@(#) FIDOHINT.TXT        - Hints on Fido and Fidonet
----------------------------------------------------
         Last updated: 10-Oct-87, 14:15:47


Introduction
------------    This text file gives a basic introduction to
Fido's network Fidonet, and Zeta's implementation of that
network.

Fidonet
-------    Fidonet consists of all the computers in Australia,
Europe, the USA and Asia which run as Fido nodes. Each node
has a unique identifying number within Fidonet. On Zeta this
number is represented in the form [nnn/nnn] eg [713/602].

   This identification takes the form [net/node], where the
first number is the NET which the node belongs to, and the second number refers to which NODE it is within that NET.

   A NET is a small "family" of nodes, led by a Net
Co-ordinator, whose system routes messages for all the nodes
in the "family"


Some of the local nodes are:
[712/301]        Realtors Opus
[712/501]        Micro Mart C Users
[712/502]        Paragon TBBS
[713/602]        Zeta, yours truly!
[713/606]        Prophet, source of the pams lists
[712/801]        Netcomm Australia (modems)


   Every Fido keeps an up-to-date list of every other Fido,
called the NODELIST. This nodelist is updated weekly with new
and changed information.

Receiving mail
--------------    (From a Zeta perspective)
Receiving mail from Fidonet is easy. Its a message addressed
to you. The only difference is that the sender-name you see
includes also the identification number or name of the
originating system.

For example:   From James Snowdon@[712/502] to Fred Nurk@zeta

Sending mail
------------    (From a Zeta perspective)
To send mail through Fidonet you need to know the Fidonet
number of the system you want to send to, and also the name of
the person you want to send to.

COSTS
-----    Nothing is free, at least not for very long.

   A Fidonet backbone has been setup which allows mail to the
USA to be free, and mail within Australia to be very cheap.

   Echomail is absolutely free (Most systems pay only one
local call charge to get echomail from their net host).

   You won't get charged for outgoing mail.


Echomail
--------    Echomail is a scheme where individual messages are
duplicated and sent to all nodes participating in a given
Echomail Conference. The cost of an echomail message seems to
be zero but in reality it costs as much as any ordinary
message. Echomail partially duplicates the idea of a
USENET newsgroup, where all messages are essentially public
and are distributed to a wide range of nodes.

   The Echomail conferences which Zeta receives are:

   xxxx_sysop:  3 different sysop-only conferences
   c_echo:      C language conference
   unix:        Australia wide Unix conference
   pams:        Pams list distribution/news/info
   net_dev:     Network developers conference
   gaming:      Adventure gamers (international)
   rpg:         Role Playing games (Australian)
   gaters:      Fidonet gatewaying conference


Netiquette
----------    The term "netiquette" was coined for the Unix
USENET network, but it applies to any worldwide network.

   In short, netiquette describes the way you should behave
when sending public mail over a worldwide network. You're
supposed to be tolerant of other people's attitudes, and try
not to say totally stupid things - else you'll make a BIG BIG
fool of yourself.


Echomail relating to Zeta
-------------------------    When Zeta receives echomail
messages it places them in the appropriate topic. Using C_ECHO
as an example, the name of the sending person is represented
as "Fred Nurk@c_echo".  When you wish to reply to an echomail
message, you can do it in one of two ways.

     By echomail
     -----------

     By echomail, your reply will be distributed around the
network to be read by many people. When Zeta asks you
"Who to?", answer "Fred Nurk@c_echo" just like the message
appeared to you. Your message will be distributed the next
morning.

     By person to person mail
     ------------------------

     Your reply will only be directed to the person you are
replying to, and you can send private mail too, so only he
can see it.  Look down the bottom of the echomail message
for the line commencing "* Origin", and read the node number
from the right hand side of the line. An example is:

 * Origin: The NATIONAL Fido BBS - Hawthorn (630/301)

     You would reply to "Fred Nurk@[630/301]". Remember the
square brackets.


The ORIGIN line tells from which system the message
originated.

How to send Echomail messages
-----------------------------    To send new echomail
messages, simply address them to "User Name@conference",
where conference is any of:
  c_echo, unix, pams, net_dev, gaters, rpg, or gamers.

You'll get the hang of it soon enough.



How to send ordinary messages
-----------------------------    You can send ordinary mail to
anywhere in the world now. First you need to know which system
to send to. You need the NET/NODE number. Practise sending
mail within Australia before you try overseas.

     Say you want to send to John Jacobs at Software Tools
Fido. You know the Fidonet number of Software Tools is
711/403. To send the message now, from BB enter:

Who to ? John Jacobs@[711/403]
Private? (Y/N/Q):   (No)

     Zeta currently does not validate the number in any
way before accepting a message, so make sure you GET IT RIGHT
else the message won't be delivered.

     Make sure the format of the names is exactly as shown
above. If you include additional spaces or use { } instead of
[ ] or forget the hard brackets then your message WON'T BE
SENT.

     Zeta has no way of knowing if the name is misspelled.
     It may not get delivered.



Conclusion
----------    So thats about all there is to it!  You can
learn more by actually using the net and by talking to other
people who use it, but this document is only meant as an
introduction to using Fidonet anyway, with some hints
about how to use it from Zeta. Any questions or comments can
be sent to my signature below:


ACSnet:   nick@nswitgould.oz, zeta@runx.ips.oz
UUCP:     ...!uunet!munnari!runx.ips.oz!zeta
Fidonet:  [713/602] (Zeta),
Zeta:     +61-2-627-4177,
Mail:     P.O Box 177, Riverstone NSW 2765 Australia

