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#bbs

8 posts7 participants1 post today
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Wintermute_BBS

+++ SYSOP NEWS +++ SYSOP NEWS +++

As you may remember, RC-BOX BBS - the world's first and (currently) only RC2014 based BBS - has been struggling with connectivity issues.

The good news: I have finally been able to successfully mitigate these.

Some background info: in October last year, I decided to do some maintenance on the system, updating my WiFi modem firmware and replacing the SC132 serial I/O module (using a 6.144 KHz crystal for a fixed 9600 bps) with its cousin, the SC110 serial I/O module which features a CTC chip so it can dynamically set any baud rate.

Turns out that while the module is techincally 100% okay, it sometimes locks up when being used with the BYE.COM program for CP/M.

I think this has to do with BYE.COM setting the CTC to the selected bps during initializiation (which happens after each hangup). For some reason, this often works but occasionally causes the SIO/2 to lock up.

Sometimes, without any reason, BYE.COM would drop into an +++ATH loop although no one was connected, not being able to actually perform the AT command.

It took me weeks to finally realize this, because I was so sure the problem originated from the Zimodem firmware and because the issue only showed up occasionally. It was very annyoing to debug.

So as a result of this finding, I've put the SC132 with the fixed 9600 bps back into the system. Since then, no more of these issues occurred.

As always, you can find all info on how to connect to RC-BOX BBS in my profile info.

P.S.: so now I think the problem originates from the BYE.COM code. But since everything is working properly again, I don't have the desire to dig into the BYE.ASM code any time in the future. There are other projects that I'd like to go on with first.

#rcbox
#bbs
#rc2014
#rc2014bbs
#retrocomputing
#newretro

Photo of an SC110 serial I/O module for RC2014 computers
Public
Jamie T

Going through old warez scene BBSes is so much fun and a really great distraction from life at the moment. The best things I've found (aside from the ascii art of course) have been the messages they send to each other when they find out that an informant is lurking their boards. Surely one of the originating moments of what it means to identify a poser online. #warez #bbs #hacking #thescene

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vga256

back in the early 90s, there were many, many different options for running a bbs on IBM/DOS compatibles. many were descendants of source code that had been written, and re-written, and modded by various authors. arguably, the most beautiful of all of them (in terms of built-in ansi menuing) was iNiQUiTY by mike fricker. iniq was a rewrite of Telegard, which itself was a rewrite of WWIV's source code.

in the late 90s, the web was already going full tilt and i started to feel a pang of nostalgia for ansi and dial-up. i found out that mike released the software into the public domain, and iniquity had a new website, and new owners were rekindling development. it died after that, and the website and all knowledge of the site disappeared into obscurity

tonight, after trying to remember an url for 20 years (because I misremembered it), i finally found the original url for iniquity's website. i really miss this era - it was trying to reconcile ansi, ascii and web graphics in a single design:

web.archive.org/web/2003032223

mike went on to an incredibly successful career in game development, and is now the technical director at epic games

A screenshot of the Iniquitybbs.com site, circa 1998. It shows the splash page which reads 'my god, it's full of stars'. The main page shows a letter from the original author of the software, Mike Fricker. Mike writes, Hey man. I've been trying to keep up with Iniquity related stuff for the last few years, but I don't have the free time that I used to have. Anyhow, I took some time today and downloaded your team's Iniquity version 2, and I've gotta say that I'm very impressed with your work. As soon as I saw the WFC I got tingles from the memories of my BBS scene days. Also, it's pretty damn cool of you to leave credit to me for the work I did up until a26. Removing the original author's name and replacing it with their's would have been one of the first things that certain people would have done. That was really my only fear of having the code PD. It made me proud to look at a pumped up version of something that I started years and years ago. Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks for keeping the interest flowing in Iniquity and the BBS scene in general. For what it's worth, you've got my full support. Great work iDT!
#bbs#webPreservation
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vga256

today's archival/software preservation work -

i noticed that PCBoard BBS software's wikipedia article mentioned something kinda weird - that just before clark development went bankrupt in 1997, it was building a server called MetaWorlds... an attempt at bridging the ansi-based BBS with the WWW.

sadly, the software never made it out of beta, and was nowhere to be found.. until today it seems! i managed to dig it out of the glorious ibm wgam-wbiz collection, and i've uploaded a copy to IA:

archive.org/details/metaworlds

i honestly don't really understand what MetaWorlds does, so i'm hoping a PCBoard wiz manages to get it talking to their pcb instance, and lets us know how it all works.

update: located a newer beta. uploaded here: archive.org/details/metaworlds

final update: version 1.02 (final) found!
archive.org/details/pcb-metawo

Internet ArchiveMetaWorlds (Beta) Interactive Information Server for PCBoard : CDC : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet ArchiveFrom PCBoard.be:Metaworlds was an attempt by CDC to establish a BBS-like environment on the Internet, basically a closed, mailbox in HTML format online.Access...
#bbs#softwarePreservation#retroComputing
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vga256

if you were bbsing in the 90s, you probably heard of Rusty n Edie's BBS. i used to run across nfo's and file_id.diz's advertising their (long distance for me) board all the time. if you came across porn gifs or PCXs in the 90s, it was almost always a scan from their board

how many boards could say they had 128 nodes? 😓

recently i looked up an old street view of the location in youngstown OH, and amazingly, the sign still mentioned the old BBS - decades after its closure

i loved their old logo, and managed to dig up their original bbs homepage - prior to their FBI raid:
web.archive.org/web/1998120510

they also ran a web-based bbs for a very short time:
web.archive.org/web/1996111403

A screenshot from Google Maps, showing a street view of a strip mall sign in Youngstown Ohio. It reads, R&ECentre: Home of Rusty & Edie's BBS
A screenshot of Rusty N Edie's web BBS circa 1997. It shows a login page with two owls for a logo.
A screenshot of Rusty n Edie's BBS boxes. There are over 100 286 computers in desktops stacks all over the floor. It is being serviced by 128 phone lines.
#bbs#retrocomputing
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Wintermute_BBS

Out there, in the worrying world of today is a little #Zilog #Z80 computer with a mere 64KB of #RAM and running the #1970s CP/M operating system.

This little machine is connected to the #intertubes and it's serving a #singleuser #bulletinboardsystem for you, the worrying souls of #yesteryears to visit.

Take a break from today, connect like it's 1985 - here on RC-BOX BBS, the world's first and (currently) only #rc2014 based bulletin board system in the world!

Check out the #alttext or my #profile info for information on how to connect.

#bbs
#rc2014bbs
#rcbox

This screenshot features the ASCII Art welcome banner of RC-BOX BBS. The technical specs of the system are listed as well as an ASCII UFO which is sending a beam down to the specs listed. All in plain ASCII text. If you want to visit, use a VT100 capable Telnet client and connect to: rc2014.ddns.net:2014
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Josh Renaud

Since Deuce added Atari ST/VT52 support to SyncTerm, I've been revisiting several ST BBS door games. I was particularly taken by DDST (as in "D&D").

It's a pretty good adventure game and it uses VT52 colors effectively, particularly a screen-flashing effect. It can be frustrating, but you *can* make progress, and it has good features you don't often see in door games (like "Save"!).

Well, this morning I finally beat it!

Map of the "Land of Eriador" from the game DDST.
Score list shows the scores of players who have been DDST on Starfleet HQ BBS.
Screenshot of a gameplay session where the player has just defeated the final villain, Asmodeus.
The first of several pages of story text after achieving victory in the game DDST: "Oh no! Not again, that blinding light and dizziness, what did I do to deserve this again? "I turned to look and saw the Old Oracle again, but this time he seemed to be almost radiating a strange aura about him, He smiled at me and exclaimed, "'Congratulations, you have defeated the Great Evil that had come down upon our land, We were hoping that you would be the one to defeat Asmodeus in battle and you have met him and came away alive. We don't know how we can repay you for your accomplishnent, but we will remember you in great esteem at the Lord's Keep in Isengard.' "I smiled back at him and told him that I would not except any money as I was as glad as he was to be rid of the Evil Demon. "'What happened to Asmodeus? I don't think I really could kill a being with such great strength?'"
#atarist#atari#bbs
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vga256

thank you @acn128 for setting up the world's first globaltalk FirstClass BBS! it is amazingly functional, and even has a Usenet feed via eternal-september

(apologies for the terrible photo - my phone grabbed the aperture grille by accident)

for those unfamiliar with FirstClass, it was one of the *very* few fully graphical BBSes of the 1990s, with a point and click graphical client. it predated larger systems like Lotus Notes by a decade

A screenshot of FirstClass Client 5.5 running on a Mac LC475. One window shows a Usenet groups feed, another shows the group mailbox for the guest user, and a third window shows the BBS menu with Mailbox, News, Conferences, Help and Usenet as options.
#globaltalk#marchintosh#bbs
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BlackICE BBS / BBSindex.de

Viele Menschen versuchen derzeit sich von grossen Anbietern zu lösen. Auch wir haben uns vor Jahren von Twitter getrennt und auf #Mastodon eine gut funktionierende Alternative gefunden. Kurz darauf haben wir unter BBSindex.TV unser eigenes Videoarchiv gegründet.

Inzwischen ist das Feediverse weiter gewachsen und bietet eine solide Grundlage mit #PeerTube als Videoplattform an. Wir haben uns deshalb bei #MakerTube um einen Kanal beworben und diesen unter makertube.net/@bbsindex einrichten dürfen. Aktuell laden wir immer mal wieder unseren Content dort hoch.

Um nicht alles mit unseren Videos in der Liste was es neues gibt zu fluten laden wir nicht alles auf einmal dort hoch. Derzeit pushen wir unseren #Amiga Content nachdem wir bereits unsere #BBS Tutorial Videos dort veröffentlicht haben.

Das bedeutet nicht das wir von der grossen Plattform verschwinden oder unser Videoarchiv einstellen. Wir wollen lediglich Euch alternativen anbieten das Ihr eine bessere Auswahl habt wo Ihr Content anschaut.

Wenn Ihr noch nicht wisst was mit Videos im #feediverse geht dann nehmt Euch doch mal 15 Minuten Zeit und entdeckt diese immer besser werdene alternative. Mehr Creator und wachsende Communitys sorgen dafür das diese Plattformen in Zukunft bestehen können.

Vielen Dank!

MakerTubeBBSindexBBSindex berichtet über Retro-Events, Orte mit technischer Historie und legt den Schwerpunkt abseits von den Aussenmissionen besonders auf Mailboxen (BBS) Modems und andere Retro-Hardware. Die Vide...
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