[Hidden-tech] Time to Use the FORUMS!

[Robert Heller]

At Wed, 28 Feb 2007 00:57:44 -0500 Michael Muller <michael at mullertech.com> wrote:

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> 

> Pardon my french but Holy Crap, you're using a QWK mail reader for
> email?  I haven't used one of those since... 1995. Man o man that
> brings back memories. I ran a BBS in New York City using TBBS back in
> 1993-1997 and had fun setting people up with some reader, I can't
> remember now. It was a pretty good one.
> 
> Who do you connect through? The-Spa?  I know Matthew DeJohng ran a
> TBBS system for a long while. Eventually bought by Crocker, but I don't
> know if those old servers are still running.

I connect to my own (virtual) Linux server using ssh and UQWK -- a
Unix/Linux QWK program that gathers Usenet news (either via a local
spool or via NNTP) and a standard BSD E-Mail spool into a QWK packet.

> 
> Wow, that's crazy.

Nope, not really.  It is what works for me.

> 

> Well, not all websites are graphics heavy, and many can be programmed
> for keystroke access, and I use Eudora and use all the keystroking I
> can get away with. I agree the mouse (or touchpad) aren't the fastest
> methods for doing anything except drawing, and they're really lousy at
> that.

Far too many are either graphics heavy or display the whole thread as a
single web page, which is actually worse, since it tends to 'lock' up
the web browser -- not only do I have a slow internet connection, I am
NOT using a home-based super computer either -- just a very basic single
processor AMD K6 at 500mhz with 256meg of RAM.  I end up no being able
to actually read anything for several minutes while the browser renders
the whole thread, that is I get to spend far too much 'quality time'
staring at the add banners at the top of the page. :-(  Forum web sites
tend to have bad, hard to use, or non-existent quoting.  They just don't
work for me.  I adoid them like the plague -- I much rather either an
E-Mail list or *better* good on Usenet news (with a public newsgroup the
best option of all).

And I'll have to take your word that that the forum websites can be
programmed for keystroke access, they rarely are (at least in any way
that is useful to me).

> 
> I'm sure the forums will have email hooks. They'd have to.
> 
> Anyway, just had to say Wow. I never thought I'd see QWK or REP ever
> mentioned again.
> 
> Mik
> 
> 
> >If someone were to implement a QWK interface to the forums, I'd use
> >them in a heartbeat, esp. if there was a *well documented* programmable
> >interface (not a point-and-click interface -- something I can write a
> >script to login and download .QWK from/upload .REP files to).  Reallly.
> >I use an 'off-line' Mail/News reader using (FidoNet) QWK techology.  I
> >have a (slow & unreliable) dial-up interface, so a graphics &
> >formatting heavy forum is a total pain to deal with (way to slow).  I
> >also find most (well pretty much all) web-based forums interfaces
> >really hard to use.  *I* don't like a point-and-click editor interface,
> >have no need to silly markup nonsense (HTML or otherwise).  I am *very*
> >used to my (micro-)emacs editor -- my fingers have completely
> >memoryized all of the editing keystrokes. If this list 'vanished' I am
> >not likely to use a forum instead.  I *probably* won't read the forum
> >with any regularity (read: maybe once a week or once a month), unless
> >the forum had a 'E-Mail notification' hook.
> >
> >                                                             
> 
> --------
> Michael Muller
> Muller Technologies
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Robert Heller             -- 978-544-6933
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