Thanks for logging into CyberMac BBS of Integrated Network Systems!
One Hayes Ultra 144 and one Hayes Optima 144 with fax are currently provided for your convenience. These provide CCITT V.32bis for 14.4 kbps data rates and CCITT V.42bis data-compression for throughput up to 57.6 kbps. Backwards compatibility is also provided for MNP classes 2 through 5 modems for error-control and data compression. These modems are arranged in a hunt group, so you only need to call the main number to connect with the first available modem.
When you first logged in you were prompted for your name, address and the like. This new account will be active for 15 minutes/day. Hopefully, this will be sufficient time for you to favorably evaluate our BBS. Dues are $50/year for 120 minutes/day of access time or $30/year for 60 minutes/day. Payments are accepted by check only (made payable to Tim Waire, CyberMac Administrator). These dues are not intended to be profit making. They cover hardware maintenance and upgrades, software, phone bills and the like.
Remember, our BBS uses FirstClass, a graphical BBS for Macintosh users (a MS-Windows version soon!). A TTY/VT100 interface is also available for those who wish. Users must download the FirstClass Client program to try the graphical user interface login. This method of logging into the BBS mimics the Macintosh GUI and is similar to America Online. FirstClass also allows for simultaneous/multiple downloads and uploads. You can continue to read conferences while your downloads or uploads run in the background.
Let me explain a little bit about our BBS organization. There are four conference areas, two of which messages are exchanged with other networks:
FidoNet Echos
FidoNet is an amateur network composed of approximately 10000 BBSs.
In the wee hours of the nights, participating BBSs call each other
to exchange e-mail and conference areas called echos. It provides a
way for users of other BBSs to participate together in echos. When
you are reading these areas, pay attention to the origin line at the
bottom of the messages. These lines identifies the BBS where the
person posted the message from. If there is no origin line, then it
was posted by a user here on this BBS (check out the Locate a User
option to verify this yourself). Also in this origin line will be
the node number of the BBS it was sent from. You will need this if
you want to e-mail the person who sent the message directly without
posting the message to the conference (check out the Mailing to
FidoNet file in FidoNet echos), that is, only that person will get
your reply. You can identify FidoNet e-mail by seeing if a FidoNet
style node number is located next to the user name in the From field.
FirstClass Backbone
These are support conferences from SoftArc and Information
Electronics the respective makers of FirstClass and PostalUnion
Lite. These conferences are exchaned with FirstClass BBSs around
the world.
Local News
Conferences in this area are only seen by users calling this BBS.
USENET NewsGroups
Internet is a dedicated network composed of universities, government
and research institutions. It is the medium that the USENET
newsgroups are transmitted over. A message posted to these
conferences has the potential to reach over 6 million users. So
expect a fair amount of replies to anything you post here. Messages
here will have an origin line with "The Black Cat" listed in it,
unless it was posted locally by a user of this BBS. "The Black Cat"
is the FidoNet gateway that passes these messages back to the
Internet. You can identify where the message came from by looking at
the first line in the message. It will have a From field indicating
the address (in the form waire@aplcen.apl.jhu) of the user who posted
the message. E-mail messages to your mailbox from a user on Internet
will have a similar From field.
There are also three file areas on the BBS:
BBS Stuff
These are files that will be interest of users on this BBS. Catalog
of the file areas, local BBS phone number list, FirstClass Client and
a couple other related files.
IBM
Programs specific to DOS, OS/2 and Windows based PCs.
Macintosh
This area is where all files uploaded to the BBS are archived. It
is logically divided into subject areas to hopefully help make
locating specific programs easier.
New Stuff
All new files are placed here for about one week before being
archived in the Macintosh Files area. This gives you quick access to
the newest files on the BBS as long as you call regularly.
With the above connectivity, our users can also use e-mail to reach any other user on FidoNet, Internet, CompuServe or America Online. Read the "Mailing
to FidoNet" and "Mailing to Internet" for more details.
Give these conference areas, file areas and e-mail a try!
--
Tim Waire, Administrator FidoNet: 1:261/1138
Integrated Network Systems Internet: waire@cybermac.com
P.O. Box 5874 Voice: (410) 597-7294
Baltimore, MD 21208 USA CyberMac - A FirstClass BBS: (410) 668-3903
