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Monster Media 1994 #1
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WILDCAT
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WCBBS13.ZIP
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CH.12
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1994-01-25
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173 lines
GET SOME DOORS
A popular feature on any bbs is doors. You will want
to provide your users with some on-line games and
other types of interesting auxiliary programs. Doors
are sub-programs that run after "swapping" out and
away from the main bbs program. This is where some
extra memory may come in handy! Although most games
doors and the like are meant to run on a traditional
512K of conventional RAM. But realize that running
the main board takes up a goodly amount of RAM. So
having some extra RAM memory chips is not a bad idea.
Like was mentioned previously: about 8M of RAM memory
ought to take care of most of your memory-demands.
Doors come usually in ziped files, if you get them
from another BBS, or packaged with an installation
disk if you buy them in a store! Installing doors
could be one of your biggest headaches. I know they
were a mystery to me for a good while. And if I get
away from it for a while now, they are a mystery all
over again!
Doors usually run on two configurable files: a .CFG
file and a .BAT file. The .CFG file is the set of
customized instructions the .exe or .com file needs
to operate; the .BAT file is the immediate
instructions for the Door to begin operating at all,
and it tells the computer where the .cfg file is
located. This is also the place where compatible
DOOR.SYS files are made, or system files. The system
file tells who is on line, at what baud rate etc. It
is vital for the running of a door! There are a
variety of system files, unfortunately, due to the
variety of bbs software. Wildcat uses the newest
version of DOOR.SYS to get the information. This
file is temporarily created when a caller calls and
is placed in the C:\WC30\WCWORK\NODE1 directory, on
my system anyway! The entire file name then is:
C:\WC30\WCWORK\NODE1\DOOR.SYS
When the caller logs off this file is deleted and
then when a new caller calls it is recreated with the
current information. Since all bbs programs do not
use current or similar system files, you need to look
in the DOC file of the game (every door has a .DOC
file of some kind: a SYSOP.DOC file or a GAME.DOC
file or .TXT file or some kind of ascii instructions
for the person who is installing the door! In this
file you will find ALL of the instruction you need to
install the door, although a lot of it is not
necessary to read. You will come to learn what is
necessary and what is not, in time. But for the time
being we are dealing with the system file which IS
absolutely necessary for the running of the door. The
type of system file which that particular door is
looking for will be identified in this file. But what
if it asks for something other than a DOOR.SYS file,
which most older doors will - what do I do then?
Simple: if it asks for a CALLINFO.BBS file (which the
older Wildcat programs handled) then you simple must
CONVERT your DOOR.SYS into a CALLINFO.BBS format! -
by using a system file converter such as CATPORT.
This will be the first command in the .bat file,
which will take the DOOR.SYS and changed it into the
format this particular door is looking for. Easy!
It is NOW, for me! But it took me a while to figure
it all out! If it called for a DORINFO1.DEF follow
the same procedure only make the proper selection of
the type of file you need converting into. A breeze!
The next part of the .bat file is usually the
location of the door on your system, and then the
program file, and config file. For example:
CATPORT 0 C:\WC30\DOOR14\ (1)
C: (2)
cd\WC30\DOOR14 (3)
MMAKER MMAKER.CFG (4)
This is for a Matchmaker Door.
Line (1) The Catport conversion to
CALLINFO.BBS.
Line (2) Door Drive Identification
Line (3) Changing to Door Directory
(you can name this anything you want -
here it is a subdirectory of the
Wildcat home directory).
Line (4) The program file; the config
file name to run the program.
A typical .CFG file would look like this:
TOWN SQUARE BBS (1)
Bill Dinga (2)
19200 (3)
382938 (4)
3 (5)
Line (1) Name of BBS!
Line (2) Sysops Name
Line (3) Locked Baud Rate
Line (4) Registration Number
Line (5) Number of games allowed / day.
Some doors have a very sophisticated configuration
process that you are led through in a SET-UP program.
It asks all kinds of questions about the system etc.
like the Com Port, a path and file name for generated
score screens etc. You MUST follow the .DOC file to
tell you how to do all of these things.
O yeah and be sure to alert Makewild to the fact that
you have XX amount of doors! Then re-boot the
machine! This will make the space for the doors.
And don't forget to give whoever you want access to
these doors in the Security Profile part of Makewild,
or no one will be able to get in.
And also put this line in your Autoexec.bat file:
SET WCNODEID=1
it will come in handy somewhere along the line I
am sure.
You might want to edit your config.sys file as well:
FILES=45
BUFFERS=45
INSTALL C:\DOS\SHARE.EXE /f:1024 /l:50
DEVICE=C:\X00.SYS E
STACKS 18,256
These are some useful hints and programs you need
to run certain doors. SHARE is part of DOS. The
X00 program is a fossil driver. The stacks can
be raised the first part in increments of 9; the
second part in increments of 128 if the system
locks while doors are running.
This is the only drawback to having doors on your
board ... LOCK UPS ... When the system locks
there is no way to unlock it except to reboot the
system. If you are not home when it locks...it is
locked until you get home! and you could have
some pretty irate users who couldn't get on the
board all day or night ! There are programs
that reboot after a period of inactivity on the
system ... but I haven't found a fool-proof one
yet!
There are all kinds of doors to put on your system.
Game doors are the most popular. They come in all
kinds and types from mind-bender games to
role-playing and sports games! Matchmaker Doors are
also popular, as are Storyboard Doors. Personality
Test Doors are even popular as well. As are Poll
Doors ( or voting booths)! New doors are being made
all of the time. Just look in the DOORS section of
your favorite bbs and check for file dates!