From: news@wolves.uucp (The Wolfe of the Den)
Newsgroups: comp.bbs.misc,alt.bbs.unixbbs,alt.bbs.unixbbs.uniboard
Subject: Re: Unix BBS Software FAQ with answers (partial) v0.1
Date: 9 Oct 92 14:50:20 GMT
Organization: Wolves Den UNIX
X-Md4-Signature: 4db2f915746c3e2e70c999e0efcfffef

[This finally got here :-)]

In article <1992Oct01.020738.5452@r-node.gts.org> 
marc@r-node.gts.org (Marc Fournier - Sys Admin) writes:
>
>In article <1992Sep30.045453.8563@wolves.uucp> news@wolves.durham.nc.us writes:
>>
>>Some BBS programs allow the individual BBS systems to share messages by
>>using a communications medium to exchange the messages via a standard
>>protocol which the BBSes understand.  Such systems are "networked"
>>BBSes.  There are several BBS Networks around the world. Among them are
>>FIDOnet, WWIVnet, RIMEnet, VNET and Usenet.
>>                                    ^^^^^^
>
>	Where is the Internet??  That is one of the major ones...
>and, by your definitions, the Internet is as much of a BBS network
>as Usenet is.

	Nope, Internet is a network of networks, connecting many
dissimilar systems together using a wide variety of protocols.  All
Internet protocols are layered on top of IP datagrams, and Internet is a
direct connected network.

	BBS networks use a variety of physical layers with the message
interchange protocols layered on top of whatever protocol is used to
physically move the bytes (excuse me, octets) around.

>>Properly speaking, Usenet is defined as newsgroups in the major
>>categories of comp, misc, news, rec, sci, soc, and talk.  There are a
>>number of other major "hierarchies" which may be worldwide (alt, bionet,
>>vmsnet) or may be regional (usa, can, triangle) or even organizational
>>(duke, ut, sun).
>
>	Wait a minute!!  Usenet is much more then just the newsgroups!!

Nope.  Usenet is only the netnews software.  There is no Usenet mail,
there is no Usenet ftp, there is no Usenet telnet, etc....   Usenet is
the network of sites that exchange messages in Usenet news format.  period.

>You are right, it is difficult to fully discuss the ins and outs of
>Usenet, but it is not *JUST* newsgroups!!  IMHO, Usenet was the
>predecessor for Internet, the main difference between the two
>is the fact that the Internet involves *DIRECT* system connections
>as opposed to going through a modem.  Alot of things have changed

	Backwards and wrong.
	ARPAnet, where the IP protocols were developed, was in place
well before the folks at Duke wrote netnews.  ARPAnet mailing lists were
in existence, and a few (very few) folks off of the ARPAnet were getting
the mailing list messages via links from ARPAnet-UUCP gateways.
	Netnews was written with UUCP in mind, since Duke couldn't get
an IMP (for ARPAnet) until well into the 1980s.  Usenet sprang up like
topsy ("it just growed") following the release of netnews in early 1980.

>since the birth of Internet, but, in a lot of places, a Usenet site
>gets its main connection from the Internet; Usenet sites archive

	Now, but Usenet/netnews began as ONLY UUCP.

>and distribute files, like Internet; Usenet sites distribute 
>private email, like Internet; some Usenet sites even offer anon UUCP,

	Nope, any site can offer Internet *compatible* email, with or
without a real internet connection.  

>same as Internet's anon ftp; in fact, about the only main difference
>*I* can really see between Usenet and the Internet is that Usenet
>isn't as *FAST* due to the modems.

	Nope, Internet offers FTP, telnet, rlogin, BIND/named, WAIS, and
a whole host of services that CAN NOT be offered on UUCP connected
sites.  Usenet is, and always has been, netnews articles, exchanged on
whatever physical connection is available.

>>	UnixBBS <---renamed to Uniboard since UnixBBS was too generic

	I knew this, just haven't written it into the FAQ.

-- 
Usenet Net News Administrator @ The Wolves Den  (G. Wolfe Woodbury)
news@wolves.durham.nc.us  news%wolves@cs.duke.edu  ...duke!wolves!news
"The flame war is a specific Usenet art form." --me
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