Freaks Macintosh Archive/Freaks Macintosh Archive.bin/Freaks Macintosh Archives/Phreaking⁄Wardialers/Phreaking texts/PCBoardtoInternet.txt

Text File | 1999-01-28 | 8KB | 136 lines

===============================================================================
                    Connecting PCBoard to the Internet
      Written by Jonathan C. Higbee, Clark Development Company, Inc.
                              April 11, 1995
===============================================================================

     The battle for Internet connectivity solutions has been joined by a
long-time player in the BBS market. With Clark Development's release of
PCBoard 15.2, long time and new BBS sysops can have a more integrated solution
for providing Internet electronic mail and Usenet newsgroup access to their
callers. But that's not all. Because PCBoard has built in support for OS/2
ports and packet switched networks it can easily be set up to allow inbound
telnet(1) sessions from the Internet. Clark Development does not charge extra
for these powerful features. They are included as part of a philosophy that
precludes nickel and dimming of sysops.

     PCBoard's support for Internet mail and Usenet news is provided for in a
new built-in UUCP interface. UUCP is a file transfer protocol used in the UNIX
and Internet world. BBS sysops have recently started adding UUCP interfaces to
their BBSes, but until now a low-cost integrated solution was not available.

     How hard is it to set PCBoard up to do UUCP? Not hard at all! Inside
PCBoard's integrated setup utility, PCBSetup, you enter your Internet address
information, which conference number you want as your Internet mail
conference, what Usenet conferences you want, etc. However the first step in
setting PCBoard up for UUCP is shopping for an Internet provider.

     There are a wide range of providers out there. Some operations are
small, some are large - prices and quality do vary. When shopping for a
provider it is important to obtain a list of all charges. Also don't lock
yourself in for a full year with the first one that strikes your fancy. Try
one out for a month or two and see how they work. You will quickly learn how
easy it is to get onto their system, whether their system is fast enough for
your needs, and how they treat you after the initial sale. Most providers do
an excellent job, but each one's knowledge about how to be a good provider can
vary.

     Monthly fees for UUCP accounts range from $10 to $100 a month, depending
on your location, provider, and on the volume of E-mail and Usenet traffic you
want.  An increasingly popular option with PCBoard sysops is receiving Usenet
news from a satellite (such as PageSat(2) or Planet Connect(3)). The
satellite option allows you to receive as many newsgroups as you want,  and
then pay less to a land-line provider (since all you would be transferring to
them would be E-mail and Usenet postings).

     For some, UUCP is not enough. PCBoard can be easily setup for telnet
access. There are several ways to allow Internet users to telnet to PCBoard.
The easiest and least expensive requires using the increasingly popular and
powerful OS/2 operating system. After obtaining OS/2 the only other software
you need is SIO by Ray Gwinn of The Software Division(4). SIO does exist as
shareware and is available for PCBoard sysops to download from Clark
Development's support BBS, Salt Air, at [phone].

     Why do you need the popular SIO communications driver for OS/2? Because
SIO includes a product called VMODEM (for virtual-modem). VMODEM supports a
direct translation of an incoming telnet session to an SIO for OS/2
communications port. Thus after getting a dedicated line, all you need to do
to allow incoming telnet sessions to your PCBoard is to:  configure the TCP/IP
package of  OS/2 to what your Internet address setup is; buy or download SIO
and install it; and lastly tell PCBoard what SIO communications port it is to
monitor. With all that set, when an Internet user telnets to your address, the
session is routed to your machine, VMODEM in SIO translates the incoming
telnet to an SIO communication port, and PCBoard answer the call. PCBoard does
detect when it is being run by OS/2 and gives up times slices appropriately -
so it doesn't hog the whole system like some DOS applications do. PCBoard
talks directly to the default OS/2 communications driver and SIO. All these
features make incoming telnet to PCBoard easy and workable.

     After OS/2 and SIO the second easiest way to allow incoming telnet
sessions to PCBoard is with a terminal server. Those companies and groups
which have a dedicated line called a T1 coming to their site usually have a
router and terminal server hooked up. Between the terminal server and one or
more PCs running PCBoard you connect serial cables with null-modem adapters.
In PCBoard's PCBSetup you set the option "running a packet switch network" to
"Yes," and that's all you do!

     Clark Development has been successfully using both OS/2 and terminal
server methods to allow inbound telnet access to their support BBS, Salt Air.
PCBoard users and other interested parties can telnet to 199.67.41.2 (OS/2
solution) or 199.67.41.252 (terminal server solution). Demonstration software
and product information are available on Salt Air for anyone who calls or
telnets in. Full access to their system is reserved for customers. Here are
diagrams of both terminal server and OS/2 connectivity methods:

     PCBoard <-> VMODEM(SIO) <-> OS/2 <-> Internet
     PCBoard <-> Terminal Server <-> Internet

     There are other ways to connect PCBoard up to the Internet, but they are
not as easy as the previously mentioned solutions. One is to use BBSNet by
MurkWorks(5). BBSNet comes in OS/2 and DESQview versions. It allows callers
to PCBoard to telnet to other Internet sites, and allows outbound FTP, Gopher,
and Archie. Providing all this access to BBS callers is not cheap. Not only do
you need an adequate dedicated line to an Internet provider, you also need
adequate hardware and software. The cost for BBSNet is approximately $300 for
a two node version or $800 for ten.

     PCBoard <---> BBSNet <---> Internet

     Another connection solution is produced by Key Software(6). They have
written doors which allow callers to PCBoard to have full Internet access. A
door is just like any other computer program except that it is designed to do
input and output through a serial port and not just to the screen. The
original PCBoard to Internet door they produced is called KA9Q Door. This door
does require the KA9Q NOS (network operating system) - a free-ware amateur
radio related product. However Key Software just released their KSP SLIP door
which no longer requires the use of KA9Q. Here is a diagram of how both doors
are connected to the Internet:

     PCBoard <---> KA9Q Door <---> Local Area Network
                                   connected to the
                                   Internet

     PCBoard <---> KSP SLIP Door <---> Local Area Network
                                       connected to the
                                       Internet

     Clark Development is clearly determined to stay on top of the growing
BBS market. Their latest release of PCBoard 15.2 exemplifies their dedication
to provide low-cost workable solutions for interfacing with exciting entities
like the Internet. After a thorough examination I believe PCBoard provides the
most "bang for the buck" of any BBS package.

(1)  Telnet - a command used on the Internet to directly connect one computer
     to another.
(2)  PageSat Inc., 992 San Antonio Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303, [phone],
     [phone], Fax [phone], [e-mail]
(3)  Planet Systems, Inc., 1065 Cosby Highway, Newport, TN 37821, (615)623-
     8300, Fax [phone], [e-mail]
(4)  To order SIO contact: The Software Division, Raymond L. Gwinn, 12469
     Cavalier Drive, Woodbridge, VA 22192, [phone], [e-mail]
(5)  MurkWorks, P.O. Box 631, Potsdam, NY 13676, [phone],
     [e-mail] or [e-mail]
(6)  Key Software Products, 440 Ninth Avenue, Menlo Park, CA 94025-1802,
     [phone]
===============================================================================