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Updated 2023-07-12: Hello, Guest! Welcome back, and be sure to check out this follow-up post about our outage a week or so ago.
Macintosh BBS
- Thread starter Quadraman
- Start date
Anonymous Freak
Well-known member
gavo
Well-known member
I seem to remember that Hermes BBS was pretty popular back in the day - just did a google and it seems that there is a relatively recent Hermes II release that looks like it may still run on classic macs
Might have to have a look myself http://www.hermesbbs.com/
Cheers,
OnceA68ker
Member
There are actually two Macintosh BBS packages which will run on Classic Macs, as well as on OSX machines, IF you have OS 9.2 installed on the OSX machine. These are Hermes and Public Address.
I have run a BBS with both Hermes and Public Address, as far back as the early 1990's. Just recently, I put our BBS back online using Hermes. It is running quite well in Classic mode under Tiger 10.4.11 on an old G4.
It would be great if we could revive the Macintosh BBS scene. I have searched and searched, and to date, I seem to be the only telnet Macintosh BBS currently online. By a telnet Macintosh BBS, I mean a BBS that is run on a Mac using Macintosh BBS software, and which is accessible via telnet. There may be others out there, but I haven't been able to find any of them yet.
One problem with modern BBSing on the Macintosh is finding a telnet client that will fully and properly display all PC-ANSI characters. For Mac OSX users, there is ONLY one good choice, and that is SyncTERM.
For Classic Mac users, I have created a stripped down version of Public Address, which you can use as a telnet client, and also as an ANSI editor for making ANSI screens. It displays ANSI screens quite well.
Hermes, Public Address, SyncTERM, and Public Address Stripped are all freely available on my Macintosh BBS called "Armageddon". You can access the Armageddon BBS by telnetting to:
endtimeprophecy.org:23
In other words, use "endtimeprophecy.org" in your telnet client, and make sure that it is set to port 23. The Armageddon BBS is not a dial-up BBS. It is only accessible via telnet, or via our web interface, (which is not as good as using SyncTERM), which you can find here:
http://www.endtimeprophecy.org/ArmagaeddonBBS/
I hope the above fully answers your question.
OnceA68ker
Member
Hello Luddite! Wow! Absolutely great! Another Hermes BBS SysOp makes his presence known! Well, that makes two of us Macintosh BBS SysOps...well, really, three of us. Walter Bowen is also still running his Hermes BBS on a Macintosh down in Denton, Texas. It's called The Mezzanine BBS. However, he appears to be using an older version of Hermes, so you can't download files via TCP/IP. You can access his board at:
Mezzanine
I would definitely like to stay in touch with you. BTW, if you have any configuration problems, I will do my best to help you. Just post your problems on the Armageddon BBS in the "Ask For BBS Help" conference.
I think it would be great if we started a Macintosh BBS ring to support each other's endeavors. I will be checking out your board soon, and then will probably be adding you to my BBS list on my board. I am thinking that I only want to add active, Macintosh BBSes to the list. There are already plenty of Windows lists, so I think we should support our own platform insofar as BBSing is concerned.
Anyway, it was great to hear from you. Oh, what telnet client did you use to access my board? Was the ANSI displayed properly for you?
Thanks!
register
Well-known member
For Classic Mac OS I recommend FirstClass, as it is very easy to configure and use for anyone used to use a classic Mac. A free trial installation of FirstClass server is available. It is limited to a small number of registered users, limited to very few users online at the same time, and will not support some gateway functionality. Otherwise the free trial is fully functional. I used it for a while to run a BBS for internal office use (Mac and Windows clients).
OnceA68ker
Member
The thing is, unless I am mistaken, (and I could be), to log onto a FirstClass BBS, don't both Mac and Windows users need to be using the FirstClass client? Or can anyone log in using whatever telnet client or terminal they please?
If it is the former, then you are limiting your potential user base right off the bat, because most people will consider it a hassle to have to download, and possibly purchase, a special client, just to log onto a BBS.
I have never really used FirstClass, and don't know what kind of feature set it has compared to Hermes, which admittedly, is quite limited in itself, but Hermes is free, and anyone with any telnet client can connect to a Hermes BBS, such as mine.
Granted, Hermes has a lot to be desired, and it hasn't seen serious development in ages, but as far as free BBS software is concerned, Hermes and Public Address have to be the best out there right now. Again, please check out my BBS to see what I've managed to do with Hermes during the past few weeks since I set up my old BBS again: endtimeprophecy.org:23.
I really would like to see the Macintosh BBS scene revived with real Macintosh BBSes using Mac BBS software and running on Macs. I know that BBS'ing is for the most part passe, but hey, I got this bug!
On a related note, has anyone here tried using a recently developed telnet client called Nally. It is currently at version 1.3.3. I can't run it on my machine because it is too slow for Leopard. If anyone has used it, how is it? In particular, how well, or how bad, does it display ANSI graphics...not just ANSI colors, but real ANSI graphics, such as on BBSes? Is it as good as, or better than, SyncTERM?
Oh, one other thing: if anyone here has any experience with Python or Jython, I am interested in hearing from you. What Hermes really, really needs, is some new externals/doors, such as games, BBS enhancements, etc., because right now, there is only Leech, and the Python external that I wrote called "Get-To-Know-You"...and I don't have any programming experience in any language. If you are interested, please send me a private message, and we can communicate via email, or even on my BBS.
Thanks!
OnceA68ker
Member
Hello again everyone,
If you have visited one of the few remaining Macintosh-based BBSes, and to be more specific, one that is utilizing the most recent version of the Hermes II software, that is, Hermes II 3.5.10b3, or if you are a Hermes SysOp yourself, one thing which you may have noticed is the serious lack of externals, (or doors, as they are called in the Windows BBS world). In other words, games, BBS enhancements, etc., that make a BBS more fun and interesting to visit. Most of us enjoy message posting, but having those extra treats, like games, really adds to the fun, right?
The primary reason for this absence of externals is that the old externals no longer work with the current version of Hermes II. Michael Alyn Miller, the current developer of Hermes II, has in fact made some internal changes to Hermes, and created a new way of writing externals, which he simply calls the "External Development System". Rather than being Pascal-based, like the old Hermes externals, the EDS is Python-based, or perhaps more correctly, Jython-based. I think that means that it is a hybrid of Python and Java.
I am sure that when Michael developed the EDS, he was hoping that some former Hermes external developers and SysOps would take up the torch, and begin to write new externals, based on the "External Development System". Sadly, that never happened. As a result, aside from a python-based version of the old BBS classic game LEECH, there are no externals for the last version of Hermes II, other than one which I wrote myself.
What is interesting about this, is that I am no programmer by any definition of the word. I don't know C, C++, Pascal, Java, Python, Jython, PHP, or anything else. I've dabbled a very tiny bit in some of these, but that's it. But, in spite of my lack of serious programming experience, about two years ago, I followed Michael's example code in LEECH, and hounded the guys on the Python/Jython mailng list, and created an "icebreaker" external called "Get-To-Know-You". It is basically an external which has 35 questions you can answer, (you only have to answer as many of them as you want), so that other BBS users can, well, get to know you a little better. You can also get info on other users to see how they answered the questions.
As you can imagine, I put a lot of work into writing the external, and it was challenging for a non-programmer like myself, but I got it done, and it works great!
But, as I said, since Michael introduced the EDS, no one else has taken up the torch, and written any other externals for the last version of Hermes II. I actually did have a new game about 2/3 of the way done, but then I lost all of the code when a whole drive's worth of data was lost while using an earlier version of iPartion quite some time ago...and I wasn't about to write it again. Since then, I have even forgotten how I wrote "Get-To-Know-You", and everything I learned from the experience.
So here is my challenge, or request, or however you want to look at it. If you are a Macintosh user and know Python and/or Jython, and would like to help write some new games and enhancements for my BBS, and for the few other Hermes SysOps that still remain out there, please get touch with me. Even if you aren't a Macintosh user, or a Hermes SysOp, if you are just one who enjoys programming in Python and Jython, and would like to become involved in this project, please contact me here, or on my BBS, or via email, at working_class_peon@yahoo.com.
Let me add one more thing. The reason why I mentioned the fact that I had written the "Get-To-Know-You" external, is to prove a point; and that is that even a person without any real programming experience, can write a Hermes external, using Michael's EDS system, if he puts his mind to it, and perseveres, as I did.
To help you get started, you will find some helpful files on our BBS in the "Hermes External Writing" file directory, which you can access from our File Transfer Menu. These are code examples and other files from Michael's website which I converted to plain text and PDF format, so that they are easily available on our Armageddon BBS.
You can also visit Michael's website to obtain even more information by going here:
http://www.hermesbbs.com/developer/
For additional help, you may also want to join, write to, or view the following Python and Jython related services, as I did at one time:
help@python.org
http://www.python.org/Help.html
http://www.python.org/doc/FAQ.html
http://www.python.org/search/
Mailing Lists:
http://www.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/jython-users
jython-users@lists.sourceforge.net
I hope that you will take up the Hermes external challenge, and help to make Hermes II BBSes even more enjoyable. Will you? Thanks! Let's show the Windows world that Macintosh BBSing is not dead!
If you have visited one of the few remaining Macintosh-based BBSes, and to be more specific, one that is utilizing the most recent version of the Hermes II software, that is, Hermes II 3.5.10b3, or if you are a Hermes SysOp yourself, one thing which you may have noticed is the serious lack of externals, (or doors, as they are called in the Windows BBS world). In other words, games, BBS enhancements, etc., that make a BBS more fun and interesting to visit. Most of us enjoy message posting, but having those extra treats, like games, really adds to the fun, right?
The primary reason for this absence of externals is that the old externals no longer work with the current version of Hermes II. Michael Alyn Miller, the current developer of Hermes II, has in fact made some internal changes to Hermes, and created a new way of writing externals, which he simply calls the "External Development System". Rather than being Pascal-based, like the old Hermes externals, the EDS is Python-based, or perhaps more correctly, Jython-based. I think that means that it is a hybrid of Python and Java.
I am sure that when Michael developed the EDS, he was hoping that some former Hermes external developers and SysOps would take up the torch, and begin to write new externals, based on the "External Development System". Sadly, that never happened. As a result, aside from a python-based version of the old BBS classic game LEECH, there are no externals for the last version of Hermes II, other than one which I wrote myself.
What is interesting about this, is that I am no programmer by any definition of the word. I don't know C, C++, Pascal, Java, Python, Jython, PHP, or anything else. I've dabbled a very tiny bit in some of these, but that's it. But, in spite of my lack of serious programming experience, about two years ago, I followed Michael's example code in LEECH, and hounded the guys on the Python/Jython mailng list, and created an "icebreaker" external called "Get-To-Know-You". It is basically an external which has 35 questions you can answer, (you only have to answer as many of them as you want), so that other BBS users can, well, get to know you a little better.
You can also get info on other users to see how they answered the questions.As you can imagine, I put a lot of work into writing the external, and it was challenging for a non-programmer like myself, but I got it done, and it works great!
But, as I said, since Michael introduced the EDS, no one else has taken up the torch, and written any other externals for the last version of Hermes II. I actually did have a new game about 2/3 of the way done, but then I lost all of the code when a whole drive's worth of data was lost while using an earlier version of iPartion quite some time ago...and I wasn't about to write it again. Since then, I have even forgotten how I wrote "Get-To-Know-You", and everything I learned from the experience.
So here is my challenge, or request, or however you want to look at it. If you are a Macintosh user and know Python and/or Jython, and would like to help write some new games and enhancements for my BBS, and for the few other Hermes SysOps that still remain out there, please get touch with me. Even if you aren't a Macintosh user, or a Hermes SysOp, if you are just one who enjoys programming in Python and Jython, and would like to become involved in this project, please contact me here, or on my BBS, or via email, at working_class_peon@yahoo.com.
Let me add one more thing. The reason why I mentioned the fact that I had written the "Get-To-Know-You" external, is to prove a point; and that is that even a person without any real programming experience, can write a Hermes external, using Michael's EDS system, if he puts his mind to it, and perseveres, as I did.
To help you get started, you will find some helpful files on our BBS in the "Hermes External Writing" file directory, which you can access from our File Transfer Menu. These are code examples and other files from Michael's website which I converted to plain text and PDF format, so that they are easily available on our Armageddon BBS.
You can also visit Michael's website to obtain even more information by going here:
http://www.hermesbbs.com/developer/
For additional help, you may also want to join, write to, or view the following Python and Jython related services, as I did at one time:
help@python.org
http://www.python.org/Help.html
http://www.python.org/doc/FAQ.html
http://www.python.org/search/
Mailing Lists:
http://www.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/jython-users
jython-users@lists.sourceforge.net
I hope that you will take up the Hermes external challenge, and help to make Hermes II BBSes even more enjoyable. Will you? Thanks! Let's show the Windows world that Macintosh BBSing is not dead!
OnceA68ker
Member
Hello again everyone. Well, it has been not quite a month now since I set up my old BBS again. Currently, we have 26 unique members. It would really be great if some of you folks from the Classic Mac scene would come and join the board.
As I've already said, I'd really like to see Macintosh BBS'ing revived. So please stop by and post a message or two in our conferences, play a game of LEECH 2000, or have a look at my external called "Get-To-Know-You".
And if you want to start your own Macintosh-based BBS, I've got all of the files and information that you need. Just telnet to endtimeprophecy.org using the standard telnet port of 23. Oh...and make sure that you use SyncTERM on OSX, or Public Address in telnet mode on Classic Macs for the best results.
Thanks!
As I've already said, I'd really like to see Macintosh BBS'ing revived. So please stop by and post a message or two in our conferences, play a game of LEECH 2000, or have a look at my external called "Get-To-Know-You".
And if you want to start your own Macintosh-based BBS, I've got all of the files and information that you need. Just telnet to endtimeprophecy.org using the standard telnet port of 23. Oh...and make sure that you use SyncTERM on OSX, or Public Address in telnet mode on Classic Macs for the best results.
Thanks!
OnceA68ker
Member
Hello Again Everyone,
Well, I am happy to announce that membership on the Armageddon BBS is now up to 50 unique accounts, and still slowly growing day by day. I hope to see some of you visiting us soon.
Oh, and by the way, for those of you care, here's a link to an interesting article called "Obama, McCain And The Bush Legacy".
http://www.endtimeprophecy.net/EPN-1/Articles/Articles-Poli/bushleg1.html
Take care!
Well, I am happy to announce that membership on the Armageddon BBS is now up to 50 unique accounts, and still slowly growing day by day. I hope to see some of you visiting us soon.
Oh, and by the way, for those of you care, here's a link to an interesting article called "Obama, McCain And The Bush Legacy".
http://www.endtimeprophecy.net/EPN-1/Articles/Articles-Poli/bushleg1.html
Take care!
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