What was your most beautiful BBS
experience in modern times—let's say,
within the last 10 years or so? One
where you'd say, "Good thing those old
BBS dinosaurs are still around here
and there!"
I’ve had many truly amazing
experiences...
Like receiving great hardware donations
from Snobsoft (my BBS) users. But the
most recent event with my Australian BBS
video (see Ads Section) is something I
find particularly awesome right now. In
the Australian video about SX-64 user
Troy Duncan, I start off, among other
things, with a music video from Men At
Work ("Down Under"). And what does Troy
tell me? The guitarist from Men At Work
lives on his street! What an incredible
coincidence.
I'm still grinning about it.
Alright, now it’s your turn! :D
I would say simply finding out they are still active, and that there is an active community...
I didn't get too involved back when I first uses BBS's in the 90s, as I was young, still in school...
they are still active, and that there is an active community. Being
able to talk to SysOps, exchange information and learn. I didn't get
too involved back when I first uses BBS's in the 90s, as I was young,
still in school, so a bit wary about sending mail to random people.
Stranger danger and all that, and I didn't want to run up bills...
MRO wrote to BoraxMan <=-
@MSGID: <680E6EBD.14946.dove-gen@bbses.info>
@REPLY: <slrn100rm52.3v0.rotflol2@geidiprime.bvh>
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS experience
By: BoraxMan to All on Sun Apr 27 2025 02:11 am
they are still active, and that there is an active community. Being
able to talk to SysOps, exchange information and learn. I didn't get
too involved back when I first uses BBS's in the 90s, as I was young,
still in school, so a bit wary about sending mail to random people.
Stranger danger and all that, and I didn't want to run up bills...
i actually had a user who was a perv and trying to send young boys msgs
in the doorgames. he didn't go far enough to make it reportable. i
just got him kicked off most of the bbses. ---
Mortar wrote to BoraxMan <=-
@MSGID: <680E4CFD.36058.dove-general@endofthelinebbs.com>
@REPLY: <slrn100rm52.3v0.rotflol2@geidiprime.bvh>
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS
experience
By: BoraxMan to All on Sun
Apr 27 2025 02:11:30
I would say simply finding out they are still active, and that there is an active community...
Awww, that was gonna be my reply. Oh well, ditto that!
I didn't get too involved back when I first uses BBS's in the 90s, as I was young, still in school...
I had been in to it since about '86-'87, in my 20s and on my own for
the first time. The boards were a good source of info of what was
going on around me. And as cool as it is to have BBSes still around,
that local aspect doesn't exist anymore since every BBS is worldwoide these days. That's what I miss.
I remember once, can't remember which board, but I uploaded a file. The file was the DOS game Bananoid. I can't remember whether I was using Zmodem or Xmodem, but the file got uploaded with the filename "UPLOAD", which was obviously wrong. All subsequent files that anyone tried to upload, automatically got the name "UPLOAD", then it failed because there was already an
existing file. I thought I broke the BBS!
By: BoraxMan to All on Sun Apr 27
2025 02:11:30
I would say simply finding out
they
are still active, and that there
is
an active community...
And as cool as it is to
have BBSes still around, that local
aspect doesn't exist anymore since
every BBS is worldwoide these days.
That's what I miss.
Quoting Mortar to Boraxman <=-
I had been in to it since about '86-'87, in my 20s and on my own for
the first time. The boards were a good source of info of what was
going on around me. And as cool as it is to have BBSes still around,
that local aspect doesn't exist anymore since every BBS is worldwoide these days. That's what I miss.
Eesh! I do kind of wish I did engage more "socially" on BBS's back then. My focus was file sharing (yes, i did upload too!). I chatted once or twice, but most BBS's only had one line, and I thought FidoNet was a subscription
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS experience
Snobsoft wrote to Mortar <=-
@MSGID: <680F9FC4.840.dove-general@partybowlbbs.ddns.net>
@REPLY: <680E4CFD.36058.dove-general@endofthelinebbs.com>
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS
experience
By: Mortar to BoraxMan on
Sun Apr 27 2025 10:27 am
By: BoraxMan to Allon Sun Apr 27
2025 02:11:30
I would say simply finding out
they
are still active, and that there
is
an active community...
Finding Synchronet, where I'm
of course writing right now, was
also very cool for me. This is a
really nice combination of
old-school (as it's a BBS) and
modern elements (like being able
to post worldwide here, for example).
And as cool as it is to
have BBSes still around, that local
aspect doesn't exist anymore since
every BBS is worldwoide these days.
That's what I miss.
Yes, I miss the local aspect a lot
too, even though that sounds like a
contradiction to what I just wrote
above. Hey, unfortunately, it's no
longer 1985we can't change that.
ExactlyI also come from that BBS
era.
What I also would describe as a super
cool moment for me was when
The 8-Bit Guy suddenly showed up
in my BBS.
I would say simply finding out
they are still active, and that
there
is an active community. Being
able to talk to SysOps, exchange
information and learn. I didn't get
too involved back when I first uses
BBS's in the 90s, as I was young,
still in school, so a bit wary about
sending mail to random people.
Stranger danger and all that, and I
didn't want to run up bills...
The 8-Bit Guy suddenly showed up
in my BBS.
MRO wrote to Boraxman <=-
@MSGID: <68100E3B.14951.dove-gen@bbses.info>
@REPLY: <680ED487.64882.dove-gen@bbs.mozysswamp.org>
Re: Re: Most memorable modern
By: Boraxman to MRO on Mon Apr 28 2025 10:56 am
Eesh! I do kind of wish I did engage more "socially" on BBS's back then. My focus was file sharing (yes, i did upload too!). I chatted once or twice, but most BBS's only had one line, and I thought FidoNet was a subscription
those were good times back then. entirely differnet than what we have
now.
and with fidonet if you carried it you were expected to pay to recoup
the cost of operation. ie long distance bills, phone bills. atleast in
my area they wanted you to do that. ---
Noh Wai wrote to Snobsoft <=-
@MSGID: <680FE5F8.2706.dove-general@toolazy.synchro.net>
@REPLY: <680F9FC4.840.dove-general@partybowlbbs.ddns.net>
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS experie
By: Snobsoft to Mortar on
Mon Apr 28 2025 11:33 am
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS experience
Mine would definitely have to be the first time that I managed to
download a file from a BBS whose name has sadly been lost in the mists
of time.
At the time all I had was a 14.4 PCMCIA modem hooked up to a crippled laptop running DOS 6 from a floppy drive and a hard drive with >100 MB free. And I could only run it in the dead of night when my parents were fast asleep.
But the realization that I could "reach out and grab something" at the
age of 12, was absolutely nothing short of WONDEROUS. I remembered
staring at that screen with my heartbeat going wild for quite some time
as my brain grappled with the sheer possibilities.
Being a lifelong nerd has its benefits, and that was one of them.
Snobsoft wrote to BoraxMan <=-
@MSGID: <68106426.849.dove-general@partybowlbbs.ddns.net>
@REPLY: <slrn100rm52.3v0.rotflol2@geidiprime.bvh>
Re: Re: Most memorable modern BBS
experience
By: BoraxMan to All on Sun
Apr 27 2025 02:11 am
I would say simply finding out
they are still active, and that
there
is an active community. Being
able to talk to SysOps, exchange
information and learn. I didn't get
too involved back when I first uses
BBS's in the 90s, as I was young,
still in school, so a bit wary about
sending mail to random people.
Stranger danger and all that, and I
didn't want to run up bills...
Basically, for me, it's fascinating
to relive (because it's not quite
the same as it used to be) what it's
like to be a Sysop today. During my
BBS days (from 1985 to around the
early 90s), I was "just" a user,
including on Snobsoft, which I now
manage.
Back then (at least I assume soI
wasn't a Sysop), as well as today, you
meet lots of nice and helpful people
through it, which is very enjoyable.
Maintaining the BBS, however, isn't
always that much fun (at least not for
me). But not everything can be perfect.
BTW: Initially, I didn't want to be a
Sysop after completing the project of
bringing the BBS back online after
almost 40 years of hiatus. Having
invested two years of work into it, I
was somewhat drained, and then Sysop
with all the aforementioned tinkering?
NoI didn't really want that at first.
But after some time of rejecting the
idea, I quickly realized that the
positive and interesting aspects
outweighed the downsides. So I accepted
that I'm now basically the Sysop
(and nobody else wanted the role
anyway).
The interesting aspects included, for
example, the fact that without the BBS
project, I would never have landed in
this BBS (Partybowl) or in Synchronet.
I also find this very cool. No spam,
and somehow you still get the feeling
of genuine online freedom with an
80s/90s vibe, etc. I also like the
straightforward functionality (once
you've adapted to it). The flashy
modern internet isn't necessarily
faster.
One memory, not that good is my mum telling me that my Dad was trying to call from the Melbourne Cricket Ground to arrange a life back home after going to a football game, and not getting through. I had been on a BBS. More than one this causes issues with the phone line tied up.
Call waiting kind of helped, kind of hurt. It stuffed up the call, but at least I could tell someone wanted to call.
I do NOT miss that! Always having in the back of your mind that someone might really need to call, and cant get through because youre playing some door game, or chatting to a friend modem-to-modem.
and with fidonet if you carried it
you
were expected to pay to recoup the
cost
of operation. ie long distance
bills,
phone bills. atleast in my area they
wanted you to do that.
Re: Re: Most memorable modern
By: MRO to Boraxman on Mon Apr 28 2025 06:24 pm
and with fidonet if you carried it you
were expected to pay to recoup the cost
of operation. ie long distance bills,
phone bills. atleast in my area they wanted you to do that.
Regarding Fido, I was always "just"
a user and saw it from the early
1990s on as a kind of similarly
cool continuation of the BBS era.
I was into Fido until about 1995/96, and then the internet arrived.
Was it a different experience to what BBSs are now? In terms of the social stuff...
Mine would definitely have to be the
first time that I managed to
download a
file from a BBS whose name has sadly
been lost in the mists of time.
At the time all I had was a 14.4
PCMCIA
modem hooked up to a crippled laptop
running DOS 6 from a floppy drive
and a
hard drive with >100 MB free. And I
could only run it in the dead of
night
when my parents were fast asleep.
But the realization that I could
"reach
out and grab something" at the age
of
12, was absolutely nothing short of
WONDEROUS. I remembered staring at
that
screen with my heartbeat going wild
for
quite some time as my brain grappled
with the sheer possibilities.
Being a lifelong nerd has its
benefits,
and that was one of them.
Dumas Walker wrote to BORAXMAN <=-
@MSGID: <68122AA9.68682.dove-gen@capcity2.synchro.net>
@REPLY: <6810CC6D.64908.dove-gen@bbs.mozysswamp.org>
Was it a different experience to what BBSs are now? In terms of the social stuff...
There used to be a much more varied group of people to have discussions with. I can actually remember when you could tell what network message area you were in because the posters were different from one network to another. Now it is mostly the same group in multiple networks.
I think the lack of memories from the
300 baud days in the 1980s is probably
because, for one, the phone costs were
way too expensive here in Germany back
then for download stuff. And secondly,
Shame, as I would like to speak to a broad range of people. It seem Reddit has become THE big "discussion" forum, with a huge ranger of sub-reddits that you can join. But the website sucks balls bad and it seems to have a very "Liberal"
bent and a bit of an echo chamber. Reddit Terminal Viewer makes reddit palatable. AT least its accessible easy over the phone. But there is
What I also would describe as a
super
cool moment for me was when
The 8-Bit Guy suddenly showed
up
in my BBS.
That was cool for 8-Bit Guy to make
BBS's more known.
To be honest, I
think Usenet is the 'perfect'
combination of old school technology
and worldwide communication. Even a
local NNTP server, combined with IRC
maybe shared file area, still a bit
better than the BBS, as you can use
your own editor with a Usenet
client.
why are you formatting your text
like that?
Granted, you can do that here to, if
you download a QWK packet and use
something like MultiMail, like I am
now, but its additional steps
The 8-Bit Guy suddenly showed up
in my BBS.
He got on mine, but only once :).
Agreed, kinda cool.
I think the lack of memories from
the
300 baud days in the 1980s is
probably
because, for one, the phone costs
were
way too expensive here in Germany
back
then for download stuff. And
secondly,
They were very expensive here in the
US too.
I had to explain to my wife
every
month why the phone bill (normally
$30/month) was now running 500-600
$/month. For this reason, I have a
very good memory of this period of
time. (Downloading at 300 baud.)
Starting the BBS up in Jan 1984
actually made my phone bills go down
after that since now people were
uploading files to me on their
nickel.
Snobsoft wrote to Boraxman <=-
Re: Re: Most memorable modern
By: Boraxman to Snobsoft on Tue Apr 29 2025 08:04 am
Granted, you can do that here to, if
you download a QWK packet and use
something like MultiMail, like I am
now, but its additional steps
Yeah, the QWK stuff (I had almost forgotten about it until I found an option for it in the Partybowl BBS) was also really, really cool.
There used to be a much more varied group of people to have discussions
with. I can actually remember when you could tell what network message
area you were in because the posters were different from one network to
another. Now it is mostly the same group in multiple networks.
I've noticed that with Usenet as well. I'll post on a variety of sections, then
I'll see similar names up in Politics as I did in the Linux groups. I'm seeing now that Usenet is a much smaller world after all.
Reddit has become THE big "discussion" forum, with a huge ranger of sub-reddits that you can join. But the website sucks balls bad and it seems to have a very "Liberal"
bent and a bit of an echo chamber. Reddit Terminal Viewer makes reddit
| Sysop: | xorek |
|---|---|
| Location: | Los Angeles, California |
| Users: | 2 |
| Nodes: | 10 (0 / 10) |
| Uptime: | 00:24:09 |
| Calls: | 1 |
| Calls today: | 1 |
| Files: | 2,110 |
| U/L today: |
2,583 files (509M bytes) |
| D/L today: |
359 files (8,192P bytes) |
| Messages: | 2,577 |