512 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
512 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
F I D O N E W S -- Vol.13 No.19 (06-May-1996)
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+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
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| A newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 Published by: |
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| FidoNet BBS community | "FidoNews" BBS |
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| _ | +1-519-570-4176 |
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| / \ | |
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| /|oo \ | |
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| (_| /_) | |
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| _`@/_ \ _ | |
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| | | \ \\ | Editors: |
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| | (*) | \ )) | Donald Tees 1:221/192 |
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| |__U__| / \// | |
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| _//|| _\ / | |
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| (_/(_|(____/ | |
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| (jm) | Newspapers should have no friends. |
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| | -- JOSEPH PULITZER |
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+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
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| Submission address: editors 1:1/23 |
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+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
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| For information, copyrights, article submissions, |
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| obtaining copies of fidonews or the internet gateway faq |
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| please refer to the end of this file. |
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+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
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========================================================================
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Table of Contents
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========================================================================
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1. Editorial..................................................... 1
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2. Articles...................................................... 2
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A_THEIST Echo on Zone 1 Backbone!........................... 2
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HOLYSMOKE Echo is available on the Zone 1 Backbone!......... 3
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Once again, there are no articles in the inbound............ 3
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Fidonet will not die unless we let it!...................... 5
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End of FidoNet or zone 1 problems?.......................... 6
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3. Fidonews Information.......................................... 9
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========================================================================
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Editorial
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========================================================================
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 2 06 May 1996
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I have one application for the position of snooze editor.
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Following the procedure of Tom Jennings, I will combine them
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into a text file available for freq as the applications come
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in, and make an announcement in 6-8 weeks. I will keep people
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informed in these editorials.
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There are several good articles from Europe in today's issue,
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and a European editor might well be in order. I would also be
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interested in any ideas on changes that may be appropriate at
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this time. For example, perhaps we should have an editor in
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each zone, and alternate editorials.
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========================================================================
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Articles
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========================================================================
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A_THEIST Echo on Zone 1 Backbone!
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Christopher Baker
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Rights On! 1:374/14
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A_THEIST Echo Available
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A_theism means free of religion in the way a_political means
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free of politics or a_sexual means free of sex
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characteristics or drives.
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With that in mind and ever cognizant of the continued
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pressure of religion to intrude itself into our government
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and its operations, the A_THEIST Echo is provided to inform
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and alarm and hopefully wake up the sleeping and too long
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silent majority to the peril on our doorstep.
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It is a Zone 1 Backbone Echo Hosted and Moderated by Rights
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On! at 1:374/14 and Christopher Baker [card carrying member of
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American Atheists, Inc.] and by Jackson Harding at 3:800/857
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in Hawthorndene_SA_Australia. Links may be obtained from your
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local Backbone source connection. Zone 3 is being Hubbed
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through 3:800/857.
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The Echo is open to anyone who can discuss, without
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proselytizing, the extreme desirability of maintaining the
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absolute separation of State and church in this country as
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provided for in our Constitution.
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A sample of the first few messages and the statement of
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purpose of the Echo is available as A_THEIST.ZIP from this
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system anytime except 0100-0130 ET and Zone 1 ZMH [USR HST
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V32 online] if you wish to get an idea of whether to commit
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disk space to the Echo.
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It has been on the Backbone for years. Ask your Backbone
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connection to get it for you! The complete info is available
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in the current ELISTnnn.XXX file available from your NEC or
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REC or here. [Request ELIST.]
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 3 06 May 1996
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I hope you will join us or ask your Sysop to request a link
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via their regular Backbone connections!
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TTFN.
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Chris
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
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HOLYSMOKE Echo is available on the Zone 1 Backbone!
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Styx Allum
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Out in the Styx, 1:152/20
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HOLYSMOKE Echo is ready and waiting!
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HOLYSMOKE is a Backbone Echo that originally sprang forth
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from Out in the Styx of Oregon. It is carried on the
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Zone 1 Backbone and sent into Zones 2, 3, and 6.
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HOLYSMOKE is Moderated by Styx Allum on 1:152/20.
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If any of you or your Sysops are interested in obtaining
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this Echo, you or they should contact their regular,
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Backbone Echo source! HOLYSMOKE has appeared in FIDONET.NA
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[now BACKBONE.NA] since 26 Jul 92.
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HOLYSMOKE is an Echo for debating the merits/demerits of
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religions of all kinds in a friendly but contentious way.
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It is open to anyone who cares to argue or cajole without
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proselytizing or personal attacks. Wear your NOMEX undies!
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The Echo is now fully activated and waiting for those with
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an interest in fire or brimstone or a bucket of cold water.
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The complete rules are posted regularly in the Echo and are
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available in the current ELRUL archive published at 1:1/201.
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Come and join us in the great debate!
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Styx Allum, Host & Moderator
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1:152/20
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
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Once again, there are no articles in the inbound.
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From: Frank Ellermann (2:240/5815.1)
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That's very sad, and the fourth time since december, if
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I recall this correctly. But I guess you should know
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that the snooze has many fans here in zone 2. There are
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at least 3 systems here in Z2, where all back issues
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from the beginning are available, not counting your
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ex libris or Marge Robbins' system in Z1.
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Many new nodes and points like me have nearly no other
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source than these back issues, to understand something
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about FidoNet's history. And therefore we need it.
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 4 06 May 1996
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Our policy is far from what I want it to be, but I
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believe literally in its following statement:
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FidoNews and the node lists are the glue that holds us
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together. Without them, we cease to be a community, and
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become just another random collection of bulletin boards.
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I hope that someone notices the little joke behind this
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quotation (?)
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> I think, perhaps, that the writer of a few weeks back
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> was correct. I think that perhaps I should resign this
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> post.
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I think that perhaps you should wait a year, because our
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net has now reached a critical point, it will change soon
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or it will slowly die. Till now from your point of view
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it looks like dying, but maybe you're missing the first
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beginnings of a new start here in Z2.
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Just a few facts, the most important event for FidoNet
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was the release of Binkley 2.60 some weeks ago, I guess
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that many developpers are already busy to improve it.
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BTW, Vince sat on your chair for several years, and he
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had also to publish some very thin or sad FidoNews...
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Then in Z2 we have now an approved user flag ENC, which
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finally allows for an easy arrangement of "secure" mail
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routing - no big deal, but something happens, the net
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is still alive. One of your predecessors (TJ :-) has
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written several editorials on PGP, and now 5 years
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later our coords allow to promote it actively in Fido,
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just have a look in the Z2 nodelist segment. Mentioning
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Tom, there have been at least two issues, where he has
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published interesting Fido-historical stuff and nothing
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else - apparently this situation of having no articles
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is not so new.
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And last but not least in my region 2:24 we now have a
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democratic regional policy compliant with P4, it only
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needs an IC's approvement to be fully in force. Maybe
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you don't know it, R2:24 is about 10 to 20 percent of
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FidoNet, Fido is still quite popular here and in some
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other regions of Z2. I hope that Pablo will like it,
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changing P4 from within its limitations is a kind of
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catch 22.
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I guess (and hope) that the next twelve months in Fido
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will become quite interesting... like 1989, but this
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time with a good end. It's still possible. So if you
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quit now, you might regret it later, just wait a year.
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> I would welcome letters suggesting a new editor.
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 5 06 May 1996
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Just in case that there is absolutely no chance to
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get you continuing your job, there is a node in R2:24,
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who had already everything repared for a german clone
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of FidoNews, i.e. he has set up your software and is
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is willing to take over, if you are completely sure,
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that you want to quit.
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It's your decision. Managing the snooze from R2:24
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could be quite difficult, I guess, and writing
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english is nothing we're particular good in here...
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(kind of a threat... the snooze to the krauts, is it
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this you really want ? :-)
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Anyway, if you're desperately decided to quit this
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editor job, than Ralf Mahler 2:2433/433 is your man.
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Bye for now, Frank
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P.S.: If issue 19 would be empty again otherwise,
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feel free to publish this mail as "letter to the
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editor" ... of course I did not follow any ARTSPEC
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considerations, deliberately, because I still hope
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that you made up your mind and want to stay.
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonet will not die unless we let it!
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From: Martin Noreke(1:201/40)
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"Fidonet is dying!"
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This seems to be the most common article in fidonews recently. I wish
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to disagree, as it will only die if we let it. I am an active part in
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2 zones, and can see a strong difference in how they work.
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A comparison based on my experiences of Zone1 and Zone2 yeilds the
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following in regards to mail flow:
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In sweden (Zone2, Region20) netmail travels the same path as
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echomail. This is done through "host" systems, usually the NC
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himself. The NEC then keeps track of the administratic process, while
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the NC keeps mail running (not a hard task if you have a stable
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system), and also keeps up with NC duties such as nodelist. The
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effect of this cooperation results in a netmail turnaround within
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Zone2, of 2-3 days to get a reply if out of region, and 1 day if in
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Sweden.
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In Zone1, of which I only have a few months experince, netmail
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travels a seperate path, through the *C structure, while echomail
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travels through the *EC structure. Why? *C:s as I have understood it,
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do not poll as often as *EC:s do, resulting in echomail being faster
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than netmail. Echomail usually has a 2 day turnaround, to go from
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net-backbone-net as I have experienced before. This results in a 4
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day responce time. Considering that netmail is *slower* than
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echomail, is it correct to be calling the postal service "snail
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 6 06 May 1996
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mail"??? To boot, lots of systems in Zone1 don't even offer netmail
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to their users, resulting in a no win situation. How are users
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expected to keep on topic, if they can't use netmail to take OT
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discussions out of echos? Snailmail? Sorry, they don't have netmail
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access.
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If we are to compete with the Internet, we have to use it to our
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advantage, or at least be able to offer a better speed of service
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than that which is currently available.
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With all the fidonet systems currently hooked up to the internet, it
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should be simple for one of them to be set up as a backbone. Any net
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could then get an internet account, and send the mail cheaply
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straight to the backbone system. This would result in faster, cheaper
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mail, as well as making netmail what it could be. There should be no
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charge involved for the nets wishing to get mail through the
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internet, except the cost of the account. I motivate this with the
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fact that so many have fixed lines already, many of them for free or
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already payed for by their BBS service, that we should be able to
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find a volunteer. Considering how widespread the Internet is, it
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doesn't even have to be a Zone1 system.
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In fact, N?C:s could poll the "international backbone" straight off,
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giving all nets an equall opertunity for fast, speady mail. R?C:s
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could care for regional mail, such as national conferences for
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countries outside the US.
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The sky is the limit on how far we can take this. We caould in fact
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"rape" the Internet so far, that Fidonet would regain it's position
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as a force to be reconned with, when it comes to friendly mail, and a
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way to meet new people.
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I poll Sweden just to keep in touch, and meet new people, since Zone1
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mail is to slow for me. My Zone1 nodenumber (PVT), is mearly due to
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the fact that I redistribute swedish mail to other nodes. If this was
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not done, I would mearly be an "international point".
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Scary thought, isn't it?
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Well, thats all from me for this time, and I hope I wasn't to
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incoherent for you to follow along with me.
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/ Martin Noreke 1:201/40
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2:201/293.16
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
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End of FidoNet or zone 1 problems?
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Or are the states the center of the universe?
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by Werner Gottwald 2:2480/13.152
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- Sorry to tell you but I can't stand these laments of the end of the
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FidoNet anymore. I'm only a point in R24 and I see the amount of users
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growing in Germany. So where is the problem?
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 7 06 May 1996
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I had a look at some nodelists of this year. And I found some
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interesting things I like to tell you.
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First I looked at the different regions. Here you can see the zone 1.
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Nodelist | Zone | Reg. | Nets | Nodes
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-------------+-------+------+-------+-------
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NODELIST.068 | 1 | 10 | 436 | 16245
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NODELIST.082 | 1 | 10 | 433 | 16125
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NODELIST.103 | 1 | 10 | 433 | 15821
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NODELIST.110 | 1 | 10 | 432 | 15685
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NODELIST.117 | 1 | 10 | 434 | 15583
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NODELIST.124 | 1 | 10 | 434 | 15504
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It's true, zone 1 is shrinking. Less nets and 741 nodes left FidoNet.
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Zone 3 (Australia) shrinked a little bit, nearly 60 nodes less within a
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quarter of a year.
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In zone 4, 5 and 6 I found stagnation, nearly nothing changed.
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So there must be about 810 nodes less in the last quarter of the year.
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Let's make a calculation. Nodelist.068 minus Nodelist.124.
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Nodelist | Zone | Reg. | Nets | Nodes
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-------------+-------+------+-------+-------
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NODELIST.068 | | 74 | 813 | 37174
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( NODELIST.082 | | 74 | 809 | 36799 )
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( NODELIST.103 | | 74 | 814 | 37010 )
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( NODELIST.110 | | 74 | 815 | 36809 )
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( NODELIST.117 | | 74 | 815 | 36591 )
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NODELIST.124 | | 74 | 818 | 36592
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-------------+-------+------+-------+-------
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+ 5 - 582
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There should be a decrease of 810 nodes! What's up with zone 2?
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Should there be a growth?
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Nodelist | Zone | Reg. | Nets | Nodes
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-------------+-------+------+-------+-------
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NODELIST.068 | 2 | 34 | 264 | 17584
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NODELIST.082 | 2 | 34 | 264 | 17710
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NODELIST.103 | 2 | 34 | 268 | 17862
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NODELIST.110 | 2 | 34 | 269 | 17824
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NODELIST.117 | 2 | 34 | 270 | 17808
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NODELIST.124 | 2 | 34 | 270 | 17817
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The number of nets grows! Even the amount of nodes rose. Why are there
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233 nodes more than three months ago?
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It has been necessary to look at the regions. And I found stagnation
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in a lot of european countries. In some there are only a few nodes less.
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Where to find the growth? Russia and the eastern countries are growing.
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And they will grow. They found a way of independent communication. Now
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 8 06 May 1996
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they can get informations direct from people who don't belong to the
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government or write for them in newspapers. But they aren't well
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supplied. With the rising amount of computers in the eastern countries,
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the number of nodes will rise.
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In R24(Germany) there has been a astonishing increase of nearly 100
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nodes. Actually there are 7351 nodes. It seems to be a special western
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country.
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Here are also some big internet-provider like Compuserve and AOL, and
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the maybe unknown EOL (europe online) and T-Online (german Telekom)
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and a lot of small providers. So it would be easy to surf around in
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the www. And the mails will be faster and so on.
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What's so special?
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We have still a telecommunication monopol. The german telekom can
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(nearly) ask the charge they want to. So 10 hours online in i-net will
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cost you about 90$ (US) a month (provider + telkom charge).
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That's one reason.
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The second reason is the speed of our datahighways. Last year I tested
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AOL. The slow speed of the datahighway (what a joke) has been boring.
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I was waiting all the time till I saw some uninteresting pictures or
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texts. There will be some datahighways in germany next years, then it
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will be interesting. Now I don't like to spend money for waiting only.
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Third reason is the quality of the conferences. If you want to meet a
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lot of twits or see no mails ...
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These are some reasons FidoNet don't shrink in Germany.
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At the beginning of the year, the nodes of R24 voted for a Region
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Policy (it's still not acknowledged) and we work on a RegionEchomail
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Policy. Our new REC will do his best to force it. This gave some of
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the newbees a kick to stay in FidoNet and a few will be new nodes in
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future.
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I heard, users have to pay for netmail in the states. I can't believe
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it. I'm point, mustn't pay anything for being one nor sending/receiving
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netmail, I can give a contribution to my boss. Additionally my boss
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gave me an Internet-address for free (and not only me, he has about
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160 Points), so I can receive and write emails. The most of his users
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don't use this service. If someone will use it extensionally, he know
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what his boss must pay and will pay his own bill. Nobody likes to cheat
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a kind person he knows.
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Is it right american users are leaving the FidoNet cause they must pay
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being a user in FidoNet? And they pay only a little more for better
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oportunities in i-net? - Could be a point to think about.
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read you in FidoNet
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Werner
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FidoNews 13-19 Page: 9 06 May 1996
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========================================================================
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Fidonews Information
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========================================================================
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------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION ----------------
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Editor: Donald Tees
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Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
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Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar
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Tom Jennings, Sylvia Maxwell
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"FidoNews" BBS
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FidoNet 1:1/23
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BBS +1-519-570-4176, 300/1200/2400/14400/V.32bis/HST(DS)
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more addresses:
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Don -- 1:221/192, don@exlibris.tdkcs.waterloo.on.ca
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(Postal Service mailing address)
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FidoNews
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154 Victoria St. S.
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Kitchener, Ontario
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Canada
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N2H 2b5
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voice: (519) 570-4899
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Fidonews is published weekly by and for the members of the FIDONET
|
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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 1996 Donald Tees. All rights reserved. Duplication
|
||
and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use
|
||
in other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or the eds.
|
||
|
||
OBTAINING COPIES: The most recent issue 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 by sending SASE to the above paper-mail
|
||
address.
|
||
|
||
INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via FTP from ftp.fidonet.org,
|
||
in directory ~ftp/pub/fidonet/fidonews.
|
||
|
||
Anyone interested in getting a copy of the INTERNET GATEWAY FAQ may
|
||
freq GISFAQ.ZIP from 1:133/411.0, or send an internet message to
|
||
fidofaq@gisatl.fidonet.org. No message or text or subject is
|
||
necessary. The address is a keyword that will trigger the automated
|
||
response. People wishing to send inquiries directly to David Deitch
|
||
should now mail to fidonet@gisatl.fidonet.org rather than the
|
||
FidoNews 13-19 Page: 10 06 May 1996
|
||
|
||
previously listed address.
|
||
|
||
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.
|
||
|
||
' ' disgreement is actually necessary,
|
||
or we'd all have to get in fights
|
||
or semethin to amuse ourselves,,
|
||
and create the requisite chaos."
|
||
-Tom Jennings
|
||
-- END
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------
|
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