F I D O N E W S -- Volume 13, Number 30 22 July 1996

F I D O N E W S -- Volume 13, Number 30 22 July 1996
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| The newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 Published by: |
| FidoNet BBS community | "FidoNews" |
| _ | 1-407-383-1372 [1:1/23] |
| / \ | |
| /|oo \ | |
| (_| /_) | |
| _`@/_ \ _ | |
| | | \ \\ | Editor: |
| | (*) | \ )) | Christopher Baker 1:374/14 |
| |__U__| / \// | |
| _//|| _\ / | |
| (_/(_|(____/ | |
| (jm) | Newspapers should have no friends. |
| | -- JOSEPH PULITZER |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Submission address: FidoNews Editor 1:1/23 |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| MORE addresses: |
| |
| submissions=> [email protected] |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| For information, copyrights, article submissions, |
| obtaining copies of FidoNews or the internet gateway FAQ |
| please refer to the end of this file. |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+

THREE WEEKS IN A ROW - IS IT A TREND?

Table of Contents
1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1
Who is this upstart anyway? .............................. 1
2. ARTICLES ................................................. 2
Dropping like flies? (Part 1 of ?) ....................... 2
Grand Prix Pages on Fidonet .............................. 9
Please welcome the Middle East ........................... 10
3. FIDONET BIOGRAPHIES ...................................... 11
Christopher Baker - more info than you wanted? ........... 11
4. FIDONET HISTORY .......................................... 15
FidoNet History and Operation - 8 Feb 85 ................. 15
5. COORDINATORS CORNER ...................................... 23
Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 201 ...... 23
ZEC-Election in Zone-2 ................................... 23
6. ECHOING .................................................. 26
Backbone Echo Changes [Mar-Apr] .......................... 26
7. NET HUMOR ................................................ 28
This ain't the Psychic Friends version ................... 28
8. COMIX IN ASCII ........................................... 30
Fido's got Cats, too? .................................... 30
9. QUESTION OF THE WEEK ..................................... 31
How do the Backbones outside Zone 1 work? ................ 31
10. NOTICES ................................................. 32
Calendar of Events ....................................... 32
11. FIDONEWS PUBLIC-KEY ..................................... 33
And more!
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 1 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
EDITORIAL
=================================================================

Q: Hey! How did this guy get to be Editor of the FidoNews? What kind
of new conspiracy is at work here? Just who does he think he is?

A: Me? I'm just your humble FidoNews Editor. I have volunteered for
this post every time it has become available. The latest offer was
made to Donald Tees before he unceremoniously disappeared from here
and from FidoNet completely. After five weeks of no FidoNews, I
volunteered again to ZC1 who maintains the administrative listing for
the FidoNews Editor slot at 1:1/23. ZC1, being familiar with my
previous volunteerings and my general capabilities to string cogent
sentences together, said, "Thanks, and you've got it."

It's no big mystery or conspiracy. There was a job to be done that
wasn't getting done and now it is. [grin]

Who am I, you ask?

I am a longtime FidoNet Node and former NC and RC. I have written
many articles for FidoNews in the past. I have watched FidoNet grow
and change since I first picked up a copy of the software that started
it all - Fido [9c was my first version] in 1984. I host and moderate
many international Echos and several fileechos. I have attended
FidoCon when it was a FidoNet event and broken bread with many of the
ancient ones. In some circles, even I am considered one of the
ancient ones. [grin]

Judge for yourself whether the stewardship of FidoNews is in good
hands or not by the content and distribution of the latest issues.

If you have any other questions, feel free to send me Netmail to
1:374/14, or email to [email protected], or join me in the FIDONEWS
Echo which is now available on the Zone 1 Backbone. I answer all mail
within 24 hours, as a rule, and often within minutes of its receipt.

NOTE: There are two new sections in FidoNews this week. [The old
FidoNet Software listing will be reactivated in the next
issue.]

FidoNet History [.HIS] and FidoNet Biographies [.BIO] appear
in this issue. Everyone is encouraged to tell their stories
of FidoNet in these new sections. ARTSPEC.DOC has been updated
with the new section extensions and ARTSPEC is enclosed in
this Issue's archive.

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 2 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
ARTICLES
=================================================================

Dropping like flies? (Part 1 of ?)
Shawn K. Quinn (1:106/4301 or [email protected])

It had been several months since I had read FidoNews until fairly
recently. I grab the first 20 issues of the year and it seems like
every week there's some kind of article about the lack of growth, or
the outright decrease of the number of nodes in the nodelist. What
kind of surprised me was a recent article showing that zone 2 now has
more nodes than zone 1 by ~3000 or so. Given British Telecom's well-
intended but rather out-of-date goal of making a national data network
that runs at the positively blinding speed (yeah right) of 2400 bps,
and the general lack of Internet connectivity abroad compared to the
US (at least from what I read a few months ago), it kind of makes
sense.

But the real surprise, is that there is obviously still a place for
the hobbyist BBS medium. The problem is, that the Internet is starting
to be where the action is. On the Internet you can "call" places with
telnet anywhere you wish, without any long-distance fees. It kind of
blows the idea of "local" BBSes out of the water, which has
historically been a strong feature of BBSes. Kind of hard to have
a local BBS on the Internet, when already you have people
cross-posting something to every "local" *.general Usenet newsgroup in
sight.

The advantage, though, is wider exposure. However, this blows even
more old paradigms out of the water. Voice or callback validation?
Maybe, replace it with e-mail validation (at least on one BBS I've
logged onto via telnet, this has been done). And what about spam that
has already pretty much ruined Usenet? It's bad enough when we get BBS
ads in local general chat echos. What about pay BBSes? I mean, you
have IRC, so chat boards will probably not do very well on the
Internet. Any type of adult board will probably not last long either,
as there are already tons of free adult-oriented web sites and
newsgroups.

Is the entire BBS paradigm outdated? Or is it possible to run a
BBS for the purpose of providing limited Internet access to those who
can't afford a commercial provider? Is it feasible to offer free
Internet e-mail via the FidoNet gateway as an alternative to Juno and
Freemark?

The shutdown of the default Internet gateway at 1:1/31 was,
admittedly, something of a step backward. But given the reasons it
happened, I can't blame Burt for doing it. For an alarmingly similar
reason, I have been very tempted to shut down my BBS and concentrate
completely on the Internet.

But now that local FidoNet politics have appeared to die down somewhat
(or at least involve others) I kind of like what FidoNet has become.
My concern is Policy 4. It's (IMHO) seriously outdated. There are
things in it that were based on paradigms that were valid when FidoNet
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 3 22 Jul 1996

was less than one-sixth the size it is now.

One such example is the fact that a sysop is responsible for all
traffic that passes through his/her node. This is a problem because of
the potential for legal liability by monitoring everything that passes
through. The opinions I have read are that unless one does indeed
monitor everything passing through one's system, there is no legal
liability incurred. The annoying ECPA disclaimer is one of them. I got
so tired of seeing it that I hung up on boards as soon as I saw it. I
have run Polar Bear Hotel with completely private mail (not monitored)
for the past year and a half. SecureMail has been in operation at
least that long and thankfully has not suffered an untimely demise due
to policy complaints.

Another is geographic restrictions on nets, regions, and zones. I
think that this is more of a problem than a solution to whatever
problems existed 5+ years ago. I think if one's willing to pay the
long distance charges to join another net, then by all means one
should be able to. With the Internet, geography won't be an issue any
longer anyway.

Well, this rant has already reached the better part of 4K in length,
so I'll leave off here for now. I labeled this part 1, because I may
write again on this subject in a couple of weeks. Best of luck to all
of you who enjoy the hobby of running a BBS and FidoNet node.

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

The Church of Elvis

--=== THE CHURCH OF ELVIS ===--

Preface and Preamble:

"If there is any fixed star in our constitutional
constellation, it is that NO official, high or petty, can
prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics,
nationalism, religion or other matters of opinion or
force citizens to confess by word or act their faith
therein. If there ARE any circumstances which permit an
exception, they do not now occur to us."

Ref: U.S.Supreme Court (1943) West Virginia State Board
of Education v. Barnette, 319 US 624.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,,.
"/XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX",
,"XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXX",
,"XXXX// /X/ //////XXXXXXXXXXX",
,"XXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"",
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX",
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX",
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 4 22 Jul 1996

/XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
/"XXXXXXXXXXX X X XXXXX XX XX XXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
/"XXX X X X XXX X X XXX X XX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
/"XXX X X X XXX X XX X XX XXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
/"XXX XX XX XXXX XXXX XX XX XXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
/,XXXX XX X XX X X X XXX XX XXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
//XXX XXX X XXXX XX X XX X XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
//XXX XXX X XXXXX XX XXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
/XX XXX X XXXXXX XX XXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV
/XX XXXXX XXX X XXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXV
/XX XXXXX XXX XXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
//XX XXXXX XX XX XXXXXXXXXXXXXV,
//XX XXXX XX X XXXXXXXXXXXXV,
//X XXX X XXXXXXXXXXXXXV
/X XX XXXXXXXXXXXXV
/X ,,,,,XXXXXXX,, XXXXXXXXXXXV
/XXXXXXXXXX, "XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXV
/X" "" "" XXXXX XXV
H ,""""""""",, ,"""""""""",, XXXX XXX
" "" """ / "" "" XXXX / XX
" " // XXX // XX
" // XXX / XX
" // /XXX / XX
" // /XXX XX
" /// /XXX / XXX
" /// ,, /XXXXXXXXX
" // / /XXXXXXXXXX
" """ "" /XXXXXXXXX/ "
", ,,,, ,,,, ,
" ""IIII IIIIIIII"", // / / "
" """""""""""" " // / "
" , ," // / // "
" "IIIWWIII" // // / / / ",
" """" /// / / / / / ",
// " //// // / / // "
// " //// / / // / "",
// / ", "// / / / // "
// / ", ////// / // // "
// / ", // // // // """
// / "" " " ""/// / // " "
// // "" "" "/ / / // "
// ", ","", "," / // // ""

ELVIS thinks you're NEAT!

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%%% %%%
%%% U N I V E R S A L L I F E C H U R C H %%%
%%% International Headquarters * Modesto California %%%
%%% %%%
%%% %%%
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 5 22 Jul 1996

%%% It is hereby declared that ELVIS ARON PRESLEY %%%
%%% %%%
%%% has been named S A I N T of the %%%
%%% %%%
%%% Universal Life Church this day of November 8, 1988 %%%
%%% %%%
%%% %%%
%%% U L C %%%
%%% S E A L Signed: Kirby J. Hensley, D.D. %%%
%%% I H Q President %%%
%%% %%%
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Upon duly submitted and approved petition to the International
Headquarters of the Universal Life Church, Inc., Elvis Aron
Presley was named Saint of the Universal Life Church in
November, 1988. The petition to the church read as follows:

Elvis exhibited faith and hope when, as a youngster,
he pursued his talent as an entertainer despite the
odds against rising from his humble beginnings. He
exhibited charity by his obvious and documented
generosity. All of these attributes of character are
believed to have been present to an extraordinary
degree by his followers.

*****************************************************************

ECCLESIASTICAL PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS the beliefs on matters of death and resurrection are
especially promulgated during the weekend of the
First Sunday after the first full moon after the
Vernal Equinox, and

WHEREAS these concepts are so closely tied by many in many
churches to ancient ceremonies of fertility and
symbolized by Bunnies and Eggs and other esoteric
symbols of rebirth and new life, and

WHEREAS the promise of eternal life was extended to everyone
as far back as 1939 (or even earlier, to hear some
tell it) and that possibility is recognized by lots
of folks, and

WHEREAS the Saturday prior to the Sunday mentioned above has
heretofore remained generally unclaimed, unnamed,
and uncelebrated, now,

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Saturday before the First
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 6 22 Jul 1996

Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal
Equinox be proclaimed and known as ELVIS SATURDAY
from this day forward, and be celebrated by the
faithful in joyous recognition of all Spring
Festivals associated with rebirth and fertility with
the eternal melodies of St. Elvis Aron Presley, who
lives forever in the eternal present.

Wherefore I have set my mark and caused to be
affixed the seal of the Church of Elvis ULC
on this 14th day of April, 1990.

Signed by the Bishop .
Saturday, April 14, 1990

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

THERE's MORE!!!

The CHURCH OF ELVIS is a sect of the Universal Life
Church and is looking for new ministers.

ABOUT MINISTERHOOD

-- Is This For Real?

Yes, it is. The Universal Life Church will ordain anyone, for
life, no questions asked, and at no cost. The ordination is
legally valid, and, after registering with local authorities, ULC
Ministers can legally perform weddings, funerals, baptisms, etc.

-- But I Have To Believe In Something Silly, Right?

Nope. The ULC doesn't impose ANY beliefs on it's Ministers or
their congregations. Your god is OK. Period.

-- Am I Making Any Promises?

Only one. A ULC Minister agrees to do what's "right". You get
to interpret "right" to your satisfaction. No one will call to
ask for money. You're not joining a "cult." You're welcome
(encouraged!) to continue practicing whatever faith you like.
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 7 22 Jul 1996

ULC Ministers are also Catholics, Episcopalians, Methodists,
ELVIS Worshippers... you name it.

-- So How Do I Become Ordained?

Easy. Just fill out the simple form below, or call
CompuChurch (tm) and go to the Santuary then to the Altar
Your info will be processed by CompuChurch (tm)
International Headquarters. CompuChurch will file your request
with the ULC, and you'll receive your credentials within a
coupla weeks. It's free, but we could use a stamp! Canadian Pilgrims
could send 2 stamps!

-- Still A Little Wary?

There's more information on the ULC at any CompuChurch (tm)
Chartered BBS, from The Church of Elvis or from CompuChurch (tm)
International Headquarters, 1:3800/6 or call direct at (504) 927-
4509.

BBSes are filled with ULC Ministers from all walks of life. Join
us!

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

* MAKE ME A MINISTER!

Yes, this all sounds wonderful. I want to be a minister, fully
ordained and authorized to do anything ministers usually do, and
entitled to the privileges and benefits extended to the clergy.

Name:
----------------------------------------------

Address:
----------------------------------------------

City State Zip:
----------------------------------------------

I am enclosing a postage stamp or two to make life easier for you!

SEND TO:
Church of Elvis
Diocese of Baton Rouge Universal Life Church
P.O.Box 64575
Baton Rouge, LA 70896

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

A Certified True Copy of the original certificate of
Sainthood issued under the seal of the Church of Elvis ULC,
and signed by the Pastor and the Prophet of Elvis is
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 8 22 Jul 1996

available, along with a copy of the Proclamation of Elvis
Saturday, if requested, for a $5 donation payable to
Universal Life Church sent to the address above.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
* SPECIAL TITLES

Special Titles are offered for a minimum donation of $5.00.
Below is a list of special titles currently being offered:

Bishop Magus Monsignor
Healing Minister Missionary Pastor General
Cardinal Elder Lama
Apostle of Humility Right Reverend Guru
Deacon Flying Missionary Archpriest
Preceptor Colonel Missionary
Doctor Sister Soul Therapist
Archbishop Evangelist Friar
Metropolitan Abbot Thanatologist
Reverend Mother Free Thinker Arch Deacon
Hadji Brahman High Priest
Rabbi Abbess Parochial Educator
Scribe Monk Priest
Religious Preacher Cure Universal Rabbi
Most Reverend Preacher Swami
Angel Ascetic Gnostic Dervish
Universal Rabbi Brother Mother Superior
Father Chaplain Anada
Abbe Lay Sister Archcardinal
Rector Orthodox Monk Druid
Starets Reverend Father Missionary of Music
The Very Esteemed Prophet High Priestess
Minister of Music Iman Shaman
Righteous Brother Messenger Mystical Philosopher
Universal Religious Philosopher
Universal Philosopher of Absolute Reality

If you do not see the title you want, write us. New titles are
approved every day!

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Special Title of Sainthood

Do you know a "Saint" personally? Do you know someone who has
exercised the three theological virtues - faith, hope, and
charity - to an extraordinary degree? If so you may bestow
"Sainthood" within the ULC upon this beloved person. Merely
write with your reasons for bestowing Sainthood upon the
individual and include a donation of $5.00. The handsome
certificate of Sainthood will be sent directly to you, or you may
have the degree sent to the recipient.

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 9 22 Jul 1996

Distributed by The Church of Elvis
and
CompuChurch (tm) International Headquarters
504-927-4509
FidoNet 1:3800/6

For Information, send S.A.S.E to:
The Church of Elvis
c/o The Episcopal Offices of the Archdiocese of Cyberspace
Attention Archbishop C.A.Jennings, D.D.
P.O.Box 64575
Baton Rouge, LA 70896-4575

--=== THE CHURCH OF ELVIS ===--
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Grand Prix Pages on Fidonet
Damian Walker, 2:2502/666

So often we hear about the death of Fidonet, and about what can be
done about it. To my mind, the answer is to provide something
accessible to Fidonet nodes, points and users, which will keep their
interest, and therefore, their presence in the network. In this short
article I intend to tell you about just such a thing.

Formula 1 motor racing is a popular sport across the world. The Grand
Prix season consists of races held at tracks throughout the world,
making it a truly international sport. One of my points, John
Suffill, has had the idea of making information about Formula 1 motor
racing available via Fidonet.

Those of you with a better memory than the average fish will recall
that I submitted an article about my program InfoMail to Fidonews
recently. John has chosen the installation of InfoMail at my own
system to make his Formula 1 information available, and the results
are much like a small electronic magazine.

The document includes a timetable for this year's Grand Prix season,
showing the dates for each race. A similar proposed timetable for
next year is also included. In addition to this, news and gossip
about the drivers and teams is included, as is an editorial 'rant' (as
John puts it).

John updates the document after each race, and includes a run-down of
the latest race, which includes the finishing positions of all the
drivers. The driver and team championship positions are updated at
this time, so you can keep tabs on how your favourite driver and team
are doing.

I found the document very interesting, and on a more general note, I'd
like to see more of this sort of thing being offered to Fidonet users
on a variety of subjects.

To obtain the GrandPrix document via routed netmail, send a message to
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 10 22 Jul 1996

INFOMAIL at 2:2502/666 with the subject GRANDPRIX. For a more
immediate response you can file request GRANDPRIX from the same system
(it's a magic name).

John Suffill can be contacted at his point address, 2:2502/666.1.

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

Please welcome the Middle East

By Ward Dossche
ZC/2

As of day-201 a new region has been added in the zone-2 portion
of the world nodelist.

I'm talking about Saudi-Arabia which will henceforth be known as
region-54.

The region is just starting-up and networking in that part of the
world is a novel thing ... something like the early years of Fido
revisited.

Personally I am very excited about this.

The region starts rather modest but already now is it certain
that there will be a rapid initial growth.

There will be 2 nets in the start-up phase, 2:541 for Riadh and
2:542 for Jeddah. Other nets will be added when necessary. The
first nodes are crashmail-capable.

Who says Fidonet is dying? There are areas in the world where
Fidonet is the only way for reasonable and affordable networking.

-o=O=o-
-----------------------------------------------------------------

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 11 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
FIDONET BIOGRAPHIES
=================================================================

[This is another NEW section for FidoNet Biographies]
[The file extension for a submission to this section is .BIO]

Date: 19 Oct 92 01:40:23
From: Christopher Baker on 1:374/14 Rights On! in Titusville FL
To: Ted Rolle on 1:105/36 Acacia in Portland OR
Subj: info
_____________________________________________________________________

got your numbers without any intervention. just wrote it out from here
to an ASCII file and ran PGP on that output.

here's my info:

Christopher Baker
P.O. Box 5921
Titusville_FL_USA 32783-5921

voice: 407-264-2994; 1200-2100 ET [1600-0000 UTC/GMT]
bbs: 407-383-1372; anytime except 0100-0130 ET
fax: ditto; not on automatic; must be set before receive
work: retired on disability

Fido since Dec 84, FidoNet since May 85. Started MANY Echos, still run
most of those started. NC135 85-89; RC18 87-89; running for RC18 again
[gave it up when originally disabled].

here is a canned blurb i send when asked:

Date: 17 Jul 91 15:01:35
From: Christopher Baker
To: Robert Thurlow
Subj: Re: What's your story?
_____________________________________________________________________

> I was wondering who our readers are on this echo.
> So who else do we have here?

time to renew our vows. eh? [grin]

here's my canned text from this Echo many moons ago:

i was run down by a 73 y/o drunk in 1975. i was on my motorcycle going
home from work at Randle-Eastern Ambulance in Miami, Florida and made
it to S.W. 8th Street and almost 67 Ave. when this geriatric pinhead
got to the intersection, he decided he needed to make a U-turn more
than i needed to get home. he did and i was struck broadside. my leg
was crushed from mid-calf, my foot nearly severed on the scene and the
bike and me thrown across the street.

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 12 22 Jul 1996

i hit and crushed a bus bench and the bike landed next to me with the
frame twisted to ruin. i ended up with a post-knee amputation of the
left leg, several fractured ribs, a concussion, and a comminuted
fracture of the left ulna which had a 12" pin in it from elbow to
mid-arm for two years. my helmet was cracked and had i not been
wearing it, so would have been my head. [grin]

i was out of work for two years and on Social Security Disability
until i got the dispatching job with Dade County Fire & Rescue. now,
i'm disabled again with a herniated disk at L5/S1 that i got courtesy
of poor maintenance in the disabled stall of the bathroom at
work. [sigh]

i already couldn't stand and now i can't sit. kinda limits one's work
options? [grin]

i finally won my latest Social Security disability appeal. they called
this morning to tell me my first check would come in Aug. that's a
relief. [grin]

i'm an expert on prothesis technology that doesn't work. [sigh]

TTFN.
Chris

-30-

you got it all, now. [grin]

TTFN.
Chris

Date: 05 Nov 92 00:57:09
From: Christopher Baker
To: All
Subj: he's baaacckk [grin]
_____________________________________________________________________

[cross-posted by way of introduction from Z1REGCON]

well, i recognize a couple of the names from other venues but don't
see any from my old RC18 days. [grin]

"Who am I? What am I doing here?"
Admiral Stockdale, weird VP candidate on the Vaporware
ticket

and why do i send SO many cc:s to poor Bob Davis? [evil grin]

just in case you never read FidoNews or Echomail, i've been agitating
and propagating FidoNet since the dim dawn of Net/Node installation
many moons ago. before that all we had were plain sequential numbers
and stone axes. [grin]

i found Fido 9c on my console at work one day in 1984. i don't know
where it came from but i know i was hooked from that day forward.
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 13 22 Jul 1996

after the shakeup to Net/Nodes [what a threat that was to many change
haters], i was 18/14 in May of 1985. i started a Net [1:135] shortly
after that and bullied a lot of the local, Miami Sysops who never
heard of FidoNet into abandoning their old, non-network BBSes for
Fido, and Opus and SEAdog. [grin]

several years later, i was appointed RC18 by David Dodell who was
anxious to get some movement going in Region 18. new Nets sprang up
like weeds. i did that for about 18 months till an injury forced me to
retire. Dodell appointed Ben Mann to replace me. [that was in the old
days when appointments were the rule - although not very popular.]

my injury put me on the disabled rolls and i was forced to drop out of
Net 135 and move up here to Titusville [Space Shuttle ring a bell?]. i
became a private Node in Net 374 until my lawsuit against my previous
employer [maybe you remember Metro Fire, 1:135/14?] was settled and i
could relocate and setup a full system. i've been here for a couple of
years.

i'm still disabled but have plenty of time to devote to the pursuits
of Coordination and when Ben decided to retire, i was drafted and ran
for the post.

i moderate and/or host several Backbone Echos and a couple private
ones. i co-moderate several others. i'm no neophyte. [grin]

i've done my share of Policy complaint arbitration and Echo delinking.
i've never been reversed but then i don't make it a habit.

election is over. here i am. that's the short form. for those truly
fascinated by such mundane trivia, freq MYSTORY for the long version.
[snicker]

i appear as 1:18/0 in Nodelist.311.

here we go again. [grin]

TTFN.
Chris

Date: 10 Feb 94 23:54:23
From: Christopher Baker
To: Bob Satti
Subj: so long fellow Coords and Sysops
_____________________________________________________________________

[NCs please pass this along to your Nodes]
[Independent Nodes please link to the new RC18]

[cross-posted in HOST18, R18ELECT, and SYSOP18 Echos]

the new diff is here and will be routed out shortly. the transition is
complete.

ALL connected here for files and/or Echos should advise via Netmail if
they wish to continue any of these connects. HOST18 Echo will not be
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 14 22 Jul 1996

available from here shortly. the R18 stuff will still be around.

weekly files are something i've always done for myself and anyone else
who wants them. this will continue although it make take a little
longer to get distributed.

ALL passwords are still intact for all system previously having one
with this system. i don't kill passwords ever without specific Netmail
request for same from the password holder.

i will be removing the 1:18/0 from my AKA list before compiling the
new Nodelist. everyone using that instead of my real Node number MUST
compile a new Nodelist to avoid sending me your various RC-related
traffic. set all segment sends and other stuff to 1:3620/2. i will
forward them for a week for those slow to transition but save a dime
and send them to the new guy directly the first time.

i have truly enjoyed my years as a scheming despot. [Muppet's Frog
Prince] i'm not going away, just shifting gears. i'll still be here
and in FidoNet if you need me again or just want to chat. [grin]

please adjust all your configs. it's the new guy's turn in the barrel.

thanks.

TTFN.
Chris
RC18

-30-

[this saga has always been available as ABOUT to anyone who freqed
that magicname. i guess it will need updating with FidoNews now.]

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 15 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
FIDONET HISTORY
=================================================================

FidoNet History and Operation 8 Feb 85
Tom Jennings and many authors

Part 1 of 3

This is a long and convoluted document; it has been
sorely needed for months now, and it finally got done.
FidoNet is growing at a tremendous rate, and newer sysops
don't have the information that us oldies (pre Sept 84
sysops) assume everyone knows; hence the history section
here. There is a lot of extremely important material covered
here that was assumed to be known by all; we are finding out
otherwise.

This also covers some of the dark mysterious secrets
about the magical node numbers, and how the magical node
lists appear from nowhere. Those of you that have been
FidoNet nodes since way back when, spring and summer of
1984, and watched all this develop (such as it was) in full
Technicolor, will know most of this; if you are a relatively
new sysop, much of this may come as a suprise. Everyone
should read this, experienced sysops, new sysops, and all
Fido and FidoNet users.

FidoNet is no longer just a piece of software; it
has become complex organism. There are about 160 Fidos in
FidoNet right now; this does not include Fidos being run as
Bulletin Board only systems, just ones that you can converse
with over the net. If the average number of users on each
system is 300 people, you can start to guess at the scale of
things today.

HISTORY:

When FidoNet was first tested, there were two nodes:
myself here at Fido #1 in San Francisco, and John Madill at
Fido #2 in Baltimore. John and I did all of the testing and
development for the first pass at FidoNet. Its purpose: to
see if it could be done, merely for the fun of it, like ham
radio. It quickly became useful; instead of trying to call
each others' boards up to leave messages, or expensive voice
phone calls, Fidonet messages became more or less routine.

This was version 7 of Fido sometime in June 84 or
so; it did not have routing, file attach, retry control,
error handling, cost accounting, log files, or any of the
niceties since added. A packet was made, a call placed, the
packet transferred, that was it. This was adequate for a
month or two, when there were less than 20 nodes.

In August of 84, the number of nodes was approaching
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 16 22 Jul 1996

30; the net was becoming clogged, believe it or not. FidoNet
wasn't too smart about making calls then. With 30 systems,
coordination became difficult; instead of a simple voice
phone call to the (very few!) sysops to straighten out
problems like modems not answering, wrong numbers, clock
problems, etc, it took days to get the slightest problem
repaired. There were by now six nodes in St. Louis, and Fido
#1 was making seperate phone calls for each, when obviously
one could be made. Enter the beginnings of routing.

The "original" FidoNet was very simple and friendly;
you told me at Fido #1 that you had a FidoNet node ready, I
put you in the list, with your phone number, and people
called up and downloaded the list; done!

Well ... at first, "everyone knew each other"; we
were in more or less constant contact. However, when the
node numbers got into the twenties, there were people
bringing up FidoNodes who none of us knew. This was good,
but it meant we were not in close contact anymore.

The Net started to deteriorate; every single week
without fail there was at least one wrong number, usually
two. To impress on you the seriousness of wrong numbers in
the node list, imagine you are a poor old lady, who every
single night is getting phone calls EVERY TWO MINUTES AT
4:00AM, no one says anything, then hangs up. This actually
happened; I would sit up and watch when there was mail that
didn't go out for a week or two, and I'd pick up the phone
after dialing, and was left in the embarrasing position of
having to explain bulletin boards to an extremely tired,
extremely annoyed person.

There were also cases where the new node really
wasn't up yet, and the number given was a home phone to be
used temporarily, but I'd forget that, and include it in the
list anyways. Or the new node wasn't really up yet, and we'd
all make calls to it and it would not answer, or worse, the
modem would answer but the software wasn't running, and we'd
get charged for the call.

This obviously could not go on. We had to have some
way to make sure that at least the phone numbers were
correct! I started a new policy; before giving out a node
number and putting it in the list, I had to receive a
FidoNet message from the new node, directly. This verified
that at least the new Fido was half way running. At the
time, Fido had a provision whereby Fido #1 could set the
node number remotely; I'd send a message back, and presto! a
new node was up.

Well, this didn't work properly either; at the same
time, the Fido software was changing so rapidly, to
accomodate all the changes (literally a version a day for a
few weeks there) that I was losing new node requests, wrong
numbers caused by illegible handwriting, all sorts of
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 17 22 Jul 1996

problems. Out of laziness I would still assign nodes "word
of mouth", and got in the same trouble as before.

The people in St. Louis (Tony Clark, Ben Baker, Ken
Kaplan, Jon Wichman, Mike Mellinger) had their local Fidos
going strong, and understood what FidoNet did, how it
worked, and what it was about. They volunteered to take over
the node list, handle new node requests, and leave me with
the software. They tightened up on the FidoNet message
requirement, and in a few months, had the "error rate"
(wrong numbers, etc) down to practically zero, where it is
today.

Though I did the programming, Ken Kaplan, Ben Baker,
and the crowd in St. Louis did much of the design and most
of the testing of routing, forwarding, and local nets. They
still remain the experts on the intricacies of routing, and
help sysops set up local nets.

Please keep in mind the entire process, from two
nodes to over 50, took only three months! Fifty nodes is
more than it sounds; at that level it becomes a large scale
project. FidoNet went from about 50 nodes in Sept 84 or so,
to the current 160+ in Jan/Feb of 85.

FidoNet today is a network quickly approaching the
levels of complexity of commercial networks, and has many
more capabilities than many "mini" networks, such as USENET,
which has no routing or hosts. Only ARPAnet has some of the
features of FidoNet. The southern California local network
is three levels deep, with hosts in Orange, LA, Ventura, San
Berdino and San Diego counties.

FidoNet is just too large today to run as an
informal club. The potential for error is just too high to
include numbers at random within the node list. I imagine we
are in a predicament today what the radio ameteur operators
had a number of years ago.

The requirements for new FidoNet nodes are pretty
minimal, and they appear to be arbitrary and harsh if you
aren't aware of what's going on. This is to spell them out
in detail, so everyone will understand the process.

FidoNet'S PURPOSE:

Very simple; it is a hobby, a non-commercial network
of computer hobbiests ("hackers", in the older, original
meaning) who want to play with, and find uses for, packet
switch networking. It is not a commercial venture in any
way; FidoNet is totally supported by it's users and sysops,
and in many ways is similar to ham radio, in that other than
a few "stiff" rules, each sysop runs their system in any way
they please, for any reason they want.

THE STIFF RULES:
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 18 22 Jul 1996

Actually, not as bad as it sounds; basically,
politeness as a rule:

1. New nodes, see below.

2. If your system is going to be down for a week or
more, please let Fido 51 know. They can take you
out of the list while you are gone, so other FidoNet
sysops won't be wasting phone calls.

3. If you change your phone number, or decide to stop
running Fido, let them know, so other FidoNet sysops
won't be wasting phone calls.

The thing to keep in mind is that FidoNet's
telephone calls to send mail are costing someone money; if
you are down just for a night or so, don't worry about it,
just make sure your modem doesn't answer.

THE NODE LIST

Obviously (if you are a FidoNet sysop that is) the
node list is a text file containing all the names, phone
numbers and other things on each node, and as distributed by
Fido 51, routing information for the many local networks. It
is a very compact list, and so there is no clue as to how
that list is made.

Here is the current process for new nodes to obtain
a node number, and get into the node list. This assumes you
want to run a public access Fido; specialized systems are
covered seperately, below.

SET UP FIDO

Of course, you should get your Fido running first;
no sense in trying to run mail if your Fido doesn't run! In
your FidoNet area, enter a message for Fido #51, and include
the following information:

1. Your boards name
2. City and state
3. Sysops name
4. Board phone number
5. Maximum baud rate; 1200 assumed otherwise
6. Hours of operation; 24 hrs assumed otherwise
7. Way to contact the sysop during the day. This is
not absolutely necessary, but it makes it easier
if there is some problem.

Most of this is pretty obvious. The sysops voice
phone number will be kept secret; it will not be given out.
It is only used if there is some problem, and a FidoNet
message can't be sent for some reason.

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 19 22 Jul 1996

For Fidos that want to run with an unlisted phone
number, a few other things are needed:

8. A public FidoNet to act as mail host
9. The systems actual phone number

A host is required for an unlisted number, so that
you can receive mail. (If you don't want to receive mail,
then there is no reason for you to be part of FidoNet!) The
host system will have to have the unlisted phone number, of
course.

Fido 51 needs to have the phone number also, but it
will be kept secret. This is so that they can contact you
directly if there is any problem, such as a known bug or a
question, or if your host drops out of the network, so there
is some way to contact the local nodes.

GETTING A NODE NUMBER

This is the part that seems so arbitrary if you
aren't aware of what's happening. What happens is: you send
Fido 51 the message described above. When they receive it,
they put the stuff into the node list and fido list, pick
you a node number, and mail a copy of it to you the next
weekend.

This tests your system at the same time; you have to
be able to sucessfully send and receive mail in order to get
the node number. Out of it, you get a copy of the latest
lists.

NOTE: Fido 51 does not mail out copies of the lists to
everyone on a regular basis; it would mean too many phone
calls ($$$ ...). You can get the new node list Friday
evening at Fidos 10 and 51, or Fidos 1 and 2 later that
weekend or early the next week, and usually most any other
busy Fido.

If it all works, then 1) you know your system is
working 2) Fido 51, the node list keepers, knows it's
working 3) the other 160 or so Fido sysops know that your
system was working at least as recently as the last node
list. Print out the last few weeks nodelists; compare all
the changes, not just the additions.

This is why node numbers aren't given out "word of
mouth", or at other sysops request. It has to be done
directly, as a test.

WHAT FIDO 51 REALLY DOES

Making the node list is more than just typing in the
information; they make sure that the information in the list
is accurate as possible. This frequently means voice phone
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 20 22 Jul 1996

calls to double check, or calls to the new system to see
what the problem is; sometimes it is as simple as the wrong
baud rate, the time wrong on the new system, so that it is
not running FidoNet at the right time.

Ken Kaplan and Ben Baker do the node list work when
they have "spare time"; please be patient! As the number of
new nodes increases every week, response time goes up.
Currently, the node list is done once a week; new node
requests must be received in Wednesday nights mail (by
Thursday morning) so that they can work on it Thursday
night, and send it out on Friday night, so that you will
have it over the weekend. The volume of mail is such that it
may take a few days to get out.

(Please note that Fido 51 is an unattended node;
there is no one there to answer Y)ells unless someone
happens to walk by. The machine is located at Data Research
Associates, who kindly donated the phone line, and runs on a
DEC Rainbow 100+, donated by Digital Equipment Corp.)

Fido 51 is an extremely busy system; they receive
125 messages a week through FidoNet alone, so please be
patient.

CHANGES, MISTAKES AND UPDATES

If you ever find wrong information in the node list,
please send the information to Fido 51; they will include it
in the next list.

If you become part of a local net, ie. you have an
incoming host, notify them, and it will be included in the
node list also. Other changes might be baud rate (got a new
modem!) hours of operation, board name or sysop, etc.

SOME OTHER THINGS ...

If you have questions or problems with any part of
Fido or FidoNet, please ask. Here's where to go for
problems:

HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, PERFORMANCE OR INSTALLATION TROUBLES

Call or FidoNet to Fido #1, me, Tom Jennings.
FidoNet is best, if possible; that way, I have your "address
and phone" handy. If not, then call Fido #1 and leave a
message. If you leave it at G)oodbye, when you call back
looking for a reply, remember to check in the ANSWERS area;
Fido will NOT tell you if there is mail for you, you have to
search for it.

Fido #1 always has the latest versions of Fido for
all hardware supported, available for download. Fido #1
ALWAYS runs one revision later than the released version; it
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 21 22 Jul 1996

is used to test new features or bug fixes, so that when
released they will be working. Check the FIDO download area
for the current Fido version.

I have nothing to do anymore with maintaining the
node list, nor do I hand out node numbers.

ROUTING, NODE LIST, LOCAL NET QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS

Fido 51. Since they keep the list, they're the ones
to contact for node list problems. If you want advice on how
to set up a local net in your area, they can offer help and
advice.

SPECIALIZED SYSTEMS

If you are setting up a private network, and it is
to be truly private, what you do with it is your own
business. If, however, there is any possiblility that
members of your private network may wish to communicate with
any members of the public network, you should contact Fido
51 for the allocation of a block of node numbers to be
assigned by you to the nodes in your network. This is to
avoid node number conflicts upon receipt of FidoNet mail in
the public network.

LOCAL NETS

Neither I nor Ken Kaplan nor Ben Baker "run"
FidoNet; local networks such as the one in Southern
California and Massachusetts are entirely the responsibility
of the sysops in the area; the only thing we ask is that the
designated "incoming host" for that area be somewhat
reliable, for the obvious reason that it will be receiving
lots of phone calls from across the country.

As a matter of fact, you are encouraged to form
local networks, or join one that exists locally. IT makes it
cheaper for other systems to send you mail, and generally
streamlines FidoNet operation.

Other than that, local nets are totally standalone;
that is what they are for! For instance, SoCal can run their
net anyway they please; it is their hardware, their phone
lines, and their phone bills. It is their investment in
work, and they should reap the benefits. If there is a
"FidoNet policy", this is it.

AND SO ON ...

I hope FidoNet is a bit clearer now; if you have any
suggestions, or want to volunteer to help, please let us
know. Our only interest is in keeping the node list correct
and up to date; this simple list is what ties the entire net
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 22 22 Jul 1996

together.

Ken Kaplan Fido #51 314/432-4129
Tom Jennings Fido #1 415/864-1418
Ben Baker Fido #10 314/234-1462

[End of Part 1 of 3]

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 23 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
COORDINATORS CORNER
=================================================================

Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 201
By Ward Dossche, 2:292/854
ZC/2

The table below depicts the growth of the world nodelist as
seen through the eyes of someone in Zone-2. Delays in pro-
cessing inbound zone-segments are possible.

Administrative entries as well as Pvt, Hold and Down are ommitted.
Percentages have been rounded.

This article is produced by auto cut-and-paste of outputs from
T-NSTAT by Bo Bendtsen, ROBO 0.37 by Tom Kashuba and GW-BASIC 3.20
(C) Microsoft 1986 and MS-DOS 6.22 (C) MicroSoft 1994. It will
automatically be produced on a weekly basis.

+----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
|Zone|Nl.173|Nodelist.180|Nodelist.187|Nodelist.194|Nodelist.201|%%|
+----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
| 1 | 13540| 13286 -254| 13177 -109| 13105 -72| 12910 -195|40|
| 2 | 16487| 16539 52| 16497 -42| 16551 54| 16536 -15|51|
| 3 | 1069| 1066 -3| 1066 0| 1046 -20| 1029 -17| 3|
| 4 | 572| 648 76| 648 0| 656 8| 643 -13| 2|
| 5 | 116| 112 -4| 112 0| 112 0| 112 0| 0|
| 6 | 1228| 1228 0| 1228 0| 1228 0| 1228 0| 4|
+----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
| 33012| 32879 -133| 32728 -151| 32698 -30| 32458 -240|
+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+

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

ZEC-Election in Zone-2

By Ward Dossche
ZC/2

If you happen to have the misfortune to be either an RC, a REC, an NC
or a NEC in Zone-2, then this is meant for you. All others may skip
this article.

The first round in the ZEC-election is just over and I'm amazed by
the unusual high turn-out of votes. Let nobody say any more that
Fido-guys 'n gals are apathetic.

Of course, Bill Birrell's effort to get all eligible voters to vote
was tremendous. A "thank you" is already owed now to him and his team
of verifiers Frank Ellerman and David Rance. And "thank you" also to
Anton Kuznetsov for the tremendous help in spreading election announ-
cements etc.

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 24 22 Jul 1996

As might be expected a second round is needed in which Steve Woodmore
of 2:440/410 and Dieter Soltau of 2:2448/69 will be the sole candida-
tes.

To be eligible as a voter in this run-off election one must be pro-
perly listed in NODELIST.194. Properly means not Hold, Down nor Pvt.

The voters will be identified as follows :

* ZC/2 : the person holding the 2:2/0-AKA;
* RC : the people occupying the "2:region/0"-AKA;
* REC : the people flying the "U,REC"-flag. Only 1 REC per region is
permitted and he/she _MUST_ fly this flag. Any local arran-
gement of identification by system-name or a special node-
number will be void.
* NC : the people occupying the "2:net/0"-AKA unless someone other
than the host flies the "U,NC"-flag. Any other local arran-
gement of identification by system-name or a special node-
number will not be accepted.
* NEC : the people flying the "U,NEC"-flag. Only 1 NEC per net is
permitted and he/she _MUST_ fly this flag. Any local arran-
gement of identification by system-name or a special node-
number will be void.

The returning-officer will be Bill Birrel of 2:2504/200 again. He
will be assisted by 2 verifiers of his choice, I understand that one
of the previous verifiers is not available.

The time-table from now on is :

16.07.96-15.08.96 : Run-off election!
00:00:00 23:59:59

16.08.96 : Pre-announcement of election result by the Retur-
00:00:00 ning Officer

16.08.96-31.08.96 : Period for adjustments (wrong counted votes, lost
00:00:00 23:59:59 votes etc...)

01.09.96 : Appointment of ZEC/2 by ZC/2.
00:00:00

Although Echopol1 mentions nothing about individual sysops I hereby
urge all elligible voters to poll their lower levels and respect this
when casting a vote.

At the end of this election-period the RO will publish an extensive
list with results indicating in-extenso who voted for whom. This is
done to make certain that sysops'-wishes are being followed.

All other rules from round-1 remain unchanged.

********** Begin Voting form **********
You are eligible to vote in the ZEC run-off election. The candidates
are:-

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 25 22 Jul 1996

Dieter Soltau,
Steve Woodmore

Password: ____________

Please place a cross against one of the candidates' names, fill in
a password, and return the ballot paper to 2:2504/200 by midnight,
16th Aug, 1996. ^^^^^^^^^^

Voting Commences 16th July, 1996
Only one vote per coordinator is allowed, however many hats that
coordinator may wear.

Good luck,
Bill Birrell
[Returning Officer ZEC2 Election.]
********** End Voting form **********

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 26 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
ECHOING
=================================================================

[originally lost during FidoNews Editor disappearance]

Backbone Echo Changes [Mar-Apr]
by Lisa Gronke, 1:105/16
[email protected]

Summary of backbone & quasi-backbone echo changes during Mar & Apr.

Brought to you courtesy of (unix) diff.

diff (backbone.na + backbone.no) 03-Mar-96 ditto 05-May-96 [edited].

Echotag change
--------------

< MCSOFT McSoft - Motor City Software [old echotag]
> SOFTNET McSoft - Motor City Software [new echotag]

Added to the backbone
---------------------
> CASINO Casino News
> CASINO.GAMBLING Casino Games-Poker-Slots-Craps-Blackjack, ect.
> CB_RADIO_2 REAL CB Radio Chatter
> CB_RADIO_4SALE (low traffic since 5/1/96)
> CB_RADIO_C4SALE (low traffic since 5/1/96)
> DW_GAMER (low traffic since 5/1/96)
> FREE_BIBLE FREE BIBLE DISCUSSION AREA
> GAMEDEV Game Development Echo
> GIGO Support for GIGO Gateway Software
> GUN_CONTROL Gun Control and Crime Control in the USA
> MBBS-WG Major BBS/Worldgroup Sysops' Conference
> MCMOO_SUPPORT (low traffic since 5/1/96)
> MOD_ROCKETRY Sport Rocketry Forum
> MUSICIAN MUSICIAN
> NANFE North America Native Fish Echo.
> ONEFOS ONEFOSsil Support Echo
> OS2REXX The FidoNet OS2REXX Echo
> PCBPPL Clark Developments PPL Discussion [See ELIST]
> RAUSW RemoteAccess Ultra-Software
> RPG_GENERAL General role-playing games discussion and info
> SALVATION_ARMY SALVATION ARMY
> T-MAIL.SUPPORT T-MAIL FTN Frontend Mailer International Support
> TREK_CREATIVE Star Trek Creative Echo
> WNFOSSIL WinFossil Support Echo
> Z1_CHAT Zone 1 General Chat

Removed from the backbone or quasi-backbone --------------------------

< CHIROPRACTIC (low traffic since 2/1/96)
< DISK_CACHE (low traffic since 2/1/96)
< NIGHT_SHIFT_BASH_POLI (not in EchoList since 1/1/96)
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 27 22 Jul 1996

< SRA Survivors of Ritual Abuse
< TREMOR_DISORDERS (low traffic since 2/1/96)

o There are 797 echos in backbone.na [05-May-95] (up 6)
o There are 68 echos in backbone.no [05-May-95] (up 14)
o for a total of 866 backbone & quasi-backbone echos (up 20)
----------------------------------------------------------------------

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 28 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
NET HUMOR
=================================================================

From: "Mike Riddle" <[email protected]>
To: "Baker, Christopher"
<[email protected] (Christopher Baker)>
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 96 13:59:27 -0500
Reply-To: "Mike Riddle" <[email protected]>
Subject: Fwd: Horoscope

==================BEGIN FORWARDED MESSAGE==================

Subject: Horoscope

With advance apologies to anyone born under any sign of the Zodiac

HOROSCOPE

AQAURIUS: (Jan 20 - Feb 18)
You have an inventive mind and are inclined to be
progressive. You lie a great deal. On the other hand, you are
inclined to be careless and impractical, causing you to make the
same mistakes over and over again. People think you are stupid.

PISCES: (Feb 19 - Mar 20)
You have a vivid imagination and often think you are
being followed by the FBI or CIA. You have minor influence over
your associates and people resent you for flaunting your power.
You lack confidence and are generally a coward. Pisces people do
terrible things to small animals.

ARIES: (Mar 21 - Apr 19)
You are the pioneer type and hold most people in
contempt. You are quick tempered, impatient, and scornful of
advice. You are not very nice.

TAURUS: (Apr 20 - May 20)
You are practical and persistent. You have a dogged
determination and work like hell. Most people think you are
stubborn and bull-headed. Taurus people have B.O. and fart alot.

GEMINI: (May 21 - Jun 20)
You are a quick and intelligent thinker. People like you
because you are bi-sexual. However, you are inclined to expect
too much for too little. This means you are cheap. Gemini's are
known for committing incest.

CANCER: (Jun 21 - Jul 22)
You are sympathetic and understanding of other people's
problems. They think you are a sucker. You are always putting
things off. That's why you will never make anything of yourself.
Most welfare recipients are Cancer people.

LEO: (Jul 23 - Aug 22)
FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 29 22 Jul 1996

You consider yourself a born leader. Others think you
are pushy. Most Leo people are bullies. You are vain and
dislike honest criticism. Your arrogance is disgusting. Leo
people are thieves.

VIRGO: (Aug 23 - Sept 22)
You're the logical type and hate disorder. This is nit-
picking and is sickening to your friends. You are cold and
unemotional and sometimes fall asleep while making love. Virgo's
make good bus drivers.

LIBRA: (Sept 23 - Oct 22)
You are the artistic type and have a difficult time with
reality. If you are a man, you are more than likely a pedophile.
Most Libra women are prostitutes. Chances for employment and
monetary gains are excellent. All Libra's have venereal
diseases.

SCORPIO: (Oct 23 - Nov 21)
You are shrewd in business and cannot be trusted. You
will achieve the pinnacle of success because of your total lack
of ethics. Most Scorpio's are murderers.

SAGGITARIUS: (Nov 22 - Dec 21)
You are optimistic and enthusiastic. You have a reckless
tendency to rely on luck because of your total lack of talent.
The majority of Sagittarians are drunks or dope fiends. People
laugh at you a great deal.

CAPRICORN: (Dec 22 - Jan 19)
You are conservative and afraid of taking risks. You
don't do much of anything and are lazy. There has never been a
Capricorn of any importance. Capricorn's should avoid standing
still too long as a dog might think you are a tree and piss on
you.

----------End of Original Message----------

===================END FORWARDED MESSAGE===================

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

FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 30 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
COMIX IN ASCII
=================================================================

Date: 27 Aug 95 17:15:01
From: George Vandervort on 1:382/8
Lounge Lizard's Retreat <tm> in San Marcos TX
To: Christopher Baker on 1:374/14 Rights On! in Titusville FL
Subj: T-shirt
____________________________________________________________________

I created it years ago..
you are welcome to use it however you like..
but the name "Lounge Lizard's Retreat" is <tm>

_ _ /|
\'o.O' Hic! Pffft! Meow!
=(___)= //
| U | \ \\
My MS/Dos Disk ---> | (*) | \ >>
|__U__| / \//
_// || _\ /
(_/ (_| (___/

as for a Name?? "Splat the Cat" <grin>

\ _ /
- (*) -
/ U \

\|/ |\_________/| \|/ SPLAT!
\ \ \ x.X / / /
\ \>===( )===</ /
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
/ / U \ \
/ /| (*) |\ \
/|\ |_____U_____| /|\

=== Cut ===

Regards,
George Vandervort
InterNet: [email protected] (No FTP)

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FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 31 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
=================================================================

Are there organized Backbone operations for Echomail outside Zone 1?
What do those structures look like and how are they routed?

Send in your answers as .ART articles for future issues of FidoNews.

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FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 32 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
NOTICES
=================================================================

Calendar of Events

26 Jul 1996
FidoNews Editor turns 47.

28 Jul 1996
Independence Day, Peru

1 Aug 1996
Confederation Day, Switzerland

15 Aug 1996
Liberation Day, South Korea

28 Sep 1996
Confucius' Birthday.

29 Oct 1996
Republic Day, Turkey

5 Nov 1996
Election day, U.S.A.

5 Nov 1996
Guy Fawkes Day, England

19 Dec 1996
Gallileo takes close-ups of Europa to resolution
of 20 meters at the equator.

26 Jan 1997
Australia Day, Australia

6 Dec 1997
Gallileo takes close-ups of Europa to resolution
of 11 meters at the north pole.

If you have something which you would like to see on this
Calendar, please send a note to the FidoNews Editor.

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FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 33 22 Jul 1996

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FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 34 22 Jul 1996

=================================================================
FIDONEWS INFORMATION
=================================================================

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

Editor: Christopher Baker

Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar,
Tom Jennings, Sylvia Maxwell,
Donald Tees

"FidoNews Editor"
FidoNet 1:1/23
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more addresses:
Christopher Baker -- 1:374/14, [email protected]
[email protected]

(Postal Service mailing address)
FidoNews Editor
P.O. Box 5921
Titusville, FL 32783-5921
U.S.A.

voice: 1-407-264-2994 [1400-2100 ET only, please]
[1800-0100 UTC/GMT]

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

FidoNews is published weekly by and for the members of the FIDONET
INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR ELECTRONIC MAIL system. It is a compilation
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does not diminish the rights of the authors. OPINIONS EXPRESSED in
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Authors retain copyright on individual works; otherwise FidoNews is
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FIDONEWS 13-30 Page 35 22 Jul 1996

current year [6], i.e., FNWSMAY6.ZIP for all the Issues from May 96.

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"Disagreement is actually necessary,
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and create the requisite chaos."
-Tom Jennings

-30-

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