Skip to content

FidoNews · Vol 14, No 19 · 12 May 1997

     F I D O N E W S --       Volume 14, Number 19          12 May 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.                             |
     +----------------------------------------------------------------------+


                     GO AHEAD MAKE MY DAY!


                        Table of Contents
     1. EDITORIAL  ................................................  1
        Zone 2 reports problems in Italy  .........................  1
     2. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR  ....................................  2
        International BBS Week Update  ............................  2
        A cover up  ...............................................  2
     3. ARTICLES  .................................................  3
        Police crack-down on Fido-nodes in zone-2/region-33 (It  ..  3
        It Can't Work?  ...........................................  4
     4. COLUMNS  ..................................................  7
        Lock and Load: Special Edition  ...........................  7
     5. GETTING TECHNICAL  ........................................  9
        FSC-0068 - Proposed Replacement for FTS-0004  .............  9
        FSC-0069 - Proposal for FidoNet (FTN) Domain Name Servi  .. 14
        FSC-0070 - Improving Fidonet/Usenet gating/Dupe Checkin  .. 21
     6. COORDINATORS CORNER  ...................................... 24
        Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 129  ...... 24
     7. ECHOING  .................................................. 25
        North American Backbone Echo Changes [Mar-Apr]  ........... 25
     8. NET HUMOR  ................................................ 27
        How to install software  .................................. 27
     9. QUESTION OF THE WEEK  ..................................... 30
        Who has OLD Nodelists out there?  ......................... 30
     10. NOTICES  ................................................. 31
        Future History  ........................................... 31
     And more!
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 1                   12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                                 EDITORIAL
     =================================================================


     Law enforcement in many places still hasn't moved into the current
     century it would appear. Humans are slow to catch up with technology
     and this is particularly true for the computer communication
     revolution now underway.

     We also see it in the U.S. [so-called technology leader of the world]
     in the form of the C.D.A. [Computer Decency Act] and lots of local
     crimes against information by the uninformed or ill-informed.

     At least FidoNet, for the moment, is still a leading light in the
     fight for progress and information spread! Go get 'em Italian Sysops!

     Still no IC. The ZEC election in Zone 1 appears to be unraveling. Same
     old stuff.

     Keep those cards and letters coming! [grin]

     C.B.

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 2                   12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                           LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
     =================================================================


     International BBS Week Update
     by David Chord (3:771/1560/david.chord@cobra.galaxy.gen.nz)

     Things are moving along slowly for International BBS Week. So far,
     only a few people have bothered to do something about it, although
     some of those who have should be able to contribute quite a bit to
     help get things moving.

     There has been a request to move the date, as the first week of June
     is a bit early to do any adequate planning, espically for something
     hoped to have world-wide media coverage. At this stage, there is no
     definite date, it is open for discussion.

     Also, I have created a new echo for the discussion and planning of
     International BBS Week - INTBBS_WEEK. This will be co-moderated by
     Anne Pickets (3:772/270, Ivy Iverson (1:154/170) and myself, if Ivy
     and Anne accept this proposal. If you haven't already connected to the
     echo, please badger your local Hub/N(e)C into getting a feed for it.
     Hopefully, an echo will be a much better method of discussion.

     -----------------------------------------------------------------


     --- Following message extracted from NETMAIL @ 1:18/14 ---
         By Christopher Baker on Fri May 09 00:11:13 1997

     From: Bob Moravsik @ 1:2606/583
     To: Fidonews @ 1:18/14
     Date: 30 Apr 97  07:08:45
     Subj: A cover up

      * Original to Jason Steck of 1:285/424@fidonet.org

     cc: Zorch Freezberg
         Fidonews

     Jason:

     My link cut from ZEC was done by for political reasons.  Its well
     known that ZEC is really TWO conferences.  Its not against Fidonet's
     policy to have two conferences with the same tag.  Bodger's node was
     put in the seenbye as I CHOOSE to not provide MY MESSAGES to him.

     Your continuing this charade just points out what a DISHONEST WEESEL
     you are.  You are out to create a problem then drop out of Fidonet in
     laughter.  Resign NOW...Fidonet will be far better off without you.

     Bob Moravsik


     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 3                   12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                                 ARTICLES
     =================================================================


     Police crack-down on Fido-nodes in zone-2/region-33 (Italy)
     By Ward Dossche, 2:292/854
        ZC/2

     For the second time in a relatively short period the Italian police
     cracked-down on some Fidonet-nodes in Italy (zone-2/region-33) May
     7th at 7.30am thereby effectively shutting down substantial portions
     of the net.

     The hardware of some 3 nodes was seized pending investigation.

     Suspicion of distributing child-pornography is held against the
     sysops but people in their immediate vicinity, among which the RC for
     region-33, describe this as a terrible mistake probably due to
     misinformation of the concerned prosecutor or total ignorance about
     the difference between Fidonet and Internet.

     I have already written to the Italian ambassador and the Italian
     delegation at the European Commission, both in Brussels. This is the
     text:

        Dear Sirs:

        I am the European coordinator of the world-wide Fidonet computer-
        network.

        Fidonet is a low-cost-technology network which unites computer-
        communication hobbyists all over the world. At present there are
        worldwide 26.847 systems connected of which 15.904 are in Europe
        and 415 in Italy itself.

        This network reaches worldwide millions of people, organizations,
        schools, etc.. who rely on it as their window to the world.

        It has been brought to my attention that 3 eminent members of
        Fidonet in Italy in the cities of L'Aquila, Naples and Taranto were
        faced with seizure of their private computer-equipment on May 7th
        on suspicion of distributing child-pornography.

        People that I know in the Rome-area whom are trustworthy to me
        vouch for the 3 individual citizens that the claims being made by
        the local authorities are unfounded.

        I support this point of view.

        It is now the second time that Italian law-enforcement seriously
        hampers the operation of this network which is completely non-
        commercial and run on private funds as a hobby by individual
        system-operators.

        The lack of distinction by certain Italian law-enforcement officers
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 4                   12 May 1997


        between honest hobbyists who function in the regulated
        environment that Fidonet is and the unregulated internet where
        anything and everything is possible, is a blame to the professional
        abilities of these individual Italian law-enforcement officers.

        I would like to be kept officially informed as to the status of
        this matter and would like to ask you to inform your government
        that in the meantime hundreds of thousand, if not millions,
        individuals worldwide will have received this message and are
        watching on how it will be solved.

        I am looking forward to your further communications,

        (signed)

     Although everyone does as he/she pleases I would encourage
     individuals to look for the addresses of their local embassies or
     consulates and in a kind of cut-and-paste technology write similar
     letters of protest.

     Thank you very much for your attention.

     Ward




     -----------------------------------------------------------------


     It Can't Work?
     By: Clay Tannacore  1:372/4

     As many of you serious readers of FIDONEWS are aware, I have, over the
     last several months, been on a somewhat unavailing campaign to merge
     FidoNet with EchoMail.  I have stated many reasons for this and
     creditable ones *were* included.  However, over those months, I have
     been inundated with many ideas and opinions contrary to my views.
     Varied opinions have been expressed in opposition of my ideas and many
     of those were, in themselves, creditable.

     Some of the rationale why the two entities should not and could not be
     accomplished led me to the belief that perhaps, the readers weren't
     completely sane.  While a number of the opinions expressed seemed to
     have merit, I felt I should perhaps rethink my views or at least
     investigate the idea of an emergence of a policy that would direct
     both associated entities to be one.  Of course, among the creditable
     opinions rendered were a reasonably abundant scattering of ideas as to
     how I might increase my sexual activities with some rather unworkable
     arrangements in placement of my partner and myself.  Needless to say,
     I was not of the mind to attempt any of these recommendations, as
     testified to by my presence once again in FIDONEWS, and the fact that
     I have not had occasion to seek out professional attention from a
     chiropractor.

     Nonetheless, I did feel obligated to take a more prolonged and
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 5                   12 May 1997


     in-depth look at what I was advocating.  During this time period, I
     had the opportunity to observe the power struggle taking place in
     Zone1 for the ZEC1 position.  I have read numerous messages in the
     NL_SYSOP Echo, as well as a number of posts in other related areas.
     It was only after observing and following these message areas that I
     started to comprehend what so many individuals had been attempting,
     all along, to make me aware of.

     It would appear that if EchoMail was indeed included in the
     jurisdiction of FidoNet under POLICY4, and if a tyrannical type were
     to be installed into a position such as ZEC, this despot could, with
     very little exertion on his/her part, promote the overtaking of the
     whole of FidoNet.  With the use of intimidation, threats, controlling
     of EchoMail feeds, and to some extent, bribery, place himself in such
     a position as to have every member in FidoNet totally dependent on
     him/her.  To some extent this contemptuous situation is already taking
     place and without the unification of the members of that region, this
     poisonous alliance of a few will prevail.

     Getting back to the original intent of this article - the merging of
     FidoNet with EchoMail.  It is now my enlightened position that in the
     interest of FidoNet, and those who are a part of this association,
     that both FidoNet and EchoMail can *never* be successfully merged.
     Both entities should remain separate and apart but both entities
     should attempt to strengthen the versions of their active policy
     documents.  While I no longer feel that POLICY4 should include in its
     body any mention of social behavior which in itself would be
     destructive to that policy.  I immovably believe a policy outlining
     behavior within EchoMail that is distributed by FidoNet, should be
     enacted and placed in affect at the earliest possible time.  This
     behavioral policy document should set minimal standards for all
     EchoMail and Echoes distributed via the FidoNet association.

     Specific language should be included in this document detailing the
     consequences of not complying with the language.  Special attention
     should be integrated within the document, taking into consideration
     that the users of EchoMail are not necessarily members of FidoNet and
     are not governed by POLICY4, or ECHOPOL.  It should be stressed that
     latitudes when dealing with non-members may vary depending upon the
     situation at hand.  However, rules and procedures must be
     administered properly, for the benefit of FidoNet as a whole, and
     equability for the end user.

     I would suggest that an Echo be set up, with a moderator in each
     region linked together via EchoMail, for discussions and suggestions
     pertaining to this document.  Input from different sections and
     segments of FidoNet will be imperative in order to make this
     undertaking workable.

     I realize this is an open invitation to those of you who feel nothing
     in FidoNet needs changing but I assure you that something has to be
     done in order for FidoNet to survive.  We have to attempt to bring
     back into the folds of this association those users who have moved on
     to the Internet.  We have a golden opportunity to restore FidoNet to
     the prominence it once had.  Once the user discovers that the Internet
     is nothing but a commercial venture with no personality, no
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 6                   12 May 1997


     friendliness and, no closeness or brotherhood, FidoNet can, with a
     little effort on our part, be number one again.

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 7                   12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                                  COLUMNS
     =================================================================


     Lock and Load: Special Edition
     Robert Parson (1:3822/1)

     There normally would not be a column for this week, but with the
     pending International BBS Week, I thought I'd write a News Release you
     can use.  Just fill in the blanks in the first and last paragraphs
     with the appropriate information, and fax or mail this to your local
     news outlets (Newspaper, Radio, TV).

     As I've discussed before, don't expect to receive any media coverage
     from a News Release.  You're competing with dozens, possibly hundreds
     of other pieces of mail or faxes that media outlets receive each day.
     Also remember, some newspapers may simply re-write the news release
     without contacting you.

     I'd like to know if you get any media coverage. You can contact me at
     the above Fidonet address, or (gasp!) the internet at newsbob@kwhn.com

     I'd like to know: Who you are, the name and city of your BBS, the name
     and city of the media outlet, what sort of outlet they are (radio, tv,
     newspaper, magazine, wire service, etc), the name of the reporter, the
     date the article appeared, and the general tone of the article
     (favorable, unfavorable, bemused).

     Next week: the return of our regularly scheduled column.

     Good luck!

     --->  Cut here!   <---


     International BBS Week
     June 1-7 1997

     (BBS Name) in (City) is joining with tens of thousands of other
     Computer Bulletin Board systems worldwide in celebrating International
     BBS Week June 1st through 7th.

     Most BBSes, as they are commonly called, are operated by hobbyists
     from their homes.  They allow other computer users to call in with
     their modems to exchange messages and files and to play games.

     As with any hobby, the exact number of BBSes is unknown.  However, at
     last count FIDONET listed nearly 33 thousand nodes, or incoming phone
     lines.  Fidonet is the oldest and largest amateur network connecting
     BBSes worldwide.  Some BBSes offer other networks, some offer none,
     and other BBSes may even be connected to the Internet.

     Many BBSes provide their services for free, although some do charge a
     small fee for access.

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 8                   12 May 1997


     For more information on International BBS Week, contact (BBS Name)
     System Operator (Your Name) at (Voice phone), or leave a message on
     the BBS by calling (BBS Number) with a modem.


     -30-

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 9                   12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                             GETTING TECHNICAL
     =================================================================


     [This is part of the continuing FidoNet History series featuring the
     FTSC Standards and Proposal documents to-date. This docs have been
     reformatted to 70 columns where required which may cause tables to
     appear askew. Node and telephone numbers may be outdated.] Ed.


     Document: FSC-0068
     Version:  001
     Date:     13-Dec-1992

                           A Proposed Replacement For FTS-0004

                                       Mark Kimes
                                    1:380/16@fidonet

     Status of this document:

          This FSC suggests a proposed protocol for the FidoNet(r)
          community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
          improvements.  Distribution of this document is unlimited.

          Fido and FidoNet are registered marks of Tom Jennings and Fido
          Software.

     Echomail documentation:
     ======================

     Definition:
     ==========
     Echomail, sometimes called broadcast or conference mail, is netmail
     (ref. FTS-0001) containing additional control information that allows
     it to be "echoed" (forwarded) from node (site) to node.  Echomail is
     divided into areas, or conferences, with unique names.

     The format for packets, message headers and message text is identical
     to that specified for netmail in FTS-0001.

     Control lines in general:
     ========================
     A control line is a line of text in the message's body (the
     nul-terminated text portion of a message following the binary header;
     see FTS-0001) ended by a carriage return. Some control lines are
     preceded by a ^a (control-a, ASCII character 1) and are sometimes
     referred to as "kludge lines."  Kludge lines are normally not shown
     when displaying a message; the reading software will treat the initial
     ^a as meaning "not (normally) for human consumption."

     Required control information:
     ============================
     AREA:  An AREA tag is what makes the difference between netmail and
     echomail.  The AREA line must be the first line in an echomail
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 10                  12 May 1997


     message's body.  An AREA line's format is simply:

     AREA:<areaname>

     The AREA tag is specifically _not_ preceded by a ^a.  It might be a
     good idea for an application to allow for but not produce AREA tags
     with ^a prefixes.

     Where <areaname> is the unique name of the echomail conference.  For
     compatibility with existing software, area names should not begin with
     the plus or minus ("+" or "-") symbols.  Area names must not contain
     control characters (less than ASCII character 32, a space).  Leading
     and trailing spaces on the area name should be ignored (and preferably
     not produced).  Compares on the area name should be case insensitive.

     Area names are generally kept as short as possible while still
     maintaining uniqueness and some sense of what the area's topic is
     about.

     The purpose of the SEEN-BY control line is to protect fully connected
     polygon topology (see Topology below) from duplicate message looping.
     Keeping SEEN-BYs beyond a small topology group is wasteful and should
     be avoided, but a message must contain at least "Tiny Seenbys" in
     order to avoid choking older mail processors.  Tiny Seenbys are the
     node currently processing the message and any nodes to which that node
     is sending the message.  This means that in all cases a SEEN-BY line
     will contain more than one address.

     SEEN-BYs are located after any Origin line and before any PATH
     line(s).

     A SEEN-BY line has the following format:

     SEEN-BY <net/node> <[net]/node> ... <[net]/node>

     The 2-D addresses following the SEEN-BY tag are "net sticky," which
     means that net information is not duplicated if unchanged from the
     previous address listed.  For example, if 380/20 sends a message to
     380/16, 380/100 and 170/1, the SEEN-BY line would read:

     SEEN-BY 170/1 380/16 20 100

     SEEN-BY tags are specifically _not_ preceded by ^a.  It might be a
     good idea for applications to allow for but not produce SEEN-BY tags
     with ^a prefixes.

     SEEN-BY addresses _are_ specifically sorted by net/node.  It might be
     a good idea for applications to allow for but not produce unsorted
     SEEN-BY addresses.

     SEEN-BY lines should not exceed 79 bytes in length; if more addresses
     are required than can be represented on one line, a carriage return
     followed by another SEEN-BY tag followed by more addresses should be
     added.

     Current practice is to strip SEEN-BYs at zone and domain gates since
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 11                  12 May 1997


     their 2-D nature make them useless for duplicate message checking
     beyond a given zone.

     Optional control information:
     ============================
     Origin:  Origin lines, when they appear, contain the text " * Origin:
     " at the start of the line, and an address in parentheses at the end
     of the line.  Between these two portions of the line there may be some
     other text which can be ignored.  Origin lines may contain addresses
     in many formats, from simple 2-D net/node to 5-D domain addresses.

     An echomail processor should never choke because a message contains no
     Origin.

     Origin lines are specifically _not_ preceded by ^a, and should be no
     longer than 79 characters in total length.

     Some existing mail processors may choke on echomail that does not
     contain an origin line.  Therefore, for maximum compatibility,
     echomail processors should have an option, perhaps on a conference-by-
     conference basis, to assure all messages originating at a site contain
     an Origin (adding a default one if not already present).  In
     situations where an Origin is not used, a MSGID (see below) should be
     used so that private (netmail) replies are possible.

     Some gateways add their own Origin line and change any existing Origin
     line to " # Origin: <rest of original origin>".  You should keep this
     in mind if attempting to use Origin lines to find the "real" origin of
     a message.

     PATH:  PATH line(s), when they appear, follow the message's SEEN-BY
     line(s).  PATH lines are specifically preceded by ^a, and should be no
     longer than 79 characters in length.

     PATH lines have only one purpose:  to convey to a human some
     information about which systems have processed (forwarded) a message,
     and in what order.  The 2-D (net/node) nature of PATH coupled with the
     practice of not stripping PATH lines from a message at zone gates make
     it impossible to reliably use for the prevention of duplicate message
     looping (you can't tell if 380/16 refers to 1:380/16 or 2:380/16, or
     Dufusnet#1:380/16 instead of Fidonet#1:380/16).

     A PATH line has the following format:

     ^aPATH <net/node> <[net]/node> ... <[net]/node>

     Like SEEN-BYs, PATH lines consist of a tag, ^aPATH, followed by 2-D
     "net sticky" addresses.  Unlike SEEN-BYs, PATH is specifically _not_
     sorted, and it's possible there will be only one address.  For
     example, assuming all nodes support PATH, given that a message
     originates on 380/16, and goes through 380/20 to 380/100, the PATH
     line at 380/100 would read:

     ^aPATH 380/16 20

     and the PATH line at 380/20 would read simply:
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 12                  12 May 1997


     ^aPATH 380/16

     Other optional information:
     ==========================
     Tear line:  A tear line, when it appears, consists of three dashes
     ("---") at the beginning of a line, sometimes followed by a space and
     some text, possibly the name of the editor, packer, or BBS that
     created or first manipulated the message.  Tear lines, when present,
     are located just before the Origin line.

     Tear lines serve no control purpose, but are often placed into
     messages for historical reasons.  They should be considered as what
     they are: just part of the message text.

     MSGID:  A control line defined in FTS-0009.  Identifies the origin
     address of the message, and provides a unique serial number that can
     be used for linking replies and duplicate message control.

     REPLY:  A control line defined in FTS-0009.  In conjunction with
     MSGID, can be used to link replies to original messages.

     INTL, TOPT:  Netmail routing control lines defined in FTS-0001.  These
     control lines should not appear in echomail as they impart "false"
     information after the first "stop" due to the nature of echomail.

     FMPT:  A control line defined in FTS-0001.  Identifies point portion
     of from address.  This control line should not appear in echomail
     unless there is no MSGID and the Origin line doesn't list the point
     portion of the address.

     You may find other (experimental) kludge lines in an echomail message.
     Generally speaking, a kludge which is "netmail only," like a routing
     kludge or a "VIA" line, should not appear in echomail.  Remember that
     the cost of transmitting a message will be borne by many nodes, and
     extraneous, unuseful information produces unnecessary additional cost.
     All control information in echomail messages should be kept as small
     as possible.

     If you're curious about the uses of an experimental kludge and/or are
     considering supporting it, check for an FSC-* document covering it.

     Security considerations:
     =======================
     Echomail processors that attempt to provide a "secure" environment
     should not rely on the message header address, but use the packet
     header address (and possibly the password field) instead.  The packet
     header field will reflect who sent you the message.  Message header
     addresses are usually also changed to reflect the forwarder instead of
     the "real" origin, but this is not guaranteed (and perhaps not even
     desirable).  To find the "real" origin of a message, check for a MSGID
     and/or Origin line.

     Topology considerations:
     =======================
     Nothing creates duplicate message loops faster than bad topology.
     Consider the following simple diagram:
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 13                  12 May 1997


                     B<---->C
                     ^      ^
          A<-------->|      |<-------->F
                     v      v
                     D<---->E

     This topology contains a duplicate message loop.  Consider:  B
     receives mail from A and forwards to C, D and F.  C, D and F forward
     to E.  If we connect the polygon so:

                     B<---->C
                     ^\    /^
          A<-------->|  \/  |<-------->F
                     v /  \ v
                     D<---->E

     In this topology (fully connected polygon), no such duplicate message
     sending occurs.  While fully connected polygons can be effective in
     some networks (these are the reason SEEN-BYs can be necessary for more
     than backward compatibility), a better topology in general is the star
     and/or tree:

                                                  +<-->E
                                                  ^
                                                  |
                                                  v
                 another tree           +<-->D<-->+<-->F
                       ^                ^         ^
                       |                |         |
                       |                |         v
                       v                v         +<-->G
     another tree <--->A<--------->B<-->+
                       ^                ^         +<-->H
                       |                |         ^
                       |                |         |
                       v                v         v
                 another tree           +<-->C<-->+<-->I
                                                  ^
                                                  |
                                                  v
                                                  +<-->J

     Echomail topology should be carefully monitored by the systems
     involved to prevent formation (or quickly disassemble) costly
     duplicate message looping constructs.

     Acknowledgements:
     ================
     Tom Jennings "created" Fidonet.  Jeff Rush "created" echomail.  Bob
     Hartman's ConfMail docs served as the echomail specification for
     years, and did so admirably; the mail moved.

     Related documents:
     =================
     FTS-0001            (transport layer, packet format, various kludge
                          lines)
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 14                  12 May 1997


     FTS-0009            (MSGID and REPLY)
     FSC-0039            (alternate packet header format)
     FSC-0043            (hints on recognizing control information)
     FSC-0045            (alternate packet header format)

      -30-



     -----------------------------------------------------------------


     Document: FSC-0069
     Version:  001
     Date:     13-Dec-1992

                                   A Proposal
                                      for
                      A FidoNet (FTN) Domain Name Service
                                 Robert Heller
                                   1:321/153
                                 Locks Hill BBS

     Status of this document:

          This FSC suggests a proposed protocol for the FidoNet(r)
          community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
          improvements.  Distribution of this document is unlimited.

          Fido and FidoNet are registered marks of Tom Jennings and Fido
          Software.

     Information
     -----------

     The purpose of this FSC is to describe my ideas for migrating
     FidoNet(r) networks from a "static" nodelist to a domain based
     nameserver type of address resolution scheme.  This document does
     not propose a definitive scheme, only one posible scheme.  Other
     schemes are posible - this document just presents one as a starting
     point for discussion.

     1. Introduction
     ---------------

     In this document I plan to present a simple domain nameserver scheme
     for FidoNet(r) networks.  This scheme could be implemented easily,
     since no new connection protocols would be needed and in fact little
     new software would be needed.

     Nameserver queries would be implemented as File Requests for magic
     filenames.  The files would contain the information needed to perform
     the desired address resolution. These files would be built by the
     nameserver in advance by an off-line process.  That is, they would be
     pre-computed - the querying node would not be left hanging on the line
     while the nameserver went off and did a database lookup.
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 15                  12 May 1997


     2. Addresses
     ------------

     A domain nameserver based FidoNet would use three levels of
     addressing: virtual (most abstract), logical, and physical (least
     abstract).


     2.1 Virtual Addresses

     A node has 1 or more virtual addresses, one of which is it primary
     address and the others are aliases.  A virtual address is a totally
     symbolic address and is formatted just like an InterNet address:

         node.domain

     where node is the node's name and domain is a domain specification and
     can have any number of [sub-]* domains.  For example, my system could
     have a virtual address of:

        LocksHill.DeepWoods.com.fidonet.org

     The node and domain segment strings consist of letters (upper and
     lower case are equivelant), digits, dash (-), underscore (_), and
     dollar sign ($) characters and must begin with a letter.

     Virtual addresses generally convey no geographical or routing
     information.  They are intended purely for human convience purposes -
     they are really little more and a node name, with some added
     information.

     2.2 Logical Addresses

     A node can 1 or more logical addresses, although having only 1 is
     preferable. A logical address is exactly an existing 3-4D FidoNet(r)
     address:

     Zone:Net_or_Region/Node

     or

     Zone:Net_or_Region/Node.Point

     A logical address is used by mail packers and mail routers.  It is the
     addresses exchanged in YooHoo/2U2 packets and live in the Type-2
     packet headers.

     2.3 Physical Addresses

     A node has exactly one physical address.  In FidoNet(r), this is
     typically the telephone number assigned by the telephone company.  (It
     is posible that some nodes have something else as a "physical"
     address, for example a point which is connected to its bossnode via a
     LAN connection or a hardwired COM port.)  A multi-line BBS typically
     has one line for FidoNet(r) connections or multiple logical and
     virtual address, at least one per line.  The physical address is used
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 16                  12 May 1997


     by the mailer program to actually make a connection.

     3. The Domain Database
     ----------------------

     The domain database would consist of four ASCII text files, probably
     compressed:

          1) The domain table.  This text file maps between virtual
             addresses and logical addresses.  It also defines aliases
             as well and lists nameservers.

          2) The mail-exchanger table.  This text file describes the
             prefered netmail routing.  For each domain tail, it lists
             one or more node names that handle incoming mail for
             those domain tails.  This file only uses virtual
             addresses.  Its data is consulted by high-level mail
             routers, that take out-bound mail messages and combines
             them into bundles that are later packed into mail packets
             (which are routed to logical address fetched from the
             domain table).

          3) The capability file.  This file describes any extra
             services or capabilities a node might provide.  This
             includes (but is certainly not limited to):  gateway
             services (to other FTN or to non-FTN networks),
             alternitive low-level connection protocols (i.e. UUCP,
             SLIP, etc.), and file echos (SDS, SDN, etc.).  This file
             is meant as a catch-all for misc. optional information
             that might be usefull.

          4) The nodelist segment file. This file contains the mapping
             from logical address to physical address, and is in fact,
             a presnt-day NodeList file, except it is a "sparce"
             nodelist.  That is, it only describes the nodes at the
             immediate level of the nameserver and nodes at the level
             above and below the nameserver.

     3.1 Format of the domain table file.
     ------------------------------------

     The domain table file contains 1 or more lines of text.  Lines
     starting with a semi-colon (;) are comments and are ignored when this
     file is processd.  Each non-comment line contains two or more fields
     separated by commas:

     field1,field2,...,fieldN

     The first field is a field type keyword.  The field types defined are
     (case is not important):

     DEFAULT,domaintail

        Defines the default domain tail to append to domain names in the
     rest of the file.  Domain tail must begin with a dot (.).  Any
     subsequent domain names that do end in a dot will get the specified
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 17                  12 May 1997


     domaintail appended before further processing.

     NAMESERVER,domaintail,domain,preference

        Defines a domain server for domaintail.  Domain is the virtual
     address of the server node and preference is a preference value, a
     number giving a relative value when looking for a server to contact.
     A higher number means this is a better node to try and a lower number
     means this is a backup server.  The preference gives a ranking for
     multiple servers for a given domain tail.

     ALIAS,domain1,domain2

        Defines that domain1 is an alias for domain2.

     ZONE,zone-number
     REGION,region-number
     NET,net-number

        Defines default values to use in subsequent ADDRESS lines.  Region
     and net lines are effectivly interchangable and are used for
     documentary reasons.

     ADDRESS,domain,logical-address

        Defines the logical address for domain.  The logical-address can be
     missing fields.  Missing fields are supplied from prior ZONE, REGION,
     and NET lines.  Node and point numbers cannot be defaulted.

     3.1.1 Sample domain table.

     ;; Domain table for Network 999 (N_Luna) of zone 444 (the Moon)
     ;; (c) Copyright 2001 Network 999
     ;;
     ;; Our default domain
     Default,.N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org
     ;; Our zone
     Zone,444
     ;; Our Net
     Net,999
     ;; Our NC, Jim
     Alias,N_Luna_Net,Jims_SpaceSuits
     ;; Our NEC, Sally
     Alias,N_Luna_NEC,Sallys_Lunies
     ;; Our namesevers
     ;; Note empty domaintail - the default is used
     NameServer,,N_Luna_Net,100
     NameServer,,N_Luna_NEC,50
     ;; Out of net nameservers
     ;; Our Zone nameserver
     NameServer,.moon.fidonet.org.,Moon_NS.fidonet.org.,100
     ;; Our IC nameserver
     NameServer,.fidonet.org.,FidoNet_NS.fidonet.org.,100
     ;; Use the IC nameserver for non-fidonet addresses
     NameServer,.,FidoNet_NS.fidonet.org.,100
     ;;
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 18                  12 May 1997


     ;;
     ;; Nodes
     ;;
     Address,Jims_SpaceSuits,100
     Address,Sallys_Lunies,110
     Address,Moon_Rock_BBS,120
     Address,Monolith_HQ,200
     Address,Space1999,210
     Address,LostOnTheMoon,240
     Address,NorthLunaics,300
     ;;
     ;; Out of net addresses
     ;;
     Address,Moon_NS.fidonet.org.,999/100
     Address,FidoNet_NS.fidonet.org.,1:1/0
     Address,naEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org.,999/1
     Address,eurEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org.,999/2
     Address,ozEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org.,999/3
     Address,saEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org.,999/4
     Address,AfricaEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org.,999/5

     Some notes about the above - the underscores (_) are part of the names
     and do not indicate spaces.  The case mixing is stylistic and is an
     aid to readablity.  The above is a net level domain table. It also
     includes nameserver definations for higher levels, so nodes in N_Luna
     net can perform address resolutions to out of net addresses.

     3.2 Format of the mail exchanger table file.
     --------------------------------------------

     The mail exchanger table file contains 1 or more lines of text.  Like
     the domain table lines starting with a semi-colon (;) are comments and
     each non-comment line contains a list of three comma-separated values:

     domaintail,domain,preference

     Where domaintail is a domain suffix of a posible mail address, domain
     is the virtual-address of a node that handles the domain suffix's
     mail, and preference is a preference value (higher number is more
     prefered than a lower number).

     3.2.1 Sample mail exchanger table file

     ;; Mail exchanger table for Network 999 (N_Luna) of zone 444 (the
     ;;      Moon)
     ;; (c) Copyright 2001 Network 999
     ;;
     ;; Local mail can go via either the NC or NEC, with the NC
     ;; getting a higher preference
     .N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,N_Luna_Net.moon.fidonet.org,100
     .N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,N_Luna_NEC.moon.fidonet.org,90
     ;; Out of zone mail goes through the zone gates
     .naEarth.fidonet.org,naEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org,50
     .eurEarth.fidonet.org,eurEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org,50
     .ozEarth.fidonet.org,ozEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org,50
     .saEarth.fidonet.org,saEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org,50
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 19                  12 May 1997


     .AfricaEarth.fidonet.org,AfricaEarth_gate.moon.fidonet.org,50
     .JupiterNet.org,Monolith_HQ.N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,50

     Some notes about the above - undefined domain tails don't have a
     defined mail exchanger - this will a node trying to send such mail to
     do a nameserver call to get mail exchanger and any other info needed.
     ( The above is probably unrealistic - a more realistic mail exchanger
      table might have a default mail gateway.  And/or a zone-local inter-
     network nameserver.)

     3.3 Capability file.
     --------------------

     The capability file lists virtual-address and any extra services it
     might provide.  Semi-colon (;) in column one means a comment.  The
     non-comment lines are of the format:

     virtual-address,keyword:value,keyword:value,...

     Where virtual-address is a node's virtual address.  There can be any
     number of lines with the same virtual-address.  The keyword:value
     pairs accumulate (as if there was only one very long line for that
     virtual-address).

     3.3.1 Sample capability file.

     ;; Capability file for Network 999 (N_Luna) of zone 444 (the Moon)
     ;; (c) Copyright 2001 Network 999
     ;;
     Jims_SpaceSuits.N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,Protcol:UUCP-Z,File:SDSURISC
     Jims_SpaceSuits.N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,File:PDNVIRTWIND,File:PDNVIRTR
     EAL
     Monolith_HQ.N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,Protocol:X2500,Gateway:JupiterNet.
     org Space1999.N_Luna.moon.fidonet.org,File:PDNNUKEWASTE

     3.4 The NodeList Segment File.
     ------------------------------

     The nodelist segment file is just a FTS-0005 nodelist file, except it
     is "sparce", that is, it only contains just enough info to translate
     the logical addresses in the corresponding domain table file.

     4.0 Nameserver Implementation.
     ------------------------------

     Nameservers would be implemented by using the existing file-request
     methods presently in existance.  Five magic filenames would be setup:

        DNSDTABL   - Domain table file
        DNSMXTBL   - Mail Exchanger table file
        DNSCAPAF   - Capability file
        DNSNODEL   - NodeList segment file
        DNSALL     - An archive file containing all four of the files.

     All a nameserver would need to do would be to provide these five
     files, probably in some sort of commonly acceptable archive format.
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 20                  12 May 1997


     The real filenames should have some sort of predictable, but unique
     name probably based on the level of the nameserver and the number of
     the zone, region, or network the nameserver serves.

     4.1 Nameserver Levels.
     ----------------------

     Nameservers would exist at various levels:

          1) At the zone level.  The zone level nameserver(s) would
             supply information for the current zone level nodes,
             regional level nameservers, and would also have
             information about the zone level nameservers in all other
             zones.

          2) At the regional level.  The regional level nameservers
             would supply information for the current region level
             nodes (indpendent nodes), the current zone nameserver(s)
             (up level), and network level nameservers.  In some
             smaller zones, the region level *might* be skipped. The
             RC also makes the regional level domain info available to
             each of the region's independent nodes.

          3) At the network level.  The network level nameservers
             would supply information about the current network level
             nodes (regular nodes), and the current regional
             nameserver(s).  Also, the NC delivers or makes available
             the network level domain info to each of the nodes in the
             local network.

     (If the regional level is skipped, the network nameservers would
     contain entries for zone level nameservers and zone level
     nameserver(s) would contain network nameserver info instead of
     regional nameserver info.)

     5.0 Database Updates and Management.
     ------------------------------------

     Each node gets the network (region for independents) level info. These
     updates are handled much the way nodediffs get handled at present. The
     existing nodediff structure is really a generic text file difference
     editor and should work for any sort of text file. If the node needs
     additional info for regular connections, it is up to the node's sysop
     to schedule regular file requests to the nameservers that supply the
     additional info needed.  (This might require a cascade of requests,
     depending on nameserver dependencies - posibily a "make" like utility
     could be used to generate the requests.) A compiled database would be
     a merge of the data files a node gets from its NC (or RC for
     independents) and any additional info the node fetches.

     Because the information supplied at each level only relates to that
     level and the levels just above and below, updates are mostly local in
     nature.  There is no need to pass detailed network level info to the
     RC.  All that is needed is for the NC to pass the local info, merged
     with the regional nameserver info to the network's nameservers and
     pass the network's nameserver info to the RC.  Likewise the RC only
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 21                  12 May 1997


     needs to merge the regions indepent node info with the network
     nameserver info (passed up from the NCs) and zone level nameserver
     info (passed down from the ZC) and pass this to the regional
     nameservers and to pass info on the region's nameserver(s) to the NCs.
     Things are much the same at the zone level, except the ZCs pass their
     own zone level nameserver info to each other.  Nothing like the full
     nodelist ever gets passed around.

     6.0 Final Thoughts.
     -------------------

     This document is by no means complete. It is intended as "food for
     thought".  I hope that the members of the FTSC and others will read
     this and think about these ideas and maybe even setup experimental
     nameservers and see how it goes.  I expect lots of feedback.

     Robert Heller
     1:321/153

      -30-



     -----------------------------------------------------------------


     Document:   FSC-0070
     Date:       15-Jul-94
     Revision:   002

                   Improving Fidonet/Usenet gating and Dupe Checking

                         Franck Arnaud, Fidonet 2:320/213.666

       Status of this document
       -----------------------

      This FSC suggests a proposed standard for the FidoNet(r) community,
      and invites discussion and suggestions for improvements. Distribution
      of this document is unlimited.

      Fido and FidoNet are registered marks of Tom Jennings and Fido
      Software.

       Introduction
       ------------

      The complexity of Usenet/Fidonet gating and the large number of
      gateways has led to a non-negligible quantity of duplicates appearing
      regularly in both the Usenet and Fidonet worlds. This proposal
      defines a standard method for gateway software to deal with
      conversion of message identifiers between both worlds, so that we can
      improve the reliability of Usenet/Fidonet gateways.

      In this document "^" means <control-A> (character 01h).

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 22                  12 May 1997


       History
       -------

      Revision 002 adds details and makes the Fidonet to Usenet sheme FTS-
      0009 compliant.

       Usenet To Fidonet Message Identifier Conversion
       -----------------------------------------------

      A major problem is preventing messages gated into Fidonet from RFC822
      from being gated back to Usenet at another gateway with a new message
      id. The easy way to solve that is simply to store the RFC message ID
      in a kludge line. This kludge line could also allow identifying
      messages gated from Usenet (this could be used by message editors to
      allow private replies to the nearest uucp gateway for example).

      It is proposed that the ^RFCID: kludge is used to store the RFC
      Message-ID: in Fidonet messages. Of course, the use of the RFCID
      kludge doesn't replace the standard fts-0009 Message-ID:.

            (Usenet)  Message-ID: <92_feb_10_19192012901@prep.ai.mit.edu>
         to (Fido)    ^MSGID: 2:300/400.5 6789fedc
                      ^RFCID: 92_feb_10_19192012901@prep.ai.mit.edu

      Note ^RFCID does not include the Message-ID enclosing "<" and ">".

      Then if a gateway finds a ^RFCID line in a Fido message, it will use
      it in the Usenet message ID, instead of converting the ^MSGID.

       Fidonet to Usenet Message Identifiers Conversion
       ------------------------------------------------

      The dupe checking in Usenet is based on the message ID. Fidonet now
      has its own standard message identification standard (fts-0009).

      So it would be interesting if the same Fidonet message gated at
      different gateways had the same ID in Usenet to help news processing
      programs in stopping dupes.

      The proposed fido ^MSGID: to RFC1036 Message-ID: conversion method is
      defined as below:

      The ^MSGID: value (a string) is not parsed and converted as below to
      the ID part of Usenet's Message-ID. The Message-ID domain is the
      fidonet domain, "fidonet.org" if the gated echomail comes from the
      Fidonet(tm) network.

      To convert the MSGID string, the following rules are applied:
      - Alphanumeric (a-z,A-Z,0-9) characters are kept intact (case
        preserved).
      - Non-alphanumeric characters - including the space beetwen the
        origin address and the serial number - are converted to '-'.

      Some examples:

         (Fido)   ^MSGID: 2:300/400 12345AbC
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 23                  12 May 1997


      to (Usenet) Message-ID: <2-300-400-12345AbC@fidonet.org>

         (Fido)   ^MSGID: 15:300/400.50@somenet abcd6789
      to (Usenet) Message-ID: <15-300-400-50-somenet-abcd6789@fidonet.org>

         (Fido)   ^MSGID: Internet.Domain.org aBcD1234
      to (Usenet) Message-ID: <Internet-Domain-org-aBcD1234@fidonet.org>

         (Fido)   ^MSGID: "LZKkoe$1982 98a" 45678bcd
      to (Usenet) Message-ID: <-LZKkoe-1982-98a--45678bcd@fidonet.org>

      -30-




     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 24                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                            COORDINATORS CORNER
     =================================================================


     Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 129
     By Ward Dossche, 2:292/854
        ZC/2

      +----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
      |Zone|Nl-101|Nodelist-108|Nodelist-115|Nodelist-122|Nodelist-129|%%|
      +----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
      |  1 |  8837| 8675  -162 | 8675     0 | 8519  -156 | 8430   -89 |31|
      |  2 | 15902|15993    91 |15992    -1 |15952   -40 |15904   -48 |59|
      |  3 |   800|  800     0 |  800     0 |  800     0 |  800     0 | 3|
      |  4 |   548|  547    -1 |  547     0 |  548     1 |  543    -5 | 2|
      |  5 |    87|   87     0 |   87     0 |   87     0 |   87     0 | 0|
      |  6 |  1083| 1083     0 | 1083     0 | 1083     0 | 1083     0 | 4|
      +----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+
           | 27257|27185   -72 |27184    -1 |26989  -195 |26847  -142 |
           +------+------------+------------+------------+------------+

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 25                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                                  ECHOING
     =================================================================


     North American Backbone Echo Changes [Mar-Apr]
     by Lisa Gronke, 1:105/16
     lisa@psg.com

     Summary of backbone & quasi-backbone echo changes during Mar & Apr.

     Brought to you courtesy of (unix) diff.

     diff (backbone.na + backbone.no) 02-Mar-97 04-May-97 [edited].

     Added to the backbone
     -----------------------
     > BBS_INTERNET        DOS/Win/OS2/Unix Internet BBS Applications
     > EP-ANNOUNCE         EPubNet File Announcement Echo
     > EP-GENERAL          EPubNet General Chat Echo
     > EP-SYSOP            EPubNet Sysop Echo
     > FIDOWORK            The FidoNet Workshop
     > MOVING              Our Mobile Society
     > MTN_BIKE            (low traffic since  4/1/97)
     > OLD_ENGINE          Fidonet Nostalgia and Old Engine discussion
     > TOTT_JC             Juvenile Court
     > WIN97               Windows 97 Echo

     Removed from the backbone or quasi-backbone
     -------------------------------------------
     < ABLED_ATHLETE       (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < CARIBBEAN_CHAT      (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < CPALSY              (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < CRIME_QUEST         Crime Quest doorgame discussion area
     < C_ABILITY           (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < DAIRY_FARM          (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < DENTISTRY           (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < DESCENT             (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < GEN4SALE            BUY TRADE OR SELL GENEALOGY PRODUCTS, SERVICES
     < INTRACTABLE_PAIN    Discussion of Intractable Pain, Treatments
     < IN_COUNTRY          (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < LOTAKIDS            (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < MM1_TECH            (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < MOVIETV             (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < NEW                 (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < NEW_WAVE_MUSIC      (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < NON-FICTION         (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < OASIS               (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < REENACT             Reenacting & Living History
     < ROBO_LINK           (low traffic since  1/1/97)
     < RTSOFT              (not in EchoList since  1/1/97)
     < SEEDSWAP            (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < SPANISH.GEN         (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < VFALSAC             (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     < WIN_VS_OS2          (low traffic since  2/1/97)
     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 26                  12 May 1997


     o There are 764 echos in backbone.na [04-May-97] (down 14)
       (actually 763 echos, since WIN.SYSOP is listed twice)
     o There are 55 echos in backbone.no [05-Mar-97 (no change)
     o for a total of 819 backbone & quasi-backbone echos (down 14)
       (actually 818 echos, since WIN.SYSOP is listed twice)

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 27                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                                 NET HUMOR
     =================================================================


     From: "Mike Riddle" <mriddle@monarch.papillion.ne.us>
     To: "Baker, Christopher" <cbaker84@digital.net (Christopher Baker)>,
     Date: Wed, 23 Apr 97 13:13:32 -0600
     Reply-To: "Mike Riddle" <mriddle@monarch.papillion.ne.us>
     Subject: Fwd: (Fwd) VERY FUNNY!! How to install software.

     ==================BEGIN FORWARDED MESSAGE==================
     To:            "Martin B. Paskind" <paskind@swcp.com>,
     Subject:       VERY FUNNY!! How to install software.
     Date:          Tue, 22 Apr 97 16:44:24 -0500
     From:          Ppromom <promom@swcp.com>

     -- [ From: Ppromom * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --


              "How To Install Software -- A 12-Step Program"
                             by Dave Barry


     1. Examine the software packaging until you find a little printed  box
     that explains what kind of computer system you need to run the
     software.

     It should look something like this:

     SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
     2386 PROCESSOR OR HIGHER
     628.8 MEGAHERTZ MODEM
     719.7 MB FREE DISK SPACE
     3546 MB RAM
     432323 MB ROM
     05948737 MB RPM
     ANTILOCK BRAKING SYSTEM
     2 TURTLE DOVES

     NOTE: This software will not work on your computer.

     2. Open the software packaging and remove the manual. This will
     contain detailed instructions on installing, operating, and
     troubleshooting the software. Throw it away.

     3. Find the actual software, which should be in the form of either a
     3.5-inch floppy diskette or a CD-ROM, located inside a sealed
     envelope that says:

     LICENSING AGREEMENT:

     By breaking this seal, the user hereinafter agrees to abide by  all
     the terms and conditions of the following agreement that nobody  ever
     reads, as well as the Geneva Convention and the U.N. Charter and  the
     Secret Membership Oath of the Benevolent Protective Order of the  Elks
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 28                  12 May 1997


     and such other terms and conditions, real and imaginary, as the
     Software Company shall deem necessary and appropriate, including the
     right to come to the user's home and examine the user's hard drive,
     as well as the user's underwear drawer if we feel like it, take it or
     leave it, until death do us part, one nation indivisible by the
     dawn's early light,... finders keepers, losers weepers, ...

     4. Hand the software to a child aged 3 through 12 and say, "(Name  of
     child) , please install this on my computer."

     5. If you have no child age 3 through 12, insert the software in  the
     appropriate drive, type SETUP" and press the Enter key.

     6. Turn the computer on, you idiot.

     7. Once again type "SETUP" and press the Enter key.

     8. You will hear grinding and whirring noises for a while, after
     which the following message should appear on your screen:

     The Installation Program will now examine your system to see what
     would be
     the best way to render it inoperable. Is it OK with you?   Choose one,
     and be honest:

                             +-----+     +------+
                             | YES |     | SURE |
                             +-----+     +------+

     9. After you make your selection, you will hear grinding and  whirring
     for a very long time while the installation program does who  knows
     what in there.  Some installation programs can actually alter
     molecular structures, so that when they're done, your computer has
     been transformed into an entirely new device, such as a food
     processor.

     At the very least, the installation program will create many new
     directories , sub-directories, and sub-sub-directories on your hard
     drive and fill them with thousands of mysterious files with names like
     "puree.exe," "fester.dat, " and "doo.wha.."

     10. When the installation program is finished, your screen should
     display the following message:

            CONGRATULATIONS

     The installation program cannot think of anything else to do to
     your computer and has grown bored. You may now attempt to run your
     software.  If you experience any problems, electrical shocks,
     insomnia, shortness of breath, nasal discharge, or intestinal
     parasites, you should immediately *!@!$)$%@&*^)$*!#$_$*^&.

     11. At this point your computer system should become less functional
     than the federal government, refusing to respond even when struck with
     furniture.

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 29                  12 May 1997


     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 30                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                           QUESTION OF THE WEEK
     =================================================================


     Ron Amos at 1:138/102 is looking for very old Nodelists that he can
     file-request or download from an Internet site.

     Have you got any?

     If so, please send him a Netmail or send me an answer for next week's
     Issue of FidoNews. A FidoNews .ANS would probably be better since
     there are others who are also interested in finding a source for old
     Nodelists for historical purposes.

     Thanks.

     C.B.

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 31                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                                  NOTICES
     =================================================================

                                Future History

     17 May 1997
        Independence Day, Norway.

      3 Jun 1997
        2 years since FidoNet had an International Coordinator.

      6 Jun 1997
        National Commemoration Day, Sweden.

     12 Jun 1997
        Independence Day, Russia.

      1 Jul 1997
        Canada Day - Happy Birthday Canada.

      9 Jul 1997
        Independence Day, Argentina.

     13 Oct 1997
        Thanksgiving Day, Canada.

      1 Dec 1997
        World AIDS Day.

     10 Dec 1997
        Nobel Day, Sweden.

     12 Jan 1998
        HAL 9000 is one year old today.

     22 May 1998
        Expo '98 World Exposition in Lisbon (Portugal) opens.

      1 Dec 1998
        Fifteenth Anniversary of release of Fido version 1 by
        Tom Jennings.

     31 Dec 1999
        Hogmanay, Scotland. The New Year that can't be missed.

      1 Jan 2000
        The 20th Century, C.E., is still taking place thru 31 Dec.

     15 Sep 2000
        Sydney (Australia) Summer Olympiad opens.

      1 Jan 2001
        This is the actual start of the new millennium, C.E.

     -- If YOU have something which you would like to see in this
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 32                  12 May 1997


        Future History, please send a note to the FidoNews Editor.

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 33                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                         FIDONET SOFTWARE LISTING
     =================================================================


     Latest Greatest Software Versions
     by Peter E. Popovich, 1:363/264

     Note: Mid-May, I will phase out the entire "Old Info" section. As
     always, I'll be happy to process any information I get, either before
     or after it is phased out.

     -=- Snip -=-

     Submission form for the Latest Greatest Software Versions column

     OS Platform                             :
     Software package name                   :
     Version                                 :
     Function(s) - BBS, Mailer, Tosser, etc. :
     Freeware / Shareware / Commercial?      :
     Author / Support staff contact name     :
     Author / Support staff contact node     :
     Magic name (at the above-listed node)   :

     Please include a sentence describing what the package does.

     Please send updates and suggestions to: Peter Popovich, 1:363/264

     -=- Snip -=-

     MS-DOS:
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     Act-Up         4.6      G D Chris Gunn        1:15/55     ACT-UP
     ALLFIX         4.40     T S Harald Harms      2:281/415   ALLFIX
     Announcer      1.11     O S Peter Karlsson    2:206/221   ANNOUNCE
     BGFAX          1.60     O S B.J. Guillot      1:106/400   BGFAX
     Binkley Docs   2.60     M F Bob Juge          1:1/102     BDOC_260.ZIP
     BinkleyTerm    2.60     M F Bob Juge          1:1/102     BDOS_260.ZIP
     BinkleyTerm-XE XR4      M F Thomas Waldmann   2:2474/400  BTXE_DOS
     CFRoute        0.92     O G C. Fernandez Sanz 2:341/70    CFR
     CheckPnt       1.0a     O G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     CHECKPNT
     FastEcho       1.45a    T S Tobias Burchhardt 2:2448/400  FASTECHO
     FastEcho/16    1.45a    T S Tobias Burchhardt 2:2448/400  FE16
     FidoBBS (tm)   12u      B S Ray Brown         1:1/117     FILES
     FrontDoor      2.12     M S JoHo              2:201/330   FD
     FrontDoor      2.20c    M C JoHo              2:201/330   FDINFO
     GEcho          1.00     T S Bob Seaborn       1:140/12    GECHO
     GEcho/Plus     1.11     T C Bob Seaborn       1:140/12    GECHO
     GEcho/Pro      1.20     T C Bob Seaborn       1:140/12    GECHO
     GIGO           07-14-96 G S Jason Fesler      1:1/141     INFO
     GoldED         2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GED
     GoldED/386     2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEX
     GoldED Docs    2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEM
     GoldNODE       2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEN
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 34                  12 May 1997


     Imail          1.75     T S Michael McCabe    1:1/121     IMAIL
     ImCrypt        1.04     O G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     IMCRYPT
     InfoMail/86    1.21     O F Damian Walker     2:2502/666  INFOMAIL
     InfoMail/386   1.21     O F Damian Walker     2:2502/666  INFO386
     InterEcho      1.19     T C Peter Stewart     1:369/35    IEDEMO
     InterMail      2.29k    M C Peter Stewart     1:369/35    IMDEMO
     InterPCB       1.52     O S Peter Stewart     1:369/35    INTERPCB
     IPNet          1.11     O S Michele Stewart   1:369/21    IPNET
     JD's CBV       1.4      O S John Dailey       1:363/277   CBV
     Jelly-Bean     1.01     T S Rowan Crowe       3:635/727   JELLY
     Jelly-Bean/386 1.01     T S Rowan Crowe       3:635/727   JELLY386
     JMail-Hudson   2.81     T S Jason Steck       1:285/424   JMAIL-H
     JMail-Goldbase 2.81     T S Jason Steck       1:285/424   JMAIL-G
     MakePl         1.9      N G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     MAKEPL
     Marena         1.1 beta O G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     MARENA
     Maximus        3.01     B P Tech              1:249/106   MAX
     McMail         1.0      M S Michael McCabe    1:1/148     MCMAIL
     MDNDP          1.18     N S Bill Doyle        1:388/7     MDNDP
     Msged          4.10     O G Andrew Clarke     3:635/728   MSGED41D.ZIP
     Msged/386      4.10     O G Andrew Clarke     3:635/728   MSGED41X.ZIP
     Opus CBCS      1.79     B P Christopher Baker 1:374/14    OPUS
     O/T-Track      2.66     O S Peter Hampf       2:241/1090  OT
     PcMerge        2.8      N G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     PCMERGE
     PlatinumXpress 1.3      M C Gary Petersen     1:290/111   PX13TD.ZIP
     QuickBBS       2.81     B S Ben Schollnick    1:2613/477  QUICKBBS
     RAR            2.00     C S Ron Dwight        2:220/22    RAR
     RemoteAccess   2.50     B S Mark Lewis        1:3634/12   RA
     Silver Xpress
       Door         5.4      O S Gary Petersen     1:290/111   FILES
       Reader       4.4      O S Gary Petersen     1:290/111   SXR44.ZIP
     Spitfire       3.51     B S Mike Weaver       1:3670/3    SPITFIRE
     Squish         1.11     T P Tech              1:249/106   SQUISH
     StealTag UK    1.c...   O F Fred Schenk       2:284/412   STEAL_UK
     StealTag NL    1.c...   O F Fred Schenk       2:284/412   STEAL_NL
     T-Mail         2.599I   M S Ron Dwight        2:220/22    TMAIL
     Telegard       3.02     B F Tim Strike        1:259/423   TELEGARD
     Terminate      4.00     O S Bo Bendtsen       2:254/261   TERMINATE
     Tobruk         0.33     T G Paul Edwards      3:711/934   TOBRUK
     TosScan        1.01     T C JoHo              2:201/330   TSINFO
     TransNet       1.00     G S Marc S. Ressl     4:904/72    TN100ALL.ZIP
     TriBBS         11.0     B S Gary Price        1:3607/26   TRIBBS
     TriDog         11.0     T F Gary Price        1:3607/26   TRIDOG
     TriToss        11.0     T S Gary Price        1:3607/26   TRITOSS
     WaterGate      0.92     G S Robert Szarka     1:320/42    WTRGATE
     WWIV           4.24a    B S Craig Dooley      1:376/126   WWIV
     WWIVTOSS       1.36     T S Craig Dooley      1:376/126   WWIVTOSS
     xMail          2.00     T S Thorsten Franke   2:2448/53   XMAIL
     XRobot         3.01     O S JoHo              2:201/330   XRDOS

     OS/2:
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     ALLFIX/2       1.10     T S Harald Harms      2:281/415   AFIXOS2
     BGFAX          1.60     O S B.J. Guillot      1:106/400   BGFAX
     Binkley Docs   2.60     M F Bob Juge          1:1/102     BDOC_260.ZIP
     BinkleyTerm    2.60     M F Bob Juge          1:1/102     BOS2_260.ZIP
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 35                  12 May 1997


     BinkleyTerm-XE XR4      M F Thomas Waldmann   2:2474/400  BTXE_OS2
     CFRoute        0.92     O G C. Fernandez Sanz 2:341/70    CFR
     FastEcho       1.45a    T S Tobias Burchhardt 2:2448/400  FE2
     FleetStreet    1.19     O S Michael Hohner    2:2490/2520 FLEET
     GEcho/Pro      1.20     T C Bob Seaborn       1:140/12    GECHO
     GIGO           07-14-96 G S Jason Fesler      1:1/141     INFO
     GoldED         2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEO
     GoldED Docs    2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEM
     GoldNODE       2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEN
     ImCrypt        1.04     O G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     IMCRYPT
     Maximus        3.01     B P Tech              1:249/106   MAXP
     Msged/2        4.10     O G Andrew Clarke     3:635/728   MSGED41O.ZIP
     PcMerge        2.3      N G Michiel vd Vlist  2:500/9     PCMERGE
     RAR            2.00     C S Ron Dwight        2:220/22    RAR2
     Squish         1.11     T P Tech              1:249/106   SQUISHP
     T-Mail         2.599I   M S Ron Dwight        2:220/22    TMAIL2
     Tobruk         0.33     T G Paul Edwards      3:711/934   TOBRUK
     XRobot         3.01     O S JoHo              2:201/330   XROS2

     Windows (16-bit apps):
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     BeeMail        1.0      M C Andrius Cepaitis  2:470/1     BEEMAIL
     FrontDoor APX  1.12     P S Mats Wallin       2:201/329   FDAPXW

     Windows (32-bit apps):
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     BeeMail        1.0      M C Andrius Cepaitis  2:470/1     BEEMAIL
     Binkley Docs   2.60     M F Bob Juge          1:1/102     BDOC_260.ZIP
     BinkleyTerm    2.60     M F Bob Juge          1:1/102     BW32_260.ZIP
     CFRoute        0.92     O G C. Fernandez Sanz 2:341/70    CFR
     GoldED         2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEO
     GoldED Docs    2.50     O S Len Morgan        1:203/730   GEM
     Maximus        3.01     B P Tech              1:249/106   MAXN
     Msged/NT       4.10     O G Andrew Clarke     3:635/728   MSGED41W.ZIP
     PlatinumXpress 2.00     M C Gary Petersen     1:290/111   PXW-INFO
     T-Mail         2.599I   M S Ron Dwight        2:220/22    TMAILNT
     WinFOSSIL/95   1.12 r4  F S Bryan Woodruff    1:343/294   WNFOSSIL.ZIP
     WinFOSSIL/NT   1.0 beta F S Bryan Woodruff    1:343/294   NTFOSSIL.ZIP

     Unix:
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     ifmail         2.10     M G Eugene Crosser    2:293/2219  IFMAIL
     ifmail-tx      ...tx8.2 M G Pablo Saratxaga   2:293/2219  IFMAILTX
     ifmail-tx.rpm  ...tx8.2 M G Pablo Saratxaga   2:293/2219  IFMAILTX.RPM
     Msged          4.00     O G Paul Edwards      3:711/934   MSGED
     Tobruk         0.33     T G Paul Edwards      3:711/934   TOBRUK

     Amiga:
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     CrashMail      1.23     T X Fredrik Bennison  2:205/324   CRASHMAIL
     CrashTick      1.1      O F Fredrik Bennison  2:205/324   CRASHTICK
     DLG Pro BBOS   1.15     B C Holly Sullivan    1:202/720   DLGDEMO
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 36                  12 May 1997


     GMS            1.1.85   M S Mirko Viviani     2:331/213   GMS
     Msged          4.00     O G Paul Edwards      3:711/934   MSGED
     Tobruk         0.33     T G Paul Edwards      3:711/934   TOBRUK

     TrapDoor       1.86.b2  M S Maximilian Hantsch
                                                   2:310/6     TRAPDOOR
     TrapDoor       1.86.b2  M S Maximilian Hantsch
                                                   2:310/6     TRAPBETA
     TrapToss       1.50     T S Rene Hexel        2:310/6     TRAPTOSS


     Atari:
     Program Name   Version  F C Contact Name      Node        Magic Name
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     BinkleyTerm/ST 3.18pl2  M F Bill Scull        1:363/112   BINKLEY
     JetMail        0.99beta22
                             T S Joerg Spilker     2:2432/1101 JETMAIL
     Semper         0.80beta M S Jan Kriesten      2:2490/1624 SMP-BETA

     Function: B-BBS, P-Point, M-Mailer, N-Nodelist, G-Gateway, T-Tosser,
               C-Compression, F-Fossil, O-Other. Note: Multifunction will
               be listed by the first match.

     Cost: P-Free for personal use, F-Freeware, S-Shareware, C-Commercial,
           X-Crippleware, D-Demoware, G-Free w/ Source

     Old info from: 01/27/92
     ---------------------------------------------------------------------

       MS-DOS Systems        Other Utilities         Other Utilities
       --------------        Name         Version    Name         Version
                             --------------------    --------------------
     Network Mailers         2DAPoint        1.50*   Netsex         2.00b
     Name         Version    4Dog/4DMatrix   1.18    OFFLINE         1.35
     --------------------    ARCAsim         2.31    Oliver          1.0a
     D'Bridge        1.30    ARCmail         3.00*   OSIRIS CBIS     3.02
     Dreamer         1.06    Areafix         1.20    PKInsert        7.10
     Dutchie        2.90c    ConfMail        4.00    PolyXarc        2.1a
     Milqtoast       1.00    Crossnet         1.5    QM             1.00a
     PreNM           1.48    DOMAIN          1.42    QSort           4.04
     SEAdog          4.60    DEMM            1.06    RAD Plus        2.11
     SEAmail         1.01    DGMM            1.06    Raid            1.00
     TIMS       1.0(mod8)    DOMAIN          1.42    RBBSMail        18.0
                             EEngine         0.32    ScanToss        1.28
     Compression             EMM             2.11*   ScMail          1.00
     Utilities               EZPoint          2.1    ScEdit          1.12
     Name         Version    FGroup          1.00    Sirius          1.0x
     --------------------    FidoPCB         1.0s@   SLMail         2.15C
     ARC             7.12    FNPGate         2.70    StarLink        1.01
     ARJ             2.20    GateWorks      3.06e    TagMail         2.41
     LHA             2.13    GMail           2.05    TCOMMail         2.2
     PAK             2.51    GMD             3.10    Telemail         1.5*
     PKPak           3.61    GMM             1.21    TGroup          1.13
     PKZip           1.10    GROUP           2.23    TIRES           3.11
                             GUS             1.40    TMail           1.21
     NodeList Utilities      Harvey's Robot  4.10    TosScan         1.00
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 37                  12 May 1997


     Name         Version    HeadEdit        1.18    UFGATE          1.03
     --------------------    HLIST           1.09    VPurge         4.09e
     EditNL          4.00    ISIS            5.12@   WEdit            2.0@
     FDND            1.10    Lola           1.01d    WildMail        2.00
     MakeNL          2.31    Mosaic         1.00b    WMail            2.2
     Parselst        1.33    MailBase       4.11a@   WNode            2.1
     Prune           1.40    MSG              4.5*   XRS             4.99
     SysNL           3.14    MsgLnk          1.0c    XST             2.3e
     XlatList        2.90    MsgMstr        2.03a    YUPPIE!         2.00
     XlaxNode/Diff   2.53    MsgNum         4.16d    ZmailH          1.25
                             MSGTOSS          1.3    ZSX             2.40

     --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --
     Key to old info:
           + - Netmail Capable (Doesn't Require Additional Mailer Software)
           * - Recently Updated Version
           @ - New Addition
     --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --  --

     Please send updates and suggestions to: Peter Popovich, 1:363/264

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 38                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                            FIDONEWS PUBLIC-KEY
     =================================================================


     [this must be copied out to a file starting at column 1 or
      it won't process under PGP as a valid public-key]


     -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
     Version: 2.6.2
     Comment: Clear-signing is Electronic Digital Authenticity!

     mQCNAzINVLcAAAEEAM5dZN6t6j5Yc0kl7qegVFfiBeVoteuhDg4ay8h43u38Q4kO
     eJ9Mm7J89wXFb9vgouBVb4biIN6bTWCwcXTbGhBe5OIceLvluuxuEKsaIs/UwXNe
     Ogx5azIPhRfC7MJDe41Z8tMEBuHY/NE88cuxQ8yXWO126IRttavu6L/U5BwRAAUR
     tCRGaWRvTmV3cyBFZGl0b3IgPDE6MS8yM0BmaWRvbmV0Lm9yZz6JAJUDBRAyGwFS
     JZMgw7eCKz0BAZl0A/9xrfhpsEOqGiPfjy2qd9dv6tvSVPPVFu+Wy1lGTHYtuTtg
     FIN3fQ47AM3XzqHxWRWvp/xZYgR6sRICL7UFx94ShYBQc7CyqBBZKA0IvIWqXP/g
     c4Br+gQJR6CLiQK7TUyjUbqNbs6QAxuNUi4xFQM+O2Gene5/iTjHFmmSDj2C9YkB
     FQMFEDIOmHDTQ6/52IG1SQEBQ78H/Rz/mleIrtZwFIOhzy3JH4Z6FUTfZuM9nPcs
     1ZLjZCPptHvY7wEYJWGr03lPPJ6tj1VBXwTrWJTf/hOLsoi00GKV8t1thjqGDo23
     O91/bSQ+Vn0vBQ2vOEJys8ftxdoLJAyI5YLzHVT+RsMTQLIXVuPyrNcKs1vC2ql+
     UDHpU1R+9cG9JUEHpGI6z0DPnQ74SKbQH3fiVBpHhYx4BmvcBC4gWQzKMkDWFiq3
     8AssIZ7b9lWl3OBgQ4UM1OIDKoJyjRewIdKyl7zboKSt6Qu8LrcsXO3kb81YshOW
     ZpSS3QDIqfZC4+EElnB15l4RcVwnPHBaQY0FxUr4Vl4UWM36jbuJAJUDBRAyDpgY
     q+7ov9TkHBEBAQGoA/sFfN07IFQcir456tJfBfB9R5Z6e6UKmexaFhWOsLHqbCq6
     3FGXDLeivNn6NTz81QeqLIHglTuM3NP1mu8sw215klAG8G3M1NA2xLw7Eqhspze2
     raGvNeEwxl8e+PY9aZwBj4UWU+CmIm6QNiP0MtvR7QYDIKn5mZCDc3CLmr942IkB
     FQMFEDIOh0O8AhTPqRipPQEB4EYH/1gkDmdHL6lbEkFuQLrylF+weBl0XQ+kv7ER
     vWXYrvIrkppxtc4VAge6CXXEbOGJnvkFHgyNZzO9Q9O64QsmZvjip+4lhDLeNrdH
     X9DizS4YKXxkSKr9Yltmn2/AlBCx6jwcDIfkqy/P1tNWcikxZZMd6KryK0Wsres9
     Ik12OmVmJjQSxb5bS6Q8aYUbV3qwosGXTqy+BzYh/UYAX/XJIWa5kxFVSPKFSZ+5
     toiSzANd9SpHPEogGvQDHJlJ23lmsMx/6uHsR1LTsQ8su8zIk92XyqePJTjlMx2j
     D7KJWNR7Zzu4QHCXBkga5W8l2FfPk7D3+o7bXTLRuR1yTYGdNoiJAJUCBRAyDhwt
     SlKLwP4OFW0BAdaMA/9rcWQlSq44K9JuJ7fZUgt9fwxGreTud9fC8DvlbUW79+CA
     AHLTLLagcEF1OKsWzVBWcA2JEAp+TUTqktRN0oD8vnaw3uNJd1G5KK59hw0WR8x1
     v4ivypbSjiq95Y3gBunb7WjpyiFRWDlm0PrKrWHtbWzjnpPIpetln1UuqsSfbokB
     FQIFEDIOG9C3N61ZQ4Dr/QEBIzMH/1VxxztmBPBszbjZLDO8Svcax9Ng8IcWpcDy
     WqHCAA2Hoe5VtMD0v6w31ZgVqTPIvCark2Y/aTR1GofiuN9NUqbVV534AgAYLzYk
     DMT1swsPvqDTpOYgQl6PCGh6A5JGAbWJfKkX9XCUHJAAmiTsEVRNnjOgL+p6qjoh
     EfIG8CGehghWSRKl5eGeDAtbXupZKNjFI1t2XV+ks0RFQ/RPuTH7pF7pk7WO6Cyg
     +Dk2ZMgua0HRL1fXvHKb5Xzr3MVgsbAl5gP8ooIiD9MI/x5Irh3oo58VyoEZNBs/
     Kz+drGFDPljcS6fdiVCFtYIzMrshY6YsfLi0aB8fwOvFtxgBqli0J0NocmlzdG9w
     aGVyIEJha2VyIDwxOjE4LzE0QGZpZG9uZXQub3JnPrQoQ2hyaXN0b3BoZXIgQmFr
     ZXIgPGNiYWtlcjg0QGRpZ2l0YWwubmV0Pg==
     =61OQ
     -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----


     File-request FNEWSKEY from 1:1/23 [1:18/14] or download it from the
     Rights On! BBS at 1-904-409-7040 anytime except 0100-0130 ET and Zone
     1 ZMH at 1200-9600+ HST/V32B. The FidoNews key is also available on
     the FidoNews homepage listed in the Masthead information.

     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 39                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                            FIDONET BY INTERNET
     =================================================================

     This is a list of all FidoNet-related sites reported to the Editor as
     of this appearance.

     ============

     FidoNet:

       Homepage     http://www.fidonet.org
       FidoNews     http://ddi.digital.net/~cbaker84/fidonews.html
       HTML FNews   http://www.geocities.com/Athens/6894/
       WWW sources  http://www.scms.rgu.ac.uk/students/cs_yr94/lk/fido.html
       FTSC page    http://www2.blaze.net.au/ftsc.html
       Echomail     http://www.portal.ca/~awalker/index.html
       WebRing      http://ddi.digital.net/~cbaker84/fnetring.html

     ============

     Zone 1:       http://www.z1.fidonet.org

       Region 10:  http://www.psnw.com/~net205/region10.html

       Region 11:  http://oeonline.com/~garyg/region11/

       Region 13:  http://www.smalltalkband.com/st01000.htm

       Region 14:  http://www.netins.net/showcase/fidonet/

       Region 15:  http://www.smrtsys.com/region15/ [disappeared?]

       Region 16:  http://www.tiac.net/users/satins/region16.htm

       Region 17:  http://www.portal.ca/~awalker/region17.htm

       Region 18:  http://www.citicom.com/fido.html

       Region 19:  http://home1.gte.net/bhamilt/index.htm

     ============

     Zone 2:       http://www.z2.fidonet.org

     ZEC2:         http://fidoftp.paralex.co.uk/zec.htm [shut down?]
     Zone 2 Elist: http://www.fidonet.ch/z2_elist/z2_elist.htm

       Region 20:  http://www.fidonet.pp.se (in Swedish)

       Region 24:  http://www.swb.de/personal/flop/gatebau.html (in German)

       Region 25:
                   http://members.aol.com/Net254/

       Region 27:  http://telematique.org/ft/r27.htm
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 40                  12 May 1997


       Region 29:  http://www.rtfm.be/fidonet/  (in French)

       Region 30:  http://www.fidonet.ch  (in Swiss)

       Region 34:  http://www.pobox.com/cnb/r34.htm  (in Spanish)
           REC34:  http://pobox.com/~chr

       Region 36:  http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/7207/

       Region 41:  http://www.fidonet.gr (in Greek and English)

       Region 48:  http://www.fidonet.org.pl

     ============

     Zone 3:       http://www.z3.fidonet.org

     ============

     Zone 4:       (not yet listed)

       Region 90:
         Net 904:  http://members.tripod.com/~net904 (in Spanish)

     ============

     Zone 5:       (not yet listed)

     ============

     Zone 6:       http://www.z6.fidonet.org

     ============

     -----------------------------------------------------------------

     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 41                  12 May 1997


     =================================================================
                           FIDONEWS INFORMATION
     =================================================================

     ------- FIDONEWS MASTHEAD AND CONTACT INFORMATION -------

     Editor: Christopher Baker

     Editors Emeritii: Tom Jennings, Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell,
                       Vince Perriello, Tim Pozar, Sylvia Maxwell,
                       Donald Tees

     "FidoNews Editor"
         FidoNet  1:1/23
         BBS  1-904-409-7040,  300/1200/2400/14400/V.32bis/HST(ds)

      more addresses:
         Christopher Baker -- 1:18/14, cbaker84@digital.net
                                       cbaker84@aol.com
                                       cbaker84@msn.com

     (Postal Service mailing address)
         FidoNews Editor
         P.O. Box 471
         Edgewater, FL 32132-0471
         U.S.A.


     voice:  1-904-409-3040 [1400-2100 ET only, please]
                            [1800-0100 UTC/GMT]

     ------------------------------------------------------

     FidoNews is published weekly by and for the members of the FIDONET
     INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR ELECTRONIC MAIL system.  It is a compilation
     of individual articles contributed by their authors or their
     authorized agents.  The contribution of articles to this compilation
     does not diminish the rights of the authors.  OPINIONS EXPRESSED in
     these articles ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS and not necessarily those of
     FidoNews.

     Authors retain copyright on individual works; otherwise FidoNews is
     Copyright 1997 Christopher Baker.  All rights reserved.  Duplication
     and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only.  For
     use in other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or
     the Editor.

                            =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

     OBTAINING COPIES: The most recent issue of FidoNews in electronic
     form may be obtained from the FidoNews Editor via manual download or
     file-request, or from various sites in the FidoNet and Internet.
     PRINTED COPIES may be obtained by sending SASE to the above postal
     address.  File-request FIDONEWS for the current Issue.  File-request
     FNEWS for the current month in one archive.  Or file-request specific
     back Issue filenames in distribution format [FNEWSEnn.ZIP] for a
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 42                  12 May 1997


     particular Issue.  Monthly Volumes are available as FNWSmmmy.ZIP
     where mmm = three letter month [JAN - DEC] and y = last digit of the
     current year [7], i.e., FNWSFEB7.ZIP for all the Issues from Feb 97.

     Annual volumes are available as FNEWSn.ZIP where n = the Volume number
     1 - 14 for 1984 - 1997, respectively. Annual Volume archives range in
     size from 48K to 1.4M.


     INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via:

                          http://www.fidonet.org/fidonews.htm
                          ftp://ftp.fidonet.org/pub/fidonet/fidonews/
                          ftp://ftp.aminet.org/pub/aminet/comm/fido/

                                      *=*=*

     You may obtain an email subscription to FidoNews by sending email to:

                          jbarchuk@worldnet.att.net

     with a Subject line of: subscribe fnews-edist

     and no message in the message body. To remove your name from the email
     distribution use a Subject line of: unsubscribe fnews-edist with no
     message to the same address above.

                                      *=*=*

     You can read the current FidoNews Issue in HTML format at:

                          http://www.geocities.com/Athens/6894/

     STAR SOURCE for ALL Past Issues via FTP and file-request -
     Available for FReq from 1:396/1 or by anonymous FTP from:

                          ftp://ftp.sstar.com/fidonet/fnews/

     Each yearly archive also contains a listing of the Table-of-Contents
     for that year's issues.  The total set is currently about 11 Megs.

                                 =*=*=*=

     The current week's FidoNews and the FidoNews public-key are now also
     available almost immediately after publication on the Editor's new
     homepage on the World Wide Web at:

                  http://ddi.digital.net/~cbaker84/fidonews.html

     There are also links there to jim barchuk's HTML FidoNews source and
     to John Souvestre's FTP site for the archives. There is also an email
     link for sending in an article as message text. Drop on over.

                            =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

     A PGP generated public-key is available for the FidoNews Editor from
     FIDONEWS 14-19               Page 43                  12 May 1997


     1:1/23 [1:18/14] by file-request for FNEWSKEY or by download from
     Rights On! BBS at 1-904-409-7040 as FIDONEWS.ASC in File Area 18.  It
     is also posted twice a month into the PKEY_DROP Echo available on the
     Zone 1 Echomail Backbone.

                                *=*=*=*=*

     SUBMISSIONS: You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
     FidoNews. Article submission requirements are contained in the file
     ARTSPEC.DOC, available from the FidoNews Editor, or file-requestable
     from 1:1/23 [1:18/14] as file "ARTSPEC.DOC".  ALL Zone Coordinators
     also have copies of ARTSPEC.DOC. Please read it.

     "Fido", "FidoNet" and the dog-with-diskette are U.S. registered
     trademarks of Tom Jennings, P.O. Box 410923, San Francisco, CA 94141,
     and are used with permission.

             "Disagreement is actually necessary,
              or we'd all have to get in fights
              or something to amuse ourselves
              and create the requisite chaos."
                                -Tom Jennings

      -30-

     -----------------------------------------------------------------



Download original FidoNews · Volume 14 (1997) · ← Previous · Next →