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F I D O N E W S -- Vol.11 No.22 (30-May-1994)
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| A newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 |
| FidoNet BBS community | Published by: |
| _ | |
| / \ | "FidoNews" BBS |
| /|oo \ | +1-519-570-4176 1:1/23 |
| (_| /_) | |
| _`@/_ \ _ | Editors: |
| | | \ \\ | Sylvia Maxwell 1:221/194 |
| | (*) | \ )) | Donald Tees 1:221/192 |
| |__U__| / \// | Tim Pozar 1:125/555 |
| _//|| _\ / | |
| (_/(_|(____/ | |
| (jm) | Newspapers should have no friends. |
| | -- JOSEPH PULITZER |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Submission address: editors 1:1/23 |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Internet addresses: |
| |
| Sylvia -- max@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca |
| Donald -- donald@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca |
| Tim -- pozar@kumr.lns.com |
| Both Don & Sylvia (submission address) |
| editor@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 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..................................................... 2
2. Articles...................................................... 2
BOP(rocedures version 1.05) - NOTICE OF VOTE................ 2
Proposal for shrinking the nodelist......................... 4
Eeek! They're after me!.................................... 4
Practice Random Kindness & Senseless Acts of Beauty......... 6
AIRGUN Echo Enters Zone 2!.................................. 8
NEW Handyman Echo!.......................................... 8
GRAPHICAL_BBS............................................... 9
MooseChat: Canada's Noblest Chat Echo!...................... 10
FidoNews.................................................... 11
Dear Madam Emilia........................................... 12
HACK - Hackers on Planet Earth!............................. 13
POLICING THE NEW MEDIA --................................... 15
3. Fidonews Information.......................................... 22
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 2 30 May 1994
========================================================================
Editorial
========================================================================
The hotly debated BOP5 is coming up for a vote! This should be
interesting.
The fidonet node# for Paradox where BBS-PR15.zip can be found is
1:3822/1. BBS-PR15.zip is the Public Relations for Sysops file
which is being re-written as indicated in our last snooze.
Some of you have expressed concern that FidoNews is being
over-run by internet stuff. Personally, i don't see it that
way. Lots of FidoNet people are internet users. Some
"internet" issues, especially legal issues relating to privacy,
encryption, and censorship are also FidoNet issues. Lots of
legal and political systems have not yet developed methods for
applying definitions of things like "press bans" to computer net
communications, so our response to fledgeling interactions
between nets and social institutions wanting to cope with us are
important. It might be nice if legal systems would continue to
ignore BBS's, but they won't.
Sometimes FidoNet users send articles with only their
internet-style address attatched. I wish articles would be
submitted with writers' Fidonet addresses attached where
applicable, so FidoNetters can easily respond to writers.
For any lovers of small fuzzies, Squish the cat is awaiting her
new pussy playmate, to be named "Puppy". Puppy is only small
and very cute. Sure, it is perverse to name a kitten "puppy".
Oh well.
========================================================================
Articles
========================================================================
BOP(rocedures version 1.05) - NOTICE OF VOTE
by Adrian Walker
1:153/752
==============
NOTICE OF VOTE
==============
During March and April 1994, a draft revision of Backbone Operating
Procedures (BOP) was prepared, and named version 1.05.
On 6 May 1994, BOP_105.ARC was distributed in the BACKBONE files area,
and discussion initiated amongst the RECs, and in the ZEC echo.
Several amendments were included as a result of these discussions.
The current revision on which the votes are being cast is BOP_105.015,
dated 14 May 1994, again distributed as BOP_105.ARC in the BACKBONE
files area.
Paragraph 6 of the current Backbone Operating Procedure (BOP_103.TXT
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 3 30 May 1994
dated 14 October 1991) details the revision process as follows:
6.0 Changes to this Document
=============================
A change to this document may be proposed by any REC. Anyone
else desiring to propose a change should find a REC who is
willing to sponsor their proposal.
If a second REC concurs with a proposal, the proposed change is
voted on by all of the RECs. Notice of such a vote is posted
both in the REC conference and in FidoNews, at least 14 days
prior to the start of the voting period. The RECs are expected
to assess the opinions of the members of their regions, and to
vote accordingly.
The voting period is 7 days. More than 50 percent of those
voting must vote for a change for it to be accepted.
On 9 May, it was moved by Adrian Walker (REC 17 - 1:153/752), that the
proposed revision be put forward for voting by the RECs of Zone 1. On
the same day, this motion was seconded by Bruce Bodger (REC 19 -
1:170/400).
As a result, the proposed change must now be voted on by all the Zone
1 RECs. This notice of vote is also being posted in the REC echo.
A VOTE OF ALL ZONE 1 REGIONAL ECHOMAIL COORDINATORS WILL BE HELD
STARTING ON WEDNESDAY 15 JUNE 1994 AT 0000 UTC, AND
ENDING ON 22 JUNE 1994 AT 0000 UTC.
Votes will be cast by echomail message in the REC echo, by each of the
Region Echomail Coordinators of Zone 1 as listed in the 1:1/21x
entries of NODELIST.161 (10 June 1994) with "YES" or "NO" to the
following statement:
"I APPROVE OF THE REVISIONS TO BACKBONE OPERATING PROCEDURES
AS SHOWN IN BOP_105.015, DATED 14 MAY 1994"
---OOO000OOO---
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 4 30 May 1994
Proposal for shrinking the nodelist
By Coridon Henshaw of 1:250/820
After reading the articals in the previous Fidonews on the size of the
nodelist and network stagnation, I decided to make a futile jesture by
attempting to do something about it.
The nodelist.126 is 2.6 megs in size. Come on people, that's utterly
rediculus! What's even worse is the fact that a good portion of the
wasted space in the 'list is inaproprate usage of flags.
I prepose that all the standard flags be replaced with a small set of
system condition and modem type flags.
Modem flags:
2400 bps capability is implied by any high-speed flags.
96S Generic V32/V42B modem; no extra protocols
96H HST 9.6K + v32 + v42b
96C CompuCom 9.6K
14S Generic V32B/V42B modem; no extra protocols
14H HST 14.4K + HST 9.6K + v32B + v42b
16H HST 16.8K + HST 14.4K + v32b + v42b
16Z ZyXEL 16.8K + v32b + v42b
19H HST 19.2 + HST 16.8 + v32b + v42b
19Z ZyXEL 19.2K + ZyXEL 16.8K + v32b + v42b
28T V.32Terbo + v32b + v42b
28TH V.32Terbo + v32b + v42b + All HST protocols
28TZ V.32Terbo + v32b + v42b + All ZyXEL protocols
FS V.fast + v32b + v42b
FH V.fast + v32b + v42b + All HST protocols
FZ V.fast + v32b + v42b + All ZyXEL protocols
System flags:
NCM System does not accept mail 24 hours a day
H00001111 System oprating hours (UTC/GMT) 0000 = start, 1111=end
L Listed nodes only
M Mail only
XA-XX [Maintains current meaning]
Uxxx [Banned]
Sure, this would break almost all software that uses the nodelist that
was ever writen, but IMO, the net has been sitting still for way to
long.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Eeek! They're after me!
Love and war in Fidoland
by Gary Gilmore
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 5 30 May 1994
FidoNet 1:2410/10 & 1:2410/400
Well, I see someone has noticed the new proposed BOP. (Backbone
Operating Proceedures) Someone named Steve Winter.
Oh, why do I care? This is a person whos global despise has reached
almost mythical preportions. Heck, I've even seen a tagline "Barney is
to television what Steve Winter is to Fidonet!". Anyways...
Winter raves on about "a handful of power freaks" that he seems to
think have the sole purpose of tearing his grip from his bible (hate)
echo, and cause mankind to spiral wildly down the slide to hell.
What is this ungodly power that these hellspawn "power freaks" want? To
quote from the BOP5 draft:
5) When such an excessive number of complaints about the conference
or its Moderator are received by the RBCs that a majority of them
vote to remove the conference from the Backbone.
This is a bad idea? I can think of two moderators in fidonet that
really -do- fit the "echo-nazi" description. I won't name them, but
the initials SW and BG come to mind. "Iron-fisted" would be a kind
description.
I first ran into Mr. Winter on the old (old, old, old) PC Pursuit BBS,
about 1984. We'd come to a collective agreement that all BBS ads there
would be limited to one screenful. After many repeated "War &
Peace"-sized ads for his system, I made a comment. The reply from him
was that I was going to hell, I was a sinner, a homosexual, etc, etc.
The usual rantings that many have endured from him. (My wife would be
really surprised to hear I'm gay. Maybe I'm a lesbian in a mans' body?
Praise Allah that Steve set me straight.)
I can recall that Mr. Winter even attacked someone on the Binkley team.
He didn't agree with them about their lifestyle (maybe they were gay,
who knows, who cares), and proceeded to tell them that they should give
up their program to someone "more decent". Gosh. What a good
christian.
I think the need for this proposed rule is clear. People like that,
that run echos in the manner he does, NEED to be controlled.
Why should -I-, as an NEC, have to carry the burden of shipping his
world-wide message of hate and intolorance. Why should I help pass
around echos where the slightest infraction (real or imagined) are
dealt with like a judge in an Iranian courtroom. (Cut off his hands!)
Why should people be treated like that?
I'm one of the moderators of GUITAR, a backbone echo. We don't need to
beat people with endless warnings. We don't quote our entire rule file
in response to every infraction. (Thereby adding twice the bloat to
the echo.)
Sure, every moderator has his/her own style. Diplomacy is a major
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 6 30 May 1994
requirement to deal with the human race, and many moderators either
learn that, or turn into "echo-nazis". Too bad. I'm glad that Fido
has realized the need to "tame" those that get out of hand.
After all, Fidonet belongs to all of US. If that collective "US"
doesn't like the way you operate, perhaps "US" shouldn't have to tote
the spew around the world for you. I support the addition to BOP, with
limits. (It should take a damn big amount of complaints before any
action can be taken, fr'instance.)
Could it be that the real reason this rule scares Winter so much is
that he knows it'd take about 28 seconds for Fidonet to have an amazing
number of complaints about him?
His immense contempt for even the users of his echo shows in his
writing. For instance: (Sorry, pardon the quotes)
> I've watched as a handful of false christians tried to steal my
> echo, [...] they stole their echo name from my echo [...] sleazed
> it onto the backbone [...] how many whiners they can get [...]
<sigh> Perhaps he should learn to "live and let live" first. Stop
attacking people "in the name of god!", and read his bible a little
closer. (Especially the parts about "Love thy neighbor", etc.)
Maybe the other moderators who have all the tact of Mussolini will also
learn to relax a little.
By and large, there's many great moderators in Fido. They know how to
stem the tide of garbage without you even realizing it. Those guys get
my salute, and the knowledge that I "stole" my brand of moderation from
them. Thanks guys! You're the ones that make Fido fun.
-Gary
<gary@ack.mi.org>
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Practice Random Kindness & Senseless Acts of Beauty
From: Matt Ion (1:153/7040.106)
This anonymous article was taken from a computer network where
it had been mailed out to all subscribers. Then I got a photocopy and
now that I'm a mad modemmer, I'm reseeding the cycle.
--
It's a crisp winter day in San Francisco. A woman in a red
Honda, Christmas presents piled in the back, drives up to the Bay
Bridge toll booth. "I'm paying for myself, and for the six cars behind
me," she says with smile. One after another, the next six drivers
arrive at the toll booth, dollars in hand, only to be told, "Some lady
up ahead already paid your fare. Have a nice day."
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 7 30 May 1994
The woman in the Honda, it turned out had read something on an
index card taped to a friend's refrigerator: "Practice random kindness
and senseless acts of beauty." The phrase seemed to leap out at her and
she copied it down.
Judy Foreman spotted the same phrase spray-painted on a
warehouse wall a hundred miles from her home. When it stayed on her
mind for days, she gave up and drove all the way back to copy it down.
"I thought it was incredibly beautiful," she said, explaining why she's
taken to writing it at the bottom of all her letters, "like a message
from above."
Her husband, Frank, liked the phrase so much that he put it up
on the wall for his seventh graders, one of whom was the daughter of a
local columnist. The columnist put it in the paper, admitting that
though she liked it, she didn't know where it came from or what it
really meant.
Two days later, she heard from Anne Herbert. Tall, blonde and
forty, Herbert lives in Marin, one of the country's ten richest
counties, where she house-sits, takes odd jobs and gets by. It was in
a Sausalito restaurant that Herbert jotted the phrase down on a paper
place mat, after turning it around in her mind for days. "That's
wonderful!" said a man sitting nearby, and he copied it down carefully
on his own place mat.
"Here's the idea," Herbert says. "Anything you think there
should be more of, do it randomly." Her own fantasies include: 1)
breaking into depressing-looking schools to paint the classrooms, 2)
leaving hot meals on kitchen tables in the poor parts of town, 3)
slipping money into a proud old woman's purse. Says Herbert, "Kindness
can build on itself as much as violence can" Now the phrase is
spreading, on bumper stickers, on walls, at the bottom of letters and
business cards. And as it spreads, so does a vision of guerrilla
goodness.
In Portland, Oregon, a man might plunk a coin into a stranger's
meter just in time. In Patterson, New Jersey, a dozen people with
pails and mops and tulip bulbs might descend on a rundown house and
clean it from top to bottom while the frail elderly owners look on,
dazed and smiling. In Chicago, a teenage boy may be shovelling off the
driveway when the impulse strikes. What the hell, nobody's looking, he
thinks, and shovels the neighbor's driveway too.
It's positive anarchy, disorder, a sweet disturbance. A woman
in Boston writes "Merry Christmas" to the tellers on the backs of her
checks. A man in St. Louis, whose car has just been rear-ended by a
young woman, waves her away, saying, "It's just a scratch. Don't
worry."
Senseless acts of beauty spread: a man plants daffodils along
the road way, his shirt billowing in the breeze from passing cars. In
Seattle, a man appoints himself a one-man vigilante sanitation service
and roams the concrete hills collecting litter in a supermarket cart.
In Atlanta, a man scrubs graffiti from a green park bench.
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 8 30 May 1994
They say you can't smile without cheering yourself up a little
-- likewise, you can't commit a random act of kindness without feeling
as if your own troubles have been lightened if only because the world
has become a slightly better place.
And you can't be a recipient without feeling sa shock, a
pleasant jolt. If you were one of those rush-hour drivers who found
your bridge fare paid, who knows what you might have been inspired to
do for someone else later. Wave someone on in the intersection? Smile
at a tired clerk? Or something larger, greater? Like all revolutions,
guerrilla goodness begins slowly, with a single act. Let it be yours.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
AIRGUN Echo Enters Zone 2!
AIRGUN CROSSES THE ATLANTIC!!
_____________________________
AIRGUN, the FidoNet Computer Message Conference devoted to
all facets of Airguns and Airgunning, has now crossed the Atlantic
Ocean. AIRGUN originates on the AirPower Information Systems BBS
in Lansdowne, Pa. For the last two years, AIRGUN has been distributed
onhundreds of other Bulletin Board Systems throughout the U.S.A. and
Canada allowing airgunners virtual local phone call access to a
foruum where ideas may be exchanged and all airgun related topics
may be discussed.
Now, Jim Henry, system operator of AirPower Systems, (610)
259-2193, in cooperation with Andy Taylor, sysop of the Penske
BBS, of Kidderminster, U.K., 011-44-562-744858, announce successful
implementation of a plan to distribute AIRGUN across the Atlantic
Ocean and throughout the United Kingdom. The gateway system for
the AIRGUN feed will be the SIX FIVE 8's BBS, 011-44-273-688888
in Brighton, U.K., operated by Ralph Davey.-Ralph is Net Echo
Coordinator for his area and will distribute it to several systems
in his network, Net 441. From there it is fed to Net 253 and Andy
Taylor's Penske BBS. Andy and other well known British airgunners
are expected to be online soon.
To read or participate in the AIRGUN echo, log on to any
FidoNet BBS and inquire of the sysop if he carries AIRGUN, as do
several hundred other BBS systems. If your local BBS does not
carry AIRGUN, ask your sysop to please do so.
For more information, contact Jim Henry (U.S.A.) at 1:273/408
or Andy Taylor (U.K.) at 2:253/608.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
NEW Handyman Echo!
by Mike Griffin
Handyman and Woodworkers Echo
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 9 30 May 1994
Looking for a Woodworking Echo? Want to talk about that new power tool
you just bought? Wanna swap some ideas on woodworking projects and
crafts? Wanna talk about that deck you have been meaning to build? Need
some tips on electrical, plumbing or carpentry?
I am proud to announce the HANDYMAN echo available now!
The echo will consist of all topics including home repair, woodworking,
remodeling, plumbing, electrical, project design and planning, general
tips, powertools and anything related to the HANDYMAN. This is an
excellent place to swap those plans you drew up on the computer with
someone else who might have just what you're looking for. We will cover
from the smallest scroll saw cuts to building your dream home. Get tips
from people who work in these fields everyday. Share your knowledge
with the weekend do-it-yourselfer's.
If you would like to carry this echo please contact the following
person for feed info via NETMAIL. Dust off those tools and let's get
crankin'.
Contact:
Mike Griffin
1:106/5
The Unnecessary Habit BBS
Echotag: HANDYMAN
----------------------------------------------------------------------
GRAPHICAL_BBS
Drew Dunn 1:202/1804
I'm writing to let you know about a new echo that is originating from
my system here in San Diego, CA, USA.
There has been a procession of Graphical BBS's entering the online
world lately and, until now, nowhere for a sysop or prospective sysop
to turn to get the big picture of what was available. GRAPHICAL_BBS is
a new echo devoted to the discussion and temperate comparison of any
graphically based BBS software available. Whether it's RIP,
Roboboard/FX, Darkstar or any of the new graphical formats,
GRAPHICAL_BBS is the place to find support. Currently, several BBS
authors and distributors use this echo as a means of providing support
and information to their users.
GRAPHICAL_BBS is a place to get away from the flames and hype of single
minded BBS echos. Everyone is invited to pick up this echo from
1:202/1804. It's currently gated into Darknet, the Darkstar support
echo.
For more information, FREQ G_BBS.ZIP!
Thanks!
Drew
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 10 30 May 1994
postmaster@parafx.esnet.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------
MooseChat: Canada's Noblest Chat Echo!
Paul J. Henry, 1:221/279@fidonet
Greetings fellow Moose Lovers,
What is MooseChat? Well, it's the international chat echo for MooseNet.
What's MooseNet? Well, MooseNet is the FTN network dedicated to
Nature's Noblest creature<tm>, the Moose! MooseNet isn't very large
(yet!), so we use FidoNet to transfer the mail. If you've got a Fi-Doe
address, you can have a MooseChat Feed!
What will I find in MooseChat? If it has anything to do with the Moose,
Meese, Canadian humour, Canada, the Canadian Outback, or anything like
that, then it belongs in MooseChat. Oh, and if you just feel like being
silly, you can do that too! [lately we've been discussing delectable
swamp-moss recipes for the calorie-counting moose...]
Rumour has it that the likes of Saddam Hussein, and George Bush
(remember him?) frequent the echo. And just in case you're tempted to
bash a moose, remember that The Bit Police are always watching. So, if
you're a Bob & Doug fan, an Ordinary Canadian<tm>, or an American that
knows how to spell colour with a 'u', MooseChat is for you!
Said John Komooski:
JK>> I do enjoy MooseChat<tm>. It's every bit as light and fluffy as
JK>> Z1_ELECTION, yet with a healthy dose of ludicrous tossed in that
JK>> makes you lick your lips and go to the fridge for more.
Said MooseWeek:
'Our antlers were a'buzz with the excitement!'
Said BullWinkle J. Moose:
'Hey Rocky! Watch me pull an echofeed outta my hat!'
Don't hesitate! Drop into your local carrier of MooseChat, and have a
brew on us. Feeds and policy documents may be obtained from:
Paul Henry, 1:221/279.0, Westover ON
Bill Cassidy, 1:249/1.0, Kingston ON
Jim Whitelaw, 1:342/42.0 Edmonton AB
Vern Faulkner, 1:340/44, Victoria BC * new feed *
Jim Roberts, 1:266/25, Springside NJ * new feed *
MooseChat is also a Region12 echo, and is available from 1:12/12 (or any
connected NEC in Region12). There are 20 some-odd systems posting in
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 11 30 May 1994
the area presently, but there could be more! Don't be left out of what
could be the greatest innovation in Moose-consciousness since the Rocky
and Bullwinkle Show<tm>.
May the Great Moose be with you.
-= * =-
MooseNet, MooseChat, and "Antlers pointing across the Globe!", are
trademarks of Dave "Snuggleb*nnies" Slonosky & "Wild" Bill Cassidy.
Copyright(c) 1990. Used with permission.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
FidoNews
Robert Byrd 1:221/950
Well... it's not often that an issue of the Snooze causes me
to generate enough energy to actually sit down and write something
back, but issue 'b21' finally did it...
Madame Emilia pointed out, in a humorous and timely fashion,
some of the differences between FidoNet and InterNet, while at the
same time pointing out a basic truth... those people who have the real
power in FidoNet are those who quietly go about their tasks without
worrying about whether or not they have some fancy position or name to
go with it.
In our net, there are a great many fine people who make this
net run as smoothly as it does. Some of them have official positions,
and some do not. One of the people I respect quite a lot recently lost
an election in the net. But instead of going off to sulk in a corner,
or worse, start a 'flame-fluff-war', he did everything he could to
help the net continue to grow and work well.
It is because of people who work together that our net runs as
smoothly as it does. Mail flows in an organized fashion and usually
get where it is going without to many FidoBurps<tm>.
On to Italy then... Holy shit! I never would have believed
such a thing possible in a large country in this day and age! That
such a thing could happen makes me shiver right down to my keyboard.
While probably the most passive person I know, the thought of police
coming here to take my equipment away brings up thoughts that are too
disquieting to contemplate. I am sure I would react to such a thing in
less than an unpleasant way. Enough on this subject; it sickens my
heart to dwell on it.
And then... there is Steve Winter... while I think that most
people I know don't think much of Steve and are tired of listening to
him and his ideas, I think that he is correct to be alarmed this time.
Too much power in the hands of too few people is a scary idea.
Who the hell do these people think they are to say what can
and cannot be carried on the backbone?
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 12 30 May 1994
Echo mail is like any other medium in as much as the same
universal truth still holds true...
---> IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, DON'T LOOK AT IT! <--
Geezus... this is probably one of the few things in the known
universe that really get my dander up.
On the brighter side... I *loved* the article 'On the Subject
of Fluff'!
This is the kind of article that is a joy to read. Good
tongue-in-cheek humor is just what the Doctor prescribes to bring us
back to reality. I think there are far too many people that take life,
Fido and the rest of it all too seriously. To those people, I say...
relax, it's only life, and you'll never get out of it alive.
And finally... Brock Meeks. While I appreciate the fact that
Mr. Meeks is being sued, Tom really didn't tell us _exactly_ what for.
While I am mostly satisfied that Tom wouldn't lead us down the garden
path, I would still like to know what Mr. Meeks did that was bad
enough to be sued to libel for.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Madam Emilia
Q: There was an article in the last snooze about Brock Meeks, a
wire artist who competes with traditional press, who was busted for
libel, apparently. Should i wonder what he wrote to get himself
busted?
A: no.
Q: Hypothetically, why should a NEC have to carry backbone material
which offends her? For example, what if a rabid left-winger did
not want to carry a right-wing religious echo, even if it were on
the backbone? Should she complain?
A: Hypothetically, she shouldn't be a NEC unless she wants to help
get the mail around. NECs stick their own out. That's why we love
them.
Q: How do you get anything done while being so impractical? Sure,
you can be an idealist. You don't have to get any mail around.
If someone keeps sending me hate literature in net-mail, what
should i do?
A: Get a twit philtre and eliminate them.
Q: But.. why should I have to spend hours writing utilities just
so i don't have to read hate mail? If people repeatedly make
harassing telephone calls, the phone company will cut them off.
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 13 30 May 1994
Why can't i get their mail access cut?
A: hmmm. This is tough. How much do you value tolerance? If
someone attacks you, what can you do?
Q: Get a *BIG* gun.
A: I guess you're not writing from Canada, or you are a member of a
military or police organization, or you like hunting. What would
you do with that big gun?
Q: Rig it so it blew soap bubbles into their computer.
A: And what would that accomplish?
Q: It would get me more interesting hate mail.
A: That is not funny.
Q: <recoil, slow blood pressure in preparation for discorporation>
- - - o o o O O O o o o h - - -
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HACK - Hackers on Planet Earth!
_/_\_
|___|
|_|
(_)\ \./^\./
| \ \ !!!!!
\ \ | |
_______ \ \_.\./.___
| *****| \. __ \ _____
|***** *| | | | | * **|
________ | ******| ________| _|__ | |**** |
|........| |** ****| |::::::::| (_____/ __|___**|
|........| |***** | |.. ... | | |. . ..|*|
|........| | * *** | |.... . | | | .... | |______
|.. ... |_|* |======|_|======/ \|. .. .|*| ## # |
|..|^^^^^^|| *| # # | : :: | |..... |_|__ # #|
|..| /--\ ||* | ## # |:: : /""""""""""""\ .... | . .| # |
_____| | |##| || | @ | | ### | [] | ()|~~~|_____
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H A C K E R S O N P L A N E T E A R T H !
====================================================================
* T h e F i r s t U. S. H a c k e r C o n g r e s s *
Come together in the summer of 1994 to celebrate the hacker
world and the tenth anniversary of 2600 Magazine. We will have
speakers and demonstrations from around the globe, a collection
of films and rare videos on hacking, and our very own network
between all of us and the outside world!
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 14 30 May 1994
This is an opportunity to feel the real magic of hacking instead
of hearing about how we're about to destroy the world in some
cheap tabloid or on the news during sweeps week. Government
propaganda and corporate doublespeak have finally met their
match!
If you want to help put together this historic event, contact us
by telephone at (516) 751-2600, through the mail at H.O.P.E., PO
Box 848, Middle Island, NY 11953, on the Internet at
2600@well.sf.ca.us. We need ideas, people, technology, and karma.
H.O.P.E. - August 13th and 14th at the Hotel Pennsylvania, right
in the middle of bustling New York City (Seventh Avenue and 34th
Street, right across the street from Penn Station). We've rented
out the entire top floor (except for the mysterious NYNEX
office). Special rates of $99 a night are available from the
hotel (double rooms, four can probably fit easily). Cheaper
places are also available as is nearly anything else. This is
New York City, after all.
Admission to the conference is $20 for the entire weekend if you
preregister, $25 at the door, regardless of whether you stay for
two days or five minutes. We encourage you to bring a computer
so you can tie into our giant Ethernet and add to the fun. We
hope you try to hack root on the system we'll be running - all
attendees will get accounts with prizes for the penetrators.
Dancing and merchandising in the halls
Cellular phone workshop
Celebration of the Clipper Chip (not)
Hacker videos from all over the world
Surveillance demos
Hacker legends from around the globe
It's not Woodstock - It's The Future
Many more details are on the way.
Information sources:
2600 Magazine
The Hacker Quarterly
Summer 1994 edition
Off The Hook
Wednesdays, 10:00 pm
WBAI 99.5 FM
New York City
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 15 30 May 1994
2600 Voice BBS
516-473-2626
alt.2600
on the Internet
and random bits of text like this
----------------------------------------------------------------------
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
eye WEEKLY May 19 1994
Toronto's arts newspaper ...free every Thursday
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COVER STORY COVER STORY
POLICING THE NEW MEDIA --
INTERNET USERS HAVE THEIR LIBERTY THREATENED AS
LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES BLUNDER ABOUT TRYING (AND FAILING)
TO ENFORCE THE HOMOLKA PRESS BAN
by
K.K. CAMPBELL
Karla Homolka was sentenced to 12 years for manslaughter in the
deaths of two teenage girls. The ban on publishing details of
her trial was imposed to insure husband Paul Teale a fair trial.
But Teale's lawyer opposes the ban.
Homolka's trial has stopped being the story -- the story has
become the ban itself. There's been nothing new to report about
the trial for months, but the story keeps coming back because
_the ban_ keeps making headlines. Every time the ban causes a
magazine to be dramatically pulled from store shelves, every time
the ban causes cops to barge into a student's life with unfounded
allegations, every time a university censors or snoops out
private information, the Homolka case is dragged back into the
headlines.
Once there, details are rehashed and new ban-breaking potential
results. It's a vicious circle from which the attorney-general's
office is desperately trying to extricate itself. It's no
coincidence Teale's trial was suddenly moved forward.
Indeed, the attorney-general seems ready to let police operate
with a free hand against Ontarians -- as one university student
found out the hard way.
'ABDUL' SCREWS UP
It began with one of the all-time great gaffes in Internet
history. Late last Jan. 31, 21-year-old Toronto student "Abdul"
(not his real name) arrived home to his basement apartment from
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 16 30 May 1994
night classes. After a quick bite, he checked his Internet
account for e-mail.
To his delight, he found a copy of the revised Karla Homolka
computer file in his mailbox -- hot-off-the-CPU from a London,
Ont., university student. The file was due to be released the
next day to the infamous Internet newsgroup alt.fan.karla-
homolka. Abdul, the uncrowned prince of the Homolka-Internet
underground, got an advance copy.
The file contains a whack of rumors and grisly details about
Homolka's secrecy-shrouded quickie-trial last July. Internet
convention calls the computer file an "FAQ" -- a collection of
answers to "Frequently Asked Questions" about a topic. This
topic just happens to be the oh-so-controversial Homolka murder
trial and the ban surrounding it.
The Homolka FAQ is found wherever computers and Canadians
interact. It has undoubtedly been read by tens of thousands of
citizens to date.
But none of those readers know the identities of the authors,
underground computer activists -- only their mysterious aliases:
"Abdul, the Electronic Gordon Domm" (abdul@io.com), "Lt Starbuck"
(an54835@anon.penet.fi), and "Neal the Trial Ban-Breaker"
(an52708@anon.penet.fi).
By 2 a.m., after four hours online, Abdul is ready for sleep.
But not before he sends the new FAQ to Toronto's major news
outlets -- three daily papers and three TV stations. He has e-
mail addresses for each.
"I was trying to send the FAQ through an e-mail system in Finland
that lets the sender remain completely anonymous," Abdul now
recalls. "But it kept bouncing back to me unreceived." Eyes red,
Abdul finally decided to send the FAQ through a local fax
service. "I sent it, and went to bed. I didn't think anything
of it."
Major mistake: Abdul, perhaps overtired, instructed the fax
service to send a copy to the six media outlets -- as well as a
copy to Premier Bob Rae and another to Attorney-General Marion
Boyd.
Fatal mistake: Abdul left the real names of Lt Starbuck and
himself on the document.
Next morn, sleepy-eyed civil servants found the hefty document
awaiting them. The attorney-general's office refuses to comment
on its reaction, but suffice to say the shit began shunting
through government plumbing -- only to emerge three weeks later
directly on the head of Lt Starbuck at London's University of
Western Ontario.
BATTLE STARBUCK
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 17 30 May 1994
On Feb. 22, Starbuck, 25, came home from school to find a message
waiting: Western's computer and network security officer Reg
Quinton wanted him to call. Starbuck did. He was told his
Internet account was frozen. He was to meet with London police
the next day.
Police?! Mind racing, Starbuck hurried to his home computer. He
not only deleted anything remotely related to Homolka from his
hard drive but "shredded" it via Norton computer utilities. It
was an operation to make any politician proud.
(Though Starbuck is known to the university and OPP, he requests
eye not use his real name, but rather his alias "Lt. Starbuck" --
his favorite character from the TV show Battlestar Galactica.)
It seems the attorney-general had notified the OPP, who had
passed a copy of the FAQ with Starbuck's real name on it to
Detective Sergeant Sandy Wright of the London police. Wright
approached Quinton.
"I asked what the police wanted done," Quinton
(reggers@julian.uwo.ca) told eye. "They wanted the student's
account shut down and to meet with him in person. Fine." Quinton
called in colleague Dave Martin, who administrates Starbuck's
account. No warrant, no subpoena, no problem.
The next afternoon, Starbuck death-marched himself over to
Quinton's office in the Natural Science Centre. Quinton, Martin
and Wright awaited with grim faces.
"During the two-hour interrogation, the police showed me the
document Abdul sent the attorney-general," Starbuck recalls. "I
stared at it in disbelief, whispering to myself, 'Oh shit.' "
It was Game Over.
Worse still, the police seemed to think Starbuck himself had sent
it because of the way e-mail readers save mail. Not
understanding what they were looking at, authorities figured
Starbuck had faxed it to them, with his real name, in some moment
of stratospheric chutzpah.
Cornered and terrified, Starbuck vowed to tell everything --
including the real name of Abdul. Wright asked Starbuck to open
his Internet account. He complied -- nothing "incriminating"
there anyway, his strict policy was to keep no Homolka files in
school accounts. Wright said he'd have to inspect Starbuck's
home computer. Starbuck explained everything was gone, shredded,
but Wright insisted he had to see for himself. (Inexplicably, he
set that appointment for the next day -- he found nothing.)
WHY ME?
Wright informed Starbuck criminal charges still hung over his
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 18 30 May 1994
head. But as long as he stayed clear of Homolka-mongering and
remained cooperative, charges would probably not be laid.
On Feb. 28, Starbuck had his university account restored. For
the next three weeks, he forwarded incoming private e-mail from
Abdul to Quinton -- including a list of about 50 people who
received updates of the FAQ. There were five more Western
Internet addresses.
One was Wayne Smith (wlsmith@valve.heart.rri.uwo.ca). Smith
would publicly complain on Usenet about the whole Western-LPD
investigation: "What they are calling co-operation here is
intimidation. It's like the old police state mentality: if you
have nothing to hide, why won't you take this lie detector test
when we ask?"
Starbuck says intimidation was a factor. "I cooperated with
Quinton for weeks after the event for the sole reason that I was
very afraid I'd get charged if I didn't."
Back in Toronto, Abdul was blissfully ignorant of the events in
motion in London. He noticed Starbuck didn't seem to answer his
e-mail any more. Ironically, it was Wayne Smith's public post
just quoted above that alerted him to the momumental gaffe he'd
made. He quickly prepared for the police. After all, he was
far, far more active than Starbuck had ever been on his best day.
But the knock never came on Abdul's door.
Which still bewilders Starbuck. "There's no rhyme nor reason to
it at all. If they're cracking down, why aren't they cracking
down anywhere else? Why me? I just edited a computer file. I got
sucked into this whole stupid affair and really feel bruised and
battered by it."
Abdul believes Starbuck was targeted because Western computer
administrators were spineless: "When the police knocked on
Quinton's door, it's clear Quinton said, 'Come on in, guys!' "
Another source close to the case put it this way: "The LPD asked
Starbuck to bend over -- and Quinton applied the vaseline."
The police would definitely need a warrant to peek at Abdul's
home computer. And then the issue would erupt into the headlines
again.
CHARGED WITH POSSESSION
On March 28, Quinton wrote an "open letter" to the Internet
community --which he says was on the "recommendation of the local
police." This letter, apparently carrying police sanction, claims
mere possession of the FAQ is a crime.
"My understanding is the LPD (and OPP and others) are of the
opinion that... to be in possession of such material is to be in
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 19 30 May 1994
violation of the publication ban," Quinton wrote. And such a
breach could result in police getting a warrant and seizing
entire computer systems.
When eye called the LPD's Wright, he repeated this official line,
though without the same righteous passion Quinton seems imbued
with. Wright said the OPP told him possession of the file
constituted a breach of the ban. But OPP Detective Inspector
Frank Ryder told eye he doesn't know for certain. He only passes
information about possible breaches of the trial ban along to
local police departments. "It's their investigation, there is no
central OPP investigation," Ryder said.
So eye called the attorney-general. Spokeswoman Barbara Krever
said she couldn't comment on whether possession of the FAQ was a
breach of the ban.
In fact, the attorney-general has consistently refused to help
Ontarians understand exactly where the Internet fits within the
ban. People are left to operate in uncharted territory and law
enforcement authorities blunder about, unsure themselves.
Meanwhile university students have academic careers, if not their
very liberty, threatened.
Criminal lawyer Eddie Greenspan has gone on record saying he does
not believe the Internet's Homolka-infotrade breaches the ban.
He said accessing Internet files defeats the purpose of the ban
but doesn't break the ban. "I don't see anything criminally
wrong here," he told eye.
Greenspan notes the confusion stems from people thinking the ban
applies to details of the trial. The ban concerns publishing
that information. Simply cruising out on the Internet and
grabbing a copy of the Homolka FAQ is not a breach of the ban;
nor is holding it in a university computer account.
"If it comes between Greenspan and Boyd, Ontario's first non-
lawyer attorney-general, I'll take Eddie's opinion every time,"
Abdul says.
Abdul believes courts in the future are going to have to
specifically mention the Internet -- "or, if they clue in, they
will realize bans are obsolete, it's time to change the system to
reflect technology." But how many judges have ever confronted a
login? Do they understand the raw power of it? Do they understand
how it circumvents all censorious power structures?
Former Supreme Court judge William Estey said something similar
in an April 21 speech: bans in high-profile cases should cease
because they just don't work any more. Estey blamed the
proximity of the U.S. news media. The Internet compounds the
problem exponentially. He said jurors must be trusted to do
their jobs -- that is, be exposed to various information and not
let it affect their legal judgment.
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 20 30 May 1994
"The courts can't clamp information any more," Abdul says.
"Judge Kovacs stopped the mainstream press, but we aren't the
mainstream press -- we are the new media."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COVER STORY -- SIDEBAR 1 SIDEBAR 1 -- COVER STORY
UNIVERSITIES AND POLICE
by
K.K. CAMPBELL
University of Western Ontario's computer security officer Reg
Quinton told eye he isn't interested in discussing whether the
Homolka FAQ is legal or not -- if the police say it's illegal,
that's good enough for him.
But Ontario authorities, from the attorney-general on down, are
painfully confused about how Karla, the ban and the Internet
relate. Yet here we have Western's security officer saying quite
bluntly he doesn't care. He will cooperate with police for fear
his computers will be confiscated if he doesn't.
Quinton's open letter of March 28 addresses Western students: "If
you think the University is going to protect your 'right' to
break the law, you are sadly mistaken. The law applies here just
as much as elsewhere. You don't have a right to violate the
publication ban -- don't expect any sympathy or support if you
do."
Since no one knows how the law applies, Quinton's actually
saying: "If you think the University is going to protect you
against the police, regardless if they are right or wrong, you
are sadly mistaken."
Carl M. Kadie (kadie@hal.cs.uiuc.edu), founder of the Internet's
Computers and Academic Freedom newsletter, thinks Quinton's
position is dangerous -- though he understands university
computer staff confusion.
Computer administrators have no history of standing up to the
police or the state. Librarians, on the other hand, have decades
of precedent in demanding subpoenas and warrants when authority
comes calling. Computer administrators lack this training and
tradition.
Karen Adams, executive director of the Canadian Library
Association, told eye a librarian would probably have demanded a
warrant before revealing if Lt. Starbuck even had an account at a
library.
Kadie says that computer administrators desperately need to
develop similar ethics. "Just as a professional librarian would
have been less likely than the computer system administrators to
turn over personal information to the police, so professional
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 21 30 May 1994
reporters are less likely than students under the gun to disclose
sources to the authorities," Kadie told eye.
"The promise of the information superhighway is that we all
become librarians and reporters. The danger right now is most
people don't understand the responsibilities that come with their
new roles."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COVER STORY -- SIDEBAR 2 SIDEBAR 2 -- COVER STORY
KARLA AND THE BOYS
by
K.K. CAMPBELL
Lt. Starbuck remains extremely reluctant about dealing with
media. When contacted by eye, after his opening shock at having
been called at home, his reaction was to refuse an interview.
But he decided to talk only so the story isn't told exclusively
by "others."
"When I got caught with my pants down, my first worry was
criminal charges," he told eye. "My second worry was media
coverage, with myself being hailed as some sort of Martyr for
Free Speech. What was done to me may indeed be wrong and
illegal, but I have no interest in becoming a Gord Domm on the
Internet -- besides, Abdul already is and he's still very very
active."
Starbuck and Abdul have never spoke directly, only through e-
mail. Abdul sighs at Starbuck's unbridled hatred for him now.
"He has a point. And I've apologized many times. Every time I
write a public letter, I apologize again. I know I screwed up
and he's suffered."
"Abdul says it was an accident," Starbuck says. "I believe him.
I also believe he is an idiot."
Abdul is not Arabic, by the way -- he's Irish. He picked the
alias Abdul in honor of an underground comedy tape by a Hamilton
individual who used the named "Abdul" in making a series of crank
calls to unsuspecting people.
"I was searching for an alias when it struck me the Homolka FAQ
is like the Abdul tape -- passed around from person to person,
with absolutely no official distribution."
Abdul says his activism issues from more than prurient interest.
"At some point, someone has to test how Internet will operate in
Canada. If we force the issue onto the public agenda now, the
less chance do we have of the Internet being censored and
regulated out of existence."
His net address is abdul@io.com -- not to be confused with
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 22 30 May 1994
io.org, which is Toronto's Internex Online. Io.com is Illuminati
Online, in Austin, Texas. It's a game company that was raided by
the U.S. Secret Service in its over-zealous war with "hackers,"
so the company is very aware of the damage computer-illiterate
cops may cause in its computer bungling. Abdul was given an
operational base in Texas. Many people believe he's a Texan.
But he lives in Toronto and only works on a Texas computer.
Let's just wait for the legal system to grapple with that -- the
concept of where one "is" when in cyberspace.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Retransmit freely in cyberspace Author holds standard copyright
Full issue of eye available in archive at gopher.io.org or
ftp.io.org eye@io.org " Break the Gutenberg Lock..."
416-971-8421 -- Stanton McCandlish * mech@eff.org * Electronic
Frontier Found. OnlineActivist
FOR MORE INFO, E-MAIL TO: INFO@EFF.ORG
----------------------------------------------------------------------
========================================================================
Fidonews Information
========================================================================
------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION ----------------
Editors: Sylvia Maxwell, Donald Tees
Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar
Tom Jennings
"FidoNews" BBS
FidoNet 1:1/23
BBS +1-519-570-4176, 300/1200/2400/14400/V.32bis/HST(DS)
Internet addresses:
Don & Sylvia (submission address)
editor@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca
Sylvia -- max@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca
Donald -- donald@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca
Tim -- pozar@kumr.lns.com
(Postal Service mailing address)
FidoNews
128 Church St.
Kitchener, Ontario
Canada
N2H 2S4
Voice: (519) 570-3137
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
FidoNews 11-22 Page: 23 30 May 1994
of the authors and not necessarily those of FidoNews.
Authors retain copyright on individual works; otherwise FidoNews is
Copyright 1994 Sylvia Maxwell. 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).
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.)
INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via FTP from ftp.fidonet.org,
in directory ~ftp/pub/fidonet/fidonews. If you would like a FAQ, or
have questions regarding FidoNet, or UUCP<==>FidoNet gateways, please
direct them to David Deitch (1:133/411@fidonet) at
deitch@gisatl.fidonet.org.
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, 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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