DISCLAIMER
Please note that whatever you download from my site is available freely on the
local BBSes too, and I am, in no way, responsible for any violation of copyright
or responsible for your use of the files downloaded in one way or another. However,
you can address your problems to me in the BBS, HyperLink.
Bulletin Board Systems are similar to the Internet in their
capabilities:
This is where the similarity ends, for the way BBSes are presented as well as its
scope is totally different from the Internet.
The early BBSes(Bulletin Board Systems) were all text-based, and it is only
about six years ago that local BBSes started to have ANSI graphics on their
boards. However, ANSI can not be compared with jpg, gif, tif and all, as to
put it plainly, it is actually ASCII codes with colour.(In my opinion) In
Fig 1.1, I've got an example of what Ansi looks like, without the special
colours which Ansi is capable of. If you are curious as to how do the BBS
Sysops ( System Operators ) create their screens, I've got a copy of TheDraw,
which is commonly available on the BBSes here.
The messages on a BBS is similar to Email and Newsgroups on the internet combined,
as you read everyone else's mails to everyone else, unless they are flagged private.
Because of the nature of this system, people get to know each other very quickly, and personal
introductions are no longer so difficult to make. If you are interested in what two people are
saying to each other, you can just 'butt in', and they have the freedom of writing back or not.
The conferences, as they are called, usually have a chairperson, also known as the moderator of the conference.
The moderator is needed to make sure no one goes too far off from the topic as suggested by the name of the
conference. For example, if the conference is named " Tok Cok Sing Song ", someone who posts a very serious discussion
of Physics or posts homework questions is asked by the chair to switch to the conference, " School Matters ".
These conferences include those exclusive to the BBS and those which are linked up to local or international networks like
Fidonet, Bobnet, Datalink, HyperLink and Techlink.
Doors are now a different story all together. There are
The on-line chat is available to BBSes with more than 1 line, as to make use of this facility,
the BBS must have at least two people on it at the same time, so that they can "talk". The sysop
Bulletins are what you will see before you enter the menu screen, and they are screened so
that the latest news or changes that the Sysop may want to convey to his users is conveyed quickly and
effectively. Some BBSes also have a separate option on the menu for this, and the curious
user may go into the bulletins for some history on the BBS or changes that he has made to the
BBS.
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ÜÜÜÜÜÝÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÝÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜÝÜÜÜÜÜ HDB Flats Fig 1.1
Doors are basically a kind of escape sequence to allow the
user to access a program. With game doors, you are pitted against the rest of the BBS users.
It's like playing a multi-user game or a MUD in the Internet on a smaller, more
cosy scale. For utility doors, you can leave a msg to the next caller, download all your
messages, etc. Informative doors include programs for telling your horoscope, having a different
quote each time you get into that door, etc. Doors are really fun sometimes, and many a user have been
known to visit a BBS just for its doors. Popular games include LORD, Tradewars 2000, Exitlus and BRE.
" breaking in "
to chat with the user is not not an uncommon occurence, as Sysops take a lot of pride in the boards, and their
users are treated as friends, which in time, do really become lasting friends.
However, this is not the on-line chat in the strictest sense of the word, but a " Sysop Chat " instead.
Clicking on the link above will allow you to download a file
called communiq.zip. Please click save to disk when the prompt from Netscape
appears. When you get that file, you need to uncompress it using either winzip
or pkunzip. For winzip, the instructions are there, and
for pkunzip, it is dos based ( my personal favourite ) and
this is what you will see and type( What you need to type is in brackets ):
If you have any questions or need help, just email me.
c:\yourdirectory\
c:\yourdirectory\dir *.zip(enter)
[What you will see]
Volume in drive C is ________
Volum Serial Number is _________
Directory of C:\yourdirectory
Communiq.zip 357,819 07-07-96 3:30p
1 File(s) 357,819 bytes
_____________ bytes free
c:\yourdirectory\
[Now's the harder part: If you want to create a new directory
follow 1) and if you want to uncompress it in this directory follow 2)]
1)
c:\yourdirectory\md bbs (press enter)
c:\yourdirectory\pkunzip communiq.zip bbs (press enter)
c:\yourdirectory\cd bbs (press enter)
c:\yourdirectory\bbs\com20key (press enter)
[This is your registration key, take note of the password generated]
c:\yourdirectory\bbs\cu (press enter)
[You are now in communique, a communications program. Press alt followed
by d without lifting your finger off alt and you will find some BBS numbers.
Just read the help files and you'll be able to dial in to the local bbses.]
2)
c:\yourdirectory\pkunzip communiq.zip
c:\yourdirectory\com20key (press enter)
[This is your registration key, take note of the password generated]
c:\yourdirectory\cu (press enter)
[You are now in communique, a communications program. Press alt followed
by d without lifting your finger off alt and you will find some BBS numbers.
Just read the help files and you'll be able to dial in to the local bbses.]
