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FidoNews · Vol 21, No 40 · 04 Oct 2004

     The  F I D O N E W S      Volume 21, Number 40             04 Oct 2004 
     +--------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
     | |The newsletter of the | |                                         |
     | |  FidoNet community.  | | Crash netmail articles to:              |
     | |                      | |          Editor @ 2:2/2 (+46-31-944907  |
     | |          ____________| |                                         |
     | |         /  __          | Routed netmail articles to:             |
     | |        /  /  \         |          Bjorn Felten @ 2:203/0         |
     | | WOOF! (  /|oo \        |                                         |
     |  \_______\(_|  /_)       | Email attach to:                        |
     |            _ @/_ \    _  |          bfelten @ telia dot com        |
     |           |     | \   \\ |                                         |
     |           | (*) |  \   ))|                                         |
     |           |__U__| /  \// |         Editor: Björn Felten            |
     |   ______   _//|| _\   /  |                                         |
     |  / Fido \ (_/(_|(____/   |   Newspapers should have no friends.    |
     | (________)       (jm)    |                    -- JOSEPH PULITZER   |
     +--------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
            Copyright 2004 by Fidonews Editor for Fidonews Globally.


                        Table of Contents
     1. FOOD FOR THOUGHT  .........................................  1
     2. ANDY'S ANECDOTES  .........................................  2
        Mikey's Rehab Believed to be Complete Success  ............  2
     3. CLEAN HUMOUR & JOKES  .....................................  8
        Rejection denied  .........................................  8
     4. IN THE SNOOZE TEN YEARS AGO  ..............................  9
        Swamp Swine Magazine  .....................................  9
     5. BEN RITCHEY'S FIDONET SOFTWARE LISTING  ................... 11
        FIDONet Software References  .............................. 11
     6. SPECIAL INTEREST  ......................................... 16
        Nodelist Stats  ........................................... 16
     7. FIDONEWS INFORMATION  ..................................... 18
        How to Submit an Article  ................................. 18
        Credits, Legal Infomation, Availability  .................. 20
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 1                    4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                             FOOD FOR THOUGHT
     =================================================================

     What I do today is important because I am paying a day of my life for
     it. What I accomplish must be worthwhile because the price is high.

                            -- anonymous

     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 2                    4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                             ANDY'S ANECDOTES
     =================================================================

             Mikey's Rehab Believed to be Complete Success
                       By Andy Alt, 1:14/250

     Originally Scripted 11/03/2003
     Slightly Modified 09/27/2004


        After years of struggling with addiction and rampant criminal
     activity, officials have declared that Mikey is completely
     rehabilitated. I managed to contact Mikey through his parents and he
     granted me an exclusive interview. The majority of what he said will
     be misquoted and printed out of context. Here's what he had to say:

        "Yeah... I had some problems," he began. I noticed that Mikey
     would only speak in between mouthfuls while eating his beloved Life
     cereal.

        "When they first gave me a bowl of Life, I thought it was the best
     thing since... well... since breast milk, because I hated everything.
     They didn't think I'd really eat it because of my intense hatred of
     anything I'd ever eaten before. I only did it because I had a side bet
     going with the kid next to him. It was kind of like a pre-adolescent
     conspiracy."

        The expression on Mikey's face became much more sad, and we could
     tell that painful memories were beginning to surface. Mikey maintained
     his resilience through great strain, and continued his tale.

        "I... my only real crime is that I love too much. My parents were
     real happy at first. I'd never seen them smiling so much when they
     walked into the room."

        There was a pause, and I turned to Mikey's parents and asked them
     what particularly pleased them. After 23 years of silence about the
     issue, his mother finally spoke candidly on the subject.

        "His father and I were extremley worried about him. He hadn't eaten
     solid food for years. The only thing keeping him alive were daily
     intravenous feedings at the hospital. We were getting ready to leave
     for another routine trip to the hospital and told him to wait in the
     kitchen with his friend and our other son. We had no idea..." Mikey's
     mother had to stop momentarily to reach for a tissue. "The doctors
     knew that the intravenous feedings couldn't keep him alive forever,
     but they instilled so much hope in us." She started smiling again as
     the room brightened with her memory that day. "We came downstairs and
     we were absolutely astonished! He was eating! It was absolutely
     beautiful."

        Mikey's father interjected his thoughts at this point.

        "I thought the most beautiful thing I'd ever see was my children
     being born, but to see Mikey eating solid food surpassed my wildest
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 3                    4 Oct 2004


     fantasies. We decided to have a celebration and invited all of our
     friends and family. He wouldn't eat the cake though. He just sat there
     the whole time eating Life."

        "So where did events take a turn for the worst?" I quietly asked.
     Mikey's father continued the discussion.

        "Well... after a week of eating nothing but Life cereal, we
     bought some Golden Grahams which he tasted but promptly refused to
     finish. My wife and I were disappointed but we considered it a minor
     setback and were grateful that at least he still enjoyed eating Life
     cereal and didn't hate it, like everything else. We bought - and he
     rejected - 68 other major cereal brands. We were starting to become
     more disgruntled, but since we had saved so much money after the
     intravenous feedings ended, we didn't really care about the money. We
     then gave him 13 more flavors of cereal to try; this time they were
     generic in yellow and black bags. Some of these were labelled
     'cinnamon cereal,' 'sugared cereal,' 'brown cereal,' 'crunchy cereal,'
     and just plain old, 'cereal.' That last one clearly stated to 'Add
     Milk. Refer to a Life cereal box for instructions.' We were positive
     that Mikey would latch on to 'cereal' as he had latched on to the
     Life, but no joy. My wife and I decided it was a phase and he'd grow
     out of it. We made the decision to give it time. That was our biggest
     mistake."

        Mikey's mother took over the interview at this point: "Weeks went
     by, and turned into months. We were spending a fortune on dish-washing
     liquid, hot water, milk, and toilet paper. I couldn't even go to work
     anymore because all my extra time was spent doing dishes and going to
     the grocery store."

        "One day when Mikey came home from school, I watched in utter
     fascination as he ate an entire box of Golden Grahams, then sat down
     in front of the television. That was pretty unusual for him. Usually
     when he got home, he'd only eat half a box of Life, then sat in the
     kitchen watching the box of Life on the table. He's very worried that
     someone could break in and steal his Life. We told him not to worry
     and he should go organize his baseball card collection. Before Life
     came along, he was so proud of his Babe Ruth card that he had it
     framed in solid gold, and kept it hidden inside a jewel-encrusted
     model of Yankee Stadium, which was originally created by the stadium
     designers when they made their proposal to build the actual Yankee
     Stadium. Of course Mikey had the jewels added later."

        "Mikey had just come back from the kitchen and was ready to talk
     again. He set his bowl of Life down on the Life table, which was
     formerly called the coffee table until 4 years ago. He spent 53 months
     fighting the legal system, and after numerous court battles and
     appeals, they had granted Mikey's Life table a legal change of name.
     The only condition was that it would only affect his coffee table, and
     not any other coffee tables in the nation. Mikey spoke up about the
     dramatic change in his perplexing eating habits:

        "I was at school eating Life during studyhall. The teachers and
     principal never did like me. To this day, I still think they were
     carrot sympathizers or had a deal with competing cereal brands. They
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 4                    4 Oct 2004


     sent me to detention where I met a guy... Guy asked me if I wanted to
     buy some grass. I told him that I wasn't interested. I told him that I
     hated everything. Guy kept pressuring me. I told him that I wouldn't
     eat anything but Life cereal. Guy told me that you don't eat grass...
     he said that you smoke it. I looked at him, not really trusting him
     all that much; I told him that I'd try anything once, but I'd probably
     hate it."

        "After I smoked it, a whole new world opened up for me. I felt
     like Aladdin must have felt on his magic carpet. I couldn't believe
     anything could be better than Life cereal. But in reality, all I had
     on my hands was another addiction. When I was in prison, I realized
     that Life cereal was a gateway cereal. It only leads to the hard
     stuff, like Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Chocolate Rice Krispies. It
     wasn't really about smoking the pot to get high, it was about smoking
     the pot to intensify the taste of Life cereal" Mikey then told us the
     events leading to his capture, arrest, and imprisonment.

        "It didn't take very long before my parents figured out that I was
     smoking weed. I was eating cereal brands they had never even heard of
     before, and some weren't even produced by American cereal companies. I
     was a senior in high school by this time. I was pretty rebellious,
     even for a teenager. I wouldn't even do the dishes when my parents
     asked. I know that kids who eat Trix are 9 times more likely to wash
     dishes when asked, but sometimes kids just don't care about stuff like
     facts."

        "I mean... I would wash a bowl and a spoon, but only when I needed
     some cereal and mom was out grocery shopping. About 3 years, 8 months,
     5 days, 29 minutes, and 9 seconds after my Life addiction started, I
     made an important discovery: In a pinch, Life could be eaten with a
     fork. Sometimes I'd just have to wash a bowl. If I was opening a new
     box of Life, I'd pull out the bag and check for holes. If I found zero
     defects, I would just put the bag back in the box and pour the milk
     in. This saved a lot of time and it freed mom up so she had energy to
     go grocery shopping. The phone bill got really high after I found the
     number on the box for calling in questions and comments. Actually the
     bill wasn't expensive at first. But the geniuses who created Life had
     to temporarily ditch their toll-free number after I began calling
     them."

        "I took notes every time I called with questions, and eventually
     was able to replicate Life to the exact molecule. Or so I thought. I
     was pretty cocky for a kid. I thought I could take on the whole Life
     corporation, and I was only 17. I thought that my chemistry set was
     really paying off. I was pretty devastated when I first tasted it. My
     synthesized Life was revolting. I hated it."

        "Using the money I had earned from selling all my gold... Oh, I
     forget to tell ya, I had accidentally figured out how to turn lead
     into gold. It's actually not that hard if you have the right
     combination of milk in your conversion equations. So using all that
     money, I hired a team of molecular engineers to examine my work. They
     found that my Life had the exact same chemical and molecular
     composition, but each atomic particle had one less electron than the
     kind you buy at the store. The engineers were a little surprised that
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 5                    4 Oct 2004


     a missing electron would be cause enough for me to vomit when I ate
     it. They each tried it and found no difference in taste. I tried to
     explain to them that I hated everything, but they didn't seem to
     comprehend how that was possible."

        "I'd like to sidetrack a little here and publicly apologize for
     what happened to that team of engineers. I later found out that after
     eating the Life I had created with my chemistry set, they were unable
     to eat anything else after that. They couldn't even eat the real Life
     cereal. It's unfortunate that my design notes became ruined when they
     dropped into a bowl of milk I left by my bed. My results couldn't be
     duplicated and they eventually starved to death. I was surprised that
     the same intravenous feedings that helped me as a child couldn't help
     them and I deeply regret causing any inconvenience to their family."

        "Wow, I feel a lot better," as he spoons some more Life onto his
     eagerly awaiting tongue. "It's nice to apologize after carrying that
     burden of guilt for so long. I feel like I just unloaded a truck full
     of Life cereal from my shoulders," he declares with a sigh. "Anyway, I
     was pretty ticked off to find out my attempt to duplicate Life had
     failed. I guess I lost my temper a little. I threw a box of Lucky
     Charms at my chemistry set and stormed out of the house after grabbing
     all the boxes of Life cereal from the kitchen cabinets. It took 6
     trips and I had to rent a U-Haul, but it was a damn good thing I
     managed to salvage them all. I was about 5 blocks away when I heard an
     explosion and saw a blinding flash of light in my rearview mirror. I
     didn't notice it right away because I was so focused on the fuzzy Life
     boxes hanging from the mirror, but after 30 seconds it finally dawned
     on me what had just happened. I don't buy chemistry sets anymore,
     they're just too dangerous. Plus I just keep asking myself, 'what good
     is science if I can't make my own Life cereal.' I also avoid Lucky
     Charms like the plague; I hate them anyway."

        I holed up in an abandoned Life cereal warehouse for a few days.
     Finally I got the courage up to venture out because I needed to go to
     the post office. I did a lot of mass-mailings back then. They're all
     just coupons for Life cereal. Since the limit is only one or two boxes
     per customer, I set up a system and made some important nation-wide
     contacts. I never understood why the limits were imposed - I thought
     it was a really bonehead move to put a limit on Life cereal - but I
     have complete trust in the masterminds at the Life corporation."

        "The people who received my coupons bought Life cereal for me and
     shipped it free of charge. In return for that, I sent them my really
     easy method of turning lead into gold. I didn't really feel as if I
     was taking advantage of them. Even though they were doing me a big
     favor and weren't getting any Life cereal in return, they knew what
     they were getting into when they signed up. Besides... anyone who
     willingly gives up their Life cereal to ship it to a stranger should
     be on some kinda medication for mental disorders. One time I saw a
     shrink for a disorder that was unrelated to giving up Life cereal. He
     tried giving me Prozac, but I hated it."

        "I arrived at the post office and saw my picture on the wall! I
     couldn't believe it, but I was on the Ten Most Wanted list! Apparently
     not only had my chemistry set caused an explosion, but it took out an
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 6                    4 Oct 2004


     entire city block! And then I read more of the short article next to
     my face, and it said there was some kind of unique interaction during
     the chemical fallout, and almost everyone in the city died from food
     poisoning during breakfast the morning after I had my run-in with that
     box of Lucky Charms.. The only lives spared were people who ate Life
     cereal for breakfast that day. The authorities thought it was a
     pre-meditated Life attack. In the photograph, I noticed that next to
     my left cheek, a box of Life had been superimposed on the photograph
     of my face. The caption read, 'Have you seen this man?' I really
     started panicking because as I was reading the article, I had been
     holding a box of Life cereal, and had been rubbing it lovingly across
     my right cheek."

        "I was so freaked out that I dropped my box of Life and ran out
     the door. Right after the fresh air hit me, I realized my mistake
     almost immediately and ran back in to get the box so I could escape
     and not worry so much about losing my Life. After that, everything
     gets really blurry when I try to remember. I pretty much had to live
     on the street, sleeping in a carboard box, which was basically a bunch
     of Life cereal boxes glued together. I never threw away the boxes of
     Life that I ate. I didn't have to worry about shelter and I had a new
     house every week. Every time the law caught up with me, I would duck
     into the nearest grocery store and head to the Life cereal aisle. The
     cops never thought to look for me there; I guess they didn't expect me
     to make such an obvious mistake."

        "I got my basic needs met by lying, cheating, and stealing. I
     pretty much gave up weed at that point. I didn't have enough
     connections to get both Life and weed. I chose Life cereal. One time
     a religious organization offered me food and and a place to stay. The
     only condition was that I couldn't eat meat or other animal flesh
     while I stayed there. I agreed to that, and told them that I hated
     animal flesh and meat anyway. My time with those religious folks was
     pretty short-term. I was thrown out after a week because they felt my
     Life cereal habit violated five of the 'Seven Deadly Sins.'"

        "That's really about all I remember from my time on the street.
     The Law caught up to me finally when they were looking for the Trix
     Rabbit (who was not only in disguise, but under an assumed name), and
     I was arrested and given no Life. They declared me not guilty by
     reason of insanity, but sentenced me to community service where I had
     to pick up cereal boxes off all the highways. I hated that job.
     Except for when I found a Life box and it made it all worthwhile."

        "It was after my community service ended when I began my lengthy
     legal battle to rename my Life table. My parents had moved into a new
     house, and were willing to forget about the old one. The problem I had
     at that time was mostly financial. I didn't have enough for any Life
     cereal and my parents wouldn't buy it for me anymore. I guess I went a
     little crazy. I used to do impressions and accents when I was a kid,
     so I felt it was time to put those talents to the ultimate test. After
     trying out my Irish accent with an old connection of mine, he loaned
     me a handgun and I stole a leprechaun costume. Well... you've probably
     heard this story a million times before, so I'll just skip the gory
     details."

     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 7                    4 Oct 2004


        "While in prison, I was repeatedly beaten by the guards for not
     eating. I think deep down they really empathized with me when I told
     them I wouldn't eat jail or prison food because I hated it. I managed
     to make some connections while in the joint, and scored enough Life
     cereal to last me until I got out. I was eventually released into my
     parents' custody and given probation."

        There was a burning question on my mind that I had to ask. "Mikey,
     if you hate everything, how is it that you have milk with every bowl
     of Life?"

        "Well, as I mentioned in the beginning of this interview, before I
     discovered Life cereal, which I usually refer to as my 'Pre-Life' era,
     I only had breast milk or was fed intravenously. It doesn't even have
     to be my mom's. It seems strange because I hate... y'know... I've been
     thinking... Even though I hate a lot of things - mostly food - I don't
     hate everything. That statement is kind of an over-generalization."

        "I think I understand. Now, Mikey," I asked him, "You've already
     eaten two boxes of Life in the two hours that I've been here. Could
     you define exactly how you have been rehabilitated?"

        "That's just something the public was told to make them feel safe
     again after I was put back into mainstream society. The truth is that
     I'm perfectly safe; my basic needs are being met. In exchange for that
     thing about making gold from lead, The Life corporation pretty much
     told me that I wouldn't have to worry about acquiring Life cereal
     anymore. They implanted a microchip inside my skull which simulates
     the taste of Life on any food I eat. It's great because I have a wider
     variety of milk to choose from; and I just keep eating Life cereal
     anyway. I accidentally found out that if you have that chip in your
     skull while you eat Life cereal that Life tastes twice as good! By the
     way, you can call me Michael now."


     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 8                    4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                           CLEAN HUMOUR & JOKES
     =================================================================

                          Rejection denied

     N N, The Boston Consulting Group         Kristofer Felten
     N.N@bcg.com                              kfelten@xxx.xxx

     Säve, September 28, 2004


     Dear Ms. N,

          Thank you for your mail, dated September 27!

          After carefully considering your rejection, I regret to inform
     you that I cannot accept the fact that I was not invited for an
     interview. This year, I have been fortunate enough to receive an
     unusual amount of rejected applications. With so many well-merited
     candidates, it is impossible for me to accept all rejections.

          Although I find your rejection most interesting, and despite your
     company's unique qualifications and prior experience in rejecting
     applications, I feel that the rejection does not match my needs in
     this case. That is why I intend to meet with you for an interview, at
     The Boston Consulting Group, next week. I look forward to seeing you
     then.

          I wish you the best of luck, in your future work, rejecting
     applications!

     Yours sincerely,

     Kristofer Felten
     Soon-to-be-your-employee


     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 9                    4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                        IN THE SNOOZE TEN YEARS AGO
     =================================================================

     Swamp Swine Magazine,
     Shuckmagosh, Ohio

     Dear Reverend Visage,

     I am sorry to hear that you have been detained by passport control at
     the Quebec border. I suggest that you explain that you are merely
     returning to Ottawa to courier another $34 million dollars worth of
     federal swag to our culturally paranoid brethren in the burgeoning
     republic of poutine.

     After much research I have discovered the reason why our ZC, Bob Satti
     (cue the plague of locusts), has remained singularly uncommunicative
     during his term. It seems that he has been locked in a conclave of
     cardinals with the other ZCs where they have been sacrificing goats
     and divining the entrails in an effort to choose a new IC. Their
     deliberations were made more complicated due to the fact that they had
     to find an appropriately weaselly exception to their beloved Bible:
     PeeFour; before they could boot George Peace upstairs into the
     position. Our prayers and our edible underwear should go out to them
     for having attained Divine revelations. In region 12 we are reminded
     that the ghost of Bob MacKay will hover over George Peace as a result
     of Peace's Thomas a Becket, "Would that he were gone" efforts which
     occurred when our region was slowly emerging from the malign
     ministration of Fidodespots.

     I advise caution, Visage, in using your various hard-earned Fido
     titles appended to messages. It seems that the contused minds in
     Net250 have determined that messages calling for the RC, Rick "Cocoon"
     Johnston's nether bits on a platter, when signed using a Fidotitle,
     are grounds for a policy complaint. Of course, in the socially
     arrested environment of Net250, *everything* is grounds for policy
     complaints and it has become such a happy hunting ground for the
     litigious.

     They have perfected a means of file attaching lawyers to each other in
     their efforts to "prove" points. The most recent dwarf-like concern
     arises over their net's purchase of a satellite dish. As an aside,
     Visage, I fear they may be less than amused when they discover that we
     have sold them the left cup of Mitsou's bustier but with the planetoid
     beings' abysmal technical standards, it'll take them months to notice.

     The only good news arising this week is the meltdown of the NHL
     player/owner trough-wars. I am outraged, as would any average citizen,
     that a rookie player should be compelled to accept a paltry $270,000
     for chasing a small black rubber object over frozen surfaces, and that
     journeymen players should be asked to put a freeze on the mere $47,340
     per game that they have been offered. The news of the lock-out is
     excellent because, in a moment of weakness, I had purchased season's
     tickets to the games of the women's broomball team which the Ottawa
     elflords had erroneously identified as the NHL hockey team: The
     Senators. Watching their playing style has been about as exciting as
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 10                   4 Oct 2004


     watching squid mate. (Note, I said "watching", and I realize that your
     participatory endeavours in such activities may have added more
     interest.)

     I must go, Visage, your secretary has an evil snarl on her face and is
     threatening to phone Bill Clinton to tell him that our office is the
     next easily conquered Third World country. Her distemper has nothing
     at all to do with the fact that I have spent her entire pension on
     Glenlivet quality control testing. As a good and decent gesture,
     Visage, I suggest that we offer her an all-expense paid vacation on a
     Swedish ferry.

     Regards,

     Doc Logger,
     Trout-on-Trent,
     FlinFlon, Manitoba

     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 11                   4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                  BEN RITCHEY'S FIDONET SOFTWARE LISTING
     =================================================================

                    -=:{ FIDONet Software Reference }:=-

         Type: M=Mailer  T=Tosser  B=BBS  D=Door  C=Comm/Terminal
               P=Points  E=Editor  I=Internet  U=Utility  ?=Info

     .- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -.
     |Software: Author     |Type |URL, Contact, Ver, Notes      Help Node|
     `- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -'

      Argus                |M    |http://www.ritlabs.com/argus/  2:469/84
                           |     | argus@ritlabs.com  Tel: 373-2-246889
                           |     | v3.210 on Mar 20th 2001

      BeeMail:             |M    |http://beemail.gexonline.net   1:105/10
       Stephen Proffit     |     | beemail@gexonline.net

      BinkleyTerm XE       |M    |http://btxe.sourceforge.net     1:1/102
                           |     | v2.60XE/Gamma-6 on Nov 11th 1998

      BinkD                |MI   |http://2f.ru/binkd/
                           |     | maloff@corbina.net
                           |     | v0.94 on Jul 24th 2000

      FIDO-Deluxe IP       |MPUI |http://www.fido-deluxe.de.vu 2:2432/280
       Michael Haase       |     | m.haase@gmx.net
                           |     | v2.4 on Sep 26th 2003

      Fidonet to Internet: |MI   |http://www.terminate.com
       Bo Bendtsen         |     | sales@terminate.com
                           |     | v2.00 on Mar 23rd 1997

      FrontDoor, FD/APX:   |MTPC |http://www.defsol.se          2:201/330
       Definite Solutions  |     | sales@defsol.se                1:1/101
                           |     | v2.26SW & v2.33ml FD, v1.15 APX

      Husky Project        |MTPUI|http://sf.net/projects/husky/
                           |     | v1.4 RC2 on Sep 22nd 2003

      Radius (based on     |M    |http://radius.pp.ru           2:5012/38
               Argus)      |     | fido5012@zaural.net Tel: 7-3522-469463
                           |     | v4.009 on Jan 2nd 2003

      Terminate            |MBP  |http://www.terminate.com
                           |     | v5.00 on Aug 7th 1997

      Tmail                |MI   |http://www.tmail.spb.ru  v2608

      WildCat! Interactive |MTBEI|http://www.santronics.com
       Net Server, Platinum|     | sales@santronics.com
       Xpress: Santronics  |     | Tel: (305) 248-3204
       Software, Inc.      |     | AUP 450.2 on Jul 9th 2002
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 12                   4 Oct 2004


      Fidogate             |TUI  |http://www.fidogate.org
                           |     | Martin_Junius@m-j-s.net  v4.4.4

      FMail                |T    |http://fmail.nl.eu.org       2:280/1076
                           |     | wijnstra@fmail.nl.eu.org  v1.60

      JetMail: JetSys      |TU   |http://www.jetsys.de  js@jetsys.de
       (ATARI ST only)     |     | v1.01 on Jan 1st 2000

      Squish               |T    |http://www.lanius.com
                           |     | sales@lanius.com  v1.11
                           |     |http://www.vector11.com/maximus/

      Watergate            |TUI  |http://www2.sbbs.se/hp/ramon/
                           |     | ramon@sbbs.se
                           |     | v0.93p9 on Dec 14th 1998
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      BBBS                 |BI   |http://www.bbbs.net  b@bbbs.net
                           |     | v4.00MP on Oct 25th 1999      2:22/222

      ELEBBS: The Elevator |B    |http://www.elebbs.com
       Software Production |     | elebbs@elebbs.com
                           |     | v0.10.RC1 on Jun 9th 2002

      EZYCom BBS           |BT   |http://homepages.ihug.com.au/~dcbbs/
                           |     | pjs@optushome.com.au         3:633/104
                           |     | v2.0 on 3 May 2003

      Falken BBS           |B    |http://falkenbbs.com
                           |     | v12.0 on Feb 2nd 2002

      Hermes II Project    |B    |http://www.hermesii.org
                           |     | info@HermesII.org  v3.5.9 Beta Final

      Maximus BBS          |B    |http://www.lanius.com
                           |     | sales@lanius.com  v3.01
                           |     |http://www.vector11.com/maximus/

      MBSE BBS:            |BI   |http://mbse.sourceforge.net  2:280/2802
       Michiel Broek       |     | mbroek@users.sourceforge.net
                           |     | v0.33.21 on Jun 4th 2002

      Mystic BBS           |B    |http://www.mysticbbs.com
                           |     | v1.07.3 on May 13th 2001

      Nexus BBS            |B    |http://www.nexusbbs.net
                           |     | groberts@nexusbbs.net
                           |     | v0.99.41.001 beta on Jun 10th 2001

      Proboard BBS         |B    |http://www.proboard.be
                           |     | v2.17 on Jun 9th 2002

      RemoteAccess BBS:    |B    |http://www.rapro.com            1:1/120
       Bruce Morse         |     | bfmorse@rapro.com
                           |     | v2.62.2SW
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 13                   4 Oct 2004


      Spitfire BBS: Buffalo|B    |http://www.angelfire.com/ia/buffalo/
       Creek Software      |     | MDWoltz@aol.com                1:1/150
                           |     | v3.6 on Aug 20th 1999

      Synchronet BBS       |BT   |http://www.synchro.net
                           |     | sysop(at)vert(dot)synchro(dot)net
                           |     | v3.10L Beta

      Telegard BBS         |B    |http://www.telegard.net
                           |     | support@telegard.net
                           |     | v3.09g2 SP4
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      Atlantis Software    |D    |http://www.jimmyrose.com/atlantis/
                           |     | last update: Jun 2002

      BBS Central          |D    |http://www.rpcomputers.com

      Bentstone            |D    |http://www.srupc.com/mall
       Capabilities Group  |     | info@stonebenders.com

      Cheepware:           |D    |http://www.midnightshour.org/cheepware/
       Sean Dennis         |     | hausmaus@midnightshour.org    1:11/200

      DDS (Doorware        |D    |http://www.doorgames.org     1:2404/201
       Distribution System)|     | ruth@doorgames.org
       Ruth Argust         |     |

      DoorMUD              |D    |http://www.dmud.thebbs.org
                           |     | v0.98 Jun 1st 2002

      Elysium Software     |D    |http://www.elysoft.com
                           |     | mpreslar@mailcity.com

      Jibben Software      |D    |http://www.jibbensoftware.com
                           |     | scott@jibben.com
                           |     | 1995-99 Release dates

      JNS Software:        |D    |http://www.geocities.com/jnssoftware/
       Rusty Johnson       |     | rustyjohnson57@hotmail.com
                           |     | Tel: (304) 733-0113

      John Dailey Software |D    |http://www.johndaileysoftware.com
                           |     | support@johndaileysoftware.com

      LORD (Legend of the  |D    |http://www.lordlegacy.org
       Red Dragon) Reborn  |     | mike@lordlegacy.org
                           |     | v4.06 on Feb 5th 2001

      Lord-II IGMs         |D    |http://www.shelby.net/wizards/lord2igm/

      PC Pursuits          |D    |http://www.pcpursuits.com
                           |     | brucep@pop.kis.net
                           |     | Tel: (301) 240-6653

      Shining Star         |D    |http://www.shiningstar.net/bbsdoors/
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 14                   4 Oct 2004


                           |     | nannette@shiningstar.net

      Sunrise Doors:       |D    |http://www.sunrisedoors.com
       Al Lawrence         |     | al@sunrisedoors.com
                           |     | Tel: (404) 256-9518

      The Brainex System   |D    |http://www.brainex.com/brainex_system/
                           |     | stanley@brainex.com  1994-99 Releases

      Trade Wars           |D    |http://www.eisonline.com/tradewars/
                           |     | jpritch@eisonline.com
                           |     | v3.09 (DOS-32) in 2002

      Vagabond Software:   |D    |http://www.vbsoft.org        1:124/7013
       Bryan Turner        |     | vagabond@vbsoft.org
                           |     | last update: Jul 17th 2002

      (various)            |D    |http://www.webnexus.com/users/etow/
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      APoint               |PI   |http://www.apoint-mail.de
                           |     | dirk.pokorny@apoint-mail.de
                           |     | v1.25                   2:2426/1210.13

      CrossPoint (XP)      |P    |http://www.crosspoint.de
                           |     | pm@crosspoint.de  v3.12d Dec 22nd 1999
      FreeXP               |P    |http://www.freexp.de         2:2433/460
                           |     | support@freexp.de
                           |     | v3.40 RC3 Aug 31st 2003 (Snapshot)
      OpenXP/32            |PI   |http://www.openxp.com        2:248/2004
                           |     | mk@openxp.de  v3.8.7 beta Aug 3rd 2002

      PPoint               |P    |http://www.alcuf.ca           1:249/114
                           |     | v3.04 on Jan 10th 2000
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      GoldEd+              |E    |http://mik.nu/golded-plus/   2:203/6600
                           |     | v1.1.5 Snapshot on Feb 28th 2003

      SqEd32               |E    |http://www.sqed.de
                           |     | v1.15 on Dec 15th 1999

      TimEd                |E    |http://blizzard.dnsalias.org/fidonet
                           |     | mail@ozzmosis.com            /timed
                           |     | v1.11.a5 in March 2003       3:633/267
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      GiGo                 |UI   |http://www.gigo.com
                           |     | v0109 on Jan 9th 1997

      Internet Rex:        |UI   |http://members.shaw.ca/InternetRex/
       Charles Cruden      |     | telnet://xanadubbs.ca        1:342/806
       (Khan Software)     |     | v2.29 on Oct 21st 2001

      PeopleComm Terminal  |CUI  |http://www.peoplecomm.org     1:128/148
       (BBS & Telnet w/    |     | edward.williams@adelphia.net
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 15                   4 Oct 2004


        ZModem)            |     | v1.01a on Feb 11th 2003

      TransNet             |UI   |http://www.ressl.com.ar/transnet/
                           |     | transnet@ressl.com.ar
                           |     | v2.11 on Jul 18th 1998

      TransX: Multiboard   |UI   |http://www.multiboard.com/software/
       Communications, Inc.|     | support@multiboard.com      1:2401/305
                           |     | v3.5
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      National BBS List    |?    | http://www.usbbs.org

      Hispanic FIDO/BBS's  |?    | http://www.conecta2.org/pucela_bbs/
       (in Spanish only)   |     |  (Extensive software & BBS Listings)
     +- - - - - - - - - - -+- - -+- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -+

      File Archives: http://archives.thebbs.org  http://www.filegate.org
       http://sysopscorner.thebbs.org                http://www.juge.com
       http://www.dmine.com/bbscorner/             http://garbo.uwasa.fi
       http://www.simtel.net                  http://wuarchive.wustl.edu
       http://hobbes.nmsu.edu

      Note: most also provide FTP access (use ftp:// vice http:// above)

     *=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*=.=*=-=*

      Note: Please send corrections & additions to: Ben Ritchey, 1:393/68
               ( or FReq Magic INFO direct for E-mail address )
             WildCat! BBS at +1-337-232-4155  24/7  33.6kBps,8,N,1
          Internet: http://bellsouthpwp.net/c/m/cmech617/fidosoft.txt

      Emeritus: Todd Cochrane, Frank Vest, Peter Popovich


     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 16                   4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                             SPECIAL INTEREST
     =================================================================

                         Nodelist Stats

      Input nodelist  nodelist.275
                size  850.7kb
                date  2004-10-01

      The nodelist has   7118 nodes in it
        and a total of   9775 non-comment entries

              including     6 zones
                           47 regions
                          386 hosts
                          495 hubs
         admin overhead   934 ( 13.12 %)

                    and  1075 private nodes
                          303 nodes down
                          345 nodes on hold
      off line overhead  1723 ( 24.21 %)


      Speed summary:

               >9600 =    620 (  8.71 %)
                9600 =   6136 ( 86.20 %)
                              (HST  =  124 or   2.02 %)
                              (CSP  =    0 or   0.00 %)
                              (PEP  =    1 or   0.02 %)
                              (MAX  =    0 or   0.00 %)
                              (HAY  =    1 or   0.02 %)
                              (V32  = 3215 or  52.40 %)
                              (V32B =  268 or   4.37 %)
                              (V34  = 4171 or  67.98 %)
                              (V42  = 3534 or  57.59 %)
                              (V42B =  269 or   4.38 %)
                2400 =     65 (  0.91 %)
                1200 =      7 (  0.10 %)
                 300 =    290 (  4.07 %)

                ISDN =    570 (  8.01 %)

     ----------------------------------------------------------
      File Req Flag   Applicable software     Number of systems
     ----------------------------------------------------------
      XA              Frontdoor <1.99b             2341
                      Frontdoor  2.02+
                      Dutchie 2.90c
                      Binkleyterm >2.1
                      D'Bridge <1.3
                      TIMS
                      Xenia
     --------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 17                   4 Oct 2004


      XB              Binkleyterm 2.0                 9
                      Dutchie 2.90b
     --------------------------------------
      XC              Opus 1.1                        8
     --------------------------------------
      XP              Seadog                          6
     --------------------------------------
      XR              Opus 1.03                      38
     --------------------------------------
      XW              Fido >12M                     285
                      Tabby
                      KittenMail
     --------------------------------------
      XX              D'Bridge 1.30                3181
                      Frontdoor 1.99b
                      Intermail 2.01
                      T-Mail
     --------------------------------------
      None            QMM                          1250
     --------------------------------------

      CrashMail capable =   2164 ( 30.40 %)
      MailOnly nodes    =   3995 ( 56.13 %)
      Listed-only nodes =    556 (  7.81 %)
      Other             =    403 (  5.66 %)

      [Report produced by NETSTATS - A PD pgm available from 1:106/100]
      [                                 Revised by B Felten, 2:203/208]

     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 18                   4 Oct 2004


     =================================================================
                           FIDONEWS INFORMATION
     =================================================================

                            How to Submit an Article

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     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 19                   4 Oct 2004


     Send articles via e-mail or netmail, file attach or message to:

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     Fidonet  2:2/2
     E-Mail   bfelten @ telia dot com

     IMPORTANT! If you send the article via e-mail, make sure you put the
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     Please include a message, telling me that you have sent an article.
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     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     FIDONEWS 21-40               Page 20                   4 Oct 2004


                    Credits, Legal Infomation, Availability

     + -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --  FIDONEWS STAFF - -- -- -- -- -- -- -- +
     |                                                                |
     | Editor:        Björn Felten, 2:2/2                             |
     |                Crash mail attached: Editor@2:2/2               |
     |                E-Mail attached:     bfelten @ telia dot com    |
     | Webmaster:     Jim Barchuk, jb@fidonews.org                    |
     | Columnist:     Frank Vest - Frank's Column                     |
     |                                                                |
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     + -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -  EDITORS EMERITI - -- -- -- -- -- -- -- +
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     |       Tom Jennings, Thom Henderson, Dale Lovell, Vince         |
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     |       Doug Meyers, Warren D. Bonner, Frank L. Vest             |
     |                                                                |
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     + -- -- -- -- -- -- -  FIDONEWS AVAILABILITY - -- -- -- -- -- -- +
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