±±±±±±Ü ±±Ü ±±±Üܱ±±Ü ±±±±±±Ü ±±±±±±Ü ±±Ü ±±±Üܱ±±Ü ±±±±±±Ü ±±±±±±Ü ±±Ûß±±Û ±±Û ±±Û±±Û±±Û ±±Ûßßßß ß±±Ûßß ±±Û ±±Û±±Û±±Û ±±Ûßßßß ±±Ûßßßß ±±±±±Ûß ±±Û ±±Û ßß±±Û ±±±±±Ü ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ßß±±Û ±±±±±Ü ±±±±±±Ü ±±Ûß±±Ü ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Ûßßß ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Ûßßß ßßß±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±±±±±Ü ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±Û ±±±±±±Ü ±±±±±±Û ßß ßß ßß ßß ßß ßßßßßß ßß ßß ßß ßß ßßßßßß ßßßßßß ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³Canada Germany Mexico Norway³ ³ ³ Scotland ³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ³USA ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ÉÍÍÏÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÏÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» ³ ³Lichtenstein ³ º º ³ ³ ³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄĶ º ³ ³ ³ ³ º R E L A Y N E T º ³ ³ Japan ÀÄÄÄ´ º º ³ ³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ º ÇÄ¿ ³ ³ ³ ³ ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÑÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³Portugal ³ Puerto Rico³ ³ ÀÄÄÂÄÄÄÄ´ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄ´ ³ ³ ³ ³Australia ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ³United Kingdom ³ ³ ³ ³ Guam ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³Denmark ³ ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ ³ ³Holland Yuglosavia Peru Saudi Arabia³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ The RIME Times is published monthly by the membership of RelayNet International Message Exchange as its official newsletter. Users and Sysops are encouraged to contribute. Submissions and questions may be directed to the editor Michael Brunk, node ->CSPACE. (c)Copyright 1991, The RelayNet International Message Exchange. Permission is hereby granted for unlimited distribution and duplication, provided such distribution and duplication are strictly for non-commercial purposes only. All other rights reserved. RelayNet and RIME are registered trademarks. ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 ------------------------------------------------------------- CONTENTS EDITORS FILE 2 by John Dodson, Node id ->CANTINA CONFERENCE NEWS 2 by Skip Ross, Node id ->ACC PROHS PROSE 5 by Jim Prohs, Node id ->NITERIDE A RELAYNET SURVEY 7 by Bob Pauls, Node id ->PRESERVE 'C' TUTOR 8 by Doug Maclean, Node id ->RUNNINGB BEGINNERS CORNER 10 by Jim Daly, Node id ->TREASURE POETRY CORNER 11 Submitted by Inez Harrison, Node id ->MOONDOG LOGO CONTEST! 12 WE HEARD IT ON THE RIME VINE 12 NOTES FROM ADMIN 13 AS SEEN ON THE BIT STREAM 18 NOTICES 18 Page 2 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- +---------------------------------+ | EDITORS FILE | | | +---------------------------------+ by John Dodson, Node id ->CANTINA Welcome to the February issue of Rime Times! As you probably know, we skipped the January issue to give our regular contributors a break. There are a host of new conference announcements (sic), Doug Maclean is back with his great tutorials on the 'C' programming language, Jim Daly with his great communications tutorials and for our acculturation, we have a nice selection from the poetry conference and another classic work by Jim Prohs (Jim Prohs!? Culture!? from Nebraska!?). In short, we have managed to come back (most of us anyway!) with another great issue! This will be my 13th and last issue as Editor in Chief (important sounding title!) of Rime Times. Actually, I cannot claim the very first Rime Times issue as this was done by Michael Brunk. Michael is a person whose loyalty runs deep and he left RelayNet for a time when the regional HUB he was relaying with broke away to form another network. At the time, I was apparently the only one who had volunteered to do an article, so with his departure I got to be editor. (Here's the newsletter John, you're the editor, I'm leaving! ) Michael has been back for six or seven months, doing important things like becoming a father, and has kindly been coerced into taking his turn as Editor in Chief. (Actually, I think this job ought to be passed around about once a year.) I am still going to stick around and help out as a co-editor. We have some other co-editors who have volunteered (please see NOTICES). I am excited about having some 'new blood' with new ideas on board and I hope that more of you will be inspired to chip in too! After all, this IS the Best Little Network in the USA! (You guys in the Northern Hemisphere too! ) See you on the next Relay! +---------------------------------+ | CONFERENCE NEWS | | | +---------------------------------+ by Skip Ross, Node id ->ACC NAME: HIV/ARC/AIDS NUMBER: 247 DESCRIPTION: This is a public conference, and will allow the use of aliases in it. The purpose is to provide anyone interested with the latest information gathered by research groups and participants on the treatments available, progress, questions that anyone might have. gay bashing, and Victim bashing will not be Page 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- tolerated in any form. HOSTS: Hans Braun Node ID ->STUDS ACTIVITY: NEW NAME: Soap Operas NUMBER: 248 DESCRIPTION: This conference will discuss topics related to Day Time and Evening Soaps. Some of the topics to be discussed are: Who's coming and going among the Soaps, Your views on the characters and upcoming shows, and a general discussion on anything related this Soap Opera Conference. HOSTS: Philip Brown Node ID ->IVYTECH ACTIVITY: NEW NAME: SQL NUMBER: 249 DESCRIPTION: Conference dedicated to discussions on Structured Query Language HOSTS: David Patterson Node ID ->NORDIC ACTIVITY: NEW NAME: Psychology NUMBER: 251 DESCRIPTION: Conference dedicated to the discussion of Psychology HOSTS: Doug Haire Node ID ->HHDCBBS ACTIVITY: NEW NAME: USSR NUMBER: 252 DESCRIPTION: USSR/EAST-EUROPE International conference area focused on the Political/Economic/Cultural developments in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Topics include History, Language, Literature, Business opportunities as well as Political, Economic and Cultural issues.. HOSTS: John Lewis Node ID ->SANCTUM ACTIVITY: NEW Dennis, and anyone who might have missed my original announcement, this is the list of conferences that will be turned off at the Nethub on January 22,1991. NAME: Fine Arts NUMBER: 253 DESCRIPTION: An open forum for information exchange on: Galleries, museum shows, new artists, collecting, photography of art, painting, sculpture, and auction news. This conference is for anyone who would like to get involved in the art world, and novices are welcome. This conference will carry advertisements for upcoming shows, and also Artists Page 4 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Biographies, as well as listings for art to buy-or-sell. HOST: Jim Raridan Node ID ->ARTON ACTIVITY: NEW Date:02/03/1991 NAME: AutoMate NUMBER: 254 DESCRIPTION: This conference directly supports AutoMate, the automated add-in for Qmodem versions 4.XX. Technical support and discussion along with any future product suggestions welcome. Author hosted. HOST: Marc Hedish Node ID ->SCVPCUG ACTIVITY: NEW Date:02/03/1991 NAME: Flight Simulators NUMBER: 255 DESCRIPTION: This conference is for users of serious flight simulators (i.e., Microsoft Flight Simulator, Flight Sim: ATP, etc.). Realistic flying techniques, scenery design methods and all other aspects of computer flying are open for discussion. HOST: Nels Anderson Node ID ->XEVIOUS ACTIVITY: NEW Date:02/03/1991 Conference Host changes/additions are as follows: Conference Name NetHub # Host Node ID ====================================================================== UPLINK 4 Paul McGinness ->ACC UPLINK 4 Bob Litty ->MODEMZNE BBS-ADS 3 David Greenberger ->AARDVARK DOORS 4 Michael Lee ->REDLINE BEER 5 Ed Bachman ->EDSHOME SHAREWARE 6 Dennis McCunney ->RUNNINGB IBM 0 Bill Mertens ->MAGNET Legal 19 David Holm ->SALEMDUG Multi-Taskers 45 Dave Williams ->CHAOS Religion 76 Gerry Power ->CHANNEL Politics 78 Frank Scheidt ->CHARLIE Seniors 96 Bob Donahue ->BLUELK Ansi Code 109 Noel Gamboa Boyan 118 Justin Boyan ->EDSHOME Boyan 118 Lee Breeden ->RUNNINGA Boyan 118 Doug MacLean ->RUNNINGB GT BBS 162 Bryan Pike ->HAVEN Missing Children 193 Russell Coombs (Co-Host) ->SMCIS Pets 52 Sue Smith ->THEMAIN XYWrite 110 Steve Dubin ->MOONDOG XYWrite 110 Shelley Dubin ->MOONDOG Net # Conference Name ===== =============== Page 5 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 77 Neural Nets 107 OS/2 160 PCjr 164 Robots 171 WEB We will be terminating the link for this conference 172 Gossip We will be terminating the link for this conference 184 Cellular 189 PICK O/S 195 Real Estate +---------------------------------+ | PROHS PROSE | | | +---------------------------------+ by Jim Prohs, Node id ->NITERIDE The Demise Of The Hammer! Dedicated to Elaine Port (enter sound of a boom-box playing a loud rap beat...) It's January, nineteen hundred ninety and one, the HAMMER makes plans for some fun. With being single he will soon be done, A wedding is planned with his special Hon! Who is this bloke known as the HAMMER? Why can he sound fresh from the slammer? The HAMMER's been known to pack a mean punch, His name? well, you all have a good hunch. It's no secret he been around the block, the HAMMER sports a head that's hard as a rock. When he is angry dragon's fire doth fly, In his path you don't want to lie. Such a man in difficult to define, Reads those messages till practically blind. Paradoxically he is truly very kind, while his is kicking at your behind. With fist that can smash steel and concrete, one of the strongest wills your likely to meet. A voice that can shake the foundations, rattle the walls, Is there any question that the HAMMER's got ----moxie. It's nineteen hundred ninety one, the month of June, The HAMMER's now whistling a different tune. From a feeling of any PORT in a storm, The HAMMER has from the girls been torn. No longer is he available to toot his horn, Page 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- but for freedom he is not yet forlorn. Something has changed, something is wrong! The HAMMER is singing a very strange song. His messages now have a laughing and happy tone. Where O! Where is our HAMMER, we moan? Seriously, Elaine he was only on loan! What ever is our Bonnie to do? We all know she needs the HAMMER too. She's no good with the chains and the whips, Who will handle all the trouble-making drips? It just is not fair, it just is not right, I enjoyed watching the HAMMER in a good fight! What has happened to all the HAMMER's might? Is this a case of Samson's plight? Has the HAMMER's locks been pruned? And his powerful voice now ruined? Is he inside a clown suit festooned? And has his middle again ballooned? For the answers for this stay tuned. It is nineteen ninety one in the fall, Net mail is once again a ball! I can't wait to answer the computer's call. For the HAMMER is again riding tall. True he can grin and have a good time, But nothing has really changed here on RIME. And in Elaine we have found a new friend who makes HAMMER wounds easy to mend. So I am sure that all's well that ends well and Howard can now answer the wedding bell. But not without catching a little more hell. This must be SOME lady for whom he fell. We extend to Howard our best wishes, and to the bride a whole raft of kisses. To be with the HAMMER FOR LIFE AS HIS MRS., wouldn't be this man's idea of heavenly blisses. But different strokes for different folks! And now I'd better stop with these jokes, For I can feel my head begin to pound! As the HAMMER my home phone hath found. Page 7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- +---------------------------------+ | A RELAYNET SURVEY | | | +---------------------------------+ by Bob Pauls, Node id ->PRESERVE The RIME(Tm) Network is one of the oldest amateur electronic message/conferencing system in operation in the United States. Through the contributions of dedicated programmers and beta testers, wise beyond comprehension Steering Committee members; tactful, infinitely patient conference hosts and "never-say-quit" sysops; the expanding BBS calling community, and even exploding piglets, we have helped create an international, extended family of on-line users from all walks of life. As with all families, RIME'S growth has not been possible without some difficulty and challenge, as well as concern for the future of the participants. To better cope with new problems in an ever changing environment, it is usually wise to periodically examine one's capacity for change, one's strengths and weaknesses, as well as, one's needs and desires. Often, we undergo these self-examinations at the year's end in advance of those infamous New Year's resolutions. Well, RIME, in cooperation with Southern Illinois University, has resolved to undertake the first-ever serious self-examination of the RIME Network. We are undertaking a comprehensive two-part "physical". The first part of the physical examines the Hub and Node Sysops that keep the RIME body healthy. The second part of the physical will examine the users that sustain the network. Through these "exams" we hope to gain a better understanding of who/what RIME is, what we do, where we want to be in the future. The survey file being sent to every RIME Sysop contains questions within ten (10) categories listed below: 1) Personal Demographics 2) RIME Sysop Experience 3) Computer System Information 4) Caller and Conference Usage Information 5) File Use Information 6) RIME Network Operations 7) Telephone System Data 8) Interconnections 9) RIME Network Future 10) Opinions The second phase to this RIME Research Study involves BBS callers. The User Survey will be issued following distribution and return of the RIME Sysop Survey. Details on the RIME User Survey will follow in a subsequent message at a later date. If you have any suggestions for questions you would like to see asked in the upcoming "RIME User Survey", please advise me as soon as possible. Page 8 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- That's all for now except to say thanks, in advance, for your cooperation and participation. +---------------------------------+ | 'C' TUTOR | | | +---------------------------------+ by Doug Maclean, Node id ->RUNNINGB One of the most used Unix commands is the act command. This stands for concatenation. It is primarily used to join files together but may also be used to quickly display a text file. Here is the code for my port of this utility. #include #include int nflg=0, sizbuf=BUFSIZ; char *cmd; void filecopy(int fd); void qput(char c); void qflush(void ); void usage(void ); static char qbuf[BUFSIZ], *qptr = qbuf; void main(argc, argv) /* cat: concatenate files */ char **argv; { int fd; cmd=*argv; if (argc > 1 && *(argv[1]) == '-' && argv[1][1]) { ++argv; --argc; while (*++*argv) switch(**argv) { case 'n': nflg=1; break; case 'N': nflg=2; break; case 'u': sizbuf=1; break; case 'h': case '?': usage(); Page 9 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- break; } } if (argc == 1) /* no args; copy standard input */ filecopy(0); else while (--argc > 0) if (strcmp(*++argv, "-") == 0) filecopy(0); else if ((fd = open(*argv, 0x8000)) == -1) fprintf(stderr, "%s: can't open %s\n", cmd, *argv); else { filecopy(fd); close(fd); } exit(0); } void filecopy(fd) /* copy fd to standard output */ int fd; { int l, lasln=1; char buf[BUFSIZ], num[16], *p, *s; long lino=1L; while(l=read(fd, buf, sizbuf)) for(p=buf ; p < &buf[l] ; lasln=(*p == '\n'), qput(*p++)) if (nflg && lasln) { sprintf(num, "%6ld ", lino++); if (nflg == 2 || *p != '\n') for(s=num ; *s ; s++) qput(*s); } qflush(); } void qput(c) char c; { *qptr++ = c; if (qptr == &qbuf[sizbuf]) qflush(); } void qflush() { Page 10 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- write(1, qbuf, qptr-qbuf); qptr=qbuf; } void usage() { fprintf(stderr,"$Revision: 1.1 $\n"); fprintf(stderr," $Date: 19 May 1988 20:44:04 $\n"); fprintf(stderr,"cat [-unN] []...\n\n"); fprintf(stderr,"-u unbuffered, usually in blocks of 512K\n"); fprintf(stderr,"-n give line numbers (non-blank only)\n"); fprintf(stderr,"-N give line numbers (include blanks)\n"); exit(1); } +---------------------------------+ | BEGINNERS CORNER | | | +---------------------------------+ by Jim Daly, Node id ->TREASURE A COMMUNICATIONS PRIMER ----------------------- PARITY & ERROR Detection ------------------------ We have already discussed the fact that Binary data is made up 1's and 0's. PARITY is a term that is used to describe the number of 1's in a Binary number. If the total number of 1's is an EVEN number, then the Parity of that Binary number is EVEN. If the total number of 1's is an ODD number then the Parity of that Binary number is ODD. That seems pretty straight forward! A Parity Bit is used is ASYNCH communications to detect errors. The Parity bit is created automatically by the Modem and is placed right after the Stop bit (which is not counted when Parity is being determined!). This generated Parity bit can be either a 1 or a 0 depending on a couple of considerations: the Type of Parity selected and the actual Parity of the Binary number that is being transmitted. Let's look at a a specific Binary number: |---|------------|---| | | | | | 1 | 1111001 | 0 | | | | | |---|------------|---| ^ ^----------^ ^ | | | STOP | START BIT | BIT 7 Page 11 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- DATA BITS Now then, let's say that we have set our protocol to 7-E-1 which you will recall means, 7 Data Bits, Even Parity, and 1 Stop Bit. Count the number of 1's in the Data Bit. If you came up with 5, go to the head of the class! Since 5 is an ODD number, the Parity bit will need to be a 1 to keep the Parity EVEN. Like this: |---|---|------------|---| | | | | | | 1 | 1 | 1111001 | 0 | | | | | | |---|---|------------|---| ^ ^ ^----------^ ^ | | | | STOP | 7 START BIT | DATA BITS BIT | PARITY BIT The Data Bit was ODD, so a 1 Parity bit is added to make the number EVEN (5 + 1 = 6). Incidentally, the original Data Bit could be sent without the PARITY bit if we were set for 7-N-1 (7 Data bits, NO Parity, and 1 Stop Bit). So how does this all come together? As I mentioned in a previous article, both ends of the COMMunications link must use the same Parity (translate that to "same" Protocol). If you are calling a Bulletin Board and DOWNloading a file, your computer checks each Byte as it is received. If a Byte is received which has the wrong Parity, an Error is detected and your Computer sends a message back to the BBS demanding that it re-send that messed up Byte. You've probably seen your D/L Pause briefly while error correction is taking place. Using today's sophisticated File transfer protocols, if an error is generated it is usually due to "line noise". Next month we'll take a look at the concept of DUPLEXing. +---------------------------------+ | POETRY CORNER | | | +---------------------------------+ Submitted by Inez Harrison, Node id ->MOONDOG The House Across the Street (Is Vacant) The house across the street is vacant Thought that's not fair to say I've seen cars pull in and out of the driveway And relatives come to visit and sometimes stay overnight And children play in the front yard with the dog or the neighbors So why is this house so vacant? Isee the t.v. on inside the house Page 12 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- And a big family sitting down to eat dinner Yet there is someone missing Possibly the woman staring out the window at the skinny yellow ribbon tied around the tree near the street... The house across the street is vacant. -Neil E. Henne +---------------------------------+ | LOGO CONTEST! | | | +---------------------------------+ The RelayNet Logo Contest winner will be announced in the next issue! +---------------------------------+ | WE HEARD IT ON THE RIME VINE | | | +---------------------------------+ Kip Compton, author of PCRelay, as his freshman MIT project is working on a link between RelayNet and Internet. Internet is a group of networks which include links to every major university and much of the private and public scientific community as well! Most of these systems are UNIX based. In addition to the technical hurdles involved, disk space at our NetHub would need to be increased to about 2 gigabytes! There has been talk of a RIME gathering or "RIME Convention". Various locations have been discussed including Las Vegas, New York, Washington DC California.... or just having it at Bonnie's house again. Bonnie's family have not cast their votes. Although this may fall the way of the rumored "DENSA" conference (for those with IQ's of 130 and below) a HELL conference has been proposed. The conference would be for those RIME users who are .... shall we say, uncooperative. Among the rules and guidelines are: $.25 per message for any messages over 30 in a month. All mail is terminally out of sequence. Answers come weeks before questions, and are randomly copied in from such disparate conferences as the moderator feels fit, including local "illiterate teen hacker" ones. Quoting, when attempted, _must_ have boxes, beeps, low-ASCII characters, and random ANSI escape leaders. No message will be accepted less than 81 characters wide. Signatures must be six lines or more. All taglines must be the ones that originally come with the reader package, like "Now using BLFSTYK...and loving it!" Page 13 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- +---------------------------------+ | NOTES FROM ADMIN | | | +---------------------------------+ $15 annual fee announced for existing nodes. The fee for new nodes entering the net is still $25. Fees are to be used to cover debt incurred in '90 and new equipment purchases in '91. Report on messages going through NetHub for 123 days ending 11/30/90 Public Private Routed CONFNAME Total Average Total Average Total Average *************************************************************** SysOp 4445 36.14 274 2.23 728 5.92 For$ale 14307 116.32 2139 17.39 2897 23.55 Debate 8865 72.07 238 1.93 347 2.82 Common 9081 73.83 1412 11.48 6134 49.87 PCBHints 1759 14.30 70 0.57 177 1.44 Tech 4273 34.74 159 1.29 713 5.80 DTP 762 6.20 79 0.64 46 0.37 Sports 2232 18.15 27 0.22 30 0.24 Comm 2090 16.99 60 0.49 297 2.41 Program 2640 21.46 58 0.47 168 1.37 Medical 1853 15.07 77 0.63 125 1.02 Software 2102 17.09 64 0.52 262 2.13 Photo 693 5.63 29 0.24 6 0.05 HardDisk 2264 18.41 58 0.47 165 1.34 HAM 2948 23.97 89 0.72 193 1.57 Entrtain 3321 27.00 32 0.26 39 0.32 LAN 1240 10.08 42 0.34 48 0.39 Amiga 3963 32.22 171 1.39 70 0.57 Legal 5785 47.03 210 1.71 170 1.38 MAC 1110 9.02 56 0.46 13 0.11 Database 550 4.47 20 0.16 24 0.20 Aviation 1002 8.15 39 0.32 46 0.37 USR 1431 11.63 32 0.26 87 0.71 Uplink 11371 92.45 183 1.49 401 3.26 Admin 3780 30.73 568 4.62 1962 15.95 Graphics 586 4.76 9 0.07 37 0.30 Spredsht 94 0.76 4 0.03 10 0.08 RBBS 528 4.29 35 0.28 42 0.34 LapTop 257 2.09 19 0.15 18 0.15 Sci-Fi 5804 47.19 83 0.67 138 1.12 Music 3074 24.99 91 0.74 194 1.58 Brodcast 689 5.60 2 0.02 20 0.16 Finance 619 5.03 25 0.20 18 0.15 Games 5035 40.93 171 1.39 210 1.71 Racing 852 6.93 13 0.11 12 0.10 Roots 533 4.33 21 0.17 34 0.28 History 789 6.41 3 0.02 9 0.07 Page 14 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- RPG 1017 8.27 82 0.67 42 0.34 Vacation 178 1.45 4 0.03 1 0.01 Writers 2024 16.46 74 0.60 32 0.26 Military 1542 12.54 26 0.21 56 0.46 Teens 7729 62.84 315 2.56 87 0.71 BBS-Ads 982 7.98 37 0.30 48 0.39 Windows 4298 34.94 94 0.76 269 2.19 MultiTsk 118 0.96 4 0.03 5 0.04 Disabled 662 5.38 36 0.29 21 0.17 Magick 2214 18.00 126 1.02 101 0.82 OnLine 592 4.81 6 0.05 16 0.13 Handyman 207 1.68 1 0.01 12 0.10 Jobs 574 4.67 61 0.50 61 0.50 MIDI 840 6.83 27 0.22 24 0.20 Pets 1499 12.19 29 0.24 22 0.18 Hobbies 508 4.13 12 0.10 15 0.12 Doors 1453 11.81 125 1.02 268 2.18 Beer 477 3.88 2 0.02 7 0.06 ShareWar 3063 24.90 106 0.86 512 4.16 ProDoor 847 6.89 17 0.14 46 0.37 PKWare 668 5.43 10 0.08 74 0.60 Qmodem 4153 33.76 36 0.29 80 0.65 IBM 1469 11.94 104 0.85 74 0.60 WordPerf 811 6.59 13 0.11 24 0.20 DESQview 1801 14.64 24 0.20 119 0.97 Veterans 257 2.09 8 0.07 6 0.05 Hayes 178 1.45 0 0.00 2 0.02 Lotus 168 1.37 17 0.14 47 0.38 Vendors 467 3.80 112 0.91 13 0.11 Telix 1624 13.20 78 0.63 147 1.20 Arthur 149 1.21 1 0.01 3 0.02 Mystery 120 0.98 4 0.03 4 0.03 SmallBus 547 4.45 55 0.45 61 0.50 FemOnly 2816 22.89 95 0.77 162 1.32 Recovery 1453 11.81 24 0.20 96 0.78 Cuisine 4608 37.46 141 1.15 348 2.83 UNIX 954 7.76 39 0.32 103 0.84 Comic-Bk 2473 20.11 70 0.57 71 0.58 Religion 7182 58.39 226 1.84 506 4.11 Neural 49 0.40 2 0.02 0 0.00 Politics 6360 51.71 98 0.80 93 0.76 Philsphy 620 5.04 0 0.00 2 0.02 Women 1940 15.77 20 0.16 128 1.04 Astrlogy 251 2.04 25 0.20 40 0.33 Global 6174 50.20 224 1.82 1241 10.09 Science 1111 9.03 8 0.07 22 0.18 NewUsers 697 5.67 43 0.35 128 1.04 Bicycle 1298 10.55 16 0.13 28 0.23 Qmail 352 2.86 38 0.31 20 0.16 Satellit 272 2.21 5 0.04 8 0.07 Astron 536 4.36 11 0.09 17 0.14 GAP 727 5.91 21 0.17 23 0.19 Page 15 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Omen 207 1.68 7 0.06 16 0.13 Diplomac 156 1.27 34 0.28 55 0.45 Parents 213 1.73 12 0.10 36 0.29 Outdoors 200 1.63 3 0.02 5 0.04 FantBall 1793 14.58 44 0.36 9 0.07 Genetics 72 0.59 1 0.01 3 0.02 Seniors 79 0.64 0 0.00 0 0.00 TP 2270 18.46 59 0.48 84 0.68 EZReader 2147 17.46 65 0.53 439 3.57 QBASIC 1168 9.50 29 0.24 36 0.29 C 4679 38.04 130 1.06 682 5.54 StarTrek 9807 79.73 119 0.97 193 1.57 Unfold 166 1.35 4 0.03 16 0.13 Clipper 824 6.70 36 0.29 44 0.36 Users 939 7.63 77 0.63 179 1.46 Firearms 350 2.85 14 0.11 26 0.21 SCUBA 164 1.33 4 0.03 7 0.06 OS2 94 0.76 2 0.02 2 0.02 Engineer 215 1.75 4 0.03 9 0.07 ANSICode 2794 22.72 102 0.83 121 0.98 XYWrite 97 0.79 2 0.02 1 0.01 Gadgets 378 3.07 5 0.04 9 0.07 CAD 350 2.85 25 0.20 6 0.05 Boating 72 0.59 2 0.02 5 0.04 MainFram 158 1.28 10 0.08 2 0.02 Ecology 1450 11.79 39 0.32 38 0.31 DrWho 615 5.00 6 0.05 4 0.03 RControl 81 0.66 1 0.01 1 0.01 Boyan 258 2.10 18 0.15 23 0.19 Apple 212 1.72 15 0.12 0 0.00 MenIssue 2626 21.35 129 1.05 156 1.27 DeadHead 871 7.08 39 0.32 39 0.32 MSWord 64 0.52 0 0.00 2 0.02 TeleMate 547 4.45 51 0.41 18 0.15 4DOS 1264 10.28 16 0.13 39 0.32 GayIssue 2500 20.33 207 1.68 90 0.73 Horror 1133 9.21 15 0.12 10 0.08 SOBB 88 0.72 0 0.00 1 0.01 FastComm 16 0.13 0 0.00 0 0.00 Tandy 520 4.23 14 0.11 25 0.20 Batch 515 4.19 28 0.23 50 0.41 MarkMail 574 4.67 19 0.15 86 0.70 Chess 481 3.91 7 0.06 10 0.08 AtariST 717 5.83 32 0.26 2 0.02 ProComm 304 2.47 5 0.04 3 0.02 MASM 369 3.00 3 0.02 14 0.11 OOPS 254 2.07 4 0.03 19 0.15 BBS-Soft 197 1.60 2 0.02 11 0.09 WildCat! 1387 11.28 66 0.54 166 1.35 EMS/Fire 395 3.21 33 0.27 4 0.03 Relate 220 1.79 11 0.09 11 0.09 Mtrcycle 216 1.76 3 0.02 3 0.02 Page 16 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NonProft 172 1.40 31 0.25 3 0.02 Criminal 251 2.04 17 0.14 14 0.11 RoboComm 612 4.98 30 0.24 141 1.15 RBase 125 1.02 0 0.00 9 0.07 QEdit 456 3.71 4 0.03 44 0.36 Scouting 85 0.69 1 0.01 9 0.07 Fractals 244 1.98 2 0.02 4 0.03 MajorBBS 455 3.70 0 0.00 47 0.38 GameDsgn 169 1.37 3 0.02 8 0.07 Spitfire 1176 9.56 117 0.95 167 1.36 {COMMO} 782 6.36 23 0.19 31 0.25 LaserPrn 319 2.59 7 0.06 6 0.05 Weather 210 1.71 2 0.02 4 0.03 DataProt 125 1.02 0 0.00 22 0.18 C64/C128 700 5.69 94 0.76 50 0.41 Xerox 20 0.16 0 0.00 0 0.00 Adlib 1069 8.69 89 0.72 40 0.33 Nintendo 377 3.07 26 0.21 4 0.03 PCjr 41 0.33 1 0.01 0 0.00 CompUser 59 0.48 2 0.02 5 0.04 GT-BBS 41 0.33 0 0.00 5 0.04 ConfHost 610 4.96 65 0.53 234 1.90 Robot 15 0.12 0 0.00 1 0.01 FORTH 365 2.97 3 0.02 2 0.02 NoSmoke 358 2.91 5 0.04 3 0.02 Weight 169 1.37 21 0.17 0 0.00 ZComm 22 0.18 0 0.00 1 0.01 CoCo 762 6.20 25 0.20 4 0.03 LANtasti 363 2.95 3 0.02 9 0.07 Web 8 0.07 1 0.01 0 0.00 Gossip 72 0.59 0 0.00 1 0.01 Japan 818 6.65 43 0.35 39 0.32 MegaMail 3629 29.50 135 1.10 800 6.50 SysAnal 101 0.82 2 0.02 12 0.10 EIS 3 0.02 0 0.00 0 0.00 Srchlght 98 0.80 0 0.00 12 0.10 Gems 105 0.85 5 0.04 25 0.20 Strange 2232 18.15 35 0.28 22 0.18 Mensa 193 1.57 3 0.02 4 0.03 Remember 2728 22.18 19 0.15 109 0.89 SpitSysp 1472 11.97 183 1.49 293 2.38 SpitMail 112 0.91 17 0.14 31 0.25 Cellular 67 0.54 2 0.02 9 0.07 PRIVATE 8 0.07 9 0.07 0 0.00 Musician 135 1.10 5 0.04 6 0.05 Brief 174 1.41 5 0.04 10 0.08 Gamble 155 1.26 5 0.04 12 0.10 Pick-O/S 35 0.28 1 0.01 1 0.01 MdemNews 197 1.60 10 0.08 10 0.08 Archive 113 0.92 0 0.00 5 0.04 VideoExc 393 3.20 7 0.06 9 0.07 Missing! 63 0.51 3 0.02 3 0.02 Page 17 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- IOMEGA 18 0.15 0 0.00 0 0.00 RealEst 32 0.26 5 0.04 2 0.02 AT-dBase 123 1.00 4 0.03 2 0.02 SC 169 1.37 10 0.08 26 0.21 AT-Apps 21 0.17 0 0.00 0 0.00 WireWrap 545 4.43 13 0.11 24 0.20 Mini 402 3.27 12 0.10 21 0.17 SRegion 1 0.01 0 0.00 0 0.00 PCRelay 517 4.20 78 0.63 152 1.24 TlxHost 128 1.04 129 1.05 16 0.13 WarZone 2067 16.80 12 0.10 17 0.14 Paradox 24 0.20 3 0.02 1 0.01 French 65 0.53 1 0.01 0 0.00 Espanol 399 3.24 7 0.06 36 0.29 SessMgr 2349 19.10 89 0.72 370 3.01 Scanners 638 5.19 19 0.15 55 0.45 PreTeens 98 0.80 5 0.04 3 0.02 HDTV 72 0.59 0 0.00 4 0.03 WordStar 144 1.17 8 0.07 15 0.12 RemAcces 134 1.09 3 0.02 12 0.10 Poetry 546 4.44 25 0.20 12 0.10 UtdSysop 289 2.35 16 0.13 27 0.22 ACOA 260 2.11 3 0.02 4 0.03 Phobias 45 0.37 4 0.03 2 0.02 Safety 19 0.15 0 0.00 1 0.01 ISSM 49 0.40 2 0.02 1 0.01 Educate 306 2.49 9 0.07 12 0.10 PCAddict 464 3.77 15 0.12 22 0.18 Audio 479 3.89 21 0.17 41 0.33 BC-Tech 354 2.88 13 0.11 12 0.10 Clarion 142 1.15 6 0.05 1 0.01 Dental 110 0.89 1 0.01 6 0.05 IDC 233 1.89 15 0.12 45 0.37 Template 5 0.04 0 0.00 1 0.01 SHEZ 147 1.20 10 0.08 10 0.08 Liberatr 13 0.11 0 0.00 0 0.00 QMM 12 0.10 0 0.00 0 0.00 OldCars 69 0.56 0 0.00 4 0.03 HomeSchl 51 0.41 1 0.01 2 0.02 Bible 884 7.19 25 0.20 132 1.07 BBSDigst 2 0.02 2 0.02 0 0.00 Homeopth 54 0.44 8 0.07 0 0.00 Jeopardy 20 0.16 2 0.02 0 0.00 NovlUser 214 1.74 2 0.02 4 0.03 NovlDevp 33 0.27 3 0.02 4 0.03 Medieval 12 0.10 0 0.00 0 0.00 AnimlRts 34 0.28 0 0.00 0 0.00 Anime 32 0.26 0 0.00 3 0.02 Cancer 5 0.04 2 0.02 0 0.00 Jersey 147 1.20 10 0.08 12 0.10 *************************************************************** TOTALS 279141 2269.44 12621 102.61 27429 223.00 Page 18 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.52% of all messages were private. 9.83% of all messages were routed and/or private. Conferences averaging with 50 or more messages per day: For$ale Uplink Politics Debate Teens Global Common Religion StarTrek And thanks, thanks, thanks to Patrick Lee who did all this math for us! +---------------------------------+ | AS SEEN ON THE BIT STREAM | | | +---------------------------------+ TAGLINE OF THE MONTH: "Open Mouth. Insert foot. Echo Internationally." MALFUNCTION OF THE MONTH: Steve Winter, Steven Winter, Stephan Winter, Stevie Winter, Steve Winters, Ray Winters and Stevo Wintertime. ENGAGEMENT OF THE MONTH: Congratulations Howard and Elaine! (June wedding planned and the network is invited!) +---------------------------------+ | NOTICES | | | +---------------------------------+ Current listing of Bulletin Board software participating in RelayNet: SpitFire GAP QuickBBS GT Power Remote Access MajorBBS PCBoard/ProDoor dBBS RBBS EIS Wildcat! To make life easier for the editors, the following submission guidelines are suggested: 1) To be included in the current month newsletter all articles must be submitted by the 5th of the month. 2) A routed private message in either the COMMON or the ADMIN conference is acceptable. Please address and route to: Michael Brunk, node ->CSPACE, Page 19 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEB RELAYNET INTERNATIONAL MESSAGE EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER 1991 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- John Dodson, node ->CANTINA, Dave Shubert node ->CASINO, Michelle Hamilton node ->SUNSHINE or Dennis Mccunney node ->RUNNINGB. 3) Your name as used on RIME. 4) Your node id if you are a RIME sysop or your "home" board id if you are a RIME user. 5) Any special instructions. Thanks!