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F I D O N E W S -- | Vol. 9 No. 51 (21 December 1992)
A newsletter of the |
FidoNet BBS community | Published by:
_ |
/ \ | "FidoNews" BBS
/|oo \ | +1-415-863-2739
(_| /_) | NEW!--> 1:1/23@FidoNet
_`@/_ \ _ | editor@fidonews.fidonet.org
| | \ \\ |
| (*) | \ )) | Editors:
|__U__| / \// | Tom Jennings
_//|| _\ / | Tim Pozar
(_/(_|(____/ |
(jm) | Newspapers should have no friends.
| -- JOSEPH PULITZER
----------------------------+---------------------------------------
/*********************************************************************
* IMPORTANT NOTE: The FidoNet address for FidoNews has been changed. *
* The new address is: *
* *
* FidoNews = 1:1/23 *
* *
* Starting January 1993 email sent to the old address will not be *
* forwarded! You were warned! *
*********************************************************************/
For information, copyrights, article submissions, obtaining copies and
other boring but important details, please refer to the end of this
file.
Table of Contents
1. EDITORIAL ..................................................... 1
Editorial: Retry, Ignore, Abort ............................... 1
2. ARTICLES ...................................................... 3
Akron BBS trial update: Dangerous precedents .................. 3
The nodelist flags ............................................ 6
Voting for Users? ............................................. 19
My fourth mistake ............................................. 19
Hypocrites? In Fidonet? ....................................... 20
History summation for Front Door *.HIS files .................. 21
Announcing the PowerBASIC Echo! (POWER_BASIC) ................. 22
3. FIDONEWS INFORMATION .......................................... 23
FidoNews 9-51 Page 1 21 Dec 1992
======================================================================
EDITORIAL
======================================================================
Editorial: Retry, Ignore, Abort
by Tom Jennings (1:1/23)
Wow! Only two more weeks, and I'll pull the plug on godd old 1:1/1 in
favor of the new 1:1/23. (See, I just got another echotoss to "1:1/1"
plugging up my netmail area. They came as netmail messages...) Ring
in the new year!
And also note the next FidoNews volumne will be FNEWSAxx.NWS, where xx
is the issue Number 1 - 52, and A the volume. The current volume is 9;
this is year 9 of FidoNews, the next will be A and not 10 because I
said so. Well, OK. Because 10 won't fit in the filename (FNEWS1001.NWS
would be too long), and most importantly, I want to preserve the
FidoNews naming FORMAT more than our perceived need of arithmetic
continuity. (FidoNews volume names are searched as TEXT STRINGS rather
than NUMBERS; A filename search using DOSisms for the string
"FNEWS???.NWS" will continue to match FidoNews, new and old.)
There's more rumblings about the nodelist flags. I'm personally glad
for it. It's worth spending effor on cleaning up. It's really amzing
to me, how reliable and well pruned it is. If you were to add up
every possible incorrect, unused, misspelled, extraneous etc flag,
and removed them all, the nodelist wouldn't shrink much. It's just
not that much dead weight.
What it is though is incorrect information, which is more harmful.
Though let's keep things in perspective; an incorrect flag will not
kill anyone, though it will cause needless aggravation and occasional
extra cost.
Thanks to everyone putting effort into this! Just think about how
much dreck could be cleaned up if every sysop in the nodelist would
take a look at their entry and update their flag(s) as needed. (It
would probably be best to use a text editor and look at the raw
nodelist file; many programs process the gunk "for you" and will
ignore things that don't make sense; that's how that lint collects in
the first place!)
Since I'm in pomposity mode, let me put my two cents in on this voting
business. Specifically having users of FidoNet systems vote as peers
to sysops.
FidoNews 9-51 Page 2 21 Dec 1992
Sorry, it's not the same. Though it seems very logical to have users
vote, logic will get you anywhere you want. The arguments re: sysops
buying all the hardware and paying the bills are obvious and specious
(and not strictly true for for-pay systems). The real issue is the
relationship itself. Users just don't have the same relationship to
sysops as sysops ahve to users; to the telco service providers; to the
law, both liability and obligation; and to other users.
Any sysop who doesn't consult very heavily with their users is a fool,
that much is obvious. But it's hardly mass-murder if "your" sysop
treats you like dirt. If you have enough hardware to call a BBS and
download files, you almost certainly have enough hardware and money to
run your own BBS. THAT is where the "democracy" comes in, in your
ability to communicate as a peer, not in controlling someone elses
trip (yes, even if they are an asshole).
Support yourself through your own actions, and don't rely on others
for everything.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 9-51 Page 3 21 Dec 1992
======================================================================
ARTICLES
======================================================================
Akron BBS trial update: Dangerous precedents in sysop prosecution
=================================================================
You may already know about the BBS 'sting' six months ago in Munroe
Falls, OH for "disseminating matter harmful to juveniles." Those
charges were dropped for lack of evidence. Now a trial date of
1/4/93 has been set after new felony charges were filed, although
the pretrial hearing revealed no proof that *any* illegal content
ever went out over the BBS, nor was *any* found on it.
For those unfamiliar with the case, here's a brief summary to date:
In May 1992 someone told Munroe Falls police they *thought* minors
could have been getting access to adult materials over the AKRON
ANOMALY BBS. Police began a 2-month investigation. They found a
small number of adult files in the non-adult area.
The sysop says he made a clerical error, causing those files to be
overlooked. Normally adult files were moved to a limited-access
area with proof of age required (i.e. photostat of a drivers
license).
Police had no proof that any minor had actually accessed those
files so police logged onto the BBS using a fictitious account,
started a download, and borrowed a 15-year old boy just long enough
to press the return key. The boy had no knowledge of what was going
on.
Police then obtained a search warrant and seized Lehrer's BBS
system. Eleven days later police arrested and charged sysop Mark
Lehrer with "disseminating matter harmful to juveniles," a
misdemeanor usually used on bookstore owners who sell the wrong
book to a minor. However, since the case involved a computer,
police added a *felony* charge of "possession of criminal tools"
(i.e. "one computer system").
Note that "criminal tool" statutes were originally intended for
specialized tools such as burglar's tools or hacking paraphenalia
used by criminal 'specialists'. The word "tool" implies deliberate
use to commit a crime, whereas the evidence shows (at most) an
oversight. This raises the Constitutional issue of equal protection
under the law (14'th Amendment). Why should a computer hobbyist be
charged with a felony when anyone else would be charged with a
misdemeanor?
At the pretrial hearing, the judge warned the prosecutor that
they'd need "a lot more evidence than this" to convict. However the
judge allowed the case to be referred to a Summit County grand
jury, though there was no proof the sysop had actually
"disseminated", or even intended to disseminate any adult material
"recklessly, with knowledge of its character or content", as the
statute requires. Indeed, the sysop had a long history of
*removing* such content from the non-adult area whenever he became
FidoNews 9-51 Page 4 21 Dec 1992
aware of it. This came out at the hearing.
The prosecution then went on a fishing expedition. According to the
Cleveland Plain Dealer (7/21/92)
"[Police chief] Stahl said computer experts with the Ohio
Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation are reviewing
the hundreds of computer files seized from Lehrer's home. Stahl
said it's possible that some of the games and movies are being
accessed in violation of copyright laws."
Obviously the police believe they have carte blanche to search
unrelated personal files, simply by lumping all the floppies and
files in with the computer as a "criminal tool." That raises
Constitutional issues of whether the search and seizure was legal.
That's a precedent which, if not challenged, has far-reaching
implications for *every* computer owner.
Also, BBS access was *not* sold for money, as the Cleveland Plain
Dealer reports. The BBS wasn't a business, but rather a free
community service, running on Lehrer's own computer, although extra
time on the system could be had for a donation to help offset some
of the operating costs. 98% of data on the BBS consists of
shareware programs, utilities, E-mail, etc.
The police chief also stated:
"I'm not saying it's obscene because I'm not getting into that
battle, but it's certainly not appropriate for kids, especially
without parental permission," Stahl said.
Note the police chief's admission that obscenity wasn't an issue at
the time the warrant was issued.
===================================================================
Here the case *radically* changes direction. The charges above were
dropped. However, while searching the 600 floppy disks seized along
with the BBS, police found five picture files they think *could* be
depictions of borderline underage women; although poor picture
quality makes it difficult to tell.
The sysop had *removed* these unsolicited files from the BBS hard
drive after a user uploaded them. However the sysop didn't think to
destroy the floppy disk backup, which was tossed into a cardboard
box with hundreds of others. This backup was made before he erased
the files off the hard drive.
The prosecution, lacking any other charges that would stick, is
using these several floppy disks to charge the sysop with two new
second-degree felonies, "Pandering Obscenity Involving A Minor",
and "Pandering Sexually Oriented Matter Involving A Minor" (i.e.
kiddie porn, prison sentence of up to 25 years).
FidoNews 9-51 Page 5 21 Dec 1992
The prosecution produced no evidence the files were ever
"pandered". There's no solid expert testimony that the pictures
depict minors. All they've got is the opinion of a local
pediatrician.
All five pictures have such poor resolution that there's no way to
tell for sure to what extent makeup or retouching was used. A
digitized image doesn't have the fine shadings or dot density of a
photograph, which means there's very little detail on which to base
an expert opinion. The digitization process also modifies and
distorts the image during compression.
------------------------------------------------------------------
The prosecutor offered to plea-bargain these charges down to mere
"possession" of child porn--a 4'th degree felony sex crime
punishable by one year in prison--to avoid a trial. Mark Lehrer
*refuses* to plead guilty to a sex crime, and rightfully so. Mark
Lehrer had discarded the images for which the City of Munroe Falls
*adamantly* demands "at least a felony conviction." This means the
first "pandering" case involving a BBS is going to trial in *one*
month, Jan 4th, in Akron, Ohio.
------------------------------------------------------------------
The child porn statutes named in the charges contain a special
exemption for libraries, as does the original "dissemination to
juveniles" statute (ORC # 2907.321 & 2). The exemption presumably
includes public and privately owned libraries available to the
public, and their disk collections. This protects library owners
when an adult item is misplaced or loaned to a minor. (i.e. 8 year
olds can rent R-rated movies from a public library).
Yet although this sysop was running a file library larger than a
small public library, he did not receive equal protection under the
law, as guaranteed by the 14'th Amendment. Neither will any other
BBS, if this becomes precedent. The 'library defense' was allowed
for large systems in Cubby versus CompuServe, based on a previous
obscenity case (Smith vs. California), in which the Supreme Court
ruled it generally unconstitutional to hold bookstore owners liable
for content, because that would place an undue burden on bookstores
to review every book they carry, thereby 'chilling' the
distribution of books and infringing the First Amendment.
If the sysop beats the bogus "pandering" charge, there's still
"possession", even though he was *totally unaware* of what was on
an old backup floppy, unsolicited in the first place, found unused
in a cardboard box. "Possession" does not require knowledge that
the person depicted is underage. The law presumes anyone in
possession of such files must be a pedophile. The framers of the
law never anticipated sysops, or that a sysop would routinely be
receiving over 10,000 files from over 1,000 users.
The case could set a far ranging statewide and nationwide
precedent, whether or not the sysop is innocent or guilty, since he
and his family might lack the funds to fight this--after battling
to get this far.
FidoNews 9-51 Page 6 21 Dec 1992
These kinds of issues are normally resolved in the higher courts--
and *need* to be resolved, lest this becomes commonplace anytime
the police or a prosecutor want to intimidate a BBS, snoop through
users' electronic mail, or "just appropriate someone's computer for
their own use."
You, the reader, probably know a sysop like Mark Lehrer. You and
your family have probably enjoyed the benefits of BBS'ing. You may
even have put one over on a busy sysop now and then.
In this case; the sysop is a sober and responsible college student,
studying computer science and working to put himself through
school. He kept his board a lot cleaner than could be reasonably
expected, so much so that the prosecution can find very little to
fault him for.
==================================================================
*Important* Please consider a small contribution to ensure a fair
trial and precedent, with standards of evidence upheld, so that
mere possession of a computer is not grounds for a witch hunt.
These issues must not be decided by the tactics of a 'war of
attrition'; *however far* in the court system this needs to go. For
this reason, an independent, legal defense trust fund has been set
up by concerned area computer users, CPA's, attorneys,etc.
Mark Lehrer First Amendment Legal Defense Fund
(or just: MLFALDF)
Lockbox No. 901287
Cleveland, OH 44190-1287
*All* unused defense funds go to the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, a nonprofit, 501c3 organization, to defend BBS's and
First Amendment rights.
Help get the word out. If you're not sure about all this, ask your
local sysops what this precedent could mean, who the EFF is--and
ask them to keep you informed of further developments in this case.
Please copy this file and send it to whoever may be interested.
This case *needs* to be watchdogged.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Please send any questions, ideas or comments directly to the sysop:
Mark Lehrer
CompuServe: 71756,2116 InterNet: 71756.2116@compuserve.com
Modem: (216) 688-6383 USPO: P.O. Box 275
Munroe Falls, OH 44262
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The nodelist flags.
===================
By: Nils Hammar
2:205/601@fidonet.org
4341@msg.abc.se
FidoNews 9-51 Page 7 21 Dec 1992
A while ago there was a discussion about which modem type that was the
most common in fidonet, and due to that I wrote a little program that
analyzed the nodelist regarding the most common flags (HST,V32,V32B)
and found out that V32B was the most growing flag. In the latest
nodelist I have (Nodelist 353/1992) V32B is now the biggest modem
standard with 7597 nodes covering this standard.
However, since there are a lot of flags in fidonet, I thought that it
would be funny to rewrite the program to analyze all flags. That was
my first mistake today!
When I ran the program the first time, it got stuck in Germany (the Z2
nodelist begins with Z2/R20 and germany is Z2/R24.) At this time, I
have allocated space for 40 flags. This was my second mistake.
However after rewriting the program so it supported 600 flags, I got
it up and running. This time it spat out a list for me with a lot of
flags. The total number of different lags was.... 335!!!
At that time I decided to write this article to spread the information
about what I have discovered, and this is probably my third mistake.
Why did I decide to write in FidoNews then? I write here, since this
is a medium that is spread to a lot of different nodes without being
too regional. I think that almost every region in the world receives
fidonews. And I think that it will be enough if only one or two in
each region reads this and forwards this information to the NC or RC
of that region. This would at least solve the problem with the
misspellings in the nodelist, which only are resulting in useless
flags. It is harder to catch up with the other flags that are
useless, but mostly harmless.
There are however more than 200 flags that are a complete waste of
space, and that isn't good.
If anyone would like to flame me for this, then do it! I think that
I'm in a flameproof mood today...
I also think that the ZC:s should see this as a hint to filter the
nodelist before exporting it.
I included the tail information from the Z2 nodelist as an appendix
for your information. The editor may remove it if it seems to be
useless.
Below comes the statistic information from the nodelist. Mostly useful
for the nodelist maintainers.
--------------------------
Coordinator flags.
==================
I feel that those flags are misused sometimes...
FidoNews 9-51 Page 8 21 Dec 1992
258 "UNEC" Wouldn't it be nice to use this for all NEC:s?
27 "NEC"
21 "UREC"
11 "UHUB" Is this really necessary? The first field is
the same thing...
7 "UNC" Huh? It seems to me that the NC usually holds
7 "NC" HOST position in the network, but this might
have some use in some networks.
1 "U_NEC" Why not "UNEC"?
1 "UZEC"
1 "HUB" See above...
Additional ZMH flags.
=====================
Not much to say about these flags.
19 "#02"
12 "!01!02"
12 "#18"
7 "#09"
6 "#00"
3 "!01"
3 "!02"
3 "#03#09"
3 "#08"
2 "#02#09"
2 "#04#09"
2 "#07"
2 "#2"
1 "!02!11"
1 "!09"
1 "#00#09"
1 "#00#12"
1 "#02#10"
1 "#03#10"
1 "#06#14"
1 "#07#09"
1 "#17#22"
1 "#23#11"
Speed flags.
============
13271 "9600"
4980 "2400"
40 "1200"
19 "300"
1 "4800"
Modem technical flags.
======================
FidoNews 9-51 Page 9 21 Dec 1992
9188 "V42B"
7597 "V32B"
5995 "HST"
3316 "V32"
1913 "MNP"
901 "V42"
656 "ZYX"
530 "V22"
404 "H14"
220 "CSP"
215 "V21"
214 "PEP"
116 "H16"
100 "H96"
22 "V23"
31 "V22B"
18 "V29"
16 "V33"
15 "UISDNB"
8 "MAX"
2 "UISDNA"
2 "ISDNB"
Mailer techincal flags.
=======================
15555 "CM"
11980 "XA"
3231 "XX"
1586 "MO"
380 "XW"
238 "LO"
222 "XR"
189 "XP"
185 "XC"
143 "XB"
51 "MN"
Failed modem technical flags.
=============================
A lot of mistypings in the nodelist!
16 "V32BIS"
9 "V42BIS"
8 "MNP5"
4 "V3B2"
5 "42B"
3 "V32V"
3 "32B"
2 "V3B"
2 "V42V"
FidoNews 9-51 Page 10 21 Dec 1992
2 "V43B"
2 "UHST168"
2 "H168"
2 " V42B"
2 "FAX"
2 "UFAX"
1 " V32B"
1 "LAPM"
1 "V.32"
1 "V32:MO"
1 "V32B.MNP"
1 "V32MNP"
1 "V4"
1 "V422B"
1 "V42B."
1 "V42B1"
1 "V42B;"
1 "V42B;X"
1 "V42BMO"
1 "V42V42B"
1 "X42B"
1 "MNP.CM"
1 "MNP.MO"
1 "MNP.MO.LO"
1 "16K8"
1 "HST/DS"
1 "HST168"
1 "4V2"
Failed mailer technical flags.
==============================
More mistypings.
5 "U" What?
3 "XM" Isn't specified in the nodelist documentation.
(See below)
2 " XX"
1 "CM.MO"
1 "CM.XA"
1 "CM;"
1 "MO.XX"
1 "MO:"
1 "XA.CM"
1 "XU"
1 "XX CM"
Time flags in military format.
==============================
Wouldn't it be nice to use this format only, and let it be according
to GMT. I can't tell which timezone node 1:234/576 is in...
FidoNews 9-51 Page 11 21 Dec 1992
1 "0000-1800"
1 "0200-0300"
1 "1800-0700"
1 "1600-0900"
Different known and unknown time formats.
=========================================
1 "12AM-12PM"
1 "8PM-8AM"
1 "DA:00-08"
1 "DA:02-06"
1 "DA:20-24"
1 "DA5P-8A"
1 "U000-0300"
1 "U10PM-5PM"
1 "U23-06"
2 "U08-11GMT"
Gateways to other nets & other network information.
===================================================
Seems like it's time to work with this.
62 "GUUCP"
13 "UGAY"
2 "UGIFNET"
2 "UGUUCP"
1 "DVNET"
1 "GINTLNET"
1 "UUCP"
1 "WINNET"
1 "OS2NET"
Operating system flags. (Totally uninteresting.)
================================================
I don't care if the BBS is running under OS/2, VM/CMS or anything
else.
1 "OS/2"
1 "OS2"
1 "UOS2"
Serial numbers of some sort. (Why this in the nodelist????)
===========================================================
Who needs this? I don't need it. I think that if a program
requires this information, it's something very wrong with it.
2 "UPN1024"
2 "UPN13000"
2 "PN:1036"
2 "PN:30197"
FidoNews 9-51 Page 12 21 Dec 1992
1 "PN1037"
1 "PN1099"
1 "PN30044"
1 "PN30073"
1 "PN30114"
1 "PN30134"
1 "PN30152"
1 "PN30178"
1 "PN30223"
1 "PN30245"
1 "PN30311"
1 "PN30318"
1 "PN30416"
1 "PN30425"
1 "PN30467"
1 "PN30491"
1 "PN30730"
1 "PN9191"
1 "PN:1016"
1 "PN:1064"
1 "PN:1083"
1 "PN:22000"
1 "PN:30157"
1 "PN:30222"
1 "PN:30367"
1 "PN:30655"
1 "UPN1009"
1 "UPN1011"
1 "UPN1015"
1 "UPN1090"
1 "UPN12500"
1 "UPN1720"
1 "UPN2001"
1 "UPN2400"
1 "UPN25200"
1 "UPN27554"
1 "UPN28322"
1 "UPN3000"
1 "UPN30010"
1 "UPN30043"
1 "UPN30061"
1 "UPN30081"
1 "UPN30089"
1 "UPN30185"
1 "UPN30192"
1 "UPN30193"
1 "UPN30219"
1 "UPN30220"
1 "UPN30243"
1 "UPN30258"
1 "UPN30278"
FidoNews 9-51 Page 13 21 Dec 1992
1 "UPN30288"
1 "UPN30296"
1 "UPN30297"
1 "UPN30301"
1 "UPN30312"
1 "UPN30324"
1 "UPN30438"
1 "UPN30444"
1 "UPN30497"
1 "UPN30517"
1 "UPN30522"
1 "UPN30626"
1 "UPN30648"
1 "UPN30674"
1 "UPN30697"
1 "UPN30731"
1 "UPN30746"
1 "UPN30761"
1 "UPN30769"
1 "UPN30880"
1 "UPN30903"
1 "UPN30912"
1 "UPN31492"
1 "UPN32508"
1 "UPN6212"
1 "UPN7222"
1 "UPN:1003"
1 "UPN:30039"
1 "UPN:30109"
1 "UPN:30368"
1 "UPN:30371"
1 "UPN:30497"
1 "UPN:30803"
SDS/SDN/PDN etc.
================
How many programs are using this info?
55 "SDS"
50 "SDN"
40 "PDN"
36 "DDS"
33 "DVN"
14 "GSDS"
2 "UDSDS"
2 "UWDN"
5 "UFDN"
7 "UMDN"
8 "UCDN"
17 "UPDN"
34 "UGSDS"
FidoNews 9-51 Page 14 21 Dec 1992
36 "UDVN"
38 "UDDS"
65 "USDN"
94 "USDS"
Various flags that makes no sense.
==================================
This flags make no sense to me, but some of those flags may be classed
in another cathegory.
1 "ADA"
1 "ADS"
1 "APOGEE"
1 "ASP"
1 "BEZY"
1 "CL"
1 "DBSOFT"
1 "DFN"
1 "DV"
1 "FDN"
1 "HAM"
1 "MOD"
1 "NABW"
1 "PODS"
1 "RA"
1 "RAD"
1 "RE"
1 "REC"
1 "RSMH"
1 "SCN"
1 "TDS"
1 "UAFDN"
1 "UANS"
1 "UASA"
1 "UASP"
1 "UBMA-24HR"
1 "UCAD"
1 "UDDLG"
1 "UDVM"
1 "UELC"
1 "UENC"
1 "UFTDN:1"
1 "UGTI"
1 "UICDM"
1 "UIDC"
1 "UISA:2066"
1 "UJVAS"
1 "UML"
1 "UMSDN"
1 "UMWS"
1 "UNI"
FidoNews 9-51 Page 15 21 Dec 1992
1 "UNPC"
1 "UNSMH"
1 "URSMH"
1 "USAN"
1 "USDSZC"
1 "UT"
1 "UTDN"
1 "UUTN"
1 "UZIP"
1 "U_DVN"
1 "W18C"
1 "WNT"
1 "XXXX"
1 "XYZ"
1 "ZXY"
2 "CA"
2 "DS"
2 "DTP"
2 "ENC"
2 "HDN"
2 "LEDS"
2 "MDN"
2 "PGP"
2 "TL"
2 "UHEC"
2 "ULNX"
2 "UPODS"
2 "USDSRC"
2 "UTFDN:1"
2 "WDN"
3 "HEC"
3 "LAN"
3 "UANI"
3 "UMOD"
3 "WE24"
4 "CDN"
4 "TDN"
5 "CLN"
5 "UPGP"
5 "UWIN"
6 "K12"
10 "UUTL"
16 "UTL"
19 "WIN"
29 "UK12"
--------------------------
Appendix.
Contents from the nodelist in Z2.
=================================
(I cut it down a little to save space.
Any modifications that I made is marked with an exclamation mark
in the beginning of the modified line.)
FidoNews 9-51 Page 16 21 Dec 1992
The following flags define special operating conditions:
Flag Meaning
CM Node accepts mail 24 hours a day
MO Node does not accept human callers
LO Node accepts calls Only from Listed
FidoNet addresses
The following flags define modem capabilities supported:
Flag Meaning
V21 CCITT V21 300 bps full duplex
V22 CCITT V22 1200 bps full duplex
V29 CCITT V29 9600 bps half duplex
V32 CCITT V32 9600 bps full duplex
V32B CCITT V32bis 14400 bps full duplex
V33 CCITT V33
V34 CCITT V34
V42 LAP-M error correction w/fallback to MNP 1-4
V42B LAP-M error correction w/fallback to MNP 1-5
MNP Microcom Networking Protocol error corr
H96 Hayes V9600
HST USR Courier HST
H14 USR Courier HST up to 14.4Kbps
H16 USR Courier HST up to 16.8Kbps
MAX Microcom AX/96xx series
PEP Packet Ensemble Protocol
CSP Compucom Speedmodem
ZYX Zyxel (implies V.32Bis & V.42Bis)
NOTE: Many V22 modems also support Bell 212A.
! MN No ARCMail 0.6 compression supported
The following software is qualified to use the
appropriate file request flag:
|---------------------------------------|
| File Req Flag Software Package |
|---------------------------------------|
| XA Frontdoor <1.99b |
| Frontdoor 2.01+ |
| Dutchie 2.90c |
| Binkleyterm >2.1 |
| D'Bridge <1.3 |
| TIMS |
|---------------------------------------|
FidoNews 9-51 Page 17 21 Dec 1992
| XB Binkleyterm 2.0 |
| Dutchie 2.90b |
|---------------------------------------|
| XC Opus 1.1 |
|---------------------------------------|
| XP Seadog |
|---------------------------------------|
| XR Opus 1.03 |
|---------------------------------------|
| XW Fido >12M |
| Tabby |
|---------------------------------------|
| XX D'Bridge 1.30 |
| Frontdoor 1.99b |
| InterMail 2.01 |
|---------------------------------------|
| None QMM |
|---------------------------------------|
The following flag defines gateways to other domains (networks).
Flag Meaning
Gx..x Gateway to domain 'x..x', where 'x..x` is a string
of alphanumeric characters. Valid values for 'x..x'
are assigned by the FidoNet International
Coordinator. This flag is not authorized for use by
any node unless specifically authorized by the IC or
FidoNet Inter-Network Coordinator. Registered
domain gateways include:
uucp to be used only by nodes in a list of
authorized fidonet.org sites available at
1:1/31.
Flag Meaning
#01 Zone 5 mail hour (01:00 - 02:00 UTC)
#02 Zone 2 mail hour (02:30 - 03:30 UTC)
#08 Zone 4 mail hour (08:00 - 09:00 UTC)
#09 Zone 1 mail hour (09:00 - 10:00 UTC)
#18 Zone 3 mail hour (18:00 - 19:00 UTC)
#20 Zone 6 mail hour (20:00 - 21:00 UTC)
Field Meaning
! Ux..x A user-specified string.
FidoNews 9-51 Page 18 21 Dec 1992
This field may not be used, in zone 2, without ZC2
authorisation.
Zone 2 authorised 'user' flags:-
EchoMail Coordination:
ZEC Zone EchoMail Coordinator. Not more than one entry
in the zone 2 segment may carry this flag and that must
be the current Zone EchoMail Coordinator.
REC Regional EchoMail Coordinator. Not more than one
entry in any region may carry this flag and that must
be the current Regional EchoMail Coordinator.
NEC Network EchoMail coordinator. Not more than one entry
in any net may carry this flag and that must be the
current Network EchoMail Coordinator of that Net. This
flag will be authorised by the relevant Regional EchoMail
Coordinator.
Note: Redundant AKAs used to indicate EchoMail
Coordination functions are no longer permitted.
ISDN connected nodes:
ISDNA 19200 N 8 1, CCITT V.110/ECMA 102, Hayes compatible,
ISDN only
ISDNB 38400 N 8 1, CCITT V.110/ECMA 102, Hayes compatible,
ISDN only
ISDNC 64000, ISDN Common API, german specific, ISDN only
Technical restrictions:
CCITT V.110 is a Modem emulation with implementation of connect
requests via Hayes command set or V.25.bis. As the Hayes AT command
set is used on analog connections, it is recommended for use on ISDN
connections as well.
ISDN Common API is (at this moment) a German specific interface. It is
under discussion by the CCITT and ETSI for international
standardization.
For ALL 3 flags, the following restrictions apply:
ONLY nodes with the SAME FLAG may CONNECT with each other. This is
due to the fact that under ISDN, auto-baud detect is not possible and
CAPI applications currently cannot connect using V.110 modem
emulation.
FidoNews 9-51 Page 19 21 Dec 1992
Nodes using these flags should use a modem "speed" of 300 baud. This
is due to limitations imposed by nodelist processing software.
nodelist entries would look (perhaps) like this:
,34,Deti's_BBS,Dortmund,Detlef_Koester,99-999-1234567,300,UISDNA
,34,Deti's_BBS,Dortmund,Detlef_Koester,99-999-2345678,300,UISDNB
,34,Deti's_BBS,Dortmund,Detlef_Koester,99-999-3456789,300,UISDNC
----------------------------------------------------------------------
by Richard Ratledge
Sysop Madman BBS (1:119/88)
Through all of the concern about the "unfair" election process in
Fidonet I have heard nothing about letting the users of the individual
systems vote. It is as though everyone believes that the smallest
unit in Fidonet is the Sysop and that users do not count. I propose
that everyone who uses the net be allowed to vote!
How difficult can it be to model our little network after a democratic
model in which everyone registers and then votes? I can certainly see
an argument to exclude users from voting. Many will say that users do
not have the financial or emotional involvement that the average sysop
has tied up in her/his system. This is a valid argument, but I have
users who contribute to my costs and if given the opportunity would
probably like to participate in an election.
The requirement of pre-registering before voting would help shake out
those who are concerned from those who do not care. At least then no
one could say they did not have the opportunity to vote.
But no, this is too complicated and us sysops would never be able to
put together anything as technical as a democratic voting mechanism.
We all like the "Good Ol' Boy Network." Right?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
My fourth mistake.
==================
By: Nils Hammar
2:205/601@fidonet.org
4341@msg.abc.se
FidoNews 9-51 Page 20 21 Dec 1992
If somebody did read the issue of FidoNews Week 50, they probably saw
another article on the theme "nodelist flags". And I assure you that I
didn't have one idea about that until after I sent my article. I
didn't got hold on the fidonews file until a few hours after I wrote
and sent my article.
It must have been the mental waves that spread around the world that
made me writing such an article.
However, this isn't the first time in history that two different
people are inventing the same thing. This has happened before.
The problem in that case is that there would only be one patent, and
that would render the other person in a painful situation.
But to all of you from me here in the snow of Sweden I wish you a
merry cristmas!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
By Mike Catchpole of 1:267/113.15
Hypocrites? In Fidonet?
Over the past weeks we've seen the zone one sysops talk on these pages
about the ZC <> RC circle, with one picking the other and vice versa, as
well as complaints about the exclusion of anyone who does not now, or
never did, hold the slot of RC, from selection. Well, they do have a
point. For some reason, of the 12,315 nodes in zone one, only the RC's
will be voting. And the sysops are complaining.
Now, those exact same sysops are currently debating policy 5. Making a
conservative estimate of 15 users per system, this document will effect
more than 271,000 USERS, as well as the 18,106 sysops that are debating
it. Now, the logic of these sysops is that their 6.6% is uniquely
qualified to talk about policy, and that the thoughts, opinions, and
anyone who isn't in their little club should not be allowed to even
present his opinion for consideration. In other words, they want to
go with their first impulse and not think at all about how their
decisions will affect the other 93.4% of the people who will be affected
by this policy.
I think this is hypocrisy at it's highest. After getting done yelling
about the "Home Boy's Email Club" ( RC <> ZC power pool ), they switch
conferences and start "The Home Boy's Email Alliance." (Policy5)
For example...
FidoNews 9-51 Page 21 21 Dec 1992
From: Ira Davis 1:375/44
TO : Mike Catchpole
> until you do become a
> member of Fidonet, you really don't have any rights
> to be voicing your opinions
> about policy that will affect me.
Even though the policy will affect me, as a user, as well as every other
user. But even though it affects us we aren't allowed to voice our
opinion. Nazi Germany worked on these lines.
The way I see it, one of two things will happen. First, it is possible
that the sysops will end up making policy 5 work, despite
their insistence on ignoring 93.4% of the persons to be affected by it.
More likely, however, policy 5 will end up just like policy 4 - made by
a tiny group of people, not well thought out, and ignored totally
by some nodes.
Why is it that one part of fidonet never listens to any other? The ZC
is picked by the RC's, who were appointed by the ZC. The sysops ignore
the users wishes. Mind you, I'm not saying they should do exactly what
the users want, but they don't even want to listen to what the users
have to say!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fredric L. Rice, The Skeptic Tank, Geldora, CA
FidoNet 1:102/890.0 (818) 914-9551
If you ever wanted something to do with those INBOUND.HIS and
INBOUND.HIS files that your Front Door system maintains, here is a
utility wihch will perform two things.
history inbound.his /sum Gets a summary of all systems
which have called your system
within the duration of your
history file. Counts how many
times each system has called
your system and gives percent.
history inbound.his /list Gives a list of all systems
which have ever called your
system.
history inbound.his /list /sum Does both.
You can replace 'inbound.his' with 'outbound.his' to see who you call.
----
FidoNews 9-51 Page 22 21 Dec 1992
Sample bit of my inbound history.
----
There are 209 records from 07/Jun/94 to 13/Dec/92
75 different network addresses were found
-=-
1:103/355 [Star Tech Diamond Bar] [Diamond Bar, CA] [44 times] (21.05%)
1:271/207 [The Sysabend BBS] [Gloucester VA] [21 times] (10.05%)
1:102/753 [Edo's BBS * A New Experience] [Los Angeles, CA] [3 times]
(1.44%)
1:102/128 [Ursa Major BBS] [Manhattan Beach, CA USA] [6 times] (2.87%)
1:157/603 [The Incontrovertible Point] [Akron, OH] [2 times]
1:19/141 [Void Where Prohibited] [Ada, OK, USA] [1 time]
----
File: HISTORY.LZH, 20997 bytes. Source code and make files included.
FidoNet 1:102/890.0 (818) 914-9551
Packet: kc6efh@wb6ymh.#socal.usa.ca
Internet: fredric.rice@f102.n890.z1.fidonet.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------
by Eddie Rowe of 1:380/14@fidonet
Announcing the PowerBASIC Echo! (POWER_BASIC)
Looking for a place to rub elbows with fellow PowerBASIC programmers
to exchange creative ideas and source code? Well come on over to the
POWER_BASIC echo and enjoy the company of individuals fond of one
of the most powerful and well supported BASIC compilers around!
Not only is the echo a friendly place to learn how to best harness
the power of PowerBASIC, but is also frequented by Spectra Publishing
Technical Support! (Note: PowerBASIC is formerly TurboBASIC)
Links into the POWER_BASIC echo are available from 1:380/14@fidonet
at v.32bis speeds and extend to any Fidonet Technology Domain. The
echo will hopefully be migrating towards the Backbone with the help
and support of PowerBASIC users. Additionally callers may use my
BBS's QWK mail door to access the echo (callback validation is
required) or callers can be supported as 4D Points if necessary.
PowerBASIC is BASICally Better!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews 9-51 Page 23 21 Dec 1992
======================================================================
FIDONEWS INFORMATION
======================================================================
------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION ----------------
Editors: Tom Jennings, Tim Pozar
Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell, Vince Perriello
IMPORTANT NOTE: The FidoNet address of the FidoNews BBS has been
changed!!! Please make a note of this.
"FidoNews" BBS
FidoNet 1:1/23 <---- NEW ADDRESS!!!!
Internet fidonews@fidosw.fidonet.org
BBS +1-415-863-2739, 300/1200/2400/16800/V.32bis/Zyxel
(Postal Service mailing address) (have extreme patience)
FidoNews
c/o World Power Systems <---- don't forget this
Box 77731
San Francisco
CA 94107 USA
Published weekly by and for the members of the FidoNet international
amateur electronic mail system. It is a compilation of individual
articles contributed by their authors or their authorized agents. The
contribution of articles to this compilation does not diminish the
rights of the authors. Opinions expressed in these articles are those
of the authors and not necessarily those of FidoNews.
Authors retain copyright on individual works; otherwise FidoNews is
copyright 1992 Tom Jennings. All rights reserved. Duplication and/or
distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use in
other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or FidoNews
(we're easy).
The following is the PGP 2.x public key block for the FidoNews public
key, key ID "FidoNews <fidonews@fidonews.fidonet.org, 1:1/23>", also
requestable from the FidoNews BBS as FREQ magicname PGPKEY. You may
use this key to send secure, private mail to FidoNews.
-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
Version: 2.0
mQBNAisr3pQAAAECALs5/VWQ3LqdIWUO+iBUJGA1gg/jNAcRAJs/C08DufkCOVx2
Ba3PJGjdV+iWOzYshauX6/MAMrciFQZGl+9lnK8ABRG0MEZpZG9OZXdzIDxmaWRv
bmV3c0BmaWRvbmV3cy5maWRvbmV0Lm9yZywgMToxLzIzPokAVQIFECsr3unNP+0u
9SVxFwEBjOYCAJdmn8sCuwAFJfiyV7l1BwN/NwAM4UvpWecw7oLjD3FcVNyAzMX6
bEKV+cxGy8/mI/5uoSIzvWJlBNXDyXIr43Q=
=xRpS
-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
FidoNews 9-51 Page 24 21 Dec 1992
OBTAINING COPIES: The-most-recent-issue-ONLY of FidoNews in electronic
form may be obtained from the FidoNews BBS via manual download or
Wazoo FileRequest, or from various sites in the FidoNet and Internet.
PRINTED COPIES may be obtained from Fido Software for $10.00US each
PostPaid First Class within North America, or $13.00US elsewhere,
mailed Air Mail. (US funds drawn upon a US bank only.)
BACK ISSUES: Available from FidoNet nodes 1:102/138, 1:216/21,
1:125/1212, 1:107/519.1 (and probably others), via filerequest or
download (consult a recent nodelist for phone numbers).
A very nice index to the Tables of Contents to all FidoNews volumes
can be filerequested from 1:396/1. The name(s) to request are
FNEWSxTC.ZIP, where 'x' is the volume number; 1=1984, 2=1985...
through 8=1991.
INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via FTP from ftp.ieee.org, in
directory ~ftp/pub/fidonet/fidonews. If you have questions regarding
FidoNet, please direct them to deitch@gisatl.fidonet.org, not the
FidoNews BBS. (Be kind and patient; David Deitch is generously
volunteering to handle FidoNet/Internet questions.)
SUBMISSIONS: You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
FidoNews. Article submission requirements are contained in the file
ARTSPEC.DOC, available from the FidoNews BBS, or Wazoo filerequestable
from 1:1/23 as file "ARTSPEC.DOC". Please read it.
"Fido", "FidoNet" and the dog-with-diskette are U.S. registered
trademarks of Tom Jennings, Box 77731, San Francisco CA 94107, USA and
are used with permission.
Asked what he thought of Western civilization,
M.K. Gandhi said, "I think it would be an excellent idea".
-- END
----------------------------------------------------------------------
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