The World of Computer Software/The World of Computer Software.iso/fnewsa04.zip/FIDO1004.NWS

Text File | 1993-01-25 | 73KB | 1,569 lines

F I D O  N E W S --         |         Vol. 10 No. 4 (25 January 1993)
  A newsletter of the       |
  FidoNet BBS community     |         Published by:
          _                 |
         /  \               |        "FidoNews" BBS
        /|oo \              |         [phone]
       (_|  /_)             | NEW!--> 1:1/23@FidoNet
        _`@/_ \    _        |         [e-mail]
       |     | \   \\       |
       | (*) |  \   ))      |         Editors:
       |__U__| /  \//       |          Tom Jennings
        _//|| _\   /        |          Tim Pozar
       (_/(_|(____/         |
             (jm)           |         Newspapers should have no friends.
                            |                         -- JOSEPH PULITZER
----------------------------+---------------------------------------

/*********************************************************************
* IMPORTANT NOTE: The FidoNet address for FidoNews has been changed. *
* The new address is:                                                *
*                                                                    *
*                     FidoNews  =  1:1/23                            *
*                                                                    *
* Starting January 1993 email sent to the old address will not be    *
* forwarded! You were warned!                                        *
*********************************************************************/

For information, copyrights, article submissions, obtaining copies and
other boring but important details, please refer to the end of this
file.


                          Table of Contents
1. EDITORIAL  .....................................................  1
   Editorial: none of the above  ..................................  1
2. ARTICLES  ......................................................  2
   BBS in India  ..................................................  2
   Sample bulletin explaining Netmail & Fidonet/Internet  .........  4
   The Third Conference on Computers, Freedom and Privacy  ........  9
   Announcing CONNECT -- a new telecommunications magazine  ....... 11
   Z1C applicants  ................................................ 12
   The truth about ZEC  ........................................... 12
   Response to "FidoNet, Elections, and Agreements"  .............. 18
   Z1C Wanted: Sysops can apply, but they can't vote  ............. 21
   The Policy 4.1 debate  ......................................... 22
   The AIRGUN Echo Is Backboned!  ................................. 23
   Doing it full-duplex  .......................................... 25
3. FIDONEWS INFORMATION  .......................................... 27
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 1                      25 Jan 1993


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

Editorial: None of the above

by Tom Jennings (1:1/23)


This week, I'm really going to beg off this week's scratchings. The
Z1C process is unfolding in our usual glorious manner. We've got some
pretty interesting articles outside local politics too. I talked my
head off last week, enough for this week too.

The process of searching for a new FidoNews editor continues. If you
missed last week's editorial, I'm quitting and looking for a
replacement. I laid out the process (such as it is...) in last week's
news.

I have started what I promised last week, which is a public file of
all correspondence on this subject. In it so far you'll find the
messages and resume's received so far. This week I will start
contacting applicants, and all of my responses (and theirs, etc) will
go into this file.

The file is called NEW-ED, and is filerequestable and downloadable to
first-time callers on the FidoNews BBS, 1:1/23, [phone].

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

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 2                      25 Jan 1993


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

BBS in India

Copyright (c) 1992 Suchit Nanda
[e-mail]

        This article appeared in Volume 2 Number 11, (November 1992)
        of Matrix News, the monthly newsletter of
        Matrix Information and Directory Services, Inc. (MIDS).
        It is copyright by its author.  For further information,
        please contact the author or MIDS:
                Matrix News
                Matrix Information & Directory Services, Inc. (MIDS)
                [e-mail]
                [phone]
                fax: [phone]
                1106 Clayton Lane, Suite 500W
                Austin, TX 78723
                U.S.A.

        Reprinted with permission.

India is a beautiful country in many ways. With a population of over
800 million people and with a long heritage and strong bond between
its people, electronic communications has been a rather neglected area
until recently. While paper & voice are the predominant modes of
communication amongst the masses, the business community relies very
heavily on FAXes and modems are almost non-existent.

The computing population here is largely confined to the metropolitan
cities and is growing very rapidly every day. I'm located in Bombay -
the commercial & economic capital of the country with a long & scenic
shoreline to the Arabic Sea. It is well connected with roads, rail &
sea routes and headquarters the telecommunications network of the
country. I had been toying with the idea of starting a BBS but could
never get down to it as the required critical mass for sustaining one
was never around and a failure at the start of something beautiful
such as this could really bury a good concept. So I waited in
anticipation till it was early March of this year when I decided to
take the plunge.

Late last year I had assembled my own 386 machine with a 130MB HDD &
SVGA and had a 1200bps modem to start with. Being the Chief Editor of
Microcomputer Users' Club which is a non-profit organization with a
number of international affiliations, I had developed a lot of
friends.  Mr. Woody Khoman of Bangkok User Group was kind enough to
send me WildCat BBS software using which I setup "Live Wire! BBS" at
my residence which alternated between voice and data calls (boy was
that tough!). WildCat was a very simple software but unfortunately was
very limited in what it could do (no flames pls - I had an old version
of it and knew what a good BBS software was capable of). Before long I
was looking elsewhere. Dr. Raj Mehta, a friend of mine had an access
to an Ernet account using which I sent a shot-in-the-dark mail asking
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 3                      25 Jan 1993


for more information regarding BBS software. Within no time we got a
reply from Keith Dickinson (1:3603/75 - Psycho.FidoNet.Org) who not
only offered to help but also send the software down! Wow, that's what
I call a friendly soul. You bet we took up that offer and very soon
after an exchange of few e-mails we had the software zipping across
the continents. To cut a long story short, Keith went way out of his
way to help us right up to hand-holding us with installing Maximus
CBCS.

The next big step was joining FidoNet as we were already aware of it
thru FidoNews. But that meant setting up BNU, FrontDoor, Squish and
the link to Maximus. Getting help from 10,000 miles away is not
exactly cheap no matter how helpful the guy at the other end. Finally
things fell into place but not knowing whom to contact, we called
Honlin Lue, Samson Luk & Wing Lee who were all most co-operative. Very
soon, in the first week of August we had our own node number and
e-mail - the life & blood of FidoNet started flowing in.

What makes FidoNet even more interesting is EchoMail and that is the
next thing that we started getting. But very soon I realized that the
volumes of mail generated would soon make me bankrupt with my measly
2,400bps modem so with a heavy heart I had to limit my EchoMail
participation.

Recently I read in the FidoNews about DataNETLink and started a
dialogue with Kuah Woon Hua of The Calling Center (6:600/76) Singapore
which resulted in my becoming the India Co-ordinator.

Looking into my crystal ball I see a lot of latent potential for the
Indian region. No matter what, it still amazes me why we took so long
to plug in. But now that we are here, I'm sure BBSs will come up
faster than mushrooms can sprout up. As for me, our BBS is going to go
24 hrs in a month's time and we should be upgrading to 14.4K any day
now. If I can be of assistance to anyone out there all you need to do
is ATDT me. :-)

Live Wire! BBS
Suchit Nanda,
SysOp 6:606/1
BBS: (91-22) 5781132
Timings: 10:30 p.m. - 7:00 a.m.
C-503, Eden-4,
Hiranandani Gardens,
Powai, Bombay - 400 076. INDIA
--
uucp: uunet!m2xenix!puddle!6!606!1!Suchit.Nanda,.Live.Wire!.(6:606/1)
Internet: Suchit.Nanda,.Live.Wire!.(6:606/1)@f1.n606.z6.fidonet.org

Suchit Nanda is the Chief Editor of Microcomputer Users' Club, a
registered nonprofit organization which is India's first and largest
user group, with many chapters and international affliations, and
about 1,000 members from all walks of life. For the club, he has
co-authored a book *War On Virus* which is currently in its second
edition. The also club has a monthly 40+ page newsmagazine which is
circulated to all members.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 4                      25 Jan 1993


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


By Dave Appel, Indianapolis Computer Society.
A dumb ascii-user on 1:231/30

      SAMPLE BULLETIN EXPLAINING NETMAIL AND FIDONET/INTERNET

Here's an article that I wrote that appeared in the INDY PC NEWS the
magazine of the Indianapolis Computer Society. I thought it would make
a nice bulletin for Fidonet sysops who get tired of explaining netmail
and gated Internet mail to new users.  I've tried to replace the
specifics of state/city/net etc with keywords that you can
search-and-replace with your text editor to make it applicable to you.


Also, place a prettily formatted version of your local nodelist at the
end of this article. If you aren't the NC, get his permission to
reprint it. You don't have to use the baud and flag fields, but at
least node number, bbs name, city, sysop name, and phone number.
There is also a place to list the nets in your state.

Permission is hereby granted to reprint this article in not-for-
profit user-group newsletters as long as I am notified, and my name
stays on as author, and "Originally printed in the INDY PC NEWS" stays
in. Permission is hereby granted to post this article as a bulletin on
Fidonet bulletin boards as long as such bulletin board remains in the
official Fidonet nodelist.

To make this article apply to your city/node, replace:
   YOUR_NET        with your net number.
   YOUR_NET_NAME   with your net's name.
   YOUR_STATE      with your state's name.
   YOUR_CITY       with your city's name.
   YOUR_GATEWAY    with the net/node of the Fido UUCP gateway
                   serving your network or region.
   YOUR_NC_BBS     with the BBS name of your Net Coordinator.
   YOUR_CITY_ECHO  with the mnemonic name of your city-wide echo
   YOUR_STATE_ECHO with the mnemonic name of your state-wide echo

---------------------------- cut here ----------------------------
                            Bulletin ##
                 Fidonet Netmail and Internet mail.
             By Dave Appel, Indianapolis, IN.  1:231/30
            Adapted from an article originally appearing
                        in the INDY PC NEWS

C:\INTRO>
This article describes a low cost amateur email network that is
available to YOUR_CITY area bulletin board users.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 5                      25 Jan 1993


I am using the term "email" to mean electronic mail messages that
you enter on one bulletin board and then get sent automatically to
one or more bulletin boards around town, around the state, around
the country, and around the world. This article will deal with an
international amateur network called FIDONET.

Just a couple quick definitions. BBS stands for Bulletin Board
System. A BBS is a computer and modem that someone has dedicated to
a phone line so people like you can call it with a computer and
modem. Sysop is short for SYStem OPerator. The sysop is the
owner/operator of a bulletin board.

Fidonet currently has over 19,000 separate member bulletin boards
worldwide. It is by far the largest of the amateur networks. There
is a list at the end of this article that contains the bulletin
boards in the YOUR_NET_NAME. This list is updated weekly, so call
your favorite BBS (or YOUR_NC_BBS, the local net coordinator) to
get an up-to-date list.

First, I'll give you the basics of email, and then go on to the
fancy stuff like gateways that allow you to send mail to other
networks like Internet, Compuserve, America Online, MCImail,
ATTmail, and others.

C:\NETMAIL>
There are two categories of email that one can send on Fidonet.
These are in addition to the "local only" messages that stay on the
bulletin board on which you enter them. The first is a person-
to-person message that is transmitted from the BBS you are using to
the BBS of the recipient. There may be several BBS's in between that
pass the message on, but there is a defined "origin" BBS and a
"destination" BBS. This is also called "point to point" or "one to
one." This kind of email is called "netmail" on a Fidonet BBS. To
enter a netmail message, you must enter the section of the BBS that
is specifically called NETMAIL.

You must also know two things about the person with whom you are
corresponding. You must know the exact spelling of their user name
on their bbs. For instance, to send netmail to me, you must send it
to "Dave Appel" and not to "David Appel". The second thing you must
know is the "node number" of the bbs. The node number is the address
of the BBS in terms that the BBS software can understand. For
instance, the YOUR_NC_BBS is known as 1:YOUR_NET/0. The "1" is the
zone. Zone 1 is North America. The "YOUR_NET" is the network, or
just plain "net." Net YOUR_NET is the YOUR_NET_NAME. And the "0" is
the individual bulletin board, which is called a "node" within the
YOUR_NET network. Node "0" always indicates the local net
coordinator.

By knowing that I am "Dave Appel" of 1:231/30, anyone on any of the
19,000 Fidonet BBS's in the world can send me netmail. If you are a
member of Rob Haverly's Paladen BBS, your netmail address would be
1:231/20.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 6                      25 Jan 1993


C:\ECHOMAIL>
The second kind of email is that which is entered in an "echo
conference." This email is called "echo mail." This is where a
message you enter on the BBS gets transmitted to several BBS's
around town, around state, around the country or around the world.
This is a "one to many" relationship. After you enter your message,
eventhough it may be addressed to one person, it is sent to ALL
BBS's that are "participating" in that echo conference.
"Participating" in this context means that the BBS has this
conference "turned on" and is receiving messages for this conference
from the local "Echo Coordinator." The Echo Coordinator is the local
BBS that makes the long distance phone calls on a regional or
national level. The Echo Coordinator then distributes the echo mail
conference messages to the local bulletin boards for efficiency and
cost sharing.

If the preceeding paragraph confused you, let me give you a real
life example that might clear it up. There is a national echo
conference for skydiving. The conference name is SKYDIVE. Southside
BBS, 1:231/30 has the SKYDIVE conference "turned on" and a
conference message area set up.

I call Southside BBS, and navigate the menus to go into the national
Echomail area of the bbs. I select the SKYDIVE conference. I read
all new messages, and reply to a few. I see messages from people in
Florida, Norway, Ohio, Texas, Illinois, and Purdue University. I see
a message from a guy who's going to go to a skydiving convention in
Richmond Indiana. I reply to that message, and tell the guy to look
for me at the convention, and I'll be wearing a T-Shirt with
"Frankfort Indiana" on it.

But since I enter my message in the "echo conference" and not in
"netmail" my message actually gets transmitted to ALL the bulletin
boards in the world who are tied into the SKYDIVE conference.
Therefore, all the other skydivers who read the echo conference will
know that Dave will be wearing his Frankfort Indiana T-shirt at the
skydiving convention.

However, if I don't want to broadcast to the world what I'll be
wearing, then I leave the echo conference section, and go to the
netmail section and enter a private person-to-person message to my
correspondent. Every message in an echo conference has a line at the
end called the "origin line." The origin line tells the name and
node number of the originating BBS. So before I leave the echo
conference, I look at the other guy's origin line to find out how to
address the private reply.

YOUR_CITY_ECHO is another echo conference, but it is a local only
conference. The sysops have it set up so that only the
YOUR_NET_NAME, Net YOUR_NET, bulletin boards have this conference.
If I enter a message in YOUR_CITY_ECHO, only the BBS's in the list
at the end of this article can receive it, and then only if the
sysop has YOUR_CITY_ECHO activated on his BBS.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 7                      25 Jan 1993


Activating a conference or "turning it on" is a complicated
procedure that only the sysops need to know. User's don't need to be
concerned with how that is done. If your favorite Fidonet BBS
doesn't have your favorite conference activated, just ask your sysop
to "turn on" such-and-such conference. "Carry," "turn on," and
"activate" are synonymous in regard to conferences.

YOUR_STATE_ECHO is an example of a state-wide echo conference. This
conference is carried by Net YOUR_NET and other Fidonet networks
in YOUR_STATE. Again, only if the individual sysop wishes to.

Whether an echo conference is "national" "international" "state-
wide" or "local" is up to the sysops and Echo Coordinators involved.

C:\BENEFITS>
The benefits of having many local bulletin boards carry the same
echo conferences is that if your favorite BBS is busy or has
crashed, you merely call another BBS in the network, and see the
same messages.

But even more than this, echo conferences give you the ability to
share your interests, from Agriculture to Zymurgy, with others
around world.

C:\ADVANCED\GATEWAYS>
Now we get to the real juicy part of all this. This is where you are
going to learn to really have fun, impress your friends, and SAVE
MONEY.

One of the mondo cool things of Fidonet is its ability to link with
MOST MAJOR EMAIL vendors through another network called "Internet."
Defining and explaining Internet would take a whole book. Therefore,
I will merely explain how to use it, instead of going into an
explanation of what it is.

This time I will start with an example first. Suppose you have a
user account at one of the Fidonet boards listed at the end of this
article. Suppose you have a friend or business associate with a
Compuserve account, and he wants you to send email to his Compuserve
account. But you don't want to pay $95/year to subscribe to
Compuserve when you can get access to a Fidonet BBS for free.

Here is what you do:
Sign on your favorite Fidonet BBS. Go into the netmail section.
Enter a netmail message to the user "UUCP" or "Uucp". When the BBS
asks you the net/node address, enter "YOUR_GATEWAY". All you need to know
is that "Uucp" at "YOUR_GATEWAY" is our local Internet gateway for
YOUR_CITY.

Now comes the tricky part. In the VERY FIRST line of the message,
starting in column 1, you must put "To: [e-mail]".
But you must replace the number with the person's actual Compuserve
number. 76543.9999 is just a made-up number. And don't type in the
quotes. "To" must have an uppercase "T" and lowercase "o". There
must be exactly one space after the colon. You must replace the
comma in the Compuserve account number with a period, and you must
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 8                      25 Jan 1993


not have any spaces other than the space following the colon. There
must not be anything else on this line.

In the SECOND line of the message put at least one space followed by
a period. Do not put anything else on the second line.

There are other ways of formatting the address, but I'm just telling
you what will work for all situations, just to be on the safe side.

That's all there is to get your message to Compuserve. Enter your
message, save it, and within 24 to 48 hours your message should
appear in your correspondent's in-box on Compuserve.

Note that I said "should" not "will." That is because Fidonet is an
AMATEUR network run by people who are not being paid to do it. If
for some reason your email doesn't reach the destination, you have
no legal recourse. So if you have email that is of an urgent nature,
or you have business depending on it, then go ahead and get an
account on Compuserve.

Now I'll explain a little bit of the "To: " address above. The
format of the "To: " address is the standard Internet format which
is "username@domain". In our example, "76543.9999" is the username,
and "compuserve.com" is the domain. Again, defining what a domain is
gets complicated. Suffice it to say, you need to know your
correspondent's username and domain. Once you know those two things,
you are all set.

When your correspondent receives your message, their mail system
should tell them your address as the sender of the message. But if
you want them to send you mail first, you'll have to give them your
address. Again, I'll start with my example and then explain.

If someone on another system with Internet access (such as
Compuserve or MCImail) wants to send me email on the Southside BBS
they would send it to: "[e-mail]". Note
that I put the period outside of the ending quote because the ending
period of that sentence is not part of the address. And of course,
don't include the quote marks.

Now let's analyze that. My user name on Southside BBS is "Dave
Appel". But Internet addresses can't have embedded spaces, so the
convention is to put in a period. The "f30" part means node 30,
which is the node number for Southside BBS. The "n231" means network
231, which is the Central Indiana Fidonet. "z1" means Zone 1, which
is North America. And "fidonet.org" tells Internet that it has to go
to a Fidonet gateway.

If your name is "John Doe" and you are on the Paladen BBS, your
Internet address would be "[e-mail]".

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 9                      25 Jan 1993


MCImail's domain is "mcimail.com". America Online's domain is
"aol.com".

C:\UNIVERSITY\LEVEL>
Internet is the network that links just about all university
computing centers together. For instance, everyone who has a student
account on the INDYVAX computer at IUPUI has access to Internet and
thereby to Fidonet and the other Internet-linked email services.
Suppose someone's IUPUI INDYVAX account is ILWF123. Their Internet
address would be "[e-mail]". You could send them
mail from any Fidonet BBS as described above. ILWF123 is the
username, and indyvax.iupui.edu is the domain.

So if your college friends have accounts on a university
computer, ask them their account name, and the "Internet domain
address" of their college's computer, which will probably end in
".edu".

C:\CONCLUSION>
There are many other factors and features involved in email,
netmail, echo mail, Internet, and gateways that are too detailed to
go into here. I hope the above gives you enough to start with. Good
luck and have fun.

             [[   INSERT YOUR LOCAL NODELIST HERE   ]]

(Note: the above list will not be accurate by the time you read this.
Some of the above BBS's may be part-time hours. Permission to print
this list was obtained from the Net YOUR_NET coordinator.)

The other Fidonet networks within YOUR_STATE are:

Network #   Name
---------   ----

[[ INSERT THE NET #'S AND NAMES OF OTHER NETS IN YOUR STATE HERE ]]

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


                      CFP'93
The Third Conference on Computers, Freedom and Privacy
                 9-12 March 1993
 San Francisco Airport Marriott Hotel, Burlingame, CA

The CFP'93 will assemble experts, advocates and interested people from
a broad spectrum of disciplines and backgrounds in a balanced public
forum to address the impact of computer and telecommunications
technologies on freedom and privacy in society.

Participants will include people from the fields of computer science,
law, business, research, information, library science, health, public
policy, government, law enforcement, public advocacy and many others.
Some of the topics in the wide-ranging CFP'93 program will include:

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 10                     25 Jan 1993


ELECTRONIC DEMOCRACY - looking at how computers and networks are
changing democratic institutions and processes.

ELECTRONIC VOTING - addressing the security, reliability, practicality
and legality of automated vote tallying systems and their increasing
use.

CENSORSHIP AND FREE SPEECH ON THE NET - discussing the problems of
maintaining freedom of electronic speech across communities and
cultures.

PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST ON THE NET - probing the problems and potential
of new forms of artistic expression enabled by computers and networks.

DIGITAL TELEPHONY AND CRYPTOGRAPHY - debating the ability of
technology to protect the privacy of personal communications versus
the needs of law enforcement and government agencies to tap in.

HEALTH RECORDS AND CONFIDENTIALITY - examining the threats to the
privacy of medical records as health care reform moves towards
increasing automation.

THE MANY FACES OF PRIVACY - evaluating the benefits and costs of the
use of personal information by business and government.

THE DIGITAL INDIVIDUAL - exploring the increasing capabilities of
technology to track and profile us.

GENDER ISSUES IN COMPUTING AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS - reviewing the
issues surrounding gender and online interaction.

THE HAND THAT WIELDS THE GAVEL - a moot court dealing with legal
liability, responsibility, security and ethics of computer and network
use.

THE POWER, POLITICS AND PROMISE OF INTERNETWORKING - covering the
development of networking infrastructures, domestically and worldwide.

INTERNATIONAL DATA FLOW - analyzing the  issues in the flow of
information over the global matrix of computer networks and attempts
to regulate it.

The conference will also offer a number of in-depth tutorials on
subjects including:

* Information use in the private sector
* Constitutional law and civil liberties
* Investigating telecom fraud
* Practical data inferencing
* Privacy in the public and private workplace
* Legal issues for sysops
* Access to government information
* Navigating the Internet

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 11                     25 Jan 1993


INFORMATION For more information on the CFP'93 program and advance
registration call, write or email to:

CFP'93 INFORMATION
2210 SIXTH STREET
BERKELEY, CA 94710
[phone]
[e-mail]

A complete electronic version of the conference brochure with more
detailed descriptions of the sessions, tutorials, and registration
information is also available via anonymous ftp from
sail.stanford.edu  in the file:  pub/les/cfp-93 or from sunnyside.com
in the file: /cfp93/cfp93-brochure or via email from
[e-mail]


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


Pegasus Press
3487 Braeburn Circle
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
[phone]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:


        Announcing CONNECT -- A New Telecomputing Magazine

ANN ARBOR, MI -- For a limited time, Pegasus Press is offering
dramatically discounted subscription rates on its new magazine,
CONNECT. Covering the major commercial online services,
Internet/Usenet and bulletin board system networks, CONNECT focuses on
telecommunications from a user's perspective.  The first bi-monthly
issue of CONNECT will be available in March, 1993.

Issue after issue, CONNECT shows you how to get the most from the
commercial online services you're using -- CompuServe, Delphi, America
Online, Prodigy, GEnie and BIX. With columnists on staff to cover
these services in depth, you'll find CONNECT a valuable resource.

CONNECT also shows you what "free" networks like Internet have to
offer.  Every issue of CONNECT contains Internet coverage that helps
you find your way around the biggest network in the world.

But CONNECT doesn't stop there. BBS callers also receive a wealth of
information from each issue. All varieties of computer platforms are
covered in the pages of CONNECT, as are the many different types of
bulletin board software and services found on these computers.
Articles spotlighting BBSes in specific cities or similar categories
(such as medical BBSes or handicapped-related systems) appear
regularly.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 12                     25 Jan 1993


Finally, each issue contains platform-specific columns highlighting
programs available online for IBM and Macintosh users. Of course,
you'll also find hardware and software reviews in CONNECT. From high
speed modems and LAN-based BBS systems to shareware terminal programs,
we cover it all.

For more information, please contact Pegasus Press at 3487 Braeburn
Circle, Ann Arbor, MI 48108 or phone [phone].  For the fastest
response and a copy of the subscription form, please email us at
CompuServe (70007,4640) GEnie and Delphi (Unicornpub) and Internet at
[e-mail].

Don't delay. Get CONNECTed today!


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


                The cards and letters are arriving daily!
                    Don Dawson 1:141/730 (aka 1:16/0)

The following sysops have indicated their interest in the Z1C opening:

Ben Mann      -  1:151/2
Rich Wood     -  1:278/3
Kevin Mcneil  -  1:128/45
Jim Bodine    -  1:141/415
Matt Ionson   -  1:3619/24
Bob Satti     -  1:153/6
John Summers  -  1:124/4103
Gary Johnson  -  1:203/151
- end of list -
as of 1/23/93 18:30EST

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



Marge Robbins
283/120 ZEC Co-Moderator



   There has been a lot of publicity and some misinformation about
the recent events in the ZEC echo being circulated about Fidonet
recently.  I would like to set the record straight and provide an
account of what really happened.

   The ZEC echo was created by Tony Davis while he was Zone 1 Echo
coordinator as a place where Zone 1 Sysops can talk to the ZEC, ask
questions, and discuss matters relating to the distribution of
Echomail. I am and have been, since shortly after Tony Davis created
the ZEC echo, Co-moderator, serving under two ZECs, Tony Davis and
Butch  Walker.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 13                     25 Jan 1993


   Two days before Thanksgiving I went into the hospital for what  was
supposed to be a simple procedure and a 24 hour stay.  Prior to  being
admitted I posted a message in ZEC stating that John  Souvestre, 396/1
would be acting as temporary moderator in my  absence.  Complications
arose and I had to remain in the hospital  for 7 days with a rather
rocky recovery that kept me fairly inactive  Fidonet wise until around
Christmas time.

    I was released from the hospital on December 2.  Sometime that
week  <I don't remember the exact day> Mr. Souvestre called me and
informed me that he wanted to remove Bob Moravsik 2606/583 and Glen
Johnson 2605/269 from ZEC.  Having complete confidence in Mr.
Souvestre I gave him the go-ahead to do so.  On DEC 5 he ordered their
links cut.

    Then things started to get complicated.  Instead of complying with
his legitimate requests to cut links as per BOP <Back Bone Operating
Procedures> all the hubs involved  <Mark Astarita 2605/10, Tom
Lawrence 2605/606, B.J. Weschke 2606/403, Eric Hiby 2605/614> up to
the Rhub level refused to cut the links, in some cases telling Mr.
Souvestre to go pound salt.  On DEC  7, 1993 Mr. Paul DiNovo, Rhub cut
the link to Eric Hiby's system.  This resulted in quite a few nodes
losing access to the ZEC echo.

     Initial refusals to cut the links as requested were based on  a
variety of things including demands that Mr. Souvestre prove that ZEC
rules had been violated.  Since this is not required by BOP Mr.
Souvestre declined to provide  the proof.  Later the question of Mr.
Souvestre's authority was  thrown into the proceedings. At that point
I sent a message to all  involved parties <December 7, 1992 at 8:22
AM> informing them that I  had indeed appointed Mr. Souvestre to act
as temp moderator in my absence. I am reasonably sure, although I no
longer have my logs to  prove it, that all those messages were
delivered within 1 or 2 hours. That evening at 6:15 PM Mr. DiNovo cut
the link to Eric Hiby's  system.  In my opinion, any or all of the
hubs involved could have averted  disaster at that point by agreeing
to cut the links requested. Nobody  did so.

   Somewhere along the line somebody discovered that I wasn't in Elist
212 as Co-Moderator.  Immediately Mr. Souvestre contacted both Mr.
Butch Walker, elisted ZEC Moderator and Mike Fuchs, keeper of the
Elist.  Mr. Fuchs made the statement that  an HD problem on his system
had corrupted  the file resulting in my being dropped from the list.
This wasn't discovered for months simply because none of us had
checked the ZEC  entry in the elist.

   Mr. Walker posted a message on DEC 8 at 9:02 am confirming that I
am indeed the  ZEC Co-Moderator.  Copies of this were supplied to all
nodes  involved.  Another chance for the hubs to rectify things. NO
one did  so. Instead the case was taken to the public with a lot of
yelling  screaming and name calling in FN_Sysop.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 14                     25 Jan 1993


     For about two weeks not much happened. I was too sick to take an
active interest in what was going on, although I was engaged in
conversations with some of the major players.  Just before Christmas
I returned to the ZEC echo on what can only be described as a part
time basis, my ability to sit at the keyboard for over 10 minutes at
a time having returned.  At this point I offered all the hubs their
links back if they would agree to not feed the ZEC echo to Mr.
Johnson and Mr.  Moravsik.  After some discussion everyone involved
agreed to my terms except Mr. Astarita. So on December 26, 1992 I
authorized the restoration of all links with three exceptions Mr.
Astarita, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Moravsik.

  As I understand it, the links haven't actually been restored at
this point in time, the folks in the tri-net area having chosen to
start their own ZEC echo. A little silly if you ask me, but their
choice.  I can only make links available. I can't force anyone to
carry the  echo. But charges that many nodes are disenfranchised are
not at all  true.

  During this same time period demands were being made upon me by Mr.
Johnson and Mr. Moravsik to restore their links unconditionally.

  Not wanting to make any decisions without all the facts or in a
chaotic kangaroo court type atmosphere, I borrowed liberally from
Policy 4 and set up a simple appeal process that I offered to all
involved parties.

   Let me digress here a moment to make a position statement.  I am a
strong proponent of checks and balances. I think that Fidonet badly
needs a review process and some curbs on Moderator powers.  At the
very least we need a mandatory review of moderator decisions. I would
like to see that as part of a ratified Echomail policy. Alas I don't
see that happening anytime soon. Since we don't have anything in place
at this time, I have been forced to rely on work-arounds. For  that I
am drawing a lot of fire.

    A delay of about two weeks was caused by some dancing around on
the question of my authority as ZEC Co-Moderator. Mr.  Moravsik would
submit an appeal to the "elisted" Moderator cc'ed to both myself and
Butch Walker.  Mr. Walker on at least two occasions reaffirmed to Mr.
Moravisk that he had delegated all his authority in the echo to me
pending selection of a new ZEC.  Mr. Moravsik at the same time was
loudly proclaiming that since I was not in the Elist I was not the
moderator. Under those circumstances I saw no point in making a ruling
that I knew Mr. Moravisk would totally disregard unless I gave him
exactly what he wanted regardless of the facts.  So, we remained at a
deadlock until Elist 301 came out with me properly listed as ZEC
Co-Moderator.

   Mr. Lawrence and Mr. Moravisk both filed appeals. Mr.  Lawrence's
was accepted and replied to by Mr. Souvestre.  I ruled against Mr.
Lawrence on  the grounds that he was contesting the legality of Mr.
Moravisk's  link cut. I stated that Mr.  Moravisk had to contest his
own cut. The  full text of this matter is available for freq as
ruling2.zip.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 15                     25 Jan 1993


   Mr. Moravsik's first attempt was rejected simply because the
evidence he submitted had no bearing on the question of the
correctness of Mr. Souvestre's actions. The full text of this one  is
available as ruling1.zip.

   Mr. Moravsik then submitted another appeal that did have some
 corroborating evidence that I accepted and forwarded to Mr.
Souvestre who responded in full to the charges Mr. Moravisk was
levying against him.  Again I ruled against Mr. Moravsik. The full
text of appeal, responses and ruling are in ruling3.zip also
available for freq.

   Much attention has been given to the fact that Mr. Souvestre didn't
send Mr. Moravsik the two netmail warnings called for in the  ZEC
rules.  That is very true, and earned Mr. Souvestre a reprimand. I
feel that he should have followed the ZEC rules.  So why didn't I
restore Mr. Moravsik's link?

   The purpose of the two netmail warnings is to be sure that the
participant is aware of the rules and the fact that he is in violation
of them.  The evidence that Mr. Souvestre submitted shows  beyond a
shadow of a doubt that Mr. Moravisk knew precisely what he  was doing
and chose to defy the moderator anyway. So I ruled  against him, but
set the term of his banishment for 6 months minus  time already out.
Not an unreasonable "sentence" considering his  record in ZEC.  He was
suspended once for not obeying the rules and on several other
occasions has had to have netmail warning to impell him into following
the rules.

   Not wanting to have the final word on this, I have taken the
additional step of offering Mr. Moravsik the opportunity to appeal  my
decision.  At this writing we are negotiating terms.  It is likely we
will submitt the dispute to outside arbitration something no Moderator
in Fidonet is under any obligation to do.

  Mr. Johnson has also submitted an appeal that has been ruled on. All
the data on that one is available in ruling4.zip.  This one was more
difficult to made a call on because  it boils down to a matter of
moderator judgment.

  Mr. Johnson's appeal was based on his contention that his cut was
unjustified.  He maintains that he was trying to end the off topic
thread and move it elsewhere when Mr. Souvestre cut his link.

   The evidence, I must admit, can be read either way. Mr.  Souvestre
felt at the time and still does, that Mr. Johnson was being defiant
and using moving the thread as an excuse for continuing the thread.
I, on the other hand, tend to believe Mr.  Johnson's contention.

  So while I couldn't rule that Mr. Souvestre's decision was incorrect
<He was the moderator in charge of the echo at the time,  and I
honestly believe he made what he felt was the best decision>  I
restored Mr. Johnson's link which also restores Mr.  Astarita's  link
in the interests of trying to be fair and give Mr. Johnson the
benefit of the doubt.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 16                     25 Jan 1993


  Naturally neither one of those two gentlemen is happy with my
decision. Mr. Johnson is declining to pick up ZEC.

  So at the present time the situation is this.  There is only one
node not authorized to pick up ZEC. At least three nets are
 declining to do so as a matter of principle.  Mr. Moravsik will
probably get a chance to appeal my decision.

  There have been a lot of nasty things said about both me and Mr.
Souvestre in this matter. I don't believe I have been unfair or
unresponsive. But now that you have all the facts, judge for yourself.

    As for Mr. Souvestre I feel that he did a pretty good job as Temp
Moderator in my absence. The only error that I can see is the lack of
two netmail warnings to Mr. Moravsik.  Other than that, all applicable
rules were followed in the cutting of the links.  It is regrettable
that the hubs in the Tri-Net area chose to be uncooperative and allow
this matter to escalate beyond what it needed to be.  A lot of nodes
got hurt unnecessarily.


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

By Ray L. Kaliss - SDN Project Manager
SDN Changing Compression and Security



SWITCHING COMPRESSION
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
With the coming release of the new  ARJ, expected soon from Robert Jung,
SDN International(sm) will be switching from  PAK to ARJ compression for
all it's distributions,  however (are you listening)  the .SDN extension
will remain.

The change to ARJ was discussed and  decided many weeks ago, Robert
Jung was contacted and has been nothing but attentive and helpful with
all of us in SDN.  A  model of a software author listening  to his
users needs.  ARJ was chosen by SDN sysops not only for it's tight
compression but for it's overall  features and  Robert's dedication
to keeping  it updated.  ARJ  while   continually  being   improved,
strikes   a  balance   with reliability.  ARJ also states plainly it
is free for non-commercial use.



THE .SDN EXTENSION
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Because the .SDN  extension is widely recognized and  respected, we will
be continuing  it's uses  despite the small  bit of  confusion switching
compression might cause.  PAK v2.51, used to decompress .SDN files up to
the switch, will  not recognize .SDN files compressed with  ARJ.  On the
other hand, ARJ will notify you if  you attempt to decompress older, PAK
compression  .SDN  files.  Consult ARJ's  new documentation to  find out
how it will  notify you.  For a  few months anyways it  is advisable for
SDN users to have  PAK 2.51 as well as the newest ARJ  on PATH to handle
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 17                     25 Jan 1993


.SDN files.



SWITCHING SECURITY
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ARJ will be  offing a new approach  to security.  Being aware  that with
other archiver's  security being hack  almost on  the same day  they are
released, Robert has  taken a new approach and  consulted expert advise.
SDN files will being no doubt using ARJ security.

Along with specific  ARJ security, SDN will be using  the FSecure System
from PaceSoft.   FSecure, in  it's FidoNet  implimentation, is  a system
created for File Distribution Networks so  they may seal and 'signature'
each distribution that they originate.  A publicly released file testing
devise, named FILETEST, will  be made available for all to  use.  By the
use of the FSecure/FileTest System for  FDN's, the public can be assured
that a  distributed file  indeed did  come from  an authorized  hatching
point in the File Distribution Network.

The International File Distribution Cooperative approached PaceSoft with
the need for a public security system  that could be used on any archive
regardless of compression.  PaceSoft, ran  with the concept and produced
the FSecure system  with capabilities beyond our  expectations.  GK Pace
has produced  a combination security  and signature  verification system
that all FDN's can make use of.  With one publicly released verification
utility (FileTest) sysops and users can now have a public and common way
to verify  file supposedly distributed  into FDN pipelines  has actually
come from  authorized hatching sites,  regardless of network.   Each FDN
has it's  own software criteria and  it's own authorized  hatchers, with
the use of FSecure/FileTest sysops and users downline can be assured the
files they get have  passed the FDN's criteria and have  been hatched by
an authorized agent of the FDN.

Integrated into  the FSecure System  is a  method to handle  cases where
security  has been  breached.   If for  example an  errant  copy of  the
security devise  falls into no-good-nik  hands, through a  timely public
release of an updated FileTest.Exe...  any files secured with the errant
devise can be recognized as such.

I recommend that all IFDC member network contact GK Pace at 1:374/26 and
follow up  with a voice  call to GK, and  obtain the FSecure  system for
their network hatchers.   FSecure was based on  IFDC recommendations and
GK's innovative mind.  Second, I recommend that any other legitimate FDN
head coordinator also contact GK and make arrangements to use FSecure.

Although FSecure/FileTest will beging public use  with SDN, we hope that
all recognize the value of a public system and it's use spreads.


SDNSEAL - AUTHOR DIRECT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The brand of FSecure SDN will be  implementing is a specific security to
SDN releases.  It is called the SDNSeal and is a specific implementation
of FSecure.  Files sealed here at  the SDN Project as author-direct will
FileTest as  having an SDNSeal  applied.  As SDN  itself is part  of the
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 18                     25 Jan 1993


IFDC concept  and will  be a  type of  clearing house  for authors  that
desire  author-direct  distributions  into  FidoNet,  we  will  be  also
applying the  SDNSeal (meaning author-direct)  to distributions  that we
forward to  other IFDC networks  for public distribution.   For example,
SDN  does  not  distribute Windows  programs...   so  any  author-direct
software for Windows will be forwarded directly to Larry Mundy of WINNet
(an IFDC member) for distribution in Fido,  and to verify the archive as
author-direct it  will carry the  SDNSeal.  Programs forwarded  to other
FDNs' will  be compressed  with ARJ  and have  the .ARJ  extension.  How
files forwarded are treated or if they are distributed by that FDN, will
be entirely up to  the head of that FDN.  SDN in  this case merely makes
available an author-direct service and gateway to other IFDC networks.


                                                  Thanks for your ear.

I will keep you aware of the switchover through the FidoNews.

Cheers...

*ray
SDN Projet Manager



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

Jack Decker 1:154/8

An open response to "FidoNet, Elections, and Agreements" by Mike Mast:

Mike, regarding your article in Fidonews Vol. 10 No. 2 (11 January
1993), let me just say the following.  The crux of your position seems
to be that all Fidonet sysops agreed with Policy 4 when they joined
Fidonet, and Policy 4 clearly calls for a non-democratic structure for
Fidonet, and that therefore sysops should just accept the status quo
(or, presumably, get out of Fidonet).  I've been in Fidonet for
several years, and would just like to point out a few facts to you:

1)  There are many Fidonet sysops who have never even SEEN a copy of
Policy 4, much less agreed to it.  I know, Policy 4 says that all
sysops joining Fidonet must agree with and abide by it, but in plain
point of fact a LOT of sysops routinely IGNORE policy except when they
find it in their interests to haul it out and study it.  One major
reason for this is that Policy 4 is just too long and complicated.  It
tries to micro-manage the operation of the net, but because it is so
long and contains such minute detail, few sysops ever read it all the
way through (at least not more than once), and VERY few can remember
all of it.  While I can't prove it, I suspect that a majority of NC's
will issue a node number to any sysop that can send and receive mail,
and MAYBE will send new sysops a copy of Policy 4 as part of a "welcome
package."  But do they, or could they require new sysops to actually
READ the policy?  I suspect not in most cases.  What generally happens
is that the new sysop blunders around a bit at first and makes a few
mistakes, is "corrected" by his NC and/or others in his net (maybe
gently, maybe with blast furnace intensity, but nonetheless he is
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 19                     25 Jan 1993


informed of his errors!), and eventually he learns how to act so as not
to offend the local group.  What he learns may or may not necessarily
line up with Policy, but as long as he doesn't feel too put upon, and
the netmail and echomail flows, who cares?

Let me give you an example from real life (remember, Fidonet is "only a
hobby").  Consider the United States tax codes.  Every U.S. citizen is
expected to comply with them 100%, but even tax "experts" (even those
who work for the Internal Revenue Service) can't rattle off every
provision of the tax codes off the top of their head.  Many taxpayers
just do the best they can (with or without assistance from someone
else), and hope that they are complying with the law, or at least
coming close enough to not make the government unhappy.  But mistakes
are often made, even by experienced certified accountants, because the
codes are so complex.  Now, one comes to expect that when dealing with
the government, things will never be simple.  But, is it too much to
expect that the hobby organizations we belong to will not come up with
policy documents that look like they were written by government
bureaucrats?  I think not, and if we do, then we have to expect that
mistakes will be made often, because after all, we cannot impose
serious penalties for non-compliance the way the government can
(getting kicked out of the Fidonet nodelist is not quite the same as a
few months in the slammer)!

2) Regardless of what Policy says, it not common practice to require
all Fidonet sysops to agree with every point of policy. Indeed, if that
were STRICTLY enforced, there would be exactly one person in Fidonet:
The guy who wrote the Policy document!  The fact of the matter is that
every sysop in Fidonet who has ever read Policy 4 probably disagrees
with at least a part of it.  Well, maybe you are saying that even
though you may disagree in principle, you should keep your disagreement
to yourself because you joined under a certain set of rules and agreed
to abide by them.  Well, I have a news flash for you, the current
Fidonet policy was not written by God!  It was written by mere mortals
like you and I, who sometimes come up with ideas that seem good at the
time, but in practice are found to be unworkable.  There will never be
a "final" Fidonet Policy (unless folks get so apathetic about it that
it is totally ignored by everyone, which is something I see as a
distinct possibility... it's almost the case now!).  The members of any
group are certainly within their rights to discuss the policies of that
group, and to discuss whether changes might be appropriate (the only
exception to this might be in a military-type organization, and even
there, when good ideas are ignored it often results in disaster).

3) For many sysops, Fidonet may be the ONLY option for local
networking...  and that is due in part to the efforts of the higher-ups
in Fidonet, who for a long time have tried their best to discourage the
formation of alternative Fidonet-technology networks.  Even today, no
other Fidonet-technology network comes close to providing what Fidonet
has (for example, the number of available echomail conferences).
Because Fidonet has tried to be all things to all people, they have to
expect a diversity of opinions.  It's something like having a
fair-sized town and only one house of worship... there is going to be a
lot of infighting when folks can't agree on various points of
"doctrine."  I think one of the big mistakes of Fidonet history was
when the formation of alternate Fidonet-technology networks was at
FidoNews 10-04                 Page 20                     25 Jan 1993


first vigorously opposed, and later simply discouraged by the "powers
that be."   Here is a BASIC principle of life for you:  You cannot try
to force EVERYONE to belong to YOUR particular group, club, sect, or
whatever and also expect any unanimity of opinion or substantial
measure of agreement, no matter what your guiding documents say.  FAR
too many people just don't understand this basic principle, and it has
resulted in a lot of discord through the centuries.

The bottom line is this:  You stated that we all "... agreed to not
have a 'say' in appointing the *C structure when you joined this
organization." Well, I for one never "agreed" to any such thing.  I
would like to see the group that has a policy as complex as Fidonet's
and that makes a point of saying that all members must "agree" with
100% of the policy document.  That group is either going to be VERY
small, or VERY full of liars (or of people with the IQ of field grass)!

I think that you are trying to read something into policy that doesn't
exist.  None of us intended to join a cult and follow only one leader
when we joined Fidonet.

Finally, you said "Please consider providing a positive and
constructive alternative."  Okay, you asked for it:  Scrap policy
altogether!  Just say no to net-wide policy documents.  Quit trying to
pretend that you can force sysops of diverse social and cultural
backgrounds to interact with each other based on one document.
Instead, let sysops freely associate and set their own rules.  Please
note that I'm NOT saying there cannot be rules, but they should be set
by sysops who choose to associate with each other, preferably on a
local level.  If the region or zone needs to make some rules to insure
that mail flows smoothly, let them do so, but don't give them the power
to exclude someone from the nodelist for setting up an alternate mail
delivery structure that bypasses them.  In other words, if your local
net sets up rules that no one can live with, just let sysops form a
different local net and ignore the first.  When there are choices and
even perhaps a bit of competition, folks tend to behave more
reasonably.

As many folks have pointed out, the Internet has no lengthy general
policy document, and in fact parts of it are quite anarchistic.  Yet it
functions quite well, is much larger than Fidonet (admittedly, they had
a few advantages going in that we didn't!), and folks are still
developing new software and new ways of doing things there (unlike
Fidonet, where development of new major software packages seems to have
just about ground to a halt).

I hope you'll consider these things... and for the record, although
George Peace may be a really nice guy (and I think he is), I think it
was a serious error in judgement on his part to try and limit the
election candidates in the way he did.  That's not picking on him, not
saying he didn't have good intentions, or anything else negative about
him... just that he made a bit of an error in judgement, and who among
us has NOT done that at one time or another?  I would like to see Rich
Wood get a shot at the ZC position and see how it works out.  I think
Fidonet would be better for it.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 21                     25 Jan 1993


That's my two cents' worth, anyway...


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


The Z1C Election Fiasco - The Continuing Saga
by Glen Johnson 1:2605/269

Well, I see the rules have changed for the Z1C election. It appears
that the rule prohibiting non-RCs from running has been removed.
Apparently, sysops can run for the job.

This is good.

But it also appears that sysops can't vote in the election.

This is bad.

I hope this is the LAST TIME we see an "election" like this in Fidonet.
Its quite unfair. When its all over, make sure you ask your RC who he
voted for.

So I guess we can claim partial victory here. But I'll reserve further
comment until I actually see Rich Wood's name on the ballot. To add
to Rich's already lengthy list of qualifications for the job, he's the
guy that chaired the Policy 4.1 project. Let's hope he shows up on the
ballot. And if he does, and if you support him, NETMAIL your RC and
TELL HIM SO. Whining about it in echomail conferences won't do any
good. DO something about it.

Speaking of echomail conference, Pablo Kleinman wrote a note in the
SYSOP conference saying that the reason George Peace announced his
resignation as Z1C was because he had cut a deal with Matt Whelan to
become the International Coordinator. The story goes that Whelan
later backed out of the deal.

I have no way of knowing if this is true, but if it is, I'll say
that its PRETTY DAMN SLEAZY. Bullshitting all of Zone 1 into
believing the resignation was for personal reasons, and the personal
reason being wanting to grab the IC job. I'll also say that this
isn't the FIRST time I've heard this story.

What about it George? Did you resign as Z1C in a power grab attempt
to get the IC job? Is this story true? Inquiring minds want to know.
If it IS true, then you got what you deserved. NOTHING.

Tell us more, Pablo...



FidoNews 10-04                 Page 22                     25 Jan 1993


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


Elections in FidoNet
by Glen Johnson 1:2605/269

Howdy ...

First of all, there was a typo in my last Snooze article. Don Dawson
is RC16, not RC18. Sorry Don.

I've been hearing from a few people, even reading in the Snooze,
about point systems and BBS users having "rights" or voting
privileges in FidoNet. A novel concept, indeed.

But, I gotta oppose that one, friends. See, a point system, by
definition, is an extension of an existing Fidonet Node. Points
are not subject to policy; they don't have to be up during Zone Mail
Hour, they don't even have to run compliant mailers. As long as they
can get stuff from the bossnode or send stuff to the bossnode, they
can exist. Points can pretty much do as they please. If a point sysop
wants to vote, etc., he or she should get a node number and run with
policy 4 like the rest of us. As a matter of fact, if there are
point sysops that feel that strongly about having a say in Fidonet,
I'd ENCOURAGE them to come out into the mainstream!

BBS users are another story altogether. Again, Fidonet is an amateur
electronic mail network made up of member nodes. By definition, its
a network of computer bulletin boards, physical systems, not "users".
BBS users contribute precious little, if anything, toward the actual
operation of the network. BBS users write echomail messages, and
sometimes netmail messages, that's it. They are not involved in the
operation of the network. Giving BBS users a vote in things not only
doesn't make sense, the potential for fraud is real high. Nothing to
stop an unscrupulous BBS sysop from inventing 500 users, sticking
them in his user file, and having them all vote.

The only people that should have a say in "how things work" are
those people that actually make up the entity. Those people are
the Fidonet sysops. You remember them, right? They're all in the
nodelist.

Anyway, that's just my .02 ...

Thank You Rick Moen, for not beating on me in your last Snooze
article. It hurt so good :)

Now, Policy 4.1 ...

I think Rich Wood submitted a Snooze article last week. Looks like
it didn't make it. I understand that the article contained the
entire text of Policy 4.1c, which is probably WHY it didn't make
it. Perhaps Fidonews isn't really the place to disseminate policy
proposals. Sure would be efficient though :)

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 23                     25 Jan 1993


In any case, the document is available for file request from
1:2605/269, 1:2606/583, and 1:278/3 . The filename is POL41C.ARC .

I also understand that Bill Andrus, RC13, has made it available
for request too. Bill's address is 1:13/0 . He's also asked for
input from Region 13 on it. I hope other Zone 1 RCs will follow
suit.

All Zone 1 RCs have the file. If you can't get it, write to your
RC and ask for it. I'm told all the Zone Coordinators and the
International Coordinator have it too. READ IT!


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


         AIRPOWER Airgun Echo Now Available Via Backbone!
               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     AIRGUN, the EchoMail version of the AirPower Airguns message
base, is now being distributed via the zone 1 backbone for
importation by other FidoNet sysops!
     AIRPOWER has been online 24 hours per day since March of
1990, serving users across the nation interested in the pleasures
of shooting and collecting precision adult airguns.  Activities
covered include collecting, silhouette, field target shooting,
small game hunting, pest control, and many technical and legal
issues.  Precision airgunning represents shooting pleasure on a
human scale, without the excess power, noise, smoke, and harsh
recoil of firearms.  It is now one of the fastest growing of the
shooting sports, with enthusiasts across the nation.
     Please request AIRGUN now from your FidoNet hub!  For more
information, or if you have difficulty obtaining a feed, contact
me directly.
                            Jim Henry

                            1:273/408

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

 * Echo Announcement

Announcing the DBTECH Echo
Greg Shaffer 1:370/510

What is it?

- DBTECH is a *new* echo which will be moderated by an elected
moderator serving a set term. Its purpose will be to help those
desiring to seek technical assistance regarding the operation of
D'bridge, the FidoNet mailer package.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 24                     25 Jan 1993


Why is it?

- It is our idea that the echoes should reflect the new
democratic ideals that FidoNet is slowly but surely moving
towards. This echo will reflect those ideals in that the
participants will have the real power rather than the moderator.
An experiment in democracy if you will.

What's different about DBTECH?

- The participants will own the echo and will rule the echo
through a moderator of their choice rather than one who appoints
themselves and their successors. Below is an outline of the
guidelines that are currently being discussed.

1) The moderator will be elected by the participants once the
   echo is on the backbone.

2) The moderator will serve a set term as yet undecided in
   length, then there will be an election in which that same
   moderator may be re-elected.

3) The echo will not "belong" to the moderator but rather the
   participants of the echo. The moderator will have the power to
   control the echo on an individual basis but the participants
   as a voting group will have the final control.

4) The moderator will not have any connection, real or implied
   with either Mosaic Press or D'Bridge Software, the company
   other than of course, he owns a license to run D'Bridge.

5) Possibly a board of directors who will also be elected and
   who will choose among them a temporary moderator should
   something unforeseen occur and the active moderator be unable
   to complete his term.

6) No arbitrary decisions by the moderator regarding instant
   cutting of someone's feed. An offender should receive two
   -respecful- requests to comply via the echo and one final
   request via netmail. Should they fail to comply at that point
   then a 30 day read only suspension should go into effect. Any
   further action might possibly be a decision for the board of
   directors and the moderator. In this way noone will be denied
   support for D'Bridge unless there truly is cause for further
   action.

- We hope to mirror the new proposed Fidonet policy and its long
  awaited democratic ideals. The above items are by no means final
  as yet. Term limits and the actual rules as they will be Elisted
  will be decided by the participants. It is our intention to let
  the participants decide how the echo should be run.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 25                     25 Jan 1993


- It is our hope that the old saying "vote with your feet" which
  is constantly heard echoing throughout the halls of FidoNet will
  ultimately become "vote with your vote" as it should be. With
  FidoNet moving more and more towards becoming a truly democratic
  entity we certainly hope that the days of egotistical iron
  fisted control and abuse of power will also fade into the past.
  Hopefully DBTECH will be a successful step in that direction.

- The DBTECH echo is being monitored by Mosaic Press a.k.a.
  D'Bridge Software and the author has expressed a desire to
  participate and is currently active in the echo.

- Backbone status is currently being applied for. If you desire
  a feed in the interim please contact one of the systems listed
  below. Please note that these are only the acting hubs until the
  echo is active on the backbone.

- For further info and/or a temporary feed until DBTECH is on
  the backbone please contact one of the following:

Tim Wool - 1:370/20 (Temporary Moderator - Moderator of WC_TECH)
Ed Ivey - 1:3616/1
Luis Garcia-Barrio - 1:273/60
Andy Smith - 1:3645/1
Greg Shaffer - 1:370/510
Dick Castanie - 1:228/17
Tim Kahler - 1:273/20
Gary Bristol - 1:147/1234
Mark Moran - 1:2607/104


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


by Joaquim Homrighausen
   2:270/17@fidonet
   [e-mail]

                    HYDRA - A new file-transfer protocol

Hydra is a greek mythological creature (the watersnake). Like the Nemeic
lion, Hydra is the daughter of the giant Typhon and the snake Echidna.

She grew up in the marshes of Lerna near/in Argolis (Argos). There she
ate entire herds of cattle and destroyed large cropfields. Later, she
lived in caves on a hill near the spring of Amymone.

Hydra is a monstrous large snake with nine heads: eight mortal ones, and
one (the middle one) immortal. She was defeated and killed by Heracles
(Hercules) - son of Zeus and Alcemene, grandson of Perseus - as the
second of his twelve tasks, with the help of his cousin Iolaos. Every
time he cut of one of the heads with his sword, two new heads grew in
its place. So Iolaos scorched the wound of each cut off head with
burning branches so the head couldn't grow on again.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 26                     25 Jan 1993


Heracles buried the last and immortal head under a stone nearby. He also
dipped his arrows in Hydra's poisonous blood, thereafter the wounds
caused by those arrows were incurable.

.. so it is said anyway.

With this, I'd like to introduce the file-transfer protocol named after
the above described creature, HYDRA. Designed by myself and Arjen Lentz,
it has now been released to the public with complete speficiations,
source in C/ASM to an implementation, and executables to same
implementation (HydraCom, by Arjen Lentz).

HYDRA is a bi-directional protocol, meaning that it can transfer file
data in both directions, on full-duplex lines, simultaneously.

For more information, file request HYDRA from 2:270/17 or 2:283/512.
This should give you HYDRAKIT.ARJ. You may also specifically request
HYDRAKIT.LZH. An EchoMail conference by the name of HYDRADEV
("Discussions about the HYDRA file-transfer protocol") has also been
established and will hopefully appear on the US 'bone structure.

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

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 27                     25 Jan 1993


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

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

Editors: Tom Jennings, Tim Pozar
Editors Emeritii: Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell, Vince Perriello

IMPORTANT NOTE: The FidoNet address of the FidoNews BBS has been
changed!!! Please make a note of this.

"FidoNews" BBS
    FidoNet  1:1/23                     <---- NEW ADDRESS!!!!
    Internet  [e-mail]
    BBS  [phone],  300/1200/2400/16800/V.32bis/Zyxel

(Postal Service mailing address) (have extreme patience)
    FidoNews
    c/o World Power Systems             <---- don't forget this
    Box 77731
    San Francisco
    CA 94107 USA

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 1992 Tom Jennings. All rights reserved.  Duplication and/or
distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use in
other circumstances, please contact the original authors, or FidoNews
(we're easy).


OBTAINING COPIES: The-most-recent-issue-ONLY of FidoNews in electronic
form may be obtained from the FidoNews BBS via manual download or
Wazoo FileRequest, or from various sites in the FidoNet and Internet.
PRINTED COPIES may be obtained from Fido Software for $10.00US each
PostPaid First Class within North America, or $13.00US elsewhere,
mailed Air Mail. (US funds drawn upon a US bank only.)

BACK ISSUES: Available from FidoNet nodes 1:102/138, 1:216/21,
1:125/1212, (and probably others), via filerequest or download
(consult a recent nodelist for phone numbers).

A very nice index to the Tables of Contents to all FidoNews volumes
can be filerequested from 1:396/1 or 1:216/21. The name(s) to request
are FNEWSxTC.ZIP, where 'x' is the volume number; 1=1984, 2=1985...
through 8=1991.

FidoNews 10-04                 Page 28                     25 Jan 1993


INTERNET USERS: FidoNews is available via FTP from ftp.ieee.org, in
directory ~ftp/pub/fidonet/fidonews. If you have questions regarding
FidoNet, please direct them to [e-mail], not the
FidoNews BBS. (Be kind and patient; David Deitch is generously
volunteering to handle FidoNet/Internet questions.)

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 BBS, or Wazoo filerequestable
from 1:1/23 as file "ARTSPEC.DOC". Please read it.



"Fido", "FidoNet" and the dog-with-diskette are U.S. registered
trademarks of Tom Jennings, Box 77731, San Francisco CA 94107, USA and
are used with permission.



    Asked what he thought of Western civilization,
    M.K. Gandhi said, "I think it would be an excellent idea".

-- END

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