Shareware Overload/ShartewareOverload.cdr/comm/kifto.zip/KIFTO.TXT

Text File | 1990-06-12 | 23KB | 433 lines

                     The Knight Light ! USA

                       In Association with :

                The Eagle's Nest and TKL ! Holland

                       Proudly  Announces


                            K.I.F.T.O.


          (Knight Interplanetary File Traders Origanization)


Why the "Interplanetary" ?

Well I wanted it easily understood that members will be welcome from all
over the Globe ! If someone starts a Martian BBS, they can join also !

Who owns K.I.F.T.O. ?

Knight Light ! Inc. is the Parent Company and is solely owned by Robert J.
Brown, author of this documentation.

Knight Tape Services is a division of TKL ! Inc. with ownership as :

Knight Light ! Inc. -  51 %  (Full Voting Privileges)
Unique Systems, Inc -   5 %    "     "    "        "
Republic Enterprises-   5 %    "     "    "        "
Willem Schotman     -   5 %    "     "    "        "
Reserved            -  10 % to be awarded by Board of Directors with TKL !
                            Inc.'s approval with no individual presently an
                            owner being allowed any further holdings,except
                            the General Membership. General Membership  -
                       24 % Voting power is = to % / # of members per
                            member. i.e. 24/240 = .10 vote per member.
                     ------
                Total 100 %

Sometime between the 18 th and 24 th month of commencement of actual full
operations, and after election of Officers for the second year, Knight Light
! Inc. will sell/return 46% of its holdings in Knight Tape Services to the
General Membership. From inception, except for Knight Light ! Inc., no
individual or member may own more than 5% of Knight Tape Services or have
larger than a % 5 voting power in K.I.F.T.O.

What this basically means is that I retain enough control to get the
Organization up and running. After a period of developement, the principle
ownership will be help by the Membership. This is designed to prevent any
outside controlling factor to be dictatorial in its power, after the 18 to
24 month period mentioned above. If warranted, and at its sole discretion,
Knight Light ! Inc., may make the above move sooner than the 18 to 24 month
period previously specified.

Once ownership is passed from TKL ! Inc. to Knight Tape Services, it will be
a totally seperate entity and TKL ! Inc. control will be only its 5%
remaining stock.

What does K.I.F.T.O.do ?

The purpose is a Network of BBS's that will share their files with other
member BBS's.

How will this be done ?

There will be a series of HUBs created where members will send Tapes that
contain new files added to their BBS over a specified period of time.
Usually once a week. The HUBS will compile these files into a consolidated
tape and return the updates to each Member BBS. Also, the HUBS will forward
a copy to the World (or other HUBS) which will consolidate those and return
to the indidvidual HUBS. HUBS will then add these to its Memeber's Tapes on
the next  cycle and the process repeats.

Where are ? Who are the HUBS ?

The "World" HUB is TKL ! USA located in Memphis,Tn. 901-274-0797 BBS #. P.O.
Box 22401, Memohis,Tn. 38122,  Sysop - Rob Brown.

The "European" HUB is The Knight Light ! Holland 31-35-838075 located in
Amsterdam, Holland, Sysop - Willem Schotman.

The "Mid-Western" HUB is The Eagles Nest BBS Systems in Wichita, KS, P.O.
Box 17154 67217, 316-946-5696. Sysops - Richard Thompsom, Paul Smith, and
John Wilson.

The Knight Light ! USA will be granted the Privilege of being the "World"
Hub for a period of 25 years Knight Light Inc. and that may not be changed
by K.I.F.T.O.

The Knight Light ! Holland  and Eagle;s Nest (per Paul Smith) will be
granted their status for 10 Years.

Unique Systems, Inc. as principle author of the Software Commissioned by
Knight ! Inc. Will retain the right to have a Member BBS (Not guaranteed a
HUB) at any location he choses, if he is ever separated from his present
location at the Eagle's Nest. This is to ensure ease of support by him and
as a small reward for the countless hours spent developing the software.
This guarantee WILL NOT be used in a manner to inhibit that territory
already claimed by a Member or Members as outlined by the Territorial
Limitations to be developed at a later time.


Requests for HUB status will be taken from the general Membership and will
be assigned on a NEED and Appropriateness Basis. It is thought that a HUB
will normally support 12 to 16 other Members.

Members will be assigned a HUB in a random fashion to ensure that Files are
disbursed as evenly as possible over a large area. i.e. a HUB in Kansas
might be assigned Members from Canada, Florida, NewYork, and so on. In other
words, a member specifically will NOT be assigned a HUB geographically close
to his own location. Members in other countries will be required to work
with a Hub within a reasonable distance, BUT not necassarily in their home
country. Do to the expense of over seas mailing, USA to Europe transfers
will be made via TKL ! Holland to TKL ! USA or another Regional HUB as
desided by TKL ! USA. When possible as allowed by growth, additional HUB to
HUB Transfers across continents will be encouraged. i.e. TKL ! Holland may
send their tapes one time to TKL ! USA, and the next time to a HUB in
Maryland and so on. All HUB to HUB transfers will be routed by K.I.F.T.O.

This all sounds so complex, how is it done ?

Well, software is presently being Beta tested that will remove all the hard
work, with the exception of putting in and removing the Tapes, from the
whole process ! (the software works it is just being tweaked)

Software will be provided by an Exclusive License Agreement with Unique
Systems, Inc. to Knight Light Inc. that will automate the entire process as
much as possible. For example, on a Wildcat 2.xx, a Member receives his
Tape, copies it onto his Hard Drive, starts the software and the File
Descriptions are added to his Database, File dates are Updated, and the
files are moved into the appropriate sub-directories. Just THAT simple. To
create a Tape, software is called up, COPIES all files from a given date
into a Sub-dir and is then backed up on tape, The File Descriptions are
added from the database and are copied onto the tape, If enough space is not
available on a Hard Drive to do this in one step, the softwware will
Automatically do it in as many repetitions as is needed ! The same examples
hold true for PCB and ProDoor BBS's and more will be added as demand grows !

For HUBs the process is similiar, Hubs receive tapes from members, copies
them to seperate directories, a database is made and a consolidation of all
files is done, eliminating duplicates, and creating the needed File
Descriptions. HUBs then merely make as many duplicates as is needed and
forwards them back to the members and the World, Regional, or even other
HUBs.

The softwware is Share - LAN - DOS 3.3 - DOS 4.01 compatible. It can be
operated by Menus or automated on a Command Line. I have personally tested
these products across a LanTastic LAN,under DesqView, Wildcat, QEMM, Super-
PC Kwik, V-Cache, ProDoor, and many other programs. Testing has also been
performed under Novell, (3Com yet to be tested), and other SHARE and , LAN
NetBios compatable packages, with PCBoard single and Multi-Line versions.

SOFTWARE USE
        CATFM PROFESSIONAL - PCBFM PROFESSIONAL - SNATCH PROFESSIONAL

The software has been well thought out and Members of K.I.F.T.O. will be
licensed to use "Special" versions that WILL NOT be available from the author
or anywhere else to Non-Members ! Notice the Licensed to USE ! Members DO NOT
OWN the Software, nor does K.I.F.T.O. Ownership is retained by Unique Systems,
Inc. and an Exclusive License is issued only to Knight Light ! Inc.  Knight
Light ! Inc, and eventually K.I.F.T.O. are the ONLY authorized Licensees with
the power to sub-license Members of K.I.F.T.O. this means that a Member CANNNOT
continue to use the software if for any reason their Membership is not in "Good
Standing."

Besides these three programs, members will be provided other Software, but the
above indicated License Agreements will apply to all software distributed by
K.I.F.T.O.

Why or Who should join ??

Any Sysop that spends money on LD calls, desires to improve the File
selection available to his callers, and wishes to gain USER support MUST
consider this a COST saving and effective means to accomplish these and
other goals. Additionally, Shareware Authors will be likely to call a
Member BBS and upload New Versions , assured of the Quick dispersal that
K.I.T.F.O. offers. Member Sysops will also suggested to target certain BBS's
in their areas for files that are usually written by the Sysop of that BBS.
A good example might be Verne Buerg's BBS.

Remember, this is a WORLD WIDE Organization , with strong interest already
being shown in the USA, Canada, Spain, England, and Holland.

By controlling costs, ensuring File Selection, and other Pluses, it should
be obvious that any power BBS should condsider joining K.I.F.T.O.


Other benefits : Membership will be limited by Geographical and Populational
relationships. How large a protected area a member has is determined by how
many peolple live in a given area, The larger the population, the smaller
the actual land area of protection. i.e. Memphis will likely only have one
member BBS, TKL ! USA and it will protect a 50 to 100 Mile area (not
necessarily circulor) around Memhis. New York City could have 3 members and
no further territorial rights. A formula will be worked out that also takes
number of nodes into consideration. along with the Geographical and
Populational factors. The idea is to LIMIT the number of BBS's in an given
area, as opposed to DROWNING any area with Members.


What happens when a Member wants to move his BBS to another area ???

If that area has been determined to be "Open" by the K.I.F.T.O., then all a
member does is packup and move. If on the other hand, that area is
determined as closed, a Member may "Sell" his rights to K.I.F.T.O., to any
BBS that is in any open territory. Final approval of such a SALE would be by
K.I.F.T.O only ! Buyers must agree to follow ALL K.I.F.T.O. rules, License
Agreements, and other stipulations in force at said particular time. NO SALE
of Membership is allowed or recognized as final until approved by K.I.F.T.O.
i.e. Member of a 3 Node BBS wants to sell out to a 100 Node BBS, but the 100
Nodes is in violation of the Territorial Rights granted other Members. Then
said sale will NOT be approved and Seller will have to look for a more
appropriate buyer. If a member moves, it will be more than likely that a new
HUB will be assigned to said member.

All Dissapproved Moves or Sales may be appealed to the General Membership,
but at NO time will a License Agreement be allowed to be violated ! The
License Agreements are PAT, and are only re-negotiable with the Original
Authors or his Representatives through Knight Light ! Inc. Remember,
K.I.T.F.O. does not actually own the software, but is itself a Liscensed
Dealer.


Actually, Bylaws will be written and voted on by the Membership shortly
after the actual implimentation of the original, loosely defined herein
plans.

How Much will it Cost ? Who makes Money ??

Trying to actually set the fees for joining is not possible at this time.
Once the number of Seriouly interested parties are determinded, a more
detailed and better put togther outline will be printed up and forwarded to
those who properly send in the enclosed registration. To pay for the
software licenses and provide HUBs with start up funds, I believe that the
initial fee will be in the area of $100 to $150 US Funds as a one time fee.
Small yearly dues will be assessed as voted on by the Membership to provide
necessary funds for the administration of K.I.F.T.O.

The original fee to join will be used to pay for the software, start the
orginization, and most of the remainder will be forwarded to the HUBS to
help pay for equipmemnt, maintenance, and hopefully a small profit for their
trouble. This organization is NOT designed to make anyone outside of the
authors of software, and HUBS a DIME ! It will surely save many of us a lot
money, and by promoting ones BBS, it is hoped to turn that into a profitable
adventure. It should be obvious that a HUB will have to dedicate a good
amount of drive space, CPU time, and personal effort to be effective. For
this reason, HUBs hopefully will make a small profit. (I intend to see they
do !)

What additional Equipment will be needed ?

Members will need a tape drive ! (Floppy support can be provided but it
probably would add enough to the cost for a member to justify buying a tape
drive). The "Official" tape Drive will be the Colorado "Mountain Jumbo"
which will support 40 to 60 MEG tapes of precompressed data. Model Number is
DJ-10 or Equivalent. This drive is a low cost, highly reliable performer
that more than meets the requirements for a Member or HUB. Realizing that
many already own a tape unit, K.I.F.T.O. will try its best to assign a HUB
with compatible equipment. For those needing to purchase one of these units,
special arrangements are being made through UniQue Software in Kansas and
details will be in the forth coming updates to this documentation. NOTE :
ALL HUBS will be required to have one of these UNITS in addition to ANY
other TAPE Drives they might presntly have.

DO NOT run out and buy this Tape Drive ! This is the suggested unit BUT
after reviewing all applications and receiving the expected input, the
actual Tape Drive that K.I.F.T.O. will require MIGHT change !

More Details :

A member will create his tape and forward it to his HUB, sending the Money
for the return to him of his updated listings, PLUS $1.00 US Funds or so. The
$1.00 will be used by the HUB to send the consolidated tapes to the Regional,
World, or other HUBS as determined in the preset plan of K.I.F.T.O. This is to
help ensure that HUBS do not have to financially support their members needs. It
is explicitly the other way around !

Is should be obvious that if you spend $50.00 US Funds or so a month on phone
bills, and/or have big plans for your BBS, you are a Prime Candidate to benefit
from K.I.F.T.O. membership.

This is a First come First served opportunity, BUT, appropriateness of
Membership will be reviewed by the present K.I.F.T.O Board of Directors and
approval of membership is jointly by them and Knight Inc. If you fit the very
liberal requirements, your application will be approved and you will be
provided further documentation to assist you in finalizing your decission of
whether to join or not.

Present Board = Rob Brown
                Willem Schotman
                Paul Smith
                Richard Thompson
                John Wilson

All HUBS granted Regional Status and ABOVE will be on the Board
automatically! (Until first Election of Officers is carried out.)



What files will be supported ?

All Shareware, Freeware, Public Domain, and Demo Software that is allowed to
be passed via a BBS. this includes the normally recognized files, as well as,
.GIF, Adult, and others ! ALL Members retain the right to elect to use only
the files they prefer. HUBS will have the ability to easily NOT include for
instance .GIF files in your tape, if you prefer not to receive them. And of
course at a later time you could elect to start receiving any previously
rejected file types. COmmercial Software WILL NOT be PASSED by this NETWORK
unless a License to do so is Granted K.I.F.T.O. Pirate Boards are
specifically EXCLUDED and if a Member is determined to have a Pirate BBS,
then his Membership will be REVOKED !

As the Membership grows, every effort will be made to ensure that HUBs have
members that desire to support similiar files. Regional Hubs and above will
HAVE to distribute all files that K.I.F.T.O. elects to support.

All compression methods can be supported, but ZIP is the easiest. Converting
from most compressions to others is not that difficult. ZIP, LHZ. ARC, PAK,
and others can be handled, either by a Member converting or the HUBs.

Members have the right to reject files, what about rights to include only
certain files in the updates sent to the HUBs ?

Members will be REQUIRED to share 100 % of the files that are present on
their respective BBS's, that are LEGAL to distribute ! All member BBS's will
be monitored to ensure that each is sending all files as desired by
K.I.F.T.O. i.e. a Author uploads a couple of Great Shareware Games to your
BBS, well on the next cycle, YOU WILL send them out with all the other files.
the Territorial Protection is there to keep it exclusive to your BBS for a
extended period anyway ! No hedging will be allowed.

Are there any additional Benefits ?

Quite a few in fact. Suppose your HD crashes and you have incomplete backups.
The Regional HUBs will maintain backups and you can be sent these FED X, at
your expense, and be back in business FAST at a low cost ! To UPS Overnight
10 tapes costs about $5.00 US Funds!!! This is considerably less expensive than
a individual BBS maintaining a complete Backup of all files. I for one would
recommned that a Member BACKup his Software that actualy runs the BBS and let
K.I.F.T.O. handle the chore of maintaing the File Backups !

As stated B4, a Member BBS is quite likely to draw a larger share of their
areas Users and combined with other features K.I.F.T.O. will provide, this
should easily help a member to outpace his presently compareable competition.

K.I.F.T.O. will allow a BBS to start supporting Files that were not easily
sourced from scratch. A good example might be Amiga or MAC files.

K.I.F.T.O. will constantly maintain a Relationship with The National Assoc-
iation of Shareware Professionals and other groups dedicated to the advance-
ment of the Shareware and/or Public Domain concepts. Possibly, a Registration
process and other Mutual Benefits could be worked out using K.I.F.T.O. as the
catalyst !

These are just a few examples ! Having proposed this idea to many Sysops in
the US, Canada, and Europe, I found the interest was EXTREMELY HIGH !

We will work on a Format to begin Operations on or B4 the end of July, 1990!
This requires that all interested apply NOW ! you can make your final decision
later. DO NOT HESITATE if INTERSESTED ! If you do, you will find yourself
left out and someone else in your place !


General Criteria for Membership :

You must be a SYSOP that is Presently up and running  24 Hours a day.

You should have 100 + Megs of Storage and the more the better. (HUBs will
have to have considerably more permanently free space than a Member) You can
join with less, but not as a HUB, if you intend to add more in the very near
future ! Most of the BBS's I have discussed HUB statuss with have between 1/2
to 3 Gigs !!! We will initially send newer files with others being acquired as
possible.

It is suggested that you run or plan to run a Multi-Node setup. The more
nodes you have, the larger protected proportion you have in your area !

Wildcat ! 2.xx, PCB Boards 12.00 and up, ProDoor BBS's, and any with
compatible File Bases are immediately supported. If you run a NON-Supported
format, join up ! Your fee will be due when your format is Supported and BBS
types that have the most joiners will be supported FIRST ! Many of you
already have software or can write software that will convert your Format to
Wildcat or PCBoard Types. If so, you can join and start immediately.

BTW, I honestly can say that the functions performed by the Software wriiten
by Paul Smith (ByteBrother) will amaze most of you as it already has me ! I
have been quietly promoting this idea for over a year,but only from the
writing of Paul, has the idea blossomed into reality !


Fill out the REG. Form in DETAIL ! There is a $10.00 US Funds application fee
to weed out the less serious. If you are rejected, your $10.00 will be
returned, minus the cost to send it back to you ! (This is VERY important
to European Apllicants !) If you are approved for membership, but later
reject it, your money was alredy spent on Prnting and Shipping and NO REFUND
will be made !


PLEASE, DO NOT CALL the above BBS's for INFO ! Send in the FORM and wait for
the reply ! If very many call with questions now, it will just hold up the
actual prepartation for more specific data to be sent to serious applicants.
IN FACT, I will not respond to ANY question placed on my BBS about K.I.F.T.O.
until the above mentioned data is passed out ! I will make every effort to
spread more news on the RelayNet Echos, BUT remember, RelayNet, like most
other Echo Systems, has restictions on these type of formats.

Please realize that although this Documentation is very crude, many hours of
planning, writing, testing, along with a few thousand dollars of mine and
others money have been put into this project and it is well beyond the "Dream
Stage." In fact, a recent HD crash on a older XT on which I was writng the
original documentation caused a loss of over a 100 Hours of work that I had
almost finished. As usual, I was in to big a hurry, and had too many other
things to do, to back it up.

All the above mentioned entities are being Incorporated, with Patents,
Copyrights, and Trademarks being applied for ! Duplication of the above ideas
are ILLEGAL ! K.I.F.T.O. will ALWAYS prosecute any individual or company that
infriges on its protected rights !

Remember ! All applications are to be FORWARDED to KNIGHT LIGHT ! INC, at
P.O. BOX 22401 Memphis,Tn. 38122 ! NO ONE else can AUTHORIZE any application
or status in K.I.F.T.O. !

I sincerely hope that many readers will see the depth of such a project and
decide to support it from the onset ! The more (up to a point) the better !

Happy BBS'sing to ALL !

                    Rob Brown (Speed Merchant) Sysop TKL ! USA The Knight
                    Light ! 901-274-0797 P.O.Box 22401 , Memphis, Tn. 38122