MEBBSNet v1.0 SCHEDULED FOR RELEASE 
  
THE FOLLOWING IS COPYRIGHT (C) 1993, MEBBS ENGINEERING AND SOFTWARE. 
 
This electronic document is freely redistributable provided it is 
made available in its ENTIRETY, and may NOT be modified, altered, prefixed, 
or appended to in any fashion without the express written permission of 
MEBBS Engineering and Software. 
  
  
MEBBS Engineering and Software is pleased to announce a release date 
for MEBBSNet BBS v1.0 of August 31st, 1993. 
  
As you may know MEBBS Engineering and Software purchased StarNet BBS 
from the previous owner last fall and has used the ensuing months to 
perform major rewrites, build in numerous changes and fix existing 
problems. 
  
Among the enhancements, fixes, and changes you can expect to see in 
MEBBSNet v1.0 are: 
  
 o DRASTIC reduction in executable size. The MEBBSNet executable is 
   now under 290k vs. 380k+ for StarNet. (Possibilities are good it 
   will shrink even further before release as fine tuning continues). 
  
 o DRASTIC reduction in the amount of system STACK usage. MEBBSNet 
   only requires a 20k stack for operation (Down from 60k in StarNet). 
  
 o DRASTIC increase in execution speed. Sophisticated programming 
   techniques and removal of 'busy loops' have resulted in incredible 
   speed increases in system operation. 
  
 o Removal of all Enforcer and MungWall problems. The software has 
   been converted to TRUE 32bit base-relative addressing, and uses a 
   'vanilla' compile (no switches needed at compile time). 
  
 o WorkBench v1.3 Compatable. 
  
 o Complete new file transfer protocol operation. Existing file transfer 
   protocols have been completely removed (and suffered a horrible, fiery 
   death :-)). XPR protocols are now used for file transfers, and are 
   Sysop configurable via an included GUI utility. There is no hardcoded 
   limit to the number of XPR's you may use. (Hooks are in place to allow 
   XPR protocols to be configurable by accesslevel in v2.0) 
  
 o Libraritized Task Management system keeps memory usage to a minimum 
   while maintaining a secure and stable environment. 
  
 o 3rd Party Developers Library and programming support 
   (MEBBSutility.library). Developers are furnished full library 
   information, example code, and complete documentation in 'autodoc' 
   format. 
  
 o 3rd Party Developers are assured upwards compatability with new releases 
   of the MEBBSutility.library -- no more recompiling when a new version is 
   released. If it works under MEBBSNet v1.0, it WILL work under future 
   releases. 
  
 o Graphic User Interface (GUI) utilities for Editing system configuration, 
   Users, and Files (MEBBScfg, MEBBSue, MEBBSfl). Library functions available 
   for 3rd party developers to write software that will access these features 
   via remote operation. 
  
 o Support for alternate character sets. 
  
 o Full Internal ASCII string configurability. This includes not only the 
   text itself, but also the Menu Command letters. 
  
 o Serial I/O has been rewritten from the ground up with an eye on stability 
   and speed. 
  
 o Support for 16,800 bps modems. (Early betatesting has shown 16,800 bps 
   file transfers to exceed 1950 cps on binary files, with more improvement 
   likely before release.) 
  
 o NEW Modem Compiler 
  
 o NEW Menu Compiler 
  
 o NEW ARexx port (with MORE features) 
  
 o NEW Nodelist Compiler (MEBBSnlp) 
  
 o CLI Door support. 
  
 o Emulator for running existing StarNet doors. 
  
 o NEW Line-oriented Message Editor (Full-Screen Editor(s) are already in 
   development by 3rd parties at this time). 
  
 o All file I/O code rewritten. (No more 'lost' files.) 
  
 o Internal File Indexing routines rewritten using linked-lists. ReIndexing 
   now is fast as well as easy on the CPU. 
  
 o Support for alternate 'FrontEnds' rewritten for proper operation. 
  
 o Internal FrontEnd now supports EMSI. 
  
 o NEW Tosser/Packer (MEBBStoss), is 5x faster than the previous Tosser/ 
   Packer and supports 4-D Addressing. 
  
 o Mail packets are processed in chronological order. No more reading 
   replies before the original. 
  
 o Point.CTL file removed. All point information is contained in Areas.ctl 
  
 o PassThru.ctl removed. All Passthru information is contained in Areas.ctl 
  
 o Tagnames are no longer tied to a particular messagebase #. If you move 
   a messagebase from one area to another, Areas.ctl no longer needs 
   to be modified. 
  
 o If a FidoNet (c) network transfer is aborted ALL files contained in the 
   .FLO file are reinserted for later transmission. (This includes file- 
   attaches, .tic files, etc..) 
  
 o NewUser Login has been rewritten for more logical operation. The old 
   problem of a newuser entering an existing handle no longer dumps them 
   back to the beginning. 
  
 o NodeList search function rewritten for proper operation. 
  
 o MEBBSbase now removes 'holes' (deleted file #'s) from the filebases 
   upon initialization (aka 'NOGAPS'). 
  
 o General reorganization of the system for more logical operation. For 
   FidoNet(c) systems, Areas.ctl now handles 4-D Addressing, Passthrus, 
   and tagnames. 
 
 o All user-configurable text files (.ctl) now reside in the MEBBSnet:S 
   directory. A Sysop now need only look one place to find configurable 
   textfiles. 3rd party developers are encouraged to use this reorganization 
   change for their utilities also. 
  
 o Log files now are more descriptive and consistant. This will allow for 
   3rd party utilities for billing, and other things that rely upon system 
   logs for operation to operate easier and with greater efficiency. 
  
 o Modem Dial-out functions have been completely rewritten. 
  
 o Eight Support Site systems available 24 hours a day to registered users. 
   Four are located in the United States, 1 each in Australia, Denmark, 
   Sweden, and the United Kingdom. All are available via FidoNet(c) and  
   some are available via alternate networks. 
  
 o Support is taken VERY SERIOUSLY by MEBBS Engineering and Software 
   and every effort will be taken to address problems encountered by 
   registered licensees. 
  
 o Software Upgrade Fees, MEBBSNet v1.0: 
  
    Registered StarNet licensees: NO CHARGE 
  
 o Documentation Upgrade Fees, MEBBSNet v1.0: (Not set at this time) 
  
    A completely new manual will be made available upon release. Due to  
    printing costs, it will be made available at our cost (We are NOT in 
    the manual selling business!). Cost has not been determined at this 
    time, and will be set after quotes have been received from printers. 
 
Roger Walker 
Director, MEBBSNet BBS Product Development 
MEBBS Engineering and Software