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1989-08-27
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WWIV Modem Documentation
By William Daystrom
Copyright (c) 1989 White Star Software
WWIV Modem Documentation
One of the more tedious aspects to configuring your bulletin board is
modem setup. There are countless brands and variations of modems on the
market, and despite standards, most have slight differences in the way
they will work best with WWIV. However, once you have your modem
functioning correctly with WWIV, you probably will never have to bother
with modem init functions again until you acquire a different modem.
If you are intending to be a sysop, it is generally assumed that you
know enough about your modem to at least have it operating correctly
with your computer. Therefore, this part of the documentation will not
detail how to install your modem. It will show you how to configure your
modem to work with the BBS, as running a bulletin board requires special
settings.
A word about modem cables. It is possible for your modem and cable to
work perfectly well with your terminal program, yet not work with the
BBS. This is because the BBS requires certain information to be carried
between the modem and the computer that is ordinarily not required by
normal use. The vast majority of modem cables manufactured today will be
fine with WWIV. If you constructed your own cable, however, you must be
sure that the following pins are connected (on the DB-25): 2, 3, 7, 8,
and 20.
Now on to modem settings. Your modem will need to tell the BBS
information to enable it to answer and terminate calls correctly. The
first important setting is the carrier detect, or CD. Most modems have
two possible settings for this parameter, either always on, or carrier
is monitored. The second setting is required to enable the BBS to detect
whether or not a caller is on-line. Most modems default to the first
state, however, so you will usually have to change this setting so that
carrier is monitored.
Modems vary in how they may be configured. More modern modems utilitze
software switching to alter default states. In simple language, this
means that your modem will alter its configuration based on commands
given to it from a computer program (such as a terminal program). For
example, with Hayes compatible modems, the command "ATZ" tells the modem
to reset to default configuration. Other modems use physical switches to
alter the default characteristics of the modem. If your modem has such
switches, your modem manual will describe what each of them controls,
and how to change them. In either case, the first goal is to alter your
modem's configuration so that it will monitor carrier. With physical
switch modems, locate the proper switch and make sure it is in the
position for CD monitoring. With software-switch modems, your task is
easier. Using the INIT program, you can alter the default initialization
command issued to the modem each time you run the BBS. You can do this
in Section 4 of INIT. Any commands you add to the command line must be
entered just before the {. Your modem manual will tell you what the
correct command is to monitor carrier. With many modems of this type,
&C1 is the command needed to track carrier. Check your modem manual
anyway to verify.
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WWIV Modem Documentation
The second important modem setting is Data Terminal Ready, or DTR. It
is used by your computer to control carrier. When DTR is turned off,
the modem will drop carrier and hang up on the caller. As with CD, most
modems are configured incorrectly for BBS use. There are two common
settings for DTR: controlled and ignored. When DTR is monitored and
controlled, your computer is capable of instructing the modem to drop
carrier. When DTR is ignored, the computer cannot do this. Obviously,
for bulletin board operation, DTR will need to be controlled. You can
change this default by using the same procedure you used to alter the CD
default. With most modems of the software-switch type, &D2, added to the
modem init string in INIT, is the correct command.
Special Modem Requirements
There are a wide variety of modems available in the marketplace today,
and many of the newer ones require special configuration to work with
WWIV. It is beyond the scope of this documentation to detail the steps
needed to make all modems fully compatible with WWIV. Therefore, try
to install your modem following the guidelines already presented. If
you still have difficulty, contact the sysop of a WWIV Support BBS.
See the text file, SUPPORT.LST, for a listing of support systems.
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