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BBS The.Documentary Part 4 - Fidonet

bbsers · 7.3K views · 2012-03-11 · 44:01

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Overview

Part 4 of the BBS: The Documentary series, covering FidoNet, the amateur network that linked dial-up bulletin board systems together to relay messages and files worldwide.

On Hacker News

Recommended as a great documentary on FidoNet's rise, with interviews with figures like Tom Jennings.

Recommended by 2 HN people across 2 months · HN mentions 2014–2019

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What people said

mitchtbaum · 2014-07 · Strong recommendation

A great documentary on FidoNet's rise with superb music and universal themes: [VIDEO] A modern tale of care for a bright and reliable future, search: project byzantium fidonet

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harrigan · 2019-11 · Recommendation

BBS: The Documentary Part 4 ( [VIDEO] ) has some great interviews with Tom Jennings & co. on the beginnings, growth and decline of Fidonet. "It just runs in spite of the idiots." (Tom Jennings)

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deepnet · 2017-04 · Reference

FIDOnet's temporary connections over POTS copper is arguably more resistant to censorship of a populace. FIDOnet is arguably the precedent to the Internet, certainly Net culture derives more primally from the BBS scene than any IP transported culture. Broadband connects an IP addy to a blameable citizen. This produces a fear of sharing a connection ( and thus liability ) - this is concurrent with the demise of public WiFi. Wynn Wagner III (Opus BBS) reports a support request from a doctor in Vietnam,[1] who states the (Vietnamese) internet is censored but the phones are not. For similar but different reasons Tom Jennings reports FIDOnet support requests from .ru domains.[2] The internets current distribution model seems unlikely to survive massive infrastructure attack, major connection bottlenecks are too narrow now. Radio HAMS remain the likely communication network of first resort after any large scale devastation. Facebook is not particuarly more than a very large BBS, (with the addition of Jeremy Bentham's panopticon[3]). "Though actual observation may be discontinuous, fear of observation is continuous. And, this constant fear of observation produces self-censorship, which, according to Winston, is a “habit that becomes instinct”. Consequently, the panopticon’s monopoly on the body gradually becomes a monopoly on the mind." [4] [1] [VIDEO] [2] [VIDEO] [3] [LINK] [4] [LINK]

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