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1990-04-29
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Designed -- Programmed █ █ █ █ █▄ █ █▄▄▄▄▀█ Beta Tested by
by █▄▀█▀▄█ █ █ █▀▄▄▄██ Ray Martini - The Edge
Michael Hamilton ▀█▄█▀ █▄█ ▄ █▄▄▄▄▄█ 508-688-8657
of the Fido 1:324/118
MysticWare/Hamsoft As Well As
Developers Group B. Murphy - Business Card
508-689-4493 508-682-5329
Fido 1:324/131 Fido 1:324/121
Copyright (c) 1990 by Mike Hamilton - All rights reserved!
Table of contents -
PART I - The Basics!
Section I.i.........................Introduction
Section I.ii........................Upgrading from 1.0
Section I.iii.......................Installation
Section I.iv........................Registering
PART II - The Works!
Section II.i........................Borrowing
Section II.ii.......................Depositing
Section II.iii......................Lending
Section II.iv.......................Robbing
Section II.v........................Viewing
Section II.vi.......................Withdrawing
Section II.vii......................Statements
PART III - Extras!
Section III.i.......................Support
PART I - The Basics!
Section I.i - Introduction
HamBank is, as the name implies, a Time Banking door for use on BBSs.
Currently, HamBank only supports XBBS (a great BBS program written by Mark
Kimes), QuickBBS (another good BBS program by the QuickBBS Group), and Remote
Access (a QuickBBS clone). If you would like to see HamBank run on your BBS
software type, please contact the author (see Section I.iv - Contacting the
Author).
HamBank is the smallest sized and quickest running Time Bank that
involves as much as this one does. There are many functions available to
your users when they are in HamBank. They are:
[B]orrow Time (see Section II. - Borrowing)
[D]eposit Time (see Section II. - Depositing)
[L]end Time to a Friend (see Section II. - Lending)
[Q]uit HamBank
[R]ob HamBank (see Section II. - Robbing)
[V]iew other Accounts (see Section II. - Viewing)
[W]ithdraw Time (see section II. - Withdrawing)
[Y]our Account Statement (see section II. - Statements)
The registered version of HamBank will let you configure each and
every color that is used in HamBank, as well as allow you to set the limit
for the amount of time a user can deposit, the maximum amount the user can
borrow and the borrowing interest rate, and the probability of a user
successfully robbing the bank and how much he or she will win of everyone's
time. See the sample configuration file for the default values that are
used.
Section I.ii - Upgrading from 1.0
To upgrade to v1.2 from v1.0, simply replace the HamBank.Exe and
TYM2*.Exe files found in your HamBank directory with the HamBank.Exe and
TYM2*.Exe files located in the HAMBNK12 archive. Delete HamBank.Wel - HamBank
v1.2 no longer uses the encrypted welcome screen. Read over WHATSNEW.1_2 that
is found in the HAMBNK12 archive to find out what's been changed with the new
version. That's all there is to it!
Section I.iii - Installation
In order to run HamBank, you will need each file that came in the
distribution archive. A list of the files required follows.
HAMBANK.EXE The actual program
HAMBANK.CFG The configuration file
HAMBANK.CLR The color configuration file
HAMBANK.WEL The welcome screen for HamBank
TYM2XBBS.EXE The program to save the users new time to XBBS
TYM2QBBS.EXE The program to save the users new time to QuickBBS
HAMBANK.DOC Documentation for HamBank (not necessary, really)
Place all of the above files in a separate directory from your BBS
directory (or in the same directory, but you really shouldn't clutter up
your BBS directory TOO much!). You MUST copy HAMBANK.WEL! If this file is
not present, HamBank will not run! If it is altered, HamBank will not run!
This is the only bit of 'security' I use. I believe that since I wrote the
program, I should at least have the right to tell people such! Whew.
If you have a registration number, edit the file HAMBANK.CFG. It
should look like this:
Your Name
Your BBS Name
Registration Number
Interest Rate for Borrowing Time
Maximum borrowing amount
Maximum depositing amount
Percentage of times a robbery is successful
Percentage of time the robber will win from accounts
You can have comments on any lines EXCEPT the first two. Comments
are anything that follows a semicolon. You must not have comments BETWEEN
lines, however. The first two lines should appear EXACTLY the way that you
sent to Mike Hamilton when you registered.
With the registered version, you can also define all the colors
that are used in HamBank. Edit the file HAMBANK.CLR to do this. Each line
has a comment on it that describes what that line's color is for. The
available colors are:
1 - Blue 5 - Magenta
2 - Green 6 - Yellow
3 - Cyan 7 - White
4 - Red
If you are running XBBS, you must create a menu option from one of
your menus that loads a batch file. You must either use the @Ed option or the
@EsCommand.Com /C option! Otherwise, the new time reflected by HamBank will
NOT be recognized by XBBS and thus defeat the purpose of a bank. I use
'@EdBankIt.Bat' as the command to load HamBank, you can also use
'@EsCommand.Com /C BankIt.Bat'. The batch file follows.
If you are running QuickBBS, you MUST use a type 15 exit (as of
QuickBBS v2.64). Without a type 15 exit, the information placed in
EXITINFO.BBS regarding the user's time will not be read by QuickBBS and the
purpose of HamBank will yet again be defeated.
You must now put HamBank in your batch file. If you are using
XBBS, you can put this batch file in your BBS directory. I named the batch
file 'BankIt.Bat' and it looks like this:
@Echo Off Don't want to see anything
CD \XBBS\HamBank Change to HamBank directory
HamBank E:\XBBS Load up HamBank
Tym2XBBS E:\XBBS Put the new time in ONLINE.XBS
CD \XBBS Change back to XBBS dir
Exit Get back to the board
The sole paramater for HamBank and TYM2?BBS is the path to your BBS
directory, or the directory that holds DORINFO1.DEF and ONLINE.XBS or
EXITINFO.BBS. If you decide to run HamBank out of your BBS directory, pass
an asterisk on the command line (i.e.: HamBank.Exe *).
If you are using QuickBBS, your batch file will be a bit different.
In your main QuickBBS batch file (the one that loads up your mailer or
QuickBBS), place an errorlevel check in it (the same errorlevel that you
used in the type 15 menu command above). An example would be:
:Start
QuickBBS -B%1 -T%3 -E0
Goto AfterQuick
:Restart
QuickBBS -R
:AfterQuick
If Errorlevel 55 goto HamBank (HamBank ErrorLevel)
If Errorlevel 1 goto Error
goto out
:HamBank
CD \QBBS\HamBank
HamBank C:\QBBS
Tym2QBBS C:\QBBS
CD \QBBS
goto Restart
:out
Echo Done!
This is a very lengthy interpretation, and yet many things have
been left out. Nevertheless, you should catch the general idea of how to
run HamBank under a QuickBBS environment. If you have any problems with
your batch files, feel free to contact the author.
HamBank can have two commandline options. They are:
B - Load HamBank only to return time for debts
M - Run HamBank in monochrome mode
Please read the WhatsNew file for a complete description of these two
command line paramaters. To pass a commandline paramater, simply run HamBank
with 'HamBank <PathToExitFiles> [Parm1] [Parm2] ...'. You MUST put the path
to the exit files FIRST, and all paramaters after.
The TYM2?BBS executable file that has been spoken about in this
file should have come in the HamBank archive. It is this file that updates
your BBS software so it knows how much time the user has on-line after
exiting HamBank. IF HAMBANK DOES NOT SUPPORT YOUR FAVORITE BBS TYPE, AND
YOU WISH IT TO, PLEASE CONTACT THE AUTHOR!
Section I.iv - Registering
I spent a lot of time on HamBank, making sure it does what it is
told and that it does not harm your board in any forseable way. I think it
is only fair that I be compensated for my efforts. Therefor, I am asking
you to send in a donation of $5 to register your copy of HamBank.
When you register HamBank, many new options will be made available
to you. You will then be able to configure how much a user can borrow and
the interest rate that is charged when borrowing. You will be able to
configure the maximum amount of time that a user can deposit in HamBank.
Also, you will be able to configure the probability of a robbery being
successful, as well as the percentage of time the robber will gain from
everyone's account. Finally, you will be able to define EACH AND EVERY
color used by HamBank in it's normal operation. That is quite a bit for a
small $5 donation! Please note, the $5 must be in US dollars; I currently
have no means of accepting foreign currency.
To register your copy of HamBank, send me a letter containing the
following information: Your name, Your BBS's name, your FidoNet address (if
applicable), your street address (with city, state, and zip!), and how you
want me to return your registration number (by mail (will send it to the
enclosed address), by NetMail (will send it to the enclosed FidoNet
address), or by a voice phone call (please enclose your telephone number as
well). Send all the above information to:
MysticWare Registrations
c/o Mike Hamilton
310 Berry Street
North Andover, Ma, 01845
There is an enclosed file, HAMBANK.REG, which you can print out and
use as your registration form.
PART II - The Works!
Section II.i - Borrowing
When a user picks 'B' from the menu, he will be shown a small
screen explaining what borrowing means. If your copy of HamBank is
registered, he will be allowed to borrow up to the amount found in
HamBank.Cfg (unlimited if the value in the CFG is 0) at the interest found
in the config file as well. Otherwise, HamBank will allow the user to
borrow 45 minutes at an interest rate of 20%.
A user will not be allowed to borrow time if he has time deposited
in the bank.
If a user decides to borrow, he will enter the amount he wishes to
borrow (up to the maximum amount). HamBank will then compute the interest
and inform the user how much he must return to the bank to pay off the
debt.
When a user has borrowed time, any amount of time he deposits from
that point on will be put towards paying off the debt. Only after he has
payed off the debt will he be allowed to borrow again or deposit into his
account. Even if he attempts to Rob the bank, his debt will still remain.
Section II.ii - Depositing
A user will only be allowed to deposit up to the amount found in
HamBank.Cfg (unlimited if HamBank is unregistered or the amount found in
HamBank.Cfg is 0). If the user has a debt to pay off, the amount the user
deposits will be put toward his debt until the debt is completely payed
off. Otherwise, depositing time into the account works normally.
Section II.iii - Lending
HamBank allows a user to lend some time to anyone else who is
currently listed as a HamBank member. The user must have time in his
account to lend; this is an account transfer, NOT a deposit into someone
else's account!
After a brief explanation of lending time, the user will be
prompted for the name of the person to lend time to. After the user inputs
this name, HamBank will scan the member list to see if the intended
receiver actually uses HamBank. If not, the user is brought back to the
Main Menu.
After finding the receiving user, HamBank will prompt the user for
the amount to lend. This can be any amount up to the amount deposited in
the user's account. If the amount the user wants to lend increases the
receiver's account past the maximum value for a deposit, HamBank will not
allow the transfer to be completed. (I know that sounds really confusing,
but you'll understand once you try it out...)
Once time has been lended, it is impossible for the user to get his
time back.
Upon the next log on, the receiver is notified that he has received
time. The sender is reminded that he has lent money as well.
Section II.iv - Robbing
Robbing the bank is a new idea. What it entails is this. The user
has a certain probability of successfully robbing the bank. If you have
registered HamBank, the probability is completely up to you (line 7 in
HamBank.CFG). Otherwise, the probability is 40%.
If the user fails in robbing the bank, he loses ALL time in his
account AS WELL AS all time for his current call! That'll teach 'em!
If the user succeeds, he receives a percentage of everyone's
account in HamBank. That percentage, if you have registered HamBank, is
configurable on line 8 of the config file. Otherwise, it is always 75% of
everyone's account.
Everyone who's account is affected by the robbery is notified that
they've been robbed and how much time was taken. The identity of the
robber is kept secret.
Section II.v - Viewing
Viewing the other accounts is simple and very straightforward. All
it does is show the user a list of all the accounts in HamBank. The format
is: Account number - Name of user - Time in the bank.
Section II.vi - Withdrawing
Withdrawing is very straightforward as well. If the user has time
in his account, he can withdraw it all or just a portion of it. That
amount is added to the remainder of his current call.
Section II.vii - Statements
An account statement simply tells the user:
1) If he has been robbed or not
2) How much time he has in the account
3) How much time he has borrowed
4) How much time he has lent out and to whom
5) How much time he has received and from whom
6) If HamBank is registered, who it has been registered to
PART III - Extras!
Section III.i - Support
I will support HamBank in the following way:
If you have any suggestions or (shudder) problems, there are a
multitude of ways you can get in touch with me. Please pick one of the
following:
1) Send a NetMail message to Mike Hamilton at 1:324/131. This is
by far the best way to get in touch with me since I'll most likely reply
within a few hours.
2) Log on to The Mystic Tribunal at (508)689-4493 and comment to
Mike Hamilton. The latest versions of any MysticWare are always
downloadable on your first call. Or, you can call any one of the
MysticWare support boards. They are:
The New EDGE BBS (508)688-8657 Fido 1:324/118 Lawrence, Ma. (2400)
The Business Card (508)682-5329 Fido 1:324/121 Lawrence, Ma. (14.4DS)
FunTime BBS (201)273-8709 Summit, NJ. (2400)
3) You are also able to pick up the 'MYSTICWARE' echo from me or
any of the above listed support BBSs. If things go right, MYSTICWARE may
even be on the backbone shortly!
4) The worst you could do would be to send SnailMail to MysticWare,
c/o Mike Hamilton at 310 Berry Street, North Andover, Ma, 01845. This is a
slow method, but if that's the way it has to be done, there's no stopping
it.