The dialup bbs revisited august 30 th, 2006 by benj edwards reprinted without any permission what so ever thanks benj. Once logged in, the user can perform functions such as uploading and downloading software and data, reading news and bulletins, and exchanging messages with. I settled pretty quickly on the excellent synchronet for which the author has also written dial up support. Due to some recent interest in having a commodorerun dialup bbs for people to call, ive decided to put up borderline bbs, running on color 64 v7. If you paid the price of a car for your computer, the way pc folks have always had to do, losing your computer to a full time bbs just wasnt worth it. Sometimes using modern technology like raspberry pi and tcpser which emulates a hayes modem for telnet connections, theyre reviving decadesold dialup bulletin board systems or bbses as portals to places that have been long forgotten. A bulletin board system or bbs also called computer bulletin board service, cbbs is a computer server running software that allows users to connect to the system using a terminal program. Ive read through the faq and checked out the software available, but it looks like most of the ones widely used today have completely dropped support for dialin.
Everything modem complete with power adapter which, by itself, is pretty hard to come by usr modems take ac power, so you cant use a universal dc adapter. Figure out what date settingll give you the most correct years of operation if you can set it back to todays date in 1973, you should be golden both 1973 and 2001 start on a. A bulletin board system or bbs also called computer bulletin board service, cbbs 1 is a computer server running software that allows users to connect to the system using a terminal program. One runs the original software on a decadesold commodore 128dcr. Colossus in virginia 7038188904 is a favorite bbs of mine because its one of the few dialup wwiv bbses left out there wwiv is the software i ran myself back in the day. Though most bbs software had been written in basic or. Commodore 128d and cpm retrocosms vintage computing. They did so using ordinary telephone phone lines and dial up modems, often directing the devices to call bulletin board systems bbses in their local. Nice little guide on how to call commodore 64 bbs systems using telnet instead of a dialup modem. The following is a listing of classic bbs software programs from yesteryear.
The resulting software, called cbbs, allowed personalcomputer owners with modems to dialin to a dedicated system and leave messages. Windows, linux, openbsd, netbsd, os x, and freebsd. Classic doswindows bbs software site list bbs corner. Jun 18, 2011 commodore 128d and cpm june 18, 2011 june 18, 2011 retrocosm i shall be away for the beginning of this years retrochallenge, so in order to hit the ground running when i get back i thought id make sure all my machines were primed and ready for action. Lance lyon found an old backup tape and gave me a good pile of vintage dos bbs programs. The movie back to the future is still in the theaters and for the life of you, you cant fathom why coca cola would dare to change their formula. The following is a list of known active bbs software websites.
It can be accessed through a standard telnet connection and currently provides basic bbs functionality. This article is about software that acted as bulletin board systems themselves. Diehard sysops are resurrecting bbss from the 1980s slashdot. The lost civilization of dialup bulletin board systems. However i found it quite difficult to find suitable software and therefore turned to my windows 98 system. Mainly because the bbs supported many different systems. Up9600 on real commodore 64s dip switches for disabling it for c128vic hardware flow control, necessary at higher baud rates dcd signal for bbs software support powered by 9vac lines, so it can handle peak draws. Old school sean connecting to a bbs using a commodore 64.
Trying out new bbs software, getting into ascii art, warez, demos, etc. A bbs software package that is on this list means that the software is no longer being supported by the author and most likely there is little if any third party support. Like many of its counterparts it features a high degree of relatively easy customization thanks to its acs based menu system along with fully editable strings and ansi themes. What i mean is that the login and screens for moving around are system friendly. Being from a different part of brazil remote access reigned supreme, while pc board is something i saw once that one day when i dared dial long distance to some bbs in a different state.
Borderline bbs tour a real commodore 64 dialup bbs. The place to discuss all things commodore in the 8 bit range. Of the bbs software available, which is the easiest to set up for both dialin and telnet. Telnet modems telnet modems use a textbased communication model to connect two remote computers. Dialup modems a dialup connection works by dialing a telephone number through the telephone company. In this video, well take a brief look at the history of bulletin board systems and connect to some bbses using a commodore 64. The lost civilization of dialup bulletin board systems the. Im planning on using a i386based host with msdos or os2. Commodore pc tools tools specific to transferring software between a pc and a commodore 12 5. Most bbs enthusiasts know that the last outpost for bbses has been, for some time now, through telnet on the internet. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Commodore 128d and cpm retrocosms vintage computing, tech.
Bbs vintage is the new old, retro games news, retro gaming. There was a time, however, when when dialup bbses over analog phone lines were the rule, not the exception. I have been tinkering with different ways to get my c64s online, i have been using jim drews wimodem on my one c64 and it works great. The computers must have a terminal program software so that they can run commands on the bulletin board service bbs. Borderline bbs is the only dialup bbs anywhere in the world right now running. First a new article in ieee spectrum remembers a time when tens of thousands of dial up bulletin board systems kept modems busy all around the world playing chintzy door games, downloading textfiles and ansi art, and reading messages left on fidonets echo. Whether you want to log onto a bbs or run one of your own, the wimodem 232 is your answer. Contiki bbs commodore 64 mailbox bbs software youtube. This device gives any computer with a rs232 interface internet connectivity, letting you dial up bbss like you did back in the day. Back in the 80s, there used to be thousands of these systems running all over the world. Bulletin board system wikimili, the best wikipedia reader.
Technically, if i would run a bbs ever again, i would probably try to run the amiga cnet bbs on a real amiga. First a new article in ieee spectrum remembers a time when tens of thousands of dialup bulletin board systems kept modems busy all around the world playing chintzy door games, downloading textfiles and ansi art, and reading messages left on fidonets echo. So dust off your modem and give it a call at 19516521690. This is a list of notable bulletin board system bbs software packages. Mar, 2016 contiki bbs the commodore c64 bbs software. Its crazy to think that i have been working on this software since high school and now i am all grown up and well into my professional career. Jul 25, 2011 however i found it quite difficult to find suitable software and therefore turned to my windows 98 system. This forum provides information on bbs which commodore hardware and emulators may connect. A bulletin board system or bbs is a computer server running software. The bbs corner classic dos windows os2 bbs software list. Dialup nights is a new dialup only bulletin board, running maxs bbs on native amiga ng hardware. Telnetaccessibility has been added, making it the first bbs running on a c64 with a hybrid setup allowing both dialup and telnet calls. The lost civilization of dialup bulletin board systems the atlantic.
Xe or 800xl with ram upgrade so all the important board files and indices can be put on a ram disk, an attached hard drive or ssd, commodore 1702 and 80column monitor for xep80, r. Bbs software for commodore 64 commodore 64 c64 forum. Sometimes using modern technology like raspberry pi and tcpser which emulates a hayes modem for telnet connections, theyre reviving decadesold dial up bulletin board systems or bbses as portals to places that have been long forgotten. I ended up running my own bbs on my c64 and had to get a job to pay for the extra phone line and the array of 1581 3. Due to some recent interest in having a commodore run dial up bbs for people to call, ive decided to put up borderline bbs, running on color 64 v7. A bbs is a private online dialup service run on a single home computer.
Bbs vintage is the new old, retro games news, retro. Baud rates 300 on up to whatever your computer and software can do. Borderline bbs is the only dialup bbs anywhere in the world right now running on a commodore 64. Jan 14, 2016 the forgotten world of bbs door games. Running the oldest commodore bbs software still in use and developed today. I was up all hours of the night talking to people who logged in.
Rediscovering the lost civilization of dialup bbss. Ive been doing research on dial up modems and had questions about setting up a bbs that supports both dial in and telnet for the fun of it. Mystic bbs is a bulletin board system bbs software in the vein of other forum hack style software such as renegade, oblivion2, and iniquity. Futurevision by tc wilson aka the captain based on the metal language gbbs applesoftbased bbs program gbbs pro based. Hbbs a hiresolution graphical dialup bbs and client package for the apple ii. Nice little guide on how to call commodore 64 bbs systems using telnet instead of a dial up modem. Its time to fire up a computer and see if there is an electronic mail from friends and. Once logged in, the user can perform functions such as uploading and downloading software and data, reading news and bulletins, and exchanging messages with other users through public message boards and.
I dug out a diamond supra express pci modem and installed it and went on the hunt for some bbs software. The priority is on dialup software created before 1995, although additions for any and all bbs programs are welcome. Xe or 800xl with ram upgrade so all the important board files and indices can be put on a ram disk, an attached hard drive or ssd, commodore 1702 and 80column monitor for xep80, rtime 8 cart for time, spartdos x, and. I got many of the more recent versions of dos bbs software from the cotbbs page.
This is our mission, to create a modern, uptodate site that connects you to the active bulletin board systems of today, as well as the websites, twitter, youtube and facebook. They did so using ordinary telephone phone lines and dialup modems, often directing the devices to. Id love to put an atariage atari 8bit bbs online using real hardware. The ubiquitous commodore 64 introduced in 1982 was a common platform in the 1980s. It operates at 30012002400 baud, and features 4080 column operation, asciiansipetscii support, message bases, file transfers, and online. As of today, borderline bbs has returned as the worlds only dialup bbs running on a c64. I used the c64 to dial up the bbses of that era, with my thundering. This article needs additional citations for verification. For door based games, see door games applenet diversidial ddial chatroom atmosphere supporting up to 7 incoming lines allowing links to other ddial boards.
Supporting acorn, risc os, commodore, amiga and others. A bbs software package that is on this list means that the software is no longer being supported by the author and most likely there is. Colossus is also unique in that it is likely the only bbs running vintage wwiv v4. Dialup nights is a new dialup only bulletin board, running maxs bbs on native amiga ng. The beta version of the board is open 9pm 6 am, and 24 hours at the weekends uk time. It has petscii for the commodore systems and ansi for all the rest. Diehard sysops are resurrecting bbss from the 1980s. A bbs is a private online dial up service run on a single home computer. And believe it or not, there are still a handful of bbses out there that have not modernized and switched over to the net. The resulting software, called cbbs, allowed personalcomputer owners with modems to dialin to a dedicated system and leave messages that others would see later, when they, in. With these you will be able to dial into old school c64128 bbs that have been converted to telnet from dial up. Dial up nights is a new dial up only bulletin board, running maxs bbs on native amiga ng hardware.
A capitol idea, unfortunately a lot of the software used to run those bbss is no longer being maintained and isnt y2k compatible. I decided to try and make my own after following a discussion on afterlife bbs about esp8266 modules being used as wifi modems, i decided to try and make on myself. Borderline bbs was brought online in january 2014 as a dialup only bbs. The plan is to increase to 247, depending on demand. Runs in fullscreen mode on all platforms altenter switches modes nix versions will run using sdl, x11, or using curses. But we here at the bbs guide believe that there has been a grand lack of resources tying together all the folks who still love, live and run bulletin board systems. Commodore pc tools tools specific to transferring software between a pc and a. A uk dial up bbs is born retrocosms vintage computing.
Syncterm is a very nice bbs terminal program for windows, linux, and mac os x that supports. Feb 07, 2014 borderline bbs is the only dial up bbs anywhere in the world right now running on a commodore 64. Before the age of multitasking operating systems, the prospect of running a bbs meant losing your computer for general use. Nov 04, 2016 the resulting software, called cbbs, allowed personalcomputer owners with modems to dial in to a dedicated system and leave messages that others would see later, when they, in turn, dialed up the. Dialup nights is a new dialup only bulletin board, running maxs bbs on.
Two new articles take a look at social medias dial up ancestor from back in the 20th century. The wimodem232 is only wifi modem to support 100% of the industry standard hayes command set. I found a gem at a goodwill thrift store some time back a fully working usr courier v. The 1541 was the standard floppy disk drive for the commodore 64, with nearly all diskbased software programs released for the computer being distributed in the 1541 compatible floppy disk format. Two new articles take a look at social medias dialup ancestor from back in the 20th century. A capitol idea, unfortunately a lot of the software used to run those bbs s is no longer being maintained and isnt y2k compatible.
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