Calling Bulletin Board Systems (BBS)

It's 1985.  The movie Back to the Future is still in the theaters and for the life of you, you can't fathom why Coca Cola would dare to change their formula.  It's time to fire up a computer and see if there is an electronic mail from friends and catch up on local rumors, but it isn't a Windows machine.  Windows 1.0 was just released recently.  Oh, and the Internet..  well.. symbolics.com is the only registered .com domain, and there isn't too much there if you aren't an educator.

Some of you just took a small trip down memory lane..  

This was the dawn of "pre-Internet" electronic communication.
Want to take a trip a bit further?  Yes, you can go home again.

This Instructable will teach you about Bulletin Board Systems, (BBSs) and the role they had before the Internet.  I'll also teach you how to build your own microcontroller based "mini computer" to dial BBS systems over the Internet.

Gone you said?  

No, there are hundreds of them all over the world which you can connect to without tying up a phone or running up a long distance bill.


Put on your Parachute Pants and your Members Only Jacket, we're going back in time.


Required Hardware:

• Propeller board with VGA/Keyboard Output. (I'm using a Pocket Mini Computer)
• A PS/2 Keybaord
• A VGA Monitor

The Pocket Mini Computer kit has everything required to do this project and more, but there are schematics on the next page for those who want to "roll their own" Propeller microcontroller mini computer.   

More details about the Pocket Mini Computer can be found in this Instructable:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pocket-Mini-Computer-Users-Guide/

Step 1: The Pocket Mini Computer

The Pocket Mini Computer is microcontroller based microcomputer.  

The Pocket Mini Computer is programmed in "COLOR" BASIC. COLOR BASIC is similar to the BASIC found on common microcomputers of the 80's and early 90's.  It is also capable of running non-basic binary files and being programmed in C and Spin.  

PMC allows you to explore micro computing with a machine which:

• Can be successfully assembled in an evening.
• Can be programmed in BASIC. (and other languages)
• Can play games and run programs.
• Most importantly: Can be understood.

The Pocket Mini Computer was originally sold by Gadget Gangster.  When the high demand for the product created shortages and backorders, the product was redesigned to be sold by Propellerpowered, the original designer of the product.  You can obtain this kit from Propellerpowered.com, or build you own using this schematic.   You'll need to build the VGA, keyboard, and SD circuits on your Propeller board to fully use this Instructable.

We'll be using the following I/O pins for connected devices:

• P0 - P3     SD or microSD connection
• P26, P26  PS/2 Keyboard Connection
• P16-P23  VGA connection

 

Comments

[Chad Baxter]

Cool!!!!!!, I always liked to run linux off a flash drive but this, like a batch interperater on a breadboard....(didn't know how to spell interperator)

[bbikebbs]

There are a lot of us system operators (sysops) out here that would love to have you visit us. You don't need a special machine to visit us either. Here's a link to enable "telnet" on a windows 7 machine: (http://www.fettesps.com/windows-7-enable-telnet/)

Once enabled, open a command prompt. Type:

telnet oldtime.synchro.net

press enter and give it a whirl!

The link given above and duplicated here: (http://www.telnetbbsguide.com/)
is a great source. Give them a try and welcome back!

[mce128]

Thanks for the links and a walk down memory lane... as a former sysop, it is especially fun to go and see what is still around!

[Cambenora]

Actually, it's now 2012, and for the life of me, I still can't fathom why Coca Cola would dare to change their formula...

[meanpc]

WOW! You were there man! I remember getting my Commodore when I was 11. I spent hours typing in those games from Compute. Remember the syntax checker for the BASIC programs, or the MLX machine code? Those were the really bad ones - at least the basic programs you could at least halfway tell what was going on.

Awesome instructable! Thanks for taking me back.

[Granzeier]

Hey Propellerpowered,

This looks great. I have known about Telnet BBS' for years, but had forgotten about them; I also did not realize that there were a lot of them out there. My wife and I were some of the ones who took that walk down memory lane at the beginning of this 'ible.

I am going to try to put one of these together with one of my Protoboards and take it to UPENE (http://propellerpowered.com/forum/index.php?topic=12.0). I'll see you Friday.

Thanks for this great project.