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                          THE v.FAST LANE

                      September 1993 (Issue#1)

                         by Steve Meirowsky

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DISCLAIMER

Copyright 1993 by Steve Meirowsky and New World Designs.  All rights
(known and unknown) are reserved worldwide.  You may copy or print
this file only if it remains intact and unedited!  (316)262-1829.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

- Editorial.
- New high speed modem standards.
- CCITT renamed to ITU-T.
- ONE BBSCON show.
- WheatNet regional mail hub in Wichita.
- Kansas BBS list.
- How to contact the author.

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EDITORIAL

In case you wondered why this is called "THE v.FAST LANE", read on...
You can upload this newsletter into a message on most BBS's since
it's not wider than 72 columns! All future issues of "THE v.FAST LANE"
will be included with the file KSBBSymm.ZIP (y is year, mm is month).
I don't claim to be perfect so there may be mistakes or typos in this
newsletter.  See the end of this newsletter for my BBS phone number.

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NEW HIGH SPEED MODEM STANDARDS

So, you want more modem speed over your phone line?  Coming soon to a
modem near you will be "v.32terbo", "v.FC", and "v.FAST" protocols
methods.  All three of these methods are backward compatible with the
popular "v.32bis" protocol method used for 14400 bps modems.

The "v.32terbo" protocol achieves a maximum rate of 19200 bps and is
closely related to "v.32bis".  It is very popular with modem makers
since "v.32terbo" is only a software change inside the modem.  The
high speed rates are 16800 and 19200 bps.  The problem with this new
protocol is that it's NOT compatible at speeds above 14400 bps with
other protocols.  This is not an approved CCITT protocol like v.32bis.

The "v.FAST" protocol achieves a maximum rate of 28800 bps.  This is
a new protocol that is NOT finalized but many specifications have been
agreed upon.  The rumor mill has it that a final spec will be approved
by the CCITT in Summer 1994. This protocol is also known by industry
insiders as v.LAST, which means that it will be the last analog modem
protocol.  It is also rumored that "v.FAST" will be called "v.34" when
approved.  The high speed rates above 14400 are 16800, 19200, 24000,
and 28800 bps.  All modem manufacturers agree that in the long term
this protocol will win and other proprietary protocols faster than
14400 will die!

The "v.FC" protocol achieves a maximum rate of 24000 bps.  This is a
subset of the "v.FAST" protocol and will be easily upgradeable to the
final "v.FAST" protocol when it is finally approved.  Rockwell has
already released a chip set that supports this rate and we will see
the first modems available in November 1993.  Many of the large
BBS's publicly announced support for this protocol at the ONE BBSCON
convention during the last week of August!

Remember that all of these protocols are NEW so many sales people will
not be familiar with them yet.  Only the people living on the cutting
edge of telecommunication will know about them!

If you are shopping for a modem, depending on whether you need it
today or can wait a few months, you might want to consider a modem
with one of these three high speed protocols.  If you need a modem
immediately, I would highly recommend a low cost "v.32bis" modem.
I would also recommend a "v.32terbo" modem if the difference in price
is less than $25 to $50, otherwise I would wait a few months and
purchase a "v.FC" type modem since it should be upgradeable to the
"v.FAST" protocol!

The most important thing I can recommend to new modem buyers is to
get a popular name brand modem.  I have heard of too many problems
with the no-name modems especially with customer support.  In the
past, higher speed modems are harder to setup so product support is
very important.

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CCITT (ITU-T)

The CCITT (International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative
Committee) has been renamed for some reason.  The new name is ITU-T.
It is a subgroup of the ITU (International Telecommuncation Union)
which is the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector.

I don't know all the details, but at least you'll know what ITU-T
is the next time you see it in print.  The "CCITT" was the one that
created the "v.32bis" modem standard.  They are currently working
on the new v.FAST modem standard that was mensioned above.

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ONE BBSCON SHOW

I attended the 2nd annual ONE BBSCON convention from August 25th to
August 29th in Colorado Springs.  Over 2500 people attended this
convention!  The following is directly from the ONE BBSCON guide.

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ONE BBSCON is, more than anything else, an industry "show-and-tell"
event where different segments of the online world gather to exchange
information on new technologies and new techniques for connecting
personal computers for data exchange.  ONE BBSCON is deliberately
designed to include everyone with an interest in developing the
technology to connect computers to exchange data on a wide-area, and
perhaps world-wide-area basis, to fit the pieces of the puzzle
together.

To accommodate the show-and-tell aspect of ONE BBSCON, there were 137
educational sessions (classes) featuring some 144 speakers which are
from the top of this industry!

A second key element of the ONEBBSCON, serving as the "trade show"
component, is the vendor exhibit areas.  This was only for 2 days.

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I can easily say this was the most rewarding convention that I have
ever attended!  I met people from all over the world with different
backgrounds with different reasons for attending.  Also, I attended
a dozen educational sessions to learn the latest things that could
help benefit my BBS.

Also, I saw demos of new products that will be coming our way
shortly such as: Telix For Windows, Qmodem Pro For Windows, Qmodem-
Pro For DOS v1.51 with new CompuServe support for forum mail, modems,
RIP doors, Sysop utilities, and BBS packages!

It is unfortunate that I am the only SYSOP from the Wichita area to
attend since next year it will be help in Atlanta which is a little
too far to drive!

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WHEATNET REGIONAL MAIL NET HUB IN WICHITA

A fairly new mail net been in Wichita for a few months.  NWIS BBS at
316-262-1829 is the hub for Wichita.  This hub was created to share
messages between towns in southern Kansas.  Currently the following
towns are being connected by WheatNet: Wichita, Hutchinson, McPherson,
and Wellington.  Several other BBS's are coming online in each town
as this newsletter is being written.  This net was not designed to
compete with the national nets.  If you need to send mail to friends
in these towns, this is the way to do it!  I will follow up on this
subject in future issues of this newsletter.

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KANSAS BBS LIST

I have been assimilating all of the Kansas BBS's into this list since
1991.  The 316 area code seems to be fairly accurate but the 913 area
code needs more work since I don't live in that portion of Kansas.

The most important information to me is the BBS name and phone number!
It it extremely important for me to know when a BBS has changed their
phone number or has "gone out of business".  I've had a few BBS phone
numbers be re-issued to unsuspecting people who installed a new phone.

All BBS's must meet the following criteria:
 - Must have a dedicated BBS phone line for public use.
 - Must run the BBS 24 hours/day.
 - Must NOT be an adult-only BBS.
 - Must NOT allow distribution of pirated software.

If you know any BBS that does not meet the above criteria, please tell
me so I can remove them from the list!  I really don't want any first
time callers giving BBS's (in general) a bad name because of a few
pirate or x-rated boards.  This list is specifically created for the
first time caller.

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HOW TO CONTACT THE AUTHOR

Steve Meirowsky

New World Designs
PO Box 12217
Wichita, KS 67277-2217

New World Information Service (NWIS) BBS
(316) 262-1829, v.32bis, 24hrs/day.

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