-== BBS Bulletin FREE Electronic Magazine ==[ Issue 8, Volume 1 - Number 8 ]==-
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l l__) ) l l__) ) ( (____     l l__) )  _   _  l l l l   ___  l  _)  _   _____
l  __ (  l  __ (   \____ \    l  __ (  l l l l l l l l  / __) l l   l l l  _  l
l l__) ) l l__) )  _____) )   l l__) ) l l_l l l l l l (  _)  l l_  l l l l l l
l_____/  l_____/  (______/    l_____/  l_____l l_l l_l  \___) l___) l_l l_l l_l
 
-===========================================================[ 1st Jul 1991 ]==-
           Editor:            Michael Barnes   (FidoNet - 2:252/125)
-=============================================================================-

(C) Copyright BBS Bulletin Magazine 1991
All Articles are (C) Copyright their author.

No part of this Electronic Magazine may be reproduced in anything other than
it's original form without the permission of either the Editor or the author or
authors of the part. Nor may any charge be made for any part of the magazine
without the permission of the appropriate copyright holder.

-======== Donations of articles, money or advice gratefully received! ========-
_______________________________________________________________________________
                                  Contents            
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1   Editorial
2   News
3   Zephyr, a Shareware database system
4   Shareware: How do I market my program?
5   UUCP<->FidoNet - getting mail across
6   Lastly
_______________________________________________________________________________

....Editorial...Editorial...Editorial...Editorial...Editorial...Editorial.....
_______________________________________________________________________________

     BBS  Bulletin  is now being distributed in the Newsletters area of the
     Software  Distribution  System  (SDS).  So  now the Bulletin should be
     coming to your local SDS board.

     This  means  that the mag is now available freely in other countries -
     so for all readers outside of the UK... Welcome!

     I  think  the  Bulletin is fairly international in flavour, so I don't
     plan  to  make  any  major changes to the format. However, I hope that
     the  expansion  of  the  readership  will  result  in a huge flurry of
     articles from overseas! (he said with a smile on his face!).

     I've  finally  removed references to Rael from the Bulletin. Sadly his
     absence  is  lasting  rather  a long time. When he comes back on-line,
     you'll all be the first to know.

     Michael Barnes
_______________________________________________________________________________

                          News from the BBS Scene
_______________________________________________________________________________

     @@@ New UK FidoNet Regional Echomail Coordinator (REC)

     Jon  Dunster  has  resigned from the post of Region25 REC, and after a
     vote  open  to all Region25 FidoNet sysops Terry Robertson was elected
     by  a  small  margin,  followed by closely by Keith Wassell, with Andy
     Smith bringing up the rear.


     @@@ Off-line readers under threat in the US?

     A  rumour that Zone 1 of FidoNet is to ban the use of off-line readers
     brought  shock  to  many  users and Sysops recently. However, measures
     are  only  being taken against readers which do not conform to FidoNet
     technical  standards.  The  popular packages XRS and Silver Xpress are
     both  said  to be fully compliant. Mail not conforming to standards in
     the  US  runs  the  risk  of  being  deleted  by  automatic  detection
     programs. Nothing of the kind is intended for the UK.

_______________________________________________________________________________

                ooo
               #     o  o  oo  ooo  oooo o   o  oo  ooo  oooo
                ooo  #  # #  # #  o #    #   # #  # #  o #
                   # #""# #""# #"". #""  # # # #""# #"". #""
                """  "  " "  " "  " """"  " "  "  " "  " """"

                        ZEPHYR TUTORIAL - Neil Blaber
______________________________________________________________________________

     Zephyr,   by  Ward  Mundy,  is  generally  reckoned  to  be  the  best
     up-and-coming  database  program  available  for  the  novice computer
     user.  Even  Ward says on the cover of his shiny blue manual, "For the
     Non-Programmer".  OK, so you've just had a couple of disks through the
     post  from  your  friendly Shareware dealer and you've got 90 days (so
     it  says  in  the  documentation)  to  evaluate the program before you
     either  have  to  pay  for it or consign the disks to the Reformatting
     Department.  Zephyr  is  supplied  on  two  disks  as  self-extracting
     archive  files  (these  are  composite files which contain a number of
     other  compressed  files inside them), both called INSTALL.EXE. If you
     put Disk 1 in your A: drive and type

     A:INSTALL

     you  will  get  a  screen  of  information  explaining  how to install
     Zephyr.  If  you haven't done exactly what is asked on the help screen
     (I  bet  you haven't), type "N" and then follow the instructions. When
     you  have  done  this  successfully, you will find that you have got a
     new  subdirectory  called  ZEPHYR  on  whichever  drive you decided to
     install  Zephyr.  Remembering the instructions when you brought up the
     initial help screen, now either print the documentation by typing

     COPY \ZEPHYR\*.DOC PRN

     or  have  a  look  at  it using a file viewing utility (Vernon Buerg's
     LIST.COM  is  an  excellent  one  included  by  libraries on Shareware
     disks).  Now  you're armed with the instructions, you can start to use
     Zephyr  in  anger  -  the  evaluation has begun ! However, there's one
     small  snag which must be overcome in order to be able to get full use
     out  of  the  program  during  the time we have to evaluate it. Due to
     Zephyr  being  a  Foxpro  application,  it  is  supplied with a Foxpro
     run-time  program  which  it  needs  to operate. However, Fox Software
     have  only allowed the Foxpro "Demo" run-time (allowing a maximum of a
     measly  120  records)  to  be  bundled  with  the freely distributable
     version  of  Zephyr.  In  order to be able to use Zephyr properly, you
     should  send  1  to  Folio Shareware (they are Ward Mundy's UK agents
     for  Zephyr)  in  exchange  for an activation code which "unlocks" the
     unlimited  Foxpro  run-time.  This  has to be done in order to satisfy
     the  license Ward Mundy has with Fox Software which specifies that you
     must  be personally sold the application in order to use the unlimited
     run-time.  Confused?  Yes,  so  was I! The activation of the unlimited
     runtime  (when you have the correct code number) is done by typing "R"
     upon  exiting Zephyr when presented with the "Exit from ZEPHYR (Y/N)?"
     prompt. 

     On  going  into  the ZEPHYR subdirectory and firing up the program, we
     are  eventually  presented  with  a  menu screen with the BUILD option
     already  selected;  a  fairly hefty hint that the first thing you need
     to  do in your development of a Zephyr database is decide exactly what
     the  database  file should contain. Sit down with a sheet of paper and
     decide  exactly  what  kind  of  data  you want to store, and how much
     detail  you  want  to go into. For example, the application I designed
     was  to  keep  track  of my excessively large and totally unmanageable
     record  collection. I want to keep details of the artist, the title of
     the  record,  whether  it is an LP, a 7" or 12" single, which label it
     appeared  on,  the year of release, country of origin, and a space for
     special  notes. The sort of thing to work out is the maximum size each
     piece  of  information  will  be  -  obviously  the  year will be four
     characters, but how long is the longest band name in my collection?

     When  you're  happy  with  the  details of your database, it's time to
     create  it.  Select "Database File" from the BUILD menu and "New" when
     the  little  box  pops  up to ask you whether you want to create a new
     database  or  revise an old one. Now think of a name for your database
     (I  chose RECORDS; not very imaginative, I know), type it into the box
     provided  and  then,  while  holding  down  the  "Control"  key, press
     "Enter".

     The  File Creation window is now displayed, and you should type in the
     names  and  sizes of the items of data (called "fields") that you want
     to  keep in the database. Zephyr allows you to define the type of each
     field;  types  offered  are  Character, Numeric, Float, Date, Logical,
     and  Memo.  If  you  are  unfamiliar  with  databases and computing in
     general,  it  is  at  this point that the Zephyr documentation becomes
     very  vague  (in  fact, Ward Mundy suggests you go and buy an 800-page
     book  on  Foxpro  in  the  first  paragraph  of  his  "Building Zephyr
     Applications"  chapter),  so  I'll elaborate. Fields of type Character
     refer  to  any  piece  of  text,  for  example  "Mr  Jones", "24, High
     Street",  or  in  my record collection application something like "The
     Stranglers".

     Numeric  and  Float  field  types refer to data stored as numbers that
     you  wish to perform calculations on later (use Characters otherwise);
     Date  fields are similar but used if you wish to do date calculations;
     Logical  fields  can  only  be  True  or  False, and have special uses
     (discussed  later);  the Memo field is a special Character field which
     actually  uses  a  separate  file  to  store  the  data,  and  has the
     advantage  of  being  as big as you like (if you're intending to store
     your  favourite  short  stories in your database file, use Memo fields
     for  them) - I'll be using these for my "Special Notes". Once you have
     entered  the  names,  field  types  and  sizes  of the information you
     intend  to  store,  Zephyr  asks you if you want to input data records
     now.  At  this  stage,  say  no. You should now be looking back at the
     BUILD menu on the main Zephyr screen.

     The  next  job  in hand, before we add our data to the database, is to
     define  an  index.  An index is a separate file used to quickly locate
     records  in a database, and to allow you to control the order in which
     records  are  displayed.  For  instance,  I  could  display  my record
     collection  in  order  of  the band name, in alphabetical order of the
     record  titles,  in  chronological  order  of  year  of  release, or a
     combination of these.

     Zephyr  allows  you  to create up to 25 indexes for a single database;
     these  can  be  of  two types - simple or complex. A simple index just
     concerns  one  field; a complex index concerns multiple fields. So, if
     I  just  wanted  to  keep  my  collection in title order I would use a
     simple  index on the Title field, or if in band order with the records
     by  each  band  in  alphabetical order, I would use a complex index on
     both the Band and Title field. 

     From  the  BUILD  menu,  move  the cursor down to Index, and press the
     "Enter"  key. As we are creating a new index, the answer to the little
     "Create  New  or  revise  Old" box is obviously NEW. The answer to the
     next  box  (Simple  or  Complex  index)  depends  very  much  on  your
     application;  I  chose  Complex for my record collection. For a simple
     index,  just  select  the most important field that you want your data
     to  be  sorted  on  from the selection box that pops up. For a complex
     index,  a  different  box  will appear. In the box marked "Enter INDEX
     Expression",  type in the names of the fields, in order of importance,
     on  which  you  wish  your  data  to  be  sorted,  separated  by a "+"
     character. For example, 

     BAND + YEAR + TITLE

     will  sort  my collection in alphabetical order by name of the artist,
     then   by  the  year  of  release  of  each  record,  and  finally  in
     alphabetical  order  of  the  title  of  each  record if a number were
     released  in  the same year. Make sure the types of each field you are
     using  are  the  same  when  creating  complex indexes - Zephyr throws
     rather  a major wobbly if they're not. Hold down the "Control" key and
     press  "Enter"  when you are happy you've got it right. Now think of a
     name  for  the  index  file  and  enter  it  in the box provided (in a
     creative frenzy I chose RECORDS again). 

     You  should  now  be back at the main BUILD menu. Move the menu bar to
     the  left until the INPUT menu is displayed (you can either do this by
     pressing  the  "Home" key, or by pressing the left-arrow a few times),
     and  them  move down to the "Add Records" selection. Answer "Y" to the
     "Add  New Data" prompt and start typing your data into the appropriate
     fields  displayed on the screen - if you have any Memo fields (it will
     have  the  word  "memo" already in the place where you would expect to
     type),  add  data  to these by holding down "Control" and pressing the
     "Pg  Dn"  key  when  the  cursor  is positioned over the required memo
     field.  This  will bring up a blank "Memo Editor" screen which you can
     use  like  a simple word processor. After you have finished typing the
     contents  of  the  memo field, hold down "Control" and press "W" to go
     back  to  the  "Add  Records" screen. If you get fed up adding records
     (typing  in  the  details  of about 1500 LPs is a bit too much for one
     stint),  you  can  finish  the  session  by pressing "Escape" when the
     cursor  is  positioned  over a blank record following the last one you
     typed  in.  Press  "Escape" a couple more times to exit Zephyr back to
     DOS.


     To  return  to  the database, hopefully by now it has grown beyond the
     couple  of  records  we  added  last  time.  To  have  a  look  at the
     information  we've  entered  thus  far,  move  across  the Zephyr main
     screen  to  the  INPUT menu (the same one used when records were being
     added)  and  choose the "Browse Records" option. You should now get an
     ordered  list  on  the  screen  of  the information you entered, which
     should  correspond with the order in which you specified fields should
     appear  when  you  defined your indexes. You can skip across fields in
     one  particular  record  by pressing the "Enter" key, as well as using
     the  "PgUp"  and  "PgDn"  keys  to page backwards and forwards through
     your  database.  Be  careful not to hit other keys when doing this, as
     it  is  possible  to  alter  information  that  you've entered when in
     Browse mode.

     If  you have a lot of records in your database and wish to find one in
     particular,  you  can  search for it by holding down the "Control" key
     and  pressing  "F".  This will bring up a box asking you for a word to
     look  for.  You can enter the whole name or just part of it; press the
     "Enter"  key  when  you've  typed the required word. The highlight bar
     will  now  move  down  to  a  selection  entitled "Ignore case". It is
     probably  best  to press the "Enter" key again here, which will enable
     this  option  (you  should  see  an  "X"  appear in the box next to he
     highlighted    option).  It  just  means  that  if  you  have  used  a
     combination  of  upper  and  lower case letters for the information in
     your  database,  then  Zephyr won't regard them as separate characters
     for   the  purposes  of  the  search.  Thus,  if  I  was  looking  for
     "Stranglers"  and had accidentally typed "stranglers" when entering my
     records,  Zephyr  would still find it during the search. Skip past the
     next  two  options  using the "Down Arrow" key (next to "PgDn" on your
     keypad)  and  press  "Enter"  when the highlight bar is on "Find". You
     should  now  have  returned  to  the  initial  Browse  screen with the
     desired  record  highlighted.  To exit the Browse screen and return to
     the  main  menu,  you can either hold down the "Control" key and press
     "W"  (do  this  if  you've  altered  any  records and wish to save the
     changes) or just press "Esc".

     The  next  step in my record cataloguing job was to design a printout.
     The  usual  layout  for  a  database  printout consists of a series of
     columns  with headings; before we can do anything else we need to tell
     Zephyr  where  to  put  these  columns  on  the  page,  what they will
     contain,  how  much space to give them, and any extra information like
     column  headings,  titles  etc.  To  do this, go to the BUILD menu and
     select  the Report option. A similar box will appear to that seen when
     we  first  created  a database, asking "Create NEW or revise OLD?". As
     we  are  creating  a new report, select NEW. You will then be prompted
     for  a  name for the report - after you have thought of and typed in a
     suitable name, hold down the "Control" key and press "Enter".

     You  should  now  see  a  screen  on which the printout design will be
     entered.  It  is divided into 3 sections: PgHead (for page numbers and
     column  headings),  Detail  (where  all your database information will
     go)    and   PgFoot  (for  any  text  that  will  go  underneath  your
     information).  Bearing  in  mind  the sizes of each of the fields that
     you  will  want  included  in your printout, type in the text that you
     would  like  to  appear  at  the  top  of  each  page, making sure the
     headings  are  properly  spaced.  Note  also  that,  although it looks
     similar,  this  screen  is  not like the text editor facility provided
     when  putting  information  into  Memo  fields  (another fact cleverly
     ignored  by  the  documentation), in that once you start to enter text
     on  each line you need to press "Enter" before you can move to another
     line.  If  you  press "Enter" twice, a dialogue box pops up asking you
     about printing
     style.

     If  you get stuck, you can tell what Zephyr is expecting by looking at
     the  status  line  above  your  work  area. The initial part tells you
     which  row  and  column  of the page you are working on; the next part
     will  say "Move" if you are free to move the cursor about the page, or
     "Text"  if  you  have  started  to  enter  text  on  a  line and it is
     expecting  the "Enter" key press, and the last part whether you are in
     the "PgHead", "Detail" or "PgFoot" part of the work area.

     Another  major  difference between a proper text editor and the Report
     Builder  is  that if you are in "Move" mode, the "Del" key deletes the
     entire  line that you're working on, rather than just the character to
     the  right  of the cursor. When in "Text" mode, it worked normally the
     first  time I entered text on a line, but didn't seem to work if I was
     trying  to modify something after I'd pressed "Enter", moved off to do
     something  else  and  then  came  back. I found the best method was to
     build  up  your report format from left to right, and not to treat the
     Report Builder as a full-screen text editor.

     ### Part two next month...

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Neil is Sysop of the Public Domain Software Library (PDSL) BBS, and runs
  the company along with the founder Rod Smith.
  Their excellent catalogue of thousands of titles can be obtained from PDSL
  at: Winscombe House, Beacon Road, Crowborough, Sussex, TN6 1UL. Include
  a couple of stamps to cover the return postage.
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
______________________________________________________________________________

                  Shareware and Public Domain Software

                Part 3: How do you market your program?
______________________________________________________________________________

     People have different expectations from the programs they write.

     Some  feel  that  their program is just their in case people want it -
     they  have  a  somewhat casual view of users of the program. If a user
     decides  to  register  then all well and good - if he doesn't, then it
     was  worth  a  try  and  at least the user is using the program rather
     than another.

     Other  authors really expect the bulk of the users to register, and to
     receive   comments  from  many  of  them.  These  people  are  usually
     first-time shareware authors!

     The  number  of  people  to use, register, and comment on your program
     depends  on  a  number  of  factors, and the importance of each factor
     varies between applications and between different types of people.

     1) Crippleware.

     Some  authors  decide  that  the  best  way  to make people register a
     program  is to in some way "cripple" the shareware version so that the
     user  can't  wait  to  get his hands on the proper version. Methods of
     crippling  range  from  a  profusion  of "Unregistered!!!" messages to
     features  being  left out of the program. In the worst cases the whole
     range  may  be implemented at once! This method can often work against
     the  author,  as  many  users  will be immediately put off by crippled
     software.  If your program starts out with several black marks against
     it, it's got to be just that little bit better to make up for it.

     My  advice,  for  what  it's worth, is that if you really want to take
     out  some  features  in  the  shareware  version, take out unimportant
     features  or  reduce possible number of records in a file. These allow
     the  user to test out the program to a very large degree and will only
     become  annoying  if  the  user  decides to use the program a lot - in
     which  case  he  should  be  registered!  Also,  keep  "Unregistered!"
     messages  to  a  minimum - one on the main menu is best probably. Make
     it noticeable but not glaring.

     From  recent  comments by shareware users in the States, it would seem
     that  some  people  genuinely  forget  to  register  - they need to be
     reminded  of the address and other details at an opportune moment. The
     best  time for this is at the very end of the program, when they quit.
     An  option to print a registration form is also handy, or failing that
     use  a  seperate  file in the documentation for the registration form,
     rather  than  putting  it  in  the  main  document file (this makes it
     easier for the user to get at).

     2) How good the program is.

     The  number  of  registrations  depends  to a very large extent on how
     good  the  program  is.  This includes not just functionality but also
     looks  -  try  to  make  your  program  attractive  and  friendly, and
     keypresses  as  intuitive  as possible. If you're using text only then
     use  a  program like "TheDraw" to design several different screens and
     then  decide  which you prefer, rather than just rushing in. If it's a
     graphics-based  program then you can do the same with a graphics paint
     package.

     3) How much it costs to register.

     Don't  overprice  your program, and don't underprice it. Go and have a
     look  at  other similar programs if you can, and relate your prices to
     theirs.  Remember  that  people  are  likely  to  fail  to register an
     extremely  cheap program (ie: a couple of quid) simply because for the
     money  it  doesn't  seem  worth it. I fell into this trap myself, when
     setting  the price for a program which was for use with another (XUC -
     some  of you may even use it) which was itself quite cheap. As a basic
     rule,  don't  go  lower  than  5 quid for a small program, or under 10
     quid  for a longer one. If you're charging more than 50 quid then your
     program must either be tremelyood or tremelynique.

     A  good  method  of  pricing  involves a tiered system. For example, X
     pounds  lets  the  user  continue  using the program for as long as he
     likes,  Y  pounds  gives  him  a  manual as well, and Z pounds gives a
     one-time registration.

     4) What you get for registering.

     Do  you  want the registration fee to buy only the version registered?
     Or  are  you  going  to  give a "license in perpetuity" - a "one time"
     registration  fee?  I prefer the one-time method, as it rewards people
     for registering more than if just the current version is paid for.

     If  you've circulated a tallyn-marked copy of the program as shareware
     (ie:  no  "This  program needs to be registered" etc comments anywhere
     in  the  program),  then  you  won't  need  to send the user anything.
     However,  you may decide that as a gesture of goodwill you will send a
     copy of the latest version.

     Otherwise there are two routes to take.

     You  can  write  your  program  with  a  key system. This involves the
     program  checking  for  a  file  containing encryted information which
     identifies  the  user. If there is no valid key then the program knows
     to  display  it's  "Unregistered!"  messages.  If it finds a valid key
     then  it can use the information from the key to write "Registered to 
     Mr  X"  or to just write "Registered." The key can be sent to the user
     on disk or even via the post - or on FidoNet as a file.

     Or  you  can  simply  send  a  copy  of the full version to anyone who
     registers.  Remember that this means you'll need to write two versions
     of  the  program,  which  is extra work for you. Some people hard-code
     the name of the user into the registered version they send.

     I  prefer  the  key  method, as I don't cripple my programs. I do send
     people the latest version but for a small extra fee.

     5) Who you're aiming the program at.

     The  above  factors  will  be different depending on who you're aiming
     the  program  at  -  for example, 15 year olds won't pay as much as 30
     year  olds.  Business programs can probably demand a higher price than
     simple games.

     You  have  to  keep  this  fact in mind all through development of the
     program.  Are  you  including  o  manyeatures  in your program, or not
     enough?

     6) Documentation.

     Take  some  care over this - it's important that your user doesn't get
     bored  or  confused,  as  that may mean he decides not to register. Be
     friendly, but not oriendly as that may also put the user off.

     Be  clear  -  leave  gaps  between  sections, and highlight titles and
     subtitles  with  at  least  some hyphens underneath. Even better is to
     put boxes round them.

     Don't  assume  too  much  -  and  don't treat the user like a baby. If
     you're  going to include details of how to use parts of DOS then do so
     in  a  seperate  section  and refer to it, rather than including it in
     the  bulk  of  the text - experienced users won't want to wade through
     such things.

     Go  through  the  features  of  your  program  point  by  point, under
     subtitles.  This  allows  the  user to swiftly find help when he needs
     it, rather than having to scan through large blocks of text.

     If  your  program  is  even slightly complex, give some examples. Even
     better,  write  a  tutorial  section  so that the novice user can work
     through  the  system  step  by  step.  You don't want the user to miss
     features  that  aren't  obvious, and then get comments from him saying
     "why  don't you include xxx" (which you already included, but which is
     badly documented).

     Always  remember  that  the  bulk  of the users will probably skip the
     documentation  anyway, only coming back to it if he can't work out how
     to  do something. You should also be keeping this in mind all the time
     while you're writing the program itself.

     7) The hard sell.

     When  you've  completed  your  program  and  prepared yourself for any
     registrations  that may come in, you're ready to send your program out
     into  the  big  bad world - but make sure you really are ready! If you
     receive  a  registration  and  find  that  you  don't yet know whether
     you're  going  to  send the latest version or what you're going to do,
     then you may run the risk of putting the user off shareware.

     Upload  the  program to a selection of large bulletin boards. Plug the
     program  in  all  echos which seem relevant - there are several PD and
     Shareware  echos  on FidoNet, and some in other networks too. There is
     a  ryarge  one  which  is  mainly  circulated  in  the US but which is
     available  in  the  UK  too with the area tag "SHAREWRE". You can also
     plug your shareware in BBS Bulletin of course.

     If  it's  a  BBS  related  program  then  it  can  go into the FidoNet
     Software  Distribution  System  (SDS).  If  it  isn't,  then it may be
     suitable  for  another file distribution network (there are several in
     FidoNet).

     If  it's  a  support  program, make the author of the program which it
     supports  aware  of  it's existence - he may give you free advertising
     in  his  documentation. If you have several programs, plug them all in
     your documentation.

     Find  a  friendly sysop (if you're not one yourself) who is willing to
     be advertised as the main place to get your program. 


     This  article  isn't  likely  to give all the advice you'll ever need.
     Shareware  needs  a  bit  of  thought - don't just rush in, or you may
     make a fool of yourself or give your programs a bad image.

     Well   that  finishes  off  this  brief  series.  If  anyone  has  any
     particular  queries  then  feel  free to comment via netmail or in the
     Library  echomail  area,  and  I'll  do  my best to help. I don't have
     inexhaustable  knowledge  of  this  subject,  but  I've released a few
     programs  by now and if my experience can help newer Shareware authors
     then I'm pleased to help in any way I can!

     Michael Barnes.
_______________________________________________________________________________

                  FidoNet to UUCP and Back, by Paul Martin
_______________________________________________________________________________

     This  is  probably  the  most asked question in the COMMS echo: How do
     you send mail to UUCP sites from FidoNet?

     Fidonet to Internet:
     Netmail  your message to UUCP at 1:105/42 with your required  subject.
     Include as the first line of your message:

     To: userid@site.on.the.internet

     and leave line 2 blank.

     eg. to mail to my internet address

     To: pm.nowster@tharr.uucp


     Internet to Fidonet:

     Mail to

     Full.Name@p<point>.f<node>.n<net>.z<zone>.fidonet.org

     eg. I'm  Paul.Martin@p3.f107.n250.z2.fidonet.org

     Paul
_______________________________________________________________________________

.And lastly...And lastly... And lastly...And lastly...And lastly...And lastly.
_______________________________________________________________________________

          My    Netmail   address,  for  any  correspondence  and  for
          submitting  of  articles,  is  FidoNet 2:252/125. That's The
          Beacon  BBS,  which  is  my  own  board.  It is only on-line
          between  11pm  and 8am UK time. If these times are difficult
          for  you,  you  can  either  route  netmail  via  the normal
          routes,  or  route  it  via  2:252/7 which is my mail feed -
          please  ROUTE  it  and don't just send it there. Please send
          routed  articles as netmail and not files (use more than one
          message if necessary).

          The  official  unofficial  echomail  area  for discussion or
          comments,  if  you  wish to make any, is the FidoNet LIBRARY
          echo.  This  is an echo which I run myself which is for chat
          about  books  and  related  subjects.  This might provide an
          easier  route  for users, and has the advantage over netmail
          in that it stimulates chat and ideas.

          The  latest  issue  of  this  emag  can  be  requested  from
          2:252/125,  or  any  of  the  freq  points  listed below, as
          ZipBull  or BullZip for the zipped version, and Bulletin for
          the  text version. I no longer support any other compression
          format as everybody has used PKZip so far.

          The  actual  filename  of  each  issue will always be in the
          form: Bull<Num>.Ext.

          If  anyone  finds  they  wish to re-pack the Bulletin in any
          format  other  than  that  in  which they got it there is no
          problem  with  that  so  long as none of the contents of the
          archive are altered other than the compression.

          The  following  boards  will have the Bulletin available for
          freq and download:

         ==============================================================
         Name                 Number           Net   Address     Speeds
         --------------------------------------------------------------
         Pacific Lightning    +44-732-845338   Fido  2:440/7     ?
         Mektronics           +44-61-773-7739  Fido  2:250/119   ?
         On The Beach         +44-273-600996   Fido  2:252/122   ?
         The Owl Service      +44-532-605876   Fido  2:258/34    ?
         Severn Side BBS      +44-452-611342   Fido  2:250/408   ?
         Merkinstead          +44-61-434-7059  Fido  2:250/102   HST
         Chatterbox UK        +44-732-870941   Fido  2:440/6     ?
         Arkham BBS           +44-81-952-5128  None  V21-V22bis  MNP5
         ==============================================================

          My thanks to the sysops of these boards.

          If  you'd  like  to  be listed as a freq/download point feel
          free  to  netmail  me.  I can't afford to send it to you, so
          you  must be prepared to freq it from me or one of the other
          freq  points  each  month. Boards in nets other than FidoNet
          are especially welcome.

          The  Bulletin should be available from these boards within a
          few  days  of the issue date (1st of each month). It is also
          distributed  via  the  SDS,  so if you're prepared to wait a
          while it will eventually get to you by that route.

          My postal address is:

                  Michael Barnes (Ed)
                  67, Heath Road,
                  Holtspur,
                  Beaconsfield,
                  Bucks.
                  HP9 1DG.

          If  you've  read  and  enjoyed this magazine, do try and get
          hold  of  a copy next month - in fact do that anyway! If you
          didn't  like  the  comment  -  well, the only real answer is
          contribute  yourself! And if you dike the content, how about
          showing  your  appreciation  of  the  contibutors efforts by
          writing an article of your own?

          I  hope  you've  enjoyed  this  copy of BBS Bulletin. If you
          have any comments, good or bad, I'm eager to hear them!

          Michael Barnes, Ed.
