Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!ames!mailrus!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!uwmcsd1!lakesys!rich
From: rich@lakesys.UUCP (Richard Dankert)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: SETTING UP A BBS
Keywords: BBS, ascii, transfer, arc
Message-ID: <289@lakesys.UUCP>
Date: 12 Jan 89 06:11:02 GMT
References: <ID7141.D890110.T145542.CHIASSA@UDEM>
Reply-To: rich@lakesys.UUCP (Richard Dankert)
Distribution: na
Organization: Lake Systems - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Lines: 75

In article <ID7141.D890110.T145542.CHIASSA@UDEM> CHIASSA@UDEM.BITNET (Alyre CHIASSON) writes:
>
> With the Mega 2 I want to
> have a BBS for my clients with the appropriate software and a 60
> Meg hard drive. The information to be exchanged will be text files
> not programs. My main concern is that clients who have IBM systems
> will not be able to retrieve and send information to a BBS run
> under an Atari system. 

There are a variety of BBS programs available for the Atari ST such as
Michtron, FoReM, Express and others. There is also available other 
P/D programs that will do the same, at of course lessor cost, one of 
which is STadel (I run such a system)

> I assume that the Atari arc programs cannot
> unarc an IBM arced file nor arc a file so that it can be unarced
> by an IBM arc program.
	
ARC 521 is available for the ST, which will allow exactly this. For the
ST there are shell (GEM) programs to make the task a little easier over
the normal command line style.


> Question
>
> Is there an arc program that can shuttle between the IBM world and
> the Atari world? If not, are there other options? I am not a super
> programmer.


Answered above .


> Secondly, I am not sure if  IBM telecommunications software
> programs can successfully communicate with an Atari BBS.

Procomm on the IBM will do this task quite nicely. Mainly, most BBS 
software is set for either vt-52 or vt-100 terminal set ups. Being so, 
communication between the two is quite painless.


> Question
>
> Since the standard in modems appears to be Hayes compatible am I
> right to assume that this means that all software based on this
> standard must send the same ascii codes to get a BBS to upload and
> download files?

Modems based on Hayes compatability have virtually nothing to do with 
how the files/programs are sent as this is almost always controlled by the 
the BBS program itself.

Hayes compatability basicly makes it easier for the layman to set up a 
system, without virtually any knowledge of how to make the modem work with 
the BBS program.

Be aware that not all modems are fulley Hayes compatable. Hayes compatability
ranges from 'compatable with the Hayes AT command set' to full Hayes 
compatability inside and out. I use the Practical Peripherals PM2400sa, as 
this modem uses the same Intel chip that the Hayes uses.

> I would greatly appreciate any advice and words of caution before
> I spend all this money only to find that the vast majority of my
> clients will not be able to access the BBS. If there is a software
> dependency as to whether such a system would work I would
> appreciate your recommendations.
>
> Alyre Chiasson
> Moncton, N.B.
> Canada

Hope that this help clear up a few misnomers.

rich.....
UUCP: rich@lakesys.lakesys.COM     {always .... }