F I D O N E W S -- Volume 14, Number 16 21 April 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. | +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ SEND ME A DOLLAR! Table of Contents 1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1 Same old same old ........................................ 1 2. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR .................................... 2 MS Word Macro Virus reported ............................. 2 3. ARTICLES ................................................. 3 Eating Crow .............................................. 3 FIDO Toes Up ............................................. 4 4. COLUMNS .................................................. 7 Lock and Load: Guerilla Marketing for BBSes ............. 7 5. GETTING TECHNICAL ........................................ 9 FSC-0059 - Newsgroup Interchange within FidoNet .......... 9 FSC-0060 - Calculation and Usage of CRCs ................. 19 6. COORDINATORS CORNER ...................................... 23 Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 108 ...... 23 7. NET HUMOR ................................................ 24 April Fool's Pranks for Programmers ...................... 24 Changing a lightbulb the Internet way .................... 26 8. NOTICES .................................................. 28 Future History ........................................... 28 9. FIDONET SOFTWARE LISTING ................................. 30 Latest Greatest Software Versions ........................ 30 10. FIDONEWS PUBLIC-KEY ..................................... 35 FidoNews PGP public-key listing .......................... 35 11. FIDONET BY INTERNET ..................................... 36 And more! FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 1 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= EDITORIAL ================================================================= Another disaffected and long-time Sysop is calling it quits in this Issue; citing burnout. [sigh] It's unfortunate that this hobby is taken so seriously by some that it affects their enjoyment. There are pinheads in Echomail but then that's what Echomail is for, isn't it? You've got to ignore them. Taking it to heart is the road to disappointment and burnout. On a happier note, Region 13 has elected a new Region Coordinator with no bloodshed and no uproar. David Moufarrege has taken over the daily Coordination ops on the eastern seaboard. He has already set up a new webpage for Region 13 at: http://www.smalltalkband.com/st01000.htm and this now appears in the Zone 1 list at the end of the Issue and on the FidoNews webpage. I was hoping to have a report of the election from the R13 Election Coord but if it's enroute it won't make it this week. Still no sign of the uucpGate at 1:13/10 or its replacement. I need a new gateway to use for outbound email here. I've tried the local one used by my former Net but it doesn't like my uucp format for some reason and bounces my traffic. I don't need one to be local. If I can use your uucpGate, please let me know via Netmail or email. The addresses are in the Masthead at the end of every Issue. There is a new date in the Future History section this week. I hope it doesn't last but fear it will. You figure out which one it is. [sigh] If any of you column writers of past Issues wish to restart your efforts or if any of you closet columnists wish make regular contributions, check ARTSPEC.DOC and have at it! FidoNews is only what FidoNet, at large, makes it. C.B. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 2 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ================================================================= From: "Mike Riddle" To: "Baker, Christopher" Subject: Fwd: New MS WORD Email spread virus ==================BEGIN FORWARDED MESSAGE================== >From: Frank Cox >Subject: New MS WORD Email spread virus The official MICROSOFT web page acknowledges that their wordprocessor, WORD (all versions) and their Internet mail product, MSMAIL are vulnerable to another macro type virus that CAN be spread by Email described as follows: ShareFun.A Virus Information ShareFun.A is a new virus that utilizes MSMail and Microsoft Word to spread itself three-fold throughout your email network. Also known as the "ShareTheFun" virus, it is spread by using MSMail email messages and attaching itself as an embedded document. The subject line of the email reads "You have GOT to read this!" ShareFun.A is a WordBasic virus, running in Word 6 and Word 95. It has also been found in Word 97 Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), after the infected Word 95/6.0 document has been opened in Word 97. The virus runs and infects the Word environment whenever an infected Word document is opened. Details are available at: http://www.microsoft.com/word/freestuff/mvtool/virus_fun.htm Frank Cox Chief Deputy Public Defender, Marin County Hall of Justice, Rm 139 San Rafael, CA 94903 voice: 415 499 6340 fax: 415 499 6898 fcox@marin.org http://midas.co.marin.ca.us/mc/pd/index.html ===================END FORWARDED MESSAGE=================== ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 3 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= ARTICLES ================================================================= Eating Crow - A FidoNet Diet By: Clay Tannacore 1:372/4 For the last several months I have from time to time been engaged in writing guest editorials for FIDONEWS. You on the other hand have been condemned to either reading them, or scooting past this section, so that you might indulge yourself in the technical aspects of FidoNet, one of the most celebrated portions of FIDONEWS, assuredly. Of course, you haven't been entirely immersed in the body of knowledge (aka technologies) of FIDONEWS, by no means. Some of you fine, fellow SysOps have instead been preoccupied with *flaming* me via NetMail, in various Echoes, and by even placing late night calls to my home. Why? Well, it's simple. I have had the audacity to question FidoNet, and POLICY 4. Apparently these subjects are taboo, if the writers opinion varies in any way from standard operating procedures, or the status quo. I obviously stumbled into the area of our association reserved exclusively for *The Blessed Ones* of our brotherhood. Because of this unholy transgression, I have been placed on a diet of *CROW*. That's right, I am now "eating crow" as my mainstay, my only allowable meal until I learn to communicate with the masses, and conform to the mind set of the majority. I must undergo *reprogramming* in my mental attitude towards FidoNet, POLICY 4, and any imbecilic procedure that is contrived by the *Almighty* powers that be. So, henceforth I will *not* indulge in any criticism, animadversions, or any other commentary concerning FidoNet, nor will I even express my opinion that POLICY 4, requires unequivocal modifications. No longer will I be the *one* dissenting voice in this association. Now that I find total harmony alive and well in FidoNet. Now that I have been shown the *proper* path I must take to coexist in this federation. Now, I resign myself to becoming assimilated into the *true* brotherhood of Fido Net SysOps. No longer will I allow my testosterone to rule me. I will become yet another cretin in the fraternity of SysOps, in the land of FidoNet. . . All the above crap aside, I *have* decided to *shut up* (loud applause) and leave well enough alone. I have been gutted by Network Coordinators, an RC or two, and more damn SysOps than are listed in the NODELIST. So, with *everybody* telling me how wrong I am about POLICY 4, and FidoNet as a hole (OOPs, I meant whole), and with only a few (about 4 percent) SysOps in agreement with my views, I think it is time I faded off into obscurity and allow you folks who read this news-letter, to get a bigger dose of FTSC-0001 type literature to digest from now on. I do want to thank all of the guys/gals who have had to suffer through my odious attacks on POLICY 4, and the general *C structure of FidoNet. I never *really* expected to see any changes made in the way this association is operated. I was, however hoping that will FIDONEWS as my outlet, some positive dialog would evolve. Some did, but only for a short time. Then it seemed that the voices that were FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 4 21 Apr 1997 raised, dissolved. Either because of disappointment when noting was seemingly getting done , or because of inter network intimidation. Whatever the case, as expected, nothing has changed. The new motto for FidoNet, and the old motto, is still; "STATUS QUO for FIDO", sung to the tune of "God Bless Armenia" (and that ain't America). . . While I'm thanking people, let me thank a guy who has (probably) the least appreciated job, in this organization. Chris(topher) Baker, the Editor of FIDONEWS. I know this guy has spent enough of his personal money on phone calls alone, to place a substantial down payment on a 98 Mercedes. A damn shame too, in my opinion. I think each Net in *every* region should help support FIDONEWS, with a once a year contribution of say, ten cents per node per month, or a one time a year payment by the SysOp of one dollar ($1.00). Now, this one should get me a group of new words to add to my vocabulary. . .[smile] So long folks, See All of You, On The Internet. . .(BS) ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDO Toes Up by Tom Johannsen, 1:104/540 Has anyone paid attention to the size of the nodelist lately? It's shrinking. Why? The internet? Lack of interest? Politics? Technology? None of the above? How about all of the above. I've been in FIDO almost since it's inception. I watched it grow until it broke the nodediff processors and sent everyone back to the drawing board. I've watched the in-fighting and the birth of the term Fight-o-Net. I've watched the gradual decline of the comradeship, the friendship, that was the purpose of FIDO to begin with. I can remember a time when you could actually call the (now zc) on the phone and get help with anything you needed. He actually listened, he MADE time for you. I watched FIDO grow from a hodge-podge collection of BBS' to the formation of nets to the ultimate - zones. Now nodes in the U.S. are declining so fast that the growth of other zones cannot even keep up with the attrition. Zone 1 is now outnumbered. The reason? All of the above. FIDO is being overrun by "all of the above". The INTERNET because of it's easy accessibility, it's timeliness of both files and responses. You can send and receive response messages clear around the world in less than a day. You can chat with anyone anywhere, you can get the most recent files written. You don't need to even keep any archives. The i-net has it all. EXCEPT for friendliness. It's very antiseptic. You rarely ever meet the people you come into contact with. The LACK OF INTEREST is due primarily because of selfishness and greed. People don't run BBS' or call BBS' for the fun factor, as they used to. Most sysops that are just starting out in FIDO now do it for purely selfish reasons. They already know what they are getting into and have decided to *use* fido to get what they want, whether it is FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 5 21 Apr 1997 files or echos or experience. A very few do it "just for the fun of it" and they rarely last over a couple of years. They soon find out just how bad it REALLY is. They volunteer to be a hub or become an NEC or NC. Then reality hits. They find out just how little anyone cares in FIDO. The POLITICS have caused a large part of the attrition. Policy 4 was initially written to act as a GUIDE to helping people in the net. Now it's used more as a CLUB to pound with. It's selectively enforced and NEVER fairly. Policy 4 is in shambles. It needs re-writing. When it was written we foresaw growth, but not to the extent that actually occurred, particularly in the area of echomail. However, P4 will never be redone. Why? Laziness and Politics, along with apathy and resistance to change. Instead of creating a document that would promote the growth of the net, the only thing I see are inputs that are submitted by someone "with an axe to grind". Or I see someone with a good idea being shot down by someone without a clue as to why FIDO exists. There is no ACTIVE participation by anyone that can get the job done. They lurk, they read, but they don't participate. Why? Because it might tarnish their image to align themselves with an unpopular idea. So long as they don't have the "moxy" to stand up and go for it, P4 will *forever* be P4. The TECHNOLOGY of FIDO has fallen terribly short of reality. There was a time when FIDO sysops were asked for help on many cutting edge programs/equipment. Now???? When was the last time you saw a 300 baud modem? Statistics say that there are 2323 of them out there somewhere. There's a whole 9 (count 'em, nine) 1200 baud modems and so on to 9600 baud modems. Of those listed as 9600, roughly 2/3rds are v.34 types. Why does the nodelist not reflect the true speeds? Politics? Laziness? Or some other lame excuse. Other nets have been using true speeds for some time now in THEIR nodelists. Why can't FIDO? Don't ask someone. They will tell you that it's because some software cannot handle them. Technology??? If that's the case then why don't they update the software? However, we know that's not the case. If it were then how is it the other nets use the same software and get the job done. In Summary. FIDO is a dinosaur with it's brain in it's tail. The problem is that the tail was cut off and the message hasn't reached the rest of it's body yet. If it doesn't learn to adapt and improve it's technology, it's dead (or close to it), for zone 1 at least, and just doesn't know it. The only thing the sysops of FIDO can agree on is to DISagree. This DISagreement is DISagreeable and DISgraceful to those that have any pride left. Others just don't care I guess. It's a shame. No one in FIDO seems to care what image FIDO has. I've become a minority. All those years of work on building and promoting FIDO by myself and other "old-timers" has gone for naught. Others that really CARED have already left. Even the founder is no longer in the nodelist. Maybe Tom J. was right. I know that soon I'll follow the rest of the "old-timers" and leave FIDO. Why? Because it is beyond help. It has become Deaf, Dumb, and Self-Serving. Fresh FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 6 21 Apr 1997 ideas are voiced to deaf ears. Software writers are leaving because of the dumb antiquated technology and requirements. Improvements are frowned on OR ignored. New concepts or new ideas are rejected out of hand. Am I bitter? NO! Am I "out to get someone"? NO! Am I sad? Yes. Roll over FIDO, point your toes up, get comfortable, and play dead. Actually, the FIDO I knew is not playing. It IS dead. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 7 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= COLUMNS ================================================================= Lock and Load: Guerilla Marketing for BBSes Robert Parson 1:3822/1 I hope you did your homework. In our last column I asked you to collect up information about your local newspapers and radio and tv stations, and advised you we would be sending them some information. Those of you who have since also downloaded the "BBS Guide to Public Relations" probably know what I'm going to talk about next. That's right, we're going to talk about News Releases. The News Media is your friend. Yes. They really can be. I know that the image of BBSes in the media is not generally a happy one, but you can turn that around with a grass roots effort. All it takes is your wordprocessor and your fax modem. Anyone who's seen a movie or tv show about journalists knows that there are five "W's" that must be answered: Who, What, When, Where, and Why. You don't need to write a lot to get all those in. I once wrote a news story about a traffic fatality in two sentences. ("A 68 year old (city) man was killed in a traffic accident today. Police say (name) slipped off a curb at (street) in (city) and was hit by a car driven by (another name).") The main issue, though, is that there must be something going on. You can't just say "Joe Blow invites everyone to call his BBS." You could, but it means nothing. What is going on at your BBS that might entice someone to call? How about some recently added Fidonet Echos? Now you have something. So crack open that wordprocessor and let's crunch some words. First, you need a headline. Something like "NEWSBOB BBS EXPANDS" Now, the news release. (I'm making up some echos here, obviously) "NEWSBOB Computer Bulletin Board System (BBS) has added several new message areas that are share messages with BBSes around the world. The new areas are 'Newsbob,' discussions about Award Winning Broadcast Journalist Robert Parson; 'Bobmobile,' discussions about his car; and 'Bobsquad,' discussions about his wife and three children. "The message areas are shared internationally, or 'echoed,' with roughly 25 thousand BBSes through FIDONet, the oldest and largest amateur message network. Fidonet carries messages with topics ranging from abortion to zymurgy. "NEWSBOB BBS can be reached by anyone with a computer by dialing XXX XXX XXXX with their modem. "For more information call Robert Parson at XXX XXX XXXX" FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 8 21 Apr 1997 Let's break this down into its five components: Who, which in this case is a thing: Newsbob BBS. What: New Echos. When: Recently (not stated, but understood). Where: locally, or alternatively, in Cyberspace (that is an actual place now, according to the latest Associated Press style). Why: expand the offerings of the BBS. You don't have to be a particularly brilliant writer. But if you include all the necessary information, your News Release will, at the very least, be readable. There's also information about how the echos are distributed, how to get on the BBS, and just as importantly, how to get hold of someone to talk to in case a reporter has some questions. In most cases, if there is now contact information, a News Release will be dumped into the trash. Make sure your News Release is checked for spelling. Although it probably won't be dismissed out of hand for spelling errors, it does look unprofessional. And professional is the image we're shooting for, right? Finally, try to keep your News Release to one page. Most reporters will read the first couple paragraphs and act on it, file it, or trash it. Now print it out on that letterhead you ordered (or designed on your DTP), and drop it in the mail to the media contacts you made in your previous calls. Yes, you can send a fax if you prefer. Do NOT expect anyone to call, and do NOT expect your News Release to result in a story in the paper or broadcast media. You are competing with the normal news of the day, plus possibly hundreds of faxes and letters from others trying get space or airtime. A couple years ago, I helped a local BBS wage a Media Campaign. It took about two months of weekly faxed News Releases before it finally resulted in a story. There are other things you can have in a News Release besides additions to your BBS. You could include anticipation of the 10 thousandth caller (or 100 thousandth, or whatever), with a follow up of who that person was. A gaming tournament. My favorite: local angles to national stories. For instance, I contacted a local Internet Service Provider this year to see if it was having the same connection problems AOL was having due to the explosive growth of the Internet (they claimed they weren't). Be creative with your topics for News Releases. Nearly anything your BBS is doing can become a possible news story. It's simply a matter spinning it correctly. Next time, we'll talk about how to handle those media scallywags. Robert Parson ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 9 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= GETTING TECHNICAL ================================================================= [This is part of the continuing series of FidoNet History articles highlighting the FidoNet Technical Standards and Proposals that guide the programmers who make our hobby operate. They have been reformatted to 70 columns where required and any tables may be askew as a result. Node numbers and phone numbers may be out of date.] Ed. Document: FSC-0059 Version: 001 Date: 08-Mar-1992 Newsgroup Interchange within FidoNet Jack Decker 1:154/8@fidonet A proposed standard for the interchange of USENET News messages among FidoNet nodes. 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. Introduction: This document defines the standard format for the interchange of USENET news messages among FidoNet nodes. It incorporates by reference the document RFC-1036, "Standard for Interchange of USENET Messages" by M. Horton of AT&T Bell Laboratories and R. Adams of the Center for Seismic Studies. A copy of RFC-1036 should be included in the distribution archive of this standard. However, RFC-1036 is NOT applicable in its entirety to FidoNet. Therefore, unless specifically referenced elsewhere in this document, only section 2 of RFC-1036 should be considered part of this standard. Section 3, which deals with "control messages", may be implemented in FidoNet on an optional basis, and if processing of control messages is included in a FidoNet implementation, it should be done in accordance with section 3 of RFC- 1036 to the extent possible. Section 4 of RFC-1036 is *NOT* applicable to FidoNet (except for section 4.3, which will be discussed later) and therefore is NOT included as part of this standard. Section 5 of RFC-1036 is a treatise on the News Propagation Algorithm used within UseNet, and should be studied even though it is not directly applicable to FidoNet, in particular because it contains a discussion on the prevention of loops (what we in FidoNet commonly refer to as "dupe loops"). Please note that FidoNet implementations do not recognize nor support what is referred to as the "old format" or the "A format" in section 2 FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 10 21 Apr 1997 of RFC-1036. The goal of this document is to define a standard for the interchange of news messages between FidoNet nodes in a format that will also be acceptable to UseNet hosts. In order to simplify the creation of software that conforms to this standard, we do not intend to support every news format that has ever existed in UseNet. The standard described in RFC-1036 is used by the majority of UseNet hosts, and therefore it is the standard that will be adopted in this document. This standard will contain three sections: General theory of newsgroup transmission, Format and protocols of batched newsgroups, and the translation of newsgroup messages to and from FidoNet message format. 1. General theory of newsgroup transmission: Prior to the introduction of the DoveMail program, the usual method of gating a UseNet newsgroup into FidoNet was to convert it to FidoNet echomail, and then send it to "downstream" nodes in echomail format. This method is still used at the majority of gateway systems at this writing. Unfortunately, no conversion process is perfect, and some useful control information is usually lost in the conversion. In addition, most FidoNet echomail processors don't handle long messages (which are fairly common in newsgroups) well at all, and many gateway systems either try to split these messages into multiple parts (a somewhat awkward process) or discard them entirely. Because the duplicate message detection algorithms used in many FidoNet echomail processors incorrectly identify some of the parts of a split message as duplicates, parts of long messages often get "lost" when transmitted as echomail. Also, UseNet allows a message to be posted to multiple newsgroups, and when such messages are converted to echomail, it may be necessary to create multiple copies of the message (one for each echomail area that it would be placed in), thus increasing the transmission time for such messages. Even normal-length newsgroup messages may be falsely discarded as duplicates by some "downstream" echomail processors. The reason this is a particular problem in newsgroups converted to echomail is because some echomail processors use a checksum of parts of FidoNet message headers to determine if messages are duplicates. Since all newsgroup messages are assumed to be addressed to "All", and since some gateway software uses the date and time that the message was converted to echomail rather than the original date and time from the message, it's quite possible that the remainder of the message header contains information that is similar enough to information in another message's header to cause it to be discarded as a duplicate message. This happens far more frequently with converted newsgroup messages than with messages originally entered as echomail. Finally, when a BBS user enters a reply to a news message that has been converted to echomail, in many cases the information is simply not available in the original message to generate a proper "References:" line in the reply, as required by RFC-1036. If the original message contained a "Followup-To:" line, which requires that replies be posted to a different newsgroup than the one in which the FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 11 21 Apr 1997 original message was entered, this line may not transmitted in the message as converted to echomail. And even if this information is available, no echomail processor currently available will modify the reply message as required (to add the "References:" line where necessary, or to move the message to a different area if it is a reply to a message that contained a "Followup-To:" line). Under this proposed standard, none of the UseNet message header information is lost in transmission between nodes, and reply messages can be generated that conform to UseNet specifications. If a message is posted to multiple newsgroups, it is only transmitted once (instead of multiple times as it might be if converted to echomail). Also, long messages are not truncated or changed in transmission between nodes, and finally, there is no chance that a message will be improperly discarded as a duplicate. The main thing to remember is that under this standard, news messages are never converted to echomail. Echomail is an irrelevant concept in this context, since we are not passing echomail between nodes. Instead, newsgroups are transmitted in the native format specified by RFC-1036, and tossed directly from batched newsgroup packets to the FidoNet message format (e.g. the *.msg format) if necessary. Keep in mind that most FidoNet BBS software uses the same general format not only for echomail messages, but also for netmail and local message areas, so it is not necessary to transmit messages between nodes in echomail format if another format is more suitable for the type of message being transmitted. 2. Format and protocols of batched newsgroups: When newsgroup messages are transmitted between systems, the individual messages must conform to the specifications of section 2 of RFC-1036, and section 3 of this document. Where section 3 of this document defines a more restrictive standard than RFC-1036, this document shall take precedence. When transmitting news messages between FidoNet nodes, they must be sent in a batched newsgroup file (as described in section 4.3 of RFC- 1036) unless some other format is agreed upon in advance. The transmission of unbatched news messages, or the use of any batching method other than that described in section 4.3 of RFC-1036 shall be considered non-standard. Please note that RFC-1036 section 4.3 refers to this batching process as combining several messages into "one large message", but we will refer to this "one large message" as a "batched newsgroup file", or a "UseNet format mail packet" rather than as a "large message", since FidoNet systems do not normally handle large "messages". When messages pass through a FidoNet system on their way to other nodes, the header lines in the message may be modified to conform with the standards given here. However, the text (body) of a message should NEVER be altered (one exception: Carriage Returns MAY be converted to Line Feeds in order to conform to this standard, but this is neither required nor expected of software). The standard format for sending a batched newsgroup file to other FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 12 21 Apr 1997 FidoNet nodes is as follows: First, as will be noted in section 3 of this document, individual lines of the batched newsgroup file must be terminated with Line Feeds only, and the file must NOT contain Carriage Return characters (ASCII 13). Batched newsgroup files shall be transmitted between FidoNet nodes as files named using the filename ????????.PKU, where the eight character root name can be any of the hexadecimal digits 0 - 9 or A - F. The .PKU extension (which stands for "PacKet - Usenet format") is the news equivalent of the .PKT file used to transmit FidoNet format netmail and echomail between nodes. Batched newsgroup files with the filespec ????????.PKU may be archived into a standard mail archive file (bearing the extension *.MO?, *.TU?, *.WE? ... *.SU?). It is assumed that the receiver of batched newsgroup files will take any necessary steps to make sure that both *.PKU and *.PKT files are extracted from incoming mail archive files before the mail archive files are deleted. In certain cases, this may mean that an external unarchive shell may have to be used, instead of allowing the echomail processor to call the unarchiver (typical external unarchive shell programs at this writing are GUS, POLYXARC, and SPAZ). A batched newsgroup file awaiting transmission may be stored in a FidoNet system's "outbound" area in uncompressed form, prior to being archived for transmission or sent in uncompressed form. It is suggested that when a system uses the .OUT extension to indicate an uncompressed netmail or echomail packet, the .UUT extension be used to indicate an uncompressed batched newsgroup packet. It is expected that a .UUT file in a system's "outbound" area will be treated in much the same way as an .OUT file, except it will be renamed to a file with an extension of .PKU (rather than .PKT) before being archived into the mail archive. This implies that the root name of the .UUT file will contain the net number and node number of the destination system, expressed as four hexadecimal digits each for net and node numbers, in the same manner as the root name for a FidoNet .OUT file is constructed. The root filename of the *.PKU file should be an eight digit hexadecimal number, with leading zeroes used if necessary, in order to make an eight character root filename. It is suggested that this hexadecimal number be based on time of year, with 00000000.PKU generated at exactly midnight on January 1 and FFFFFFFF.PKU generated at just a moment before midnight on December 31. However, it is permissible to use the same algorithm that is used to generate the root filename for *.PKT files. The normal sequence for transmission of messages between FidoNet nodes might then be described as follows: a. Messages created on the originating system are placed into a batched newsgroup file conforming to the specifications of RFC-1036 section 4.3. When this batched newsgroup file is destined for another FidoNet node, it will have a filename of the format: FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 13 21 Apr 1997 [4 hex digit net number][4 hex digit node number].UUT This file will then be placed in the outbound mail area for packing. b. A mail packing program will examine the outbound mail area and, upon finding the .UUT file, will rename it to a file with an extension of .PKU, and then shell to a compression program in order to place the *.PKU file into a new or existing mail archive file for the destination node. Mail archive files bear extension names consisting of the first two letters of a day of the week (in the English language) plus a numeric character in the range 0 - 9 (for example, .MO5 or .TH7). The method of compression for the mail archive is as agreed upon between the originating and destination nodes. No "standard" method of compression for the mail archive is specified in this document. NOTE: If the compression program fails for any reason (such as running out of disk space), the mail packing program MUST rename the .PKU file back to the original *.UUT filename before exiting. Since batched newsgroup files do not contain a header that indicates the destination node, there would be no way to determine the proper destination node if the file were not renamed back to the original filename. c. The mail archive is transmitted in the usual manner by a FidoNet compatible mailer, or such other means as may be agreed upon in advance by the sysops of the originating and destination nodes. d. At the destination system, the individual files are extracted from the mail archive. *.PKT files are processed in the usual manner to extract any netmail or echomail messages, while *.PKU files are processed by software designed to handle batched newsgroup files. In this context, such files could be "handled" by re-processing the messages and batching them to be sent on to one or more additional node(s), or by tossing the messages to the local message base, or both. Please note that this standard does not anticipate that batched newsgroup files will be converted to FidoNet echomail at any point along the way. It is realized that this may indeed happen, but such conversions should be considered as something to be avoided if at all possible due to the problems discussed in section 1 of this document. 3. Translation of newsgroup messages to and from FidoNet message format: NOTE: Where applicable, the standards defined in this section for messages shall apply not only to locally created messages, but also to all messages sent to "downstream" FidoNet nodes. In this context, "FidoNet message format" means that format in which messages commonly reside on a FidoNet BBS. At this writing, there are three formats commonly used for message storage on FidoNet systems, but other formats may be in use as well. The three most common formats are the "*.msg" format as used by the original Fido program (and a host of programs since), also commonly referred to as the "single message per file format"; the "Hudson" format, used by QuickBBS, Remote Access, and some other products; and the "Squish" FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 14 21 Apr 1997 format used by the Maximus BBS and the "Squish" echomail processor. Because there are so many message formats, some other programs have taken the approach of trying to convert UseNet news into echomail, creating *.PKT files which can theoretically be processed by any FidoNet system. However, since the *.PKT files are processed by the echomail processor, all the limitations and pitfalls associated with converting newsgroup messages to echomail come into play. The preferred way of handling incoming messages would be to have the BBS (or message reader/editor) software directly read batched newsgroup files. In this way, the files would not have to be "processed" per se. As new batched newsgroup files arrived on a system, they could simply be concatenated to the existing message base, and then a utility could be run that would build an index to the message base, in a manner somewhat similar to the way "flat file" message bases are currently implemented on some BBS's. Of course, you'd need to occasionally run a utility to delete old messages in order to keep the message base from growing too large, and new messages entered on the system would have to be exported from the system in a separate batched newsgroup file. However, at this writing no FidoNet-compatible BBS or message editor is capable of directly reading a batched newsgroup file. The second most preferable method is to convert news messages directly to the message format used by that system. At this writing the DoveMail software includes utilities (NewsToss and NewsScan) that can convert batched newsgroup files to and from messages in the *.msg (single message per file) format. It should be possible to convert batched newsgroup files to and from other FidoNet message formats as well. The method in which messages are stored on a BBS, and the method in which it is determined which new (locally-entered) messages need to be exported from the system will necessarily be implementation-specific. One method that can be used with *.msg type message bases is to maintain a "high water mark" in 1.msg, similar to the "high water mark" used for echomail messages, and additionally to mark messages received from other nodes as "sent" when they arrive, and locally- entered messages as "sent" when they have been exported, and to never re-send a message marked as "sent". When tossing incoming messages, duplicate messages can be detected by comparing the contents of the "Message-ID:" line with those of previously received messages. This may be slow processing considerably, however, and would require storage of a history file of "previously seen" messages. Another method is to look in the "Path" line and see if we are already listed in the path; if so, the message is a duplicate and should be deleted. This method is faster and does not require maintenance of a history file, but will not guard against duplicate messages arriving from one's feed that have not passed through the system twice (for example, a message that arrived from two different paths). Fortunately, UseNet folks seem to understand the need for proper topology, so those types of dupes are relatively rare. FidoNet sysops taking UseNet feeds must understand that it is IMPERATIVE that a feed of any one newsgroup be obtained from only ONE FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 15 21 Apr 1997 source, especially if they are then passing that newsgroup to any "downstream" nodes. This absolutely does NOT imply that geographic restrictions on newsgroup distribution are necessary or desirable! Additional comments on preventing "loops" can be found in section 5 of RFC-1036, in the discussion of the News Propagation Algorithm. Please note that only two methods of loop prevention are included in this standard: 1) The history mechanism. Each host keeps track of all messages it has seen (by their Message-ID) and whenever a message comes in that it has already seen, the incoming message is discarded immediately. 2) Not sending a message to a system listed in the "Path" line of the header, or to the system that originated the message (which, in practice, should be listed in the Path line). No other methods of dupe loop prevention are acceptable. In particular, checksums of portions of the message header or message itself are NOT permitted to be used for loop prevention, except perhaps as a method to quickly identify POTENTIAL duplicate messages before doing a full string comparison with the Message-ID data in the history file. In no case should a checksum be used as the SOLE method of determining whether a message is a duplicate. When newsgroup messages are created for transmission to other systems, or when received messages are transmitted other systems, the individual messages must conform to the specifications of section 2 of RFC-1036. However, in order to simply programming of software designed to handle such messages, the following modifications to the standard are proposed for use within FidoNet. Please note that these are slightly more restrictive than the standard permitted by RFC-1036: a. The "old format" or "A format" described in section 2 of RFC-1036 is NOT supported in FidoNet. Only the format detailed in RFC-1036 (sometimes referred to as the "B" News format) is supported. The vast majority of UseNet sites currently use the "B" News format. b. The UseNet standard permits the use of "white space" to separate certain items in the message header, with "white space" defined as blanks or tabs. It also states that "the Internet convention of continuation header lines (beginning with a blank or tab) is allowed." However, it should NOT be ASSUMED that "continuation header lines" will be used in any message. It is suggested that when creating newsgroup messages for transmission to other systems, the use of tab characters be avoided in header lines, and that "continuation header lines" NOT be used, even if this means that a header line will be considerably longer than the length of a screen line. Software that creates FidoNet-format messages (for display to BBS callers) from batched newsgroup files (that is, newsgroup message tossers) should break up such extra-long header lines, using a single space character ONLY (NOT a tab!) at the start of "continuation header lines." Since batched newsgroup files received from a UseNet site may contain "continuation header lines" and/or tabs as "white space" in header lines, it is necessary to be able to decode such header lines properly, but it is strongly suggested that FidoNet software not FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 16 21 Apr 1997 CREATE messages with tabs or "continuation header lines" for transmission through the network. c. All lines in news messages, including header lines, shall be terminated with a LINE FEED (ASCII 10 decimal) ONLY. Under NO circumstances shall a CARRIAGE RETURN (ASCII 13 decimal) appear in news messages transmitted through FidoNet (if a Carriage Return is found in an in-transit message it MAY be changed to a Line Feed, this being the sole exception to the rule about not changing the body of a message, but the expectation is that no Carriage Returns will appear in a news message). Also, spaces appearing at the end of lines (just prior to the Line Feed character) are strongly discouraged since they convey no useful information. Finally, there should be only a single line feed at the end of each message (blank lines following the last line of a message are not allowed, again because they convey no useful information). Please note that the use of the Line Feed as a line terminator is fairly standard throughout UseNet, and when a news message is converted to a FidoNet format message it is a simple matter to replace Line Feeds with Carriage Returns so that the message will display properly. d. When constructing or adding to "Path" lines, RFC-1036 (section 2.1.6) states that "The names may be separated by any punctuation character or characters (except '.' which is considered part of the hostname)." However, in actual practice, only the "!" (exclamation point or "bang" character) is commonly used to separate names. Therefore, the "!" character will be considered the "standard" separator for system names in Path lines in messages generated in FidoNet. Also, RFC-1036 states that "Normally, the rightmost name will be the name of the originating system. However, it is also permissible to include an extra entry on the right, which is the name of the sender. This is for upward compatibility with older systems." In actual practice, it appears that most Path lines originating in UseNet have a user name as the rightmost entry. Therefore, when a Path line is created for a message originating in FidoNet, it is suggested that the following format be used (assuming a message entered by user John Smith at node 1:123/456): Path: f456.n123.z1.fidonet.org!john.smith When a user name is placed in the path, all spaces in the user name must be replaced with periods, and all uppercase characters in the name should be converted to lowercase. It is permissible to use an alias in place of a user's real name if the originating system runs software that will recognize that alias in incoming netmail messages, and remap such messages to the proper user if necessary. Also, note the restrictions on prohibited characters in the user name as specified in RFC-1036 section 2.1.1. Although section 2.1.1. deals with the "From" line, common sense would indicate that these same restrictions on prohibited characters should apply if the user name is placed in the Path line (with the obvious exception of the use of the period to replace spaces in the user name, which is required). e. Header lines defined as "optional" may be more or less optional depending on the keyword. For example, the "Reply-To" and "Followup-To" lines should be automatically honored, if at all FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 17 21 Apr 1997 possible, when reply messages are created, and the "References" line, even though listed as an "optional" line, is "required for all follow-up messages" (replies). On the other hand, lines such as "Control" and "Distribution" may have little meaning to FidoNet nodes (in particular, "Distribution" is meant to control distribution of a message along hierarchial lines, but since FidoNet topology has little relation to UseNet hierarchies, it is probably best to just ignore "Distribution" lines on in-transit messages). Additional specifications for messages, including required and optional header lines, are detailed in section 2 of RFC-1036. When a newsgroup is moderated, it is the responsibility of the sysop of each participating BBS to prevent users from entering messages in that area (unless the message exporting software is capable of sending any locally-entered messages to the conference moderator via MAIL). However, if a software newsgroup processor is written that both imports (tosses) messages to a FidoNet-format message base, and exports locally entered messages, and if the software does not have a way to send replies to the moderator via mail, then some mechanism must be provided to prevent the export of messages from a moderated area, so that in the unlikely event that there is no easy way to prevent users from posting messages in the moderated area, such messages will still not be sent out. Since this standard does not deal with the transport of UseNet MAIL within FidoNet, the method for transmission of replies in moderated newsgroups is undefined by this document. However, software authors are encouraged to provide some mechanism for private mail replies to newsgroup messages, in both moderated and unmoderated areas. Note that if a moderated newsgroup is carried on a system, it is the responsibility of the sysop to provide mail access to users so that replies can be (manually) sent to the conference moderator, especially if replies in the newsgroup area cannot be automatically routed to the conference moderator. One point that needs to be emphasized is there is NO message length limit on UseNet messages. If a FidoNet node passes newsgroup messages to, or on behalf of other FidoNet nodes, it is NOT permissible to discard or truncate messages that exceed a preset length limit. Note that in a batched newsgroup file, each message is preceded by a header of the form "#! rnews ". Since the message text length is never changed in processing, it is possible to determine the length of a message after processing by reading in all the header lines, calculating the combined length of the header lines prior to making changes in the header (e.g. the Path line), then calculating the combined length of the header lines after making changes. The difference between the original and the new length of the header lines can then be applied to the value given in the "#! rnews" line to determine the new message length, when is then used in the "#! rnews" header of the modified message. Also, the number of bytes given in the "#! rnews" line, MINUS the length of the message header lines, is the length of the body of the message. Once this length is known, the body of the message can be copied from the input file to the output file(s) in "chunks" small enough to fit in memory, until the end of the message is reached. FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 18 21 Apr 1997 The following comments are implementation suggestions applicable to current FidoNet-compatible BBS systems, though not necessarily to software that may be written in the future: It should be noted that when a BBS user enters a reply message, most FidoNet BBS software will "link" the reply message to the original by placing the message number of the original message in the message header (this is almost always the case if messages are stored in the "*.msg" format, in which case the number of the message being replied to is found at bytes 185-186 in the message header). If the appropriate header lines have been stored in the text of the original message, it is possible to construct a reply message that meets all RFC-1036 specifications. For example, a "References" line can be constructed from the "Message-ID" line (and the "References" line, if any) of the original message. Similarly, if the original message contains a "Followup-To:" line, the reply can be posted to the newsgroup(s) specified in that line. This may not work as expected if a message renumbering program or similar program messes with the message base before reply message is exported, so it is highly recommended that locally-entered newsgroup messages be exported as soon as practicable after they are entered. Since the user of a BBS may reply to a message entered by another user of the same BBS, it is recommended that when a message is exported, any UseNet format header lines created for the exported message also be written back to the original message if possible. This will permit reply linking to remain intact even if two or more users of the same BBS participate in the same message thread. If a message is received that specifies more than one newsgroup in the "Newsgroups" header line, and corresponding message areas are available on the local system, one copy of the message should be placed in each such area. For example, if the message is posted to four different newsgroups, and two of those groups are carried on the local BBS, then a copy of the message should be placed in the message base for each of those groups. If users of a BBS are allowed to post a message to multiple newsgroups, then any message thus posted should be copied to the message bases of any of the other areas that are also carried on that system (and that the message was posted to) at the time the message is exported. Corrections and Additions to this document: Proposed corrections and additions to this document should be submitted to Jack Decker at 1:154/8, or jack.decker@f8.n154.z1.fidonet.org [Jack Decker is still around and wishes me to include his greeting to FidoNet and give his Internet address for anyone who wishes to say hello or discuss his FSC. He may be reached at: jack@techknowtimes.com or jack@novagate.com or his homepage at: http://www.novagate.com/~jack He also recommends http://www.techknowtimes.com for tech types.] Ed. FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 19 21 Apr 1997 -30- ----------------------------------------------------------------- Document: FSC-0060 Version: 001 Date: 08-Mar-1992 Calculation and Usage of CRC's Frank van der Loos 2:285/305.4 Status of this document: This FSC contains information of value to the general FidoNet(r) community. Distribution of this document is unlimited. Fido and FidoNet are registered marks of Tom Jennings and Fido Software. This document is written by : Frank van der Loos Torenstraat 123 3311 TR Dordrecht The Netherlands (Europe) FIDO mail : 2:285/305.4 Thanx to : Willem van Pelt FIDO mail : 2:285/305 - for giving me a mail-box :-)) - for telling me some theoretical stuff about CRC's Richard Faasen (Yeaahh "Pfjew" he says) FIDO mail : 2:285/311 - for giving me some CRC programs Arie Ballegooyen FIDO mail : 2:283/300 - for giving me all the original FTS & FSC doc's This document is a DOC in which the CRC encoding and some usages of this encoding are explained. Also some routines are included. In some of the FTS & FTC doc's the encoding is very badly and sometimes wrong explained this will take a lot of time when you are planning to program a CRC encoding routine instead of using a routine which is made by someone. I will also include some routines and also the scheme to make a CRC routine so you can easily make a CRC check routine yourself in your program. What is a CRC : Simply explained a CRC is a division and the remainder is the CRC value. I think this example will help you to understand it : FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 20 21 Apr 1997 1011 / 10011101 \ 1011 ---- 1011 1011 ---- 001 (This is the CRC value) Look familiar to division as you are used to learn at school. But there are some differences. When subtracting a bit the following table is used : 0 - 0 = 0 0 - 1 = 1 1 - 0 = 1 1 - 1 = 0 There is a function called XOR which will use this table. When you are subtracting 0-1 = 1 then there is a shortage and normally you will take a higher bit to complete to subtraction. 234 91 - ----- 143 You cut 200 to 100 because 3-9 = negative. But with the CRC you DO NOT use this !!! The divisor used with CRC encoding is a divisor with 1 bit more then de actual CRC. This is explained by the remainder which is always 1 bit less then the divisor. If not then you can divide it a time again, not? Now you have to perform dividing on a row of char's and you can't do that without a special trick. What you do is shifting all the bits one by one into the CRC value and then checking if you can perform a division. Lets have a look at this example : 1011 / 10011101 \ We are gonna use a CRC of 3 bits (the highest bit is always cut). The first bit is the checkbit. We can divide if this bit is 1. In that case the value is big enough to divide. x 100 no we can not divide perform a shift to left and shift in the next bit. 1 001 yes we can divide divide it by 1011 0 010 the divided value (XOR'ed) we can not divide so shift to left and shift in the next bit. 0 101 the shifted value + shifted bit. we can not divide so shift to left and shift in the next bit. 1 011 the shifted value + shifted bit. divide it by 1011 0 000 the divided value (XOR'ed) FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 21 21 Apr 1997 we can not divide it so shift to left and shift in the next bit. 0 000 the shifted value + shifted bit. we can not divide it so shift to left and shift in the next bit. 0 001 the shifted value + shifted bit. we can not divide it so shift to left and shift in the next bit. OOOppps sorry the bits are gone so this is the remainder 001 The 3 bit remainder (is 1 less then the divisor) 0 101 no we can not divide so no we can not divide shift to left and take the next bit. 1 011 yes we can divide 0 000 the divided value (XOR'ed) 0 001 okay we have shifted again to left and took again the next bit. 0 010 again 0 101 again Compare it to the division performed at page 1 and you will see the result is the same. But this method is more comfortable for computers. In fact it is the same way to divide but we as humans can take more bits and we can see direct if it is possible to divide and the computer can not. But if we have to check every bit it will take a lot of time to put in every time 1 bit by bit. Now luckily for you that is not necessary. The computer and also your program can shift in byte per byte. But then you have to try the division 8 times every time you have putted in a byte. And the byte you have put in has to fit in your CRC. So when you have a CRC which is 2 bits in length than it won't fit of course. But generally a 16 bit CRC is used and even CRC32 are now in use. When in the near future CRC64 are used I'm not surprised. Okay now to the computer programming stuff. Here is a table with a good method to implement a CRC16 in any language. After this a program is stated with all the documentation in it. Remember a CRC16 has a 17bit divisor. Bit 16 (As you know we start at bit 0) is 1. When not we have again a smaller divisor. CRC : wordvalue { This routine has to be executed 8 times } IF CRC bit 15 = 1 then shift left 1, divide by divisor (16 bits) else shift left 1, {do not divide cause we can't} {After this put in the next byte} CRC = CRC + inputbyte {end of this routine} Simple isn't it. Now for the more experienced programmers a sample in pascal at the next page. FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 22 21 Apr 1997 inpbyte = input byte for CRC oldCRC = old crc value divisor = the least 16 bits of the divisor string Function CRC16 ( inpbyte : byte, oldCRC : word, divisor : word ) : word ; var tel : word; temp : word; {A simple variable to use to store the CRC) begin temp := oldCRC; for tel := 1 to 8 do begin If (temp and $8000)= $8000 then begin temp := temp shl 1; temp := temp xor divisor; end else begin temp := temp shl 1; end; { Now we have to put in the next byte } temp := temp xor inpbyte; CRC16 := temp; end; {End of routine} This routine is easily to expand to CRC32. In that case you have to expand your divisor and temp and CRC function to LONG value's. Some additional information about CRC's : CRC16 divisor = $1021 ( + bit 16 = $3021 ) The CRC16 feed value (when you first call the CRC routine) is $0000 CRC32 divisor = $77073096 ( + bit 32 = $17707306 ) The CRC32 feed value (when you first call the CRC routine) is $FFFFFFFF -30- ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 23 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= COORDINATORS CORNER ================================================================= Nodelist-statistics as seen from Zone-2 for day 108 By Ward Dossche, 2:292/854 ZC/2 +----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+ |Zone|Nl-080|Nodelist-087|Nodelist-094|Nodelist-101|Nodelist-108|%%| +----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+ | 1 | 9088| 9088 0 | 8900 -188 | 8837 -63 | 8675 -162 |32| | 2 | 15956|15923 -33 |15922 -1 |15902 -20 |15993 91 |59| | 3 | 800| 800 0 | 800 0 | 800 0 | 800 0 | 3| | 4 | 548| 548 0 | 549 1 | 548 -1 | 547 -1 | 2| | 5 | 87| 87 0 | 87 0 | 87 0 | 87 0 | 0| | 6 | 1088| 1090 2 | 1090 0 | 1083 -7 | 1083 0 | 4| +----+------+------------+------------+------------+------------+--+ | 27567|27536 -31 |27348 -188 |27257 -91 |27185 -72 | +------+------------+------------+------------+------------+ ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 24 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= NET HUMOR ================================================================= [postponed from April Fool's Day] To: cbaker84@digital.net From: top5@lists.zdnet.com Subject: Top5 -4/1/97- April Fool's Day Pranks to Pull on Programmers Errors-To: top5-errors@lists.zdnet.com Date: Mon, 31 Mar 1997 20:18:24 MST ================================================================ T H E T O P F I V E L I S T ================================================================ Sponsored by Windows Sources Windows Sources Expert Answers for ActiveX: Interested in websites offering free ActiveX controls? Get the latest from expert Larry Seltzer. http://www.winsources.com ================================================================ To forward or repost, please include the following: [ This list copyright 1997 by Chris White and Ziff Davis, Inc. ] [ The Top Five List top5@walrus.com http://www.topfive.com ] The Top Five List for April 1, 1997 The Top 16 April Fool's Day Pranks to Pull on Programmers 16> Using their e-mail address, post a request for penpals to the alt.prison.bodypiercing newsgroup. 15> Three words: electric mouse buzzer. 14> Assign them to the new "Heaven's Gate" project. 13> "Look, Bill Gates!! Ha! Made ya look!" 12> Put them in the same room with a member of the opposite sex. 11> "Have you got Prince Albert in a LAN?" 10> Tell them that "everyone knows Star Trek transporter technology is bogus." 9> 10 GOTO 10 7> Swap their monitor for a large cardboard box with handpuppets. Watch the fur fly! FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 25 21 Apr 1997 6> Announce that annual raises will be based on a subjective test of one's ability to "schmooze the way the butt-kissers in Marketing do." 8> Intercept their daily Top 5 List, then remove #8 and re-insert it between #5 and #6. 5> Pretend to "discover" a Fox TV website with a now-out-of-date win a weekend with Gillian Anderson of X-Files contest. 4> Every hour, on the hour, forward them a warning about the "Good Times" virus. 3> Call her up and ask if her program is running, and when she says "yes," tell her "Well you better go catch it!" 2> Replace all the Jolt in the soda machine with Perrier and V8. and the Number 1 April Fool's Day Prank to Pull on Programmers... 1> Special announcement: "Forget Java -- Starting immediately, all coding will be done in COBOL." Selected from 83 submissions from 37 contributors. Today's Top Five List authors are: ---------------------------------------------------------------- Kermit Woodall, Richmond, VA -- 1, 5 (3rd #1) Phil Doyle, Mercer Island, WA -- 2, 4 Jennifer Ritzinger, Seattle, WA -- 2 Craig Stacey, St. Paul, MN -- 3 Dave Wesley, Pleasant Hill, CA -- 6 Bob Mader, Knoxville TN -- 8 Lev L. Spiro, Los Angeles, CA -- 7 Tony Hill, Minneapolis, MN -- 9, 14 (Hall of Famer) Alan Smithee, Sugar Land, TX -- 10 Michael Wolf, Brookline, MA -- 11 Marshal Perlman, Minneapolis, MN -- 12 Sue Prifogle, Rushville, IN -- 13, Topic Alexander Clemens, San Francisco, CA -- 14 Bruce Ansley, Baltimore, MD -- 15 (Hall of Famer) Marianne Tatom, Austin, TX -- 16 Chris White, New York, NY -- List owner/editor ---------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Runners Up list, "Millenium Falcon Bugs", can be found at our website: http://www.topfive.com ================================================================ T H E T O P F I V E L I S T To subscribe: Send mail to top5-on@lists.zdnet.com To unsubscribe: Send mail to top5-off@lists.zdnet.com For more information: Send mail to top5@walrus.com with "INFO" in the *subject* line of the message. To report a sighting of a Top Five List in other media: Send mail to top5@walrus.com with "BINGO!" in the *subject*. FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 26 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================ Ruminations & Ponderances I just can't seem to shake the feeling that I'm being followed, and neither can my Siamese twin. (Thanks to Doug Rendall) ================================================================ Sponsored by Windows Sources http://www.winsources.com This delivery powered by Mercury Mail, Inc. http://www.merc.com ================================================================ ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 19:04:03 -0700 From: Shari Organization: OREGON - USA To: webheads@softdisk.com Subject: e-mail posts References: <199704170716.QAA06054@spuds.bullterrier.org> Sender: owner-webheads@softdisk.com Reply-To: webheads@softdisk.com Q: How many internet mail list subscribers does it take to change a light bulb? A: 1,331: 1 to change the light bulb and to post to the mail list that the light bulb has been changed 14 to share similar experiences of changing light bulbs and how the light bulb could have been changed differently. 7 to caution about the dangers of changing light bulbs. 27 to point out spelling/grammar errors in posts about changing light bulbs. 53 to flame the spell checkers 156 to write to the list administrator complaining about the light bulb discussion and its inappropriateness to this mail list. 41 to correct spelling in the spelling/grammar flames. 109 to post that this list is not about light bulbs and to please take this email exchange to alt.lite.bulb 203 to demand that cross posting to alt.grammar, alt.spelling and alt.punctuation about changing light bulbs be stopped. 111 to defend the posting to this list saying that we all use light bulbs and therefore the posts **are** relevant to this mail list. 306 to debate which method of changing light bulbs is superior, where to buy the best light bulbs, what brand of light bulbs work best for this technique, and what brands are faulty. 27 to post URLs where one can see examples of different light bulbs 14 to post that the URLs were posted incorrectly, and to post corrected URLs. 3 to post about links they found from the URLs that are relevant FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 27 21 Apr 1997 to this list which makes light bulbs relevant to this list. 33 to concatenate all posts to date, then quote them including all headers and footers, and then add "Me Too." 12 to post to the list that they are unsubscribing because they cannot handle the light bulb controversy. 19 to quote the "Me Too's" to say, "Me Three." 4 to suggest that posters request the light bulb FAQ. 1 to propose new alt.change.lite.bulb newsgroup. 47 to say this is just what alt.physic.cold_fusion was meant for, leave it here. 143 votes for alt.lite.bulb. -30- ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 28 21 Apr 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 14-16 Page 29 21 Apr 1997 Future History, please send a note to the FidoNews Editor. ----------------------------------------------------------------- FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 30 21 Apr 1997 ================================================================= FIDONET SOFTWARE LISTING ================================================================= Latest Greatest Software Versions by Peter E. Popovich, 1:363/264 Good news: I've finally got the GEcho entries in the list. Peter Karlsson, the author of Announcer, has set up a home page for his software: http://www.mds.mdh.se/~dat95pkn/wolves/announcer.htm Note: At the end of April, I'll be phasing out the old Macintosh section. As always, I'll be happy to process any information I get, either before or after it is phased out. Note: Mid-May, I will phase out the entire "Old Info" section. -=- 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 FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 31 21 Apr 1997 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 Imail 1.75 T S Michael McCabe 1:1/121 IMAIL ImCrypt 1.04 O G Michiel vd Vlist 2:500/9 IMCRYPT InfoMail 1.11 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 1.73a B P Christopher Baker 1:374/14 OPUS O/T-Track 2.65 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 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: FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 32 21 Apr 1997 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 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 1.11 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 2.9 M G Eugene Crosser 2:293/2219 IFMAIL ifmail-tx ...tx8.1 M G Pablo Saratxaga 2:293/2219 IFMAILTX ifmail-tx.rpm ...tx8.1 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 FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 33 21 Apr 1997 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 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 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* FIDONEWS 14-16 Page 34 21 Apr 1997 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 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 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - BBS Software Macintosh Other Software Name Version --------- Name Version -------------------- -------------------- FBBS 0.91 Network Mailers MacArd 0.04 Hermes 1.6.1 Name Version Mantissa 3.21 Mansion 7.15 -------------------- Mehitable 2.0 Precision Sys. 0.95b Copernicus 1.0 OriginatorII 2.0 Red Ryder Host 2.1 Tabby 2.2 PreStamp 3.2 Telefinder Host StuffIt Classic 1.6 2.12T10 Other Software SunDial 3.2 Name Version TExport 1.92 -------------------- TimeStamp 1.6 Point System ArcMac 1.3 TImport 1.92 Software AreaFix 1.6 Tset 1.3 Name Version Compact Pro 1.30 TSort 1.0 -------------------- EventMeister 1.0 UNZIP 1.02c Copernicus 1.00 Export 3.21 Zenith 1.5 CounterPoint 1.09 Import 3.2 Zip Extract 0.10 MacWoof 1.1 LHARC 0.41 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 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 14-16 Page 35 21 Apr 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 14-16 Page 36 21 Apr 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 14-16 Page 37 21 Apr 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 14-16 Page 38 21 Apr 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 14-16 Page 39 21 Apr 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 14-16 Page 40 21 Apr 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- -----------------------------------------------------------------