What's on the Internet for QLers? By Timothy Swenson There has been a lot of hype about the Internet, mostly from companies wanting to sell you Internet access or hardware to get you connected. Ignoring all of this hype, what is there really on the Internet for QL users? In this article I'll cover most of the key information avaialble. E-Mail E-mail was the first killer application of the Interent. E-mail works the same was as regular mail (type a letter, send it, get a response), but so much faster. Even considering time zones, e-mail at its slowest (given that people read their mail everyday) is overnight. This means that when you send your message, your recipient is asleep, and when he sends it back, you are asleep. FedEx'ing a package at best takes two days (1 day there, 1 day back). E-mail is also very cheap with most Internet Providers do not charge for each sent message. There is a fair amount of QL users reachable via e-mail. Most well known QLers and QL vendors have e-mail accounts. A number of Web sites have listings of other QL users. There is also a QL mailing list. A mailing list is designed so that a message sent to the mailing list will be sent to all of these that subscribe to the list. A lot of current QL information is spread this way, weeks before it goes into a QL publication. In some ways the mailing list could be considered an informal publication. To subcribe to the QL Mailing List send an e-mail to majordomo@nvg.unit.no with "subscribe ql-users" in the message body. USENET USENET is like a world wide BBS with thousands of different conferences or newsgroups. Each newsgroup is composed of a bunch of postings that look like an e-mail message, which in fact they are. Most Internet servers have USENET and they all exchange messages back and forth so that a message posted in Germany can be read in New Zealand. USENET is carries the same type of information as a mailing list, execpt that you go to USENET instead of it coming to you. Mailing lists can put a bunch of mail messages in your inbox, which you have to sort out. With USENET, you read it at your pleasure and can quickly browse though a thousand postings or more. The primary newsgroups for QL users is maus.sys.ql.int, maus.sys.ql.ger, maus.sys.ql.c68, and comp.sys.sinclair. Maus.sys.ql.int covers the QL for international users (post to this newsgroup by default), maus.sys.ql.ger covers QL issues in German, and maus.sys.ql.c68 covers issues related to the C68 C compiler. Comp.sys.sinclair covers all Sinclair hardware, from calculators, ZX81, T/S 1000, Spectrum, T/S 2068, Z88 and QL. Over 90% of the traffic on comp.sys.sinclair is Spectrum related. Comp.sys.sinclair gets a broader reach, but maus.sys.ql.int has more QL specific information. I'm finding that the most serious QL discussions are on maus.sys.ql.int. What kind of topics are discussed on USENET? Questions and discussions about QL products (both hardware and software), commercial announcements, freeware announcements, and general chit-chat. File Transfer Protocol (FTP) FTP is a protocol that transfers files between computers. FTP Servers store files for others to get. An Anonymous FTP Server is set up to allow anyone to connect to it and get files. There are a few QL specific Anon-FTP Servers that store both text files and QL software. I have found that most of the sites do not get updated all that often. They can go many months without adding any new files. They are a good place to get some older software that you need, but the real source for the latest software is the Web. The primary FTP server for the QL is ftp.nvg.unit.no. Login with the username 'anonymous' and the password of your e-mail address. Programs like C68, POV, some games, some commerical demos, and general QL utilties are available on ftp.nvg.unit.no. World Wide Web The World Wide Web is similar to FTP, but instead of files, the Web Servers hold text files that when displayed in a Web Browser allow mouse-click access to text informatin, graphics, and any type of file. The World Wide Web is the second killer application of the Internet. A number of QL traders have web sites descripting the different hardware and software they well. Examples are Jochem Merz, TF Services, W. Richardson, Di-Ren, QubbeSoft, PROGS, Quo Vadis Designs, and FWD Computing. A couple of QL software writers have their pages, such as Jonathan Hudson, Marcel Kilgus (the creator of QPC), Daniele Terdina (the creator of Qemulator), Jan Venama (the creator of QLAY), Phil Borman (the creator of PBOX), Dave Walker (maintainer of C68), and Johan Klockars (the creator of QLem). A number of Sysops for QL BBS's have web pages such as, Thierry Godfrey (QLFC BBS), Jan Bredenbeek (Syncnet BBS), and Eros Forenzi (QItaly BBS). And lastly there are web sites created by QL users like myself, Peter Jaeger, Davide Santachiara, and Richard Zidlicky. Most of the vendors web sites have information about the products they carry. The software developers web sites contain the software they develop (when Freeware) and information about the software, any extra utilities, etc. A key site is Thierry Godfrey's web page. It has links to all the other web sites, a list of the known QL users e-mail addresses, a local QL newsgroup, a list of addresses for vendors and user groups, links to FTP sites, links to QL newsgroups, and a fairly expansive QL download page. He lists files available on his web site and files available on other web sites. If a Freeware package is not listed on the download page, Thierry can usually be persuaded to get it off his BBS and put it on his web site. The key point I'm trying to make is this: before you either jump on the Internet or choose to ignore it, it is best to known what exactly you are getting into or missing. There is not much QL specific stuff on the Internet, but what is there can really enhance the hobby. As a QL user with no local group to meet with, I keep up in the hobby with the Internet and a few QL publications. I talk via e-mail with a number of QL users all over the world. Most of the freeware I get comes from the Internet. Can I get buy without Internet access? No, but I don't think so. But I have been spoiled by working at sites that had full and free access to the Internet. If I was limited to accessing the Internet from home, I would only do so with a PC and a PPP connection. Getting full access to the Internet with just a QL can be diffucult and painfull. So look before you leap.