Volume 8, Number 1 7 January 1991 +---------------------------------------------------------------+ | _ | | / \ | | /|oo \ | | - FidoNews - (_| /_) | | _`@/_ \ _ | | FidoNet (r) | | \ \\ | | International BBS Network | (*) | \ )) | | Newsletter ______ |__U__| / \// | | / FIDO \ _//|| _\ / | | (________) (_/(_|(____/ | | (jm) | +---------------------------------------------------------------+ Editor in Chief: Vince Perriello Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings Copyright 1990, Fido Software. All rights reserved. Duplication and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use in other circumstances, please contact Fido Software. FidoNews is published weekly by and for the Members of the FidoNet (r) International Amateur Electronic Mail System. It is a compilation of individual articles contributed by their authors or authorized agents of the authors. The contribution of articles to this compilation does not diminish the rights of the authors. 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. Fido and FidoNet are registered trademarks of Tom Jennings of Fido Software, Box 77731, San Francisco CA 94107, USA and are used with permission. Opinions expressed in FidoNews articles are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Editor or of Fido Software. Most articles are unsolicited. Our policy is to publish every responsible submission received. Table of Contents 1. ARTICLES ................................................. 1 Order versus Orders ...................................... 1 ANIMAL RIGHTS CONFERENCE ................................. 4 Fidonet in 1991 .......................................... 5 Radio Related Publications ............................... 10 The Year in Review ....................................... 11 Women in Fidoland ........................................ 13 2. LATEST VERSIONS .......................................... 15 Latest Software Versions ................................. 15 3. NOTICES .................................................. 20 The Interrupt Stack ...................................... 20 FidoNews 8-01 Page 1 7 Jan 1991 ================================================================= ARTICLES ================================================================= Thom Henderson 520/1015@AlterNet Order versus Orders I ran across an interesting quote lately that I'd lake to share with you. I'm sure that the author didn't have anything like us in mind, but what he has to say may well apply to us better than many would think. "In the world of daily life, the world which we perforce inhabit, there is much talk about order, particularly from statesmen and politicians. They tend, however, to confuse order with orders, just as they confuse creation with regulations. Order, I suggest, is something evolved from within, not imposed from without; it is an internal stability, a vital harmony, and, in the social and political category, it has never existed except for the convenience of historians." E. M. Forster We have more than our share of "statesmen and politicians" in amateur networking. I can say with some confidence (having been there, as you know) that most, if not all, of them are acting from a sense of what they feel is right. We've all seen plenty of people shouting about "control! control! control!" (though never with a good explanation about why anyone would WANT control) that we're probably all sick of the subject. But what gets lost in all the noise and smoke is that many people see a need for some sort of order, some sort of organization, some sort of overall plan to keep everything working. The problem is that sysops are not temperamentally suited to anything of the sort. Trying to organize sysops would be like trying to organize anarchists (or perhaps worse). Let's face it, one of the "bennies" in being a sysop is the feeling of total control over your own board and hence your own destiny. Sysops will not give that up lightly, or without a fight. Sysops expect to be, and DEMAND to be, independant. We are, to a large extent, saddled with a basic network technology that implies a large amount of central organization and control. Someone has to keep that nodelist accurate, after all! But fortunately, mechanisms are evolving to give sysops back a lot of the independence that joining a network took away from them. To name two prominent examples: FidoNews 8-01 Page 2 7 Jan 1991 1) Domain addressing technology; Many sysops are in it for the netmail. Domain addressing makes it possible (easy, even) for many disparate networks to co-exist peacefully. Domain addressing makes it easy for multiple amateur networks to co- exist and share mail, which in turn allows the sysop to "shop around" for one or more networks that suit his needs and/or desires. We no longer live in a world of "one FidoNet -- Love it or go away!" If you don't like it, there are plenty of alternatives. 2) GroupMail conferencing; Most sysops are in it for the conferences. But echomail technology presupposes (and generally demands) that all participants are in the same network. Worse than that -- it predates zone and point addressing and thus presupposes that everyone is in the same zone! This is manifestly untrue even in the "FidoNet" network, and last time I checked this one assumption was good for a rousing argument among the various developers any time it was mentioned. GroupMail, on the other hand, makes no such assumption. As long as your system knows where to get a conference from and where to send any messages you may have, it'll all work. This really ought to be the model for future amateur network software development, not to mention the development of future social structures to deal with interactions between sysops. What types of organization that can work with sysops realistically are those which: a) Allow sysops to maintain their own freedoms of choice and of personal destiny, and b) Provide sysops with significant benefits observably in excess of anything they may have to give up to attain them. I used to believe in intangibles. I don't anymore. Sysops are not going to go along with anything that they (we) do not see as providing a solid, real, practical benefit on a day to day basis. The proposed gateway policy is an excellent counter-example. On the one hand it is remarkably easy to ignore, and on the other it provides no obvious benefit to the sysop who follows it. The proposed echomail policy is similar for similar reasons. Even the current Policy4 document in many places goes outside the bounds of anything that the average sysop can see any benefit to. ALL policy statements in ALL amateur networks need to realize what their intended audience will or will not accept, and be written accordingly. By and large, sysops are going to do what they're going to do, and if anyone tells them to do anything else, they'll either be ignored, sidestepped, or avoided. FidoNews 8-01 Page 3 7 Jan 1991 In time social mechanisms will evolve to deal with issues that are important to sysops in ways that sysops will accept. And in a little more time those methods will be documented. But the documents that will work, that will be meaningful and accepted, will not be like Policy4 or the gateway policy or echopol. They will not be imposed from without by a few well-meaning individuals. They will be more like Policy3 and its predecessors; they will be written to document existing practice as sysops have already worked out among themselves. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 4 7 Jan 1991 Doris Marsh - Moderator FidoNet 1:125/20 A n i m a l R i g h t s C o n f e r e n c e ----------------------------------------------- While the number of people committed to animal rights is growing every day, many people are unaware of how humans exploit animals for their own gain or goals, or they do not know how to successfully initiate effective changes for the animals. Animal activists are needed to factually inform the public of atrocities being inflicted on animals in the scientific, commercial, and entertainment fields, as well as by individuals, but unfortunately, the public's image of the average animal activist is with a spray can of paint in one hand and a shotgun in the other. This image needs to be changed, for it is only through rational, calm and non-violent discourse that changes take place. While emotionalism, self-righteousness, and demands for instant changes may make the individual feel better, animals are still being painfully exploited, tortured and killed. While picketing a company that tests their products on animals attracts attention, effective changes can take place through such activities as writing protest letters, joining an animal rights groups whose philosophies you agree with, and refusing to purchase products that are tested on animals. Withholding your consumer dollars sends a strong message to the companies that you don't want their products tested on animals. The purpose of the ANIMAL_RIGHTS CONFERENCE is to educate and to be a forum for the exchange of ALL viewpoints and opinions on the issue of animal rights as well as suggesting ways to get involved with the animal rights movement. Animal rights is not only about medical research, but it also encompasses animal cruelty and exploitation from the clothing industry to the entertainment field to the pet trade, and discussions regarding all aspects of animal rights should take place. All sides of this emotional issue need to be represented, so I urge all users, whether pro or con on the animal rights issue, to join this conference and freely express their opinions. I also urge all sysops to consider carrying this conference. The Animal Rights conference is listed in ELIST, and available from the FidoNet BackBone as ANIMAL_RIGHTS. Thank you. Doris G. Marsh Moderator - ANIMAL_RIGHTS ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 5 7 Jan 1991 Jack Decker 1:154/8 FIDONET IN 1991 Well, here we are at the start of a new year. What will 1991 bring for Fidonet? This could turn out to be an interesting year. Perhaps the biggest event may go almost unnoticed by most. It came in the form of a news release from the Federal Communications Commission: December 13, 1990 FCC ESTABLISHES NEW CODELESS CLASS OF AMATEUR OPERATOR LICENSE (PR DOCKET 90-55) The Commission has revised the examination requirement for the Technician Class operator license, thereby creating a new codeless class of amateur operator license. After these revisions have become effective, an examinee will not be required to prove that he or she can send and receive texts in Morse code telegraph signals to qualify for a Technician Class amateur operator license. The amateur service currently consists of five classes of licenses having increasing privileges and each being progressively more difficult to obtain. The classes are Novice, Technician, General, Advanced, and Amateur Extra. The FCC noted that offering a codeless class of license that authorizes control operator privileges at stations which transmit exclusively above 30 MHz, provides an entry level opportunity to otherwise qualified persons who find telegraph a barrier to pursuing the purposes of the amateur service. Therefore, the FCC has established the Technician Class as the codeless class of license. This license includes all amateur privileges above 30 MHz. The Commission also amended the rules to grandfather frequency privileges below 30 MHz to current Technician Class licensees. In addition, the Commission decided to retain the Novice Class operator license in order to provide an alternate entry level operator license opportunity to persons who desire to pursue the purpose of the amateur service and who can pass a telegraphy requirement in place of the more comprehensive written examination requirement for the codeless Technician Class operator license. FidoNews 8-01 Page 6 7 Jan 1991 Action by the Commission December 13, 1990, by Report and Order (FCC 90-///). Commissioners Sikes (Chairman), -FCC- [end of news release] What does this mean, and why is it important? Well, for the first time folks in the United States will be able to get into the hobby of amateur radio without taking a morse code test. It is impossible to know how many will take advantage of this opportunity, but it could make a difference if those with an interest in technology are drawn into amateur radio. As you are probably aware, amateur packet radio technology allows data communication via radio that are very similar in many ways to what we do via phone lines. I'm not an amateur (not yet, anyway), but as I see it there are four noteworthy things to keep in mind about amateur radio: 1) They use protocols similar to those used by the Internet (e.g. AX.25 which is a takeoff on the X.25 protocol). Thus, folks who get into amateur radio will probably be more at home in the UseNet environment than in Fidonet. 2) There are no long distance charges in amateur radio. Thus, it may have great appeal to those in rural areas. Those using amateur radio for data transmission need not be quite so concerned with shaving every last byte off of a transmission in order to save phone charges (I'm not saying that efficient protocols should not be used, but it's simply not going to be quite as big a concern). The fact that phone charges are not an issue may mean that there are fundamental differences in the way traffic is moved via amateur radio. 3) No commercial traffic may be carried over amateur radio. Thus, certain types of conferences that are routinely carried on Fidonet could not be carried via amateur radio (at least not without significant changes in content). 4) Again, I must point out that I'm not an amateur, but it seems that one of the problems with amateur radio is that many hams seem to want to talk only about amateur radio, and nothing else! We have those types in Fidonet, too, of course - the folks that participate only in the computer- and communications-oriented conferences. But in Fidonet, there are conferences on a fairly wide range of other subjects as well. I'm not sure if amateur radio has this diversity now, but if it doesn't it probably will. Those of you that are hams may find some glaring errors in what I've stated above; if so, please understand that I don't claim any expertise on the subject. My only point in commenting on this at all is to point out that while amateur radio will never completely replace Fidonet, it could certainly affect us. Indeed, it has already (some have commented that the now defunct IFNA [International FidoNet Association] was intended FidoNews 8-01 Page 7 7 Jan 1991 to be to Fidonet what the ARRL [American Radio Relay League] is to amateur radio. Since the ARRL seems to be the organization that many hams "love to hate", I'd say that IFNA at least partially achieved its goal!). But now that the psychological barrier of the code has been removed, it's quite possible that many more of the technologically-knowledgeable people in Fidonet will be inspired to bone up on small amount of electronic theory knowledge required to get a ham license. This cross-pollination of the two technologies could ultimately affect us in ways we don't yet realize. The technology used in Fidonet is badly in need of overhaul. The software we use for moving echomail is based on a technology developed when there were only a few nodes in Fidonet with any interest in the concept of echomail. It simply is not an adequate design for a network that has literally thousands of nodes participating. In addition, it makes no provision for fully-moderated conferences, wherein a message entered in any conference is first sent to the conference moderator for possible review before being sent out to everyone else. Fidonet technology does not support this, and to my knowledge is the ONLY major conference mail type system that does not. This makes it difficult for us to properly gate conferences from other networks that do have this feature (in particular, moderated newsgroups from UseNet) and as a result, we miss out on a lot of useful information. Since UseNet has obviously superior conferences to Fidonet (or so I'm told by everyone I've ever met that's been exposed to both), I think Fidonet is either going to interconnect with UseNet or die. There is already software available for both the IBM and Amiga platforms (and possibly others) that can handle UseNet conferences in their native format, so if Fidonet is unable to gate conferences to UseNet we may start seeing Fidonet nodes leave the network in order to run software that has full UseNet capability. Unfortunately, it seems that one of the things that Fidonet software developers do best is argue with each other. In the last year or so we've seen software hit the network that is only partially Fidonet compatible (or with other programs already in common use in the net), and this has caused problems in the net. Those of you who read some of the conferences that I participate in are probably fed up by now with my occasional diatribes on the FTSC [Fidonet Technical Standards Committee] but the point is that we need some type of organization in Fidonet that can perform two functions: 1) Identify software that purports to be compliant with Fidonet standards but which is not, and publish a list of the actual deficiencies in such software (both as a way to encourage software authors to fix the problems, and to warn potential users of the problems they might expect). This would be more of a "consumer report" type function than an attempt to "ban" non-compliant software from the network (personally, I'd be in favor of the latter in some circumstances, but many seem to FidoNews 8-01 Page 8 7 Jan 1991 fear that if an actual ban were proposed then legal action could result. But the last I knew, you could still review products, and offer reviews and comparative reports without getting sued, and a report that a certain product does not seem to adhere to Fidonet technical standard FTS-nnnn would certainly be useful information to have). 2) Move the process of development of new standards forward by actually setting dates for comment periods, then (when appropriate) holding votes on the proposals received. As it is, some of the discussions in NET_DEV and similar software development echoes drag on for literally MONTHS with nothing resembling agreement being reached. It's no wonder that software developers go out and "do their own thing" because there really is no functional formal mechanism by which new standards can be proposed, considered, commented and voted upon, and then formally adopted (or rejected). It appears that the FTSC doesn't see itself in this role... instead, the present chairman seems to see the FTSC's role more as one of simply collecting and distributing documents (and occasionally making declarations to the effect that existing standards are "cast in stone" and cannot ever be changed... or at least that's the impression I'm left with). Yet in my opinion, the lack of any organization that performs the above-mentioned functions in Fidonet is what has caused software development in Fidonet to grind to a snail's pace. If the FTSC doesn't want to perform these functions, then perhaps we should set up some organization that will. Or, maybe we should just throw our hands up and say that Fidonet is total anarchy and it's only pure dumb luck if your mailer can talk to my mailer, or your echomail processor can properly unpack and toss bundles created by my echomail processor. Because, folks, that's just about where we're headed now. Please don't get me wrong, I DON'T want to see another IFNA formed. All I want is to see some way to promulgate new Fidonet TECHNICAL standards, and to possibly identify software that is deficient in meeting those standards. Just that, nothing more. Once we have a way to get new standards formally adopted, then we can really get to work on a superior method of conference distribution... one that is impervious to "dupe" messages, that does not contain ten or twelve lines of SEEN-BY's, and that allows (but DOES NOT REQUIRE) conferences to be truly fully moderated. (For those who may be wondering - yes, I'm quite familiar with GroupMail, but for whatever reason, it's simply not being widely used in Fidonet at the present time. This article is already pretty long so I'm not going to comment on that situation now). We can also finally settle on a new nodelist format that not only contains more information, but that also uses a more efficient format for update (DIFF) files. FidoNews 8-01 Page 9 7 Jan 1991 And that's only a couple of the things that need to be accomplished. Nothing lasts forever, of course, and eventually Fidonet will be just a memory anyway, but we can hasten that day by providing an atmosphere where technical stagnation is the rule. The bright and gifted among us will eventually figure out that their talents can be put to better use in other areas, where there is not so much uncertainty abounding (and fewer folks ready to flame them at every turn!). Well, that's my opinion, anyway. Hope 1991 is a good year for all of you! ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 10 7 Jan 1991 Brian Murrey - KB9BVN Node 1:231/0 The first issue of the third volume of the Fidonet Ham/Packet Digest is just around the corner. I have been compiling these Digests now for just about two years. I'd like to thank the readership for all of the fine input that I have received over the last two years. I have received survey sheets from all over the Fidonet world (when's that lunar node going online anyway?) and that is the encouragement I need to keep cranking the things out. If you are interested in Amateur Radio, then the "Digest" is for you. It is a compilation of notes and news culled from numerous online sources from all over the world. With the new "No Code" Technician license finally becoming a reality, I am sure we will see the ranks of radio amateurs swell. A big thanks to Tom Jennings for giving me permission to use the term FIDONET in the masthead. Since most of the information in the Digest comes from the Ham and Packet echo mail areas, it just makes sense. There is no charge for the Fidonet Ham/Packet Digest, and there is not to be any charge for distributing the files to other systems. In other words, this information is to be freely distributed. A new "digest" has now been placed under construction to cater to the shortwave listeners in the network. The name of this new publication is "Shortwave Schedule Digest" as it is a compilation of the latest and most up to date english broadcast schedules that I can find. This newsletter will be published on a every other month basis. The first issue is now available for file request. Just ask for: SKED0101.ARC The Ham/Packet Digest is also available. The latest issue is: HAM0211.ARC (Vol 2 No. 11) All comments/articles can be submitted to Brian Murrey via netmail to 1:231/0, 1:231/30 or to MURREY on GEnie. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 11 7 Jan 1991 The Year in Review by Kwityer Bychin ------------------------ Hi Ho, folks. The first Snooze of '91! Are we impressed or WHAT?? Another year of useless, mindless drivel distributed all over the globe. Especially when one of MY articles is in it. So, let's start the new year off right by rehashing some of the things that really got us all riled up in '90. Sound good? Hey, the holidays are OVER. No more fun and merriment. Time to get p.o.'d at me again. That is, after all, my JOB you know... Let's see... Ok, I'm not going to go in chronological order, because I either don't remember the dates, or they weren't important, or both. So here we go... One of the significant events of 1990 was the Snooze changing its compression format to LHarc. Boy, we sure had a lot of fun with that one! Crybabies 'round the world wailed and stomped their feet, held their breath, and puked strained peas all over Vince Perrier and Lighthorse Harry Lee for that stunt. Blood-curdling cries of "WAAAA!! YOU BROKE MY BATCH FILE" were heard all over Fight-O-Net. Geez, gimme a break. Then there was FidoCon '90 or Conclave '90 or whatever it was called. Lotsa interesting stuff went down there. IFNA packed it in, Big fight about whether AlterNet sysops got or didn't get a $50 break, The keynote address lasted about six days, during which, some guy dressed in a Santa Claus outfit started laughing uncontrollably while everyone kinda just looked at him ... Some drunk planted some rebel newsletters in a few magazines ... Hotel had to be evacuated because the air conditioning caught fire .... Noone attended "The Fidonet Meeting"... you had to be there, it was fun. GEORGE PEACE became Z1C. Echopol followed a few months later. Think there's a connection there? The International Coordinator (aka The BIG DOG), came up with this thing called GATEPOL, which noone had heard of, and paid no attention to ... Mahatma Ravsik broke the single-conference posting record by posting approximately six billion messages in the SYSOP conference ... Front Door 1.99c came out early in the year, minus SEAlink, plus a new handshake called EMSI, Which stands for Eat My Shorts, Idiot ... FidoNews 8-01 Page 12 7 Jan 1991 Ed McMahon (a.k.a. The Sweepstakes Fairy) was on TV every 12 seconds seconds plugging the American Family Sweepstakes. Top Prize is ten million dollars and the phone number for Dbridge support ... Binkleyterm came out with the new Janus Joplin protocol... OD's on line noise, and drops dead... Also in 1990, Eggnet .... nah... who cares about Eggnet ... Another network was formed. APInet. Stands for Another Ph***in' International Network. If you want a node number, send a netmail to 69:6969/0. If you can't send the netmail because you don't have an APInet nodelist, well, tough... As the year closed, a guy named Ralph Merritt was running for EC #2 in Eggnet. Vote for Ralph and vote for him often. HE cares about Eggnet, I suppose. If you're not in Eggnet, vote for him anyway... Well, I guess I just about insulted everyone I could think of. If you feel that I left someone or something out, by all MEANS, write us a letter! We aim to please. Happy New Year. K.B. '91 ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 13 7 Jan 1991 Cheryl Buzzell 101/200 Women in Fidoland Hi ya all. Been wanting to write this for some time now but have not had the guts to do so untill now. For those of you who do not know me, my name is Cheryl Buzzell. I run the TC-Trader BBS in Mass. I am the author of a couple of door programs for OPUS and recently Whouped, another program for Opus sysops. I have been into computers since 1977 when my brother first purchased his TRS-80 Model I computer. I used to hang out at the local Radio Shack store and bug the salesman there to let me play with it. His customers got a big kick out of it. This little girl playing with this fancy computer (oh sure back than the thing was fancy and the price tag would sink ya a few to prove it hahahaha). Back than I was only a kid and I certainly wasn't gonna argue over the attention, even if it was for no reason other than I was a "GIRL" playing with a computer. I started running my BBS in 1983. I was the only female sysop I knew who was running a "SERIOUS" bbs. Back than women ran bbs's like "MATCHMAKER" and other such things. I guess so men could get there kicks talking dirty to alot more women eh?? Women had names like "CANDY" and "LOOSE LUCY". Quite a put down to the female species wouldn't you say???? When I started my bbs it was with software called "TOWNE CRIER" (you out there Stew???). I know some of you are familiar with it as some of you were also running it back then. Back when we had our TRS-80 Model III's and IV's. We had a pretty small close knit crew who ran this software. I was the only femal (at least that I had gotton aquainted with). Back than a female sysop was welcomed at ANYONE's bbs. A guy sysop finds out you are a female running a bbs you get free totall access to his system. I think this was so they could show off how great they were since shortly after, it would be followed by a "why don't you do this or why not do that to your bbs". Things went downhill from there. I moved into the IBM world of bbs'ing. I ran from bbs software to bbs software trying to find a nitch where a women could fit in. Back then "FIDO" was the software to run. Not to put any sysops down but for a women to be part of that group would be the toughest thing to do. Talk about the good old boy network. I had one sysop be so bold as to tell me that the reason I didn't want to run "FIDO" was that as a female I was incapable of setting it up. I mean talk about degrading.... FidoNews 8-01 Page 14 7 Jan 1991 Well It has been 14 years since I started a bbs and one would think that in that amount of time things would have come around alot. Now I am not saying that things have not changed, but we have got a LONG LONG way to go yet babe. Now women don't get that special attention of being a women sysop. That much I think is good by the way. BUT they just get TOTALLY ignored. Seems a female sysop is not "GOOD ENOUGH" for certain things. A women cannot be "One of the boys" I guess. "Hay why are there not many women around". Well I am one female sysop and I know there are many more out there somewhere and I am sure I can speak for the rest of the women out there that we are not gonna sit by and take it. We are gonna stand up and be counted. We DESERVE to be recognized and we have earned RESPECT and we are not gonna stop untill this is a free system where women have as much rights as men................... ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 15 7 Jan 1991 ================================================================= LATEST VERSIONS ================================================================= Latest Software Versions MS-DOS Systems -------------- Bulletin Board Software Name Version Name Version Name Version DMG 2.93 Phoenix 1.3 TAG 2.5g Fido 12s+ QuickBBS 2.66 TBBS 2.1 GSBBS 3.01 RBBS 17.3A TComm/TCommNet 3.4 Lynx 1.30 RBBSmail 17.3B Telegard 2.5 Kitten 2.16 RemoteAccess 0.04a TPBoard 6.1 Maximus 1.02 SLBBS 1.77A Wildcat! 2.55 Opus 1.14+ Socrates 1.10 WWIV 4.12 PCBoard 14.5 XBBS 1.15 Network Node List Other Mailers Version Utilities Version Utilities Version BinkleyTerm 2.40 EditNL 4.00 ARC 7.0 D'Bridge 1.30 MakeNL 2.31 ARCAsim 2.30 Dutchie 2.90C ParseList 1.30 ARCmail 2.07 FrontDoor 1.99c Prune 1.40 ConfMail 4.00 PRENM 1.47 SysNL 3.14 Crossnet v1.5 SEAdog 4.51b XlatList 2.90 DOMAIN 1.42 TIMS 1.0(Mod8) XlaxDiff 2.35 EMM 2.02 XlaxNode 2.35 4Dog/4DMatrix 1.18 Gmail 2.05 GROUP 2.16 GUS 1.30 HeadEdit 1.15 InterPCB 1.31 LHARC 1.13 MSG 4.1 MSGED 2.06 MSGTOSS 1.3 PK[UN]ZIP 1.10 QM 1.0 QSORT 4.03 Sirius 1.0x SLMAIL 1.36 StarLink 1.01 TagMail 2.41 TCOMMail 2.2 Telemail 1.27 TMail 1.15 FidoNews 8-01 Page 16 7 Jan 1991 TPBNetEd 3.2 TosScan 1.00 UFGATE 1.03 XRS 4.00* XST 2.2 ZmailH 1.14 OS/2 Systems ------------ Bulletin Board Software Network Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Maximus-CBCS 1.02 BinkleyTerm 2.40 Parselst 1.32 ConfMail 4.00 EchoStat 6.0 oMMM 1.52 Omail 3.1 MsgEd 2.06 MsgLink 1.0C MsgNum 4.14 LH2 0.50 PK[UN]ZIP 1.02 ARC2 6.00 PolyXARC 2.00 Qsort 2.1 Raid 1.0 Remapper 1.2 Tick 2.0 VPurge 2.07 Xenix/Unix ---------- BBS Software Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version BinkleyTerm 2.30b Unzip 3.10 ARC 5.21 ParseLst 1.30b ConfMail 3.31b Ommm 1.40b Msged 1.99b Zoo 2.01 C-Lharc 1.00 Omail 1.00b FidoNews 8-01 Page 17 7 Jan 1991 Apple CP/M ---------- Bulletin Board Software Network Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Daisy v2j Daisy Mailer 0.38 Nodecomp 0.37 MsgUtil 2.5 PackUser v4 Filer v2-D UNARC.COM 1.20 Macintosh --------- Bulletin Board Software Network Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Red Ryder Host 2.1 Tabby 2.2 MacArc 0.04 Mansion 7.15 Copernicus 1.0 ArcMac 1.3 WWIV (Mac) 3.0 LHArc 0.33 Hermes 1.01 StuffIt Classic 1.6 FBBS 0.91 Compactor 1.21 TImport 1.92 TExport 1.92 Timestamp 1.6 Tset 1.3 Import 3.2 Export 3.21 Sundial 3.2 PreStamp 3.2 OriginatorII 2.0 AreaFix 1.6 Mantissa 3.21 Zenith 1.5 Eventmeister 1.0 TSort 1.0 Mehitable 2.0 UNZIP 1.02c Amiga ----- Bulletin Board Software Network Mailers Other Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version Paragon 2.082+ BinkleyTerm 1.00 AmigArc 0.23 TransAmiga 1.05 TrapDoor 1.50 AReceipt 1.5 FidoNews 8-01 Page 18 7 Jan 1991 WelMat 0.42 booz 1.01 ConfMail 1.10 ChameleonEdit 0.10 ElectricHerald1.66 Lharc 1.30 MessageFilter 1.52 oMMM 1.49b ParseLst 1.30 PkAX 1.00 PK[UN]ZIP 1.01 PolyxAmy 2.02 RMB 1.30 RoboWriter 1.02 Skyparse 2.30 TrapList 1.12 Yuck! 1.61 Zippy (Unzip) 1.25 Zoo 2.01 Atari ST -------- Bulletin Board Network Node List Software Version Mailer Version Utilities Version FIDOdoor/ST 2.10BT4* BinkleyTerm 2.40jr* ParseList 1.30 QuickBBS/ST 1.02 The BOX 1.20 Xlist 1.12 Pandora BBS 2.41c EchoFix 1.20 GS Point 0.61 LED ST 1.00* MSGED 1.96S Archiver Msg Format Other Utilities Version Converters Version Utilities Version LHARC 0.60 TB2BINK 1.00 ConfMail 4.02 ARC 6.02 BINK2TB 1.00 ComScan 1.02 PKUNZIP 1.10 FiFo 2.01b Import 1.14 OMMM 1.40 Pack 1.00 FastPack 1.20 FDsysgen 2.13 FDrenum 2.10BT3 Trenum 0.10 Archimedes ---------- FidoNews 8-01 Page 19 7 Jan 1991 BBS Software Mailers Utilities Name Version Name Version Name Version ARCbbs 1.44 BinkleyTerm 2.03 Unzip 2.1TH ARC 1.03 !Spark 2.00d ParseLst 1.30 BatchPacker 1.00 + Netmail capable (does not require additional mailer software) * Recently changed 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 8-01 Page 20 7 Jan 1991 ================================================================= NOTICES ================================================================= The Interrupt Stack 16 Feb 1991 Fifth anniversary of the introduction of Echomail, by Jeff Rush. 31 Mar 1991 Jim Grubs (W8GRT) was issued his first ham radio license forty years ago today. His first station was made from an ARC-5 "Command Set" removed from a B-17 bomber. 12 May 1991 Fourth anniversary of FidoNet operations in Latin America and second anniversary of the creation of Zone-4. 8 Sep 1991 25th anniversary of first airing of Star Trek on NBC! 7 Oct 1991 Area code 415 fragments. Alameda and Contra Costa Counties will begin using area code 510. This includes Oakland, Concord, Berkeley and Hayward. San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin, parts of Santa Clara County, and the San Francisco Bay Islands will retain area code 415. 1 Feb 1992 Area code 213 fragments. Western, coastal, southern and eastern portions of Los Angeles County will begin using area code 310. This includes Los Angeles International Airport, West Los Angeles, San Pedro and Whittier. Downtown Los Angeles and surrounding communities (such as Hollywood and Montebello) will retain area code 213. 1 Dec 1993 Tenth anniversary of Fido Version 1 release. 5 Jun 1997 David Dodell's 40th Birthday If you have something which you would like to see on this calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1:1/1. -----------------------------------------------------------------