F I D O N E W S -- Volume 14, Number 25 23 June 1997 +----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+ | The newsletter of the | ISSN 1198-4589 Published by: | | FidoNet community | "FidoNews" | | _ | 1-904-409-7040 [1:1/23] | | / \ | | | /|oo \ | | | (_| /_) | | | _`@/_ \ _ | | | | | \ \\ | Editor: | | | (*) | \ )) | Christopher Baker 1:18/14 | | |__U__| / \// | | | _//|| _\ / | | | (_/(_|(____/ | | | (jm) | Newspapers should have no friends. | | | -- JOSEPH PULITZER | +----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+ | Submission address: FidoNews Editor 1:1/23 | +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | MORE addresses: | | | | submissions=> cbaker84@digital.net | +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | For information, copyrights, article submissions, | | obtaining copies of FidoNews or the internet gateway FAQ | | please refer to the end of this file. | +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ HELP STAMP OUT OSMOSIS! Table of Contents 1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1 Are we getting out? ...................................... 1 2. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR .................................... 2 Take the First Amendment Pledge .......................... 2 Internet Regulations ruled Unconstitutional .............. 6 BWE - Blue Wave mail reader for Windows95/NT4 ............ 10 3. ARTICLES ................................................. 11 CRC and the Nodelist ..................................... 11 4. COLUMNS .................................................. 15 Lock and Load: Guerilla Marketing for BBSes .............. 15 5. GETTING TECHNICAL ........................................ 17 FSC-0085 - NOZIP and ERX flags ........................... 17 FSC-0086 - Standard Request Information File proposal .... 18 FSC-0087 - File Forwarding in FTNs ....................... 21 FSC-0088 - Compatibility for EMSI Sessions ............... 27 6. ADVERTISE YOUR FREE SERVICE/EVENT ........................ 33 Announcing the WRESTLING_CHAT Echo ....................... 33 7. NOTICES .................................................. 34 New Area Codes in North FLorida are coming ............... 34 Future History ........................................... 35 8. FIDONEWS PUBLIC-KEY ...................................... 36 FidoNews PGP public-key listing .......................... 36 9. FIDONET BY INTERNET ...................................... 37 10. FIDONEWS INFORMATION .................................... 39 FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 1 23 Jun 1997 ================================================================= EDITORIAL ================================================================= Yet another email from Zone 2 telling me they've either: 1. never heard of FidoNews; or 2. don't get FidoNews in their Net/Region. Isolated incidents? Probably, since the reports are not at flood level so far. But, of course, if FidoNews is unknown out there, who is going to know to comment or complain? The last reporter only found FidoNews during an Infoseek search on the Internet. I know it gets to ZC2 but what about you Zone 2 RCs? Are you moving FidoNews out there? Zone 2 NCs? YooHoo. P4 sez FidoNews is part of the glue that holds us together but glue doesn't work unless you spread it on all the parts you want to stick. ZCs, RCs, and NCs can send Netmail to me at 1:18/14 or 1:1/23 or email to cbaker84@digital.net and let me know how many times they send out FidoNews to their constituents, if they'd like to help sort out the black holes of FidoNews distribution. Otherwise, the news continues. [grin] C.B. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 2 23 Jun 1997 ================================================================= LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ================================================================= --- Following message extracted from FIDONEWS @ 1:18/14 --- By Christopher Baker on Sun Jun 22 14:43:12 1997 From: Mike Bilow To: Christopher Baker Date: 20 Jun 97 16:55:06 Subj: ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update, June 19, 1997 * Forwarded (from: Netmail) by Mike Bilow using BilowMail0.2. * Original dated: Jun 19 '97, 21:33 From: "ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update Owner"@newmedium.com To: cyber-liberties@aclu.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update Thursday, June 19, 1997 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.firstamendment.org/ A new ACLU/EPIC website Take the First Amendment Pledge As we all await a Supreme Court decision on the future of free speech on the Internet, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center launched www.firstamendment.org, a website dedicated to upholding the First Amendment in cyberspace. The groups called on President Clinton and members of Congress to be among the first to "Take the First Amendment Pledge" and cease any further attempts to draft legislation to censor the Internet in the event the Supreme Court upholds a lower court decision striking down government regulation of the Internet as unconstitutional. The launch of the website comes as Clinton Administration officials have begun publicly discussing a shift in policy on Internet regulation, saying that "industry self-regulation" -- not laws criminalizing certain Internet communications -- is the solution to shielding minors from online "indecency." "Attempts to censor the Net will not end with the Supreme Court decision," said David Sobel, legal counsel for EPIC and co-counsel in Reno v. ACLU. "Proponents of Internet content regulation have already indicated their desire to take a 'second bite of the apple' if the Communications Decency Act is struck down." In anticipation of such new attempts at online censorship, visitors to FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 3 23 Jun 1997 www.firstamendment.org are invited to "Take the First Amendment Pledge," which reads: "I pledge to support free speech and free expression for all Americans and to urge Congress to uphold the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and pass no law abridging our freedom of speech." People taking the pledge are encouraged to place the "First Amendment Pledge" GIF their own websites. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Day of Decision Events As the countdown continues to a Supreme Court ruling in Reno v. ACLU, the first-ever case to look at how free speech principles are applied to the Internet, the American Civil Liberties Union is preparing to go live on the World Wide Web with a cybercast news conference on the day a decision is reached. Day of Decision Schedule 1:00 p.m.(E.D.T.) Press Conference and Cybercast At the ACLU's new national offices at 125 Broad Street in lower Manhattan. Reno v. ACLU attorneys, co-counsel and plaintiffs will participate. The live cybercast can be accessed through the ACLU's website, http://www.aclu.org, and directly through Pathfinder's Netly News at http://www.pathfinder.com/news/netdecency. 7:00 p.m. (E.D.T.) Live Chat with ACLU Attorneys A one-hour chat with ACLU attorneys is planned on ECHO. Instructions: ECHO chats are open to anyone with Internet access. Telnet to echonyc.com, or dial 212-292-0910 with your modem. Login as echolive, and communicate directly with the Attorneys. Reno v. ACLU challenges censorship provisions of the Communications Decency Act aimed at protecting minors by criminalizing so-called "indecency" on the Internet. The government appealed the case to the Supreme Court after a federal three-judge panel ruled unanimously last June that the law unconstitutionally restricts free speech. The ACLU filed a challenge to the law the day it was enacted. Show your support for the ACLU's challenge to the Communications Decency in any -- or all -- of the following ways: 1) To be notified of a decision in the case by a change in a graphic placed on your web site, join our GIF notification Campaign -- instructions can be found at: http://www.aclu.org/issues/cyber/trial/instructions.html The image will change when the decision is handed down - notifying you, and everyone who visits your site. 2) Take the 1st Amendment Pledge at www.firstamendment.org, a joint FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 4 23 Jun 1997 campaign of the ACLU and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). 3) Subscribe to the Cyber-Liberties Update. Those of you who already receive the update directly will be notified. Those of you who read forwarded copies are encouraged to subscribe directly using the information in the footer of this document. 4) And the most important way you can show your support is to Join the ACLU. Information is available on our website http://www.aclu.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Setback in Efforts to Secure Online Privacy FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, June 19, 1997 WASHINGTON -- A Senate committee today setback legislative efforts to secure online privacy, approving legislation that would restrict the right of businesses and individuals both to use encryption domestically and to export it. On a voice vote, the Senate Commerce Committee adopted legislation that essentially reflects the Clinton Administration's anti-encryption policies. The legislation approved today on a voice vote by the Senate Commerce Committee was introduced this week by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain, Republican of Arizona, and co- sponsored by Democrats Fritz Hollings of South Carolina; Robert Kerry of Nebraska and John Kerry of Massachusetts. Encryption programs scramble information so that it can only be read with a "key" -- a code the recipient uses to unlock the scrambled electronic data. Programs that use more than 40 bits of data to encode information are considered "strong" encryption. Currently, unless these keys are made available to the government, the Clinton Administration bans export of hardware or software containing strong encryption, treating these products as "munitions." Privacy advocates continue to criticize the Administration's stance, saying that the anti-cryptography ban has considerably weakened U.S. participation in the global marketplace, in addition to curtailing freedom of speech by denying users the right to "speak" using encryption. The ban also violates the right to privacy by limiting the ability to protect sensitive information in the new computerized world. Today's committee action knocked out of consideration the so- called "Pro-CODE" legislation, a pro-encryption bill introduced by Senator Conrad Burns, Republican of Montana. Although the Burns legislation raised some civil liberties concerns, it would have lifted export controls on encryption programs and generally protected individual privacy. FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 5 23 Jun 1997 "Privacy, anonymity and security in the digital world depend on encryption," said Donald Haines, legislative counsel on privacy and cyberspace issues for the ACLU's Washington National Office. "The aim of the Pro-CODE bill was to allow U.S. companies to compete with industries abroad and lift restrictions on the fundamental right to free speech, the hallmark of American democracy." "Sadly, no one on the Commerce Committee, not even Senator Burns, stood up and defended the pro-privacy, pro-encryption effort," Haines added. In the House, however, strong encryption legislation that would add new privacy protections for millions of Internet users in this country and around the world has been approved by two subcommittees. The legislation -- H.R. 695, the "Security and Freedom Through Encryption Act" or SAFE -- would make stronger encryption products available to American citizens and users of the Internet around the world. It was introduced by Representative Robert W. Goodlatte, Republican of Virginia. "We continue to work toward the goal of protecting the privacy of all Internet users by overturning the Clinton Administration's unreasonable encryption policy," Haines concluded ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update Editor: Lisa Kamm (kamml@aclu.org) American Civil Liberties Union National Office 125 Broad Street New York, New York 10004 To subscribe to the ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update, send a message to majordomo@aclu.org with "subscribe Cyber-Liberties" in the body of your message. To terminate your subscription, send a message to majordomo@aclu.org with "unsubscribe Cyber-Liberties" in the body. The Cyber-Liberties Update is archived at http://www.aclu.org/issues/cyber/updates.html For general information about the ACLU, write to info@aclu.org. PGP keys can be found at http://www.aclu.org/about/pgpkeys.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lisa Kamm |To receive the biweekly kamml@aclu.org |ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update http://www.aclu.org |email: majordomo@aclu.org http://www.gilc.org |body of message: subscribe cyber-liberties take the pledge: http://www.firstamendment.org Lynn_Decker@aclu.org Online Programs Coordinator American Civil Liberties Union FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 6 23 Jun 1997 125 Broad Street New York, NY 10004-2400 Visit the ACLU Freedom Network -- http://www.aclu.org ACLU Constitution Hall on America Online -- keyword ACLU ACLU Supports the Global Internet Liberty Campaign (GILC) http://www.gilc.org/gilc This Message was sent to cyber-liberties Origin: N1BEE BBS +1 401 944 8498 V.34/V.FC/V.32bis/HST16.8(1:323/107) ----------------------------------------------------------------- --- Following message extracted from FIDONEWS @ 1:18/14 --- By Christopher Baker on Sun Jun 22 14:43:29 1997 From: Mike Bilow To: Christopher Baker Date: 21 Jun 97 08:35:50 Subj: ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update, Special: June 20, 1997 * Forwarded (from: Netmail) by Mike Bilow using BilowMail0.2. * Original dated: Jun 21 '97, 00:16 From: "ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update Owner"@newmedium.com To: cyber-liberties@aclu.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update Friday, June 20, 1997 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Georgia, New York Internet Regulations Ruled Unconstitutional Georgia Ruling available online now, New York summary available now and Ruling on the way at http://www.aclu.org/issues/cyber/censor/censor.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACLU Wins First-Ever Challenge to a State Internet Censorship Law in Georgia FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, June 20, 1997 ATLANTA -- As the nation awaits a Supreme Court decision on Internet censorship, a federal district judge here today struck down a state law criminalizing online anonymous speech and the use of trademarked logos as links on the World Wide Web. Ruling simultaneously in ALA v. Pataki, another ACLU challenge to FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 7 23 Jun 1997 state Internet regulation, a Federal District Judge in New York today blocked the state from enforcing its version of the federal Communications Decency Act (CDA). In ACLU v. Miller, Federal District Court Judge Marvin Shoob today granted the ACLU's request to enjoin Georgia's statute restricting free speech in cyberspace and denied the State's request to dismiss the suit. The Court agreed with the ACLU, Electronic Frontiers Georgia and others that the statute is unconstitutionally vague and overbroad because it bars online users from using pseudonyms or communicating anonymously over the Internet. The Act also unconstitutionally restricts the use of links on the World Wide Web which allows users to connect to other sites. In the Court's decision, Judge Shoob noted that Georgia's law, "sweeps innocent, protected speech within its scope." He went on to say that it, "affords prosecutors and police officers with substantial room for selective prosecution of persons who express minority viewpoints. . . . [Moreover,] Georgia already has in place many less restrictive means to address fraud and misrepresentation." "The Court's order goes straight to the First Amendment flaws with the statute." said Scott McClain of Bondurant, Mixson & Elmore, cooperating attorneys for the ACLU. "Judge Shoob viewed the statute exactly as the Plaintiffs did: as a vague, overbroad, unconstitutional restriction on free speech and privacy on the Internet." "The Court recognized that anonymity is the passport for entry into cyberspace for many persons," said Gerald Weber, Legal Director of the ACLU of Georgia. "Without anonymity, victims of domestic violence, persons in Alcoholics Anonymous, people with AIDS and so many others would fear using the Internet to seek information and support." "We are very pleased with the Judge's decision," said Robert Costner, Executive Director of Electronic Frontiers Georgia. "This injunction clears the way for Electronics Frontier Georgia to release our anonymous remailer services on the Internet." Georgia's lawsuit was the first challenge to state cyberspace laws and statutes restricting privacy on the Internet. Today's ruling came as the nation awaits word from the U.S. Supreme Court in Reno v. ACLU, the ACLU's challenge to Internet censorship provisions of the federal Communications Decency Act (CDA). "Today's decisions in New York and Georgia say that, whatever limits the Supreme Court sets on Congress's power to regulate the Internet, states are prohibited from acting to censor online expression," said Ann Beeson, an ACLU national staff attorney and member of the legal teams in the New York, Georgia and federal cases. "Taken together, these decisions send a very important and powerful message to legislators in the other 48 states that they should keep their hands off the Internet," Beeson added. FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 8 23 Jun 1997 The Georgia lawsuit was filed on September 24, 1996, by the ACLU on behalf of 14 plaintiffs. The 14 individual plaintiffs and organizations named in the ACLU v. Miller are: American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia; The AIDS Survival Project; the Atlanta Freethought Society; Atlanta Veterans Alliance; Community ConneXion; Electronic Frontier Foundation; Electronic Frontiers Georgia; Rep. Mitchell Kaye; Ken Leebow; Bruce Mirken; Bonnie L. Nadri; Josh Riley; John Troyer; and Jonathan Wallace. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New York Judge Prohibits State Regulation of Internet FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, June 20, 1997 NEW YORK -- As the nation awaits a Supreme Court decision on Internet censorship, a federal district judge here today blocked New York State from enforcing its version of the federal Communications Decency Act (CDA). Ruling simultaneously in ACLU v. Miller, another ACLU challenge to state Internet regulation, a Federal District Judge in Georgia today struck down a law criminalizing online anonymous speech and the use of trademarked logos as links on the World Wide Web. In ALA v. Pataki, Federal District Judge Loretta A. Preska issued a preliminary injunction against the New York law, calling the Internet an area of commerce that should be marked off as a "national preserve" to protect online speakers from inconsistent laws that could "paralyze development of the Internet altogether." Judge Preska, acknowledging that the New York act was "clearly modeled on the CDA," did not address the First Amendment issues raised by the ACLU's federal challenge, saying that the Commerce Clause provides "fully adequate support" for the injunction and that the Supreme Court would address the other issues in its widely anticipated decision in Reno v. ACLU. (The Court's next scheduled decision days are June 23, 25 and 26.) "Today's decisions in New York and Georgia say that, whatever limits the Supreme Court sets on Congress's power to regulate the Internet, states are prohibited from acting to censor online expression," said Ann Beeson, an ACLU national staff attorney who argued the case before Judge Preska and is a member of the ACLU v. Miller and Reno v. ACLU legal teams. "Taken together, these decisions send a very important and powerful message to legislators in the other 48 states that they should keep their hands off the Internet," Beeson added. In a carefully reasoned, 62-page opinion, Judge Preska warned of the extreme danger that state regulation would pose to the Internet, rejecting the state's argument that the statute would even be effective in preventing so-called "indecency" from reaching minors. FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 9 23 Jun 1997 Further, Judge Preska observed, the state can already protect children through the vigorous enforcement of existing criminal laws. "In many ways, this decision is more important for the business community than for the civil liberties community," said Chris Hansen, a senior ACLU attorney on the ALA v. Pataki legal team and lead counsel in Reno v. ACLU. "Legislatures are just about done with their efforts to regulate the business of Internet 'sin,' and have begun turning to the business of the Internet itself. Today's decision ought to stop that trend in its tracks." Saying that the law would reduce all speech on the Internet to a level suitable for a six-year-old, the American Civil Liberties Union, the New York Civil Liberties Union, the American Library Association and others filed the challenge in January of this year. The law, which was passed by the New York legislature late last year, provides criminal sanctions of up to four years in jail for communicating so-called "indecent" words or images to a minor. In a courtroom hearing before Judge Preska in April, the ACLU presented a live Internet demonstration and testimony from plaintiffs who said that their speech had already been "chilled" by the threat of criminal prosecution. "This is a big win for the people of the state of New York," said Norman Siegel, Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union. "Today's ruling vindicates what we have been saying all along to Governor Pataki and legislators, that they cannot legally prevent New Yorkers from engaging in uninhibited, open and robust freedom of expression on the Internet." The ALA v. Pataki plaintiffs are: the American Library Association, the Freedom to Read Foundation, the New York Library Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, Westchester Library System, BiblioBytes, Association of American Publishers, Interactive Digital Software Association, Magazine Publishers of America, Public Access Networks Corp. (PANIX), ECHO, NYC Net, Art on the Net, Peacefire and the American Civil Liberties Union. Michael Hertz and others of the New York firm Latham & Watkins provided pro-bono assistance to the ACLU and NYCLU; Michael Bamberger of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal in New York is also co-counsel in the case. Lawyers from the ACLU are Christopher Hansen, Ann Beeson and Art Eisenberg, legal director of the NYCLU. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update Editor: Lisa Kamm (kamml@aclu.org) American Civil Liberties Union National Office 125 Broad Street New York, New York 10004 To subscribe to the ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update, send a message to majordomo@aclu.org with "subscribe Cyber-Liberties" in the body of your message. To terminate your subscription, send a FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 10 23 Jun 1997 message to majordomo@aclu.org with "unsubscribe Cyber-Liberties" in the body. The Cyber-Liberties Update is archived at http://www.aclu.org/issues/cyber/updates.html For general information about the ACLU, write to info@aclu.org. PGP keys can be found at http://www.aclu.org/about/pgpkeys.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lisa Kamm |To receive the biweekly kamml@aclu.org |ACLU Cyber-Liberties Update http://www.aclu.org |email: majordomo@aclu.org http://www.gilc.org |body of message: subscribe cyber-liberties take the pledge: http://www.firstamendment.org This Message was sent to cyber-liberties Origin: N1BEE BBS +1 401 944 8498 V.34/V.FC/V.32bis/HST16.8(1:323/107) ----------------------------------------------------------------- X-Sender: dima@galactica.it Date: Thu, 19 Jun 1997 07:05:22 +0200 To: cbaker84@digital.net From: Michele Di Maria Subject: BWExplorer HI!, I'd like inform you that BWExplorer: the FIRST Blue Wave (tm) mail reader especially designed for Windows95/NT4) has been released. You can download it at Michele's HomePage at: http://www.geocities.com/siliconvalley/7409 (This is not a mailing list, I found you address at your site and I hope you will find interesting this new) Thank you, Michele Michele's Shareware Site: http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/7409 -30- ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 11 23 Jun 1997 ================================================================= ARTICLES ================================================================= CRC and The Nodelist Has anybody else had problems keeping current? If it's not a missing DIFF now and then, it's CRC trouble... What is this CRC thing anyway? I've been trying to find out for over a year now, it's been one of those things that just keeps coming up now and then. Right now my NODELIST.164 has an improper CRC. The utility I use to merge the diffs told me so, and actually added a line at the bottom: ;S This Nodelist file has an improper CRC! The nodelist seems to be working correctly, but it bugs me to know something is improper about it. I have all those FSC- and FTS- files that tell about fido junk, maybe they can help? Maybe someone in the net knows what's going on? Isn't anybody gonna do something? My Nodelist has an improper CRC! Help! I like fido, and it's a good excuse to try writing small programs in c/c++ that can help me out. I've been sort of working on a small utility that will take our local netseg and make a BBS list for the systems not marked HUB, HOST or with a MO flag. Our netseg has that CRC number on the top line, shouldn't my program insure that the contents are valid before it tries to use them? This source will check an input file for a number at the end of the top line, and use that number if found to compare CRC value with the rest of the file. There may already be code out there to do this, if there is, I sure wish I'd had access to it!! I'm very interested in c/c++, but don't have access to any echos dealing with fido or BBS programming. There may be plenty of source code out there. Seems like most good software comes from Zone:2 anyway. If anybody knows where there is some source code dealing specifically with fidonet, how about dropping me a line? If you need a compiled (.EXE) version, F'Req NLCRC.ZIP (35k). L8r, bw /*******************************************: 55734 ** NLCRC.C Test a nodelist segment for correct CRC ** 6/97 Brian Wood 1:362/903 ** (903!brainwave@river.chattanooga.net) ** thanks to: ** Ross N. Williams, Author: ** A PAINLESS GUIDE TO CRC ERROR DETECTION ALGORITHMS ** and: ** The SNIPPETS guy, I think it's Bob Juge or Stout? ** and for FTS-0005: ** The Distribution Nodelist ** Original by Ben Baker Amended by Rick Moore */ FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 12 23 Jun 1997 #include #include #include unsigned AddCRC(unsigned, char *, unsigned); main(int argc, char **argv) { unsigned crc=0; unsigned lines=0; unsigned compare=0; char szCrc[10]; char topline[200]; /* assuming a nodelist entry */ char oneline[200]; /* will be <= 200 characters */ FILE *f; if( argc > 1 ) { if( (f = fopen( argv[1], "rb" ) ) == NULL ) { printf("\nCan't open %s", argv[1]); exit(-1); } } else { printf("\nUsage: NLCRC "); exit(-1); } /* Take the CRC from the top line of nodelist */ fgets( topline, sizeof(topline), f); strcpy(szCrc, &topline[strlen(topline)-8]); compare = (unsigned)atof(szCrc); if(compare==0) { printf("\n%s doesn't seem to be a nodelist!", argv[1]); exit(-1); } /* FTS-0005 says calculate beginning with ** 1st character of second line, and ignore ** EOF(ASCII 26) if present, so.... */ printf("\nReading File..."); while( fgets(oneline, sizeof(oneline), f) != NULL && oneline[0] != 26) { crc = AddCRC( crc, oneline, strlen(oneline) ); lines++; } /* Show the results */ printf("\n%s %ld bytes", argv[1], ftell(f)); fclose(f); printf("\nLinesread = %u", lines); if(oneline[0] == 26) printf(" -minus top line and EOF-"); else printf(" -minus top line- EOF Missing!"); printf("\n%u = compare crc", compare); printf("\n%u = actual crc", crc); FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 13 23 Jun 1997 printf("\n"); if(compare==crc) printf("\nCRC appears OK!"); else printf("\nCRC Values Do Not Match!"); return 0; } /* ** END MAIN */ /************************ ** Function: AddCRC(...) */ unsigned AddCRC(unsigned crc, char *sz, unsigned len) { unsigned CRC16table[] = { /* Polynomial 0x1021 (CITT) */ 0x0000, 0x1021, 0x2042, 0x3063, 0x4084, 0x50a5, 0x60c6, 0x70e7, 0x8108, 0x9129, 0xa14a, 0xb16b, 0xc18c, 0xd1ad, 0xe1ce, 0xf1ef, 0x1231, 0x0210, 0x3273, 0x2252, 0x52b5, 0x4294, 0x72f7, 0x62d6, 0x9339, 0x8318, 0xb37b, 0xa35a, 0xd3bd, 0xc39c, 0xf3ff, 0xe3de, 0x2462, 0x3443, 0x0420, 0x1401, 0x64e6, 0x74c7, 0x44a4, 0x5485, 0xa56a, 0xb54b, 0x8528, 0x9509, 0xe5ee, 0xf5cf, 0xc5ac, 0xd58d, 0x3653, 0x2672, 0x1611, 0x0630, 0x76d7, 0x66f6, 0x5695, 0x46b4, 0xb75b, 0xa77a, 0x9719, 0x8738, 0xf7df, 0xe7fe, 0xd79d, 0xc7bc, 0x48c4, 0x58e5, 0x6886, 0x78a7, 0x0840, 0x1861, 0x2802, 0x3823, 0xc9cc, 0xd9ed, 0xe98e, 0xf9af, 0x8948, 0x9969, 0xa90a, 0xb92b, 0x5af5, 0x4ad4, 0x7ab7, 0x6a96, 0x1a71, 0x0a50, 0x3a33, 0x2a12, 0xdbfd, 0xcbdc, 0xfbbf, 0xeb9e, 0x9b79, 0x8b58, 0xbb3b, 0xab1a, 0x6ca6, 0x7c87, 0x4ce4, 0x5cc5, 0x2c22, 0x3c03, 0x0c60, 0x1c41, 0xedae, 0xfd8f, 0xcdec, 0xddcd, 0xad2a, 0xbd0b, 0x8d68, 0x9d49, 0x7e97, 0x6eb6, 0x5ed5, 0x4ef4, 0x3e13, 0x2e32, 0x1e51, 0x0e70, 0xff9f, 0xefbe, 0xdfdd, 0xcffc, 0xbf1b, 0xaf3a, 0x9f59, 0x8f78, 0x9188, 0x81a9, 0xb1ca, 0xa1eb, 0xd10c, 0xc12d, 0xf14e, 0xe16f, 0x1080, 0x00a1, 0x30c2, 0x20e3, 0x5004, 0x4025, 0x7046, 0x6067, 0x83b9, 0x9398, 0xa3fb, 0xb3da, 0xc33d, 0xd31c, 0xe37f, 0xf35e, 0x02b1, 0x1290, 0x22f3, 0x32d2, 0x4235, 0x5214, 0x6277, 0x7256, 0xb5ea, 0xa5cb, 0x95a8, 0x8589, 0xf56e, 0xe54f, 0xd52c, 0xc50d, 0x34e2, 0x24c3, 0x14a0, 0x0481, 0x7466, 0x6447, 0x5424, 0x4405, 0xa7db, 0xb7fa, 0x8799, 0x97b8, 0xe75f, 0xf77e, 0xc71d, 0xd73c, 0x26d3, 0x36f2, 0x0691, 0x16b0, 0x6657, 0x7676, 0x4615, 0x5634, 0xd94c, 0xc96d, 0xf90e, 0xe92f, 0x99c8, 0x89e9, 0xb98a, 0xa9ab, 0x5844, 0x4865, 0x7806, 0x6827, 0x18c0, 0x08e1, 0x3882, 0x28a3, 0xcb7d, 0xdb5c, 0xeb3f, 0xfb1e, 0x8bf9, 0x9bd8, 0xabbb, 0xbb9a, 0x4a75, 0x5a54, 0x6a37, 0x7a16, 0x0af1, 0x1ad0, 0x2ab3, 0x3a92, 0xfd2e, 0xed0f, 0xdd6c, 0xcd4d, 0xbdaa, 0xad8b, 0x9de8, 0x8dc9, 0x7c26, 0x6c07, 0x5c64, 0x4c45, 0x3ca2, 0x2c83, 0x1ce0, 0x0cc1, 0xef1f, 0xff3e, 0xcf5d, 0xdf7c, 0xaf9b, 0xbfba, 0x8fd9, 0x9ff8, 0x6e17, 0x7e36, 0x4e55, 0x5e74, 0x2e93, 0x3eb2, 0x0ed1, 0x1ef0 }; FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 14 23 Jun 1997 while(len--) crc=(crc<<8)^CRC16table[(crc>>8)^*sz++]; return( crc ); } /* ** END NLCRC.C */ --- ISR sn 000 at river.chattanooga.net vsn 1.0a unreg -- |Fidonet: Brainwave 1:362/903 |Internet: 903!Brainwave@river.chattanooga.net | | Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own. | River Canyon Rd. BBS <=> Chattanooga OnLine! Gateway to the World. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 15 23 Jun 1997 ================================================================= COLUMNS ================================================================= Lock and Load: Guerilla Marketing for BBSes Robert Parson (1:3822/1) Y'know. One of the things I've always found rather bothersome about the Internet is its lack of a local identity. Sure, it's got lots of really spiffy stuff on it. But it still seems rather cold and distant. Even the sites that are highly personalized are somewhat remote. When was the last time you were really able to discuss local issues with someone on the Internet? Can you vent your indignation about a city sales tax increase with someone across the country? You could, but he or she won't have the same empathy as someone across the town would have. This is the great power BBSes have. They are the Friendly Neighborhood Electronic Townhalls. But the users can't come if they don't know you are there. When I was just a tad, about 8 or 9 years old, my grandfather and two uncles opened up a window glass store. Most of their business came from contractors who called up and said "We've built a house, now we need windows." But a good chunk of their business was repairing windows broken in storms, vandals, or the neighborhood baseball games. One Saturday morning, they armed my brother and me with hundreds of flyers. We were to go slipping through the neighborhood, tucking these flyers into doors. The flyers talked about how great the work of Lawrence Glass Company (In Lawrence IN) was and how inexpensive the rates were. We earned a whopping 25 cents each (it's amazing how I can remember things like that, but can't remember how old my wife is). I'm sure you can see where this is going. How many of your neighbors know you have a BBS? Crack open the Desktop Publisher and create a flyer. It doesn't have to be very elaborate. Make sure it has the name of your BBS and the data number (you might want to include your voice phone in case someone wants to ask a question before they dial in), and invite the neighborhood to call. Print up a jillion of these things. Then put those preteens to work. If they're like mine, they're aching to get outside anyway ("But there's a blizzard!" "I don't care! I wanna go out!"). And don't forget to give them a quarter for their efforts. Now, it's quite likely not every house in your neighborhood is going to have a computer equipped with a modem. I think in my neighborhood there's an average of one computer per block. But that's unimportant. What IS important is that you're getting the word out to people that are likely to be intrigued at the very least. FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 16 23 Jun 1997 1. They're going to be interested because it's someone they know that lives near them. 2. They're going to be interested because it's so close to them, there may be something on the BBS that offers them some sort of local information. 3. They're going to be interested because it's something different. 4. They're going to be interested because they want to make sure you aren't peddling pornography. (or maybe because you are) 5. They're going to be interested because you had the audacity to put that doggone flyer in their door. I'm constant amazed at the numbers of small-town weeklies that exist. They're poorly written, sloppily edited, have messy layouts, and low page counts. Thy thrive because they publish the little details of small-town life. Your Friendly Neighborhood BBS can thrive in much the same way. Robert Parson ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 17 23 Jun 1997 ================================================================= GETTING TECHNICAL ================================================================= [This is part of the continuing FidoNet History series publishing the FidoNet Technical Standards and Proposals. FSC-0084 was skipped due to size. These have been reformatted to 70 columns where required and tables may be askew as a result. Node numbers and phone numbers may be out of date. High ASCII characters have been converted or removed as necessary.] Ed. | Document: FSC-0085 | Version: 001 | Date: 03 September 1995 | | Denis Bider, FidoNet#2:380/129.0 /* Date: 25-Jul-1995 Document: Descriptions of the "NOZIP" and "ERX" nodelist flags Purpose: To give a system that is about to send some mail to a system not already defined by its operator in its configuration some idea about what kind of mail the mentioned destination system accepts Author: denis bider, ofs->FidoNet#2:380/129.0 The NOZIP nodelist flag and its affects on the MN nodelist flag ====================================================================== Generally, most FTN systems are able to receive compressed mail from any other FTN system. Up to now, the official compression format between systems has been ARC. This document, however, puts the ZIP format to that position. * A system whose nodelist entry contains neither an "MN" and neither a "NOZIP" flag is assumed to support both ARC and ZIP. * A system whose nodelist entry contains an "MN" flag is assumed not to support any compression at all. * A system whose nodelist entry contains a "NOZIP" flag is assumed to support ARC compression, while not supporting ZIP compression. * Both "NOZIP" and "MN" flags cannot appear in the same nodelist entry. If they, by some accident, do, the system should be assumed not to support any mail compression. Since the majority of systems support ZIP compression, a flag indicating that this type of compression is NOT supported has is proposed instead of a flag indicating that this type of compression IS supported, the reason being to minimize the amount of changes required to the nodelist. The format of the NOZIP flag is, simply, "NOZIP". The format of the MN flag stays the same. The ERX nodelist flag FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 18 23 Jun 1997 ====================================================================== The presence of this flag in a system's nodelist entry indicates that the system is able to process ERX mail packets of level . The current minimum and maximum values of are both "1", indicating that the system is able to process ERX packets of level 1, meaning that the packets can only contain EDX message items. Please refer to EDX1.TXT for the EDX and ERX specifications. The format of the "ERX" nodelist flag is "ERX" as in "the three letters 'E', 'R' and 'X', immediately followed with the token ", where is a number in decimal notation, with currently all values but '1' being reserved. If your system does not support ZIP and you do not yet have a NOZIP flag in your nodelist entry, or if your system is able to process ERX packets and you do not yet have an ERX flag, please urge your NC or RC, whichever appropriate, to update your nodelist entry as soon as possible. // EOF */ -30- ----------------------------------------------------------------- | Document: FSC-0086 | Version: 001 | Date: 03 September 1995 | | Mirko Mucko, 2:2433/920 Information / Description of a new standard S tandard R equest I nformation F ile Copyright (c) 1994,95 by Gordian Schuermann & Mirko Mucko I Overview Introduction 0 Description in general 1 Required statements 1.1 Optional statements 1.2 Undefined options 1.3 Implementation 2.0 0. Introduction In common, more and more mailer are about to implement the ability to call external request processors. But very soon, we discovered a command line cannot handle all the information the mailer has and the ERP needs. FIDONEWS 14-25 Page 19 23 Jun 1997 To transfer the information in a proper and fast way, we designed and implemented the S R I F option in the mean it will be a standard soon. The structure and idea is protected by copyright law, except these circumstances: + you may distrubute, use and implement this structure for free + you have not to pay any value for usage of these methodes + you should note in your documentation the origin of SRIF 1. Description The SRIF name is the only parameter given from the Mailer to the External Request Processor. The file is designated as a so called "plain vanilla ASCII" file, filled with pre-defined, optional and not-yet defined statemets. We discussed the possibility of binary files, and of EMSI-like files, but a plain ASCII control file is more flexible and can be read faster by various program languages (C, Pascal, Basic, Cobol ect). In the SRIF, one command plus parameter is allowed per line, the file is unlimited in length, comments are not allowed. The SRIF is generated by the Mailer and after the ERP finished its work, the Mailer is responsible for erasing the SRIF. 1.1 Required statements The following statements are required for the ERP: Sysop This is the name of the remote sysop AKA This is the main aka of the remote system in 4D or 5D notation. A zero as point number may be ommited, the domain with "@" is optional Baud This is the effective baud rate, not the fixed DTE rate Time