This is the first electronic update to Bulletin Boards and Beyond, by Bernard Aboba.While telecommunications books go out of date between the time they are written and when they go to press, Bulletin Boards and Beyond was designed with updates in mind. Electronic updates to the Guide are available free of charge on America Online (in the MCM Forum), on the BMUG BBS (510)849-2684, and on FidoNet (on the Macintosh Software Distribution Network).
Ongoing support is also available via the Bulletin Boards and Beyond conference on FidoNet. The conference, called BBB, is available by request from BMUG Mail Hub, node 1:161/445 on FidoNet, or from Dragon EchoSlave, node 1:2605/611.
How Updates Work
Updates are provided for the purpose of bringing you up to date on topics already covered in
Bulletin Boards and Beyond. They therefore complement existing chapters in the Guide,
and refer to them frequently. The close coupling of the updates and Guide means that you
may wish to print out this update, and keep it with your copy of the Guide.
This update is provided in two forms. One is a SuperGlue II document, and the other is this DocMaker document. The two programs have different strengths: SuperGlue II documents print out nicely but are difficult to browse; DocMaker documents are easy to browse, but printing doesn't work as well.
Since this update is so long, you probably won't want to print out the whole thing, just those articles that interest you. Therefore, use the DocMaker version to find the articles you're looking for, then open the SuperGlue II version in order to print out those articles. If you discover a product or service that you're interested in, you can find other references to it with DocMaker by using the Find command from the Edit menu.
Don't forget to vote!
This update is provided both in the form of a DocMaker document (which you are now reading), and in the form of a SuperGlue document. Reader opinion was divided on which was better, so I thought I'd let you decide. You can vote for the form of future updates by sending mail with
your choice to aboba@world.std.com or AOL: mailcom. Since the next update will probably only come out in a single form, if you don't vote, you might never see your favorite again!
What is included
This update includes information on the latest release of ZTerm (v0.9), which came out after the book went to press. If you are using ZTerm v0.9 (included on BMUG Telecom Disk A1) the material in this chapter will supersede the material included in the Quickstart.
This update also includes information on a new fixed fee Internet service (Netcom), as well as a service which charges by the hour (HoloNet).
I’ve included an article on home control technology, a logical extension of BBS and communications technology that is also useful.
There is an update on the recent releases of Compact Pro and StuffIt.
With the help of Kelly Schwarzhoff, I’ve updated the sysop resources section covering BBS software and utilities for a variety of platforms.
I’ve included a few pages on CD–ROM, based on my visit to the American Library Association conference in June.
This update also includes material on K12Net, reprinted with Rob Reilly’s permission.
Icon Key
Throughout this update, icons are used to highlight particular segments of the text. The icons that are used are:
  Tips and Tricks.
This icon indicates a tip or a trick for getting around a commonly encountered problem.
  For more information.
One of the wonderful (and frustrating!) things about global computer networks is
that they are self-documenting. This icon indicates that further information on
this topic is available online, in the form of an electronic book, journal, or database.
  Questions & Answers.
At the end of many of the chapters is a question and answer section put together from questions asked by readers such as yourself.
  Money Saver.
This icon indicates a segment that can potentially save you money online.
  Global Access.
This icon indicates information on access from outside the United States.
  Esoterica.
This icon indicates a discussion somewhat peripheral to the main line of thought,
but since it’s my Guide, I can ramble incoherently if I want to. However, that doesn't mean
that you should have to read it. This material may be skipped over without losing continuity.
Disclaimer
Much of the information contained in this Update, such as bulletin board phone numbers or software version numbers, goes out of date very quickly. As a result, please exercise caution when dialing phone numbers appearing in this Update. Manually dial only during daytime hours until you verify that the bulletin board you want to reach is still in service. After you have verified that the service is operating, you can switch to automated dialing.
