Letters to the Editor

Snooze Suggestion

Message to : Douglas Myers @1:270/720
From : rwhr@bigfoot.com @1:270/212
Subject : Snooze Suggestion

Could you please include a "FILE_ID.DIZ" inside the archive stating the Issue and Volume Numbet and also say a copy of the Contents?

Thanks.

BTW you're doing a great job...

Regards,
Raymond
ICQ# 6612058

Editor: I've added a small file_id.diz generator to the batch file which archives the newsletter. The idea of adding the table of contents is a fine one, but it was a little beyond my capabilities on short notice.

Fidonet is tough to join
Paul J. Bussiere
webmaster@checksix.net

Forgive me, for I am new but just begining to follow up the Fido News. I have been a long time Sysop of a BBS up here in Bangor, Maine (USA). We've been running Wildcat! BBS since 1992 and currently run the Santronics WIN Server package, and their Platinum Express Fidonet program.

Maybe I am that guy that is shouting to the stage from the back of the theater but I have to tell you, Fidonet has to be the most difficult of all the networks to join, yet its eyed as the best of them all. While many BBSs were dropping left and right, the few that did remain and convert to offering access via the Internet have all but been ignored by the Fido folks for all too long. My modem users quickly left my services in favor of the local ISPs. As a result, I have no modem lines and haven't had them since 1996. I get more visits and business from people OUT of my local calling range than I ever did with a modem line, so the old requirement of a modem line quickly annoyed me and convinced me Fido was slow to move with technology.

But, thankfully, it appears things have changed.

Now, I am in the process of getting my system configured to join Fidonet. Todd Cochrane has been key to getting me in Fido, as has Andrea Santos from Santronics Software. But where has Fidonet been? It DOES appear to be a monarchy of sorts, from this spectators eyes, anyways. And the Princes and Lords of each region seem to pass along different versions of Fidonet policy towards Net Systems.

Why is there such anxiety over Net-BBSs (or Web BBSs, as many of us call them)? I think its amazing that some Web-Oriented Systems have endured the wave of the Internet. But rather than Fido welcoming us in with open arms, it seems as though we are treated like a leper or something. It seems that all to many measure a BBS merely by if you have a modem attached to your system. That seems prejudiced, at best. If I know I have no modem callers anymore, why should I invest in the cost of a modem and a reccuring monthly bill? Just for the namesake of 'qualifying' to carry Fidonet? I think not.

And that's why I have joined other systems that have seen the light. RIME/RelayNet has been the easiest network of all to join. I have recommended and seen many Sysops join RIME and gleefully welcome the 1,200 or so messages a day filter in through their systems. Sure, its not Fidonet, but you dont have to be a politician to get in.

But I digress...

IF Fidonet is truly trying to pull in new nodes, you folks have to see the big picture. BBSs are on the decline. Many are either gone or on the way. Then again, many have jumped onto the Internet, like myself, and found a niche for themself (like in my case, we host several websites for customers)...others have gone from large BBS to very successful ISP. And of course, there are some BBSs out there that seem lost in time, still chugging along, taking numerous ANSI calls a day over their modem lines. And I envy them.

DONT make it a royal act of congress to get in. Here's a daring thought...how about INVITING systems to join in? Why not have other Sysops mention it to sysops that are not in the network? Fido has always struck me as an elitist click of people...you are required to run special software, follow huge rules and regulations, and you are effectively assimilated into some huge collective. I'm finding (thanks to the aforementioned folks) that Fido DOES have a lot to offer, once you wade your way through the crap. You folks need a facelift, and some attitudes need changing. You can grimace and despair and the number of systems dwindling from your network...or you can make a valiant effort to remdy it some, by showing folks that you truly want more Nodes and welcome those that have gone to the Internet as a means to stay connected.

Sorry for the rant, I open it has fallen on an open mind.

Paul J. Bussiere
President
CheckSix.Net | Check Six! BBS
web http://www.checksix.net
telnet telnet://bbs.checksix.net