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Volume 5, Number 2 11 January 1988
+---------------------------------------------------------------+
| _ |
| / \ |
| /|oo \ |
| - FidoNews - (_| /_) |
| _`@/_ \ _ |
| International | | \ \\ |
| FidoNet Association | (*) | \ )) |
| Newsletter ______ |__U__| / \// |
| / FIDO \ _//|| _\ / |
| (________) (_/(_|(____/ |
| (jm) |
+---------------------------------------------------------------+
Editor in Chief Dale Lovell
Editor Emeritus: Thom Henderson
Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings
Contributing Editors: Al Arango
FidoNews is published weekly by the International FidoNet
Association as its official newsletter. You are encouraged to
submit articles for publication in FidoNews. Article submission
standards are contained in the file ARTSPEC.DOC, available from
node 1:1/1.
Copyright 1987 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 at (314) 576-4067.
The contents of the articles contained here are not our
responsibility, nor do we necessarily agree with them.
Everything here is subject to debate. We publish EVERYTHING
received.
Table of Contents
1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1
How FidoNews gets out .................................... 1
2. ARTICLES ................................................. 3
Adios, Thom Henderson .................................... 3
The FidoNet Sysop's Bill of Rights! ...................... 8
Price Structure On 80286 Motherboard Upgrades ............ 11
REDCON An EchoMail Idea follow-up ........................ 12
Jon Sabol on AlterNet .................................... 13
3. NOTICES .................................................. 16
The Interrupt Stack ...................................... 16
Latest Software Versions ................................. 16
Notes from International FidoNet Coordinator ............. 16
FidoNews 5-02 Page 1 11 Jan 1988
=================================================================
EDITORIAL
=================================================================
How FidoNews works and a brief summary on
how to submit articles to FidoNews
After taking a look at my mailer's logs for this past week,
I thought I'd go over how things work here at 1/1. Hopefully this
will avoid some of the confusion I've seen over the past week.
One of the first things I should go over is how FidoNews is
put together. Every week I run a program (MakeNews) that takes
your submissions and creates a finished FidoNews. It's a nice
automated program that is very flexible. If you submit three
articles named JIM1.ART, JIM2.ART, and JIM3.ART; MakeNews would
put JIM1.ART in the first week, JIM2.ART in the second week and
so on. This allows you to write a entire series of articles and
submit it at once, while only "printing" one article each week.
MakeNews is run every Monday morning just after midnight, so
don't try file requesting FidoNews on Sunday unless you want last
weeks issue. During the two hours after putting it together, 1/1
is busy trying to send FidoNews out to the Regional Coordinators.
Phil Ardussi at 157/1 is also helping send FidoNews out, this
should let my machine be accessible a little more quickly.
Because of this, I'd appreciate it if no one tried to file
request FidoNews during this time. I'd suggest any time after
National Mail Hour for convenience. While I understand that many
of you want to get the latest edition hot off the presses,
there's an awful lot of you and we're trying to reach as many
people as quickly as possible.
1/1 itself is running SEAdog 4.1 and TBBS 2.0S. You can
currently file request any issue of FidoNews from Volume 4 Issue
9 up to the present. I've got a full set of FidoNews on their way
for those who are interested and will let everyone know when
they've arrived. If you're only interested in the latest edition
of FidoNews, I've set up the "magic filename" of 'FIDONEWS' for
your ease. This means if you file request 'FIDONEWS' with no file
extension or volume number, you're assured of getting the latest
edition. Keep in mind that I'm running SEAdog and can't handle
the Opus style file requests, you'll have to be using SEAdog,
Dutchie or BinkleyTerm if you want to file request FidoNews from
me. It is available in a bulletin on my bulletin board as soon as
it's generated and can usually be found for normal downloading
sometime Monday evening.
There also seems to be some confusion on how to submit an
article for FidoNews. This is going to be real easy. The articles
should be in straight ASCII, no high-bit flags or other unusual
characters (including the TAB character). I know this is a little
hard for some who aren't familiar with how to generate an ASCII
file from their word processor, but it's the only standard that
FidoNews 5-02 Page 2 11 Jan 1988
everyone can support. All lines should start at the first column
as a general rule. If you're trying to show a chart or indent a
paragraph, use beginning spaces. Just don't try and center the
text on the page, MakeNews will indent every article the same
amount. This makes for a consistent layout (usually). The only
other constraint is that no line should be longer than 65
characters. The file name should have an extension of .ART for an
article, .COL for a column, and .NOT for a notice. If you adhere
to these rules, your article should be published in one to two
weeks from the time I receive it. If I'm paying strict attention
to what's coming in, I try to send you a short message telling
you that your file did indeed arrive here and all is well.
If you want you article to be listed in the table of
contents, your first line should read "* (however you want it
listed)." The asterisk tells MakeNews to generate a listing for
the article in the table of contents and this line does not
appear in the "published" article. After the table of contents
line, if any, it is common practice to include a title of some
sort along with your name and net/node number. I personally
prefer this to be centered, but it's your article do as you wish.
That's about all I'm going to go over this week. I'd like to
thank all of you who have wished me good luck as the new editor.
I wish I could list all of you, but unfortunately it would take
too many pages. If you have any questions on any of this, please
feel free to drop me a line. Once again I'm going to list a whole
bunch of ways you can reach me, and I want to encourage all of
you to contact me whichever way is easiest for you.
Your Editor,
Dale Lovell
1:1/1 (1:157/504)
216/642-1034 (data)
Home Work
3266 Vezber Drive Parma Computer Center
Seven Hills, OH 44131 5402 State Road
216/524-1875 (voice) Parma, OH 44134
216/661-1808
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 3 11 Jan 1988
=================================================================
ARTICLES
=================================================================
(Editor's Note: I came across this message in the SYSOP echomail
conference this past week and felt that it was well worth sharing
with all. Please note the time of the message and remember that
it took Thom over 2 hours to write this.)
01/01/88 06:44:00
From: THOM HENDERSON
To: ALL
Subj: ADIOS
The old year is gone, the new year is just beginning. And
here I sit, up way too late (and with perhaps a tad too much
bourbon) sitting at my keyboard. It seems a propitious moment
for me to say farewell.
There are many of you out there who have become my friends
in these past few years. You I will miss. It is for you that I
write this.
Many of you out there dislike me, for reasons both real and
imagined. Some of you have disliked me before you even knew me
as an individual, but only knew SEA as the company that published
ARC. Others have disliked me only since you've heard me express
myself, and found that you sometimes disagreed with me. This is
not adressed to you, for nothing that I might say will dissuade
you from your hard-fought beliefs.
But many of you I count as friends, and to you I owe an
explanation.
Why am I leaving FidoNet? I would think that obvious, but
perhaps you do not. I have seen a growing cloud of
misinterpretation and misrepresentation. Perhaps you have
disagreed with me about particular goals or directions, but I
have always felt that I was working towards the betterment of
amateur electronic mail as a viable hobby. Maybe I have been
wrong -- certainly I have been wrong my share of times, and
perhaps more -- but I have never felt that I was evil. Nor have
I felt that others who disagreed with me were evil. For two
people can disagree (perhaps even vehemently) without either
being evil.
But I have fought for my vision of what is right for over
two years, and I grow weary. I am weary of the scorn and
ridicule I have harvested. I am tired of the shaded truths, the
half truths, the misdirection, and the outright lies that abound
these days. You've all heard the lies, and a gratifyingly large
number of you have recognized them for what they are. Certainly
it is not surprising that I am tired of continually refighting
that battle.
FidoNews 5-02 Page 4 11 Jan 1988
Do you mind if I tell you a little story? I hope not.
About three and a half years ago my partner and I were working on
a project we called (at that time) ComLink. The idea was to
automate file transfers between PC's. At about that time we
stumbled across a fledging FidoNet, numbering about 50 nodes.
The way Fido did it seemed as good a way as any (and incidentally
gave us a good test target), so we adopted it. We set up a test
network of our two machines plus another two machines at client
sites and named them "SEAdog One", "SEAdog Two", and so forth
(being the SEA "dogs", as it were). My own machine, as head of
the private network, was named "SEAdog Leader" (from watching too
many episodes of "Black Sheep"), and that was the machine I did
the initial testing and development of ComLink on. But before
long we found ourselves referring to "my SEAdog" and "your
SEAdog", and thus the name "SEAdog" as the name of the package
was born. (There is still no part of the SEAdog system that is
actually named "SEAdog".) In truth, the SEND and GET commands
are about what we originally had in mind.
Along the way we found ourselves getting more and more
involved with FidoNet, and at some point we collaborated with Tom
Jennings to get the FTSC started, because we all realized that
there was a potential in what we were doing that transcended
anything any of us had originally supposed. In particular, I
think that TJ and I both envisioned some sort of public domain
email standard for amateur systems running on any sort of
hardware, so we were both willing to limit what we would do in
order to further that standard.
I say "limit" because the essence of establishing a standard
lies in limiting it. In the act of saying to any new software
developer, "This which we have documented WILL work", one limits
how one may change that in the future.
I saw that as a viable tradeoff. I still do.
But all of this is hopefully a side point. At least, only
future events will show if this is a side point or not. I
earnestly hope that it will remain aside point forever. I see
faint marks of handwriting on the wall that a technical battle
over standards is forthcoming for FidoNet (which I do not wish
to participate in), but I most sincerely hope that I am wrong.
But regardless, I see factionalism growing in FidoNet. I
see a dichotomy between FidoNet and IFNA that I don't think ought
to exist. I feel that we once had a sense of camraderie and
mutual trust that no longer seems to exist. Those who read
Policy3 with a discerning eye will see that it implicitly
assumes a body of sysops working together for a common goal, and
TRYING to work together. I'm not sure that we have that anymore.
Inevitable disclaimer for the inevitable few who will choose
to misinterprete: I didn't say it isn't there. I said I'm not
sure it's there.
But this is addressed to you, my friends out there. So to
FidoNews 5-02 Page 5 11 Jan 1988
you I will address a few answers to the flames, innuendos, and
lies you are sure to hear once I am gone.
Am I choosing between FidoNet and AlterNet? No, I am not.
To quote from a better man than I (I've often copied my betters,
and I've never had a problem with attributing my sources), Ben
Baker said that he resigned for "reasons of health, sanity, and
marriage". The same applies to me. I would be leaving FidoNet
in any case. My resignation as elected Region 13 board member
paved the way, and got the same response (domestically) as my
resignation as Region 13 coordinator and FidoNews publisher.
(For those of an historical bent, I'm the last of the original
ten Regional Coordinators to resign.) Do I leave with no
regrets? Of course not. Whether I liked it or not (and by and
large, I did) I was the FidoNews publisher for almost three
years, longer than I've held any other offiicial or unofficial
post in FidoNet. Thus I break a Chinese committment akin to when
I started my school's first newspaper back when I was in sixth
grade (this meaning nothing to you, I am sure, but having no
small significance to me, this New Year's day).
So no, I am not choosing between FidoNet and AlterNet. I am
choosing between AlterNet and pulling the plug. As Ryugen Fisher
so aptly put it, "AlterNet is a network of burnouts." I find
myself addicted to this vice of electronic mail, so I will give
AlterNet a try. The alternative to me is going "cold turkey",
as it were, for I am surely leaving FidoNet. If AlterNet fails,
then I will be out of it altogether.
Will AlterNet be "Henderson's network"? Or, as someone put
it, am I jumping to be a big frog in a small pond? Apt wording
that, because Ryugen (the Old Frog) is the one who talked me into
joing AlterNet. Granted that AlterNet draws something (not much,
but something) from the Alliance Bylaws that I wrote for
FidoNews some time ago, but aside from the name of the Alliance
and a few titles, it bears little resemblance. Pull out the
issue with the Alliance bylaws, compare them with the Chivalry
docs (both are in the published FidoNews index), and know the
liars for what they are.
Far from being "my" network, AlterNet will not have me in
any important position. I will be a "grunt sysop" in AlterNet.
The highest position is the Archduke, who will be Phil Becker.
The equivalent of RC of my region is the Duke of Middle Atlantis,
who will be Michael Connick. The equivalent of NC for my network
is the Count of Metro on Hudson, who will be William Bertholf.
The equivalent of our local hub will be the Baron of North Jersey
-- a position that was offered to me, but I refused (I don't know
who will take it).
I will have no position in AlterNet other than a plain ol'
sysop. So once again, you now know the liars for what they are.
Is the Alliance a "for-profit" corporation? Yes, but anyone who
trys to tell you that this is a big deal either doesn't know what
he's talking about, or he's trying to sell you a bill of goods.
One of the painful lessons we've learned from IFNA is that it
FidoNews 5-02 Page 6 11 Jan 1988
isn't always a good idea to shoot for tax exempt status. For
one, to be tax exempt one must follow all sorts of rules and
stipulations that one might not wish to follow. For another, a
tax-exempt MUST by law act primarily for the good of the public.
A corporation that acts primarily for the good of its members
CANNOT be tax exempt. The Alliance is intended to do good
primarily for sysops, and hence CANNOT be tax exempt! If we
tried to make it so, then anyone involved could be in for serious
felony charges a few years down the road (something for IFNA
board members to keep in mind!)
Are AlterNet sysops going to steal FidoNet echomail
conferences? Well, it kind of depends on what one means by
"steal". I've no doubt that at the beginning a certain amount of
leakage will occur, even though I myself see no point to it.
FidoNet conferences are one of the main things that have made me
sick and tired of FidoNet, so I myself can see no reason to port
them over. But no doubt the faint of heart will, at least in the
early stages. I expect that AlterNet will quickly grow its own
conferences of equal or greater merit and have no need of
FidoNet conferences.
Gee (as in golly), the Alliance sounds awfully elitist. Why
is that? Well, it's really very simple. The Alliance IS elitist.
We're not saying that we are de-facto better than everyone else.
We're saying that we're going to try darned hard to BE better
than we once were. I know that for myself at least that isn't
going to be easy, but I sure intend to try!
Will it cost money to be in AlterNet? Yes, as I read it.
The Council of Dukes sets the tithe, and all Knights are expected
to stay current on all tithes. Also, a local Count might lay a
local tax to pay for outbound mail service. Meanwhile, it is
mandated that the tithe pays for a legal defense fund. BUT!
Don't ANYBODY bother to tell me or ANYONE ELSE that they
disagree! NOBODY has to join! If you disagree, then stay right
where you are!
How does AlterNet affect me? If you do not join the
Alliance, then I don't see how it affects you at all. The
Alliance is of no concern at all to those who do not join.
Why should I join the Alliance? If you want or need someone
to tell you, then you should not join. AlterNet and the Alliance
most definetely are NOT for everyone. If you are burned out and
thinking of pulling the plug, then you won't be asking -- you'll
be joining. As for everyone else, ignore it. Remember what
Ryugen so eloquently said, "AlterNet is a network of burnouts."
Anyone who tries to "sell" you on joining the Alliance should
probably rethink his own motives.
Are you concerned about keeping your existing contacts and
your existing echomail links? If so, then stay right where you
are. Neither faint heart nor false heart ere won a fair maiden.
(If you don't get the reference, I apologize. Darned few got the
"King Log/King Stork" reference either.)
FidoNews 5-02 Page 7 11 Jan 1988
Does this mean no more support for SEAdog? Crass
commercialisim raises its head once again. You still have our
mailing address, our customer support BBS (201-473-1991, a number
that has never been in the nodelist), and our voice number
printed on your SEAdog manual cover. The SEAdog conference in
FidoNet (assuming it continues) might not be attended by us, but
it will at least exist as much as it was originally intended to
exist. That is, it was established to provide tech support for
SEAdog without our input in return for IFNA getting a
substantial discount for SEAdog for IFNA members. In other
words, the SEAdog conference was never supposed to be moderated
by us. Does this constitute abandonment? I don't think so. Near
as I can tell, we continue to provide better support than most
software publishers.
Ah, well, no way can I anticipate all that you'll hear about
us in the coming weeks. Suffice to say that a great deal will
be, shall we say, somewhat less than wholly accurate. Of that I
am sure. But you have our phone number (it's printed on the
SEAdog manual cover, and widely distributed otherwise), so
please feel free to call us anytime you are in doubt. (Oh, boy!
Can I see ways that THAT can be misinterpreted! [at least, by
those who wish to do so]) There's no need to take the word of
those who have shown themselves to be somewhat less than
reliable, as they say. Just call us up and ask!
It's even later now than I ever would have imagined that I
might stay up typing this, else I'd never have started. Near as
I can figure, I have about ten hours before our mail relay
converts to the AlterNet node list. Hopefully this will reach you
before then. Much to my chagrin (unless a VERY late change came
in) I won't be in the first AlterNet list after all, but
hopefully it won't take long. To those of you, my friends that I
leave behind, I'll not forget you. You're all that's made this
worthwhile. And it HAS been worthwhile, by and large. As I said
in my final FidoNet editorial, by and large it's been fun.
How do I end a three and a half year relationship
gracefully? I don't know. If you've stuck with me this long,
through all these words I've entered, you must be one of my
friends. So maybe I can say this now. (Or at the least, I
won't have to hear any ridicule.) Typing these messages at this
keyboard has often been an emotional experience, but it's never
before brought tears to my eyes.
Goodbye. I'll miss you.
Editors Comments:
Thank you very much for these parting words Thom. I too have
have had many an emotional experience at this keyboard, but this
last message of yours has been the most emotional of all. Good
luck in whatever you do. You will be missed. -- Dale
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 8 11 Jan 1988
The FidoNet Sysop's Bill of Rights! Or ...
How to Make the Net Truly Democratic
By Randy Edwards
132/555
This part of the article in the back of FidoNews #501
(by Don Daniels) started me thinking:
> Essentially, each coordinator operates as a sort
> of "dictator" with full responsibility for his domain.
> You have no direct control over how he operates - the only
> mechanism you have (short of dropping out of his domain) to
> attempt any control over him is to convince his "boss"
> coordinator (who in many cases made the appointment in the
> first place) that your coordinator is not doing the job.
> No easy task.
Don's right, it's no easy task. And if you look at most
of the present and recent controversies in the Network they
can be directly related (or caused!) by this 'problem.'
So thinking about this I came up with the following:
(comments are welcome in the IFNA, SYSOP of POLICY4 echos)
[*] THE FIDONET SYSOP'S BILL OF RIGHTS [*]
[1] No node may delete or modify (except modification by
recognized netmail utilities) intransit netmail unless it
is obviously illegal in nature. Copying or recording of
intransit messages is forbidden. An exception to this right
is prior agreement between all parties.
[2] No node may delete or modify (except modification by
recognized net/echomail utilities) intransit echomail unless
it is obviously illegal in nature. An exception to this
rule is an agreed-upon conference moderator. All nodes must
do any local modification or deletion ('chopping' or 'ed-
meeseing') of echomail after it is scanned.
[3] Every node has the right to choose to be listed in
either the local geographic network, or as an independent
node in the local geographic region.
[4] Every network will have an Election every 12 months.
The election will be held in June, in honor of the month the
original FidoNet converted nodelists. Every node in the
network will have one vote towards the position of Network
Coordinator. Elections are won by straight majority, but
elections that are not won by more than 5% are submitted to
an automatic revote within 30 days. This is to ensure the
winner of an election has enough support to work effectively
and to help prevent controversial election results.
FidoNews 5-02 Page 9 11 Jan 1988
The Network Coordinator, upon election, will name an
assistant and served until the following June when a new
election will be held. The Network Coordinator will act as
a combination 'Prime Minister' and 'Representative' of the
Net in addition to any other duties outlined in Policy4.
Additionally, if there are 5 or more independant nodes
in a Region, (termed a 'Group') they are also encouraged to
have similar elections as above selecting one person to be
thier Representative, though their position will be in an
unofficial capacity (see below).
[5] If at any time during a Network Coordinators term of
office, if 34% of the nodes in the network agree they can
submit a Request for Recall to the Network and Regional
Coordinators, who will have 2 weeks to verify the Request
for Recall and respond to the plantiffs. Within 60 days of
the Request for Recall a new election will be held (unless
the June election is within 60 days).
[6] Every region will have an Election every 12 months.
The election will be held in August, in honor of the month
the first FidoCon and the birth (or abortion? B-) of IFNA.
Every Network Coordinator in the Region will have one vote
towards the position of Network Coordinator. Additionally,
if a Region has 5 or more independant nodes in it and the
nodes have elected a Representative (see above), then that
Representative is given one vote in Regional elections. The
Regional Coordinator, upon election, will name an assistant
and served until the following August when a new election
will be held. The Network Coordinator will act as a
combination 'Prime Minister' and 'Representative' of the
Region, in addition to any other duties outlined in Policy4.
[7] If at any time during a Regional Coordinators term of
office, if 34% of the Network Coordinators (plus one vote
for a qualified 5+ elected independant regional
Representative) in the region agree they can submit a
Request for Recall to the Regional and Zone Coordinators,
who will have 2 weeks to verify the Request for Recall and
respond to the plantiffs. Within 60 days of the Request for
Recall a new election will be held (unless the August
election is within 60 days).
[8] Every zone will have an Election every 12 months. The
election will be held in September, in honor of the month
the first St. Louis nodelist. Every Regional Coordinator in
the Zone will have one vote towards the position of Zone
Coordinator. The Zone Coordinator, upon election, will name
an assistant and served until the following September when a
new election will be held. The Zone Coordinator will act as
a combination 'Prime Minister' and 'Representative' of the
Zone in addition to any other duties outlined in Policy4.
Additionally, if there are 5 or more qualified Groups in
a Zone, they are also encouraged to have similar elections
FidoNews 5-02 Page 10 11 Jan 1988
as above selecting one person to be thier Representative,
though their position will be in an unofficial capacity (see
below).
[9] If at any time during a Zone Coordinators term of
office, if 34% of the Regional Coordinators (plus one vote
for a qualified 5+ Group) in the zone agree they can submit
a Request for Recall to the Zone and Int'l Coordinators, who
will have 2 weeks to verify the Request for Recall and
respond to the plantiffs. Within 60 days of the Request for
Recall a new election will be held(unless the August
election is within 60 days).
[10] An amendment or deletion to this Bill of Rights can be
done by a Constitional Convention. The exact procedure is
this: If a node wishes an amendment or deletion (which
should be thought out carefully, for it is a very serious
matter) he must write up a Proposal for the amendment or
deletion stating the reasons for a change. The Proposal is
then submitted to each of the Regional Coordinators and to
the Zone Coordinator. Upon receipt the Regional Coordinators
have 60 days to vote on the Proposal and notify the Zone
Coordinator of their vote. The Zone Coordinator will then
tally the votes and notify the RC's and the Node who
submitted the proposal of the RC's vote. If the RC's vote
90% in favor For the amendment or deletion then the Proposal
is submitted for a Zone Constitutional Vote.
The Zone Constitutional Vote (ZCV) is done in June.
Every Node in the Network votes on a ZCV. The ZCV is done
by placing the Proposal on each individual Network's (and
qualified Regional Group's) ballot for Network Coordinator.
Each Network Coordinator will then tally his/her Network's
ZCV vote and submit it to the Zone Coordinator who has 30
days to add up the total ZCV vote and report it to the RC's
and NC's.
The ZCV vote is won on a straight majority count of votes
- but for a change to this Bill of Rights to take place the
Proposal must 'win' the vote by at least 5% - if the
proposal wins, but does not win by 5% then the Proposal is
considered too controversial and is held over for an
automatic revote the following June.
--- End of the Bill of Rights.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 11 11 Jan 1988
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delivery and insurance are included within the United
States. Shipments outside of the United States you must add
$20 for shipping, handling, and insurance.
All motherboards have been tested before shipment. These are
brand new products NOT rejects or customer returns.
While no one can guarantee 100% compatibility, we have not
run into any major software packages that do not run. Of
course, IBM BASIC and BASICA will not run due to the fact
that they read the IBM ROM chip.
The BIOS is current (September 1987) and is completely
compatible with Monochrome, CGA, and EGA displays. The
boards have a built in disk cache which uses the Ram from
640k to 1024k.
Contact 107/246 via Netmail or call 516-328-7064 (modem)
for more details.
These prices are available to Fidonet Sysops and users until
January 31, 1988. We reserve the right to cancel this offer
at any time. We reserve the right to refuse any order at our
sole discretion.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 12 11 Jan 1988
Ben Mann / Amnon Nissan
OPUS 151/1000
[R]aleigh,NC [E]chomail [D]ata [CON]centrator
[G]reensboro,NC [E]chomail [D]ata [CON]centrator
REDCON/GEDCON have been going thru several changes
in recent months. REDCON now handles over 200 ECHO's.
It's a full time job keeping up with the changes. REDCON
is now running AUTOECHO to help with some of the work.
Because REDCON is in a PC Pursuit city the traffic
has been very heavy. All weekend long the machine sends
and receives traffic.
Thanks to the efforts of all the users feedback loops
in the echomail paths have been, for the most part, avoided.
GEDCON has been slower to develop. Because GEDCON's
users are billed for the time on the system monthly. An
accounting program had to be written. That is now done.
Also an automatic billing system is in place. So as time
permit we will be adding users again.
To other ECHOMAIL BACKBONE(tm) sysops. Please contact us
so we may better coordinate our efforts to provide ECHOMAIL
services to the nodes of an even stronger FidoNet.
A list of the ECHOMAIL handled by REDCON/GEDCON is in
a file REDCON.ARC which may be requested from 151/100 or
151/1000. Soon AUTOECHO will respond to the QUERY option
and send a message to any requesting system all the echo's
available.
Now let's see... A ten jewel lazer ...
Amnon got any spare 10 meter dishes ?????
Signals have been bounced off the moon before....
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 13 11 Jan 1988
Thoughts on AlterNet
Jon Sabol
I'm still here although I don't say much. Just thought I'd
post my ideas on what's going on and how I think AlterNet should
be dealt with. Don't know if the opinion carries any weight any
more, but what the hell. This IS supposed to be a forum to
discuss things like this.
The creation of something like AlterNet has been inevitable
since the formation of IFNA. TechNet was the forerunner of this,
but it wasn't quite as radical. TechNet was a parallel network;
AlterNet is an entity which seems to be trying to replace
FidoNet while still maintaining ties to the current base of
people running FidoNet compatible boards. TechNet was a
reasonable approach. It provided the security of an alternate
network while not imposing ideals and practices on the current
network. AlterNet seems to be an attempt to create an
environment favorable to its peers, with no real regard of the
current status of affairs in the Net. This is unhealthy.
The whole premise of FidoNet, and its main function is to
allow as many people who are interested in telecommunications to
use it as a tool to pass ideas amongst themselves. In this
aspect, FidoNet serves the purpose quite well.
Fragmentation of the network is inevitable. If AlterNet
does not branch off, then there will be other groups that choose
to leave the established structure to form groups which appear
to be more advantageous either technically or politically. This
is only the effect caused by bringing a number of highly
independant people together in an organization.
The founders of AlterNet cite 'flames' as being the reason
to split into a separate group. They say that things aren't 'fun
any more'. I think its closer to the truth to say that they are
having a hard time dealing with dissention. Its hard to feel
what you are saying is right when you get scathing replies from
other folks. Its even harder when people base their reactions on
previous events - i.e. hold grudges. That part of the problem is
our fault. Its far easier to create a masterpiece of debate that
rips your opponent to pieces than it is to sit back and ask a few
questions to see if what you read is really what the other
person typed. The biggest problem with this media is that what
is read is sometimes different from the typed word. Even the
spoken word on a telephone imparts more of the author's meaning
than what is portrayed in a conference message.
(<sigh> I'm in Shackelford mode again :->)
Most of the personality conflicts in the network stem from
the impersonality of the media. The same words spoken face to
face more often than not would not be offensive. Its hard to
realize that your own opinion is not the only one when all you
FidoNews 5-02 Page 14 11 Jan 1988
see are differing opinions that are stated more like personal
attacks than logical rebuttals. This is the aspect of the
problem that needs to be worked on. You'll never get a group of
3000 people together that totally agree on everything. We should
concentrate on teaching people the proper etiquette for public
debate, not encourage personal attacks and confrontations.
AlterNet refers to 'the good ol' days'. Times when there
weren't such heated arguments and personality clashes. The
reason that things are as they are now is the medium the folks
in this conference are supposed to be helping with - EchoMail.
Almost two years ago, this means of communicating was formed.
Until EchoMail's inception, there was no real forum for
discussion amongst the Net. How many of you actually used FidoNet
to the extent you do now before the idea of conferencing came
about??? I bet your message volume was at most one tenth of what
it is today.
We have grown a lot, and we are still growing.
Unfortunately, our ability to deal with other people has not
kept up with the explosion of forums and topics available. Until
we learn to treat each other as human beings, and until we can
deal with problems impersonally, we will continue to see
offshoots from the organization we belong to now. This is the
real problem. There is nothing wrong with the structure
currently - we just can't seem to manage to disagree in a
reasonable fashion. That's what needs to be worked on.
AlterNet has some aspects that I absolutely cannot agree
with, nor condone. IFNA is in the same boat. We should work
together to build something that is agreeable with the majority
instead of striking out on our own to do what we feel is right.
Leaving the system is a cop out. Its saying 'well, if you won't
play my way, I'll take my ball and go home'. The proper approach
is to try to convince the players to agree to play differently.
The political aspects of AlterNet could very well influence
the current state of affairs of FidoNet adversely. We can prevent
this by limiting its ability to communicate to the general
forums. As Ray says, we should not be forced to spend money to
support the transmission of messages from an entity that is
profiting from our expense. We should not allow the conferences
carried on AlterNet to intermingle with those established in
FidoNet. We can prevent this if we try. By allowing it, we are
condoning the fragmentation of the entity that is the basis of
our fraternity. When someone decides to 'take their ball and go
home', you don't respond with 'well, if you're going, you might
as well take this bat with you'.
The group of people that form the backbone and the EchoMail
Coordinators is the grass roots faction of FidoNet. We all have
very differing political views, but we realize that without this
means of communication, there is not enough interaction between
the various people to warrant any type of organization. We are
in desparate need of SOME sort of central coordination to
oversee the rapid growth we are experiencing. The keys here are
FidoNews 5-02 Page 15 11 Jan 1988
'amateur', 'hobby', and 'free'. Let's see if we can't help keep
the group together, instead of promoting splintering according to
point of view.
---
Jon
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 16 11 Jan 1988
=================================================================
NOTICES
=================================================================
The Interrupt Stack
25 Aug 1988
Start of the Fifth International FidoNet Conference, to be
held at the Drawbridge Inn in Cincinnatti, OH. Contact Tim
Sullivan at 108/62 for more information. This is FidoNet's big
annual get-together, and is your chance to meet all the people
you've been talking with all this time. We're hoping to see
you there!
24 Aug 1989
Voyager 2 passes Neptune.
If you have something which you would like to see on this
calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1:1/1.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Latest Software Versions
BBS Systems Node List Other
& Mailers Version Utilities Version Utilities Version
Dutchie 2.80* EditNL 3.3 ARC 5.21
Fido 12e* MakeNL 1.10 ARCmail 1.1
Opus 1.03a Prune 1.40 ConfMail 3.3*
SEAdog 4.10 XlatList 2.85* EchoMail 1.31
TBBS 2.0M MGM 1.1
* Recently changed
Utility authors: Please help keep this list up to date by
reporting new versions to 1:1/1. It is not our intent to list
all utilities here, only those which verge on necessity.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
David Dodell
FidoNet: 1:1/0 or 1:114/15
Usenet: {ihnp4|hao|decvax} !noao!asuvax!stjhmc!ddodell
Bitnet: ARDSD @ ASUACAD
Several short items of interest:
o Bob Morris will be remaining on a Zone 1 Region 16 Coordinator.
o All Region Coordinators in Zone 1, plus the Zone 2 and 3
coordinators have received Version 2.0 of MAKENL. Please try to
obtain this latest edition if you are a Network Coordinator.
FidoNews 5-02 Page 17 11 Jan 1988
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 18 11 Jan 1988
__
The World's First / \
BBS Network /|oo \
* FidoNet * (_| /_)
_`@/_ \ _
| | \ \\
| (*) | \ ))
______ |__U__| / \//
/ Fido \ _//|| _\ /
(________) (_/(_|(____/ (tm)
Membership for the International FidoNet Association
Membership in IFNA is open to any individual or organization that
pays a specified annual membership fee. IFNA serves the
international FidoNet-compatible electronic mail community to
increase worldwide communications.
Member Name _______________________________ Date _______________
Address _________________________________________________________
City ____________________________________________________________
State ________________________________ Zip _____________________
Country _________________________________________________________
Home Phone (Voice) ______________________________________________
Work Phone (Voice) ______________________________________________
Zone:Net/Node Number ____________________________________________
BBS Name ________________________________________________________
BBS Phone Number ________________________________________________
Baud Rates Supported ____________________________________________
Board Restrictions ______________________________________________
Your Special Interests __________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
In what areas would you be willing to help in FidoNet? __________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Send this membership form and a check or money order for $25 in
US Funds to:
International FidoNet Association
c/o Leonard Mednick, MBA, CPA
700 Bishop Street, #1014
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813-4112
USA
Thank you for your membership! Your participation will help to
insure the future of FidoNet.
Please NOTE that IFNA is a general not-for-profit organization
and Articles of Association and By-Laws were adopted by the
membership in January 1987. The first elected Board of Directors
was filled in August 1987. The IFNA Echomail Conference has been
established on FidoNet to assist the Board. We welcome your
input to this Conference.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 5-02 Page 19 11 Jan 1988
INTERNATIONAL FIDONET ASSOCIATION
ORDER FORM
Publications
The IFNA publications can be obtained by downloading from Fido
1:1/10 or other FidoNet compatible systems, or by purchasing
them directly from IFNA. We ask that all our IFNA Committee
Chairmen provide us with the latest versions of each
publication, but we can make no written guarantees.
Hardcopy prices as of October 1, 1986
IFNA Fido BBS listing $15.00 _____
IFNA Administrative Policy DOCs $10.00 _____
IFNA FidoNet Standards Committee DOCs $10.00 _____
SUBTOTAL _____
IFNA Member ONLY Special Offers
System Enhancement Associates SEAdog $60.00 _____
SEAdog price as of March 1, 1987
ONLY 1 copy SEAdog per IFNA Member
Fido Software's Fido/FidoNet $100.00 _____
Fido/FidoNet price as of November 1, 1987
ONLY 1 copy Fido/FidoNet per IFNA Member
International orders include $10.00 for
surface shipping or $20.00 for air shipping _____
SUBTOTAL _____
HI. Residents add 4.0 % Sales tax _____
TOTAL _____
SEND CHECK OR MONEY ORDER IN US FUNDS:
International FidoNet Association
c/o Leonard Mednick, MBA, CPA
700 Bishop Street, #1014
Honolulu, HI. 96813-4112
USA
Name________________________________
Zone:Net/Node____:____/____
Company_____________________________
Address_____________________________
City____________________ State____________ Zip_____
Voice Phone_________________________
Signature___________________________
-----------------------------------------------------------------
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