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538 lines
23 KiB
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538 lines
23 KiB
Plaintext
Volume 3, Number 33 1 September 1986
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+---------------------------------------------------------------+
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| _ |
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| / \ |
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| /|oo \ |
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| - FidoNews - (_| /_) |
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| _`@/_ \ _ |
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| International | | \ \\ |
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| FidoNet Association | (*) | \ )) |
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| Newsletter ______ |__U__| / \// |
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| / FIDO \ _//|| _\ / |
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| (________) (_/(_|(____/ |
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| (jm) |
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+---------------------------------------------------------------+
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Editor in Chief: Thom Henderson
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Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings
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FidoNews is the official newsletter of the International FidoNet
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Association, and is published weekly by SEAdog Leader, node 1/1.
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You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
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FidoNews. Article submission standards are contained in the file
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FNEWSART.DOC, available from node 1/1.
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Copyright (C) 1986, by the International FidoNet Association.
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All rights reserved. Duplication and/or distribution permitted
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for noncommercial purposes only. For use in other circumstances,
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please contact IFNA.
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The contents of the articles contained here are not our
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responsibility, nor do we necessarily agree with them.
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Everything here is subject to debate.
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Table of Contents
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1. ARTICLES
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The Condemned (A Poem)
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Cincinnati Area Bulletin Board
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2. COLUMNS
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Are You Being Ripped Off When You Buy Diskettes?
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Computer Industry Spotlight
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3. WANTED
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Wanted: IBM PC programs for publication!
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Looking for a Few Good CADs
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4. FOR SALE
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DataCare Hard Disk Utility
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Entertainment Software for your PC!
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Public Domain Software Library Sale!!
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5. NOTICES
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The Interrupt Stack
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Fidonews Page 2 1 Sep 1986
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=================================================================
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ARTICLES
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=================================================================
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Neal Curtin
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138/14
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Model 1000 Echo
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Due to the differences between the Model 1000 from Tandy
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and the normal IBM type of machine, I have asked several nodes
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if they were interested in the establishment of a Model 1000
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echo area. So far of the six nodes that I thought might be
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interested, two answered yes right away. One is here in net 138,
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the other is on the East coast. What we have in mind is a free
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area where all can enter the questions and whoever can answer,
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answers. We will be using arcmail for the message transfers and
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will try to keep the traffic out the normal outbound/inbound
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channels. If interested, set up an echo mail area for MOD1000
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and send me a message from it to 138/14.
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SMART Echo
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A second echo that we have here is for users of the
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SMART Package from Inovative Software. Right now it is a local
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echo but will add others if they will send echomail to me under
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the name of SMART also at 138/14
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* Via Fido 138/38 12 Aug 86 01:20:41
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 3 1 Sep 1986
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The Condemned
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When the earth was created, the powers above,
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Gave each man a job to work at and love.
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He made Doctors and lawyers and plumbers and then,
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He made carpenters, singers, and confidence men.
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And when each had a job to work as he should,
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He looked them all over and saw it was good.
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He then sat down to rest for a day,
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When a horrible groan chanced to come his way.
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The Lord then looked down and his eyes opened wide,
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For a motley collection of bums stood outside.
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"Oh what can they want?" the creator asked them,
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"Help us," they cried out, "A job for us men".
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"We have no profession," they cried in dismay,
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"And even the jails have turned us away".
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Said the Lord, "I've seen many things without worth,
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But here I find gathered the scum of the earth!"
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The Lord was perplexed then he was mad,
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For all the jobs, there was none to be had.
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Then he spoke aloud in a deep angry tone,
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"Forever and ever ye mongrels shall roam,
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Ye shall freeze in the summer and sweat when it's cold,
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Ye shall work on equipment that's dirty and old,
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Ye shall crawl under raised floors, and there cables lay,
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Ye shall be called out at midnight and work through the day,
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Ye shall work on all holidays, and not make your worth,
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Ye shall be blamed for all downtime that occurs on the earth,
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Ye shall watch all the glory go to software and sales,
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Ye shall be blamed by them both if the system then fails.
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Ye shall be paid nothing out of sorrow and tears,
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Ye shall be forever cursed, and called FIELD ENGINEERS!"
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 4 1 Sep 1986
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Letter to Editor
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Infoworld
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1060 Marsh Road
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Suite C-200
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Menlo Park, California 94025
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CIS 73267,1537
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Dear Editor,
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I read Scott Mace's 8/18/86 'Software Makers Force Pirate
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BBS to Shut Down' regarding a Cincinnati area electronic bulletin
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board carrying 'pirate' software. It was mentioned in the story
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that this was a 'Fidonet-based board'.
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Having just returned from an International Fido Sysop
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Conference with about 100 Fido Sysop's from the United States,
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Canada, Great Britain and Holland held in Colorado Springs; and
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being the Cincinnati area Fidonet administrator, I was a bit
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disturbed to hear this news.
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I thought I would take this opportunity to try and put the
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Fido name back in its more respectable light, since I now have
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made a few phone calls to check out this story.
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Fido is the name of an electronic bulletin board system
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written by Tom Jennings. Fido Net is the informal cooperation by
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which over 1,000 Fido systems on 4 continents exchange electronic
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mail with each other every day. These systems are run entirely
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independently by people that have no business relation with each
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other.
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Since we take this activity rather seriously, we do our best
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to maintain the highest possible standards for the systems and
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people that participate in our network. 'Pirate' boards that
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participate in the spreading of commercial software against the
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copyright restrictions are a definite NO-NO in the Fido Net
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world. Of course there can always be the one bad apple (no pun
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intended) and it is unfortunate that in this case it blemished
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the Fido Net name. Coincidentally, in researching your story
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further, I found that the particular Cincinnati area offender
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that you wrote of was not at all a Fido Net based system.
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However, he might have been, so I really can't take credit for
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the fact that he actually was running some bbs software other
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than the Fido software.
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Anyway, as I said, there are over 1,000 Fido Net systems and
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they are spread all over the WORLD. I can assure you that these
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sysops, that generally go unmentioned, collectively outweigh this
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one joker's bad news with their own good news to the order of a
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giga times better.
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Thank you for letting me use this forum to hopefully help
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the Fido Net image. If there is any further information that I
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can provide, please feel free to call on me.
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Allen Miller
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Fidonews Page 5 1 Sep 1986
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Fido 108/10
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Cincinnati Fido Net Administrator
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CIS 70140,442
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 6 1 Sep 1986
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=================================================================
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COLUMNS
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=================================================================
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Are You Being Ripped Off When You Buy Diskettes?
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Mike Guffey
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Almost everyone shops for the best buys in 5.25" floppy disks.
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Prices range from under $1 to over $5 per disk, depending on the
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brand and type (SSDD, DSDD, DSQD). It is possible to get around
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one of the big-gest "fictions" in computing by buying Single
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Sided Disks for most applications. Crucial to this method is
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acquistion of a magnetic bulk eraser which is used to totally
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blank the disks before formatting.
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Few computer store people or mail order houses will tell you that
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the main (but not necessarily the =only=) difference between
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single and double sided disks is that DS disks are certified on
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both sides. All "name-brand" manufacturers' disks have magnetic
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particles on both sides. Single-sided disks have only been
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tested on one side. And 99% of single sided disks can be
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formatted for DS Double Density and, in most cases, will work for
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DS QUAD density formats. The "trick" is to first use the
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magnetic bulk eraser on each disk, format it, then run a
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commercial or public domain program to look for and lock out bad
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sectors. Single sided disks will not always work for "OCT"
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Density applications (i.e. IBM AT), but if they have never been
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used in any lesser format, many premium brands are likely to
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work.
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Off-brand disks? Yes, they may be a bargain, but they may also
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fail to retain data in storage. Stay with "name-brands" for this
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trick.
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 7 1 Sep 1986
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William/Eunhee Hunter
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Fido 109/626
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Computer Industry Spotlight on:
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COMPUTER AUTOMATION, INC. -- This is a multi-divisional,
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multinational manufacturer of a full range of micro- and mini-
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computers, high performance test systems, and distributed data
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processing systems. The company's three operating divisions are:
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Naked Mini Division, the firm's first and largest activity,
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dedicated to producing the micro- and mini-computers for sale in
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large volume; Industrial Products Division, which develops,
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manufactures, and markets high-performance computer-based
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automatic test equipment; and Commercial Systems Division, which
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produces and markets network processing systems designed for
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transaction-oriented applications requiring interactive
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communications from and between remote locations to large scale
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central computer facilities. The company has "abundant" career
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opportunities for electrical engineers and sales associates. The
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Sales Associate Training Program prepares employees by developing
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a sound technical knowledge of the corporation's products and
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providing training in professional selling skills or advanced
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technical support techniques. The Engineering Rotational Program
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is designed to give engineers experience in several areas before
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they choose an ultimate assignment.
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Contact: Charles Pierce, College Relations Representative,
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Computer Automation, Inc., 2181 Dupont Drive, Irvine, CA 92713.
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 8 1 Sep 1986
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=================================================================
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WANTED
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=================================================================
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Daniel Tobias, Soft Fido, 19/216
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WANTED: IBM PC PROGRAMS FOR PUBLICATION!
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SOFTDISK, INC., the already-successful publisher of magazines on
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diskette for Apple II and Commodore 64 computers, will produce a
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monthly disk-based publication for the IBM PC. The first issue
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of this publication, to be named BIG BLUE DISK, and which will be
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contained entirely on a floppy disk, will be shipped to thousands
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of retail outlets in October, including B. Dalton Booksellers and
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Waldenbooks.
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- - OFF-BROADWAY - -
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If you have written a program for the IBM PC, please consider
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publishing it on BIG BLUE DISK; it's your chance to make some
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money, and get your name in print. Programs of all categories
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are being accepted.
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- - YOUR REWARD - -
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We will select the best programs submitted, and publish them on
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issues of BIG BLUE DISK. If we choose to publish your program,
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we will pay you a minimum of $50, and possibly more-- as much as
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$500, depending on the nature and quality of the program. This
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money is for the privilege of publishing your program. You
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retain full rights to it.
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- - HOW TO SUBMIT IT - -
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Submissions can be sent by FIDONET to node 19/216, or uploaded
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directly to our BBS at (318) 636-4402. Alternatively, you can
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send them on a floppy disk to: BIG BLUE DISK, PO BOX 30008,
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SHREVEPORT, LA 71130-0008.
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BIG BLUE DISK is a widely-distributed, carefully-prepared
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publication, so make sure your programs are well-tested and
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debugged, and include adequate instructions within the program.
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Include a note (on paper, in a text file, or in a message to the
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sysop of our BBS) describing what your program does, what files
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are necessary to run it, and what system configuration (hardware
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and software) is required. Please include the source code to
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all compiled or assembled programs so we can make revisions if
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necessary. If you have marketed your software as "shareware",
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please remove all requests for money or other advertisements
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from the version you submit for publication; alternatively you
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can contact us for information on other terms for such programs.
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- - NOTE TO SYSOPS - -
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There is a finder's fee of 10% for you if you submit a program on
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behalf of one of your users and it is published. Thus, you may
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wish to publicize BIG BLUE DISK and our search for programs.
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 9 1 Sep 1986
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Christopher Baker
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Metro-Fire Fido, 135/14
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Searching for CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch) Systems
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Within the Fire Services
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We are looking for Fire Departments currently using Computer
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Aided Dispatch programs on any type of computer system.
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If your Department is using a CAD system, we would like to hear
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from you about the screen design, the types of data stored and
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retrieved, access times, user interface, computer utilized,
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program language, portability and ease of program alteration,
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and maintenance and reliability factors. We would also like to
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obtain screen print-outs and any other documentation you are
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willing to share.
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This Department is in the process of purchasing a VAX system and
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attendant peripherals and is thinking of developing a CAD system
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in "C". We don't want to reinvent anything, if it can be avoided.
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If you have or have access to any of the above material, send a
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FidoNet message to:
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Christopher Baker
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Metro-Fire Fido
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135/14, 135/0.
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OR by U.S. Mail to: Christopher Baker
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Metro-Dade Fire Communications
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DPCC Rm 151
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5680 S.W. 87 Avenue
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Miami, FL 33173.
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Any and all information will be greatly appreciated. Anything we
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develop will be available to other Departments.
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Thanks.
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 10 1 Sep 1986
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=================================================================
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FOR SALE
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=================================================================
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Ellicott Software
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Fido 109/628
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DataCare, a PC Magazine choice in its recent review of hard
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disk products, is available at a new low price - $49.95, down
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from $129.95. This is the same product that has been favorably
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reviewed. The price is for a limited time only.
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This product is used by a number of Fido BBS's in net 109, and
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has found favor with many people that are not SYSOPS in the
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Baltimore - DC - Virginia area.
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Three-week trials are available from any user of the product.
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The review can be read in the PC magazine issue that had as its
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emphasis EGA boards. A review has been submitted to FidoNews
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for publication, but it is uncertain when it will appear.
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DataCare is published by:
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Ellicott Software, Inc.
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3777 Plum Hill Court
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Ellicott City, MD 21043
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(301) 465-2790
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Fidonews Page 11 1 Sep 1986
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ENTERTAINMENT SOFTWARE FOR YOUR PC!
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SUPERDOTS! KALAH!
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Professional quality games include PASCAL source! From the
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author of KALAH Version 1.6, SuperDots, a variation of the
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||
popular pencil/paper DOTS game, has MAGIC and HIDDEN DOT
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||
options. KALAH 1.7 is an African strategy game requiring
|
||
skill to manipulate pegs around a playing board. Both games
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||
use the ANSI Escape sequences provided with the ANSI.SYS
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||
device driver for the IBM-PC, or built into the firmware on
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the DEC Rainbow. Only $19.95 each or $39.95 for both
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||
exciting games! Please specify version and disk format.
|
||
These games have been written in standard TURBO-PASCAL and
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||
run on the IBM-PC, DEC Rainbow 100 (MSDOS and CPM), CPM/80,
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||
CPM/86, and PDP-11. Other disk formats are available, but
|
||
minor customization may be required.
|
||
|
||
BSS Software
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||
P.O. Box 3827
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||
Cherry Hill, NJ 08034
|
||
|
||
|
||
For every order placed, a donation will be made to the Fido
|
||
coordinators! Also, if you have a previous version of KALAH
|
||
and send me a donation, a portion of that donation will also
|
||
be sent to the coordinators. When you place an order, BE
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||
CERTAIN TO MENTION WHERE YOU SAW THE AD since it also
|
||
appears in PC Magazine and Digital Review.
|
||
|
||
Questions and comments can be sent to:
|
||
|
||
Brian Sietz at Fido 107/17
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||
(609) 429-6630 300/1200/2400 baud
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
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Fidonews Page 12 1 Sep 1986
|
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|
||
|
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Now available from Micro Consulting Associates!!
|
||
|
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Public Domain collection - 550+ "ARC" archives - 20+ megs of
|
||
software and other goodies, and that's "archived" size! When
|
||
unpacked, you get approximately 28 megabytes worth of all kinds
|
||
of software, from text editors to games to unprotection schemes
|
||
to communications programs, compilers, interpreters, etc... Over
|
||
55 DS/DD diskettes!!
|
||
|
||
This collection is the result of more than 15 months of intensive
|
||
downloads from just about 150 or more BBS's and other sources,
|
||
all of which have been examined, indexed and archived for your
|
||
convenience. Starting a Bulletin Board System? Want to add on
|
||
to your software base without spending thousands of dollars? This
|
||
is the answer!!!
|
||
|
||
To order the library, send $100 (personal or company check,
|
||
postal money order or company purchase order) to:
|
||
|
||
Micro Consulting Associates, Fido 103/511
|
||
Post Office Box 4296
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||
200-1/2 E. Balboa Boulevard
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||
Balboa, Ca. 92661-4296
|
||
|
||
Please allow 3 weeks for delivery of your order.
|
||
|
||
Note: No profit is made from the sale of the Public Domain
|
||
software in this collection. The price is applied entirely to
|
||
the cost of downloading the software over the phone lines,
|
||
running a BBS to receive file submissions, and inspecting,
|
||
cataloguing, archiving and maintaining the files. Obtaining this
|
||
software yourself through the use of a computer with a modem
|
||
using commercial phone access would cost you much more than what
|
||
we charge for the service...
|
||
|
||
Please specify what type of format you would like the disks to be
|
||
prepared on. The following choices are available:
|
||
- IBM PC-DOS Backup utility
|
||
- Zenith MS-DOS 2.11 Backup Utility
|
||
- DSBackup
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||
- Fastback
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||
- ACS INTRCPT 720k format
|
||
- Plain ol' files (add $50)
|
||
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||
Add $30 if you want the library on 1.2 meg AT disks (more
|
||
expensive disks). There are no shipping or handling charges.
|
||
California residents add 6% tax.
|
||
|
||
For each sale, $10 will go to the FidoNet Administrators.
|
||
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||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
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Fidonews Page 13 1 Sep 1986
|
||
|
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||
=================================================================
|
||
NOTICES
|
||
=================================================================
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||
|
||
Announcing the return of the "HIP Shack" to Fidonet, now in
|
||
Colorado Springs, CO. The files and message areas are in
|
||
the process of being reorganized, but Amateur Radio and SWL
|
||
are still the primary themes. I'm looking forward to
|
||
hearing from everyone I've been out of touch with for the
|
||
last 9 weeks...
|
||
|
||
Bdale Garbee, sysop 128/18, 303/593-0766, 1200 baud, 24hrs
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
The Interrupt Stack
|
||
|
||
|
||
24 Aug 1989
|
||
Voyager 2 passes Neptune.
|
||
|
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If you have something which you would like to see on this
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calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1/1.
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