Path: news.synet.edu.cn!netnews.net.edu.cn!sunrise.pku.edu.cn!arclight.uoregon.edu!nntp.primenet.com!ix.netcom.com!news4.noc.netcom.net!noc.netcom.net!news.dsnet.com!not-for-mailFrom: unixbbs@news.dsnet.com (UnixBBS FAQ Maintainer)Newsgroups: alt.bbs.unixbbs,alt.bbs,comp.bbs.misc,comp.answers,alt.answers,news.answersSubject: alt.bbs.unixbbs Frequently Asked QuestionsSupersedes: <unixbbs-faq-1-849431103@news.dsnet.com>Followup-To: alt.bbs.unixbbsDate: 15 Dec 1996 01:05:04 -0800Organization: DSnetLines: 1501Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDUDistribution: worldExpires: 19 Jan 97 01:05:02Message-ID: <unixbbs-faq-1-850640702@news.dsnet.com>Reply-To: unixbbs@news.dsnet.com (UnixBBS FAQ Maintainer)NNTP-Posting-Host: news.dsnet.comKeywords: FAQ, UNIX, BBS, SHELLXref: news.synet.edu.cn comp.bbs.misc:1082 comp.answers:1396Posted-By: auto-faq 3.3 beta (Perl 5.001)Archive-name: unix-faq/bbs-software/faqPosting-Frequency: posted on the 1st and 15th of each monthX-Content-Currency: This FAQ changes regularly.  When a saved or printed copy   is over 6 months old, please obtain a new one.  Instructions in the FAQ   indicate where to find it via NetNews, FTP, World Wide Web, and finger.This is the UNIX(TM) compatible BBS Frequently Asked Questions Answers.It is posted on the 1st and 15th of each month.Please email all comments, corrections, and additions to this FAQ tounixbbs@news.dsnet.com.     TABLE OF CONTENTS          1. About this FAQ     2. What is a BBS?     3. What is UNIX?     4. What is Usenet?     5. What BBS Software is covered?     6. BBS software that we need more info on     7. BBS software that isn't covered     8 - N. The packages               From: unixbbs@dsnet.comSubject: 1. About this FAQDate: Fri Nov 1 07:21:45 PDT 1996Thanks go to Gregory G. "Wolfe" Woodbury (news@wolves.durham.nc.us)for the excellent job he did creating and maintaining this FAQ foras long as he did.                                        Duane DavisThe FAQ is in Message Digest Format, so that various newsreaders canautomagically decompose it into its component parts.The latest version of this FAQ can be obtained from several places.It is posted on the 1st and 15th of each month to the alt.bbs.unixbbs,alt.bbs, alt.answers and news.answers newsgroups. It is also availablevia ftp from rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet-by-group/alt.bbs.unixbbs, andvia the World Wide Web from http://www.dsnet.com/unixbbsfaq. You canalso 'finger unixbbs@news.dsnet.com' at last resort.Most of the packages listed in this FAQ are now available at a singleFTP site. All unix bbs authors are encouraged to upload new updatesas they are available.ftp://ftp.dsnet.com/pub/unixbbsThese listings are provided for informational purposes only.  I am notmaking recommendations (con or pro) here, simply telling what I knowabout each package that I have information for.  You are encouraged toevaluate each package for yourself to see if it matches your needs.to locate the packages listed in the articles below, search for theshort name listed in the Subject: headers.Also listed are the FTP sites and filenames for known or suspectedcopies of the packages.This FAQ is the product of a lot of research and correspondence withlots of folks.  Here is a partial listing of the folks who were kindenough to send information and corrections to me for use in this FAQ.If I've left someone out, write to me :-)Lars Aronsson(!), Bob Baskerville(!), Bill Brown, Lisa Carlson,Tom Dell(!), Karl Denninger(!), Aydin Edguer(*), Ken Germann,Avrum Goodblat, Judy Hallman, David Holland, Bob Kirkpatrick(!),Hilbert Levitz, Michael Lyons, Stephen Manes(!), Bob Peterson,Chris Petrilli, Riccardo Pizzi(!), Todd Radel, Gene Saunders,Greg Seminara, Jay Snyder(!), Chris Stanford, Bill Fenner(#),Jim Tremblay, Alex Wetmore(!), Sanford Zelkovitz(!), Nick Zimmerman(!)Thomas Mechtersheimer, Bill Schwartz, Brian Dear(!), Bill Blue(!),Jared Quinn(!)(!)     Authors of packages providing information(*)     Special Thanks to Aydin Edguer(#)     Bill is keeper of the Waffle FAQ----------------------------------------------------------------------From: news@wolves.durham.nc.us (G. Wolfe Woodbury)Subject: 2. What is a BBS?Date: Wed Aug 11 19:29:48 EDT 1993BBS is an acronym for Bulletin Board System.  This is software that allowsa computer to be used as a message posting and reading system that hassome similarities to a bulletin board you might find in an officeor in a grocery store.  Users of the system can post messages and readmessages posted by others.  Many computer BBSes also allow the users tosend private messages to other users, and to "download" files that arestored on the computer.  Some BBSes also allow users to run otherprograms (such as games) in addition to the BBS program.Some BBS programs allow the individual BBS systems to share messages byusing a communications medium to exchange the messages via a standardprotocol which the BBSes understand.  Such systems are "networked"BBSes.  There are several BBS Networks around the world. Among them areFIDOnet, WWIVnet, RIMEnet, VNET and Usenet.Some of the commercial computer service providers (e.g. CompuServe,Prodigy, America OnLine, etc.) provide BBS systems in addition to theirregular services.Care should be taken to distinguish between the "public" messages of aBBS system and "private" Electronic Mail message services that may beprovided by a computer service.------------------------------From: news@wolves.durham.nc.us (G. Wolfe Woodbury)Subject: 3. What is UNIX?Date: Wed Aug 11 19:30:11 EDT 1993UNIX is currently a trademark of X/Open Ltd (*). UNIX was developedat AT&T Bell Laboratories in the late 1960's and has become the mostportable operating system ever developed.  This portability means thatUNIX (or Unix-like) operating systems can run on nearly any computerthat has been developed since 1975.  Unix-like operating systems run oncomputers from the Intel 8086 through the gamut to computers like theCray X-MP and the Connection Machine 5.  Programs written for oneUnix-like system can be moved (fairly easily, if written with portabilityin mind) from one Unix system to another with some minor editing andre-compiling of the source code on the new machine.The history of Unix-like operating systems is quite complicated, andthere are several versions of Unix-like operating systems in existence.The two major divisions of these are AT&T UNIX systems, and BSD Unixsystems.  There are lots of others, but these two versions cover most ofthe territory in terms of portability issues.  Truly portable Unixsoftware packages can examine the software environment and automaticallyconfigure themselves when the user compiles the package.Unix operating systems are flexible and portable for many reasons, and adetailed examination of that issue is not relevant here.  For moreinformation see the Unix-FAQ posted regularly to comp.unix.questions.(*) Just who *is* the actual holder of the TradeMark on UNIX issomething that can change with bewildering rapidity.  At various timesit has been the "offical" property of: AT&T, Bell Laboratories, WesternElectric and other groups.  These names, of course, are also registeredTradeMarks of their respective owners. :-)------------------------------From: news@wolves.durham.nc.us (G. Wolfe Woodbury)Date: Tue Dec 14 00:54:16 EST 1993Subject: 4. What is Usenet?Usenet is a network message sharing system that exchanges messages in astandard format.  Messages are arranged into topical categories callednewsgroups.  Newsgroups can be thought of as analogous to the channelsin broadcast television.  The messages contain plain text information(which may include encoded binary information) and a series of headersthat define who the message came from, when the message was posted,where it was posted, where it has passed, and other administrativeinformation.Usenet/Netnews is a dual entity.  On one level is it merely the messagesbeing passed from machine to machine using known protocols. On anotherlevel is it the people (the readers and posters of the messages) whointeract with the computers.  Care should be taken to not get tooconfused when people talk about "Usenet is...." because of this duality.Usenet should not be mistaken for any underlying transport mechanisms thatprovide other services in addition to the transfer of the messages.That is, Usenet is not UUCP, Usenet is not a particular network or setof networks (e.g. the Internet).One should also be careful to not confuse Usenet with any particulargroup of users.  That is, Usenet is *not* an american network, Usenet isnot a network of computer scientists, and Usenet is not a network ofsystem administrators.  It is a complete cross-section of all the sortsof folks who use computers either for work or play.  English *is* thecommon language of Usenet, but there is no guarantee that the users*know* english particularly well. :-)By one popular definition, Usenet is the newsgroups in the majorcategories of comp, misc, news, rec, sci, soc, and talk.  There are anumber of other major "hierarchies" which may be worldwide (alt, bionet,vmsnet),  regional (usa, can, triangle), or even organizational(duke, ut, sun).  These message hierarchies use the NetNews protocols,and are colloquially called "Usenet", but purists can (and do) argue fordays about the distinctions.  I tend to use the term "NetNews" to referto the whole suite of programs and all the newsgroups in conglomeration.There is not enough room here to fully discuss the ins and outs ofNetNews.  There are several NetNews groups that are dedicated todiscussion of NetNews itself.  (news.* and alt.culture.usenet areexamples, the `*' refers to any newsgroup that begins its name with astring of "news.")There are additional regular FAQ (frequently asked questions) postingsin the newsgroup "news.announce.newusers" and the newsgroup "news.answers"that provide much more information about this topic.------------------------------From: news@wolves.durham.nc.usDate: Sat Jan 15 19:26:36 EST 1994Subject: 5. What software is covered here?The following packages are covered in this FAQ.     AKCS     AMbbs     AWBBS     BBLinux     BBS-Util     Cafe     Caucus     Citadel/UX     Citux     Commune/IX     Dial-Up Utils     drealm     EBBS (Eagle's Nest)     GDXBBS     ix/MBox     Magpie