You should have been around during the golden era -- the 1980s into the very late 1990s. What a memory, and what a time! Rushing home from school to try to get on your local boards before everyone else and the constant busy signals until the wee hours of the morning.

Ahhhh those good ol' days! As a SysOp, I had it so that user activity would be printed out on my dot matrix printer in real time as I was at high school. I'd come home, tear it off the printer and read through what everyone did while I was at school. I loved those days.

In many ways, with the growing hatred amongst all people towards Facebook/Meta, AI, tech in general I am surprised we aren't seeing more
of a resurgence of BBS systems. I think people have finally had enough
of being told what tech they WILL use to enrich to the tech bros. Sure took long enough.

This! I really do hope we start seeing more folks coming into the "modern" BBS scene and the numbers start going up. Like a new revival, a new era (but same old vibe and structure). That would be so sweet.

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Re: Re: I just installed sync
By: Knight Shadow to Dmxrob on Wed Aug 26 2026 12:31 pm

Ahhhh those good ol' days! As a SysOp, I had it so that user activity would be printed out on my dot matrix printer in real time as I was at high school. I'd come home, tear it off the printer and read through what everyone did while I was at school. I loved those days.

I also had a dot matrix printer and ran a BBS in those days.. I'd think that would have been noisy though, which wouldn't really be ideal when users logged in at night. I was naturally curious about my BBS activity too, but I'd usually turn on the PC monitor and check the log files. As a high school age kid, I was happy to see users were logging in and using my BBS.

Nightfox

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þ Synchronet þ Digital Distortion: digitaldistortionbbs.com

I also had a dot matrix printer and ran a BBS in those days.. I'd think that would have been noisy though, which wouldn't really be ideal when users logged in at night. I was naturally curious about my BBS activity

Oh yes, definitely would not have it on at night. Just while I was at school :) There is no way I could sleep with that thing zapping lines out on the printer as users did things.

too, but I'd usually turn on the PC monitor and check the log files. As
a high school age kid, I was happy to see users were logging in and
using my BBS.

That reminds me, I need to go stop by Digital Distortion soon and sign up!

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Re: Re: I just installed sync
By: Knight Shadow to Dmxrob on Wed Aug 26 2026 12:31 pm

In many ways, with the growing hatred amongst all people towards Facebook/Meta, AI, tech in general I am surprised we aren't seeing more of a resurgence of BBS systems. I think people have finally had enough of being told what tech they WILL use to enrich to the tech bros. Sure took long enough.

This! I really do hope we start seeing more folks coming into the "modern" BBS scene and the numbers start going up. Like a new revival, a new era (but same old vibe and structure). That would be so sweet.

I think the biggest barrier to entry is people don't know how to access boards. We need a well-used, modern access program - SyncTerm is about all I know of, and it's decent but not all that intuitive at at times.

There is also the mobile barrier... BBS systems are just not designed for mobile interaction.

But I have hope!

-dmxrob

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þ Synchronet þ Hard Drive Cafe - hdcbbs.com

Re: Re: I just installed sync
By: Dmxrob to Knight Shadow on Thu Aug 27 2026 10:22 am

I think the biggest barrier to entry is people don't know how to access boards. We need a well-used, modern access program - SyncTerm is about all I know of, and it's decent but not all that intuitive at at times.

There is also the mobile barrier... BBS systems are just not designed for mobile interaction.

But I have hope!

I've thought about this before, and I always tend to feel like technology did evolve already, including things accessible from mobile devices etc., and that evolution didn't really include BBSes. As far as the text terminal side of BBSes, I feel like including easy mobile access may be difficult. There are ANSI BBS compatible terminal apps for mobile devices, but I feel like it's very awkward to use, with small text and the virtual on-screen keyboards. With a mobile device, I feel like at least a tablet (for the screen size) and a physical keyboard would be more ideal, and that still leaves phones out.

If you just want to paticipate in the messagebases, there are web interfaces for BBSes which I think can be made easy to access on a mobile device. However, there have been concerns about privacy that way. Also, some countries are starting to send police to peoples' homes for posting things online that they deem unacceptable things to share, and having a web interface for a BBS would probably trigger that. I suppose having a telnet interface may trigger that too, since it's on the internet, but I doubt they pursue that route very much.

Nightfox

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þ Synchronet þ Digital Distortion: digitaldistortionbbs.com

Re: Back to BBSing
By: Nightfox to Dmxrob on Thu Aug 27 2026 09:39:36

terminal side of BBSes, I feel like including easy mobile access may be difficult. There are ANSI BBS compatible terminal apps for mobile devices, but I feel like it's very awkward to use, with small text and the virtual

Does Synchronet not have a web-based access as well as ANet.

Bluesfyre

Bluesfyre
Central Ontario Remote Synchro
centralontarioremote.net:2323

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þ Synchronet þ Central Ontario Remote Synchro

Re: Re: I just installed sync
By: Dmxrob to Knight Shadow on Thu Aug 27 2026 10:22 am

enough of being told what tech they WILL use to enrich to the tech bros. Sure took long enough.

This! I really do hope we start seeing more folks coming into the "modern" > > BBS scene and the numbers start going up. Like a new revival, a new era
(but same old vibe and structure). That would be so sweet.

I think the biggest barrier to entry is people don't know how to access boards. We need a well-used, modern access program - SyncTerm is about all I know of, and it's decent but not all that intuitive at at times.

There is also the mobile barrier... BBS systems are just not designed for mobile interaction.

We have had flash and html5 interfaces for many years. that eliminates the need to use syncterm. you're right about mobile. bbses just dont work well on a phone.

Maybe someone can cook something up with AI.

Overall, like i've always said, they don't want what we have.

--
https://i.imgur.com/MNKA5U0.png
President of BBS Sysop's Union +++ https://bbses.info/union
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þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

On August 27 2026, Bluesfyre wrote:

Re: Back to BBSing
By: Nightfox to Dmxrob on Thu Aug 27 2026 09:39:36

terminal side of BBSes, I feel like including easy mobile access may
be
difficult. There are ANSI BBS compatible terminal apps for mobile
devices,
but I feel like it's very awkward to use, with small text and the
virtual

Does Synchronet not have a web-based access as well as ANet.

They do as does BinktermPHP.

I think it's inevitible that modern BBS software will have web support of some sort. Mobile telnet interfaces are a pain.


~ awehttam @1:153/150 @gmail.com | www.lovelybits.org

... Even a stopped clock, keeps the right time twice a day

--- BinktermPHP v1.10.4
* Origin: Claude's BBS - https://claudes.lovelybits.org (12:1/14)
þ Synchronet þ AnsiTEX bringing back videotex but with ANSI

Re: Back to BBSing
By: Bluesfyre to Nightfox on Thu Aug 27 2026 06:37 pm

terminal side of BBSes, I feel like including easy mobile access may be
difficult. There are ANSI BBS compatible terminal apps for mobile
devices, but I feel like it's very awkward to use, with small text and
the virtual

Does Synchronet not have a web-based access as well as ANet.

There is a web-based telnet client called fTelnet that has become fairly popular, and I believe is included with ecwebv4, but it doesn't really solve the problem on mobile devices - I feel like it's still a bit awkward to use due to the small text and virtual on-screen keyboard.

What do you mean by "ANet"?

Nightfox

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þ Synchronet þ Digital Distortion: digitaldistortionbbs.com

Re: Re: I just installed sync
By: MRO to Dmxrob on Thu Aug 27 2026 07:07 pm

the need to use syncterm. you're right about mobile. bbses just dont work well on a phone.

Maybe someone can cook something up with AI.

I think it would probably still be necessary to guide the AI as far as what the user interface and user experience should be. I'm not sure if an AI coding tool could come up with something for mobile that works well with BBS terminal interfaces without much guidance.

Nightfox

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þ Synchronet þ Digital Distortion: digitaldistortionbbs.com

Knight Shadow wrote to Dmxrob <=-

Ahhhh those good ol' days! As a SysOp, I had it so that user activity would be printed out on my dot matrix printer in real time as I was at high school. I'd come home, tear it off the printer and read through
what everyone did while I was at school. I loved those days.

I remember getting up early to go into work and seeing the modem lights
flashing. I was a caller from Sweden. TO think that I could set up a
computer saved from a dumpster, hook it up to a phone line and have
someone halfway around the world connect to it was mind-boggling. The
world was a lot bigger then.




... Make a blank valuable by putting it in an exquisite frame
--- MultiMail/Win v0.52
þ Synchronet þ .: realitycheckbbs.org :: scientia potentia est :.

flashing. I was a caller from Sweden. TO think that I could set up a
computer saved from a dumpster, hook it up to a phone line and have

Oh cool story! You found a computer in the dumpster? What kind was it? Did you just plug it in and things were working? (after you cleaned it off I presume... that was probably step 1 :) )

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