This is just a simple "Did You Know?" type of file which points to the
whereabouts of the latest version of the shareware Punter BBS software
here on CompuServe. An address to write to, to get the stuff by snail
mail is also provided.

The Punter BBS software, originally developed for the PET back in the
early 1980s and more recently ported to BBS64 and thence to MS-DOS computers
with their cheaper mass-storage, currently runs on any XT box or better,
with a 286 plus 40 Mb HD being likely the best combination. The system
runs more slowly (still good for some apps like teaching) on XT's but
it is still quite workable.

Minimum system requirements:

 - 100% IBM-compatible box
 - 540k RAM available
 - 13 Mb hard disk space available

Above requirements are for the most-recent version (summer 1994 is the
version most commonly used although there was an autumn '94 fix provided.)
An early (summer 1990) version is much smaller in my opinion (see below).

The software comes in 5 main files, all ZIPPED. The counts are 91k approx
for the first file, an installation module, and the other four files average
900k. The files are posted in Library 1 "BBS Programs" of the PCBBS Forum
product (GO IBMBBS) but as this is not a small download, a good option for
8-bit users may be snail mail. You can get the files from Steve Punter or
from many BBS's and ftp sites... if you order by mail from TNSS, Node 9
on PunterNet, I'll ship 5 disks at cost ($20 includes postage, shipping
and handling) and I'll include highlights from Conference 64 in a nifty
SAMPLE BULLETINS SET found in no other BBS platform. To reference the
samples, see the file PCPNANO.TXT in Lib 1 of the PCBBS Forum as this
is an annotated index to the files... to look over the Punter situation
in general, check out PCPNIM.ZIP in the forum. That one is a typeset
installation guide -- printable with WordPerfect 5.1 or MS Word etc.

There's a whole lot that can be said about the PunterNet model for small,
local echoes vs. something like FidoNet... the main benefits here are:

 
- cost: PN runs on any box. Shareware, self-installing. NOTHING ELSE TO BUY.
  In the current version, the initial download may be drawn from a snail-
  mailed disk, something like the Lotus Notes Network! This is a very pro-
  gressive feature, not found elsewhere
 
- very nicely typeset manual continues to be freeware (a tradition since
  1984 and the launch of the original BBS64 product)
 
- true WAN. Although echoes are slow these days the hyper-linked aspect
  of Conferences 64 and 128 on PunterNet means users may call ANY partici-
  pating node to follow along on any discussion
 
- tailor your screens: 38 columns or any other width, ANSI on/off,
  GUI-like pull-down menus and dialog boxes on/off, full masking of
  available categories and echoes to suit taste
 
- time and date stamps (native to MS-DOS) allow for thousands of more
  files on a BBS than the arbitrary limits imposed by the 1541, 1581, and
  "8000" series drives. Moreover the stamps allow automated **incremental
  backups** where you sift through possibly thousands of files, backing up
  only those which have been altered. In the BBS64 environment (probably
  the largest-ever, North America-wide pool of Commodore systems) you had
  only the BAckup command which essentially copied EVERYTHING, EVERY time
 
PunterNet is an outgrowth of BBS64 and retains all the C-64 goodies like
color mail, single-key hot controls, Punter protocols etc. ANSI-formatting
and indents make it *much* easier to publish formatted-on-the-fly,
byte-fought
renditions of FAQ files and so on... that is to say, the PCPN software saves
8-bit users enormous amounts of disk space and I daresay, time and money.
 
Hope the above was of interest and I just typed it in here "on the fly"
as a result of looking at Jim Brain's excellent new FAQ. I also sent some of
it to Jim... if you write to me to order the software/disks please make a
check or money order out to me, "Roman Kowalczuk". Thanks.
 
Cheers, Roman
 
Roman Kowalczuk
Box 6238
Station "A"
Toronto, Ontario
Canada
M5W 1P6
 
P.S. Earliest print reference for the above is BYTE mag, June 1985 issue p.58

P.P.S. I almost forgot, PRICE! Like I said, I'm typing on the fly. At the
moment the cost to REGISTER your copy of PC-PunterNet is $100. I'd personally
like to get this amount down to like, $5 per, but that's my opinion.
Registration gets you technical support and so on, printed docs, plus the
software secret "key" which opens the network gateway from your computer
to the rest of the participating nodes, across North America.

Note that the basic software, with all docs and tutorials on-line, will
run just fine in local mode without even a modem. Part of the purpose of
my sample bulletins set is to offer a glimpse of what the echoes look
like, without the need to register.

End of file.
