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   | |N | | | |Y | O |PINION : MY VIEW ON COMPUTERS AND THE FUTURE
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                           BBSs and Dinosaurs
                                                                Gregory Lam
                                                            September, 1996
                                                                 IMO996.TXT

[Sorry for the HUGE delay! -gL]

	MODEMS HAVE RECENTLY BEEN CATAPULTED into the spotlight.  While being
merely sophisticated phones designed for computers to talk to each other,
modems have universal applications.  And now, the Internet, once the mainstay
of the military, researchers with big grants and university students, has
become accessible to the average person.  While the Internet is the main
reason why people purchase modems - a so-called luxury PC accessory scarcely
four years ago - the humble bulletin board system, or BBS, continues to live
on.  However, it is quite obvious that with the discovery of the Internet,
more people are switching - and never coming back - to BBSs.

	Both electronic mediums are actually quite similar in theory.  Both
the Internet and the thousands of BBSs throughout the country are forums
where there is the exchange of information in the form of mail and files
that people can connect their computers to.  However, the similarities stop
there.  

	For one thing, the Internet is global.  A BBS is often simply
a computer sitting in the basement of someone's home.  With a single
local phone call to an Internet service provider, one can interact with
millions of people and bits of data all over the world.  "Now that I have
a net account, why do I have to call BBSs anymore?" says Jason Thomas, a
friend of mine.  Compared to the monstrous, slick, Internet, people begin
to find BBSs...amateurish.

	However, there is the question of price.  A quality Internet service
usually comes with an expensive monthly fee, unless you are taking advantage
of a local freenet.  BBSs however, with the exception of long distance charges
should you call a non-local BBS, are usually free to use.

     The Internet's global connectivity does have its downsides.  "BBS's are
good for meeting people you can actually meet in real life,"  Darryl Cheung
argues.  "not like the Internet."  Darryl explains with an example: 'Hey,
let's get together.  Where do you live?' 'Singapore, how about you?'
'Never mind...'

     Perhaps the net is too monstrous.  Most Usenet newsgroups log hundreds
of posts a day.  There can be dozens of people on a single IRC chat channel
at any point in time.  Things get impersonal.  

     However, it isn't the question of global service or price that is
changing the face of the online world today: it's the WorldWide Web.  The
WWW has, with its user-friendly interface, single-handedly turned the
Internet into the hubbub of people and action seen today.

     However, BBS system operators are not entirely left out in the cold.
Many new BBS software packages, such as Wildcat! 5, now offer the intuitive
web graphical interface, allowing BBSs to shed their decidedly ugly ANSI
colours and users to interact via their favourite WWW browser.  In a phone
call in August, Ablelink system manager Colin Marsden explained how Ability
OnLine is planning to enhance its services with a new PCBoard product called
MetaWorks, a product of which Colin is part of the beta team.

     Some BBSs have decided to team up with the 'enemy'.  They call
themselves internet-BBSs: essentially, a BBS that offers Internet access
along with its own home-grown online services.  The nationwide WELL BBS, a
decade-old operation based in California, is probably the most famous example.
Such outfits attempt to combine the best of both worlds, at significantly
lower charges than online providers such as Compuserve and AOL.  Other BBSs
opt for the even inexpensive option of supplying Internet email-only access,
such as Ability OnLine.

     A BBS may offer a more cozy atmosphere, but the Internet offers the
world.  If anything, the bulletin board is the perfect choice for light
online users, as well as a training ground for novices.  And BBSs _are_
becoming more sophisticated.  I have a feeling both online mediums can
coexist peacefully for many years to come.[imo]

March Issue: I dunno, but I'll think of something.

(C)opyright Gregory Lam, All rights reserved.  You are allowed to copy this
document sans charge on the condition none of it is altered or used without
proper bibliographical references.
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