Released on 02/16/87
Zelch is structured into many separate self sufficient modules for each aspect of the BBS. Each of these sub-areas may be added or removed from the main menu through the editor, and the access level for each sub-area as well as the character key stroke to get there is also definable. Since the sub-areas are separate modules, and some might require editor-help as well, the editor itself has options to add editors to it.
The message bases each have a separate access level, drive, and max number of posts. This establishes the progressive nature of the 10 access levels fairly early.
Users are stored in a relative file from the beginning, and user files consist of a handle, phone number, access level, real name, last call, password, and 9 integer variables (defined as different things, few are used at this point).
The loader screen.
The loader program allows the BBS or the Editor to be loaded, and loads the machine language files. The loader also accepts the date and time, and whether or not the printer is on. It does not take the year, and the time is generated with a bracket instead of a colon between hour and minute. The waiting for call screen allows the SysOp to logon locally, initiate "monster mode" or the automaintenance, and the terminal program, which does not allow transfers. The BBS only supports the 1650 modem. From the beginning, Zelch is a full color graphics BBS program.
The waiting for call scree.n
After logging on, the system will notify you of mail, but won't let you read it after logon. The system news file is displayed, and a one liner of text seen only by the SysOp is there instead of the user info window found in later versions.
The main menu.
The main menu has the options you read above, all of which work except for the transfers area, which is not yet written. The user list asks for a starting ID, and then goes out and lists all the handles it finds. The info file displays a file called "info", the status options display some personal info, along with the time the BBS will log you off. Users have hard coded time and call limits per access level in 1.0. The chat option makes some really wild noises to attract attention.
The email menu allows mail to be sent by ID, your mail to be read, a userlist to be pulled, and the user to quit back to main. In reading mail, it may be replied to, reread, or the next message may be read, effectively deleting it. The headers of the mail messages have close angle brackets instead of colons seperating FROM and the name of the sender of mail. All of this is to make using the kernel input routine work on these files.
The message editor opens by asking if you want to be in uppercase graphics mode. The editor records all color and graphics characters as well as cursor movements. The delete key will delete cursor movements by bringing the cursor back to where it would have been had the cursor key not been struck. The options available are edit (search/replace) and rewrite, abort, save, delete, insert, list with lines numbers, and view without line numbers. The is no word wrap feature yet.
The voting booth is a option-type system found in all versions, with a file describing the questions and a set of responses for the user to choose from. The results file keeps track of who has voted previously, so duplicate votes don't happen.
The message base area is organized as a structured post/reply system. Commands include a local new messages command, a list sigs command, a change sigs command (sigs are numbered and named in version 1.0), a post new message command, and a read message command. During reads, the main post is shown and a menu is given to read replies, skip down some replies, or quit. Lastly, a prompt to post a public reply is given.
Also from the main menu is a message editor for the SysOp to edit messages in the message bases, delete replies, and do other SIG maintenance.The last option off the main menu is the SysOp menu. It has an option to list users, edit a user account, and enter the disk channel (later called ZOS). The disk channel has a directory option, a channel for DOS commands, and a read SEQ file and write SEQ file option.
That about covers it!
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