. The mailing address is: PO Box
41143, St. Louis, Missouri 63141.
Article 4 - The purposes for which our corporation is formed are
the following: the promotion of interest in telecommunications
and experimentation; the establishment of telecommunication
networks to provide publicly accessable and publicly available
electronic communications; the furtherance of the public
welfare; the advancement of telecommunications art the fostering
of education in the field of electronic communication; the
promotion and conduct of research and development to further the
development of electronic communication; the dissemination of
technical, educational, and scientific information relating to
electronic communication; the printing and publishing of
documents, books, magazines, newspapers and pamphlets necessary
or incidental to any of the above purposes. No part of the
assets or income of our corporation shall inure to the benefit of
or be distributable to the members, the officers, or any of
them, or to other private persons except that our corporation
shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation
for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in
furtherance of the purposes set forth herein.
Article 5 - The affairs of the Corporation shall be governed by a
Board consisting of Directors as defined in the By-Laws. Each
Fidonews Page 4 22 Dec 1986
Director shall be elected for terms of two years by the members
eligible to vote. Half of the Directors shall be elected for
terms beginning on even numbered years and half shall be elected
for terms beginning on odd-numbered years. Election of Directors
shall be in accordance with the rules and regulations prescribed
in the By-Laws. The Board shall meet at least once annually at
times and places as provided in the By-Laws. Special meetings of
the Board shall be called by the Chair of the Board upon written
request of at least one-half of the membership of the Board as
then constituted.
Article 6 - During the intervals between meetings of the Board of
Directors, the affairs of the Corporation shall be administered
by an Executive Committee consisting of the President, four
Directors selected by the Board of Directors, and, without vote,
the Vice President and Vice President - Technical Coordinator.
The term of office for the Executive Committee members shall be
for one year or until their successors are elected. The
Executive Committee shall meet at the call of the President, but
no less often than quarterly. The Executive Committee may in its
discretion submit for determination or decision by members of
the Board of Directors any proposal pending before the Executive
Committee. When such submission is made, it shall be in precise
terms embodying the text of the proposed resolution. Such action
shall be binding upon the Executive Committee.
Article 7 - A vacancy in the Board of Directors shall be deemed
to occur upon the death, resignation, recall, move of permanent
residence outside the consituency from which elected, or refusal
to act of any director. Upon the occurrence of such vacancy,
the Secretary shall proclaim it, and thereafter the duties of the
Director shall be assumed by the Alternate, and the Alternate
shall hold the office of Director for the remainder of the term
for which he was appointed Alternate. Should the office of
Alternate be vacant, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment
by the Board of Directors. The Alternate shall also serve as
Director at any meeting of the Board of Directors which the
Director is unable to attend.
Article 8 - The officers of the Corporation shall be a President,
a Vice President, Vice President - Technical Coordinator, a
Secretary, and a Treasurer, who shall be elected by a majority
of the Directors at the Annual Meeting.
Article 9 - These articles may be amended by the three-fourths
vote of all directors, or, provided due notice of the proposed
amendment shall have been sent to each director at least thirty
days in advance, by a two-thirds vote of all directors.
Article 10 - The membership of IFNA shall consist members as
defined in the By-Laws. The membership shall by appropriate
By-Laws specify the requirements for membership and classes of
membership provided, however, that the membership shall not
terminate or reduce the rights of any member except for the
lapse or termination of a condition now required as precedent to
the exercise of such rights. Nothing herein contained shall
Fidonews Page 5 22 Dec 1986
preclude the Board of Directors from expelling a member upon
good cause shown and after notice and an opportunity to be
heard.
Article 11 - No person shall be eligible for the office of
Director, Alternate, President, Vice President, Secretary,
Treasurer, or Vice President - Technical Coordinator, whose
business connections are of such nature that they could gain
financially through the shaping of the affairs of the Association
by the Board, or by the improper exploitation of their office for
the furtherance of their own aims or those of their employer. The
primary test of eligibility under this Article shall be the
freedom from commercial or government connections of such nature
that their influence in the affairs of the Association could be
used for their private benefit.
Article 12 - Upon the dissolution of our corporation, the Board
of Directors shall, after paying or making provision for the
payment of all of the liabilities of our corporation, dispose of
all of the assets of our corporation exclusively for the
purposes of our corporation in such manner, or to such
organization or organizations organized and operated exclusively
for charitable, educational, religious, or scientific purposes as
shall at the time qualify as an exempt organization or
organizations under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1954 (or the corresponding provision of any future
United States Internal Revenue Law), as the Board of Directors
shall determine. Any such assets not so disposed of shall be
disposed of by a court of competent jurisdiction of the county in
which the principle office of our coporation is then located,
exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or
organizations, as said court shall determine, which are
organized and operated exclusively for such purposes.
IFNA By-Laws and Rules Committee
Bob Hartman, Chairperson (132/101)
BY-LAWS FOR INTERNATIONAL FIDONET ASSOCIATION
DEFINITIONS:
The following terms have meanings as follows for all purposes
of these By-Laws and Articles of Association:
IFNA: International FidoNet Association.
IFNA NETWORK: The current set of systems which have been
certified as FidoNet compatible and conform to policies
established by the Board of Directors.
IFNA NODELIST: The list of nodes active in the IFNA NETWORK,
prepared by the IFNA Vice President - Technical Coordinator.
PUBLIC ACCESS: A system that has a telephone number published
in the IFNA Nodelist, and in addition provides services to the
public.
ANNUAL MEETING: A yearly meeting of all members of IFNA with
the expressed purpose of conducting business requiring the
membership to vote. The Vice President, in conjuntion with the
Membership Services Committee, shall arrange for and coordinate
all activities leading up to and the conduct of this meeting.
ENDORSED: A physical, hand-written, verifiable signature of a
member or such equivalent as shall be specified by the Board of
Directors.
BALLOT: A paper listing of all candidates for office and
issues requiring a vote, or such equivalent as shall be specified
by the Board of Directors.
ALTERNATE: A member of IFNA who is designated by a director.
The responsibilities of the ALTERNATE include, but are not
limited to acting as a replacement for the director in any
instance of the director's absence.
CHAIR: The person elected by the members of the Board of
Directors, or a committee, to be responsible for the overall
conduct of meetings of the body that elected the CHAIR.
BY-LAWS:
1. The following membership categories are established:
(a) Regular Member. To be eligible, an applicant: must be the
system operator in good standing of a PUBLIC ACCESS node; must
have paid any dues required; is entitled to one vote.
Fidonews Page 7 22 Dec 1986
(b) Associate Member. Any person who is not eligible to be a
Regular Member, but who is interested in electronic
communications, is eligible to be an Associate Member by paying
required dues. Associate Members have all of the rights of a
Regular Member except the right to vote.
(c) Commercial Member. Any entity using the IFNA NETWORK for
the conduct of any business is eligible to be a Commercial Member
by paying required dues. Any Commercial Member also satisfying
the requirements to be a Regular Member shall be entitled to
vote.
(d) Honorary Member. The Board of Directors may award
Honorary Member status to any entity. Honorary Members have all
of the rights of a Regular Member except the right to vote.
(e) Life Member. Any member may become a Life Member by
paying the required dues.
2. Applications for membership shall be submitted to the
Secretary. In the case of any applicant whose character,
reputation or conduct might make him an undesirable member, the
Secretary shall refer the application to the Executive Committee
for review; in all other cases, the Secretary shall have the
authority to grant membership.
3. The Secretary shall notify members of the expiration of their
membership not less than thirty days prior to expiration. In
determining membership status, memberships renewed within thirty
days of expiration shall be regarded as continuous.
4. Dues shall be set by the Board of Directors, and be payable
in advance. For members outside the United States, the Executive
Committee shall assess such additional costs as may be required
for destinations outside the United States.
5. Every member of the Board of Directors shall: serve and
continue in office until their successor shall have been elected;
serve on at least one standing committee.
6. All officers and directors shall serve without compensation
in any form.
7. No person shall be an officer or director unless they qualify
under all applicable statutes.
8. The members of the Board of Directors shall be one director
from each of the several voting divisions of IFNA (Divisional
Directors) and an equivalent number of directors elected from the
membership (At-large Directors). At the first meeting of the
Board of Directors they will elect a CHAIR who shall preside over
all meetings of the Board.
9. The directors shall keep themselves informed as to conditions
and activities of their constituents and as to the needs and
Fidonews Page 8 22 Dec 1986
desires of the members therein in order that they may faithfully
and intelligently represent the true interests of such members.
All directors shall attend all meetings of the Board. At least
sixty days prior to each annual meeting of the Board of Directors
each Divisional Director shall file with the Secretary a written
report on the status of the affairs of IFNA in that division,
together with a statement of their recommendations as to any
actions required for the effective administration of the
objectives and affairs of IFNA.
10. On any date not later than noon of the 120th day prior to
the ANNUAL MEETING, nomination petitions ENDORSED by ten or more
voting members and naming a member as a candidate for director,
may be filed with the Secretary. The Nominations and Elections
Committee shall solicit such petitions at least 180 days prior to
the ANNUAL MEETING in FidoNews in each election year by a notice
that will show the name of the incumbents.
11. The Nominations and Elections Committee shall delete the
name of any nominee who may be ineligible for election and the
name of any who may withdraw by written communication. The
remaining names shall be listed on a ballot, in alphabetical
order. If there be but one eligible nominee, the Nominations and
Elections Committee shall declare him elected without balloting
by the membership. If there be more than one eligible nominee,
then at least 45 days prior to the ANNUAL MEETING the Secretary
shall send by mail to every voting member, and publish in
FidoNews, a ballot listing the candidates for director. The
ballot shall contain a copy of the current voting rules.
12. Mail BALLOTS, to be counted, shall reach the Secretary not
later than the start of the ANNUAL MEETING.
13. The Nominations and Elections Committee shall arrange to
have a certified public accountant receive and collate all mail
BALLOTS received prior to the ANNUAL MEETING, and to be
responsible for the receipt, tabulation and verification of all
BALLOTS cast before the close of voting. The certified public
accountant shall present and certify the results of the
balloting.
14. A director position shall be declared vacant by the Board of
Directors if: there be no eligible nominee for that director
position; a director is no longer able or willing to fulfill the
responsibilities of that position and has not appointed an
ALTERNATE.
15. All vacant director positions will be filled by appointment
of the Board of Directors for the remainder of the term.
16. Each director shall designate in writing within 30 days
after the election an eligible ALTERNATE. Failure to comply shall
cause the ALTERNATE position to be declared vacant by the Board
of Directors.
17. A director shall be elected in each even-numbered year for
Fidonews Page 9 22 Dec 1986
each even-numbered division and an equal number of At-large
directors and in each odd-numbered year for the remaining
director positions. The term of each director shall be for two
years. The terms of all directors shall begin as soon as the
results of the election are declared official by the Secretary.
18. A recall petition shall be presented to the Secretary not
later than 180 days prior to the end of the Director's term. A
valid petition shall contain the signatures of not less than 10
percent of the number of voting members represented by that
director. Upon certification by the Executive Committee that the
petition is valid, the Secretary shall prepare a ballot asking
the single question, "Shall the Director be recalled, yes or no".
These ballots shall be mailed to all voting members represented
by that director accompanied by the current voting rules. If a
majority of the votes cast are for recall, then the office of
director shall be declared vacant. No director shall be subject
to more than one recall during a single term of office.
19. The annual meeting of the Board of Directors shall be held
at a location near the place of business designated in the
Articles of Association on the third Friday of February of each
year. The places of additional meetings shall be designated by
the Chair of the Board and notified by the Secretary. The times
and places of the meetings may be changed provided that specific
provision is made by (1) majority vote of the directors at the
preceding meeting or (2) majority vote of the directors by mail
initiated by the Executive Committee or on petition of at least
five directors, such mail vote to be taken at least 45 days prior
to the date proposed for the meeting.
20. Special meetings of the Board of Directors may consider or
act upon only those matters which are set out in the request.
The call for any such meeting shall specify the matters to be
considered.
21. A majority of the members of the Board of Directors or of
any committee shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the
Board or Committee.
22. Prior to any meeting of the Board of Directors, the
Secretary, upon consideration of the reports of the officers and
directors, shall establish an agenda for the meeting. Proposals
for amendment of the agenda or for the deletion or addition of
items shall be the first order of business.
23. On questions of order and procedure not otherwise determined
by these By-Laws the provisions of the current edition of
Robert's Rules of Order shall prevail.
24. The following voting divisions are established:
Division 2 Europe, Africa
Division 10 CA NV
Division 11 IL IN KY MI OH WI - USA and
ON PQ PEI NS NB NF - Canada
Fidonews Page 10 22 Dec 1986
Division 12 HI Asia, Australia, Antartica
Division 13 DE DC MD NJ NY PA VA
Division 14 IA KS MN MO NB ND SD
Division 15 AZ CO NM UT WY
Division 16 CT ME MA NH RI VT
Division 17 AK ID MT OR WA - USA and BC ALB SSK - Canada
Division 18 AL FL GA MS NC SC TN
Division 19 AR LA OK TX, South America,
Mexico, Central America
25. The President shall, subject to instruction from the Board
of Directors and with the assistance of the Vice President,
represent IFNA in its relationships with the public and the
various governments, governmental agencies and officials with
which IFNA may be concerned and shall be the official
spokesperson of IFNA in regard to all matters of IFNA policy.
26. In the absence or disability of the President, the Vice-
President shall assume the duties of the President.
27. The Secretary shall: record the proceedings of all meetings
of the Board and of the Executive Committee; promptly furnish
copies of the minutes of these meetings to all officers and
members of the Board; publish such minutes in FidoNews; be
responsible for the maintenance of the corporate status of IFNA
and the filing of all reports and certificates which may be
required of IFNA under the corporation laws of the State of
Missouri; be the archivist of IFNA; maintain the corporate
membership and voting records of IFNA; performs other duties as
described in applicable By-Laws. To the extent that may from time
to time be required by law, the Secretary shall act as agent for
the service of process but only while present in the State of
Missouri and is not authorized to accept service of process
elsewhere.
28. The Treasurer shall: be the recipient of all monies of IFNA
and shall deposit the same in the name of IFNA in a depository
specified by the Board of Directors; sign checks drawn by the
President in payment of obligations known by him to be proper and
authorized; make a report at the annual session of the Board of
Directors and attend meetings of the Board; furnish bond
satisfactory to the Board, the expense of such bond to be borne
by IFNA; be ex-officio a member of the Administration and Finance
Committee provided for in By-Law 31; make quarterly financial
statements to the Adminstration and Finance Committee; on
consultation with and subject to the general supervision of the
Administration and Finance Committee, invest and reinvest the
surplus funds of IFNA in any bonds or stocks or other securities
as would be selected by a trustee with the care of a prudent
investor.
29. The Vice President - Technical Coordinator shall: be
responsible for maintenance and distribution of the master
NODELIST; creation and distribution of the weekly update file for
the master NODELIST; ensuring the smooth operation of the IFNA
Fidonews Page 11 22 Dec 1986
NETWORK as prescribed by the Board of Directors; serve as a
member of the Technical Standards Committee.
STANDING COMMITTEES:
30. The following standing committees are established:
a. Administration and Finance
b. Executive Committee
c. Nominations and Elections
d. By-Laws and Rules
e. Technical Standards
f. Publications
g. International Affairs
h. Membership Services
Each standing committee shall include among its members at least
one director. Additionally, the Treasurer shall serve as a member
of the Administration and Finance Committee. Appointments of all
standing committee members shall be made by the President at the
Annual Meeting and shall be for a term of one year. The Chair of
the Board shall designate the chair of each committee. Standing
committees shall make written reports at least 30 days prior to
each regular meeting of the Board of Directors. Standing
committees may originate studies in their fields and may generate
recommendations to the Board on their own initiative.
31. The Administration and Finance Committee:
Reviews IFNA management performance and effectiveness,
including IFNA finances, on a continuing basis. On an annual
basis, reviews the operating budget prepared by the Treasurer for
the coming year and, after approval, forwards to the Board of
Directors for ratification at least 30 days prior to the
beginning of the fiscal year. Reviews intermediate and long term
budgetary projections as prepared by the Treasurer and makes
appropriate recommendations to the Board of Directors. Makes
recommendations to the Board in connection with audit and tax
matters, and acts as a Board audit committee. Is reponsible to
the presentation of an annual financial report which shall be
presented to the Board and the Membership. Makes recommendations
to the Board and the President in areas of staff management,
procedures and renumeration. Acts as advisor to and supervisor of
the Treasurer in regard to the investment of IFNA's funds.
32. The Membership Services Committee performs studies and makes
recommendations to the Board, and acts as advisor to the
President, with regard to services provided to individual
members, other than publications and including, but not limited
to the ANNUAL MEETING.
33. The Publications Committee performs studies and makes
recommendations to the Board, and acts as advisor to the
President, with regard to IFNA's publications, including
FidoNews.
34. The Nomination and Elections Committee shall be responsible
Fidonews Page 12 22 Dec 1986
for: finding and qualifying candidates; reviewing voting
procedures and recommending modifications as necessary; performs
other duties as described in applicable By-Laws.
35. The By-Laws and Rules Committee shall be responsible for
review and any suggestion of changes to these by-laws.
36. The Technical Standards Committee shall be responsible for:
a. Providing a rigorous definition of FidoNet and all
FidoNet protocols sufficient to implement a compatible electronic
mail system.
b. Providing IFNA the means to determine whether a system is
compatible with FidoNet. This will allow IFNA to list compatible
systems so Sysops may decide which system to install.
c. Producing and enhancing standards for:
1. Data Transmitted
2. Connection
3. Protocols
4. Nodelist
5. Routing
37. The International Affairs Committee shall monitor the
conduct of international liaison by IFNA staff. They shall
initiate recommendations for IFNA representation at international
meetings. They shall encourage the growth and strengthening of
IFNA, its member societies and telecommunications worldwide. They
shall coordinate and monitor planning and strategy for improving
international telecommunications.
38. The Executive Committee shall be responsible for: Monitoring
progress of the Board actions and recommendations in order to see
that they are expeditiously accomplished. Monitoring
expenditures for legal assistance. Providing assistance to the
staff and general counsel in connection with Board
recommendations for petitions to the Federal Communications
Commission and other governmental agencies. Evaluating for the
Board proposed rules and regulatory changes.
39. There shall be an official publication maintained by IFNA,
in the form of a weekly journal, the name of which shall be
FidoNews. A copy of this journal shall be available each week to
every member of IFNA in good standing. The general management of
this journal shall be in the hands of the President. The policy
of the journal shall be determined by the Board of Directors.
40. These By-Laws may be amended or changed by majority vote of
the membership during any election. To get the amendment or
change included on the ballot, text of the proposal must be
received by the Secretary at least 60 days prior to the scheduled
date of the election.
41. Without changing their import, the Secretary may from time
to time, on notice to the members of the Board of Directors,
Fidonews Page 13 22 Dec 1986
renumber these By-Laws so as to serve the purpose of ready
reference. References in these By-Laws to Articles shall be
corrected, when necessary, by the Secretary to conform to the
renumbered Articles.
Stu Turk
Sysop, SoundingBoard 129/26
Pittsburgh PA
As a result of a article I wrote for FidoNews last December,
outlining the use of Fido by the Deaf / Blind, David Drexler,
sysop of SOURCEry System Fido 147/1, Oklahoma City OK, put me in
touch with one of his users, Vernon Henley, the producer of the
American Council of the Blind's Radio Reading Program and
publisher of ACB's Braille Forum. Vernon asked me to write a
companion article for the Forum and we began exchanging several
messages a week via FidoMail. A large part of our mail volume
dealt with the use of computers by the handicap and Vernon was
planing on organizing a Handicap Users Network similar to MedNet.
At the time I was assistant sysop of the L-5Net Fido 129/13, but
the boards sysop was planing on moving to Colorado Springs,
Colorado, and we were engaged in getting me set up with a Fido of
my own before he moved. My board, of course, would join Vernon's
Handicap Users Net.
Vernon was scheduled to come to Pittsburgh in May for a Radio
Reading Program conference and we made plans to meet and check
out the local watering holes. In the meantime I had kept up
correspondence with David Drexler over quite a few different
subjects, one of which, for some reason, was beer. I had planned
on sending a sixpack of my city's Iron City Golden Lager with
Vernon for David - had even composed a message "The bottles were
full when I gave them to Vernon!" to send David as soon as Vernon
was on the way home.
SoundingBoard Fido 129/26 went online in May and one of its first
fidomail messages was a congratulations from Vernon. His message
went on to other topics (he always used the entire 46 line limit)
and ended with the note that, due to his organizations financal
problems, he might not be able to make the Pittsburgh conference
the following week after all. As his messages scrolled off the
screen I though "Oh, great! Now how am I going to get the beer to
David?" when the next message scrolled on. It was from David,
telling me that Vernon Henley had died early that morning in a
house fire, shortly after posting that last message to me.
Vernon Henley was a man who was actively involved in
communications for the handicap, especially in radio for the
blind and computers for the deaf. He will be greatly missed.
I thought for a while that Vernon's dream of a Handicap User Net
had died with him. I did not know who else he had been talking
to about joining the net and did not know how to set one up
myself. It was something that went on the "back burner". About
that time sysops who had been playing with a new program called
EchoMail began hearing the questions put to them change from
"What's EchoMail?" to "How's it work?" Net 129 installed a Sysops
Echo, of which I was the hub and new uses keep turning up for
EchoMail.
In time, a National Sysop's Echo started and a few messages
Fidonews Page 15 22 Dec 1986
showed up asking if anyone was interested in a Echo conference
for the handicapped. I sent out a few feelers and get back a few
replies and sooner or later things get started. I got a message
from Dr. David Dodell of St. Joseph's Hospital Fido 114/15,
Phoenix AZ saying he would host/co-ordinate the conference for
the disabled. This Echo deals with all subjects relating to/for
the and disabled (not necessarily computer related) and its
ripples have already reached coast to coast with the Echo being
picked up by boards from Washington D.C.'s Insight Fido 109/634
to Chico CA's Lazarus Fido 119/5 and Links Fido 119/13. If you
have users on your board who are handicapped, or just want to add
a public service Echo, contact David Dodell, St. Joseph's
Hospital Fido 114/15 and join the ABLED Echo.
BEFORE WE BEGIN: SysOps are a strange breed. I need look no
further than mine. Sent him mail last week to "fire off the
puppy" (refering to my column). His response to me was "Loading
the charge...elevation 45 degrees...Drop the dog. FIRE<Boom>
<Yip>...Puppy away, sirrah." I think he's hacked UNIX systems
for too long; most UNIX wizards are gonzo in some form or
another.
HOW MANY READERS DOES FIDONEWS HAVE? I've read the claim
of 70,000. How is this number derived? Has someone polled all
70,000? Or is it a projected number based upon number of
FidoNet users? If this is the case, then it is an inflated
estimate, because everyone who uses Fido doesn't have the
time to read FidoNews. I would suggest a poll or reader
survey, but if there are 70,000 readers of FidoNews, it would
choke the network (or at least my home node) PDQ.
IS FIDONEWS *TOO* COMMERCIAL? I don't know if it is my
imagination, but it seems like a lot of people who send
articles into FidoNews are plugging some product or service
(Yes America, I am guilty of this too, but no one's offered
me money for my literary skills, so I don't feel too bad).
If this is case, shouldn't FidoNews charge a flat fee of
$5 per promo (or something like that) in order to reemburse
the people who put FidoNews together? C'mon. If there's money
left over, they can always put it in the "Doug to Comdex"
junket fund, eh?
Seriously however, I think it is an idea worth considering.
Perhaps a "shareware" type of arrangement. Oops. Maybe not;
shareware is dying of apathy these days.
NATIONAL USER GROUP? Apparently, Capital PC User Group,
the IBM SIG of Boston Computer Society, and HAL of Texas
(don't ask me what HAL stands for) got together at Comdex
and talked about the feasibility of a national (yes, nation
WIDE) user group. After some discussion, they decided that a
true national user group was a bogus idea, but a "Federation"
of user groups might not be a bad thing at all.
I have mixed feelings about this, probably because my
patron saint, Ben Franklin, tended to frown on complex
organizations. Whenever you amass a group of people, you
always get the power-greedy who want to use the situtation
for their own gain. And bureaucracies tend to ignore the
small, while trumpeting their "goal."
However, a "Federation" does have some advantages,
specifically in areas such as user's rights. If you have an
obxiousness company like oh...a spreadsheet manufacturer,
Fidonews Page 17 22 Dec 1986
you can send them nasty mail saying you dislike their cash
cow policies on copy protection and make a big stink about it.
They would (hopefully) recognized the vast masses of pissed off
people are trying to tell them something important and change
their policies accordingly.
I dunno. On the other hand, bureaucracies tend to make a
lot of rules and spend most of the time making sure their
members adhear to them. Hmm. Anyone got any opinions on this?
Is Fido a "federation"? If it is, how powerful is it? What is
the focus of it aside from communications? Something to think
about when you assume the lotus position.
MOANING 'BOUT THE MAC: If you should happen to buy a Mac
Plus, you'll notice you need to also buy your cables from Apple,
plus your dot-matrix printer, since third-party Imagewriter IIs
and mini-DIN 8 connectors are slim and none in the marketplace.
It imposed a propietaryness which I find Offensive. You should
encourage 3rd party competition, because ultimately speaking, it
is what will sell more boxes.
ON THE OTHER HAND: If you sit down and think about it, those
ditzy little mini-DINs are soooo easy to snap into the back of
the Mac; no contortions with screwdrivers in the back of the
machine. And you only need to pick either A) An ImageWriter
printer driver or B) A LaserWriter printer driver. How many
printer drivers does it take to get an IBM-PC word processing
program talking to another third-party printer you bought on
sale at K-Mart?
CD-ROM, O-ROM == NO ROM: We've had CD-ROM and O-ROMs for
quite a while. Yet, I don't see anyone rushing out to sell or
buy CD-ROM/O-ROM type players. Why?
Part of the problem is a lack of standards; no one wants to
get stuck with an $1,000+ incompatible investment two years down
the road. However, the way the standards committees are floating
around, it will probably be another 2 years before we see any
CD-ROM/O-ROM standard; just in time for the first $1,000/68020
desktop machine.
Another part which I think plays a key role is the concept
of Read Only. "Yup, I got 500 Meg of storage here which I can
only read. Amazing how many dictionaries you can put on
one disk, ain't it?" C'mon! You must be able to write info
out on all that storage as well as read it back.
Optical storage will only take off when A) It is truly
Erasable/Writable (WORM is relatively stupido, except for
accounting functions and "hard" backups) and B) Standards
are set for 12", CD-size, and sub (3 1/2") size.
GOSH, YOU LOOK DIFFERENT DR. POURNELLE: Has anyone else
noticed Jerry's pic in "InfoWorld" has changed? His old
picture had him with this utterly arrogant look on his face,
kind of like the one the Al Haig use to get into, and he was
Fidonews Page 18 22 Dec 1986
dressed in an Ascot Tie, like he'd just stepped off the bloody
YACHT, for crying out loud.
His new picture shows no Ascot and I believe he looks
almost friendly. Almost. Then you read his column and you wish
he'd pull his head out of the CP/M graveyard....Actually, I
must say his writing in "InfoWorld" is improving...for Jerry.
I still miss Dvorak's column tho'.
YO ADRIENNE!: If you want to reach me, send me
FidoMail to Doug Mohney at 109/74. Or write me
at:
Personal Computing Association
Adele H. Stamp Union
College Park, MD 20742
ATTN: DOUG
Good gossip or demo copies of anything
welcome. Money not refused (although if I get real
successful, I may have to give a cut to my SYSOP at
109/74).
Registered programs and "canned" messages
-Ron Bemis 151/104
There have been many comments about my methods of asking
for donations for my shareware products. My programs are
"registered" to a particular net/node number. Programs
downloaded from my board are always registered to my node,
151/104. When one of these programs is run on another node,
two messages are created: one to the sysop of the board
thanking him for trying the program, and one to me telling
me that the node has used the program. This second message
is now created with the file attach bit set, causing the
message to be sent directly via FidoMail and not routed
through the normal chain of hosts.
The first message created looks something like this:
From: Ron Bemis on 151/104
To: Sysop on 138/39
Subj: OUTER V2.1
Thank you for trying OUTER V2.1.
A message was created informing me that you have tried it.
Another message will be created each day you use OUTER V2.1.
If you don't plan to use this program on a
regular basis please delete these messages.
Otherwise kindly register this program by sending $20 to:
Ron Bemis
PO Box 13279
Research Triangle Park NC 27709.
It's unbelievable how many sysops have sent nasty messages
about these messages being created. Others have asked "How
do I make it stop sending these messages?" To answer this
question, the best way to stop sending the messages is to
register the program. You receive a registered copy of the
program immediately after I receive your check. Programs
running on the "registered" net/node do not create messages.
To the sysop who needs 90 days to decide if a program suits
his needs, you should pay for the program(s) you're using.
I would hope that I would get ONE message from every person
who has tried one of my programs. Many utility writers have
contacted me asking for source code for this protection
scheme. It's a good idea, and it works. A sysop can use
the program as often as he wants on a trial basis. After
running the program, he should then delete the messages it
created. This only needs to be done once a day. If/when the
Fidonews Page 20 22 Dec 1986
sysop installs the utility into his RUNBBS.BAT file or uses
it on a daily basis, that is the time when he should pay for
the program.
I'm trying a little experiment. I've written a little program
called "DIAL" which can be used through the ProComm (or other
comm program's) shell to retrieve, display, and dial any
FidoNet node. It has absolutely none of this protection in
it. I'm distributing it as shareware and asking for a $3
contribution if you keep it and use it. I consider this to be
a very useful program. SEALink claims to be able to do this,
but only on a SEAdog node. I'm willing to bet that I don't
get nearly the number of $3 contributions for this program
as I have for the protected versions of my other programs.
And to all the people who have complained about my automatic
message creation: put up or shut up! If you don't like the
way the program was written, delete it from your computer.
That's what shareware's all about. Seems that the people who
complain the loudest are the ones who won't pay one red cent
for my shareware, but also can't live without it.
I'd like to hear any comments on this subject - I understand
there's been a lot of talk in the National Sysop's echomail
conference, of which I am not a participant.
Did you ever watch your system during a Crash mail event receive an
incoming SEAdog packet from a Node that you were trying reach during
that event? Did you notice that most of the time the other Node
Refused to Collect the mail you tried to pass to him during that
connect? Maybe you DIDN'T try to pass it to him and now YOU get to
make ANOTHER call to transfer the packet to him. What a waste, eh?
SEAdog differs from Fido in that mail is only transferred WHEN and
IF the mail event you are in is set to GIVE-TO and/or PICKUP.
SEAdog is designed with an inherently more secure mail transfer
system than Fido for use in a corporate atmosphere where security
may be essential to avoid compromising files or information. Within
the FidoNet, however, this level of security is not necessarily a
consideration.
To make your SEAdog mail events (including Crash) MORE FidoNet
compatible, BE SURE to insert the routing verbs GIVE-TO (All or
whatever called for during an event; All is the best for maximum
receptiveness.) and PICKUP (All or whatever, as before) into your
ROUTE.DOG. This INCLUDES your S (Crash) Schedule. Oh, you DON'T
have an S Schedule? Now would be a good time to insert one. The S
schedule is very simple, as follows:
Schedule S
Send-to All
Give-to All
Pickup All
Send-only (redundant in Crash).
Now your system will try to pass and collect mail whenever
connected to another system during a mail event. If your Crash
events are designated as S in your CONFIG.DOG, that is. The use of
these routing verbs is the same in each of your Schedule listings
in your ROUTE.DOG.
If you are running a SEAdog capable Node that I call, I hope you will
consider these points and help make our future transfers MORE
successful. We Give-to and Pickup in ALL events at Metro-Fire Fido!
Jon Allen
The CompuNet Zone
Huntsville, AL
Fido 18/20
Although I'm not much of a writer (as users who read the
B)ulletins that I post on my BBS will attest), I decided to
submit this article after several experiences I had. Most
Sysops are aware of "sponges" (users who do absolutely nothing
but download software), and combat the problem with new user
questionnaires, download/time limit quotas, and so on. I have
tried several things to correct the problem, and so far have
been unsuccessful.
I installed my 20meg more than half a year ago, and have
since discovered that "sponges" abound in our (at least in
Huntsville) BBS community! Someone who downloads over 1100K of
files, uploads ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, sends no donations, and
leaves 0 messages (to the Sysop or anyone else) is not exactly
every system operator's vision of an "ideal" user! I may be
unreasonable at times, but 1100K and no uploads? That's a little
"wolfish" to me. Now, a few users (on my system) had some
explanations for that kind of behavior, such as:
1. They are calling long distance and would rather spend
their money downloading rather than uploading or leaving
messages.
(Every "sponge" on my system was calling locally.)
2. They are unable to upload since they are a new to
telecommunications (and therefore have no Public Domain
files to upload) or they don't have anything that the
system doesn't already offer.
(There are currently 3 (including myself) IBM-based systems
running here in Huntsville, each with a file system. After
spending so much time downloading on my system, I'd think
they were "raping" the other boards also. (Hence they'd
pick up software that my system doesn't offer.))
3. They were overwhelmed by such an impressive files system
and caught "download fever".
(Understandable. We all have acquired "download fever" at
one time or another. However, that impressive file system
will not stay that way if users don't contribute.)
4. Downloading. That's what you're running a BBS for, isn't
it?
(Certainly not. Fido is not just an AE line by another name.
Users are expected to participate. To quote FIDOINTR (a
utility that tailors WELCOME2.BBS to each user): "Would
you go to a party a spend the whole time sitting by
yourself in a corner gobbling up hors d'oeuvres?")
Fidonews Page 23 22 Dec 1986
The only reason I have a substantial file selection is due to
the fact that a good friend of mine, who had acquired many files
over the years, uploaded most of what he had (LBR'd) to my then
empty hard drive. (He was even nice enough to include a list
of descriptions.)
I've been told I've gotten rather harsh about the subject
of sponges (ever since I started using RATIO the other day), but
they should have expected some kind of action after my countless
messages and bulletins literally begging for uploads.
(Pole RATIO is a very good utility that (in my case) sends
users who have taken more than 400K and exceeded a 500:1
[Downloads:Uploads] ratio a reminder to upload. It will
then lower the access level of any user who downloads more
than 800K and exceeds the 800:1 ratio. (And yes, it nabbed
quite a few people.))
Well, that's my attempt at an article. I know I haven't
touched on all points, but I wouldn't want to take up most of
FidoNews. I'd appreciate ANY responses, comments, or whatever
via FidoNet.
Jon Allen
The CompuNet Zone - 18/20
Huntsville, AL
205-534-8246 (300/1200)
Mike Ringer
229 HUBBELL HALL
East Texas Station
Commerce Texas 75428
PD ENTERTAINMENT
Well since I've hit college I haven't had a chance to do much
with or for fido. And I miss it. During the time I have been
gone I have picked up and dropped bad habits. Those being Drugs
and Smoking. I feel much better now that I have stopped both
habits. They are probably the stupidest things I have ever done
to my body. At the moment my only drug is Punk Rock, and booze,
maybe I should stop drinking to. Oh well, college is a pain and
not being in touch with fido is even worse.
My new column here will last till I exterminate all of my PD
games. Yes it is my long awaited entertainment column I promised
back when I wrote my first article. This time I'll take a look
at STRIKER, and SOLITAIR.
STRIKER
Striker is one of the best graphics adventure games I have
encountered so far. In striker you must attempt to pick up and
drop off spies and cargo shipments. There are five missions on
four levels. Striker uses keyboard or joy stick. It has color
graphics, but I'm not sure what the colors are. (I have a red
plasma screen.) You can change between 3 palettes and move the
screen left or right. STRIKER also has sound which can't be
turned off. This can cause problems when you play the game at 3
am and your neighbors are trying to sleep.
Striker was written by Derek Williams
10503 Doering Ln.
Austin Texas, 78750
Rating ****
SOLITAIR
This is one of the best computerized card games I have ever seen.
Like STRIKER it is color graphics. The only cheating Solitair
lets you do is go through the cards as many times as you can. It
is a fairly simple game to figure out and can be won by almost
any level of Solitair player. The only problem I can find with
SOLITAIR is that it doesn't always do a good job of shuffling the
cards all of the time. Besides that it is worth downloading.
SOLITAIR was written by Larry Williams for Apple Soft
Translated by Herbert J. Terdin, December 1982
Rating ***
Fidonews Page 25 22 Dec 1986
* ok, but it would make a dog puke.
** better, but not very interesting
*** almost perfect, needs a little work
**** perfect, even your mother would like this one.
I can be contacted at Elite Software node 1262 net 117. I am
looking for a Node in Dallas, so I can cut down on long distance
phone bills.
+-------------------+
! The Nautical View !
+-------------------+
Part 6: To Notch Or Not To Notch (That Is The Question)
I would imagine that most of the readers of "The Nautical
View" are Commodore owners. Well, this particular column applies
also to Atari and Apple owners too. We all own home computers,
and use them to fulfill a fairly inexpensive hobby. I would like
to address one point, though: many people who own single sided
disk drives will cut a notch on the opposite side of their
diskettes, so that the disk can be flipped and the back side can
be used for data.
Most of us have some kind of program which allows us to check
a disk for bad sectors. You can indeed "notch" your disks,
format the reverse sides, and then check to see if the back side
was indeed good. You can then store all the data on there you
like.
However, a very serious problem can arise, one that many of us
ignore so often. After some use, dust particles will build up
inside the disk jacket. The disk jacket is designed to catch
these particles, thus avoiding damage to your disks. However,
when you put a disk in upside down, the disk starts rotating in
the opposite direction. This has the fun effect of RELEASING all
that assorted crud that's been hiding inside the disk jacket for
the past year, and forcing it to SCRAPE across the diskette
surface before being trapped again. This can ruin the surface of
the disk, and can even damage the read/write head on your disk
drive!
Most people get away scott-free for so long that they scoff
when people like me tell them to STOP NOTCHING! "Hey, man, I've
been doing it for years and haven't lost a bit yet!". Well,
"Hey, man" yourself. I, too, had been doing it for years, as
were many of my friends. Then, one day, one of my disks showed a
read error. The error proved to be of the "non-recoverable"
kind, and a valuable program was lost. Then, a little later on,
a few more disks bombed, and then a few more, etc. The data I
managed to rescue is now safe on SINGLE sided diskettes, thank
you very much. I own a double-sided drive (the 1571), but when
my C-128 is running in C-64 mode, it performs like the
(single-sided) 1541. Therefore I MUST use single-sided disks,
for my data's sake.
For the longest time, double-notching your disks was an
effective way of curbing the high price of quality diskettes.
But come on now: the price of disks has gone DOWN, not up. An
average disk nowadays is three times cheaper than it was, say, 5
years ago. I went out the other day and bought a pack of 25 GOOD
Fidonews Page 27 22 Dec 1986
diskettes (single-sided) for the whopping price of $19.75
(Canadian). That works out to 79 cents per disk, and that is
pretty darn cheap if you have some valuable data. Notching these
disks would (eventually) turn them into BAD diskettes.
I used to say "I've never had a disk fail, so why should I
worry?", just like many of you. You can stop notching now, or
you can wait for it to happen to you. I learned the hard way, so
I am here now to try to prevent this from happening to you.
Please, DON'T double-notch your diskettes.
I'm interested in answering any of your questions about either
the C-64 or C-128. If you are having a problem, please address
your mail to Joe Lindstrom via TC-Link Fido (Calgary, Net 134
Node 7), and I'll address it in an upcoming article.
For Sale: All Rights to Computer Game Program (GAGS)
I am looking for a software publisher or other enterprise
interested in acquiring the rights to the Generic Adventure
Game System (GAGS), a text adventure-game development system
currently available for all MS-DOS computers.
GAGS is written in vanilla Turbo Pascal (7,000+ lines of
code), and can be ported to other computer systems very
easily. I am currently revising the program to make it
"international," and am revising the manual extensively. I can
make additional changes, or port it for a particular computer
system if needed for a particular marketing effort.
Earlier versions of GAGS were released as "Shareware."
Shareware doesn't work for games.
I am willing to consider all offers, including royalty
arrangements, bundling deals, or an "all-rights" sale. If no
reasonable offers are received, I will release the new version
of GAGS myself on a very limited basis as a commercial program
in early 1987, with a printed manual and possibly including
source code.
Any interested parties are invited to contact me.
-- Mark J. Welch
P.O. Box 2409
San Francisco, CA 94126
(415) 841-8759 (voice)
Fidonews Page 29 22 Dec 1986
*Official IFNA By-laws Ballot
Official IFNA Articles of Association and By-laws Ballot
We, the interim directors of IFNA, submit for ratification the
Articles of Association and By-laws as published in FidoNews
number 349. In accordance with the recommendation of the By-laws
Committee, each person listed as the Sysop of one or more FidoNet
nodes, as of NODELIST.311 dated November 7, 1986, is entitled to
ONE vote.
The proposed IFNA Articles of Association and By-laws, as
published in Fido349.NWS dated December 22, 1986, should be:
(Check one line) Adopted ________
Rejected ________
I am the SYSOP of record a FidoNet node which was listed in
NODELIST.311 dated November 7, 1986 and have the right to cast
one vote. There will be ONLY be one vote per person. There will
be ONLY one vote per net/node number. I understand these rules
and cast my ballot in accordance with them.
_______________________ ___________
Signature Date
_____/______
Net Node
Return this ballot via U. S. Mail to arrive not later than
January 17, 1987 at:
IFNA Ratification
C/O Christopher L. Bonfanti, CPA
Aselage, Kiefer & Co.
701 Emerson Road, Suite 201
Creve Coeur Corporate Center
St Louis, Mo. 63141-6709
Aselage, Kiefer & Co. are Certified Public Accountants and will
provide an independent count of the vote and publish the results
in FidoNews. Votes received by Saturday, January 17th will be
included in the results.
