BTN: Birmingham Telecommunications News COPYRIGHT 1993 ISSN 1055-4548 July 1993 Volume 6, Issue 7 Edition 2 Table Of Contents ----------------- Article Title Author Policy Statement and Disclaimer................Staff From The Editor................................Scott Hollifield Grocking the Gestalt III.......................Scott Pletcher Mammoth Shaving: The Last Word.................Gwendolyn Norton Some Positive Input............................Jeff Vaughn Loser User.....................................The Id Node Chat Theatre..............................Scott Hollifield SEC Outlook....................................David Moss Local Music In July............................Judy Ranelli BTN ProFile: Murphy............................The Bishop Mustang Software RIP News......................MSI press release Anatomy of a Hoax..............................Staff Special Interest Groups (SIGs).................Eric Hunt Known BBS Numbers..............................James Minton ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Disclaimer and Statement of Policy for BTN We at BTN try our best to assure the accuracy of articles and information in our publication. We assume no responsibility for damage due to errors, omissions, etc. The liability, if any for BTN, its editors and writers, for damages relating to any errors or omissions, etc., shall be limited to the cost of a one year subscription to BTN, even if BTN, its editors or writers have been advised of the likelihood of such damages occurring. With the conclusion of that nasty business, we can get on with our policy for publication and reproduction of BTN articles. We publish monthly with a deadline of the fifteenth of the month prior to publication. If you wish to submit an article, you may do so at any time but bear in mind the deadline if you wish for your work to appear in a particular issue. It is not our purpose to slander or otherwise harm a person or reputation and we accept no responsibility for the content of the articles prepared by our writers. Our writers own their work and it is protected by copyright. We allow reprinting of articles from BTN with only a few restrictions. The author may object to a reprint, in which case he will specify in the content of his article. Otherwise, please feel free to reproduce any article from BTN as long as the source, BTN, is specified, and as long as the author's name and the article's original title are retained. If you use one of our articles, please forward a copy of your publication to: Mark Maisel Publisher, BTN 606 Twin Branch Terrace BHAM, AL 35216 (205) 823-3956 We thank you for taking the time to read our offering and we hope that you like it. We also reserve the right to have a good time while doing all of this and not get too serious about it. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- F R E E B I E : G E T I T W H I L E I T S H O T ! The following boards allow BTN to be downloaded freely, that is with no charge to any existing upload/download ratios. ADAnet One Alter-Ego Bone Yard Bus System The Castle Channel 8250 C.A.B. The Comfy Chair! Crunchy Frog DC Info Exchange Final Frontier Hardware Hotline Homewood's Hell Hole The Holodeck BBS Joker's Castle Lemon Grove Lion's Den Martyrdom Again?! The MATRIX Milliways BBS The Outer Limits Owlabama BBS Owl's Nest Playground Safe Harbor Southern Stallion Starbase 12 Thy Master's Dungeon Weekends BBS (This list includes some systems which are not local to Birmingham and therefore not included on our BBS Numbers list.) If you are a sysop and you allow BTN to be downloaded freely, please let me know via The Matrix or Crunchy Frog so that I can post your board as a free BTN distributor. Thanks. Please note a slight change in our distribution policy! The local boards in this list get BTN *first*, to the best of our ability. -SH ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From the Editor by Scott Hollifield What is the true meaning of Christmas? Well, yes, it *is* July, and it *is* Independence Day weekend as I type this, so I guess I'm talking about any holiday here. What *are* holidays, anyhow? Christmas, we've already talked about in this space, but what about the others? I mean, here it is -- the 217th anniversary of what's widely believed to be the founding of our nation - and we celebrate it by barbecuing? It seems like half of our national holidays have turned into Barbecue Day. Oh sure, some of us -- including myself - will go out tonight and buy lots of cheap explosives to ignite, which is the more traditional way of celebrating this holiday. Still, I can't speak for anyone else, but when I'm shooting fireworks, I'm not doing it with my hand on my heart, thinking about what a great country this is. I'm allowing myself a smidgen of enjoyment at loud noise and bright, colorful explosions, just for their own sake. I'll tell you what I'm doing right now to celebrate the Fourth. I'm sitting in an untidy, stuffy (but air-conditioned) room with Lou Reed on the CD player, typing out my BTN editorial four days late. Outside, there's the sound of hammering and sawing; someone's working on the deck. I'm going to avoid this person. In a few minutes, someone's going to walk in here and invite me to eat pot roast and steamed carrots; I'm also going to avoid this person (while hiding the cracker and cheese which have sustained me this morning). I'm going to call a few friends on the telephone who will likely be too busy to talk more than two minutes; I'm going to write another page of my memoirs (currently in cartoon form). I'm going to put off doing laundry, taking out trash, and washing the car. And then tonight, I'm going to go see Dean and we're going to make loud noises and bright explosions happen on and above some deserted parking lot. If holidays are just an excuse to goof off, why have them? That's what our weekends were supposed to be for, originally; but our society has evolved to the point where our weekend-style goofing off is also a lot of work, so it requires the addition of another level. Also, holidays carry with them a veiled set of expectations. We're expected to be celebratory; we're expected to be reverent, and content, and sociable. My point is, why can't we be like that all the time? Not to press too much a "why can't it be Christmas every day" point, but holidays are a copout, an excuse -- a place to funnel our positive energy because we're too busy or too tired to use it on ordinary days. I know a few people who are the exception to this rule; I am myself, occasionally. But it really is too bad that we have these holidays laid out for us, to save us the trouble of being happy year-round. This is how I spend my holidays. Anyhow, we've got a fairly decent issue this month, even if it is a few days late. Judy Ranelli makes her triumpant return to BTN after being left out last month (which, I must stress, was *nobody's* fault). Scott Pletcher also returns to this space after a number of months on the inactive list. Eric Hunt begins his term overseeing the re-building of the SIG list (at the end of this issue; help him out, won't you?). Gwendolyn Norton delivers her final manifesto on what used to be her favorite subject, mammoth shaving. Jeff Vaughn has a few things to say to you parents out there; a fellow called the Id has a relevant experience to relate; David Moss provides our football fans with a handy clip-and-save SEC schedule; and the BTN ProFile returns this month, with a new look at an old face with a new name and a new attitude. (At least that's what they tell me.) Happy independence; not just for today, but hopefully, for the remainder of your life. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Grocking the Gestalt III (or is it IV?) by Scott Pletcher Controversy is god. Whoops! Sorry about that little Freudian slip. What I MEANT to say is Controversy is GOOD....good. I can't think of any other human convention that is capable of drawing our most primal behaviors into a boiling, churning, heterogeneous slop as that of religion. According to Webster, religion is the belief in God or gods, usually manifested in conduct and ritual. I like this definition. It's simple yet inclusive. Plus, it has a nice minty aftertaste, which is, of course, ever so important in the fine art of language articulation. The first being who transgressed that fuzzy line of "animal" and "human" had a natural fascination with his surroundings. He didn't know why he could see half the day, and was functionally sightless the other half. Where did that warm glaring object go? Why did his skin turn painfully red when the object was in view? He, of course, created scenario and deities to explain the phenomena. His descendants did exactly the same. When presented with a mysterious situation, humans will create a story with the unknown as the central focus and fill in the details 'til we're content. Remember, humans highly dislike being uninformed. Even though the "lore" may be unproven, we are, to a certain extent, simply satisfied with any answer. Ask any patron of the old west saloon what the moon was made of, and you'd get the standard "Why, green cheese, of course!" You deftly reply, "How do you know this to be true, sir?" "Well...gee...lemme see...My daddy told me so, that's why!" Now, hold your horses (no pun intended). You say this is ridiculous? Oh yeah? Who convinced you that there was a Santa Claus or Easter Bunny or Tooth Fairy or Hanukkah Harry (SNL reference)? Why sure, you eventually found Santa's stash in the top of your parents' closet, but what if you hadn't? And what if no one EVER found the Christmas stash? You would still believe...until you, yourself became a parent, and found no parcels under your family's tree and were left with a gaggle of bawling, slobbering human larvae. The point is this. A large part of our schemata is composed of rituals, beliefs, and procedures that may not be true, but then again, no one has actually disproven them either. If there were no conflicting views, we would all be like little cloned amoebas floating around in the grand petri dish we call terra firma. No one has ever PROVEN that Adam and Eve were the first two people on earth, but no one has ever proven otherwise. However, we do have records of Homo erectus and Homo sapiens (but nothing in between, mind you). Thus, I decided to base my second paragraph on this...the Theory of Evolution. This brings me to another point. People say to me, "Scott, why do you still believe in EVIL- lution when this world is so perfect. How can this be a product of chance?" My reply is this: The world is NOT a product of chance, but rather a product of 4.5 billion years of Survival of the Fittest. It's not like you'd dump a jigsaw puzzle out of the box on a table and expect it to mesh together as the pieces hit the table. You try each piece...one by one. If the piece doesn't fit, you try another. Likewise, if an organism doesn't jive with things, it dies out. Of course, you could always whip out the trusty Dura-Sheers that Pat spoke about on T.V. and "alter" the puzzle piece. Presto! You are evolving the piece! An organism has one of two choices...to either change or die. For example, look at the insect world. Some insects have camouflage, like the stick bug. Some have bright colors, but taste awful to their predators, like the Monarch butterfly. How often do you see an insect who tastes good, AND is bright colored? You don't! They were all eaten by birds! Now, your saying, "Ahh...but what about your puzzle piece example. There has to be a higher force to either alter or fit the pieces. Therefore, God must be at work..." Well, okay, I see your point. I, however, think of the higher force as life. Life is not stagnant. We are constantly moving, resting, jumping, crawling, picking, killing, adjusting, loving, burping, farting, drinking, vomiting, et al. Life is the Dura-Sheers of evolution. Ya know, I constantly see signs and bumper-stickers that say "God is Life" or "Say Yes to Jesus, and Say Yes to Life" or "Honk If You Are Pro-Life AND Pro-Jesus", yet no one who would actively display these blatant outward signs of religion ever agrees with me. Usually, I'm rebuffed by a Bible quote and an "I'm praying for you" broadcasted though a false smile. Why does God have to be a being...of human form? Sure, I know that the Bible says that God created us in his own likeness, but why does that "likeness" have to mean human flesh and blood. Why can't likeness mean "active with life"? From studying the remains of people from ancient Egypt to the present, scientists have concluded that humans, in general, have grown approximately a foot over the past two and one half millennia. Does this mean that God is going through puberty....hitting a growth spurt? Or perhaps He's just bent on getting the NBA to raise the hoops? Now, I understand that the Bible is the crux of the Christian faith, and I don't mean to detract from that. Oh, don't worry. You're not the only religion based on a book. Just were would the Muslims be without the Koran? (Living in harmony, maybe? Okay, bad joke. I'm sorry. I would really rather not start taking cues from Salman Rushdie.) And Scientology... you can thank L. Ron Hubbard for that one! And who can forget The Church of the Sub-Genius ...just f**k 'em if they can't take a joke -- right, "Bob"? AUTHOR'S NOTE: If this article struck a nerve (or G-spot) then saunter on in to Conference 72 (I-FAITH) on the Matrix. (Definitely SAUNTER, if you chose the G- spot option...) ---- Scott Pletcher is currently touring across America with the Force Team on their "Steroids for Our Savior Tour". Watch as they amaze you with feats of superhuman strength and then somehow, relate it to the evil powers of Satan. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Mammoth Shaving: The Last Word by Gwendolyn Norton Most users who have ever chatted with me are more than likely familiar with my conversation starter: "Do you have any opinions on the subject of mammoth shaving?" It was a good question. The kind that would get a far more meaty answer than "whatz up?" There were all sorts of elaborations I had in stock, about how ever since I had been a child I had wanted to be a street mammoth shaver with my small hat right next to the mammoth's big hat for our audience's coins. Or about my first mammoth shaving recital and how I was so unprepared I started shaving at the "wrong end" and the whole audience laughed--however, they were not laughing for long, as their loud guffawing frightened the mammoth into a stampede, crushing most of them to horrible, pathetic, insignificant deaths. Of course, later on in life, I learned that there was neither a "correct" nor "incorrect" end at which one begins shaving a mammoth and was thankful that I broke out of the establishment when I did. There were, of course, many other aspects, such as PEDA (People for the Ethical Disembowelment of Animals), the mammoth farms and others too numerable to mention. As I continued to pose this question of mine, it became evident that there were four basic responses: paranoia, seduction, wanna-be, and, of course, those who took playing along to a fine art. Paranoia was not an overly common reaction. From time to time I'd get someone saying, "Do you have other people over there? Are you all laughing at me?", and the like. More often, these feelings of paranoia led the person in question to pathetic attempts of playing along for fear of looking stupid in front of several other mystery people. Then there were the people who either took the question as a sexual entendre, or decided that they would make it into one. The reply that sticks in my mind above all others is, "Hey baby! You can shave my mammoth any day!" There was a noticeable drop off in this style of response right around the beginning of January, as soon as I became equipped with a humorous response or two. I've yet to have an opportunity to use them. The absolutely most vast category is definitely the wanna-bes. They are usually 13 or 14, and trying to show everyone just how WEIRD they can be. They usually never even answer the question, and when they do, their answers are as unimpressive as their attempted evasive maneuverings. They tend to say stuff like "Gee, that's a weird question! That's just the kind of question that I would ask. I'm a really weird person. I like to ask people weird questions," ad nauseam. Then there is the truly elite category where only a very small few reside. These are the people who answered, and answered well. The two most memorable responses were that of Aaron Dees and Jennifer Roberts. The latter of the two had her own mammoths, and kept them in her gutters and taught them to sing Italian opera. At last the world of mammoth shaving has come to an end. I'm selling the mammoth farm like one would an old used car. I'm going out of state to college before much more than a month now, and I won't be in the neighborhood to ask the locals their opinions any more. I have just presented the results of a question that I've asking for over a year and a half. In essence, I suppose that there is a fifth category, but I won't go into detail about it. If you find that you do not fit into any of the above four, you can rest assured that you fit into the fifth. It's not a bad thing, you know; it's a nice category with soft and fluffy pillows. The laces curtains and the tapioca pudding should be in within the week. ---- Gwendolyn Norton will be picking up and leaving us in August for upstate New York, where, it is assumed, her pocket universe will be travelling with her. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Some Positive Input by Jeff Vaughn Just recently, I spoke with a parent of one of the users on Matrix BBS. This was a parent of a good friend of mine and we speak often. For some strange reason, I usually end up talking to the mature crowds. Why? I can't figure it. I guess things are just that way. Anyway, this mother was telling me just how much positive influence the bulletin boards systems were having on her children. One in particular we spoke about was her daughter, which, for some time, wasn't really interested in the BBS until she started watching her older brother. Plainly put, the mother explained to me just how much the BBS had matured her daughter. Her daughter hadn't really been all that outgoing, but was starting to turn for the better because of the BBS. The mother told me that she liked the idea of her daughter being able to meet people at a safe distance. I guess that's true. Behind the screen, there is a limit to what people can do. It's a commonly known fact that when you log onto a BBS to meet people, you gamble every time. You never know exactly what you're getting into. There are good and bad people on the systems. One thing you can't do, though, is judge a system by it's users' attitudes. We both agreed that a system can't really have any control over the way the users act toward one another. Another thing we spoke about was that it's good to know that there are systems out there that aren't one-sided, bigoted, or racial about the kind of message bases they hold. Eveyone has a right to speak about what they believe in. Personally, I have nothing against a person's beliefs, religious or otherwise. As long as they don't force them on me, I'm cool with it. The mother said that she'd been BBSing for some time, and brought up the fact that there was a BBS she called some time ago that was dedicated to adult-oriented subjects. There were aliases, and so a level of privacy was kept. She admitted that she participaed in some of the conversations, and said it was a lot of fun. At one point, she said, some people started taking things seriously and began getting a little personal. It's a shame that some people just can't just "let it go" and go about their business. It's only in fun and some forgot that, so, she simply quit calling. It was that easy. She was very aware of the fact that The Matrix carried adult files and had adult-related message sections. A big problem out there is that a lot of parents don't take the time to get involved, and end up finding out about things when it's too late. Neither of us saw the big harm in a system carrying adult files, as long as the flow was handled within the limits of the law. The bottom line is, if you don't like something a BBS is doing, you don't have to participate in it, but don't ruin it for others. As a lot of you know, there were a couple of nights where Channel 13 put out some very negative stories about adult-literature and bulletin board systems. In my personal opinon, it was extremely one-sided because of one fact: they didn't take the time to research the story. The media has a habit of taking rumors and forming them into what they call "hard-core" facts, and this was the case here. Yes, there may be some BBS's that illegally distribute adult-oriented material, but not all. Channel 13 made the mistake of putting it on a global level, and that's just not the case. I would like to point out something that really bothers me and I hope you parents are listening. If a system requires an I.D. from a user and your son or daughter decides to copy another individual's I.D. and use it for their own benefits, it's your children you should be worrying about, not the BBS they're getting the adult files or messages from. The sysop doesn't have the time to meet every person face to face for an I.D., and can't be held responsible. If your kid is devious enough to pull a stunt like that, you need to sit them down and have a long talk about where they got the I.D. from. Don't go running to Channel 13 screaming "the BBS are ruining my child's mind!", because it just ain't so. If you're going to make accusations about a BBS, do a little research. Don't blame the entire BBS community for something that your kid is doing. The previous paragraph was not meant as an insult to the parental types, but as a reminder that your kids can do wrong just as much as others can. Bulletin board systems are sometimes at fault, but they are also victims of circumstance as well sometimes. The door swings both ways, and until all parents see that, it's going to be a one-sided view. I'm sorry to put it way, but that's just logic. If you're going to go into a situation with guns blazing, make sure you do it for the right reasons and you've got all the hard facts, not because you dislike what's going on and you've heard some nasty rumors. ---- Jeff Vaughn is the new advertising chief for BTN, and has two more articles already finished which he is going to be annoyed to see weren't included in this month's issue. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- LOSER USER by The Id How do you help a user who has lost his data disk? Find it of course! You are 47 miles away and haven't set foot on the premises in three months, but you must find the disk. It had been a rough day. Nothing worked, not even the office key. At least a few things got filed, and the desk straightened, so I could find the bills anyway. Finally at home, I kicked off my shoes. Lunch didn't work either, so I was hungry and the wife said dinner was almost ready. I was about to head downstairs when a call came in. Caller was frantic, having lost the ONLY data disk containing vital financial information needed for an annual convention to be held the next day (of course). I was commanded to find the disk, over the phone. Sure I could run someone through a few things over the phone but to find a lost disk was a new challenge. Running programs remotely was just a matter of keystrokes, and a screen was only an added benefit. A lost disk in an office where the traffic is high, no computer personnel, and no consistent backup, were probably the least of the problems. This was going to be tough and I was tired. The following is just a synopsis of the story of the "loser-user's lost disk". RING! RING! Consultant> "Hello?" User> "Hey, someone lost my disk and I need help! It's an important disk, and I need it now for financial reports for the Annual Convention that starts tomor- row and I've been looking for it for hours and I am going crazy looking for it! Can you help?" Consultant> "Do you have a backup? User> "Sure! Hold on.... 30 seconds pause............... It's dated 4/16/92." Consultant> "When was the last time you saved your data?" User> "Maybe December of '92 or January of '93. I don't know. Hold on..... 30 seconds pause............... Looks like July '92, and I have worked on that last data for 2 weeks in March. But it's the current disk I am looking for. The data is on the disk, if I can only find the disk. Did you know where it could be?" Consultant's Wife> "Supper is ready!" Consultant> "Be right there! User> "Oh, will you? That would be great! Consultant> "Uh, no, I was talking to my wife. Sorry. Where was the last place you saw the disk?" User> "On the desk. Last month. Oh, by the way we swapped out machines last week. I traded up to a 386 with a bigger hard diskette." Consultant> "Do you still have the original computer or did you sell it?" User> "Yes, but it's in the back under some speakers. I put the speaker on top to raise them off the floor. Yep, I put down a mat and then the computer with a tarp over it and put those speakers on top. That wouldn't hurt the computer would it?" Consultant> "Have you checked to see if you left the disk in the drive of the old machine.?" User> "No, let me check..." Consultant> "Hello?" 30 seconds pause............... User> "There a disk in the machine but how do I get it out?" Consultant's Wife> "Get your butt downstairs! Dinner's getting cold." Consultant> "In a minute, honey! Uh, no not you. Wife again. Look at the machine in front of you. See the small button next to the drive?"" User> "Yes!" Consultant> "Push it and the disk will pop out." User> "OK." 30 seconds pause...... User> "Wrong disk; it was my checking account data. Boy, am I glad I found this disk. I wonder how many others are missing? What am I going do? There is over 18 months worth of data on that disk. I couldn't enter it all in three weeks. My granddaughter was in here the other day. She could have taken it, she loves computers. She knows all about them, but she's asleep. She will be five next month. It's my wedding anniversary tonight and the wife keeps call- ing. What am I gonna do? The caterers were in here. The mailman was in here. Do you think one of them will return the disk?" Consultant> "Was the disk labeled? User> "I think so, but I can't remember what was on the label. What am I going to do? Consultant> "Calm down, take a deep breath, shake your hands and stand up" User> "Great, the disk was on top of the computer hutch, behind my granddaughter's picture!" Consultant> "Back up the disk, before you do anything else." User> "No, I need to get this data in now. If I don't start now I can't finish. Lucky I got that Laser last week. See ya. Consultant> "But you need to back up the disk." User> "Thanks, bye." Consultant> "Hello?" Well, it took only one and half hours to find that lost disk, over the phone. At least he said thanks. Now, on to that cold supper. Wonder if I can microwave cold mashed potatoes? ! RING! Consultant> "Hello?" User> "It will print to screen but not the printer. What do I do? If I can't get it printed, the data is no use to me. It's past 10:00 p.m. and I can't get any toner tonight and I have to leave at 5:00 a.m. in the morning. What am I gonna do? I can't save the data without printing it first. I have to go through the procedure step by step or I will lose the data. But it will print to the screen. Can I put my monitor on the copier? What am I gonna do?" Consultant> "Did you back the disk up or copy it?" User> "No, I have to get this information in tonight and I don't have time to copy the disk." Consultant> "Are the lights on the laser?" User> "Yes, and its says it's full of toner. God, I got to pack the swimsuit. Can I come over and print in on your machine? Consultant> "Mine's in the shop. Have you checked the cables on the printer?" User> "The cables? You mean open up the printer and pull at the wires? I didn't know they call them cables. Which one? Are they colored?" Consultant> "There should be a cable on the outside of the printer coming out of the rear, about 1/4 inch thick with a 36 pin connecter on the end. Check and see if the cable is attached to the printer securely." User> "Hold on...." 30 seconds pause...... .....(sounds of moving furniture). 30 seconds pause...... .....(sounds of a box falling) 30 seconds pause...... User> "The cable was on the floor. Where do I plug it in?" Consultant> "Look in the rear of the machine which will be the same size as the connector and it slips in. DO NOT FORCE IT." 30 seconds pause...... User> Got it, thanks. Bye." Consultant> "Make a backup of the disk." User> "Haven't got time. Thanks, bye." Consultant> "Hello?" Up and running after 2 1/2 hours of this and he still will will not copy the disk. Now to see about microwaving those mashed potatoes. ---- The Id is a mild-mannered attorney by day, and a square-jawed, noble crusader for computer consulting after the sun goes down. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- And now it's time for an all-new feature here at BTN.... * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Node Chat Theatre!! * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * One of the most popular features on national services like CompuServe(tm) and America Online(tm) is the live, real-time "chat" feature where two or more users can hold a real conversation over the computer from the privacy of their own respective homes. With the advent of multi-node BBS software, this phenomenon has spread to local bulletin boards as well, and there's no local example so predominant in this regard as THE MATRIX, which needs no introduction. The Matrix, which sports 25 separate lines, has recently installed a beta version of PCBoard 15.0, which features a revamped chat system more similar to those used by CompuServe. This type of chat system, discussed by Jeff Vaughn last issue, allows arbitrary "rooms" or "channels" that can be used as virtual retreats by users. Now, a user can make his channel "private" anytime he or she wants to, thus ensuring that no one can snoop in on the conversation. One of our correspondents, however, caught two users chatting with each other in flagrante - out in the open, as it were - and, through the magic of modern computer technology, captured a bit of their exchange in a buffer. With the voyeuristic theme of recent movies like Silver, we thought we'd cash in on this new national trend and present you, the BTN reader, with a small slice of BBS life. NOTE!: The users whose conversation is quoted here were chatting PUBLICLY, where anyone could have monitored. The names have been changed, to protect the shameless. ------------ JANE you really are funny!!!!! because I hope you are not offfended by the interracial thing all people are alike and we all bleed the same kind of blood my boyfriend looks like a white person with a really good tan year round. DAN Not offended at the least...matter of fact, I have a "hot" thing towards a good looking black woman .... JANE there's nothing wrong with that at all because sometimes chocalate is better than marshmellows. DAN hahaha...I like to look at all women, but some black women do make my blood boil !!! Same with orientals JANE really I know what steve does for me and I have never had it like he gives it to me and I have to admit that I have alot of exeperience with guys. DAN Hmmmm....wouldn't mind listening to all of this ........maybe my ....yeah , I'm feeling a little warm now !! JANE I know what you mean this morning was like a volcano about to blow before he went to work and believe it did!!!!!!!! DAN Okayyyyy/....now the temp risess and rises...hmmmmmmm...lost my train of thought JANE really that's inteesting, I don't know that many people that will admit that to someone else because I have always been open about what I like and most people willback off when you tell them what you want and maybe even wanting to have or to watch someone else. DAN Tell me what you want...I won't back off .......we have done many things, and most have been very enjoyable and done again !! JANE like what? I have always wanted to do it in the rain outside and I probably have experienced many of the things that I could have fantasied about. DAN We been in the rain, and I would just love to hear what kinds of fantasies youve had! JANE I will tell you if can change over to a not so available channel for everyone else. DAN lets' go...I'll page you ------------ ENDNOTE: Dan went to another channel, which he made private, and eventually, after much delay, Jane joined him. But at some point, the channel was accidentally set to public again by one of the participants. What little of their subsequent conversation was captured by our correspondent is, regrettably, unsuitable for reprinting in BTN. P.S.A.: BTN encourages the education and review of the use of BBS software features like the Matrix's chat command system. In the new digital arena, it's more important than ever for every individual to be keenly aware of the consequences his or her communication may enact! NEXT MONTH: More "Node Chat Theatre", if people don't wise up. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SEC Football Outlook by David Moss Can Alabama repeat as National Champions? Yes, it's that time of year when practice begins. Before you know it, the season will be in high gear. Before any of us can even begin to make predictions, we must first take a look at who plays who, and where. This matters, since the home team usually has an advantage. This is also the year that Alabama goes back to Auburn for their game together. I could write a whole article on this matter alone, but, this is no longer an argument. The game has been moved and that's that! So, without further ado, here it is; The Entire 1993 SEC Football Schedule --------------------------------------------- Alabama Date Opponent Site Sept. 4 Tulane Legion Field Sept. 11 Vanderbilt Nashville Sept. 18 Arkansas Tuscaloosa Sept. 25 Louisiana Tech. Legion Field Oct. 2 South Carolina Columbia Oct. 9 ( Open ) Oct. 16 Tennessee Legion Field Oct. 23 Ole Miss Oxford Oct. 30 ( Home Coming ) Southern Miss Tuscaloosa Nov. 6 LSU Tuscaloosa Nov. 13 Mississippi St. Tuscaloosa Nov. 20 Auburn Auburn ------------------------------------------------------------------- Arkansas Sept. 4 SMU Dallas Sept. 11 So. Carolina Fayetteville Sept. 18 Alabama Tuscaloosa Sept. 25 Memphis State Little Rock Oct. 2 Georgia Athens Oct. 9 Tennessee Little Rock Oct. 16 Ole Miss Jackson Oct. 23 ( Open ) Oct. 30 ( Home Coming ) Auburn Fayetteville Nov. 6 Miss State Little Rock Nov. 13 Tulsa Fayetteville Nov. 20 ( Open ) Nov. 27 LSU Baton Rouge ------------------------------------------------------------------- Auburn Sept 2 ESPN Ole Miss Auburn Sept. 11 Samford Auburn Sept. 18 LSU Baton Rouge Sept. 25 So. Miss Auburn Oct. 2 Vanderbilt Nashville Oct. 9 Miss State Auburn Oct. 16 Florida Auburn Oct. 23 ( Open ) Oct. 30 Arkansas Fayetteville Nov. 6 ( Home Coming ) N. Mex. State Auburn Nov. 13 Georgia Athens Nov. 20 Alabama Auburn ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä Florida Sept. 4 Arkansas St. Gainesville Sept. 11 Kentucky Lexington Sept. 18 Tennessee Gainesville Sept. 25 ( Open ) Oct. 2 LSU Baton Rouge Oct. 16 Auburn Auburn Oct. 23 ( Open ) Oct. 30 Georgia Jacksonville Nov. 6 ( Home Coming ) SW Louisiana Gainesville Nov. 13 So. Carolina Columbia Nov. 20 Vanderbilt Gainesville Nov. 27 Fla. State Gainesville ------------------------------------------------------------------- Georgia Sept. 4 So. Carolina Athens Sept. 11 Tennessee Knoxville Sept. 18 Texas Tech. Athens Sept. 25 Ole Miss Oxford Oct. 2 Arkansas Athens Oct. 9 So. Miss Athens Oct. 16 Vanderbilt Nashville Oct. 23 ( Home Coming ) Kentucky Athens Oct. 30 Florida Jacksonville Nov. 6 ( Open ) Nov. 13 Auburn Athens Nov. 20 ( Open ) Nov. 25 ABC Ga. Tech Athens ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä Kentucky Sept. 4 Kent State Lexington Sept. 11 Florida Lexington Sept. 18 Indiana Bloomington Sept. 23 ESPN So. Carolina Columbia Oct. 2 ( Home Coming ) Ole Miss Lexington Oct. 9 ( Open ) Oct. 16 LSU Lexington Oct. 23 Georgia Athens Oct. 30 Miss State Starkville Nov. 6 Vanderbilt Nashville Nov. 13 East Carolina Lexington Nov. 20 Tennessee Lexington ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä LSU Sept. 4 Texas A&M Coll. Station Sept. 11 Miss State Starkville Sept. 18 Auburn Baton Rouge Sept. 25 Tennessee Knoxville Oct. 2 ( Home Coming ) Utah State Baton Rouge Oct. 9 Florida Baton Rouge Oct. 16 Kentucky Lexington Oct. 23 ( Open ) Oct. 30 Ole Miss Baton Rouge Nov. 6 Alabama Tuscaloosa Nov. 13 ( Open ) Nov. 20 Tulane Baton Rouge Nov. 27 Arkansas Baton Rouge ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä Ole Miss Sept. 2 ESPN Auburn Auburn Sept. 11 UT Chattanooga Oxford Sept. 18 Vanderbilt Oxford Sept. 25 Georgia Oxford Oct. 2 Kentucky Lexington Oct. 9 ( Open ) Oct. 16 Arkansas Jackson Oct. 23 Alabama Oxford Oct. 30 LSU Baton Rouge Nov. 6 Memphis State Memphis Nov. 13 ( Home Coming ) N. Illinois Oxford Nov. 20 ( Open ) Nov. 27 Miss State Starkville ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä Miss State Sept. 4 Memphis State Starkville Sept. 11 LSU Starkville Sept. 18 ( Open ) Sept. 25 Tulane New Orleans Oct. 2 Florida Gainesville Oct. 9 Auburn Auburn Oct. 16 So. Carolina Starkville Oct. 23 ( Home Coming ) Arkansas St. Starkville Oct. 30 Kentucky Starkville Nov. 6 Arkansas Little Rock Nov. 13 Alabama Tuscaloosa Nov. 20 ( Open ) Nov. 27 Ole Miss Starkville ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä So. Carolina Sept. 4 Georgia Athens Sept. 11 Arkansas Fayetteville Sept. 18 Louisiana Tech. Columbia Sept. 23 ESPN Kentucky Columbia Oct. 2 Alabama Columbia Oct. 9 ( Home Coming ) E. Carolina Columbia Oct. 16 Miss State Starkville Oct. 23 Vanderbilt Columbia Oct. 30 Tennessee Knoxville Nov. 6 ( Open ) Nov. 13 Florida Columbia Nov. 20 Clemson Columbia ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä Tennessee Sept. 4 Louisiana Tech Knoxville Sept. 11 Georgia Knoxville Sept. 18 Florida Gainesville Sept. 25 LSU Knoxville Oct. 2 ( Home Coming ) Duke Knoxville Oct. 9 Arkansas Little Rock Oct. 16 Alabama Legion Field Oct. 23 ( Open ) Oct. 30 So. Carolina Knoxville Nov. 6 Louisville Knoxville Nov. 13 ( Open ) Nov. 20 Kentucky Lexington Nov. 27 Vanderbilt Knoxville ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä Vanderbilt Sept. 4 Wake Forest Winston-Salem Sept. 11 Alabama Nashville Sept. 18 Ole Miss Oxford Sept. 25 ( Open ) Oct. 2 Auburn Nashville Oct. 9 Cincinnati Nashville Oct. 16 ( Home Coming ) Georgia Nashville Oct. 23 So. Carolina Columbia Oct. 30 ( Open ) Nov. 6 Kentucky Nashville Nov. 13 Navy Nashville Nov. 20 Florida Gainesville Nov. 27 Tennessee Knoxville ------------------------------------------------------------------Ä ---- David Moss is a regular contributor to BTN who apparently likes football. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Local Music In July by Judy Ranelli Fri. 2 INSANE JANE/FUZZY SUNS at The Nick It's a sad fact that many of the better Atlanta bands do not visit our city often. Thus I'm always pleased when one pops up, namely Insane Jane. Intense female singer, fine bassist, rickenbackery guitar and thumping drums. Fuzzy Suns is the latest incarnation of the weird collaborations of extraordinary improv guitarist Davey Williams (of Curlew) and member-of-strange-people-of-B'ham guitarist Mike Portero. Don't be afraid, though: they're grrreat. [Editor's Note: As always, all dates and names are subject to change, and here's an excellent example: Insane Jane cancelled their date at The Nick, then announced their break-up, between the time this article was written and press time. Of course, if they had stayed together, they also would have PLAYED before press time, thanks to the lateness of this month's issue.] Sun. 4 ERIC ESSEX at On The Avenue For those who enjoy what I call hot tub jazz, and also for those who enjoy seeing talented musicians who've made it outside of Birmingham. Thurs. 8 SHALLOW/NOGOOD BOYO/OAT PEARL Don't ask me about the other two; even I have no idea... But Shallow is quite pleasant with no aftertaste. Fri. 9 ANDERS OSBOURNE ORCHESTRA at Zydeco I admit, I have no idea about this either, but as I look at the other choices, I would at least give this a listen outside the window because they have "orchestra" in their name. Sat. 10 FIVE EIGHT at The Nick Such a fine band! And sure to be packed with dancing fools. Come break my nose again. Sun. 11 BIG DIXIE/ROCKASOMETHING at The Nick My god, they do a cover, in japanese of course, of "Sukiyaki". Lots of fun. Wed. 14 TOPPER PRICE AND THE UPSETTERS at the Back Alley Topper's the man behind the fine harmonica solo on that Brother Cane single. Go get riotously drunk at this show, and then stagger through the traffic on 20th street to see some Space Camp, which I've gurgled about in here before, at Louie Louie. Thurs. 15 HENRI'S NOTIONS at the 22nd St. Jazz Cafe and Brewery A honest Irish folk song band! At a Jazz Cafe! I can't resist this. Fri. 16 GRISTLE TWINS at The Nick I like them lots; they're silly, they're funny, they're catchy. They make me happy. Thurs. 22 BUNKY AND TOPPER What? Bunky is Topper's drummer. A drummer and a harmonica/singer. Strange enough to imagine alone together for me to check it out. Sat. 24 "SUPERSONIC SATURDAY" (hic) at the Endzone [in Tuscaloosa] (featuring SMOKING GUN, DT'S, SHADOW CASTE, DEAN DOLLAR, RHYTHM JUNCTION, SLICK LILLY, AUTUMN LORDS, FOLLOW FOR NOW, SPUNKADILLY, JAMES HALL BAND and the WOGGLES) Want to see lots of the band's I've mentiod in here plus many more I haven't? Why not take the trip? I won't, but I don't need to. Maybe you do. Let your curiosity be your guide. Mon. 26 URGE/LOPPYBOGYMI at The Nick Loppybogymi is supposed to be excellent, but I always seem to miss them. Maybe writing this column will remind me. That's it. Nothing screamed at me for the end of the month. Somebody out there might have noticed this column's abscence in the June BTN. Be it mercy or providence, I have since found out that Scott has the ability to meet deadlines! Bah, I said, but it didn't sway him. June also happened to be the month in which the biggest musical event of the year in Bham occurs, City Stages, but since we Ticks were not playing it, it seems appropriate that my column not appear as well. I did, however, stand on the Coca-Cola stage while Dionne Warwick sang melodiously a few yards away. Ahh. June seemed to be a deadly month for Birmingham bands. Carol Griffin quit the Sugar La Las. Remy Zero, having been reportedly dropped from their label, broke up amidst amplifier throwing and mad tirades at the Nick. Pinky the Stabber, a band I shall sorely miss, broke up. The Working Mothers broke up. What is this? Rest assured, the Ticks thrive. It's hard to keep bands together. Egos clash, it's a finacial nightmare, and there are all sorts of issues that spring up, like alcoholism, inability to arrive on schedule, inability to kiss butt... Yet I would hope this apparent trend will turn out to be a coincidence. The Crazy Cafe is going to merge with The Projexx and re-open in the old Club 312 on Twentieth Street. And finally, I have no time to review new albums/artists but I would love it if someone would. That is, I would read it. Never know what to buy these days... ---- Judy Ranelli is a local musician and therefore knows exactly what music is good and what music is bad. Her band, the Ticks, received favorable publicity in this month's issue of Black & White (page 38), and so you know what to do next. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- BTN ProFile by The Bishop ----------- The ProFile is a light-hearted attempt at allowing the BBS community to get to know the selected user or sysop better. The harassees...er... candidates for the ProFile are selected purely by random (or maybe not - read up on 'chaos'). If anyone has any suggestions for questions to be included in the ProFile or for users to be harassed by the ProFile, then feel free to E-Mail them to me (The Bishop on Crunchy Frog, or Aaron Dees on most other boards in town)... ----------- PRO FILE: Murphy Age: "For an apricot, I am old. For a head of lettuce, even more so. But for a mountain, I am not yet even begun in years. For a man, I am just right." Birthplace: Right bloody here in Birmingham Occupation: Student, cynic, and Discordian My hobbies include: Martial combat, reading volumes and volumes of darn near anything, chivalry, armchair psychology, writing bad Jim Morrison poetry Years telecomputing: Around a decade, give or take a year Sysop, past/present/future of: Not bloody likely. CoSysOp of the Crunchy Frog. My oddest habit is: Going insane at inopportune moments My greatest unfulfilled ambition is: To travel around the world and see all the great monuments like Stonehenge, the Parthenon, St. Peter's, Macchu Picchu, et al. The single accomplishment of which I am most proud is: Living this long My favorite performers are: The Sisters of Mercy, Fleetwood Mac, Vangelis, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Denis Leary, Sting, Anthrax, David Crosby, Genesis, Styx, Dead Can Dance The last good movie I saw was: Reservoir Dogs The last good book I read was: _Jurassic Park_, by Michael Crichton If they were making a movie of my life, I'd like to see my part played by: Either Denis Leary or some sort of Muppet My pet peeves are: 90% of the people on the planet When nobody's looking, I like to: Meditate or fake tai chi, or spar with an imaginary opponent ----------------------------------------------------------------------- MUSTANG SOFTWARE INTRODUCES RIP-BASED WILDCAT! BBS QmodemPro COMMUNICATIONS SOFTWARE RIP-Based Duo is Industry's First BAKERSFIELD, Calif., June 15, 1993 -- Mustang Software, Inc. (MSI), the industry's only supplier of both BBS and communications software, has introduced new versions of its WILDCAT! BBS (v3.9) and QmodemPro communications software (v1.5) that support the new Remote Imaging Protocol (RIP) graphical interface. The new software packages are the first in the industry to integrate RIP for both the host and terminal user. RIP is the emerging graphical standard for the bulletin board system (BBS) industry and introduces new graphics performance levels for both sysops and users. The RIP-equipped WILDCAT! v3.9 can send full-screen graphics to callers' and lets mouse users select BBS commands by clicking on selection buttons or screen prompts -- very much like popular online services such as Prodigy and America Online. WILDCAT! 3.9 still retains full support for standard text and ANSI. In order for a caller to access the WILDCAT! v3.9's RIP graphics, the caller needs to use RIP-equipped Communications software such as QmodemPro v1.5. Like its WILDCAT! counterpart, QmodemPro v1.5 allows callers to view full-screen graphics and use a mouse when connected to a RIP-ready BBS. RIP also lets the QmodemPro caller select BBS commands by clicking on graphic selection buttons or screen prompts. "Adding RIP support to QmodemPro makes this new graphics level available to the millions of WILDCAT! users," said Jim Harrer, MSI President and CEO. "Our goal is to make QmodemPro the tool of choice for connections to mail systems, whether it is a BBS, CompuServe, MCI or other online services." New WILDCAT! FAX-Send Module Gives Sysops Custom Control In addition to its RIP interface, WILDCAT! v3.9 now has a FAX-send module included with the wcPRO utility package. The FAX module allows WILDCAT! sysops with fax modems to make text and graphics .PCX files available to callers via the FAX. Callers can select FAX documents while online and have them sent to their FAX machine or to another number. Because accessing the FAX module is security-defined, the sysop has total control over the FAX access feature. The sysop has the customizing option of making packages of FAX documents available to different groups of callers. Information on the FAX cover page is entered by the caller and the document(s) is prepared for sending by the FAX module. The caller then has a choice of having the requested FAXes sent after hanging up or sent immediately over another communications port or PC on a network. Addition WILDCAT! v3.9 features include: 1. A "gentle reminder" notification to the caller if BBS log-off is attempted before downloading all files that have been marked for download. 2. Automatic detection of a remote caller's emulation (ANSI, RIPscrip or Doorway) -- allowing callers to dial in over different terminal packages with WILDCAT! deciding "on the fly" which emulation is best. 3. Increased selections of No-color, ANSI-color, RIP or Auto-detect from the [Y]our settings menu. If Autodetect is selected, the user gets the screen type that WILDCAT! detects at log-in. QmodemPro v1.5 Continues Adding Features In addition to its RIP-ready interface, QmodemPro v1.5 has added modem pool support for the NCSI/ACS network interface; the Articom interface from LANtastic; and Rockwell's RPI modem chip interface, adding v.42bis and MNP5 support for 2400 baud modems using the Rockwell chip. "These new features, led by RIP, continue the growing sophistication of communications software and mark another step in the ongoing maturation process of BBS and communications software," Harrer said. "We expect broad market acceptance plus a new level of corporate communications users." WILDCAT! v3.9 is available immediately to any WILDCAT! v3.x user for $20 plus shipping and handling. Standalone retail pricing begins at $129 for a single-line version. QmodemPro v1.5 is available immediately at no charge for registered QmodemPro 1.0 users and $35 for Qmodem-registered users. For first-time users, the retail price is $99 plus shipping and handling. Mustang Software, Inc. (MSI) is the leading single-source supplier of bulletin board system (BBS) software and related communications software, with more than 22,000 registered users of its WILDCAT! BBS software and 80,000 registered users of its Qmodem/QmodemPro communications software. MSI, formed in 1986, is headquartered in Bakersfield, Calif. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- "Anatomy of a Hoax" Authors name changed to protect the guilty Date line: Razerville, Ga. Red Neckerson's Pickup repair and "Gater" farm An In in depth interview with Red Neckerson RE:Memorial Day Mass-a-cree and cluster fluck BTN: It appears Mr. Neckerson that you have upset sysops and net managers throughout the land, would you care to comment? RED: Who me? I heered some of them liberal folks got their panties in a wad over one message, but it were thum liberals not me. BTN: Are you denying that you put a message in FredNet saying that everyone should pickup 20 messages on memorial day and post then to every net in the land, to use your words "To cause every liberal in the land to pee their pants and have net nazi's go in to apoplexy. It will be the grandest joke since they elected Clinton." Do you deny sending that message? RED: NOPE! BTN: Then how do you have the audacity to blame it on liberals? Red: Son, you ain't from around here air ya'? I can spot thum liberal types a mile away. The come ta the farm here in them BMW's warin' thum Rollinex watches and tease my gaters. Then they tell me how it's crulity...... BTN: We are gettin off the subject here may I call you Red? RED: Nope, can't have no liberal newspaper type callen me by my given name. What paper did ya say you wuz with? Will my pixur be in it. BTN: Birmingham Telecommunications News run by Mark Maisel. RED: Mark! Hell me and him had lunch together at the Mexicam restrunt' when he cum over fer comdex. Yep they serve the best egg drop soop BTN: Egg drop soup in a Mexican rest... Never mind can we get back to the messages? Red: Call me Red son, Friend of Marks iz'in a friend of mine.. Oh, OK.. It went like this, I knowed that at least one of thum liberal folks would see the message and feel that he needed to save the wurld from ole' Red. Shor nuff, just as God made Redman Tabacca, he grabed up that thar message and mounted his modem and spread the wurd like that Paul fella did. Ya know hollaring the messages iz cummin, the messages iz cummin". Purty soon I wuz banned from every net in the land by them folks that got them pocket protectos and taped glasses. BTN: Excuse me? Are you saying this all started with a single message? And that you intentionally layed a trap for the people that spread the messages all over the U.S. Red: Yup! Ain't human nature wunderful BTN: I have a hard time believing that you have the intelligence to perpertrate a hoax of this magnitude. Do you really expect me to belive it? RED: Belive what ya want Son, but them folks air the ones who voted fer Clinton, that outa' tell ya sometin right thar. Don't clame to be smart, but I got a bit of common sense. BTN: Well Mr. Neckerson, how do you plan to make ammends fer... hell now you have me doing it FOR this dastardly deed? RED: Next memorial day I am a fixin to dump all 4000 messages I got back into all the nets and upset em for another year. Now if they is really upset, tell them the next time they get by Razervill Ga to stop by the gater farm and share a bit of my sippin whisky. Hey! tell ya what, if they mention the Great Memorial Day Mass-a cree and cluster fluck they can see the gaters fer free. BTN: Thanks for your time and do you have anything to add? RED: Nah! except ya Un'I folks send Joe sheppard a new box of depends and help Cam DeBuck get his panties out of a wad. Tell Maisey to drop by again and this time leave the girl gaters alone. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SIG's (Special Interest Groups), Computer Related ------------------------------------------------- BIPUG Alabama UniForum Birmingham IBM-PC Users Group Homewood Public Library UAB Nutrition Science Blg 1st Tuesday RM 535/541 Shawn Cleary 870-6130 1st Sunday (delayed one week if meeting is a holiday) Marty Schulman 967-5883 The SIG listing is being re-verified. If you know of an active Computer Related user's group, please let me know. I can be reached via Internet email at eric.hunt@the-matrix.com or drop me a note directly on the MATRIX. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Known BBS Numbers For The Birmingham Area Sysops, PLEASE check your listing to make sure everything is correct, especially the networks. Corrections should be mailed on the Matrix to James Minton or in a Sysop Comment on Outer Limits. Also, if anyone has any information about networks listed at the bottom with "uncertain at press time", let me know. NAME NUMBER BAUD RATES MODEM BBS SOFTWARE SUPPORTED TYPE ADAnet One (Nodes 1-3) 854-9074 1200-2400 PCBoard 14.5 [ez, fi, ad] ADAnet One (Node 4) 854-5863 2400-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, fi, ad] Alcatraz BBS 608-0880 300-9600 VBBS 6.0 [he, vi] Alter-Ego BBS 925-5099 1200-9600 USR HST PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn] Asgard 663-9171 300-9600 V.32 WWIV 4.21a [ez, al, te] Baudville (Node 1) 980-1089 300-2400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Baudville (Node 2) 991-2095 300-14400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Baudville (Node 3) 991-9144 300-2400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Baudville (Node 4) 995-0013 300-2400 Major BBS 6.10 [none] Bone Yard, The 631-6023 300-9600 USR HST PCBoard 14.5 [fi, ez] Boy's Room 674-8117 300-2400 Wildcat! 3.55 [none] Bus System 987-5419 300-2400 PCBoard 14.2 [none] Byte Me! 979-BYTE! 2400-14400 USR HST WWIV 4.12 [ez, th, al] Castle, The 841-7618 300-2400 Image 1.2 [none] Channel 8250 (Node 1) 744-8546 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, un] Channel 8250 (Node 2) 744-5166 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, un] Christian Apologetic 808-0763 1200-14400 V.32bis Wildcat! 3.55 [ez, wi, bc, ru] Crunchy Frog (Node 1) 823-3957 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn, lu, ll] Crunchy Frog (Node 2) 823-3958 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn, lu, ll] Den, The 933-8744 300-9600 USR HST ProLogon/ProDoor [ez, mn, il] Digital Publishing 854-1660 300-9600 V.32 Wildcat! 3.01 [pl] Family Smorgas-Board 744-0943 300-2400 PCBoard 14.5 [ez, fi, mj, bc, fa, ic, cf, cd, np, ag, ve, ad] Final Frontier 838-5634 300-14400 VBBS 6.0 [al, he] Flip Side 798-3961 300-2400 Renegade 8.27 [none] Genesis Online(Nodes 1-6) 620-4150 300-14400 V.32bis Major BBS 6.11 [mr] Guardian, The 425-1951 1200-14400 V.42bis VBBS 6.0 [vi] Hardeman's BBS 640-6436 1200-14400 Wildcat! 3.51 [wi, di, bc] Hardware Hotline 631-6629 300-14400 V.32/42 PCBoard 14.5 [none] The Holodeck BBS 663-7229 1200-9600 V.32 TriBBS 4.02 [cc] Homewood's Hell Hole 870-9067 2400-14440 V.32bis VBBS 5.6 [he] Intruder Enterprizes 969-0870 300-9600 V.32 VBBS 5.6 [vi, al] Joker's Castle 664-5589 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn, un] KickAxis BBS 733-0253 1200-14400 USR DS VBBS 6.0 [he] Last Word 663-4721 300-2400 VBBS 6.0 [sn] Lemon Grove 836-1184 300-12000 V.42bis SLBBS 3.0 [fi, sl] Lion's Den 969-5733 300-14400 USR DS Wildcat! 3.60 [none] Lumby's Palace 520-0041 300-14400 VBBS 6.0 [he] Magic City 664-9883 300-14400 USR DS Wildcat! 3.55 [cc, di, tr, wi] Magnolia BBS 854-6407 300-14400 USR HST PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn] MATRIX, The (Nodes 1-14) 323-2016 300-2400 PCBoard 15.0 [ez, mn, th, il, in, al, sh, sc, gl, ic, ri, fr] MATRIX, The (Nodes 20-23) 323-6016 9600-14400 USR DS PCBoard 15.0 [ez, mn, th, il, in, al, sh, sc, gl, ic, ri, fr] MATRIX, The (Node 25-26) 458-3449 9600-14400 V.32bis PCBoard 15.0 [ez, mn, th, il, in, al, sh, sc, gl, ic, ri, fr] MetaBoard 854-4814 300-14400 USR DS Opus CBCS 1.73 [fi, ad] MetroMac BBS 323-6306 300-2400 TeleFinder 3.0 [none] Milliways (Node 1) 956-3177 1200-2400 Major BBS 6.11 [none] Milliways (Nodes 2-6) 956-2731 1200-2400 Major BBS 6.11 [none] Missing Link 853-1257 300-16800 USR DS C-Net Amiga 2.63 [cl, cn] Neon Moon 477-5894 300-14400 TriBBS 4.0 [dx] Nirvana 942-6702 300-14400 V.32bis VBBS 6.0 [al, vi, at, rp] Optical Illusion 995-9145 1200-14400 V.32bis VBBS 6.0 [al] Outer Limits (Node 1) 426-5611 1200-2400 Wildcat! 3.60 [fi, do, er, er, pn] Outer Limits (Node 2) 425-5871 1200-14400 USR HST Wildcat! 3.60 [fi, do, ec, er, pn] Outer Limits (Node 3) 426-2939 1200-16800 ZyXEL Wildcat! 3.60 [fi, do, ec, er, pn] Owlabama BBS 856-2521 1200-14400 GTPower 17.06 [gt, ez, mn, cc, tr, sc, ab] Owl's Nest 680-0851 300-14400 USR DS PCBoard 14.5 [ez, mn] Party Line 856-1336 300-14000 V.32bis TriBBS 4.0 [cc, tr, di] Penny Arcade 699-4625 300-2400 Running Force! 3.75 [none] Playground 681-5070 2400-14000 V.32 TriBBS 4.0 [tr, di, cc, ez, al, fr] Posys BBS 854-5131 300-9600 V.32 PCBoard [none] Quiet Zone 833-2066 300-2400 ExpressNet [none] Razor's Edge 995-0412 1200-2400 VBBS 5.6 [he, al] Safe Harbor (Node 1) 665-4332 300-2400 GTPower 17.06 [gt, ez, mn, il] Safe Harbor (Node 2) 665-4355 300-14400 USR DS GTPower 17.06 [gt, ez, mn, il] Sam's Domain 956-2757 1200-14400 VBBS 6.0 [da, he] Safety BBS 581-2866 300-2400 RBBS-PC 17.4 [none] Southern Stallion 322-3816 300-16800 V.32bis PCBoard 15.0 [none] Sperry BBS 853-6144 300-2400 V.32/42bis PCBoard 14.5 [none] ST BBS 836-9311 300-2400 PCBoard 14.2 [ez] StarBase 12 647-7184 300-2400 TriBBS 4.0 [ez, mn, cc] Thy Master's Dungeon 940-2116 300-57600 V.32/42bis PCBoard 14.5 [fr] Torch Song 328-1517 300-9600 V.32 Wildcat 3.6 [pr, se, st, do] Venus BBS 424-2872 300-2400 WWIV 4.22 [cy, te, al] Weekends BBS 841-8583 2400-16800 USR DS Wildcat! 3.9 [none] Willie's DYM (Node 1) 664-9902 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Willie's DYM (Node 2) 664-9903 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Willie's DYM (Node 3) 664-9895 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Willie's DYM (Node 4) 664-9896 300-2400 Oracomm Plus [or] Ziggy Unix BBS 991-5696 300-1200 UNaXess [none] The two-letter abbreviations you see on the line below the names of many of the bbs' in the list signify that they are members of one or more networks that exchange or echo mail to each other in some organized fashion. ad = ADAnet, an international network dedicated to the handicapped ag = AgapeNet, a national Christian network, multi-topic al = AlaNet, a local network, multi-topic an = Annex Network, uncertain at press time at = AdultNet, a national network, adult-oriented bc = BCBNet, a local network, religion-oriented bh = BhamTalk, a local network, multi-topic cc = City2City, a national network, multi-topic cd = CDN, a national Christian network for file distribution cf = CFN, a national Christian network, multi-topic cl = CLink, uncertain at press time cn = CNet, multi-topic cy = Cybernet, uncertain at press time da = DateNet, uncertain at press time de = DevNet, an international network for programmers and developers di = Dixie Net, a regional network, multi-topic geared toward the south eastern United States do = DoorNet, a national network for the distribution of BBS doors ec = EchoNet, an international network, multi-topic er = ErosNet, an international network, adult oriented, files & messages ez = EzNet, a local IBM compatible network fa = FamilyNet, an international network, multi-topic fi = FidoNet, an international network, multi-topic fr = FredNet, a regional network, political discussion ga = GameNet, a local network, uncertain at press time gl = GlobalLink, an international network, multi-topic gt = GTNet, an international network, multi-topic he = HellNet, a local network, multi-topic ic = ICDM, an international Christian network, multi-topic il = ILink, an international network, multi-topic ic = Intelec, a national network, multi-topic in = InterNet, an international network, linking businesses, universities, and bbs', multi-topic ll = LlamaNet, a national network, freeform correspondence lo = LocalNet, uncertain at press time lu = LuciferNet, an international network, adult oriented ma = MAXnet, a local network, connecting WWIV and VBBS systems mj = MJCN, an international network for Messianic Jews mn = Metronet, an international network which echoes RIME, multi-topic mr = MajorNet, an international network, multi-topic np = NPN, a national network for new parents or = OraNet, a national E-mail network pl = PlanoNet, a national network, multi-topic pn = PoliceNet, an international network, law-enforcement only pr = PrideNet, a local homosexually oriented network rf = RF Net, a national network for ham radio users and hobbyists ri = RIME, an international network, multi-topic rb = RoboLink, a national network, multi-topic rp = RPGnet, a local network for role-playing games rs = RoseNet, a national network, technically oriented ru = RushNet, a national network for Rush Limbaugh fans sc = Science Factor Net, a national network, science and technology oriented se = SEC, a regional network, homosexually oriented geared toward the southeastern United States sh = Shades N Shadows Net, a national network for role-playing games sl = SearchlightNet, a national network, multi-topic sm = SmartNet, a national network, multi-topic sn = ShadowNet, a national network for role-playing games st = StudsNet, a national network, homosexually oriented te = TECHnet, a local network, hardware and utility oriented th = ThrobNet, an international network, adult oriented tr = TTN, a national network, multi-topic un = Uni'Net, an international network, multi-topic ve = VETLink, a national network for military veterans vi = VirtualNet, an international network, multi-topic wi = WildNet, a national network, multi-topic ww = WWIV-Net, an international network, multi-topic The following boards were down or unable to be verified: Cannibal Cafe Castle Rock DataLynx BBS Dataworks EcoBBS The Faction Gamer's Online The Headland Highlander Illuminatus Infinite Probability Lion & Unicorn Once again, if you notice any mistakes or items that need to be updated/changed, please let me know.