xbbs features as request

[William E. Davidsen Jr]

A few comments on a recent response:

In article <3837 at uwspan.UUCP> root at uwspan.UUCP (Sue Peru Sr.) writes:
| First of all I wish to say that for a first program, Sandy has done an OK
| job with his XBBS software.  This followup is not meant to be a stab in his
| back or anything at all like that - just a view from the other side of
| the fence.

| | 18) The following file protocols are available for downloading:
| |     sliding windows/standard kermit, zmodem, ymodem, batch-ymodem,
| |     crc-xmodem, checksum-xmodem, ascii, SEAlink, and type.
| | 19) The following file protocols are available for uploading:
| |     (Same as downloading except for "type")
| 
| All the file transfer protocols are external programs - you must have them
| on your system to be able to use them.

True, but the sources are all available on alphacm.  I certainly agree
that not bundling the transfer sources is a good idea, why retransfer
what you already have. 

| | 40) 100% "C" code using SysV termio
| 
| But not all of the code is supplied - you must find your own source
| for kermit, arc, ...... (see above)

See above.

| | P.S.  The full source code can be retrived from my system
| | (750K uncompressed)
| 
| Before you rush out and download it, be warned:
| 
| 	1) The code is *VERY* unstructured.  It looks as if the code was
|	   ... comments deleted ...

The program structure is awful. No other word will do.

| 	3) The message base, file handling, and bulletins (motd and others)
| 	   use non-standard layouts and fixed length record formats.

Sad, but true. I have given up on adding messages from files on the
system. I just put them in as downloadable files.

| 	4) The code consists of one HUGE source file (107K) and about a
| 	   dozen small (< 5K) additions.  Many of the parts share the

I agree with all of the bad things about the program structure.

| I tried to talk to Sandy about this stuff (voice, my dime) and he implied
| that he wasn't interested in anything I had to say.  So be warned that things
| don't look like they will get any better in the future...

When I first got XBBS I fixed a number of bugs, and made a major
enhancement to the questionare software. I sent all of this to Sandy,
and heard nothing. I recently sent a msg asking if he had the stuff,
directly to his system via uucp. Nothing.

He doesn't seem to care what changes people make, but he isn't tracking
fixes or suggestions.  I have no problem with this, this is his
software, and he is offering it to the public to use as a service, but I
haven't gone to later versions, because it's too much trouble to make
them work. 

I will add that I exchanged mail with Brandon about fixes and
enhancements to UNaXcess, and got the same response, BUT I got a
pleasant reply saying something like 'thanks for the interest, but I'm
moving in another direction.' He did post a fix for a problem a number
of us had with the original package.

Most of the really good programs on the net seem to be the product of
one person, or at least in the control of one person. Some are more
interested than others in user input.
-- 
	bill davidsen		(wedu at ge-crd.arpa)
  {uunet | philabs | seismo}!steinmetz!crdos1!davidsen
"Stupidity, like virtue, is its own reward" -me