ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ April ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ Volume 02 1995 ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ Number 04 ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ (Formirly published under EMag) "The electronic magazine filled with Interesting & Informative Articles" Editor Mark Bylok Data (416)663-7044 EMail link@tor250.org Fax (416)663-4113 FidoNet 1:250/808 Copyright 1995 by Mark Bylok, All Rights Reserved Views expressed do not necessarilly express the views of the Editor TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Editorial: Going to The Dentist 01 Letters to the Editor 02 Will The Sky Ever Fall? 03 Primeau's Album Review 04 Online Under Pressure? 06 Audio Books 07 Picking up LiNK 08 LiNK Information & Submitting Articles 09 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editorial: Going to The Dentist by Mark Bylok Going to a dentist must be the worst experience a person could have, without actually having any serious complications. It just doesn't make much sense to me. We go to the doctor when something is wrong, and we usually feel that any discomfort felt because of treatment or examination is minor compared to the discomfort felt before the treatment. This usually turns out to be a fair tradeoff. We like the idea of going somewhere to feel better. LiNK Page 02 April, 1995 My experiences with dentists, however, are completely the apposite. I usually go for a regular checkup with no side effects anywhere on my body. I'm feeling fine, looking great, and having no problems what-so-ever. This might be enough for me to go on with life, but not for the dentist. Nope, they'll take x-rays! They'll examine x-rays! And then they drill my teeth in. Even though I feel no discomfort in tooth 16B, they'll shoot me with anastatic, tell me to open wide, and start drilling a whole through the tooth. Are they digging for oil? Nope, they're trying to stop some nasty bacteria that are eating away at my tooth. All together, going to the dentist is the worst experience I have to go through regularly in six month intervals. It just amazes me how little dentistry has improved over the years. Now with x-rays they catch cavities much faster, but they still drill the hell out of them in similar fashion as they did twenty years ago. The anastatic might be nice, but I cringe at the idea of having one of those long needles stuck deep into my jaw. And even with the anastatic you still feel pain, just not as much of it. Why?!?! There are so many billions of dollars spent on defence, why can't the government allocate some of those dollars to improve dentistry. We're still living in the dark ages when it comes to the practice, some funding is obviously needed. Sure, I keep hearing about the dentist office of the future with small lasers, but I haven't seen anything yet! When will I be able to go to the dentist and actually not feel pain? Practically every tooth in my mouth has a filling, and they still find more teeth to drill, when will the hurting stop?!?! Am I still gonna go on about the subject? After another two cavities, you bet! It just amazes me that such a simple thing as some bacteria eating away at the tooth can't be halted without the use of that damn drill. Our civilization has matured enough to send people into space and make these high action movies, and yet we can't stop a common bacteria from eating away at some teeth. And for those that are curious, yes I do brush and floss regularly! I've inherited incredibly week teeth. Letters to the Editor From : Bobby C. Olympia To : Mark Bylok Subj : Link ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ My wife loved it, quote "this is great. Download it, if you can, and we can post it on the fridge", laughing all the way. Keep up the excellent work Mark. bobby... LiNK Page 03 April, 1995 -------- LiNK fridge posters, now there's an interesting concept! I'll see if I can market the idea ;-) MB. Send your comments to LiNK Staff at 1:250/808, or email at link@tor250.org. Will The Sky Ever Fall? by Henry Lui Lately I have heard much about the subject of Earth, and all of us, being destroyed by an asteroid similarly to what has happened with the Dinosaurs. I'm not sure whether this topic of conversation is new, or whether I just started noticing it after reading an Arthur C. Clarke book about the subject. _THE HAMMER FROM GOD_ is a great book to read for those that are interested in the possibilities of ultimate destruction. Besides being an entertaining novel, this book goes into some detail about our chances of being destroyed. There is a one in two thousand chance of it happening in your life time, not the best odds in the world. NASA is actually going to do something about it. The first step, as many specialists seem to agree, is to map out all the asteroids out there. By doing so we'll have a good advance warning on any possible hits that might occur. What we do with that warning is still an ongoing debate. The fact of the matter is simple. There are creators on Earth two or three kilometres in diameter caused by objects that are only about a hundred meters in diameter. The incredible speed these meteors travel at could make the smallest one cause massive destructions. One a few hundred of kilometres wide will destroy the planet in a matter of seconds. The very friction of something that large entering the planets atmosphere would burn everything around it. Should we be worried? I'm no expert, but I'm also very glad that steps are under way to prevent such a catastrophe. Those that still do not believe in the space program should way the odds before making any decisions. The fact of the matter is, Earth isn't this perfect environment where if we take care of it, it will keep us safe. Earth is a planet spinning around the Sun at incredible speeds, which in turn spins around the galaxy at incredible speeds, through an endless vacuum that we still do not understand. LiNK Page 04 April, 1995 So when you sip your coffee in the morning and think about what you are going to do during your day, add the threat of flying asteroids among the other dangers such as sickness, car accident, world war, and all the other little details to life which make it stressful! Primeau's Album Review by Jason Primeau Disclaimer(s)/note(s) : These reviews are going to be biased of course. If you disagree with me, send in your OWN review of that particular recording and tell me how stupid I am and WHY. I'd love to have someone to counter-balance my choices, because I can get carried away if I'm not careful. I'll include your comments in the next month's article. (Send all mail to jason.primeau@detox.tor250.org). Wherever possible I will provide a WWW site for further exploration. Last month I didn't do that, so I'll include them this time: NIN - http://www.scri.fsu.edu/~patters.nin.html Primus - http://iris3.carb.nist.gov:8000/pub/ram/music/primus/primus.html Offspring - http://alfred.u.washington.edu:8080/~crevier/bands/offspring.html Reviews For March: 1) Marilyn Manson - Portrait of an American Family 2) Veruca Salt - American Thighs 3) The Tragically Hip - Day For Night Code: ***** Amazing, incredible, stupendous **** an excellent recording *** good ** kinda sucks * Really sucks 1) Marilyn Manson - Portrait of an American Family ----------------------------------------------- (WWW: http://www-home.calumet.yorku.ca/kmaling/www/mm/mm.htm) If I had to describe what these guys sounded like, I wouldn't know where to begin. I read an article on the WWW that called them "psycho punk-metal", and I suppose that's as good as anything. This band has been gaining recognition quickly, mostly because of their actions outside of the recording studio. In my opinion, however, they should be getting a lot more credit for the music that they put on this LiNK Page 05 April, 1995 album. There are no mediocre tracks to be found, and they serve their tunes aggressive, with creative lyrics and no pretentious I'm-a-rock-star- and-you're-not aftertaste. If you happen to be a conservative prude, you will have a heart attack within minutes of ingestion. This album has enough anti-society, anti-conformity, anti-religion, and anti-majority messages to make even the most open-minded person cringe. This album contains elements of drug use, bestiality, incest, satanism, nudity, violent sexual behavior, murder, morbid violence, sadomasochism, pedophilia, sodomy and torture. But it kicks ass. You have been warned. Three Favorite Tracks: Dope Hat, Cake and Sodomy, Dogma Rating: ***** 2) Veruca Salt - American Thighs ----------------------------- (WWW: http://www.interaccess.com/users/cheeks/music/verucasalt.html) This is a very good debut album. The lead single topped the charts on many alternative radio stations, and the follow-up singles aren't doing too badly either. The songs are all catchy and they sound like the band had a lot of fun putting them together. I guess if you like the grungy, guitar-driven sounds of "The Breeders" or "Smashing Pumpkins" you can't go wrong here. Three Favorite Tracks: Seether, Forsythia, All Hail Me Rating: ***1/2 3) The Tragically Hip - Day For Night ---------------------------------- (WWW: http://www.cimtegration.com/ent/music/hip/hip.htm) I've always liked the Hip, but I've never really gotten into their music that much. As a result, when I gave this album it's first listen, I really wasn't expecting anything fantastic from it. After hearing it, however, I was impressed by quite a few songs, ranging from the slower paced "Nautical Disaster" to the more aggressive ramblings of "Fire in the Hole". Gordon Downie does a fairly good job of belting out the vocals, although sometimes his voice can be annoying (kind of a whiny, Morrissey-wanna-be). Musically, this album sounds well polished, with a few weird instruments and song intros thrown in for variety. Apart from a couple filler tracks, I think this is a very solid album. Three Favorite Tracks: Grace too, Fire in the Hole, Greasy Jungle LiNK Page 06 April, 1995 Rating: **** That's it for this month. Remember, if you disagree with me, write me at jason.primeau@detox.tor250.org and I'll include your comments in the next article. (No responses are included this month because I didn't get any. But, then again, why would anyone disagree? :) ) Under Pressure Online ? ----------------------- I suppose that if a survey of the public was ever comissioned to ask what people knew of or about BBS (Bulletin Board Systems) the answers would fall broadly into 3 catagories: 1) 'Never heard of it/them ' 2) 'Oh, isn't that the thing where they find pornography ?' 3) 'Yes, that's what hackers do isn't it ? ' What a sad state of affairs computer communications has become. Why should this be so, many ideas are put forward as to why, but I suppose the main reasons come down to lack of public awareness together with poor press and media representation. We unfortunately far too often, hear about computer hackers, porn merchants and pirated software, but what about the positive aspects of BBS ? Do we ignore the very real benefits they can have in the community? Usually, why? because they are not considered to be 'NEWS' What benefit can a BBS be to the local community? The answer to that,is quite a large one, Less abled people can meet new friends through various message and chat areas, can connect with support groups that may be able to help with their particular disability, the result is that they feel less isolated and more a part of the community, Blind people can often find electronic magazines that can be read electronically and the text converted to speech for them, again, they feel more involved in the community. Local community events can be notified to callers, meetings can be arranged for various social groups, the possibilities are unlimited. To try and help everyone become more informed and invovled in electronic communications, the International Sysop & Users Association was formed. The ISUA is a collection of Sysops & Users who abide by a voluntary code of ethics to try and encourage public awareness of BBS and the benefits they can provide. LiNK Page 07 April, 1995 The ISUA is NOT another 'Pressure Group', but is a collection of responsible individuals who enjoy the benefits of electronic communications, and who wish to see those benefits extended rather than eroded by the negative attitudes generated by press and media. The Main aims of the ISUA are: 1- Inform the public about the purposes, potential, and benefits of electronic communications. 2- Monitor the press & media for inaccurate and misleading information regarding BBS activities and take steps to correct such misinformation. 3- Regularly inform the media of significant events in the local BBS community. 4- Serve as a source of information for people seeking information about BBS. 5- Inform its members of all legislation or other actions which affect the BBS community. 6- Help beginners in order to develop the creation of new boards. If you, as either a Sysop or User would like to know more about the ISUA, then call SPARTACUS BBS +353-402-33161 (24 hrs) and download ISUA0195.ZIP, Guest Log-in available (P/w Guest) or Freq from 2:263/404 as ISUA Comms should be open to all, it's up to you to help ensure that it is! Barry Kingston-Wyatt SysOp: SPARTACUS BBS Ireland Regional Chairman - International Sysops & Users Association. Audio Books by Mark Bylok Audio Tapes seem to be a recent trend forming inside our book stores. We have had the technology to produce audio tapes for decades, and yet only recently has this commercial enterprise grown in strength. Why? I ask. Has our society become that illiterate or that lazy to read, or is there something special about these audio tapes? I decided to find out. The audio book I purchased for $20 was "The Lord of Chaos"; the sixth part in a great fantasy adventure series by Robert Jordan. The book was read by Mark Rolston who played the character Drake in LiNK Page 08 April, 1995 Aliens. That's one of the first things I've noticed about audio books: The majority of them are read by well-known names. Jack Nicholson even has a series of children's stories in the form of audio books. Now that's an interesting concept. Mark Rolston has a very powerful voice which proved to be very dramatic in "The Lord of Chaos", especially toward the end of the book. There was an attempt made to use different accents for different characters, but this proved to be very inconsistent. The majority of the book was easy to follow, but I was disappointed by one major downfall. Since Jordan's books are lengthy, the three hours worth of audio wasn't enough for the entire book. It was obvious where the cuts were made, and caused many unanswered questions. To be honest, I prefer reading. For long drives audio books might be great, and probably used most often for that, but for any other reason it seems pointless. They're great for people that can't read, but for those that can, reading a book is probably more satisfying. My little experiment set me back about $25 since I'll probably end up buying the paper back version when it is released. It is something worth trying, anyhow, but for that price a person can purchase a good movie and have the video along with the audio. It amazes me that people in our society will actually spend all that money for a tape, where we can buy an entire movie for a few dollars more. Picking up LiNK LiNK is officially released on the 1st of every month, and can be picked up in a variety of different ways. The sure fire ways are: FidoNet ~~~~~~~ File Requesting from FidoNet 1:250/808 (Canadian Site) or 1:3819/156 (US Site) under the following: LINKE LiNK executable files and current issue (DOS & Door version) LINK LiNK current issue (requires executable files) LINKT LiNK current issue on plain ASCII text. LINKA Both the data files and plain ASCII text. Back issues are available under LNK.* and LNKT.* (text) or for issues before February of '95 EMAG (no text version). LiNK Page 09 April, 1995 InterNet ~~~~~~~~ Send e-mail to "link@tor250.org" requesting issues to be delivered to you through e-mail. State whether you want the plain ASCII or uucoded Dos viewer. FTP Site: ftp.etext.org: /pub/Zines/LiNK Gopher: gopher.exext.org: /Zines/LiNK Software Distributing Systems ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Some FidoNet nodes might be able to receive LiNK through EPubNet's EP-MAG. Other ~~~~~ BBSLIST.ASC contains a list of BBSes where issues may be picked up. Submitting Articles & LiNK Information "The electronic magazine filled with Interesting & Informartive articles" Publisher & Editor Mark Bylok Copyright 1995, All Rights Reserved LiNK is a non-profit electronic magazine that has been designed to entertain and inform the reader. We encourage amateur writers to send in their articles for future issues of LiNK. LiNK rests the responsibility of plagiarism and other copyright infringements on the individual authors, and in no way supports any illegal material. All articles and ideas sent to LiNK remain the property of the author, but LiNK does reserve the right to make minor grammar, spelling, and/or format corrections. LiNK is distributed on the 1st of every month twelve times a year. All articles should be submitted before the 20th of every month in order to insure printing in the next issue. There is no limit on the topic of the article. LiNK Page 10 April, 1995 Articles and/or comments on LiNK can be sent through one of the following means: FidoNet 1:250/808 LiNK Staff Data (416)663-7044 78 Fletcherdon Cres. Fax (416)663-4113 Downsview, ON, Canada M3N 1S3 Or you can reach us through InterNet at: link@tor250.org