Editorial

As I write this Issue's editorial, it is the 11th anniversary of the invention of Echomail by the now infamous Jeff Rush. Echomail is now the reason why many people belong to FidoNet. What a concept!

More opinion on the size of FidoNet this week but differing views of where the 'bloat' is. I guess it depends on whose ox is gored. [grin]

Below is the text of an exchange with a Z2 Sysop. I didn't have time to get his permission to post his side but his name is removed for the sake of discussion and only my quoted reply is included.

Date: 16 Feb 97 14:08:46
From: Christopher Baker on 1:18/14 Rights On! in Edgewater FL
To: Zone 2 Sysop
Subj: Re: FNews

> CB> but smaller IS better, right? [chuckle]

> I think you won't understand.

i think understanding is important. we all need to understand what is going on here.

> It has nothing to do with smaller or bigger ...

good, because size is irrelevant unless FidoNews in archive gets too big to fit on a floppy.

> Posting old (and almost uninteresting) Doc's (while not practicised)
> is pure nonsense.

practice makes perfect. the publishing is for historical and technical purpose. the FTSC has lain dormant for years. the folks who went to all the trouble of creating the various proposals and technical essays contained in the FTSC docs never got much of an audience. the publishing serves to illustrate where we came from and may stimulate some action on some of these plans. it also acquaints people with the underpinnings of the hobby many do not understand at any technical level.

> And the Fidonet-Software-Listing ?
> Isn't there a FIDOSOFT conference where the listing may be posted ?
> In Germany there is FIDOSOFT.xxx where discussions are going on and
> a bigger list is posted frequently.

Echomail is not mandatory and not what FidoNet is or does. it's a nice add-on that is useful for specific topics but it is not universal nor available to everyone in toto. your reference to FIDOSOFT.xxx is a good example of a local phenomenon that nobody outside your area knows about. that's why FidoNews is an important conduit for such information.

> I crashed this file month ago to Peter ... nothing happens.

did you get any mail back from him? perhaps, he has incorporated some of the info into his listings or used it as a contact point for the authors involved? i cannot answer for Peter.

he has taken on a monumental and thankless task in reorganizing and winnowing this list. the software list is VERY important to FidoNet. it is the ONLY centralized list of what is available for new Sysops [or current Sysops looking for a change]. it won't always be the size it is now. it is being actively maintained which means the dead wood will be removed eventually. this is going to take time, however, and FidoNews is not going to suffer for its size or content while that process continues. it is important information and the only way to get it to everyone [including the authors] at once is via FidoNews.

the point is that FidoNews is the only place [other than the Nodelist] that is standard to all FidoNet Nodes. it is the appropriate place to recount FidoNet history and to disseminate material peculiar to FidoNet.

i hope this helps our mutual understanding. [grin]

thanks.

QOFM.
Chris

-30-

We have another Guest Editorial in response to Clay's of 1406. Keep 'em coming! I also see that Clay Tannacore HAS returned to the Nodelist as of .045 on Friday. That's the spirit!

C.B.