Editorial

The New Fidonews Editor

Hello All,

First. It was a sad day when I was informed last week, by Warren Bonner, that his eyesight was failing and he could no longer perform the duties of the Fidonews Editor. Warren asked me if I would take the position. I have agreed. Please join me in wishing the best for Warren.

In introduction:

Many of you already know or have heard about me. That could be good or bad. :-) At any rate, here we go. <smile>

My name is Frank Vest.
Vital stats,
Age: 47
Married and a Grandfather.
Fidonet - 1:124/6308(.1)
E-Mail - flv@texoma.net
Current occupation - Mr. Mom (that's not as easy as you think. :-)

Let me start out by saying that I am not Warren Bonner. Nor am I Douglas Myers. I'll probably not fit the description of any former Fidonews Editor. I'm just me.

I was asked by Warren, when he first became Editor, if I would take the Fidonews Editor position should he leave for whatever reason. I was reluctant then and I still think that I'm not the person for the job... but, I'll try my best to fill the position. I can't fill the shoes of any of the previous Editors, but I will do what I can.

I take the production and Editorship of the Fidonews seriously. Tom Jennings wrote (paraphrased): `Fidonet is held together by two documents. The Nodelist and the Fidonews.' To me, that places the Fidonews Editorship as very important. I intend to have fun, but I will also try to do the best I can in the producing of the Fidonews.

Some things to know about me in the Fidonews Editor position:

I'll try to keep this short. :)

The next Editor of the Fidonews will be chosen by me. My choice might not be accepted, but I'll at least make it clear.

Now, Let me make this clear:

I'm as proud of my Zone in Fidonet as anyone is of their Zone. I also realize and respect the pride of others in their Zone. I'll not choose a replacement based on my pride in my Zone. I'll choose based on who I think best, regardless of what Zone or Nation s/he is in!

On other subjects:

If you are interested in being the next Editor, let me know. The best way to let me know and prove to me that you will be a good Editor is to participate in the Fidonews. Help promote Fidonet and work for the good of Fidonet. That doesn't mean just posting in the Fidonews Echo. It means submitting articles and following the format for submitting articles. In other words, "Put your money where your mouth is".

There will be some changes in the Fidonews while I'm Editor. I think they will be for the good. Here's a quick overview off the top of my head:

My Fidonet Node is POTS only. You can crash Netmail to me. I will also be available at the 1:1/23 address so you can get submissions to me via crash mail at that address as well (I hope I can get this to work).

I'm adding a short (compared to the artspec.doc) article to each edition giving some guidelines for submissions.

The rules for the Fidonews Echo will change. You'll see this when I post them. :)

Cut off time for submissions to the Fidonews will be midnight (that's 24:00 hours) on Saturday night according to my clock. IOW, if your article hits my machine at 12:01, it will be in the next Fidonews. Get your submission(s) in early. I'll work on putting the edition together on Sunday and release it sometime Sunday evening or night.

I'm working on a "rotating ad" setup that will allow those of you that offer Fidonet services to advertise on a rotating basis without having to submit your ad each week. More about this in another article. :)

This is not all inclusive, but it is a start. <smile>

Regards,

Frank Vest - Fidonews Editor