2793 lines
126 KiB
Plaintext
2793 lines
126 KiB
Plaintext
F I D O N E W S -- Volume 13, Number 44 28 October 1996
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+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
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| The newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 Published by: |
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| FidoNet community | "FidoNews" |
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| _ | 1-904-409-7040 [1:1/23] |
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| / \ | |
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| /|oo \ | |
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| (_| /_) | |
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| _`@/_ \ _ | |
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| | | \ \\ | Editor: |
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| | (*) | \ )) | Christopher Baker 1:18/14 |
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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: FidoNews Editor 1:1/23 |
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+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
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| MORE addresses: |
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| |
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| submissions=> cbaker84@digital.net |
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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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SPECIAL HALLOWEEN ISSUE?
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Table of Contents
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1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1
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Submissions are picking up ............................... 1
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2. ARTICLES ................................................. 2
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ARTSPEC has been updated! ................................ 2
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A Short *.MSG Programming Tutorial [II] .................. 7
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Speaking of music echoes ................................. 14
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Rules, rules, rules ...................................... 15
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3. FIDONET HISTORY .......................................... 18
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When TBBS became Echomail capable ........................ 18
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4. COORDINATORS CORNER ...................................... 19
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Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 299 ...... 19
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5. NET HUMOR ................................................ 20
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Cybersaga song ........................................... 20
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FTSC Jokes ............................................... 20
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Do Geeks rule the Net? ................................... 23
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Are you an Internet addict? .............................. 26
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Are you addicted to the Net? ............................. 29
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6. COMIX IN ASCII ........................................... 31
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Hail hail the gangs all here? ............................ 31
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Comix from Chattanooga ................................... 31
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Come out come out wherever you are? ...................... 33
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Just in time for goblins? ................................ 34
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7. QUESTION OF THE WEEK ..................................... 36
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Would you send in a headline given the chance? ........... 36
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And more!
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FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 1 28 Oct 1996
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=================================================================
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EDITORIAL
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=================================================================
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We got a lot of .JOK and .CMX files this week. We also got a good
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response to last week's Question of the Week. Those responses have
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initiated the creation of a new section called Answers of the Week
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which appears in this Issue for the first time.
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Keep 'em coming! [grin]
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I have also updated ARTSPEC.DOC to include this new section
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FILENAME.TYP [.ANS] as well as adding an instruction to the message
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submission detail and correcting a couple other minor points. The
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update is included in this issue as the first article. It was also
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hatched out into SDS area SOFTDIST as ARTSPEC.ZIP and into the
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FIDONEWS file Echo as ARTSPEC.DOC along with this Issue of FidoNews.
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As always, it is also available on the FidoNews Webpage and by
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file-request to 1:1/23 [1:18/14] by filename or magicname of ARTSPEC.
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See the Masthead information at the end for addresses.
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Next week, I will begin publishing the FidoNet Technical Standards on
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a space-available basis. FTS-0001 is 65K so it will be most of next
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week's Issue. The others are much shorter and may appear in bunches.
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After all the FTSs have been published, the FSCs [standards
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proposals] will appear regularly. Another new section will be created
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for these publications to set them apart. Developers are welcome to
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submit their proposals for FidoNews publication using the filename
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extension of: .FTC .
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I'm still looking for some .BIO submissions from all you lurkers. You
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don't have to be famous or infamous to tell on yourself. Don't be shy.
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There aren't any ghost stories here to make this a Halloween Issue but
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we do have a Jack-o-Lantern courtesy of Dave Aronson. [grin]
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Boo!
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C.B.
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 2 28 Oct 1996
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=================================================================
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ARTICLES
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=================================================================
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[A few minor changes and adjustments and the addition of a new
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FILENAME.TYP] Ed.
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FidoNews Article Submission Guidelines
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FidoNet address 1:1/23
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Updated 27 Oct 1996 by Christopher Baker
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Updated 29 May 1991 by Tom Jennings
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Based on the original work by Thom Henderson
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| denotes a change since the last update |.
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"Fido" and "FidoNet" are registered trademarks of Tom Jennings,
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Box | 410923 |, San Francisco CA | 94141 |, USA and are used with
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permission.
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||
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--------
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SYNOPSIS:
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FidoNews is the newsletter of the FidoNet computer network, its
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Sysops and users. It is passed to its readers electronically via
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||
the FidoNet and other computer networks and to non-network
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readers as well.
|
||
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This document intends to tell you how to write and submit
|
||
articles for publication in FidoNews. Much of it describes the
|
||
technical specifications which an article must meet in order to
|
||
be included in the newsletter, as well as broad (very) guidelines
|
||
on content. (Of course you realize articles can be submitted only
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electronically.) Please read it carefully. The article you save
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||
might be your own.
|
||
|
||
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------------
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INTRODUCTION:
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FidoNews was originally founded in early 1984 to include all
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||
parts of the lives of its member Sysops and users, which of
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||
course means not just technical matters. We do not have fixed
|
||
goals of maximum distribution or maximum readership (i.e. lowest
|
||
common denominator) but only to meet the needs of our individual
|
||
network members. The success of this venture has always been
|
||
contentious at best (ahem).
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||
|
||
In any case the grand experiment continues. Twelve years later
|
||
(at this writing) and over 30,000 Nodes in the network, the
|
||
editorial policy, or lack of one, of FidoNews has shown to
|
||
best fit our ever-changing and unpredictable needs.
|
||
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 3 28 Oct 1996
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--------------
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SUBJECT MATTER:
|
||
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Articles on any subject of interest to FidoNet members and users
|
||
are welcome and encouraged, not necessarily of a technical
|
||
nature, though priority may be, but not necessarily, given to
|
||
articles of importance to the FidoNet, its technology and its
|
||
uses; other networks such as uucp and the Internet; social
|
||
aspects of communications; ethical issues; other related matters.
|
||
|
||
|
||
--------------
|
||
ARTICLE LENGTH:
|
||
|
||
Try to keep articles short. The longer it is, the less likely
|
||
people are to read it. Consider splitting long articles (more
|
||
than five pages) into smaller articles to be run serially.
|
||
Exceptions will be made at the whim of the editors.
|
||
|
||
For practical reasons, we will attempt to keep FidoNews to a
|
||
"reasonable size", which is of course a highly subjective and
|
||
variable thing. As of May 1991, the goal is under 100,000 bytes.
|
||
Decisions regarding content may be made based upon this, though
|
||
in general it shouldn't be an issue.
|
||
|
||
|
||
------------------
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||
WRITING GUIDELINES:
|
||
|
||
We are not all professional writers, nor is that even a goal for
|
||
the FidoNews -- we want real communication to and from real
|
||
people; even at the expense of so-called "good writing", which is
|
||
frequently a tool to exclude. There are a few minimum
|
||
requirements though for any successful writing, even for the
|
||
lowly FidoNews:
|
||
|
||
* The subject discussed must be clear to people other than the
|
||
author! Don't assume that people will pick up the context from
|
||
your writing. Tell them explicitly.
|
||
|
||
* Why are you writing this? It may seem obvious -- "Review of the
|
||
new Acme 75-baud Modem" -- but it's not. Are you the
|
||
manufacturer? An irate customer? Let us know your point of
|
||
view.
|
||
|
||
* Who are you? A good question! Anonymity is acceptable, though
|
||
most people want to take credit for their work. Include full
|
||
contact information including electronic mail addresses.
|
||
|
||
* Articles submitted via Netmail or email must contain all the
|
||
technically required lines and delimiters in the BODY of the
|
||
message. This includes the *[title] line and the 70 character
|
||
width requirement. | To indicate the filename type for one of
|
||
these message submissions, place the FILENAME.TYP in the Subj:
|
||
line of your email, Netmail, or Echomail |. Those that require
|
||
extra editing may be delayed from appearing in FidoNews.
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 4 28 Oct 1996
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||
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||
|
||
* Articles will appear when space becomes available, not
|
||
necessarily the "next" issue. If your article is of a time-
|
||
critical nature, please say so when you submit it; the editor
|
||
still has final say.
|
||
|
||
* The editor reserves the right to request changes from an author
|
||
to meet these "standards", which you have to admit are pretty
|
||
loose. It is not the intent for this to be a mechanism to
|
||
refuse articles the editor does not like, but simply to keep
|
||
the contents intelligible.
|
||
|
||
* If we have a backlog of articles, we may get fussier about
|
||
things. Historically, this has not been a serious problem.
|
||
|
||
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||
---------------------
|
||
SUBMITTING AN ARTICLE
|
||
|
||
TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS:
|
||
|
||
If all that hasn't scared you away, the next step is to create a
|
||
text file which contains the text of your article. The resulting
|
||
file should be sent or uploaded to | "Editor" |, FidoNet
|
||
address 1:1/23. The "physical" location (and phone number) of
|
||
FidoNews varies, and hence must be found elsewhere, such as
|
||
within a recent copy of FidoNews itself.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Filenames must follow the MSDOS standard:
|
||
|
||
FILENAME.TYP
|
||
|
||
a 1 to 8 character file name (A - Z, 0 - 9)
|
||
a period,
|
||
a 0 to 3 character file type (A - Z, 0 - 9)
|
||
|
||
|
||
File types are used to distinguish types of submissions, as
|
||
follows:
|
||
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||
.ART An article, commentary, open letter, or general news
|
||
item.
|
||
.GUE Want to write a Guest Editorial? [*Name & Node on line 1]
|
||
.RET Need to make a Retraction of a previous article or notice?
|
||
.COL Want to become a regular contributor with your own column?
|
||
| .ANS Answers to the Question of the Week. |
|
||
.BIO FidoNet biographies - tell us your story.
|
||
.HIS FidoNet history - got an anecdote to share?
|
||
.REV Reviews of related product, services, or programs.
|
||
.JOK Net humor in print.
|
||
.CMX Comics in ASCII. [watch those lines at 70 columns!]
|
||
.PRF Want to Proofread? Get a cookie for spotting errors.
|
||
.AD Advertising FREE services or events.
|
||
.SAL "For Sale"
|
||
.WAN "Wanted"
|
||
.NOT A notice for the back of the issue. Keep them short.
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 5 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
If your file doesn't have one of the above extensions, then it
|
||
will lay around taking up disk space until someone takes a look
|
||
at it and realizes what it is. Maybe.
|
||
|
||
The name of the file is up to you, though you should use a name
|
||
which is not likely to be "stepped on" by someone else -- the
|
||
system will not guarantee file names are unique. For example,
|
||
FNEWS.ART is probably not a good name for an article.
|
||
|
||
|
||
--------------
|
||
CHARACTER SETS:
|
||
|
||
The character by character contents of the file itself must meet
|
||
the following standards or it cannot be published in FidoNews.
|
||
The FidoNews staff WILL NOT be responsible for making file
|
||
contents conform to these standards.
|
||
|
||
* FLUSH LEFT MARGIN: Please do not put a "left margin" on your
|
||
articles. Have the text start at the very first column.
|
||
|
||
* RIGHT MARGIN AT COLUMN 70 OR LESS: Less is tolerable, more is
|
||
definitely not. If your cursor is resting at column 71 when
|
||
your line is ended, you're okay. One character past that even
|
||
with trailing spaces and MAKENEWS will barf on your submission.
|
||
If your submission is physically rejected, the Editor will have
|
||
to fix it manually or send it back for reformatting.
|
||
|
||
* RAGGED-RIGHT TEXT: Word-Star style "justification" (inserting
|
||
spaces into sentences so that a paragraph is perfectly rec-
|
||
tangular) is extremely hard to read, and consumes needless space.
|
||
Please don't use it!
|
||
|
||
* NO FUNNY CHARACTERS: This includes formfeeds, returns without
|
||
linefeeds, linefeeds without returns, tabs and other oddities.
|
||
The only control codes (character codes 0 through 31 decimal)
|
||
allowed are carriage return (CR) and linefeed (LF). The only
|
||
exception is: Control-Z "end of file" terminator characters are
|
||
tolerated. Not required.
|
||
|
||
* NO GRAPHICS CHARACTERS: Believe it or not, not everyone in the
|
||
world has an IBM PC. Please restrict yourself to printable
|
||
ASCII characters in the range 20 hex to 7E hex (space to
|
||
tilde).
|
||
|
||
* LINES TERMINATED: Each line in the article should be terminated
|
||
with a 'newline' -- either the MSDOS standard (CR/LF) or the
|
||
unix standard (LF only).
|
||
|
||
|
||
-----------------
|
||
SUBMISSION FORMAT:
|
||
|
||
Below is a sample article properly formatted. Features of it are
|
||
discussed further below.
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 6 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
--article file example begins below this line--
|
||
*A Sample Article [this is in LINE 1 starting at COLUMN 1]
|
||
|
||
This is My Title
|
||
by Joe Schmoe, [Netmail/email address]
|
||
|
||
And here is my article. Note that it is flush left (zero indent).
|
||
Also note that the right margin is at column seventy so that it
|
||
won't overflow "most" text windows. Each line has a newline. Note
|
||
the *'ed first line. My article will be listed in the table of
|
||
contents exactly as it appears after the * above.
|
||
|
||
Figure 1. Table 1.
|
||
+-------+ ========
|
||
| A Box | Alpha
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||
+-------+ Bravo
|
||
|
||
Note that we am not using any funny-o characters. This ensures
|
||
that the final article will look the same to every user, no
|
||
matter what sort of hardware he has.
|
||
|
||
This is the last sentence of our article.
|
||
|
||
--article file example ends above this line--
|
||
|
||
|
||
The FIRST line of text is the Table of Contents line. It MUST
|
||
begin with an asterisk * as shown above. NO BLANK lines above
|
||
title line are permitted. If you do not follow this instruction
|
||
exactly, the article will not be listed in the Table of Contents.
|
||
This Table of Contents listing method works for all submission
|
||
file types.
|
||
|
||
* Everything that follows the *'ed line will appear in the body
|
||
of the newsletter. The *'ed line will be stripped out of your
|
||
article text so if you want it repeated as your title in the
|
||
article BE SURE to repeat it on a second line without the *.
|
||
|
||
* Next should be the title or name of your article, your name,
|
||
and contact information (network address(es), Postal Service
|
||
address, etc) Try to keep it to one or two lines each.
|
||
|
||
* Put a blank line between paragraphs. Paragraphs that all run
|
||
together are very difficult to read, and may be rejected.
|
||
|
||
* If you want to put in a table or a figure, go right ahead.
|
||
We do not rearrange text, so your table or figure will
|
||
remain exactly as you entered it. Try to limit them to ones
|
||
that make the communication CLEARER.
|
||
|
||
* Don't put a lot of blank space at the top or bottom. The
|
||
FidoNews-generator programs will visually separate articles
|
||
automatically.
|
||
|
||
* Please check for basic errors in spelling, grammar, and
|
||
punctuation. We're not publishing a textbook, but you don't
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 7 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
want it to embarrass yourself do you?
|
||
|
||
* Don't use FidoNews to grind your personal axes against other
|
||
FidoNet members. An article presenting a side of an internal
|
||
dispute is one thing. An article defaming or perseverating over
|
||
several Issues is another. Articles that merely quote endlessly
|
||
from other sources to no particular effect are also not a good
|
||
idea.
|
||
|
||
* Don't republish copyrighted material from other sources WITHOUT
|
||
the permission of those sources. Include the permission in such
|
||
articles.
|
||
|
||
* Remember that FidoNews is no better or worse than the articles
|
||
submitted to it. If you want FidoNews to be a useful newsletter,
|
||
get involved and submit useful articles. It's up to YOU to make
|
||
it work.
|
||
|
||
--------------------
|
||
SUBMISSION DEADLINES:
|
||
|
||
FidoNews is published on Monday of every week. Deadline for file
|
||
submissions to the FidoNews Editor via file-attach is 2300 ET
|
||
[0300 UTC/GMT] the previous Saturday. Deadline for submissions via
|
||
Netmail, email, or in the FIDONEWS Echo is 2300 ET [0300 UTC/GMT]
|
||
the previous Friday. Submissions which miss the deadlines will be
|
||
processed the following week. Submission by deadline is not a
|
||
guarantee of appearance in that week's FidoNews but it is likely
|
||
depending on volume of submissions.
|
||
|
||
|
||
-30-
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
A Short *.MSG Programming Tutorial [II]
|
||
Damian Walker, 2:2502/666
|
||
|
||
This is article 2 of 3 on programming for *.MSG messages. We start
|
||
with alterations to the generic message reading routine included in
|
||
last week's article. A full listing of our example program will
|
||
appear in article 3.
|
||
|
||
A More Robust Routine to Read Messages
|
||
|
||
Let's revisit our readmsg() function which is the workhorse of this
|
||
program.
|
||
The first thing a seasoned C programmer might notice is that there
|
||
is no validation to see if the message file has been opened properly,
|
||
or that it exists at all. In our latest example program (the complete
|
||
file lister) it isn't so important since the existence of the file is
|
||
verified by the findfirst()/findnext() functions. However, if
|
||
readmsg() is used in other circumstances, this failing might make the
|
||
function unacceptable. A simple 'if' check solves this problem:
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 8 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
int readmsg(struct fts1 *msg, char *text, int limit,
|
||
char *filename)
|
||
{
|
||
FILE *msgfile; /* message file handle info */
|
||
int successful = 0;
|
||
|
||
msgfile = fopen(filename, "rb");
|
||
if(msgfile != NULL)
|
||
{
|
||
fread(msg, sizeof(struct fts1), 1, msgfile);
|
||
fread(text, 1, limit, msgfile);
|
||
fclose(msgfile);
|
||
successful = 1;
|
||
}
|
||
|
||
return successful;
|
||
}
|
||
|
||
I could have combined the open and the validation 'if':
|
||
|
||
if( (msgfile = fopen( filename, "rb" )) != NULL )
|
||
|
||
but I'm avoiding C-specific shortcuts like this in the interests of
|
||
readability.
|
||
Notice that I've introduced a return value into the function now,
|
||
so that the calling process can check to see if a message has actually
|
||
been read. This necessitates the 'successful' variable.
|
||
Alternatively, the value of the pointer 'msgfile' could have been
|
||
returned to the calling process, a NULL meaning that the read was
|
||
unsuccessful, but this is slightly messy as we're possibly giving the
|
||
calling process a pointer to an address which it shouldn't have.
|
||
The next problem with the function is that it relies upon the
|
||
zone and point information in the message header in order to find see
|
||
the full 4D address, and few programs actually use the zone/point
|
||
fields in the header. This is why our examples up until now have
|
||
limited their output of addresses to the 2D net/node format.
|
||
In order to avoid random data appearing as zone and point numbers
|
||
we must ignore these fields in the header entirely, and instead use
|
||
three kludges which FTS-1 tells us about: INTL, FMPT and TOPT. These
|
||
are all found within the message text, and are known as 'kludges'
|
||
since they were added to the original specification to cover for
|
||
fields not present in the header of the original message format
|
||
design. The format of INTL is:
|
||
|
||
^AINTL: destzone:destnet/destnode origzone:orignet/orignode
|
||
|
||
Although a few programs put an INTL in every message, it should really
|
||
only appear in messages which cross zones, eg. a message from zone 1
|
||
to zone 3. So this kludge can't be used for in-zone messages, and
|
||
unfortunately there isn't any reliable way of extracting the zone from
|
||
in-zone messages at all.
|
||
Although this sounds like a big drawback, there is an easy way to
|
||
avoid problems. Most FTN-specific programs will store the address of
|
||
the system which is using the software, and an in-zone message
|
||
arriving at your system has obviously originated from your own zone,
|
||
the zone for the origin and destination systems can be taken from your
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 9 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
own address.
|
||
Since a full config file is beyond the scope of this article, I
|
||
shall 'cheat' and use a simple #define to store your own zone number.
|
||
This will be a 2 in these examples (from my own address), but you'll
|
||
want to use your own zone number if you try these examples out-- or
|
||
engineer a better solution altogether, such as a config file or
|
||
command line argument.
|
||
So know we know we have some idea about how to extract the zone
|
||
numbers from a message, let's implement this in code. The way I do
|
||
this is to stick the origin and destination zones into the header
|
||
fields reserved for that purpose-- just as if they were there in the
|
||
message header in the first place. The new readmsg() function should
|
||
have the following added after 'int successful = 0;':
|
||
|
||
char *kludgefind;
|
||
|
||
and the following added after 'successful = 1;':
|
||
|
||
kludgefind = strstr(text, "\01INTL");
|
||
if(kludgefind == NULL)
|
||
{
|
||
msg->origzone = MYZONE;
|
||
msg->destzone = MYZONE;
|
||
}
|
||
else
|
||
{
|
||
kludgefind = strchr(kludgefind, ' ');
|
||
msg->destzone = atoi(kludgefind);
|
||
kludgefind = strchr(&kludgefind[1], ' ');
|
||
msg->origzone = atoi(kludgefind);
|
||
}
|
||
|
||
This assumes that MYZONE has been #defined elsewhere, such as in the
|
||
example:
|
||
|
||
#define MYZONE 2
|
||
|
||
And since it uses atoi(), strchr() and strstr() it also relies upon
|
||
the header files <stdlib.h> and <string.h>, which must now be included
|
||
at the top of the program as follows:
|
||
|
||
#include <string.h>
|
||
#include <stdlib.h>
|
||
|
||
Basically the code works like this: If no INTL kludge is present, the
|
||
user's zone (MYZONE) is used in the origin and destination addresses.
|
||
If the INTL kludge is present, it will contain two spaces. After the
|
||
first space will appear the destination zone followed by a colon
|
||
(':'), and after the second space the origin zone will appear, also
|
||
followed by a colon. The atoi() function is used to convert the
|
||
textual zone numbers into integers, with the colon serving as a
|
||
terminator which tells the atoi() function where the number ends.
|
||
So now we have a more robust message reading facility which will
|
||
not crash or choke if the file doesn't exist, and it will correctly
|
||
recognise origin and destination zones from kludges in the message
|
||
text. But what of points? The process is similar to recognition of
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 10 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
nodes, but is slightly easier since once the kludge is found, we know
|
||
that the point number is always six characters on. We don't need to
|
||
search for the intervening space. Technically this solution could
|
||
have been used to extract the destination zone from the INTL kludge as
|
||
well. The following code follows on from the closing brace ('{') of
|
||
the preceding example:
|
||
|
||
kludgefind = strstr(text, "\01FMPT");
|
||
if(kludgefind == NULL)
|
||
msg->origpoint = 0;
|
||
else
|
||
msg->origpoint = atoi( &kludgefind[6] );
|
||
kludgefind = strstr(text, "\01TOPT");
|
||
if(kludgefind == NULL)
|
||
msg->destpoint = 0;
|
||
else
|
||
msg->destpoint = atoi( &kludgefind[6] );
|
||
|
||
This section searches for a FMPT kludge, and if found, it takes the
|
||
following number as the originating point. If it's absent, then the
|
||
originating point number is set to zero, regardless of the existing
|
||
value of the point field in the header. Remember, the header
|
||
information is unreliable. Then a similar process follows for
|
||
determining the destination point number.
|
||
Now all we have left to consider in making readmsg() more robust
|
||
is the issue of messages lacking a terminating null() character.
|
||
Since the message text is read as is, and C requires a terminating
|
||
null character on all strings, we need to make sure that the
|
||
terminating null is actually present ourselves. The simplest way to
|
||
do this is to add the null regardless of whether it was present or
|
||
not. Converting this idea to C code we add the variable definition:
|
||
|
||
int textlen;
|
||
|
||
to the top of the readmsg() function and replace the second 'fread'
|
||
line (the one which reads the message text) with the following section
|
||
of code:
|
||
|
||
textlen = fread(text, 1, limit, msgfile);
|
||
if(textlen < limit)
|
||
text[textlen] = '\0';
|
||
else
|
||
text[limit - 1] = '\0';
|
||
|
||
fread() returns the number of items read, and you can see that the
|
||
fread() statement here chooses to define items as single characters,
|
||
so fread() here is returning the number of characters in the message
|
||
body into 'textlen'.
|
||
If the number of characters read is less than the maximum number
|
||
of characters allows (i.e. the size of our buffer) then it's safe to
|
||
add a terminating null onto the end, hence "text[textlen] = '\0';".
|
||
If we've completely filled our buffer, then we need to overwrite the
|
||
last character with a terminating null instead-- "text[limit - 1] =
|
||
'\0';".
|
||
With all these changes in effect, the readmsg() function is in its
|
||
final, reasonably robust, form. It copes with zone and point numbers,
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 11 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
so we could perhaps include these in the display. The following line
|
||
could be substituted for the existing printf() line in main():
|
||
|
||
printf("%-12s From: %s (%d:%d/%d.%d)\n", f.ff_name,
|
||
msg.fromusername, msg.origzone, msg.orignet,
|
||
msg.orignode, msg.origpoint);
|
||
|
||
So we can now return to an earlier issue. What of compilers which do
|
||
not have an equivalent to findfirst() and findnext()?
|
||
More advanced programmers on the PC will realise that these
|
||
functions map directly to a pair of DOS interrupts which may be used,
|
||
and systems other than the PC may have equivalent services in their
|
||
operating system. But such low-level fiddling is beyond the scope of
|
||
this tutorial.
|
||
There is a simpler, cumbersome brute-force method of obtaining a
|
||
list of messages in a directory, which we can use now that readmsg()
|
||
can cope with missing message files. The concept is very elementary.
|
||
Simply count from 1 to some arbitrary value, attempting to open every
|
||
message. The modified readmsg() will return 0 if the message is not
|
||
present, or 1 if it is. Hence you could use the following code to
|
||
call readmsg() in this way:
|
||
|
||
for(count = 1; count <= 2000; ++count)
|
||
{
|
||
sprintf(msgname, "\\apps\\fd\\mail\\%d.msg", count);
|
||
successful = readmsg(&msg, text, MAXMSGSIZE, msgname);
|
||
if(successful)
|
||
printf("%8d.MSG From: %s (%d:%d/%d.%d)\n", count,
|
||
msg.fromusername, msg.origzone, msg.orignet,
|
||
msg.orignode, msg.origpoint);
|
||
}
|
||
|
||
The 2000 could be replaced by a #defined constant which suits the
|
||
target system, or a value supplied by a user or in a configuration
|
||
file. But obviously this method is vastly inferior to the proper
|
||
directory search using findfirst() in both efficiency and
|
||
reliability-- the maximum message number may not be high enough to
|
||
ensure all messages are read.
|
||
|
||
Displaying the Body of Messages
|
||
|
||
For many purposes it is enough to display the message header, but
|
||
there are other cases where processing or display of the message body
|
||
is needed. To illustrate this a separate example program is required.
|
||
This program displays part of the header, and all of the body, of a
|
||
*.MSG file. At its simplest level, the program could be as follows:
|
||
|
||
#include <stdio.h>
|
||
#include "fidomsg.h"
|
||
|
||
#define MAXMSGSIZE 2048
|
||
|
||
/* include the readmsg() function here */
|
||
|
||
void main(int argc, char *argv[])
|
||
{
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 12 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
struct fts1 msg;
|
||
char text[MAXMSGSIZE];
|
||
|
||
readmsg(&msg, text, MAXMSGSIZE, argv[1]);
|
||
printf("From: %s (%d:%d/%d.%d)\n%s\n", msg.fromusername,
|
||
msg.origzone, msg.orignet, msg.orignode, msg.origpoint,
|
||
text);
|
||
}
|
||
|
||
This simply displays the message text as read, preceded by the 'from'
|
||
line of the header. This is rarely acceptable, though, since the
|
||
screen code for a new line may not be the simple carriage return
|
||
usually stored by Fidonet software. Some intellingent processing is
|
||
necessary; the simple printf() line could be replaced by the following
|
||
section of code:
|
||
|
||
printf("From: %s (%d:%d/%d.%d)\n", msg.fromusername,
|
||
msg.origzone, msg.orignet, msg.orignode, msg.origpoint);
|
||
lastchar = '\0';
|
||
for(count = 0; count < strlen(text); ++count)
|
||
{
|
||
switch( text[count] )
|
||
{
|
||
case '\n':
|
||
if(lastchar != '\r') printf("\n");
|
||
break;
|
||
case '\r':
|
||
printf("\n");
|
||
break;
|
||
default:
|
||
putc( text[count] );
|
||
}
|
||
lastchar = text[count];
|
||
}
|
||
|
||
where lastchar must be declared along with the other variables in
|
||
main(), as a 'char', and count must be declared as an int.
|
||
A little explanation is in order: Most characters are displayed as
|
||
is. A carriage return ('\r', or ASCII 13) is converted to a linefeed;
|
||
printf() will display this correctly on the target computer system no
|
||
matter what the actual code sequence for a linefeed should be. An
|
||
actual ASCII linefeed character ('\n' or ASCII 10) is displayed as it
|
||
is, only if it is not preceded by a carriage return.
|
||
This simple algorithm copes correctly with three eventualities: a
|
||
message stored with carriage returns, with linefeeds, or with carriage
|
||
return and linefeed pairs. To make the display more aesthetically
|
||
pleasing, you would also want to implement some form of word-wrap
|
||
routine since Fidonet messages usually only put line terminators on
|
||
the end of each paragraph.
|
||
At the simplest level, you could implement this with a simple
|
||
character counter and a 'if' statement which inserts a new line when
|
||
the character count exceeds some line length. Better word wrap
|
||
routines will read ahead of the display, and wrap a line at the last
|
||
whitespace character before the right margin is reached. Since this
|
||
is departing from Fidonet-specific concerns, I'll leave you to figure
|
||
out how this could be done, while I go on to cover the writing of
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 13 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
*.MSG files.
|
||
|
||
Other Header Fields
|
||
|
||
So far I have neglected to mention two important header fields which
|
||
are of no relevance to our chief example program, but which are still
|
||
important enough that they have a place in this tutorial.
|
||
The first of these fields is the date field. This is a
|
||
20-character null-terminated string, which is in a specific format.
|
||
If all you want to do with the date is display it, then you will find
|
||
it in an acceptable format already. For processing of the date you
|
||
will have a little more work to do. I won't go into a full
|
||
explanation on date parsing, as that subject would fill an article in
|
||
itself, but I will briefly explain the date format used so that you
|
||
have enough information to easily work out a way to extract the date
|
||
information for processing. The format is most concisely described as
|
||
follows:
|
||
|
||
DD Mmm YY HH:MM:SS
|
||
|
||
Followed by a terminating NULL character. DD is the day of the month,
|
||
from 01-31. Mmm is a 3-letter month name abbreviation in English, one
|
||
of the following:
|
||
|
||
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
|
||
|
||
YY is the year (I wonder how Fidonet software will cope in the year
|
||
2000?) Finally, the HH:MM:SS is the time-- hours, minutes and
|
||
seconds.
|
||
That's all you need to know about building/interpreting a
|
||
timestamp, but what about that other header field I mentioned? I'm
|
||
referring to the attribute word. This contains certain flags which
|
||
tell the mailer or mail processor how the message will behave
|
||
route-wise, and other yes/no information about the message. A full
|
||
list of attribute bits is available in FTS-1, but it's repeated here
|
||
in the form of a series of #defined constants which should be included
|
||
in the file 'fidomsg.h' for use by netmail programs:
|
||
|
||
#define MSGPVT 0x0001 /* Private */
|
||
#define MSGCRASH 0x0002 /* Crash message */
|
||
#define MSGRECD 0x0004 /* Message received */
|
||
#define MSGSENT 0x0008 /* Message sent */
|
||
#define MSGFILE 0x0010 /* File attached */
|
||
#define MSGTRANSIT 0x0020 /* In transit */
|
||
#define MSGORPHAN 0x0040 /* Orphan */
|
||
#define MSGKILL 0x0080 /* Kill/sent */
|
||
#define MSGLOCAL 0x0100 /* Local */
|
||
#define MSGHOLD 0x0200 /* Hold for pickup */
|
||
#define MSGFREQ 0x0800 /* File request */
|
||
#define MSGRRR 0x1000 /* Return receipt request */
|
||
#define MSGIRR 0x2000 /* Is return receipt */
|
||
#define MSGAUDIT 0x4000 /* Audit request */
|
||
#define MSGUPDATE 0x8000 /* File update request */
|
||
|
||
What I also need to tell you about are two attributes which you
|
||
might think belong in the attribute word but which are actually found
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 14 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
in kludges, presumably because they were added after the 16 bits of
|
||
the attribute word were all allocated.
|
||
'Direct' is the first of these, and it is often used so perhaps
|
||
it's reasonably important to know about. The other is 'Del/Sent'.
|
||
This isn't just another name for 'Kill', but refers to files in a file
|
||
attach message; a file attach message with 'Del/Sent' should delete
|
||
the file when it has been sent. These attributes both use the FLAGS
|
||
kludge, as follows:
|
||
|
||
^AFLAGS DIR
|
||
|
||
for direct, or
|
||
|
||
^AFLAGS KFS
|
||
|
||
for 'Del/Sent', I make the assumption that these initials stand for
|
||
'Kill File Sent', but whether this is correct or not, the technical
|
||
meaning of the attribute is more important to us than the expansion of
|
||
its acronym.
|
||
These attributes may be combined in a single FLAGS kludge, and
|
||
bear in mind that there may be other attributes which make use of the
|
||
FLAGS kludge as well.
|
||
Next week's article deals moves on to writing *.MSG messages, and
|
||
includes some examples unrelated to our message lister. It also
|
||
includes the full source code for the message lister.
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
WHAT IS THIS ECHO CALLED FILK?
|
||
Kay Shapero 1:102/524 (kay.shapero@salata.com)
|
||
|
||
A recent article identified some, but by no means all of the music-
|
||
related echoes to be found in FIDOnet. Here's some information on
|
||
one not mentioned, which can be found on the Zone 1 backbone as FILK.
|
||
The following is reprinted from the (much larger) Filk Frequently
|
||
Asked Questions file, which I maintain and can be f'reqed from
|
||
1:102/524 as FILKFAQ.ZIP. The article by Nick Smith is used with
|
||
permission.
|
||
|
||
What is this stuff called filk? My own favorite definition is simply
|
||
"the folk music of the science fiction/fantasy fan community."
|
||
For a more detailed description, see below:
|
||
|
||
WHAT THE HECK IS FILK MUSIC?
|
||
|
||
by Nick Smith (of LA Filkharmonics)
|
||
|
||
Well, it's sort of like folk music. It is a mixture of song parodies
|
||
and original music, humorous and serious, about subjects like science
|
||
fiction, fantasy, computers, cats, politics, the space program, books,
|
||
movies, TV shows, love, war, death. . .
|
||
|
||
Filk music started off forty or fifty years ago, at science fiction
|
||
conventions, where people got together late at night to have good
|
||
old-fashioned folk music song circles. Well, late night circles being
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 15 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
what they are, some folks got a little silly and started singing song
|
||
parodies about their favorite SF books and authors. Fans started
|
||
writing song parodies about themselves or each other. Some started
|
||
composing serious songs about favorite topics. Some authors started
|
||
composing original songs for their books. If the author didn't list a
|
||
tune, fans made up one. Sometimes two. Sometimes several.
|
||
|
||
Eventually, Filk songs wre written for just about every major science
|
||
fiction or fantasy work. Some of them were actually good enough that
|
||
people wanted to learn them, or just listen to them more than just at
|
||
conventions. At that point, song books and recordings started being
|
||
made.
|
||
Over the last decade, Filk Music has reached the point where there
|
||
are entire Filk Music gatherings, conventions, recording companies,
|
||
and publications. Filk Music includes song parodies, original songs,
|
||
and slightly musical poetry. It's a fun way to indulge in a little
|
||
musical creativity, especially if you are a science fiction or fantasy
|
||
fan as well as musically inclined. If you are only a fan, but not
|
||
musical, you can still listen. Filk circles aren't pushy about
|
||
requiring you to play or sing. If you are only musical, but not a
|
||
fan, no one will hold it against you. Remember, we're in this thing
|
||
for fun!
|
||
|
||
[Written for flyer for distribution at California Traditional Music
|
||
Society Annual Summer Solstice Dulcimer Festival and other local Los
|
||
Angeles folk music events and stores.]
|
||
|
||
What Nick didn't tell you is that the name started out as a typo of
|
||
"folk" and was gleefully adopted by all and sundry as a term for what
|
||
is after all a somewhat unusual subset.
|
||
|
||
Kay Shapero, Moderator, FILK echo
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
To: cbaker84@digital.net
|
||
Date: Sun, 20 Oct 1996 15:16:23 EST
|
||
Subject: Rules, rules, rules...
|
||
From: surak@juno.com (Rob A Shinn)
|
||
|
||
For immediate release to FidoNews:
|
||
|
||
There has been a lot of political in-fighting on FidoNet regarding
|
||
rules in the past few months, and in fact for at least 5 years now.
|
||
Many people, particularly Internet people, refer to us a Fight-O-Net.
|
||
If we are *EVER* to exist side-by-side with the Internet in the online
|
||
future, we are going to have to change our errant ways.
|
||
|
||
First of all, people, we have to remember our roots! FidoNet was
|
||
founded in the ideals of FREE SPEECH. It is a very libertarian-style
|
||
network. Thus, rules have been very minimal on FidoNet. The reasons
|
||
for this are clear: rules are not conducive to the free exchange of
|
||
ideas. Just because you don't agree with someone's ideas, or you
|
||
don't like a participant, or you don't like the moderator of a
|
||
particular echo: CHANGE THE CHANNEL! You don't have to read anything
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 16 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
on FidoNet. You don't have to receive any "file-bone" echos, either.
|
||
If you disagree with the way Craig Ford runs the COMM echo, or with
|
||
the banishment of James Dixon from Trek, you don't have to read EITHER
|
||
echo. In fact, the Moderators would probably rather that you would
|
||
not. If you don't agree with the political ideas on the Rush Limbaugh
|
||
echo, or you have moral reservations about the Gay/Lesbian echo, no
|
||
one is twisting your arm. Don't read them, don't carry them.
|
||
|
||
If, OTOH, you think that all this stuff needs to regulated by some
|
||
central controlling body...Heck, quit FidoNet, and join Intelec or
|
||
U'NI-net (better not spell their name wrong or the Net Police will get
|
||
you...<snicker>). These socialist networks are run by petty
|
||
dictators (John Young and Cam Debuck, respectively) that have decided
|
||
that if they control the content and behavior of users, they can
|
||
somehow have a higher "quality" network.
|
||
|
||
Don't believe me? Get their policy/list files, IN_####.ZIP (the
|
||
latest as of this writing was IN_9610.ZIP) for Intelec and UNI###.ZIP
|
||
(latest being UNI324.ZIP) for U'NI-net. Try and post a message on
|
||
Intelec containing the word 'ABORTION' and watch how fast you are
|
||
"TCAN'ed". These networks actually have TCAN (trash can) files that
|
||
ban users from the ENTIRE NETWORK upon breaking the rules in any
|
||
conference...the discretion sitting with the "benign" Network
|
||
Administrator or Network Host (either read: Net Dictator). The
|
||
Dictato...errrr...Network Administrator of Intelec, John Young, is so
|
||
anal retentive, that he has a 300-and-some-line text file for the
|
||
network rules, NETRULES.IN, in which each rule has been painstakingly
|
||
fit onto one line, of 70 characters each, abbreviating or padding with
|
||
spaces if necessary to make it fit. And both dictators are so AR,
|
||
that even spelling the name of the network wrong, including improper
|
||
capitalization or punctuation, is grounds for immediate banishment
|
||
from the network. Do you want someone like that telling you what you
|
||
can and cannot post? Do you want to exist in a online Gestapo state?
|
||
If so, be my guest, go ahead and join the socialists, the dictators,
|
||
and the Nazis...
|
||
|
||
I, OTOH, will stick with FidoNet, as long as we can keep things simple
|
||
in regards to rules. FidoNet has existed in its present form since
|
||
1984! The current lack of Zone 1 Echo Policy is not in the least
|
||
detrimental to FidoNet. Individual moderators have done a decent job
|
||
of running their own echoes. Some, like Gary Gilmore have long lists
|
||
of very specific rules. Others, like Bob Kohl and Craig Ford have a
|
||
list of general guidelines (Craig's is *very* loose, having adopted
|
||
Steve Shapiro's 'Echomail Guidelines'). I favor looser guidelines,
|
||
but if you like strict rules, you can always vote with your feet.
|
||
|
||
Usenet is probably too loose. Most newsgroups are unmoderated and
|
||
spam and junk kill many newsgroups. But Intelec and U'NI-net (again,
|
||
making sure they're spelled right...) are nothing but extremism. We
|
||
need to have moderated discussions, but control by a dictator in the
|
||
name of "expediency" (an argument that has been used by Fidel Castro
|
||
and Adolph Hitler to name a couple) has no place in FidoNet. But
|
||
that's the way we're headed if we keep up this fighting up.
|
||
|
||
So lets get back to our roots...and stand united and proud of a
|
||
FidoNet that is what it always has been - a place for the free
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 17 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
exchange of ideas.
|
||
|
||
Rob A. Shinn @ 1:2410/116, surak@juno.com
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 18 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
FIDONET HISTORY
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
[Part of a continuing series on the history of FidoNet and the folks
|
||
and programs that made it happen] Ed.
|
||
|
||
Date: 05 Feb 87 11:55:57
|
||
From: Phil Becker on 128/16, FireNet Leader, Colorado Springs CO
|
||
To: All on 135/14, Metro-Fire Fido of SFLorida Net, Miami FL
|
||
Subj: TBBS ECHOMAIL
|
||
|
||
I am leaving this message here in order to inform FIDO and OPUS SYSOPs
|
||
that the TBBS Net Mail option will be released in about 2 weeks.
|
||
After that time there will likely be a large number of new (to
|
||
FIDONET) TBBS SYSOPS joining various EchoMail conferences. TBBS
|
||
EchoMail handling is enhanced somewhat over the basic FidoNet EchoMail
|
||
for use in TBBS only networks. However, I have included a command
|
||
line option on the ECHOSCAN processor called -v1 which makes its
|
||
output 100% compatible with the existing SCAN/TOSS. Now to the reason
|
||
for this message. This option is not the default. New users who fail
|
||
to set this option, and join a conference with those of you using FIDO
|
||
and OPUS, will generate messages that get "chopped up" at the 80
|
||
column point by TOSS/SCAN. If you see this sort of thing happening,
|
||
inform the TBBS SYSOP who is generating such messages to set the -v1
|
||
option on his ECHOSCAN command to generate compatible messages.
|
||
Unfortunately with the large number of users new to the net, I am sure
|
||
this will happen frequently and I want you, who will suffer from it,
|
||
to know how to quickly inform the TBBS SYSOP of his error in his own
|
||
terms to minimize this problem. It has already happened during beta
|
||
test a few times, and even with a sizeable caution in the manual I am
|
||
sure it will happen again, and hope this note will keep the confusion
|
||
down.
|
||
|
||
Also, in an attempt to anticipate the growth of EchoMail in this net,
|
||
and the directions it may take, the TBBS EchoMail handlers will
|
||
operate correctly if the AREA: and SEEN-BY lines are prefixed with ^A
|
||
to suppress their display. If the net converts to this format at
|
||
large, there is an option on the TBBS EchoScan called -hide which can
|
||
be set to generate this type of output to the net. I hope that this
|
||
information will allow those of you who are not running and don't want
|
||
to have to learn about TBBS, but will have to live with its output to
|
||
do so much more easily. Since there is now a proliferation of
|
||
software on the net, tracking down such problems can become quite time
|
||
consuming and I hope this will remove some of the false problems (due
|
||
to operator error) more easily by helping you to recognize them and
|
||
know what to tell the offending SYSOP to do to fix them.
|
||
|
||
Origin: TBBS Net - Aurora, CO (104/23)
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 19 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
COORDINATORS CORNER
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 299
|
||
By Ward Dossche, 2:292/854
|
||
ZC/2
|
||
|
||
+----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
|
||
|Zone|Nl-271|Nodelist-278|Nodelist-285|Nodelist-292|Nodelist-299|%%|
|
||
+----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
|
||
| 1 | 11826|11826 0 |11666 -160 |11666 0 |11555 -111 |38|
|
||
| 2 | 16406|16394 -12 |16341 -53 |16356 15 |16324 -32 |53|
|
||
| 3 | 954| 951 -3 | 950 -1 | 956 6 | 954 -2 | 3|
|
||
| 4 | 629| 629 0 | 610 -19 | 620 10 | 620 0 | 2|
|
||
| 5 | 100| 100 0 | 97 -3 | 97 0 | 97 0 | 0|
|
||
| 6 | 1020| 1020 0 | 1022 2 | 1020 -2 | 1020 0 | 3|
|
||
+----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
|
||
| 30935|30920 -15 |30686 -234 |30715 29 |30570 -145 |
|
||
+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 20 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
NET HUMOR
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
CYBERSAGA
|
||
Words: Kay Shapero
|
||
Tune:"Black Denim Trousers"*
|
||
|
||
|
||
CHORUS: He had pointed green eartips, a socket in his head,
|
||
And a black leather jacket with "Deck 'em" on the back.
|
||
He had a pair of mirror shades that flashed like the midday sun
|
||
That elf was the terror of every shadowrun.
|
||
|
||
He streaked his face with red and he streaked his hair with green
|
||
He had rows of ruby rhinestones on the ridges of his eyes.
|
||
On the back of his right arm was a Moebius-type tattoo
|
||
That told the time in Tokyo in shades of red and blue.
|
||
|
||
Oh he had a cybermodem and it was a marvel rare
|
||
But tech will only do the things that tech can do
|
||
He cracked a wizard's data base and searched until he found
|
||
Ways magic could be used to get around...
|
||
|
||
chorus
|
||
|
||
The other hackers warned him not to play with magic spells.
|
||
They said "These things could send you to a dozen diff'rent hells."
|
||
He didn't hear, he didn't care, his mind was in a spin
|
||
At the worlds that now existed and the worlds that might have been.
|
||
|
||
He started searching like a madman, green fire shining in his eyes.
|
||
He vowed he'd plunder all the worlds for high tech gear and spells.
|
||
But he found a Disney dreamworld; and something that he met
|
||
Derezzed his body right into the Net...
|
||
|
||
No more pointed green eartips, no socket in the head,
|
||
And no black leather jacket with "Deck 'em" on the back.
|
||
The mirror shades are broken that flashed like the midday sun
|
||
But he still is the terror of every shadowrun!
|
||
|
||
Words copyright Kay Shapero, 1990
|
||
|
||
*with acknowledgements to Ted Johnstone's "Corduroy Trousers"...
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
FTSC Jokes
|
||
by Lee Kindness, 2:259/7, lkindnes@csl.co.uk
|
||
|
||
Just a wee ditty that flowed thru NET_DEV last week, and it relates
|
||
quite well to last weeks editorial...
|
||
|
||
*** Area: NET_DEV
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 21 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
*** From: Paul Edwards (3:711/934.9)
|
||
*** To : All
|
||
*** Subj: FTSC Jokes!
|
||
|
||
Hey guys, have you heard the latest list of FTSC jokes? If anyone
|
||
has seen any other joke lists floating around the echos, please post
|
||
them!
|
||
|
||
Q. How many FTSC members does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
|
||
|
||
A. The FTSC only documents existing practice. There is no
|
||
mathematical proof that lightbulbs are existing practice.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. How many FTSC members does it take to write an FTSC document?
|
||
|
||
A. The FTSC doesn't write documents, it just publishes them.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. How do I get the FTSC to publish my document?
|
||
|
||
A. That is not documented.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. How do I get the FTSC to approve my proposal and make it a
|
||
standard?
|
||
|
||
A. The FTSC doesn't approve proposals, that's the job of a standards
|
||
committee.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Who do I report errors in the published standards to?
|
||
|
||
A. Do you have internet access?
|
||
NO) - sorry, the FTSC Chair only responds to internet mail.
|
||
YES) - what do you want to use fidonet for, if you have internet?
|
||
Everyone else in the FTSC only uses internet, including the only
|
||
person who has the legal authority to update FTS-1. We are still
|
||
attempting to track the author of FTS-4, to see if we can get him
|
||
to join the internet too.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What do you get if you mix all the output of the FTSC, with a
|
||
dead fish?
|
||
|
||
A. A dead fish.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Within the FTSC circles, what is the FTSC Chair known as?
|
||
|
||
A. We've got a Chairman, have we?
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What did the FTSC committee member say to the non-FTSC-committee
|
||
member?
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 22 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
A. Nothing. The FTSC does not talk to developers, they only get in
|
||
the way.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Which has more intelligence - the FTSC Chair, the rest of the FTSC,
|
||
or a door knob?
|
||
|
||
A. Only an FTSC member would need to ask such a question. Don't
|
||
bother asking the chairman for the answer - try asking Mr Knob.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Why is the FTSC echo not publicly-readable (even if not writeable)?
|
||
|
||
A. Because then the developers would know that they were dead. At
|
||
the moment developers have this quaint picture of lots of
|
||
committee members scurrying around trying to do things to help
|
||
the average developer actually WRITE something.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What does FTSC stand for?
|
||
|
||
A. Need Another Seven Astronauts.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What does FTSC really stand for?
|
||
|
||
A. What gave you the impression that the FTSC was capable of standing?
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What is the preferred programming language of the FTSC?
|
||
|
||
A. Turtle Graphics.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. If the FTSC were a country, which one would it be?
|
||
|
||
A. Mars. It's out-er-space, which is why there's no room for
|
||
any more standards.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What do you get if you cross an FTSC member with a pen and a
|
||
coathanger?
|
||
|
||
A. Pens that multiply instead of disappearing (clarification for
|
||
FTSC members - it's the coathangers that cause the multiplication,
|
||
not you).
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Why don't FTSC members put ice in their drinks?
|
||
|
||
A. The FTSC member who had the recipe, died.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Why do FTSC members' dogs have flat noses?
|
||
|
||
A. From chasing parked cars.
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 23 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Why do FTSC members have flat noses?
|
||
|
||
A. From chasing their dogs too closely.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Does an FTSC member float or sink if immersed in water?
|
||
|
||
A. "Dissolved" is a better way to describe the phenomenon.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. Why do FTSC members prefer to use pentiums?
|
||
|
||
A. It reports that they have produced a positive number of
|
||
standards in the last 6 years (0.000000353).
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q. What's the difference between an FTSC member and a snail?
|
||
|
||
A. One's slow, doesn't have any intelligence, and if you were
|
||
stuck in traffic behind it, you'd die of old age before
|
||
getting to your destination. The other is an insect found
|
||
in gardens.
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
From: top5@walrus.com
|
||
To: topfive@news.zdnet.com
|
||
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 1996 10:16:07 +45
|
||
Subject: TopFive -- 9/12/96 -- Indications That Geeks Rule the Web
|
||
Reply-To: Top5@walrus.com
|
||
Sender: owner-topfive@news.zdnet.com
|
||
|
||
|
||
_____________________________________
|
||
_________| |________
|
||
\ | The Top Five List | /
|
||
\ | www.topfive.com | /
|
||
\ | | /
|
||
\ | Sponsored by Windows Sources | /
|
||
> | www.wsources.com | <
|
||
/ | | \
|
||
/ | September 12, 1996 | \
|
||
/ |_____________________________________| \
|
||
/___________) (__________\
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
The Top 5 Indications That Geeks Rule the Web
|
||
|
||
|
||
18> I refuse to answer on the grounds that it may implicate me.
|
||
|
||
17> See contributor list below.
|
||
|
||
16> 20 bad hurricane names; zero complaints.
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 24 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
15> '96 World Wide Web Consortium postponed due to
|
||
international shortage of asthma inhalers.
|
||
|
||
14> 78,859,603,962,549,850,306,721,987,591,357,852 Karaoke
|
||
home pages -- and counting.
|
||
|
||
13> Latest Internet polls show Chris White leading
|
||
Bob Dole by 10 percentage points.
|
||
|
||
12> Most users chance of hacking into the Pentagon still
|
||
better than chance of hooking up with Cindy Crawford.
|
||
|
||
11> 95% of high-level system passwords are based on
|
||
Star Trek trivia.
|
||
|
||
10> Bathroom stalls at information superhighway rest
|
||
stops all covered with java code graffiti.
|
||
|
||
9> Uh, you're READING it, buddy.
|
||
|
||
8> Scanned photos of home page owners all look like cross
|
||
between Lyle Lovett and Thomas Dolby.
|
||
|
||
7> alt.binary.tape.glasses
|
||
|
||
6> Money magazine picks Bill Gates as sexiest man alive.
|
||
|
||
5> Cocoa Puff stains on the bottom left corner of most
|
||
WEB pages.
|
||
|
||
4> Frequent server crashes between 12-1 p.m. because most
|
||
users have been forced to surrender their lunch money.
|
||
|
||
3> Fierce Kirk vs. Picard debate crashes AOL.
|
||
|
||
2> "Click here for your free Netscape pocket protector!"
|
||
|
||
|
||
and the Number 1 Indication That Geeks Rule the Web...
|
||
|
||
|
||
1> Actually, Dogbert rules the Web, geeks are just his
|
||
loyal minions.
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ This list copyright 1996 by Chris White and Ziff-Davis ]
|
||
[ *To forward or repost, you must include this section.* ]
|
||
[ The Top Five List top5@walrus.com www.topfive.com ]
|
||
|
||
|
||
Today's Top Five List contributors are:
|
||
---------------------------------------------------------
|
||
Lee Oeth, San Diego, CA -- 1 (1st #1!)
|
||
Joel McClure, Sterling Heights, MI -- 2
|
||
David W. James, Los Angeles, CA -- 3
|
||
George Olson, Colorado Springs, CO -- 4, 17
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 25 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
Sam Evans, Charleston, SC -- 5 (Hall of Famer)
|
||
Paul Paternoster, Redwood City, CA -- 6
|
||
Lisa Stepaniak, Dearborn, MI -- 7
|
||
Dee Anne Phillips, Shreveport, LA -- 8
|
||
Marshal Perlman, Minneapolis, MN -- 9
|
||
Doug Johnson, Santa Cruz, CA -- 10
|
||
Kermit Woodall, Richmond, VA -- 11
|
||
Kathleen Buchanan, Tuscaloosa, AL -- 12
|
||
John Voigt, Chicago, IL -- 13
|
||
Jennifer Ritzinger, Seattle, WA -- 14
|
||
Jeff Downey, Raleigh, NC -- 15
|
||
Dennis Koho, Keizer, OR -- 16
|
||
Chuck Smith, Woodbridge, VA -- 18
|
||
Mr. E. Person, New York, NY -- Topic
|
||
Chris White, New York, NY -- List owner/editor
|
||
---------------------------------------------------------
|
||
Selected from 99 submissions by 35 contributors.
|
||
=========================================================
|
||
|
||
*** Windows Sources Spotlight ***
|
||
|
||
Download BusinessCards/32 for Windows 95,
|
||
a shareware Rolodex-like replacement for
|
||
keeping track of contacts, now at
|
||
http://www.winsources.com
|
||
|
||
=========================================================
|
||
Top Five List Helpful Hints
|
||
|
||
To subscribe: Send a message to Majordomo@news.zdnet.com
|
||
with "subscribe topfive" in the body of the message.
|
||
To unsubscribe: Send a message to Majordomo@news.zdnet.com
|
||
with "unsubscribe topfive" in the body of the message.
|
||
For further info (including how to become a contributor):
|
||
Send a message to top5@walrus.com with the word
|
||
"INFO" in the *subject* line of the message.
|
||
=========================================================
|
||
Ruminations & Ponderances
|
||
|
||
It's not the size of the dog in the fight,
|
||
It's the size of the fight in the dog.
|
||
(Thanks to Dave Pugh)
|
||
|
||
I think you'd find that a laid-back Doberman would
|
||
still chew the stuffing out of an ornery Chihuahua.
|
||
(Thanks to Paul Paternoster)
|
||
|
||
It's not the size of the dog in the fight,
|
||
it's the size of the rats gnawing on the
|
||
dog's corpse after he loses.
|
||
(Thanks to Mitch Patterson)
|
||
|
||
=============================================================
|
||
** The Top Five List http://www.topfive.com
|
||
** Sponsored by Windows Sources http://www.wsources.com
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 26 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
From: "Mike Riddle" <mriddle@novia.net>
|
||
To: "Baker, Christopher" <cbaker84@digital.net (Christopher Baker)>
|
||
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 96 08:46:32 -0500
|
||
Reply-To: "Mike Riddle" <mriddle@novia.net>
|
||
Subject: Fwd: Humor - YOU KNOW YOU ARE AN INTERNET ADDICT...
|
||
|
||
==================BEGIN FORWARDED MESSAGE==================
|
||
>From: "Joy Kendrick, WebWeaver" <jc@clearlight.com>
|
||
>Organization: Joyous Creations
|
||
>To: geeks@shorty.com
|
||
>Date: Wed, 11 Sep 1996 23:14:43 -0500
|
||
>Reply-to: jc@clearlight.com
|
||
|
||
YOU KNOW YOU ARE ADDICTED TO THE INTERNET WHEN:
|
||
|
||
* You kiss your girlfriend's home page.
|
||
|
||
* Your bookmark takes 15 minutes to scroll from top to bottom.
|
||
|
||
* Your eyeglasses have a web site burned in on them.
|
||
|
||
* You find yourself brainstorming for new subjects to search.
|
||
|
||
* You refuse to go to a vacation spot with no electricity and no
|
||
phone lines.
|
||
|
||
* You finally do take that vacation, but only after buying a
|
||
cellular modem and a laptop.
|
||
|
||
* You spend half of the plane trip with your laptop on your
|
||
lap...and your child in the overhead compartment.
|
||
|
||
* All your daydreaming is preoccupied with getting a faster
|
||
connection to the net: 28.8...ISDN...cable modem...T1...T3.
|
||
|
||
* And even your night dreams are in HTML.
|
||
|
||
* You find yourself typing "com" after every period when using a
|
||
word processor.com.
|
||
|
||
* You refer to going to the bathroom as downloading.
|
||
|
||
* Your heart races faster and beats irregularly each time you see a
|
||
new WWW site address in print or on TV, even though you've never
|
||
had heart problems before.
|
||
|
||
* You step out of your room and realize that your parents have moved
|
||
and you don't have a clue when it happened.
|
||
|
||
* You turn on your intercom when leaving the room so you can hear if
|
||
new e-mail arrives.
|
||
|
||
* Your wife drapes a blond wig over your monitor to remind you of
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 27 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
what she looks like.
|
||
|
||
* All of your friends have an @ in their names.
|
||
|
||
* When looking at a pageful of someone else's links, you notice all
|
||
of them are already highlighted in purple.
|
||
|
||
* Your dog has its own home page.
|
||
|
||
* You've already visited all the links at Yahoo and you're halfway
|
||
through Lycos. or [C]ontinue?
|
||
|
||
* You can't call your mother...she doesn't have a modem.
|
||
|
||
* You realize there is not a sound in the house and you have no idea
|
||
where your children are.
|
||
|
||
* You check your mail. It says "no new messages." So you check it
|
||
again.
|
||
|
||
* You refer to your age as 3.x.
|
||
|
||
* You have commandeered your teenager's phone line for the net and
|
||
even his friends know not to call on his line anymore.
|
||
|
||
* Your phone bill comes to your doorstep in a box.
|
||
|
||
* Even though you died last week, you've managed to retain OPS on
|
||
your favorite IRC channel.
|
||
|
||
* You code your homework in HTML and give your instructor the URL.
|
||
|
||
* You don't know the sex of three of your closest friends, because
|
||
they have neutral nicknames and you never bothered to ask.
|
||
|
||
* Your husband tells you he's had the beard for 2 months.
|
||
|
||
* You miss more than five meals a week downloading the latest games
|
||
from Apogee.t, or [C]ontinue?
|
||
|
||
* You start looking for hot HTML addresses in public restrooms.
|
||
|
||
* You move into a new house and decide to Netscape before you
|
||
landscape.
|
||
|
||
* You tell the cab driver you live at
|
||
http://123.elm.street/house/bluetrim.html
|
||
|
||
* You actually try that 123.elm.street address.
|
||
|
||
* You tell the kids they can't use the computer because "Daddy's got
|
||
work to do" and you don't even have a job.
|
||
|
||
* Your friends no longer send you e-mail...they just log on to your
|
||
IRC channel.
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 28 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
* You buy a Captain Kirk chair with a built-in keyboard and mouse.
|
||
|
||
* Your wife makes a new rule: "The computer cannot come to bed."
|
||
|
||
* You are so familiar with the WWW that you find the search engines
|
||
useless.
|
||
|
||
* You get a tattoo that says "This body best viewed with Netscape
|
||
1.1 or higher."
|
||
|
||
* You never have to deal with busy signals when calling your
|
||
ISP...because you never log off.
|
||
|
||
* You ask a plumber how much it would cost to replace the chair in
|
||
front of your computer with a toilet.
|
||
|
||
* You forget what year it is.
|
||
|
||
* You start tilting your head sideways to smile.
|
||
|
||
* You ask your doctor to implant a gig in your brain.
|
||
|
||
* You leave the modem speaker on after connecting because you think
|
||
it sounds like the ocean wind...the perfect soundtrack for
|
||
"surfing the net".
|
||
|
||
* You begin to wonder how on earth your service provider is allowed
|
||
to call 200 hours per month "unlimited."
|
||
|
||
* You turn on your computer and turn off your wife.
|
||
|
||
* Your wife says communication is important in a marriage...so you
|
||
buy another computer and install a second phone line so the two of
|
||
you can chat.
|
||
|
||
* As your car crashes through the guardrail on a mountain road, your
|
||
first instinct is to search for the "back" button.
|
||
|
||
Hope you all have a great Thursday!
|
||
|
||
Joy Kendrick
|
||
Web Weaver & Owner
|
||
Joyous Creations
|
||
925 Gillette Street
|
||
Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27105-5715
|
||
E-mail: jc@clearlight.com
|
||
Welcome to Joyous Creations!
|
||
http://www.clearlight.com/~jc/JoyousCreations/
|
||
Welcome to Joy's Wonderful & Wacky World!
|
||
http://www.clearlight.com/~jc/JoysWorld/
|
||
"Ok, who cancelled my reality check???"
|
||
Virtual Vacations, (You *need* a vacation!)
|
||
http://www.plws.com/vv
|
||
The Muse's Music Hall! Virtual E-Cards!
|
||
http://www.thecore.com/~nannette/
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 29 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
===================END FORWARDED MESSAGE===================
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
From: "Mike Riddle" <mriddle@novia.net>
|
||
To: "Baker, Christopher" <cbaker84@digital.net (Christopher Baker)>
|
||
Date: Wed, 11 Sep 96 12:03:39 -0500
|
||
Reply-To: "Mike Riddle" <mriddle@novia.net>
|
||
Subject: Fwd: Austin Robinson-Coolidge: Humor - Addiction to the Net
|
||
(fwd)
|
||
|
||
==================BEGIN FORWARDED MESSAGE==================
|
||
>To: geeks@shorty.com
|
||
>Subject: Austin Robinson-Coolidge: Humor - Addiction to the Net (fwd)
|
||
>Date: Wed, 11 Sep 1996 08:40:06 -0500
|
||
>From: Tyler Godfrey <godfreyt@stolaf.edu>
|
||
|
||
------- Forwarded Message
|
||
|
||
Top 10 Signs You're Addicted to the net
|
||
|
||
10. You wake up at 3 a.m. to go to the bathroom and stop and
|
||
check your e-mail on the way back to bed.
|
||
|
||
9. You get a tattoo that reads "This body best viewed with
|
||
Netscape Navigator 1.1 or higher."
|
||
|
||
8. You name your children Eudora, Mozilla and Dotcom.
|
||
|
||
7. You turn off your modem and get this awful empty
|
||
feeling, like you just pulled the plug on a loved one.
|
||
|
||
6. You spend half of the plane trip with your laptop on
|
||
your lap...and your child in the overhead compartment.
|
||
|
||
5. You decide to stay in college for an additional year or
|
||
two, just for the free Internet access.
|
||
|
||
4. You laugh at people with 2400-baud modems.
|
||
|
||
3. You start using smileys in your snail mail.
|
||
|
||
2. The last girl you picked up was a JPEG.
|
||
|
||
1. Your hard drive crashes. You haven't logged in for two
|
||
hours. You start to twitch. You pick up the phone and
|
||
manually dial your ISP's access number. You try to hum
|
||
to communicate with the modem. You succeed.
|
||
|
||
------- End of Forwarded Message
|
||
|
||
Tyler Godfrey
|
||
UNIX Systems Intern
|
||
St. Olaf College, Northfield MN
|
||
godfreyt@stolaf.edu
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 30 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
http://www.stolaf.edu/people/godfreyt/
|
||
|
||
===================END FORWARDED MESSAGE===================
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 31 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
COMIX IN ASCII
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
[Speech program users: The picture below is of two figures giving a
|
||
Roman salute (arm upraised with palm forward). One is wearing battle
|
||
gear and the other a toga.]
|
||
|
||
--- Following message extracted from NETMAIL @ 1:374/14 ---
|
||
By Christopher Baker on Fri Oct 25 10:26:50 1996
|
||
|
||
From: Dave Aronson @ 1:109/120
|
||
To: Chris Baker @ 1:18/14
|
||
Date: 24 Oct 96 23:49:26
|
||
Subj: more ascii comix!
|
||
|
||
Come to think of it, that old echomail you dredged up was probably
|
||
from the days when something like this was my BBS's opening screen:
|
||
|
||
iIi # A Hail, citizen! iIi
|
||
|||| __#__ Ave! | |||| ___ Oy Vey!
|
||
\__) /.-.-.\ / | Centurion Circus Maximus \__) {{{ }}} /
|
||
| | |'o o`| / | | | | o o | /
|
||
| | | @ | | and his twin brother | | | @ |
|
||
| | \`---'/ | | | \`---'/
|
||
` `==)___(==-\ A Senator Gluteus Maximus ` `---)___(---.
|
||
\ ||M M|| \ H \ | |
|
||
\/`'MM MM`'|\ \ H welcome you to \/ | |
|
||
| M M M | \ \H | _-.___.' |
|
||
| M M | \ H .------|>o------. |(____| |
|
||
|===(*)===| \() | T I D M A D T | | \ |
|
||
|HHHHHHHHH| H `---------------' | \ |
|
||
|HHHHHHHHH| H | \__/
|
||
|HHHHHHHHH| H (These Initials Don't | |
|
||
|VVVVVVVVV| H \ ___/
|
||
| | | | H Mean A Da*n Thing!) \__--~| |
|
||
|_| |_| H |_| |_|
|
||
(__| |__) H (__| |__)
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
[Speech program users: The picture below is of a large screen
|
||
television being viewed by the denizens of Mystery Science
|
||
Theater 3000. There is a dragon with its wings unfurled on
|
||
the screen. Another row of seats is repeated then a picture
|
||
of Tom Servo and then a large hand palm out is displayed.]
|
||
|
||
From: 362-708-4!Troy.H..Cheek@river.chattanooga.net (Troy H. Cheek)
|
||
Date: 17 Oct 96 09:19:14 -0500
|
||
Subject: ASCII art
|
||
Organization: river.chattanooga.net
|
||
To: cbaker84@digital.net
|
||
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 32 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
Not sure if ASCII art will make it unscathed through my internet
|
||
gateway. Here's trying...
|
||
|
||
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
||
| __----~~~~~~~~~~~------__|
|
||
| . . ~~//====...... __--~|
|
||
| -. \_|// |||\\ ~~~~~~::::... /~ |
|
||
| ___-==_ _-~o~ \/ ||| \\ _/~~- |
|
||
| __---~~~.==~||\=_ -_--~/_-~|- |\\ \\ _/~ |
|
||
| _-~~ .=~ | \\-_ '-~7 /- / || \ / |
|
||
|~ .~ | \\ -_ / /- / || \ / |
|
||
| ____ / | \\ ~-_/ /|- _/ .|| \ / |
|
||
|~ ~~|--~~~~--_ \ ~==-/ | \~--===~~ .\ |
|
||
| ' ~-| /| |-~\~~ __--~~ |
|
||
| |-~~-_/ | | ~\_ _-~ /\ |
|
||
| / \ \__ \/~ \__ |
|
||
| _--~ _/ | .-~~____--~-/ ~~==. |
|
||
| ((->/~ '.|||' -_| ~~-/ , . _| |
|
||
| _-~-__ ~) \--______________--~~ |
|
||
| //.-~~~-~_--~- |-------~~~~~~~~ |
|
||
| //.-~~~--\ |
|
||
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
||
It's like Godzilla __ ___ ____
|
||
only not good! \ / \ / \ (###(
|
||
\ / < | (~~\ /
|
||
||> \ | ~~~||
|
||
/ \ / \ /~ ~\
|
||
/~~~~~~~~\__/~~~~~~~~\__/~~~~~~~~\__/~~~~~~~~\__/~~~~~~~~\__/~~~~~~~~
|
||
|
||
|
||
\
|
||
/\ ______
|
||
-- \ > ___ \\__//
|
||
/ \ || /:::\ / \
|
||
\ / || <:::> /\ /
|
||
||> < \ \:::/ \-||
|
||
\ || / \ \_/ \ ||
|
||
...... ...... ...... ...... \ ......\ ......
|
||
./" "\./" "\./" "\./" "\./" "\./" "\
|
||
" " " " " " "
|
||
MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000
|
||
|
||
|
||
_____ ________________
|
||
/ \ | Hey, Pink Boy! |
|
||
| | / |________________|
|
||
\_____/ /
|
||
/_<U>_\
|
||
>\\\}| |o o| |{\\\<
|
||
| |o o| |
|
||
| |o o| |
|
||
/ / / \ \ \
|
||
/_/_/__|__\_\_\
|
||
|
||
|
||
______________________
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 33 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
/ || \___|
|
||
/ \_____/\______/_________________
|
||
_______________/ | \
|
||
| / |_____|______|_____/_
|
||
| / \ | | \
|
||
|| \ \ | |______|______|______ /
|
||
|| \ | | | \
|
||
| | | |______|_____|_____/
|
||
________________ | \
|
||
~~--___________________________|_____|____/
|
||
|
||
Owen E. Oulton
|
||
--
|
||
|Fidonet: Troy H. Cheek 1:362/708.4
|
||
|Internet: 362-708-4!Troy.H..Cheek@river.chattanooga.net
|
||
|
|
||
| Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.
|
||
| River Canyon Rd. BBS <=> Chattanooga OnLine! Gateway to the World.
|
||
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
[Speech program users: The picture below shows a figure half in and
|
||
half out of what appears to be a closet door.]
|
||
|
||
--- Following message extracted from NETMAIL @ 1:374/14 ---
|
||
By Christopher Baker on Thu Oct 24 11:37:06 1996
|
||
|
||
From: Fredric Rice @ 1:218/890
|
||
To: Editor @ 1:1/23
|
||
Date: 22 Oct 96 19:53:06
|
||
Subj: Article!
|
||
|
||
Greetings, Christopher!
|
||
|
||
I doubt this will fit your format requirements but here it is anyway
|
||
for FidoNews. David mentioned this file and sent me a copy. I
|
||
couldn't find mine and I had forgotten all about it.
|
||
|
||
-=- Begin ASCII art -=-
|
||
|
||
From: Fredric L. Rice
|
||
To: All Apr-26-94 20:45:26
|
||
Subject: Closet Bruce
|
||
|
||
--------------------------
|
||
Yes, you've heard .|.............. | Help bruce to come
|
||
a lot about him, .|.............. | out of the closet
|
||
all of your new .|..............-. | and stand up for his
|
||
friends have one, .|.............. o\ | Constitutional and
|
||
and you have even .|..............- ] | civil rights!
|
||
contemplated .|.............._/ |
|
||
owning one for .|.............. -. | Take him out and dress
|
||
your very own. .|.............. \ | him up to vicariously
|
||
.|.............. \ | explore the boundaries
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 34 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
Well now, as part .|.............. |\ \ | of your own latent
|
||
of this one-time .|.............. | \ \ | closet dwelling.
|
||
television offer, .|.............. | \--\ |
|
||
you, too can have .|.............._| /||\ | Not available in most
|
||
.|.............. | | stores and void where
|
||
.|.............. | | prohibited by bigotry
|
||
CLOSET BRUCE ! .|.............. | | and religious hatred.
|
||
.|.............. | |
|
||
"Comes in his .|.............. | | Dial 1-800-HEY-BOYS
|
||
own closet!" .|.............. |-- | for a rushed delivery.
|
||
.|..............____| |
|
||
--------------------------
|
||
"Just when you though it was safe to come out of the closet"
|
||
|
||
---
|
||
Origin: PRIME NETWORK! Where The Bullshit Never Sets (1:218/890.666)
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
[Speech program users: The picture below is of a large Jack-o-lantern
|
||
under a full moon with a cat in the foreground.]
|
||
|
||
Date: 29 Sep 90 22:50:38
|
||
From: Dave Aronson
|
||
To: Jonathan Rolfe @ 906/201
|
||
Subj: Re: Happy New Year
|
||
______________________________________________________________________
|
||
|
||
> I always wondered what the creative could do within the constraints
|
||
> of ASCII! Now let's see if anyone can get some runes together for
|
||
> Hallowe'en!
|
||
|
||
Maybe something like:
|
||
|
||
_ H A P P Y H A L L O W E E N ! !
|
||
/ \ ___
|
||
( ) ////
|
||
\ _ / ////
|
||
**********************
|
||
****************************
|
||
************************************
|
||
******\~~~~~~/***********\~~~~~~/*******
|
||
********\ /*************\ /*********
|
||
**********\ /******/^\******\ /***********
|
||
************\/******/ \******\/*************
|
||
*******************/_____\********************
|
||
********************************************** #
|
||
*********\~~~~|***|~~~~~|***|~~~~/********** #
|
||
**********\ |***| ___ |***| /***|\___/|*/^^\ #
|
||
***********\ ~~~ |***| ~~~ /*****` o.o '/ \ #
|
||
************\___|***|___/*******=(___)= /^\ \#
|
||
*********************************U\ / \ )
|
||
***************************** #^# #^#
|
||
************************** # # # #
|
||
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 35 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
(which I picked up from a long-forgotten source). If anyone can
|
||
snailmail me a written copy of "Happy Samhain" in runed Gaelic, I'll
|
||
take a whack at ASCIIfying it....
|
||
|
||
Origin: TIDMADT Enterprises (703) 370-7054 (1:109/120)
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 36 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
Some folks like to write stuff for newsletters and some don't. This
|
||
week you will get another prod to produce something for FidoNews.
|
||
|
||
The Question of the Week for 1344 is:
|
||
|
||
Can you compose a meaningful Headline for FidoNews Issues to come
|
||
if you are limited to good taste and 60 characters length?
|
||
|
||
Send your answers as the new .ANS submission by filesend to 1:1/23 or
|
||
as email, Netmail, or Echomail in the FIDONEWS Echo. See the Masthead
|
||
info for addressing details.
|
||
|
||
Thanks.
|
||
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 37 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
ANSWERS OF THE WEEK
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
--- Following message extracted from NETMAIL @ 1:374/14 ---
|
||
By Christopher Baker on Tue Oct 22 18:08:12 1996
|
||
|
||
From: William Wilson @ 1:129/89
|
||
To: Christopher Baker @ 1:18/14
|
||
Date: 22 Oct 96 13:14:28
|
||
Subj: Speech and Fido
|
||
|
||
Christopher,
|
||
In volume 13, number 43 of FidoNews, you ask:
|
||
|
||
"I am aware that there are folks out there reading FidoNews with
|
||
speech programs. I know these programs are also used for Netmail and
|
||
Echomail.
|
||
|
||
The Question of the Week is who uses these programs, what programs
|
||
are in use, and are any of these functions available inside mailers
|
||
or BBS or editor programs?"
|
||
|
||
First of all, I will intentionally attempt to be as brief as
|
||
possible, mainly because my experience tells me I can quite
|
||
easily discuss this topic to the point of boring my audience and
|
||
stifling further interest! You see, for some of us, speech
|
||
access to computers has dominated our lifes for years, and
|
||
therefore our passion for the topic prevents us from recognizing
|
||
the bounds of normal conversation!
|
||
|
||
Simply put, speech programs are being used by anyone who finds
|
||
their use an aid in accessing the information on their computer
|
||
screen! This includes people such as myself who are totally
|
||
blind, partially sighted people who often use speech in
|
||
conjunction with a screen enlargement program, and others who are
|
||
in some way print impaired including the dyslexic. Although I
|
||
don't have specific numbers available to me, there are
|
||
undoubtedly many thousands of individuals using speech synthesis
|
||
to access their computer screens in North America, several times
|
||
this worldwide!
|
||
|
||
In most cases, by the way, there are two components to a speech
|
||
system, the software half or speech program you've referred to,
|
||
and the hardware half, the synthesizer itself. The speech
|
||
program gives the user control over how the text is spoken,
|
||
including very basic things like rate and pitch, as well as very
|
||
subtle characteristics such as pronunciation of specific
|
||
punctuation, color attributes, etc. Commands available with the
|
||
typical speech program range from keys to totally reread the
|
||
screen or current cursor line to automatic reading of this or
|
||
that enhancement, if and only if it appears in a specific area of
|
||
the screen! Basically speaking, the better the user knows their
|
||
speech program, the more efficient they can be with their
|
||
computer, and with today's speech programs the potential is
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 38 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
profound!
|
||
|
||
Speech synthesizers come in both internal and external models and
|
||
are configured as either a serial or parallel device. Some
|
||
common names of speech programs for DOS are Vocal-Eyes, ASAP,
|
||
Flipper and Jaws, demos available for downloading from BlinkLink,
|
||
1:129/89, as well as many other sources. Common synthesizers
|
||
include the Dectalk, SmarTalk, DoubleTalk and Soundingboard as
|
||
well as many others. In general, speech programs range from
|
||
about $300.00 to $550.00 while synthesizers go for between
|
||
$350.00 to $1200.00, the price dependant upon various factors
|
||
such as intelligibility, portability, etc.
|
||
|
||
No BBS or mailer program that I know of gives the user specific
|
||
speech functions, or at least none actually produce speech as I
|
||
assume you meant by your question. As you can tell by what I've
|
||
said above, however, most all text based software can be used
|
||
with a speech program-synthesizer combination, and this includes
|
||
everything from Binkleyterm to the vanilla Opus I'm running here!
|
||
In fact, certain things can be done by the programmer to insure
|
||
that their wares are indeed more speech friendly, thus the reason
|
||
Doug Boone added the "Talker" option to Opus 1.73A. In general,
|
||
what has become known as the "Speech Friendly Interface" has been
|
||
added to many Dos programs, including both the Silver Xpress and
|
||
Blue Wave off-line readers, the Commo communications program, and
|
||
even the Shez file manager, so if anyone would like to learn more
|
||
about what makes a program more speech compatible, file request
|
||
"SFI.ZIP" from 1:129/89. Also, you may wish to consider joining
|
||
us in BLINKTALK, the original Fidonet visual disabilities echo
|
||
that's available from the backbone and has been around since
|
||
1988. We discuss things like this and other topics related to
|
||
blindness everyday, and although most of us are indeed visually
|
||
impaired, ALL are welcome!
|
||
|
||
Hopefully that answered your question without boring TOO much, as
|
||
I truly did try and keep it as short as possible! Thank goodness
|
||
you didn't ask about how Windows and the Graphical User Interface
|
||
is effecting all this or I would just be getting warmed up at
|
||
this point! B-)
|
||
Willie
|
||
|
||
... BlinkTalk - the Electronic Voice of the Blind!
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
--- Following message extracted from NETMAIL @ 1:374/14 ---
|
||
By Christopher Baker on Fri Oct 25 23:09:29 1996
|
||
|
||
From: Debra Turner @ 1:392/15
|
||
To: Christopher Baker @ 1:18/14
|
||
Date: 23 Oct 96 16:19:53
|
||
Subj: Speech Software
|
||
|
||
Hello Christopher,
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 39 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
I use speech synthesis because of my visual disability.
|
||
|
||
There are several commercially available applications as well as a
|
||
wide variety of speech synthesizers. These software packages are
|
||
often called screen readers. They are resident programs that sit in
|
||
the background causing keystrokes to be spoken as well as any Bios
|
||
output. Most modern screen readers also deal with direct screen
|
||
writes. Pulldown menu items are announced as I highlight them.
|
||
Characters that I cursor over while writing this message are spoken.
|
||
Also, there are provisions to review anything currently on my screen
|
||
at anytime.
|
||
|
||
What this means in practicality is since the screen reader handles the
|
||
task of providing output to the synthesizer many applications can be
|
||
successfully used without being adapted for the speech user.
|
||
|
||
There are some limitations to this of which I won't go into, but most
|
||
mailers, tossers and a lot of common Bbs packages work well. Some have
|
||
a "speech friendly" mode that causes them to use bios routines for
|
||
screen writes as well as other things that make them work a little
|
||
better with screen review apps. One example that comes to mind is the
|
||
setup for Allfix.
|
||
|
||
Most all of the common mailers, Binkleyterm, frontdoor etc have been
|
||
used with speech. I have ran Wildcat and Maximus as Bbs packages but
|
||
others are in use too.
|
||
|
||
I discovered Fidonet in 1991 when I heard about an echo for discussion
|
||
of adaptive software as well as many other things of interest to me.
|
||
|
||
There are quite a few visually impaired sysops in Fidonet. I put up
|
||
my board last year when the local net became a local telephone call in
|
||
my small town.
|
||
|
||
Thanks for the descriptions in the Fidonews this week. Grate
|
||
Newsletter!
|
||
|
||
Debra
|
||
|
||
debra@camalott.com
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
From: Kurt.Schafer@nsbbs.dudd.uniserve.com (Kurt Schafer)
|
||
Date: 24 Oct 96 12:12:00 -0800
|
||
Subject: Q. of the Week: Speech programs & mail readers
|
||
To: cbaker84@digital.net
|
||
|
||
Greetings Mr. Baker.
|
||
|
||
This is in response to your "Question of the Week", regarding the use
|
||
of speech programs within mailers or BBS or editor programs. I found
|
||
and tried just such an animal about a month ago, but it was an offline
|
||
mail reader. I hope this is the type of information you had in mind.
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 40 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
The program's name is: "QWKTALK (Version 4.0) by Pegasus Software.
|
||
|
||
The archive is: QWKTALK4.ZIP 572921 01-23-95
|
||
|
||
And the file_id.diz reads as follows:
|
||
|
||
Pegasus Software's * QWKTALK * 4.0
|
||
Worlds' only talking e-mail reader!
|
||
*** New Release! ***
|
||
>>>> Supports File Attachments! <<<<
|
||
Full unlimited reply capability enabled
|
||
Robotic voice reads your mail to you!
|
||
ANSI @ PCBOARD Color Display Features
|
||
NEW >> Carbon Copies and Bookmark!!
|
||
Full Voice Utilities * ALIAS Support
|
||
Auto Signature Attach...and IT TALKS!
|
||
Silent mode for PCs w/s Sound Card!
|
||
All features enabled!!!!
|
||
Now with sequential capture for
|
||
Internet binary file re-assembly!
|
||
A Pegasus Software & Imaging Product
|
||
|
||
And finally, this program was found on a two-disc cd-rom set of
|
||
"10,000 MS DOS shareware programs...from the Internet." (by Simtel-
|
||
May/95)
|
||
|
||
ttyl... Kurt. *FIDO: 1:153/412 *email:
|
||
sysop@nsbbs.dudd.uniserve.com
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 41 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
NOTICES
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
Future History
|
||
|
||
29 Oct 1996
|
||
Republic Day, Turkey.
|
||
|
||
5 Nov 1996
|
||
Election day, U.S.A.
|
||
|
||
5 Nov 1996
|
||
Guy Fawkes Day, England.
|
||
|
||
1 Dec 1996
|
||
Twelfth Anniversary of FidoNews Volume 1, Issue 1.
|
||
|
||
12 Dec 1996
|
||
Constitution Day, Russia
|
||
|
||
26 Jan 1997
|
||
Australia Day, Australia.
|
||
|
||
6 Feb 1997
|
||
Waitangi Day, New Zealand.
|
||
|
||
16 Feb 1997
|
||
Eleventh Anniversary of invention of Echomail by Jeff Rush.
|
||
|
||
29 Feb 1997
|
||
Nothing will happen on this day.
|
||
|
||
25 May 1997
|
||
Independence Day, Argentina
|
||
|
||
11 Jun 1997
|
||
Independence Day, Russia
|
||
|
||
1 Dec 1998
|
||
Fifteenth Anniversary of release of Fido version 1 by
|
||
Tom Jennings.
|
||
|
||
31 Dec 1999
|
||
Hogmanay, Scotland. The New Year that can't be missed.
|
||
|
||
15 Sep 2000
|
||
Sydney (Australia) Summer Olympiad opens.
|
||
|
||
-- If YOU have something which you would like to see in this
|
||
Future History, please send a note to the FidoNews Editor.
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 42 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
FIDONET SOFTWARE LISTING
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
Latest Greatest Software Versions
|
||
by Peter E. Popovich, 1:363/264
|
||
|
||
Crap. In the final stages of preparing this week's submission, I
|
||
managed to accidentally trash most of the changes since last week and
|
||
all of my pending entries. I'll do my best to reconstruct the changes,
|
||
but it may take a few weeks to get back up to speed. Phooey.
|
||
|
||
I've had problems upstream with my inbound routed netmail. I strongly
|
||
suggest folks -crash- their submissions to me or e-mail them to me at
|
||
popovich@gate.net
|
||
|
||
Phased out this week: Archimedes Software
|
||
|
||
Phase-out highlights:
|
||
This week: Atari ST/TT Software Deadline for info: 8 Nov 1996.
|
||
Last week: QNX Software Deadline for info: 1 Nov 1996.
|
||
|
||
-=- Snip -=-
|
||
|
||
Submission form for the Latest Greatest Software Versions column
|
||
|
||
OS Platform :
|
||
Software package name :
|
||
Version :
|
||
Function(s) - BBS, Mailer, Tosser, etc. :
|
||
Freeware / Shareware / Commercial? :
|
||
Author / Support staff contact name :
|
||
Author / Support staff contact node :
|
||
Magic name (at the above-listed node) :
|
||
|
||
Please include a sentence describing what the package does.
|
||
|
||
Please send updates and suggestions to: Peter Popovich, 1:363/264
|
||
|
||
-=- Snip -=-
|
||
|
||
MS-DOS:
|
||
Program Name Version F C Contact Name Node Magic Name
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
Act-Up 4.6 G D Chris Gunn 1:15/55 ACT-UP
|
||
Announcer 1.1 O S Peter Karlsson 2:206/221 ANNOUNCE
|
||
BGFAX 1.60 O S B.J. Guillot 1:106/400 BGFAX
|
||
CheckPnt 0.5 beta O F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
2:500/9 CHECKPNT
|
||
FidoBBS (tm) 12u B S Ray Brown 1:1/117 FILES
|
||
FrontDoor 2.12 M S JoHo 2:201/330 FD
|
||
FrontDoor 2.20c M C JoHo 2:201/330 FDINFO
|
||
GIGO 07-14-96 G S Jason Fesler 1:1/141 INFO
|
||
Imail 1.75 T S Michael McCabe 1:297/11 IMAIL
|
||
ImCrypt 1.04 O F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 43 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
2:500/9 IMCRYPT
|
||
InfoMail 1.11 O F Damian Walker 2:2502/666 INFOMAIL
|
||
InterEcho 1.19 T C Peter Stewart 1:369/35 IEDEMO
|
||
InterMail 2.29k M C Peter Stewart 1:369/35 IMDEMO
|
||
InterPCB 1.52 O S Peter Stewart 1:369/35 INTERPCB
|
||
IPNet 1.11 O S Michele Stewart 1:369/21 IPNET
|
||
Jelly-Bean 1.01 T S Rowan Crowe 3:635/727 JELLY
|
||
Jelly-Bean/386 1.01 T S Rowan Crowe 3:635/727 JELLY386
|
||
MakePl 1.8 N F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
2:500/9 MAKEPL
|
||
Marena 1.1 beta O F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
2:500/9 MARENA
|
||
Maximus 3.01 B P Tech 1:249/106 MAX
|
||
McMail 1.0g5 M S Michael McCabe 1:1/148 MCMAIL
|
||
MDNDP 1.18 N S Bill Doyle 1:388/7 MDNDP
|
||
MsgEd 4.00 O F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 MSGED
|
||
Opus CBCS 1.73a B P Christopher Baker 1:374/14 OPUS
|
||
O/T-Track 2.63a O S Peter Hampf 2:241/1090 OT
|
||
PcMerge 2.7 N F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
2:500/9 PCMERGE
|
||
PlatinumXpress 1.1 M C Gary Petersen 1:290/111 PX11TD.ZIP
|
||
RAR 2.00 C S Ron Dwight 2:220/22 RAR
|
||
RemoteAccess 2.50 B S Mark Lewis 1:3634/12 RA
|
||
Silver Xpress
|
||
Door 5.4 O S Gary Petersen 1:290/111 FILES
|
||
Reader 4.3 O S Gary Petersen 1:290/111 SXR43.ZIP
|
||
Squish 1.11 T P Tech 1:249/106 SQUISH
|
||
T-Mail 2.599I M S Ron Dwight 2:220/22 TMAIL
|
||
Terminate 4.00 O S Bo Bendtsen 2:254/261 TERMINATE
|
||
Tobruk 0.33 T F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 TOBRUK
|
||
TriBBS 10.0 B S Patrick Driscoll 1:372/19 TRIBBS
|
||
TriDog 10.0 M S Patrick Driscoll 1:372/19 TRIDOG
|
||
TriToss 10.0 T S Patrick Driscoll 1:372/19 TRITOSS
|
||
WWIV 4.24a B S Craig Dooley 1:376/126 WWIV
|
||
XRobot 3.01 O S JoHo 2:201/330 XRDOS
|
||
|
||
OS/2:
|
||
Program Name Version F C Contact Name Node Magic Name
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
BGFAX 1.60 O S B.J. Guillot 1:106/400 BGFAX
|
||
FleetStreet 1.17 O S Michael Hohner 2:2490/2520 FLEET
|
||
GIGO 07-14-96 G S Jason Fesler 1:1/141 INFO
|
||
ImCrypt 1.04 O F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
2:500/9 IMCRYPT
|
||
Maximus 3.01 B P Tech 1:249/106 MAXP
|
||
MsgEd 4.00 O F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 MSGED
|
||
PcMerge 2.3 N F Michiel van der Vlist
|
||
2:500/9 PCMERGE
|
||
RAR 2.00 C S Ron Dwight 2:220/22 RAR2
|
||
Squish 1.11 T P Tech 1:249/106 SQUISHP
|
||
T-Mail 2.599I M S Ron Dwight 2:220/22 TMAIL2
|
||
Tobruk 0.33 T F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 TOBRUK
|
||
XRobot 3.01 O S JoHo 2:201/330 XROS2
|
||
|
||
Windows (16-bit apps):
|
||
Program Name Version F C Contact Name Node Magic Name
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 44 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
BeeMail 1.0 M C Andrius Cepaitis 2:470/1 BEEMAIL
|
||
|
||
Windows (32-bit apps):
|
||
Program Name Version F C Contact Name Node Magic Name
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
BeeMail 1.0 M C Andrius Cepaitis 2:470/1 BEEMAIL
|
||
Maximus 3.01 B P Tech 1:249/106 MAXN
|
||
PlatinumXpress 2.00 M C Gary Petersen 1:290/111 PXW-INFO
|
||
T-Mail 2.599I M S Ron Dwight 2:220/22 TMAILNT
|
||
|
||
Unix:
|
||
Program Name Version F C Contact Name Node Magic Name
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
ifmail 2.8f M G Eugene Crosser 2:293/2219 IFMAIL
|
||
ifmail-tx 2.8f-tx7.7 M G Pablo Saratxaga 2:293/2219 IFMAILTX
|
||
MsgEd 4.00 O F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 MSGED
|
||
Tobruk 0.33 T F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 TOBRUK
|
||
|
||
Amiga:
|
||
Program Name Version F C Contact Name Node Magic Name
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
CrashMail 1.23 T X Fredrik Bennison 2:205/324 CRASHMAIL
|
||
CrashTick 1.1 O F Fredrik Bennison 2:205/324 CRASHTICK
|
||
MsgEd 4.00 O F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 MSGED
|
||
Tobruk 0.33 T F Paul Edwards 3:711/934 TOBRUK
|
||
|
||
Function: B-BBS, M-Mailer, N-Nodelist, G-Gateway, T-Tosser,
|
||
C-Compression, O-Other. Note: Multifunction will be listed
|
||
by the first match.
|
||
|
||
Cost: P-Free for personal use, F-Freeware, S-Shareware, C-Commercial,
|
||
X-Crippleware, D-Demoware, G-Free w/ Source
|
||
|
||
|
||
Old info from: 01/27/92
|
||
---------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
MS-DOS Systems
|
||
--------------
|
||
|
||
BBS Software NodeList Utilities Other Utilities
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
Kitten 1.01 EditNL 4.00 MailBase 4.11a@
|
||
Lynx 1.30 FDND 1.10 MSG 4.5*
|
||
Merlin 1.39n MakeNL 2.31 MsgLnk 1.0c
|
||
Oracomm 5.M.6P@ Parselst 1.33 MsgMstr 2.03a
|
||
Oracomm Plus 6.E@ Prune 1.40 MsgNum 4.16d
|
||
PCBoard 14.5a SysNL 3.14 MSGTOSS 1.3
|
||
Phoenix 1.07* XlatList 2.90 Netsex 2.00b
|
||
ProBoard 1.20* XlaxNode/Diff 2.53 OFFLINE 1.35
|
||
QuickBBS 2.75 Oliver 1.0a
|
||
RBBS 17.3b Other Utilities OSIRIS CBIS 3.02
|
||
RemoteAccess 1.11* Name Version PKInsert 7.10
|
||
SimplexBBS 1.05 -------------------- PolyXarc 2.1a
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 45 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
SLBBS 2.15C* 2DAPoint 1.50* QM 1.00a
|
||
Socrates 1.11 4Dog/4DMatrix 1.18 QSort 4.04
|
||
SuperBBS 1.12* ARCAsim 2.31 RAD Plus 2.11
|
||
SuperComm 0.99 ARCmail 3.00* Raid 1.00
|
||
TAG 2.5g Areafix 1.20 RBBSMail 18.0
|
||
TBBS 2.1 ConfMail 4.00 ScanToss 1.28
|
||
TComm/TCommNet 3.4 Crossnet 1.5 ScMail 1.00
|
||
Telegard 2.7* DOMAIN 1.42 ScEdit 1.12
|
||
TPBoard 6.1 DEMM 1.06 Sirius 1.0x
|
||
WildCat! 3.02* DGMM 1.06 SLMail 2.15C
|
||
XBBS 1.77 DOMAIN 1.42 StarLink 1.01
|
||
EEngine 0.32 TagMail 2.41
|
||
Network Mailers EMM 2.11* TCOMMail 2.2
|
||
Name Version EZPoint 2.1 Telemail 1.5*
|
||
-------------------- FGroup 1.00 TGroup 1.13
|
||
BinkleyTerm 2.50 FidoPCB 1.0s@ TIRES 3.11
|
||
D'Bridge 1.30 FNPGate 2.70 TMail 1.21
|
||
Dreamer 1.06 GateWorks 3.06e TosScan 1.00
|
||
Dutchie 2.90c GMail 2.05 UFGATE 1.03
|
||
Milqtoast 1.00 GMD 3.10 VPurge 4.09e
|
||
PreNM 1.48 GMM 1.21 WEdit 2.0@
|
||
SEAdog 4.60 GoldEd 2.31p WildMail 2.00
|
||
SEAmail 1.01 GROUP 2.23 WMail 2.2
|
||
TIMS 1.0(mod8) GUS 1.40 WNode 2.1
|
||
Harvey's Robot 4.10 XRS 4.99
|
||
Compression HeadEdit 1.18 XST 2.3e
|
||
Utilities HLIST 1.09 YUPPIE! 2.00
|
||
Name Version ISIS 5.12@ ZmailH 1.25
|
||
-------------------- Lola 1.01d ZSX 2.40
|
||
ARC 7.12 Mosaic 1.00b
|
||
ARJ 2.20
|
||
LHA 2.13
|
||
PAK 2.51
|
||
PKPak 3.61
|
||
PKZip 1.10
|
||
|
||
|
||
OS/2 Systems
|
||
------------
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Other Utilities(A-M Other Utilities(N-Z)
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
Kitten 1.01 ARC 7.12 oMMM 1.52
|
||
SimplexBBS 1.04.02+ ARC2 6.01 Omail 3.1
|
||
ConfMail 4.00 Parselst 1.33
|
||
EchoStat 6.0 PKZip 1.02
|
||
Network Mailers EZPoint 2.1 PMSnoop 1.30
|
||
Name Version FGroup 1.00 PolyXOS2 2.1a
|
||
-------------------- GROUP 2.23 QSort 2.1
|
||
BinkleyTerm 2.50 LH2 2.11 Raid 1.0
|
||
BinkleyTerm(S) 2.50 MSG 4.2 Remapper 1.2
|
||
BinkleyTerm/2-MT MsgLink 1.0c Tick 2.0
|
||
1.40.02 MsgNum 4.16d VPurge 4.09e
|
||
SEAmail 1.01
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 46 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
Xenix/Unix 386
|
||
--------------
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Network Mailers Other Utilities
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
ARC 5.21
|
||
C-LHARC 1.00
|
||
|Contact: Willy Paine 1:343/15,| MSGLINK 1.01
|
||
|or Eddy van Loo 2:285/406 | oMMM 1.42
|
||
Omail 1.00
|
||
ParseLst 1.32
|
||
Unzip 3.10
|
||
VPurge 4.08
|
||
Zoo 2.01
|
||
|
||
|
||
QNX
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Network Mailers Other Utilities
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
QTach2 1.09 QMM 0.50s Kermit 2.03
|
||
QCP 1.02
|
||
NodeList Utilities Archive Utilities QSave 3.6
|
||
Name Version Name Version QTTSysop 1.07.1
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- SeaLink 1.05
|
||
QNode 2.09 Arc 6.02 XModem 1.00
|
||
LH 1.00.2 YModem 1.01
|
||
Unzip 2.01 ZModem 0.02f
|
||
Zoo 2.01
|
||
|
||
|
||
Macintosh
|
||
---------
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Network Mailers Other Software
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
FBBS 0.91 Copernicus 1.0 ArcMac 1.3
|
||
Hermes 1.6.1 Tabby 2.2 AreaFix 1.6
|
||
Mansion 7.15 Compact Pro 1.30
|
||
Precision Sys. 0.95b EventMeister 1.0
|
||
Red Ryder Host 2.1 Export 3.21
|
||
Telefinder Host Import 3.2
|
||
2.12T10 LHARC 0.41
|
||
MacArd 0.04
|
||
Mantissa 3.21
|
||
Point System Mehitable 2.0
|
||
Software OriginatorII 2.0
|
||
Name Version PreStamp 3.2
|
||
-------------------- StuffIt Classic 1.6
|
||
Copernicus 1.00 SunDial 3.2
|
||
CounterPoint 1.09 TExport 1.92
|
||
MacWoof 1.1 TimeStamp 1.6
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 47 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
TImport 1.92
|
||
Tset 1.3
|
||
TSort 1.0
|
||
UNZIP 1.02c
|
||
Zenith 1.5
|
||
Zip Extract 0.10
|
||
|
||
|
||
Amiga
|
||
-----
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Network Mailers Other Software
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
4D-BBS 1.65 BinkleyTerm 1.00 Areafix 1.48
|
||
DLG Pro. 0.96b TrapDoor 1.80 AReceipt 1.5
|
||
Falcon CBCS 1.00 WelMat 0.44 ChameleonEdit 0.11
|
||
Starnet 1.0q@ ConfMail 1.12
|
||
TransAmiga 1.07 ElectricHerald 1.66
|
||
XenoLink 1.0 Compression FFRS 1.0@
|
||
Utilities FileMgr 2.08
|
||
Name Version Fozzle 1.0@
|
||
NodeList Utilities -------------------- Login 0.18
|
||
Name Version AmigArc 0.23 MessageFilter 1.52
|
||
-------------------- booz 1.01 Message View 1.12
|
||
ParseLst 1.66 LHARC 1.30 oMMM 1.50
|
||
Skyparse 2.30 LhA 1.10 PolyXAmy 2.02
|
||
TrapList 1.40 LZ 1.92 RMB 1.30
|
||
PkAX 1.00 Roof 46.15
|
||
UnZip 4.1 RoboWriter 1.02
|
||
Zippy (Unzip) 1.25 Rsh 4.07a
|
||
Zoo 2.01 Tick 0.75
|
||
TrapToss 1.20
|
||
|Contact: Maximilian Hantsch 2:310/6| Yuck! 2.02
|
||
|
||
|
||
Atari ST/TT
|
||
-----------
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Network Mailers Other Utilities
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
FIDOdoor/ST 2.5.1 BinkleyTerm 2.40n9 ApplyList 1.00@
|
||
FiFo 2.1v The Box 1.95* Burep 1.1
|
||
LED ST 1.00 ComScan 1.04
|
||
QuickBBS/ST 1.06* ConfMail 4.10
|
||
NodeList Utilities Echoscan 1.10
|
||
Name Version FDrenum 2.5.2
|
||
Compression -------------------- FastPack 1.20
|
||
Utilities ParseList 1.30 Import 1.14
|
||
Name Version EchoFix 1.20 oMMM 1.40
|
||
-------------------- sTICK/Hatch 5.50 Pack 1.00
|
||
ARC 6.02 Trenum 0.10
|
||
LHARC 2.01i
|
||
PackConvert
|
||
STZip 1.1*
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 48 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
UnJARST 2.00
|
||
WhatArc 2.02
|
||
|
||
|
||
Tandy Color Computer 3 (OS-9 Level II)
|
||
--------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
BBS Software Compression Utility Other Utilities
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
-------------------- -------------------- --------------------
|
||
RiBBS 2.02+ Ar 1.3 Ascan 1.2
|
||
DeArc 5.12 AutoFRL 2.0
|
||
OS9Arc 1.0 Bundle 2.2
|
||
UnZip 3.10 CKARC 1.1
|
||
UnLZH 3.0 EchoCheck 1.01
|
||
FReq 2.5a
|
||
LookNode 2.00
|
||
ParseLST
|
||
PReq 2.2
|
||
RList 1.03
|
||
RTick 2.00
|
||
UnBundle 1.4
|
||
UnSeen 1.1
|
||
|
||
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
|
||
Key to old info:
|
||
+ - Netmail Capable (Doesn't Require Additional Mailer Software)
|
||
* - Recently Updated Version
|
||
@ - New Addition
|
||
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
|
||
|
||
Please send updates and suggestions to: Peter Popovich, 1:363/264
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 49 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
FIDONEWS PUBLIC-KEY
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
|
||
[this must be copied out to a file starting at column 1 or
|
||
it won't process under PGP as a valid public-key]
|
||
|
||
|
||
-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
|
||
Version: 2.6.2
|
||
Comment: Clear-signing is Electronic Digital Authenticity!
|
||
|
||
-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
|
||
|
||
|
||
Pending a formal decision about including 'encrypted' material inside
|
||
FidoNews from the Zone Coordinator Council, the guts of the FidoNews
|
||
public-key have been removed from this listing.
|
||
|
||
File-request FNEWSKEY from 1:1/23 [1:18/14] or download it from the
|
||
Rights On! BBS at 1-904-409-7040 anytime except 0100-0130 ET and Zone
|
||
1 ZMH at 1200-9600+ HST/V32B.
|
||
|
||
This section will contain only this disclaimer and instructions until
|
||
a ZCC decision is forwarded to the Editor.
|
||
|
||
Sorry for any inconvenience.
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 50 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
FIDONEWS INFORMATION
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION -------
|
||
|
||
Editor: Christopher Baker
|
||
|
||
Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
|
||
Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar,
|
||
Tom Jennings, Sylvia Maxwell,
|
||
Donald Tees
|
||
|
||
"FidoNews Editor"
|
||
FidoNet 1:1/23
|
||
BBS 1-904-409-7040, 300/1200/2400/14400/V.32bis/HST(ds)
|
||
|
||
more addresses:
|
||
Christopher Baker -- 1:18/14, cbaker84@digital.net
|
||
cbak.rights@opus.global.org
|
||
|
||
(Postal Service mailing address)
|
||
FidoNews Editor
|
||
P.O. Box 471
|
||
Edgewater, FL 32132-0471
|
||
U.S.A.
|
||
|
||
|
||
voice: 1-904-409-3040 [1400-2100 ET only, please]
|
||
[1800-0100 UTC/GMT]
|
||
|
||
------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FidoNews is published weekly by and for the members of the FIDONET
|
||
INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR ELECTRONIC MAIL system. It is a compilation
|
||
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 Christopher Baker. All rights reserved. Duplication
|
||
and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For
|
||
use in other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or
|
||
the Editor.
|
||
|
||
=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
|
||
|
||
OBTAINING COPIES: The most recent issue of FidoNews in electronic
|
||
form may be obtained from the FidoNews Editor via manual download or
|
||
file-request, or from various sites in the FidoNet and Internet.
|
||
PRINTED COPIES may be obtained by sending SASE to the above postal
|
||
address. File-request FIDONEWS for the current Issue. File-request
|
||
FNEWS for the current month in one archive. Or file-request specific
|
||
back Issue filenames in distribution format [FNEWSDnn.LZH] for a
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 51 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
particular Issue. Monthly Volumes are available as FNWSmmmy.ZIP
|
||
where mmm = three letter month [JAN - DEC] and y = last digit of the
|
||
current year [6], i.e., FNWSMAY6.ZIP for all the Issues from May 96.
|
||
|
||
Annual volumes are available as FNEWSn.ZIP where n = the Volume number
|
||
1 - 12 for 1984 - 1995, respectively. Annual Volume archives range in
|
||
size from 48K to 1.2M.
|
||
|
||
|
||
INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via:
|
||
|
||
http://www.fidonet.org/fidonews.htm
|
||
ftp://ftp.fidonet.org/pub/fidonet/fidonews/
|
||
ftp://ftp.aminet.org/pub/aminet/comm/fido/
|
||
|
||
You can read the current FidoNews Issue in HTML format at:
|
||
|
||
http://www.geocities.com/athens/6894/
|
||
|
||
STAR SOURCE for ALL Past Issues via FTP and file-request -
|
||
Available for FReq from 1:396/1 or by anonymous FTP from:
|
||
|
||
ftp://ftp.sstar.com/fidonet/fnews/
|
||
|
||
Each yearly archive also contains a listing of the Table-of-Contents
|
||
for that year's issues. The total set is currently about 11 Megs.
|
||
|
||
=*=*=*=
|
||
|
||
The current week's FidoNews and the FidoNews public-key are now also
|
||
available almost immediately after publication on the Editor's new
|
||
homepage on the World Wide Web at:
|
||
|
||
http://ddi.digital.net/~cbaker84/fidonews.html
|
||
|
||
There are also links there to jim barchuk's HTML FidoNews source and
|
||
to John Souvestre's FTP site for the archives. There is also an email
|
||
link for sending in an article as message text. Drop on over.
|
||
|
||
=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
|
||
|
||
A PGP generated public-key is available for the FidoNews Editor from
|
||
1:1/23 [1:18/14] by file-request for FNEWSKEY or by download from
|
||
Rights On! BBS at 1-904-409-7040 as FIDONEWS.ASC in File Area 18. It
|
||
is also posted twice a month into the PKEY_DROP Echo available on the
|
||
Zone 1 Echomail Backbone.
|
||
|
||
*=*=*=*=*
|
||
|
||
Anyone interested in getting a copy of the INTERNET GATEWAY FAQ may
|
||
file-request 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
|
||
previously listed address.
|
||
FIDONEWS 13-44 Page 52 28 Oct 1996
|
||
|
||
|
||
*=*=*=*=*
|
||
|
||
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 Editor, or file-requestable
|
||
from 1:1/23 [1:18/14] as file "ARTSPEC.DOC". ALL Zone Coordinators
|
||
also have copies of ARTSPEC.DOC. Please read it.
|
||
|
||
"Fido", "FidoNet" and the dog-with-diskette are U.S. registered
|
||
trademarks of Tom Jennings, P.O. Box 410923, San Francisco, CA 94141,
|
||
and are used with permission.
|
||
|
||
"Disagreement is actually necessary,
|
||
or we'd all have to get in fights
|
||
or something to amuse ourselves
|
||
and create the requisite chaos."
|
||
-Tom Jennings
|
||
|
||
-30-
|
||
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|