Volume 6, Number 19 8 May 1989 +---------------------------------------------------------------+ | _ | | / \ | | /|oo \ | | - FidoNews - (_| /_) | | _`@/_ \ _ | | International | | \ \\ | | FidoNet Association | (*) | \ )) | | Newsletter ______ |__U__| / \// | | / FIDO \ _//|| _\ / | | (________) (_/(_|(____/ | | (jm) | +---------------------------------------------------------------+ Editor in Chief: Vince Perriello Editors Emeritii: Dale Lovell Thom Henderson Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings Contributing Editors: Al Arango FidoNews is published weekly by the International FidoNet Association as its official newsletter. You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in FidoNews. Article submission standards are contained in the file ARTSPEC.DOC, available from node 1:1/1. 1:1/1 is a Continuous Mail system, available for network mail 24 hours a day. Copyright 1989 by the International FidoNet Association. All rights reserved. Duplication and/or distribution permitted for noncommercial purposes only. For use in other circumstances, please contact IFNA at (314) 576-4067. IFNA may also be contacted at PO Box 41143, St. Louis, MO 63141. Fido and FidoNet are registered trademarks of Tom Jennings of Fido Software, 164 Shipley Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94107 and are used with permission. We don't necessarily agree with the contents of every article published here. Most of these materials are unsolicited. No article will be rejected which is properly attributed and legally acceptable. We will publish every responsible submission received. Table of Contents 1. EDITORIAL ................................................ 1 It's time to speak out on Freedom of the Press ........... 1 2. ARTICLES ................................................. 3 Echo CHIPS IN ............................................ 3 Behind the Scenes on Policy4 ............................. 5 The Hermit's New Software Releases ....................... 9 MORE_ICONS Some more ICONS for artistic types ............ 10 ParaNet Leads The Information Society! ................... 11 3. COLUMNS .................................................. 15 The Veterinarian's Corner: Lymphosarcoma ................. 15 And more! FidoNews 6-19 Page 1 8 May 1989 ================================================================= EDITORIAL ================================================================= It's time to speak out on Freedom of the Press As many of you have no doubt noticed, FidoNews isn't a rigidly controlled publication. Its content often has little or nothing to do with the day-in, day-out nonsense involved in being a member of FidoNet. There are articles and discussions of some amazingly varied topics, reflecting the similarly varied tastes of the five thousand member nodes of FidoNet. I personally believe that it is a major strength of this publication that any member of FidoNet is allowed to contribute to a publication that is made available to every other member of FidoNet. It is, quite literally, a free and open public forum in which any of us can share anything we consider important with anyone else. Of course, there is a "down" side to this openness. The down side is this: not every issue of FidoNews will be of interest to everyone in FidoNet. In some cases, there might be one or two issues in succession that in some individuals' opinions, would have been better off unpublished. I'm sorry to disagree with those people, but this is the price that you pay for having your own turn with FidoNews when YOU want it. There are sometimes excesses, but we'll gradually learn how to minimize them without hurting the open policy. There now appear to be some rumblings in the coordinators' structure to the effect that FidoNews has too low of a "signal to noise ratio" and that perhaps the *C's might want to do something about it. This is apparently largely due to the fact that readership isn't what it used to be, and many NC's have been resisting the idea of carrying FidoNews, which is currently mandated by Fidonet Policy. I can't resist the temptation to suggest that indeed we have had the same problem with the *C structure. How about some more signal and less noise from them? Whatever happened, for example, to the promised WEEKLY update from the coordinators via the "RegComm - Communications from RegCon" column? Well, to be fair, it only claimed to be a "weekly" update in the January 2 and January 9 columns. The January 16 column billed itself as a "regular" column. Of course, it was the last one submitted. When humans get that "regular" they usually need an enema. Look, maybe as an individual you don't always like what appears in FidoNews. But this is YOUR publication. YOU decide what appears in it through YOUR submissions. If you don't like the signal to noise ratio, submit something with a high signal level and its presence in the newsletter will help keep that ratio closer to where you'd like it. FidoNews 6-19 Page 2 8 May 1989 At this point, then, FidoNews seems to have reached a very important cusp. We need this open and widely distributed forum. The *C's want something that stays a bit closer to the center of things. As yet there has been no real concensus among the *C's on any course of action, and this means that the time is right for you to be heard on this issue. If you agree that FidoNews should belong to ALL of us, then you had damned well better get off your gluteus maximus and write a note to your coordinator saying just that. Then, while you're in a writing mood, how about submitting an article? ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-19 Page 3 8 May 1989 ================================================================= ARTICLES ================================================================= Echo "CHIPS" In for disABLED User It was a cold day last February 16th in upstate New York, otherwise known as the Adirondacks of New York state, USA. It was also a time when the RONDACK Echo was becoming more active. You know, those wintery months when the hacks come in to play, where it's warm. For those in the more temperate regions of the world, I'm talking about a "heat wave" where the temperature got up to zero farenheit. An article in the newspaper about a 14 year old boy who is suffering from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome appears, with a big picture of him sitting at his computer, with a smile as wide as his 13 inch screen. The article quotes his mother as saying that her son, Louis, gets his kicks by using the computer to play games and discover ways to make the computer work for him. The article touched alot of people that day, including the users of the RONDACK Echo. Knowing the potential value echomail could be to Louis, one of the Rondack'ers, aka Brothers / Sisters found out that he didn't have a modem. Well... that day, a message was posted in the RONDACK Echo asking for volunteers to pitch in to purchase a modem to give to the potential Rondack'r. The response from the users was great and by the time midnight came around, on the same day, the modem was nearly half paid for. Arrangements had been made with the local Independent Living Center to act as recipient of donations for the modem. This whole experience was new to the local Independent Living Center and they welcomed the opportunity to help us out in helping others in need. Consequently, they have established an open account for the sole use of accumulating funds to be used in the purchase of telecommunications equipment and other computer hardware that can be disbursed to persons within their service area who can benefit from its use. In addition, some of the echo participants have offered their time and expertise in helping a new user get setup, including training. The whole experience also converted some "lurkers" to the official "Un-lurker" status of the echo. It was good to see evidence of an echo working together to help someone. A pleasant change from what you read in some echos. We are not a charitable echo, just an echo with charitable users. Not unlike you, I suspect. Mmmm, is this a challenge? Yes, why not? I would love to challenge any other "echo" to DO something to help those around you. Let the public know about the good things that FidoNet is capable of, and what its users are doing. If you are already involved in a project like this, then please share it with us. I'm sure we would benefit from your experience. FidoNews 6-19 Page 4 8 May 1989 Submitted by Ross Calloway, moderator RONDACK ECHO, 1:267/41 ----------------------------------------------------------------- FidoNews 6-19 Page 5 8 May 1989 Steve Bonine 11/0 Policy4: A Perspective The new version of FidoNet policy has been released for a vote by the coordinator structure, the results of which will be announced in the June 9 nodediff. The new policy document has been discussed at length in the REGCON echomail conference, and represents my best attempt to capture the consensus of the Regional Coordinators who participate in that forum. In this FidoNews article, I am expressing my impressions of the document, with some indication of how the consensus was reached. I am but one of the contributors, but with perhaps a unique perspective. Rather than publishing the full text of the final draft of Policy4 in FidoNews, I will discuss the changes between what was published previously and the final version. The full policy file will be distributed through the coordinator structure, and is available for file request from the RC's using the "magic name" of POLICY4. I want to emphasize that the opinions expressed in this article are my own. If you have questions about Policy4, get a copy and read it. It speaks rather well for itself. I have not been given any authority to speak for the FidoNet coordinator structure, and I don't pretend to do so. Section 1.2 -- Organization, and Organization ------- --- ------------- --- ------------ The original Policy4 had two sections on each level of FidoNet. For example, there was a section describing a network, and another describing a network coordinator. These have been consolidated; for example, there is now a single section which describes networks and network coordinators. Virtually all the same words are still there, just organized differently. Top-Down Organization -------- ------------ The summary of FidoNet organization, now section 1.2.8, was clarified. Two exceptions to the strict top-down organization of FidoNet have been introduced by Policy4: (1) Decisions of the IC can be reversed by the Zone Coordinator Council, and (2) Decisions of a ZC can be reversed by a majority of the Regional Coordinators in that zone. This was done to provide a check-and-balance at the highest level of FidoNet. In a sense, this mechanism has always existed; under Policy3 if a majority of the RC's decided not to support the ZC then the effect would be the same. This procedure is formal in Policy4, with the RC's as a check on the actions of ZC's, and the ZC's as a check on the actions of the IC. Hopefully, none of this will ever be invoked. FidoNews 6-19 Page 6 8 May 1989 The appeal process for standard policy complaints is not changed with Policy4. If you complain to your NC, and don't like the decision, you still appeal to the RC. There have been vocal calls for democracy in FidoNet. The changes which have been implemented are a step in that direction, although a smaller step than some would prefer. The vast majority of FidoNet sysops are satisfied with the way that the network is organized, and if they are not then the procedure exists with Policy4 to get it changed. Geography --------- Policy4 is quite specific that network membership is based upon technical factors, not social factors. This is entirely appropriate for a mail network, and this issue is one in which agreement was close to unanimous in the RC group. Networks exist primarily for the good of FidoNet, not for the members of that particular network. When the basic organization of FidoNet is compromised, then the integrity of the network is compromised. You don't get more basic than this. Excessively Annoying Behavior ----------- -------- -------- The attempt to define annoying behavior which appeared in the initial draft was expanded in the final draft to include the distinction between annoying and EXCESSIVELY annoying. The guidelines are still vague, as well they should be, but the intent was to reduce the quivering from new sysops who are afraid that they will be lynched if they make the smallest error. Commercial Use of FidoNet ---------- --- -- ------- In order to protect the coordinator structure from potential lawsuits, and to clarify the fact that NC's are not generally thrilled with subsidizing commercial operations by forwarding commercial mail, specific prohibitions on the use of FidoNet for strictly commercial purposes have been added. This is a difficult issue, as information interchange between vendors and users is an activity which benefits both, whereas strictly commercial use of a volunteer, amateur network is not appropriate. Protocol -------- It was made clear that the minimum requirement for