Bulletin board system
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A bulletin board system (BBS), also called a computer bulletin board service (CBBS),
Many BBSes also offered
The introduction of inexpensive
History
Precursors
A precursor to the public bulletin board system was Community Memory, started in August 1973 in Berkeley, California. Useful microcomputers did not exist at that time, and modems were both expensive and slow. Community Memory therefore ran on a mainframe computer and was accessed through terminals located in several San Francisco Bay Area neighborhoods.[5][6] The poor quality of the original modem connecting the terminals to the mainframe prompted Community Memory hardware person, Lee Felsenstein, to invent the Pennywhistle modem, whose design was highly influential in the mid-1970s.
Community Memory allowed the user to type messages into a computer terminal after inserting a coin, and offered a "pure" bulletin board experience with public messages only (no email or other features). It did offer the ability to tag messages with keywords, which the user could use in searches. The system acted primarily in the form of a buy and sell system with the tags taking the place of the more traditional classifications. But users found ways to express themselves outside these bounds, and the system spontaneously created stories, poetry and other forms of communications. The system was expensive to operate, and when their host machine became unavailable and a new one could not be found, the system closed in January 1975.
Similar functionality was available to most mainframe users, which might be considered a sort of ultra-local BBS when used in this fashion. Commercial systems, expressly intended to offer these features to the public, became available in the late 1970s and formed the
The first BBSes
Early modems were generally either expensive or very simple devices using acoustic couplers to handle telephone operation. The user would pick up the phone, dial a number, then press the handset into rubber cups on the top of the modem. Disconnecting at the end of a call required the user to pick up the handset and return it to the phone. Examples of direct-connecting modems did exist, and these often allowed the host computer to send it commands to answer or hang up calls, but these were very expensive devices used by large banks and similar companies.
With the introduction of microcomputers with expansion slots, like the S-100 bus machines and Apple II, it became possible for the modem to communicate instructions and data on separate lines. These machines typically only supported asynchronous communications, and synchronous modems were much more expensive than asynchronous modems. A number of modems of this sort were available by the late 1970s. This made the BBS possible for the first time, as it allowed software on the computer to pick up an incoming call, communicate with the user, and then hang up the call when the user logged off.
The first public
Smartmodem
A key innovation required for the popularization of the BBS was the
Hayes' solution to the problem was to use a small microcontroller to implement a system that examined the data flowing into the modem from the host computer, watching for certain command strings. This allowed commands to be sent to and from the modem using the same data pins as all the rest of the data, meaning it would work on any system that could support even the most basic modems. The Smartmodem could pick up the phone, dial numbers, and hang up again, all without any operator intervention. The Smartmodem was not necessary for BBS use but made overall operation dramatically simpler. It also improved usability for the caller, as most terminal software allowed different phone numbers to be stored and dialed on command, allowing the user to easily connect to a series of systems.
The introduction of the Smartmodem led to the first real wave of BBS systems. Limited in both speed and storage capacity, these systems were normally dedicated solely to messaging, both private email and public forums. File transfers were extremely slow at these speeds, and file libraries were typically limited to text files containing lists of other BBS systems. These systems attracted a particular type of user who used the BBS as a unique type of communications medium, and when these local systems were crowded from the market in the 1990s, their loss was lamented for many years.[citation needed]
Higher speeds, commercialization
Speed improved with the introduction of 1200
There was a lengthy delay before 9600 bit/s models began to appear on the market. 9600 bit/s was not even established as a strong standard before
This also gave rise to a new class of BBS systems, dedicated solely to file upload and downloads. These systems charged for access, typically a flat monthly fee, compared to the per-hour fees charged by
Towards the early 1990s, BBS became so popular that it spawned three monthly magazines, Boardwatch, BBS Magazine, and in Asia and Australia, Chips 'n Bits Magazine which devoted extensive coverage of the software and technology innovations and people behind them, and listings to US and worldwide BBSes.[11] In addition, in the US, a major monthly magazine, Computer Shopper, carried a list of BBSes along with a brief abstract of each of their offerings.
GUIs
Through the late 1980s and early 1990s, there was considerable experimentation with ways to develop user-friendly interfaces for BBSes. Almost every popular system used ANSI-based color menus to make reading easier on capable hardware and terminal emulators, and most also allowed cursor commands to offer command-line recall and similar features. Another common feature was the use of autocomplete to make menu navigation simpler, a feature that would not re-appear on the Web until decades later.
A number of systems also made forays into GUI-based interfaces, either using character graphics sent from the host, or using custom GUI-based terminal systems. The latter initially appeared on the
On the PC, efforts were more oriented to extensions of the original terminal concept, with the GUI being described in the information on the host. One example was the Remote Imaging Protocol, essentially a picture description system, which remained relatively obscure. Probably the ultimate development of this style of operation was the dynamic page implementation of the University of Southern California BBS (USCBBS) by Susan Biddlecomb, which predated the implementation of the HTML Dynamic web page. A complete Dynamic web page implementation was accomplished using TBBS with a TDBS add-on presenting a complete menu system individually customized for each user.
Rise of the Internet and decline of BBS
The demand for complex ANSI and ASCII screens and larger file transfers taxed available
These increasing speeds had the side effect of dramatically reducing the noticeable effects of channel efficiency. When modems were slow, considerable effort was put into developing the most efficient protocols and display systems possible.
These developments together resulted in the sudden obsolescence of bulletin board technology in 1995 and the collapse of its supporting market. Technically, Internet service offered an enormous advantage over BBS systems, as a single connection to the user's
Estimating numbers
According to the FidoNet Nodelist, BBSes reached their peak usage around 1996, which was the same period that the World Wide Web and AOL became mainstream. BBSes rapidly declined in popularity thereafter, and were replaced by systems using the Internet for connectivity. Some of the larger commercial BBSes, such as MaxMegabyte and ExecPC BBS, evolved into Internet service providers.
The website
In the 2000s, most traditional BBS systems migrated to the Internet using Telnet or SSH protocols. As of September 2022, between 900 and 1000 are thought to be active via the Internet – fewer than 30 of these being of the traditional "dial-up" (modem) variety.
Software and hardware
Unlike modern websites and
The first BBSes used homebrew[ being some of the most popular.
A few years later, in 1981, IBM introduced the first
BBS systems on other systems remained popular, especially
MS-DOS continued to be the most popular operating system for BBS use up until the mid-1990s, and in the early years, most multi-node BBSes were running under a DOS based multitasker such as
By 1995, many of the DOS-based BBSes had begun switching to modern
Presentation
BBSes were generally text-based, rather than
The use of these custom character sets was generally incompatible between manufacturers. Unless a caller was using terminal emulation software written for, and running on, the same type of system as the BBS, the session would simply fall back to simple ASCII output. For example, a Commodore 64 user calling an Atari BBS would use ASCII rather than the native character set of either. As time progressed, most terminal programs began using the ASCII standard, but could use their native character set if it was available.
COCONET, a BBS system made by Coconut Computing, Inc., was released in 1988 and only supported a GUI (no text interface was initially available but eventually became available around 1990), and worked in EGA/VGA graphics mode, which made it stand out from text-based BBS systems. COCONET's bitmap and
In the UK, the
Over time, terminal manufacturers started to support
The most popular form of online graphics was
The Amiga Skyline BBS software was the first in 1987 featuring a script markup language communication protocol called Skypix which was capable of giving the user a complete graphical interface, featuring rich graphics, changeable fonts, mouse-controlled actions, animations and sound.[16]
Today, most BBS software that is still actively supported, such as Worldgroup,
Content and access
Since most early BBSes were run by computer hobbyists, they were typically technical in topic, with user communities revolving around hardware and software discussions.
As the BBS phenomenon grew, so did the popularity of special interest boards. Bulletin Board Systems could be found for almost every hobby and interest. Popular interests included politics, religion, music,
In the early days, the file download library consisted of files that the system operators obtained themselves from other BBSes and friends. Many BBSes inspected every file uploaded to their public file download library to ensure that the material did not violate copyright law. As time went on, shareware CD-ROMs were sold with up to thousands of files on each CD-ROM. Small BBSes copied each file individually to their hard drive. Some systems used a CD-ROM drive to make the files available. Advanced BBSes used Multiple CD-ROM disc changer units that switched 6 CD-ROM disks on demand for the caller(s). Large systems used all 26 DOS drive letters with multi-disk changers housing tens of thousands of copyright-free shareware or freeware files available to all callers. These BBSes were generally more family-friendly, avoiding the seedier side of BBSes. Access to these systems varied from single to multiple modem lines with some requiring little or no confirmed registration.
Some BBSes, called elite, WaReZ or pirate boards, were exclusively used for distributing
Another common type of board was the support BBS run by a manufacturer of computer products or software. These boards were dedicated to supporting users of the company's products with question and answer forums, news and updates, and downloads. Most of them were not a free call. Today, these services have moved to the Web.
Some general-purpose Bulletin Board Systems had special levels of access that were given to those who paid extra money, uploaded useful files or knew the system operator personally. These specialty and pay BBSes usually had something unique to offer their users, such as large file libraries, warez, pornography, chat rooms or Internet access.
Pay BBSes such as The
Some of the BBSes that provided access to illegal content faced opposition. On July 12, 1985, in conjunction with a
Networks
Most early BBSes operated as individual systems. Information contained on that BBS never left the system, and users would only interact with the information and user community on that BBS alone. However, as BBSes became more widespread, there evolved a desire to connect systems together to share messages and files with distant systems and users. The largest such network was FidoNet.
As is it was prohibitively expensive for the hobbyist system operator to have a dedicated connection to another system, FidoNet was developed as a
FidoNet was platform-independent and would work with any BBS that was written to use it. BBSes that did not have integrated FidoNet capability could usually add it using an external FidoNet
Many other BBS networks followed the example of FidoNet, using the same standards and the same software. These were called FidoNet Technology Networks (FTNs). They were usually smaller and targeted at selected audiences. Some networks used QWK doors, and others such as RelayNet (RIME) and WWIVnet used non-Fido software and standards.
Before commercial Internet access became common, these
As the volume of FidoNet Mail increased and newsgroups from the early days of the Internet became available, satellite data downstream services became viable for larger systems. The satellite service provided access to FidoNet and Usenet newsgroups in large volumes at a reasonable fee. By connecting a small dish and receiver, a constant downstream of thousands of FidoNet and Usenet newsgroups could be received. The local BBS only needed to upload new outgoing messages via the modem network back to the satellite service. This method drastically reduced phone data transfers while dramatically increasing the number of message forums.
FidoNet is still in use today, though in a much smaller form, and many Echomail groups are still shared with Usenet via FidoNet to Usenet gateways. Widespread abuse of Usenet with
Much of the
Many commercial BBS software companies that continue to support their old BBS software products switched to the shareware model or made it entirely free. Some companies were able to make the move to the Internet and provide commercial products with BBS capabilities.
Features
A classic BBS had:
- A computer
- One or more modems
- One or more phone lines, with more allowing for increased concurrent users
- A BBS software package
- A sysop – system operator
- A user community
The BBS software usually provides:[citation needed]
- Menu systems
- One or more message bases
- Uploading and downloading of message packets in QWK format using XMODEM, YMODEM or ZMODEM
- File areas
- Live viewing of all caller activity by the system operator
- Voting – opinion booths
- Statistics on message posters, top uploaders / downloaders
- playeror only a single active player at a given time)
- A doorwayto third-party online games
- Usage auditing capabilities
- Multi-user chat (only possible on multi-line BBSes)
- Internet email (more common in later Internet-connected BBSes)
- Networked message boards
- Most modern BBSes allow telnet access over the Internet using a telnet server and a virtual FOSSIL driver.
- A "yell for SysOp" page caller side menu item that sounded an audible alarm to the system operator. If chosen, the system operator could then initiate a text-to-text chat with the caller.
- Primitive social networking features, such as leaving messages on a user's profile
See also
Notes
- ^ Technically they could have used an automatic calling unit, but that was not economically viable.[citation needed]
- ^ CBBS Chicago (which Ward Christensen programmed) was about 20,000 lines of 8080 assembler.
- America Online.
References
Citations
- ^ a b Derfler Jr., Frank (1980-04-01). "Dial Up Directory". Kilobaud Microcomputing Magazine. Retrieved 2018-02-20.
- ^ Bush, Randy (1992). "FidoNet: Technology, Use, Tools, and History". Fidonet. Archived from the original on 2003-12-03. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
- Encyclopedia Britannica. 2023-03-20. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
- ^ "Thinking Chinese - Chinese BBS – The Social Activity that Never Grows Old". thinkingchinese.com. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
- ISSN 1071-6351.
- (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09.
- ^ Zelchenko, Peter (30 October 1998). "Jack Rickard, editor of Boardwatch magazine, saw it coming". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
- ^ Christensen, Ward; Suess, Randy (November 1978). "Hobbyist Computerized Bulletin Board System" (PDF). Byte. Vol. 3, no. 11. Peterborough, NH: Byte Publications. pp. 150–157. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 28, 2018. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
The Computerized Hobbyist Bulletin Board System ... was conceived, designed, built, programmed, tested, and installed in a 30 day period (January 16, 1978 to February 16, 1978) by the two of us.
Alt URL - ^ Collection of Memories of writing and running the first BBS by Ward Christensen (Circa 1992), BBSDocumentary.com, retrieved June 30, 2007
- ^ "File Sponges, the BBS nightmare" Archived 2015-01-20 at the Wayback Machine, Chips 'n Bits
- ^ Chips 'n' Bits : the Northern Territory Computer Users' newsletter, catalogue.nla.gov.au, retrieved March 15, 2009
- ^ Miller, Michael Alyn. "HermesBBS - History". www.hermesbbs.com. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
- Boardwatch Magazine.
Since acquiring the venerable Hermes Macintosh BBS program last Spring, new owner Lloyd Woodall of Computer Classifieds has developed a major upgrade package. Programmer Robert Rebbun has added over 70 new features and enhancements to this widely used program that now supports color ANSI graphic menus in addition to ASCII menus.
- ^ Modin, Jörgen (June 1995). "COOCOM: New ways of using Information Technology for buildings design and management" (PDF). Project SBUF 2087.
The BBS system chosen was Hermes (Price F & Yount Ralph, 1991), a character-based popular billboard system running on the Mac, but accessible from any computer system with VT100 terminal emulation.
- ^ "The TEXTFILES.COM BBS List". bbslist.textfiles.com. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
- Jason Scott for WiredMagazine (?). Retrieved 2017-04-06.
- ^ This Day in Geek History: July12, thegreatgeekmanual.com, retrieved March 26, 2009
- ^ Doran, Tim (1996-03-20). "Man Says Kiddie Porno Made Computer Site Popular". The Flint Journal.
Sources
- Jones, Steve (2003). Encyclopedia of New Media: An Essential Reference to Communication and Technology. SAGE Publications. ISBN 0-7619-2382-9.
- Gross, Larry P.; Woods, James D.; Woods, Professor James D. (1999). The Columbia Reader on Lesbians and Gay Men in Media, Society, and Politics. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-10446-4.
- Rathbone, Tina (1993). Modems for Dummies. IDG Books. ISBN 1-56884-001-2.
- Haas, Lou (1984). Going On-Line with Your Micro. Tab Books. ISBN 0-8306-0746-3.
- University of Michigan (October 1989 – September 1994), Compute, Compute! Publications
- Cane, Mike (1986). The Computer Phone Book. New American Library.
- Gene Edward Veith, Jr; Stamper, Christopher L. (2000). Christians in a .Com World: Getting Connected Without Being Consumed. Crossway. ISBN 1-58134-218-7.
- Pippen, Patrick (July 2004). Beam Me Up Scottie. Lulu.com. ISBN 1-4116-0987-5.
External links
- The BBS Corner
- The BBS Documentary – (Video Collection)
- BBSmates community and resource site[usurped] (archive from 2013[usurped])
- The Telnet BBS Guide (BBSes available via the Internet)
- Textfiles.com – Collection of historical BBS documents, files and history
- The BBS organization (longest running bbs services site)
- The Lost Civilization of Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems (The Atlantic, 2016)
- Bulletin Board Systems at Curlie