Volume 6, Number 36 4 September 1989 +---------------------------------------------------------------+ | _ | | / \ | | /|oo \ | | - FidoNews - (_| /_) | | _`@/_ \ _ | | International | | \ \\ | | FidoNet Association | (*) | \ )) | | Newsletter ______ |__U__| / \// | | / FIDO \ _//|| _\ / | | (________) (_/(_|(____/ | | (jm) | +---------------------------------------------------------------+ Editor in Chief: Vince Perriello Editors Emeritii: Dale Lovell Thom Henderson Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings FidoNews is published weekly by the International FidoNet Association as its official newsletter. You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in FidoNews. Article submission standards are contained in the file ARTSPEC.DOC, available from node 1:1/1. 1:1/1 is a Continuous Mail system, available for network mail 24 hours a day. Copyright 1989 by the International FidoNet Association. All rights reserved. Duplication and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use in other circumstances, please contact IFNA at (314) 576-4067. IFNA may also be contacted at PO Box 41143, St. Louis, MO 63141. Fido and FidoNet are registered trademarks of Tom Jennings of Fido Software, 164 Shipley Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94107 and are used with permission. We don't necessarily agree with the contents of every article published here. Most of these materials are unsolicited. No article submitted by a FidoNet SysOp will be rejected if it is properly attributed and legally acceptable. We will publish every responsible submission received. Table of Contents 1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1 Having a good time, Glad I'm still here .................. 1 2. ARTICLES ................................................. 2 DeathNet Sparks Life in IFNA ............................. 2 IFNA: Do or Die .......................................... 8 NCLM Contest 2 ........................................... 12 New Nodes Starting In FidoNet ............................ 14 Elections in FidoNet ..................................... 15 An Apology of Sorts ...................................... 19 3. LATEST VERSIONS .......................................... 20 Latest Software Versions ................................. 20 And more! FidoNews 6-36 Page 1 4 Sep 1989 ================================================================= EDITORIAL ================================================================= Hi there. A funny thing happened to me on the way to the retirement home. You might say that I changed my mind, and leave it at that. But actually, there was much more to it. You see, I received some very touching mail from a lot of people out there. Several friends also asked me to re-examine my reasons for leaving the job of FidoNews Editor. And so I did. What I discovered was that I actually liked the job. And that in spite of some of the problems that I have had, it was worth it. So when I was asked again at FidoCon whether I would be willing to reconsider, my response was that if the IFNA board wanted me to stay, I would do so. They asked. I'm staying. Thank you all for your kind mail. Thanks also to those of you who volunteered to take on the job. It's good to know that there are so many of you out there who are willing to do good things just for the sake of seeing them done. Now, on to something much more interesting. There is a net-wide plebiscite coming. I can't emphasize enough how important I feel it is for everyone in FidoNet to vote in it. Whether your vote is in the affirmative or negative is up to you (in fact I haven't decided yet), but you really should vote, one way or the other. The right to vote is just like a lot of other things: if you don't use it, you may lose it. Don't take that chance. When the time comes, cast your ballot. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 2 4 Sep 1989 ================================================================= ARTICLES ================================================================= Matt Whelan 3:712/627 DeathNet Sparks Life in IFNA ---------------------------- A funny thing happened on the way to FidoCon '89: members of the Secret Sysop Society, a group from New Jersey's 'affectionately named' DeathNet-107, hatched a careful and clever plot for a dramatic palace revolution. And while their plan blew up almost as spectacularly in its failure as it would have in success, they achieved A Good Thing for IFNA and, by implication, FidoNet. Having watched the palace revolution unfold and fail, yet still achieve something undeniably significant, I feel compelled to share my observations. This "one man's viewpoint" of FidoCon is my attempt -- as a participant in the most political event in my sheltered life -- to share some of the background to a truly amazing weekend. If At First You Don't Succeed . . . ----------------------------------- I remember DeathNet from Cincinnati. It was my first visit to FidoCon, and they were there in the background in support of an attempt to have IFNA appoint a VPTC (Vice-President Technical Coordinator, who had also served as FidoNet International Coordinator in the past) who would, in effect, "put David Dodell in his place". I couldn't help wondering what it was that bothered them so much. My experience of FidoNet had been mostly good, especially after I discovered my personal savior: it only hurts when you take it too seriously. They seemed to be taking it far too seriously. But that was more a mild undercurrent of discontent than a palace revolution. While there was no shortage of politics in Cincinnati (at first I was silly enough to think I was there just to party), it was more a game than a battle. San Jose was a different story. Still unhappy with the FidoNet coordinator structure, the Secret Sysops wanted to change the world. This time, they had more than just an idea: they had a detailed, timed-to-the-minute battle plan, the result of three months of careful -- and one might even say furtive -- preparation. FidoNews 6-36 Page 3 4 Sep 1989 There's no doubt the world of IFNA needed changing. It was limping from fight to fight as it traversed the back alleys of FidoNet, hauling itself from impotence to incapacity. Many of us went to FidoCon hoping to find some way to revive the good in IFNA, despite the increasing attractiveness of euthanasia. Few of us, however, shared the apparent DeathNet view that FidoNet needed saving from itself. Even fewer saw IFNA as the vehicle. Instant Takeover ---------------- The scheme to take control of IFNA was brilliant in conception, masterful in execution, and 'politically perfect' in timing. While most people shrugged their shoulders and muttered about 'another screw-up' when the IFNA Board of Directors crippled Vince Perriello's Bylaw amendment intended to enfranchise all sysops, the Secret Sysops exploited it to maximum advantage. It was almost impossible for non-IFNA members to take advantage of the new At-Large membership category, tied as it was to a 180- day qualifying period. The key here is 'almost', as discussion at the intense every-Tuesday-night DeathNet meetings clearly discovered. Armed with this realization, DeathNet prepared its attack. Notarized papers were drawn up, applications for At-Large membership completed, votes in the IFNA BoD elections filled out, and membership fees of $5.77 collected. A bare 10 minutes before the close of voting at FidoCon, the New Jersey delegation declared its hand. The first victory was won, and it seated no less than nine 'friendly' board members at the first post-election BoD meeting. IFNA's history of indecision and inaction was about to change, and not even the F-37 Stealth Cookie could overshadow it. Majority Rules, Okay? --------------------- Key players Phil Buonomo and Fabian Gordon rolled out duly notarized proxies from the newly elected BoD members. The pair carried six votes between them. With the commitment of Thom Henderson, Tony Davis, and one or two others to the revolution, they almost had a majority without making a move. By the time they counted the votes of sympathizers who were easily convinced it was time for 'action at any cost', they 'owned' the board as it stood that day. FidoNews 6-36 Page 4 4 Sep 1989 Once this became clear, the rest of the agenda was rolled out. Slowly and quietly and, at first, only in the proverbial smoke- filled back rooms. My support was sought in one such meeting, where it finally became clear to me how good their basic concept was, and how disastrous their planned method of implementation. With control of the BoD, they intended to: 1) Appoint Ben Baker VPTC. 2) Re-establish the original VPTC-is-the-FidoNet-IC relationship and, effectively, take immediate control of FidoNet. 3) Reject Policy 4. 4) Implement Bylaw changes which would enfranchise all FidoNet sysops as IFNA members (essentially a repeat of Vince Perriello's amendment, without the limitations applied by the outgoing BoD). [There were 'smaller' items on the agenda, like the clumsy attempt to have the board accept New Jersey as the site of FidoCon 1990 without the usual involvement of the Site Selection Committee, while I also heard rumors (they wouldn't have told me this one to my face!) they wanted to abolish Zones. Yet these seem somehow incidental . . . ] They believed the net would 'buy' this instant-democracy, even though it could not vote on the validity of the upheaval (or the further planned changes) for another full year. I believed the net would say "screw you", IFNA would go out with a bang, and there'd be more hate, more fighting, more unnecessary pain in FidoNet while it happened. Too many things have been done to FidoNet without its consent. This plan, while perhaps admirable, was just another example of someone else making up our minds for us. I volunteered support for any scheme which made all these things available for the net to choose *after* being consulted. I could not support yet another example of "trust us, we're doing this for your own good". Vested Interests? ----------------- Right now you might be wondering about the motives of the new IC, sitting there watching his job go up in smoke. Let me guarantee you I would gladly have given it to anyone with believable plans to advance FidoNet. But I would not happily hand it over to a scheme which I believed had less chance of working -- and more chance of doing real damage -- than the current system. FidoNews 6-36 Page 5 4 Sep 1989 This is not the time for me to go into detail on my hopes for the FidoNet of the future -- you'll hear about that soon enough -- but suffice to say I would not have taken the job if I didn't firmly believe the current structure has the potential to satisfy the desires of the vast majority of sysops. And I believed this satisfaction could be achieved more smoothly, more cleanly, and less painfully than by any sort of revolution, now matter how noble. Spanners In The Works --------------------- Many other people whose opinions I respect deeply -- like Vince Perriello, Bob Hartman, Randy Bush, and even 'grandfather' Tom Jennings, to name just a few -- worried as much as I did about the DeathNet takeover. They've all been outspoken about IFNA's failure, and they've all been outspoken about failings of the current structure. They have no particular axe to grind, nor any 'position of power' to protect. They, too, feel strongly that good things should be done *by* FidoNet, not 'for' or 'to' FidoNet. These people are but a small-yet-prominent sampling of the larger group which saw the palace revolution as a potential declaration of war. And who did something about it. The Battle Begins ----------------- While the revolutionaries sought to consolidate their voting power, the rest of us sat and stared at the face of defeat. We worried about the death of IFNA, which had done (and could still do) some good for the net. We talked about possible reactions from the sysops, the developers, and the *C structure. We discovered ways of pulling the rug from under IFNA's feet if it did attempt to take control. And all the time we struggled with ways to make IFNA meaningful without it having to be a choice between explosion and implosion. The only way out was voting power, but even that we considered a stalling tactic at best. We had no idea it would bring a meaningful result, and were concerned it would merely help IFNA sink further into lethargy. FidoNews 6-36 Page 6 4 Sep 1989 Besides, to get our voting power we really needed to pull a rabbit out of a hat. [Bob Hartman has a more graphic description of where it was eventually extracted from, but that's another story . . .] Our first move was to make sure all votes were represented. BoD members who hadn't made it to FidoCon were contacted, and proxy or 'alternate' votes obtained. Outgoing IFNA President Bob Rudolph flooded the San Jose Holiday Inn with faxes declaring the validity of his alternate, Joe Keenan. Grandfather No. 2 Ken Kaplan phoned his proxy confirmation into the Saturday night board meeting, just seconds before the important voting started. I carried Bill Bolton's vote from Division 12 after my own BoD term expired the previous day. And then there were the two vacancies. While the revolutionaries believed they could place their own candidates here, sealing their majority, we believed otherwise. One vacancy was for the newly-created Division 3 (Australia), and I was the only Division 3 resident in sight. As soon as I was voted into that position, I made a nomination for the remaining at-large vacancy. Only a Curmudgeon could have thought of it, and I thank him for it -- my nomination was Tom Jennings. Not even the palace revolutionaries would want to be seen denying the 'founding father' a place in such important decision-making . . . TJ is a forthright, honest, speak-from-the-heart kind of person who has no time for political games. I think he'd prefer being lost in a desert than sitting comfortably in a board meeting but, thankfully, he felt strongly enough about the future of his 'baby' to take a seat on the BoD. All of a sudden, the voting looked a lot more equal . . . The Final Countdown ------------------- Bill Bolton was re-elected VPTC. Wrong man for this particular revolution. Les Kooyman, FidoCon organizer, political scientist, voice of reason, presenter of the FidoCon Democracy session, was voted into the President's position. Wrong man for a revolution the people didn't know about. DeathNet's proposed Bylaw changes had little chance of achieving the two-thirds majority needed for success -- except for the one enfranchising all sysops as no-charge IFNA members. FidoNews 6-36 Page 7 4 Sep 1989 Further attempts at imposing control were going nowhere in an arduous almost-all-night BoD meeting, until Phil Buonomo's "Yellow Piece Of Paper" (standing out from the mass of white- paper motions, it became known as the YPOP solution) was read to the group in response to a request to lay *all* the cards on the table. It, too, was planned as a "we'll do it now, and let the people judge us later". But it had potential, if only it could be applied more reasonably. Aggression receded. YPOP -- the skeleton of the IFNA plebiscite motion announced in FidoNews 625 -- could become a real solution, without the explosion. It was a chance to start over on IFNA, a return to Colorado Springs with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight. It was a chance for the net to decide its future -- with everyone taking part, not just hearing about it afterwards. It required compromise. Without the votes to force it through, DeathNet had to accept less than instant revolution. It had to accept a majority-of-the-net vote, not just the 'majority of the vocal minority' support it had in mind. It had to be a net decision, not a top-down edict. Either group could have stalled IFNA into its grave by holding firm. But if we could agree on the concept, and give it to the net to decide, we would have something special. We met on the middle ground. YPOP, considered only a part of the revolutionary package, became THE package. Trimmed and tidied, it became the high point of the political side of FidoCon. It is a victory for DeathNet, a far better victory than it sought. And it is your chance to join in the decision making, in the molding of FidoNet for the future -- no matter what the result, FidoNet will be a better place. But it will only happen if you participate. It's time to stop talking and start doing . . . ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 8 4 Sep 1989 Thom Henderson Chairman of the Board (?!?!) International FidoNet Association IFNA: Do or Die I just got back from FidoCon'89 late last night (early this morning), and right off the bat the very first thing I want to say is that it was a great convention! Let's have a round of applause for the gang in the Bay Area for doing such a wonderful job! (clap, clap, cheers from the sidelines, whistles, et cetera) There were a lot of good seminars with good speakers, somewhat to my surprise there was a very good after dinner speech by John Dvorak after the banquet, and there were scads of interesting people (i.e. sysops) to meet and talk with. One rather odd thing did happen, though. Somehow I wound up as Chairman of the Board of IFNA. I'm still not quite sure how/why that happened, but it made for some interesting experiences (and I'm sure it'll keep a couple of echomail conferences from getting too dull in the next few months). So what am I going to do as Chairman of the Board? Not much, and mostly it's already done. A Chairman doesn't do much of anything except chair the board meeting (just like the title says), and that's over (more on that in a minute). The chairman doesn't make motions and can't even vote (except to break a tie). While I'm on this subject, let me mention a few things that I most certainly WON'T do. There were a lot of rumors and a large measure of loose talk and fairly brainless gum-flapping going on in a couple of suites about What I'm Going To Do that ought to be addressed. * I'm not going to outlaw Wazoo. * I'm not going to mandate that GroupMail replace echomail. * I'm not going to charge people to be in the node list. * I'm not going to "use my position to commercialize the net" (whatever THAT means). Let's get real, people. Even assuming I wanted to do any of that (which I don't), none of it is anything that a chairman of the board can do. For that matter, none of it is anything that anyone could do if the sysops don't want it done. Anybody who thinks they are going to make 4,000 sysops (or even one sysop) do anything they don't want should have his head examined. The FidoNet sysops are going to continue to do as they damned well please. FidoNews 6-36 Page 9 4 Sep 1989 So what *AM* I going to do? Like I said, chair the board meeting, which is over. If you don't mind, I'd really rather talk about that. It was a heck of a board meeting! The best I've ever seen. I guess an advantage of me being the chair is that it got a lot of people involved. The first board meeting was Friday night, and it was pretty much restricted to a few officer elections. Me as chairman, Kris Veitch as secretary/treasurer, and John Knox as acting secretary. Everything else was postponed until Saturday night. Then all day Saturday right up to (and even into) the board meeting phone calls went all over the place, locating every board member who wasn't there and obtaining a proxy for someone who WAS there. The only one who couldn't be reached was Henk Wevers, who is on vacation. The two vacancies on the board were both filled as soon as the board resumed session, so as a result 23 out of 24 board seats were represented during the session. That's the highest percentage we've ever had! And John Knox did a great job of keeping track of everything that happened (I'll say he did an outstanding job if I get a copy of the minutes later this week [*grin*]). Full minutes should be in the next issue of FidoNews. (If they aren't, then my own somewhat less complete notes will be in the following issue and I'll be on a plane to Oklahoma to visit John [*wider grin*].) The full list of everyone who served on the board will be in the minutes, but here's my own slightly sketchy list: Stephen Barnes Bill Bird Phil Buonomo Randy Bush Jim Cannell Don Daniels Tony Davis Fabian Gordon Bob Hartman Thom Henderson Tom Jennings Steve Jordan Joe Keenan John Knox John Lamb Rob Lerman Vince Perriello Mort Sternheim Matt Whelan My apologies to anyone I left out. Lest I forget, the new officers are: FidoNews 6-36 Page 10 4 Sep 1989 President: Les Kooyman Vice President Fabian Gordon Vice President/TC: Bill Bolton Secretary/Treasurer: Kris Veitch As you can see, we had a pretty high-powered meeting. Surprisingly, it went very smoothly (aside from the occasional curmudgeon in need of sitting-on). There was a lot of serious discussion, but it never got heated. We were never even close to having a shouting match. A lot of the attendees had very definite goals they wanted to accomplish. Said goals weren't always compatible, but a plan of action was hammered out that is going to make major changes in what IFNA is and how it works. To sum it up in a nutshell, one of two things is going to happen: 1) IFNA is going to become what it was meant to be, the democratic voice of the sysops in network management. 2) Or, IFNA is going to be dissolved. The choice, of course, is yours. You'll be hearing soon (if you haven't heard already) that there is a referendum coming that will be asking YOU which of the above you would like to see happen. By "you" I don't mean "you who paid $25 to join IFNA", I mean "you the sysop of a public BBS in FidoNet". One of the things that happened was that the IFNA bylaws were amended to make every sysop in FidoNet a full voting member of IFNA -- no dues or fees required. IFNA is now where it belongs, in your hands. Furthermore, if the majority of *ALL* FidoNet sysops don't vote in favor of rebuilding IFNA, then IFNA will be dissolved. No hanky panky, no hedging, no waffling about what the lack of a vote means. If IFNA does not receive a solid "YES" vote from the majority of all sysops, it's history. If a sysop cares so little that he does not bother to cast a vote, then that will be exactly the same as voting against IFNA. Furthermore, the referendum is mandated to be completed no later than 1 December 1989. As far as I'm concerned, that means that if it isn't, then IFNA will be dissolved. Granted that a net- wide referendum is a fairly major undertaking involving a lot of cooperation from a lot of people (including, I'm sure, the existing *C structure). But if IFNA is unable to garner the support or the manpower to coordinate the vote, then in my opinion it is not worthy to be trusted with network management. It goes even beyond that. If passed, the referendum mandates that IFNA must submit a new set of bylaws and a new network policy document to the sysops for approval no later than 1 February 1990. This means that before the February board meeting IFNA must: FidoNews 6-36 Page 11 4 Sep 1989 1) Run a net-wide vote of all sysops asking if IFNA should manage FidoNet. 2) Win the vote by a clear majority of all sysops. 3) Draft new bylaws and a new policy document. 4) Run another vote for approval/disapproval of the proposed bylaws and policy. 5) Have the proposed bylaws and policy approved by the membership (i.e. the sysops). Anything less than 100% and IFNA will be history. If it can't get the support and/or can't do the work, then it's high time we quit wasting time on it. We'll soon know if IFNA can handle the job. Even sooner we'll know if YOU want it to try. Closing notes: * My thanks to Randy Bush, who was instrumental in developing the wording of the referendum. I'm looking forward to seeing him again at the February board meeting. * My special thanks to Phil Buonomo, who through months of seemingly endless devotion, persuasion, legwork, and sheer drive is the man who really made all this happen. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 12 4 Sep 1989 Butch Witherspoon Fido 1:288/525 National Computer Learning Month 1989 CONTESTS FOR STUDENTS Video/Storyboards on Using Computers and Software as Tools 6 Grand Prizes: One grand prize winner in each category. The winner and his/her school or organization will both recieve a computer system. 24 Second Prizes: Four second prize winners in each category. Each winner and his/her school or organization will recieve software programs. 48 Third Prizes: Honorable mention certificates for winning students. Categories: Elementary (kindergarten-grade five) Middle (Grades 6-8) Secondary (Grades 9-12) Description: Computers and software are wonderful tools for creating video presentations. To produce exciting video presentations, students can develop thier own scripts and graphics, animate pictures and words, sequence computer screens, connect a computer to a video camera or add captions or computer generated art to videotapes they have made. Rules: To enter this contest, submit your original video presentation with the theme of using computers and software as tools. The video presentation may not exceed 30 minutes. The presentation might be a fictional or cartoon story that introduces people to the value of computers and software as tools or a serious presentation of how to use a computer and software as a tool in a specific way. You do not have to use a computer or video equipment to produce the presentation; however, the theme must be using computers and software as tools. If you produce a video tape, submit it as your entry. If you use a computer, do not send a disk; either send a videotape of your presentation being presented on the screen or send a printout of each screen (storyboard) in the correct order. If you do not use a computer, submit storyboards of your video presentation using any materials you have available. Storyboards are pictures of what each screen in a video looks like, put in the correct order. Entries will be judged on originality, content, quality of script or story, design, illustration and overall attention to detail. Join the National Computer Learning Month Echo and get in on the excitement! For more information send NetMail to Butch Witherspoon, SEGUARO BBS, Fido 1:288/525 or write to NCLM Echo, P.O. Box 8045, Granite City, IL 62040-8045. FidoNews 6-36 Page 13 4 Sep 1989 ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 14 4 Sep 1989 Geoff Leff Opus 3:640/200 New Nodes Starting In FidoNet I've been part of FidoNet for approximately 3 years now. I've been a user for the most part, and recently became a sysop of my own board around 6 months ago. I'm sure most of you probably agree that I am still a baby in the life of FidoNet, although, I feel I should express my views on a subject. I would like to make it clear though, that I am in no way trying to blame anybody, and even the party's involved are at no immediate fault of their own. When I started as a sysop of my own OPUS CBCS, I received a lot of help from fellow sysops helping me get set up properly, and I thank them for it, but the reason I am submitting this article, is my concern that other new sysops might have to go through the same ordeal as I did. It all started once I received my NEW long awaited node number, as a new sysop and member of FidoNet, there was still lots of information that I wasn't aware of at the time, one of which was that it was left up to me to tell all the sysops involved up the track who I was polling off of, so that they can adjust their routing files accordingly. I admit it should be up to me to tell the people involved, after all, I'm the new kid on the block. What concerns me though, is how all these people expect a 'New Kid On The Block' to know who in fact is supposed to know this information. An example, As a 'New Kid On The Block' I decide to poll off of Joe Bloggs of 640/999. I am expected to know all the boards that would be part of the routing so that I can tell them that I now poll off of 640/999. As you may guess this can sometimes be a little difficult, as I found out when I started to poll from a node in Brisbane and then tried about 3 months later with another node in Sydney. Both times It took countless messages all over the place, a lot of angry people and of course a few voice calls interstate. It was getting to the point where I was starting to think it wasn't worth the trouble. Well, I'm happy to say, I am now properly set up in everyone's routing files, but only after a lot of headache's. What I'm suggesting here is just a simple clause in a message to let him/her know which sysops need to know of your existance. It's only common courtesy to let him/her know anyway, so how about it fellow sysops, us new nodes are the reason FidoNet exists, if it wasn't for us, there would be no need for such a network. I would really like to hear some people's views on this subject, so feel free to send me netmail on 3:640/200. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 15 4 Sep 1989 Elections in FidoNet Steve Bonine, 115/777 Selection of FidoNet coordinators by election is becoming quite common in FidoNet. Unfortunately, the experience gained in conducting those elections has not been shared as widely as it should have been. Thus, we have each net or region re-inventing the wheel for each election. This takes extra time, and does not provide a consistent process throughout the network. I hope that this article will serve as a step towards sharing what we have learned, as it is only through learning from the experience of conducting elections that the best policy can be formulated. Not all election procedures should be exactly the same, since not all election environments in FidoNet are the same. An election in a Net with five members is not the same as one conducted in a large Region. However, there are aspects which are common, and a set of election guidelines is a valuable tool for introducing democracy into FidoNet. Software -------- How important is specialized software for conducting elections in FidoNet? When the issue was first raised, I believed that an election would not be possible without such software. I no longer hold that opinion, although I do see how such utilities could save time for the person(s) conducting the election. For a small election on a local net level, such software would probably be more trouble than it was worth, unless votes are common. Such software could perform several valuable functions. It could make voting easy, thus encouraging a high turnout. It could prepare confirmations and lists of votes, removing the burden from the vote conductor. Finally, it could improve the security of the election, and perhaps even provide a completely secret ballot. There are, however, several disadvantages to using specialized voting software. It must be installed on each voter's system, so the design must emphasize ease of installation and ease of use. It must be available for many different platforms, as we have many different hardware configurations in FidoNet, ranging from vanilla MS-DOS to almost-compatibles to non-IBM and non-MS-DOS. Designing an easy-to-install, easy-to-use, foolproof system for this environment is quite a challenge. Finally, the introduction of voting software may in fact REDUCE confidence in the election; "black boxes" and "magic" are generally distrusted, whereas sending a netmail message is something that is easy and comfortable. FidoNews 6-36 Page 16 4 Sep 1989 The bottom line is that successful elections have been conducted without the use of specialized voting software. If such systems become available in the future they may enhance the election process, but they are not a prerequisite. The Tradeoff --- -------- There is a basic conflict in FidoNet voting between secrecy of ballot and ability to verify the vote. I feel that a secret ballot is entirely as important as the vote process itself. In an election for the local NC, I don't want my friend to know that I didn't vote for him. It's none of his business, or anyone else's business, who I voted for. The closest we can come to a true secret ballot in FidoNet, short of using voting software, is to choose an individual to conduct the election. This individual must have certain qualifications: not be a candidate for the office, be honest, and be trusted by all parties. However, no matter how noble the individual is who conducts the election, safeguards should be put in place to insure that there is no question as to the conduct and count. Such safeguards are as much for the benefit of the vote conductor as for the protection of all candidates. The Safeguard --- --------- There are ways to provide a public check on the vote count without compromising the principle of a secret ballot. These ideas are not my own, but have been set forward in various echomail conferences, including the pol5_dem development effort. At first, I thought that this was a lot of trouble for the poor snook conducting the election, with little actual benefit. As the discussion progressed, it became clear that there is extra effort, but significant benefit. Not only does this scheme prevent deliberate fraud, but it catches honest mistakes. Even saints have been known to make an occasional clerical error. The idea is simple. Each voter is assigned a password, known only to that voter. (Or the voter picks a password when casting the vote.) Then individual votes are posted, using these passwords. Each voter can verify their individual vote, but cannot deduce others' votes. One more piece of information is necessary -- a list of the nodes who voted. Without that cross-check, the vote conductor could "stuff the ballot box" to the extent that people did not vote, making up passwords and assigning votes to them. If there is a list posted of who voted, and someone who did not vote sees their name in the list, they can point out the problem. FidoNews 6-36 Page 17 4 Sep 1989 A quick example. In an election for NC, the two candidates are Joe and Sue. The vote runs like this: Node Sysop Vote Password 115/123 Elmer Fudd Joe ABC 115/456 Donald Duck Sue DEF 115/789 Joe Smith Joe GHI 115/987 Sue Jones Sue JKL 115/654 Deputy Dawg Joe MNO 115/321 Tweety Bird does not vote N/A The person conducting the election would post the following: The following nodes voted: 123, 456, 789, 987, 654 ABC Joe DEF Sue GHI Joe JKL Sue MNO Joe Results: Joe, 3 Sue, 2 In a real election, the passwords would be more imaginative, and the results would not be posted in node-number order. You can see how this method allows each voter to verify that their vote was correctly tallied. If Tweety Bird sees her node number listed in the list of voting nodes, she can point out the problem. What Has Been Learned ---- --- ---- ------- I have recently been associated with two elections in FidoNet, and several aspects have been interesting. Both of these elections were conducted by Rick Moore (115/333), who was impeccably qualified using the criteria mentioned above. The first election was to pick a Regional Coordinator for region 11. Candidates (sysop or NC) were nominated by Network Coordinators. No "screening" was done of nominations beyond requiring that each candidate be nominated by an NC. The slate of eight candidates was then presented to the NC's for a vote. (There are 21 NC's in region 11.) It was decided before the election was held to not post the individual vote totals; only the winner was announced. This step was taken because it was felt that candidates might be unwilling to risk being embarrassed by a poor showing. With 20/20 hindsight, it would have been better to post the individual vote counts, or to use a method like the one outlined above. Since the winner is from the Chicago area, and the ZC is from the Chicago area, and the conductor of the vote is also from the Chicago area, it was obvious to the casual observer that massive vote fraud had occurred. Actually, I say this only as an illustration of how the public posting of the votes is a protection to the person conducting the election as well as to the candidates. FidoNews 6-36 Page 18 4 Sep 1989 As I write this article, we are in the final phase of an election to pick a new Network Coordinator for net 115 in Chicago. Again, Rick Moore is conducting the election. Based upon experience from the first election, changes were made in the rules for the NC election. First, the individual vote totals will be posted. Second, the winner will be chosen by MAJORITY (as opposed to plurality). Since no one candidate received a majority of the votes cast in the election, a runoff is being held between the top two candidates. The learning experience continues with an election for RC in region 12, again to be conducted by Rick Moore. This election will differ from the previous one in several important respects. The nomination process is the same, but votes will be posted using a password method as described above. Instead of NC's voting for the RC, individual sysops will vote. Again, the winner will be selected by majority, with a runoff if necessary. (Or runoffS. We came within one vote of having a three-way runoff in the net-115 election, as the top three candidates received 9, 9, and 8 votes each. If three candidates had been in the runoff, it is probable that no one would have received a majority in that election either, requiring yet another runoff between the top two candidates. This is an example of the type of unexpected event which can always show up to illustrate that the rules which were so carefully prepared do not cover all contingencies.) What Next? ---- ---- We are still learning. More experience is needed with the voter- password method, which has not yet been used in a region-level election. Another aspect is sysops voting for an RC; the turnout in the election will be an indicator of whether RC's should be elected by vote of sysops or by vote of NC's. As more elections are held in FidoNet, and as we share the experience, it will not be necessary for each election to "re- invent the wheel". Our hobby is, after all, communication. We must communicate what we learn, or we'll each have the honor of climbing the same learning curve. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 19 4 Sep 1989 An Apology of Sorts by Phil Buonomo, 1:107/583, 7:520/583, 9:807/1 Over the past few months, I have become aware of a previously un- known character flaw I possess. It seems that I have a bad ten- dency to group people together. I want to make it clear here and now that I do NOT feel that the majority of members of the *C structure are bad. Some may have shown poor judgement lately in the implementation of Policy 4, but I do not believe that there has been any malicious intent behind that implementation. Additionally, some people have been embarrassed and hurt by some of the articles I have written. I hereby render my apologies to Jim Dunmyer and JJ Marquez. Jim is a good example of what a *C should strive to be, and if there were more like him, perhaps FidoNet would not be in the mess that it is. As for JJ, while I do not agree with his interpretations concerning conferences, I feel that he was caught in a situation that was not of his mak- ing, and therefore also did not deserve the chastizement I gave him in a recent article. Fellows, no-one's perfect, and I'm not even close. I'm sorry, and hope that you'll realize that my intentions were not malevolent in nature, either. As for Steven Bonine, I do believe that he's trying to improve things, and that he bears no malevolence towards the nodes of FidoNet, nor a desire for power over others. Considering my own flaws, and the extraordinary measures I was forced to undertake to bring a chance at democracy back to FidoNet, I don't feel comfortable faulting the man any more. I urge Steve to take a little more time in making decisions of policy, as they have such serious ramifications for the network. At FidoCon, several RC's have expressed an intent to bring demo- cratic representation to FidoNet, and claimed to be moving in that direction already. Since TJ's mention of trust, I have decided to take them at face value unil proven otherwise. I also hereby resolve not to let a few bad apples spoil the bunch, provided the rest of the bunch is willing to help weed out the bad apples. I urge others to do so as well. I'm sorry if I offended anyone else. I'm not a diplomat, and I sometimes step on toes trying to accomplish a goal. I believe in getting the job DONE, no matter what the cost. I am proud of of that reputation, but it does tend to cause grief for myself and others. For that, I apologize. Phil Buonomo ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 20 4 Sep 1989 ================================================================= LATEST VERSIONS ================================================================= Latest Software Versions MS-DOS Systems -------------- Bulletin Board Software Name Version Name Version Name Version Fido 12n+* Phoenix 1.3 TBBS 2.1 Lynx 1.30 QuickBBS 2.04* TComm/TCommNet 3.4 Opus 1.03b+ RBBS 17.2A TPBoard 5.2 Wildcat! 2.00P Network Node List Other Mailers Version Utilities Version Utilities Version BinkleyTerm 2.20 EditNL 4.00 ARC 6.02 D'Bridge 1.21* MakeNL 2.12 ARCmail 2.0 Dutchie 2.90C ParseList 1.30 ConfMail 4.00 FrontDoor 2.0 Prune 1.40 EMM 2.02 PRENM 1.47 XlatList 2.90 GROUP 2.10 SEAdog 4.51A* XlaxDiff 2.32 LHARC 1.13* XlaxNode 2.32 MSG 3.3 MSGED 1.99 PK[UN]ZIP 0.92* QM 1.0* TCOMMail 2.2 TMail 1.11 TPBNetEd 3.2 UFGATE 1.03 XRS 2.3* ZmailQ 1.09* Apple Macintosh --------------- Bulletin Board Software Network Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Red Ryder Host v2.1b3 Tabby 2.0* MacArc 0.03 Mansion 7.0 ArcMac 1.3 WWIV (Mac) 3.0 StuffIt 1.51 TImport 1.331 TExport 1.32 Timestamp 1.6 FidoNews 6-36 Page 21 4 Sep 1989 Tset 1.3 Timestart 1.1 Tally 1.1 Mehitabel 1.2 Archie 1.60 Numberizer 1.5c MessageEdit 1.0 Mantissa 1.0 PreStamp 2.0 R.PreStamp 2.0 Saphire 2.1t Epistle II 1.0 Import 1.2b Export 1.2b Sundial 1.2b AreaFix 1.1 Commodore Amiga --------------- Bulletin Board Software Network Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Paragon 1.00+* BinkleyTerm 1.50 ConfMail 1.10* ChameleonEdit 0.10 RMB 1.30 Atari ST -------- Bulletin Board Software Network Mailer Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Star-Net 2.00 BinkleyTerm 1.03a ConfMail 1.00 EchoDoor 0.11 ParseList 1.30 GS Point 0.61 ARC 5.21 TurboArc 1.1 LHARC 0.40 PKUNZIP 1.00 MSGED 1.96S SRENUM 6.2 OMMM 1.30 Timestop 1.00 + Netmail capable (does not require additional mailer software) * Recently changed FidoNews 6-36 Page 22 4 Sep 1989 Utility authors: Please help keep this list up to date by reporting new versions to 1:1/1. It is not our intent to list all utilities here, only those which verge on necessity. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 23 4 Sep 1989 ================================================================= NOTICES ================================================================= The Interrupt Stack 5 Oct 1989 20th Anniversary of "Monty Python's Flying Circus" 11 Oct 1989 First International Modula-2 Conference at Bled, Yugoslavia hosting Niklaus Wirth and the British Standards Institution. Contact 1:106/8422 for more information. 11 Nov 1989 A new area code forms in northern Illinois at 12:01 am. Chicago proper will remain area code 312; suburban areas formerly served with that code will become area code 708. 23 Nov 1989 26th Anniversary of "Dr. Who" - and still going strong 30 Dec 1989 Telephone area codes (5, 3 and 0) are abolished in Hong Kong If you have something which you would like to see on this calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1:1/1. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 24 4 Sep 1989 OFFICERS OF THE INTERNATIONAL FIDONET ASSOCIATION Mort Sternheim 1:321/109 Chairman of the Board Bob Rudolph 1:261/628 President Matt Whelan 3:3/1 Vice President Bill Bolton 3:711/403 Vice President-Technical Coordinator Linda Grennan 1:147/1 Secretary Kris Veitch 1:147/30 Treasurer IFNA COMMITTEE AND BOARD CHAIRS Administration and Finance Mark Grennan 1:147/1 Board of Directors Mort Sternheim 1:321/109 Bylaws Don Daniels 1:107/210 Ethics Vic Hill 1:147/4 Executive Committee Bob Rudolph 1:261/628 International Affairs Rob Gonsalves 2:500/1 Membership Services David Drexler 1:147/47 Nominations & Elections David Melnick 1:107/233 Public Affairs David Drexler 1:147/47 Publications Rick Siegel 1:107/27 Security & Individual Rights Jim Cannell 1:143/21 Technical Standards Rick Moore 1:115/333 IFNA BOARD OF DIRECTORS DIVISION AT-LARGE 10 Courtney Harris 1:102/732 Don Daniels 1:107/210 11 Bill Allbritten 1:11/301 Mort Sternheim 1:321/109 12 Bill Bolton 3:711/403 Mark Grennan 1:147/1 13 Irene Henderson 1:107/9 (vacant) 14 Ken Kaplan 1:100/22 Ted Polczyinski 1:154/5 15 Scott Miller 1:128/12 Matt Whelan 3:3/1 16 Ivan Schaffel 1:141/390 Robert Rudolph 1:261/628 17 Neal Curtin 1:343/1 Steve Jordan 1:206/2871 18 Andrew Adler 1:135/47 Kris Veitch 1:147/30 19 David Drexler 1:147/47 (vacant) 2 Henk Wevers 2:500/1 David Melnik 1:107/233 ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-36 Page 25 4 Sep 1989 __ The World's First / \ BBS Network /|oo \ * FidoNet * (_| /_) _`@/_ \ _ | | \ \\ | (*) | \ )) ______ |__U__| / \// / Fido \ _//|| _\ / (________) (_/(_|(____/ (tm) Membership for the International FidoNet Association Membership in IFNA is open to any individual or organization that pays a specified annual membership fee. IFNA serves the international FidoNet-compatible electronic mail community to increase worldwide communications. Member Name _______________________________ Date _______________ Address _________________________________________________________ City ____________________________________________________________ State ________________________________ Zip _____________________ Country _________________________________________________________ Home Phone (Voice) ______________________________________________ Work Phone (Voice) ______________________________________________ Zone:Net/Node Number ____________________________________________ BBS Name ________________________________________________________ BBS Phone Number ________________________________________________ Baud Rates Supported ____________________________________________ Board Restrictions ______________________________________________ Your Special Interests __________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ In what areas would you be willing to help in FidoNet? __________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ Send this membership form and a check or money order for $25 in US Funds to: International FidoNet Association PO Box 41143 St Louis, Missouri 63141 USA Thank you for your membership! Your participation will help to insure the future of FidoNet. Please NOTE that IFNA is a general not-for-profit organization and Articles of Association and By-Laws were adopted by the membership in January 1987. The second elected Board of Directors was filled in August 1988. The IFNA Echomail Conference has been established on FidoNet to assist the Board. We welcome your input to this Conference. FidoNews 6-36 Page 26 4 Sep 1989 -----------------------------------------------------------------