RBBS-in-a-Box v3.1 Installing your RBBS-PC System Your RBBS-in-a-Box CD-ROM has all the tools necessary for you to be up and running in a matter of minutes. You will need to provide the following equipment: 1. An IBM-PC or compatible computer with 640K of memory; 2. DOS 3.3 or above (although 2.0 to 3.2 should work, it is strongly recommend that you use 3.3 as a minimum. It is the most stable available); 3. A hard disk with AT LEAST three (3) megabytes of free space, although 10-20M would be highly recommended; 4. A CD-ROM drive running the Microsoft CD-ROM Extensions; 5. A truly Hayes-compatible smart modem (external preferred, but an internal should work fine). Please note what COM port your modem is connected to before running the installation program. Assuming you have the foregoing equipment, setting up your RBBS-In-A-Box system should take you somewhere between five and ten minutes to install. The procedure is as follows: 1. Make sure that your system is operating properly and that you have the required free space on your system's hard disk. 2. Verify that your CD-ROM is working by doing a directory of your CD-ROM drive. You should see a listing of about forty or more directories. 3. Make your CD-ROM the default drive by typing the letter of the drive, a colon, and pressing the Enter key, i.e. D:[Enter]. 4. Change to the RBBS subdirectory on your CD-ROM drive by typing: CD\RBBS[Enter] 5. You will now invoke the installation program by typing INSTALL, then the letter of your CD-ROM drive (in DOS terms this is the source of the RBBS information), then the letter of your hard disk where you want the RBBS files to reside (the Target for the RBBS information). For example, if your CD-ROM drive is D: and your hard drive is C:, type the following: INSTALL D: C: Remember: CD-ROM drive first, hard disk second! 6. The installation process will begin. It will create the necessary directories, then copy the appropriate files to those subdirectories. When that process is complete it will invoke the Autoinstallation program to configure the specifics of your system. Please read the instruction screens carefully so you understand the significance of the various options. You will need to provide the following information: A. Your First name, i.e. TOM B. Your Last name, i.e. MACK C. Your first remote Sysop name (like a password), i.e. ORANGE. Please pick something unique and not easily guessed! This is your system's security at stake! D. Your second remote Sysop name (again, like a second password), i.e. CORKER. Again, make it unique. And DON'T use ORANGE CORKER!!! I suspect that will be the first thing a hacker will try when he discovers an RBBS-in-a-Box system!! Also, these cannot be the same word. E. You will then be asked for the COM port currently used by your modem. Select 0, 1, 2, 3 or 4. COM0 is for running the board in a "local" mode which is a good way to learn how to use it. It will ignore the modem completely. (Note: Use of COM3 or COM4 require additional configuration by you. Note the on-screen instructions during the installation process.) F. You will then need to tell RBBS the highest speed for your modem. Your choices are 300, 1200, 2400, and 9600. Since most modems support slower speeds as well, these will be automatically handled by RBBS. G. Finally, the installation program will provide you with a list of modems. Pick the modem that MOST CLOSELY represents yours. Don't panic if your exact modem is not listed. Something reasonably close will usually work. I. Note the information on modem switch settings and set your modem accordingly. 7. You will then be told the installation is complete. Simply change to your hard drive, then type: CD\RBBS[Enter] RBBS[Enter] If you did everything correctly, your RBBS system should be up and running! (We hope!) NOTE: The installation procedure attempted to copy your COMMAND.COM to the \RBBS\XFER subdirectory, provided it could be found. If not, an error message was displayed and you will have to manually copy it. This is required by some of the advanced features of RBBS-PC. Please note that RBBS-PC is a very sophisticated bulletin board system and as such it has literally thousands of different ways it can be configured. You are urged to read the RBBS documentation, stored under the \RBBS\DOC subdirectory on your CD- ROM to learn about the various advanced features and operation of RBBS-PC. Also be aware that once you enter RBBS or exit RBBS, it will take the telephone off-hook. This is done to "busy out" the bulletin board while you do Sysop maintenance. Sysops would rather have users receive a busy signal than have the board simply not answer. Users expect a busy signals from time to time and will call back. When there is no answer they often think the board is out of business and won't call back. On an external modem this is not a problem since you can easily turn the modem off and on to reset it. On an internal modem you will have to enter your communications program and issue the hang-up command (ATH) to get your phone back on-hook. We have chosen a very "generic", yet feature-rich configuration that should meet the needs of the vast majority of Sysops. However, with all the various types of hardware and software configurations available today, it is impossible to guarantee it will run on every single system without some tweaking. In the event you need some help getting your system up and running, contact RBBS-PC of Chicago at (708) 352-1035. Identify yourself as an RBBS-in-a-Box Sysop in the new user questionnaire, then leave a comment for the Sysop describing your problem. The Sysop will attempt to post a solution as soon as possible. If it is a dire emergency, leave a number where we can call you collect and we will do so as soon as possible. >*>*>*>*>*> !! IMPORTANT !! <*<*<*<*<*< To register your disc and obtion 30-days free access to our private (no-busy signals) lines, send your name, address, and the password you wish to use on OUR system, along with a copy of your paid receipt for RBBS-in-a-Box to: Loren D. Jones & Assoc. Ltd P.O. Box 127 LaGrange, IL 60525-0127 We will add you to our system and provide you with the additional telephone number. The majority of problems discovered to date are a result of one of two things: First, bad cables. We strongly recommend a straight 25-to-25 serial cable (or 9-to-25 as the case me be). The fact that a particular cable may work with your modem program does not necessarily mean it will work with RBBS. A BBS program must communicate very intimately with the modem. Which brings us to the second area of trouble: Internal modems. Almost without exception, if it isn't a cable problem it involves an internal modem. Despite what they say, internals DO NOT seem to be as compatible as external modems, at least as far as RBBS is concerned. Try your setup with an external modem and see if it works. If it does, you've narrowed the problem down considerably. Read the RBBS documentation on the specifics of various modems. Perhaps you will find something that will help you out. Please note that RBBS supports some features through other shareware programs, such as ZipTV. If you take advantage of these features please be sure to register your copy of these programs with their author. Support the shareware concept by registering ALL your shareware and encouraging your users to do the same. Finally, be sure to read the "Running RBBS-PC" information for an overview of how your system is designed to operate. Once you are familiar with the basic operations you will certainly find little changes you will want to make to suit your tastes. Enjoy! Rev. 3.1 6/11/91