To let your computer communicate with computers that are far away, connect your computer to a telephone line by using a modem.
Communication programs
To manage your modem, you need a disk containing a communication program.
The cheapest popular communication programs are Bitcom and Procomm. The typical modem is sold in a cardboard box that includes the Bitcom or Procomm disk at no extra charge.
Windows 3.1 includes accessories such as Clock, Calculator, Write, and Paintbrush. It also includes an accessory called Terminal, which is a communications program. Windows 95 comes with an improved communications program called HyperTerminal. I'll explain Terminal and HyperTerminal on pages 272 and 273.
To perform extra tricks, buy a fancier communication program such as Procomm Plus, Crosstalk, or Smartcom. You get Smartcom free if you buy a modem that has the ``Hayes'' brand on it.
Another way to get a communication program is to buy an integrated package such as Microsoft Works (for MS-DOS & Windows & Mac), Claris Works (for Windows & Mac), or PFS First Choice (for MS-DOS). Those integrated packages also produce word processing, databases, spreadsheets, and business graphs. Of all the communication programs, the easiest to understand is PFS First Choice's. PFS First Choice is published by Softkey International and costs just $39.95, but its abilities are limited.
Settings
To communicate with another computer, make sure that both computers are set to communicate in the same way:
Question Possible answers Usual answer
Which baud rate? 300, 1200, 2400, 9600, 14400, or 28800 2400
How many data bits? 7 or 8 8
What's the parity bit? 0, 1, even (E), odd (O), or none (N) none (N)
How many stop bits? 0 or 1 1
What kind of duplex? half-duplex (H) or full-duplex (F) full duplex (F)
Is XON/XOFF enabled? yes (enabled) or no (disabled) yes (enabled)
When computer experts chat with each other about which communication method to use, they usually discuss those questions in that order. For example, if the expert's computer is typical, the expert will say ``My computer communicates at 2400 8 N 1 F enabled''. To communicate with that computer, you must set up your computer the same way. To do that, run the communication program, which asks you those questions and waits for you to answer. The communication program also asks you whether the modem is COM1 or COM2. Many computers around the world are eager to chat with your computer!
The big 3 online services
The most popular computer systems for Americans to communicate with are Compuserve (in Ohio), Prodigy (in New York State), and America OnLine (which is in Virginia and called AOL).
Compuserve is owned by H&R Block, but H&R Block wants to leave the on-line business and sell off Compuserve. Prodigy was started by IBM & Sears, but in May 1996 they sold Prodigy to a group of investors called International Wireless.
Each service charges you $9.95 per month to tap into its computers. That gets you just 5 hours of connect time per month; each additional hour costs $2.95.
Each service typically gives new subscribers a special ``free trial'' offer, such as ``the first 10 hours free'' or ``the first 15 hours free''. For example, when you buy a modem, it usually comes with coupons giving you free trials on the three services, so you can sample the joys of telecommunication. After your free trial has ended, you get billed every month automatically on your credit card.
Each service contains many databases you can tap into. Some of those databases are for professionals. Others are for shopping, stocks, news, airline reservations, hobbies, games, and other forms of fun.
Each service has branch offices staffed by computers in all major American cities. If you call the branch office nearest you, you'll automatically be connected to the service's headquarters at no extra charge, so you can tap into the databases without paying for any long-distance calls.
Besides letting you tap into databases, those computers let you swap information with other computerists by using electronic mail (e-mail). For example, if you and your friend Sue both use Compuserve, Sue can send Compuserve a message addressed to you. Her message will stay on Compuserve's disk. The next time you use Compuserve, Compuserve will tell you that a message from her is waiting on Compuserve's disk. Compuserve will offer to ``read'' it to you, by sending it to your personal computer's screen. By using Compuserve, you can send messages to all your computerized friends and even to strangers. Compuserve users have organized themselves into clubs, called special interest groups (SIGs). Each SIG is devoted to a particular hobby, profession, or computer topic. If you join a SIG, you can read the messages sent by all other members of the SIG, and you can leave your own messages for them. Prodigy and AOL have SIGs also, but Compuserve's are the oldest and offer the most sophisticated discussions.
You can also play with the CB Simulator, which imitates a CB radio and lets you chat (via typed messages) with other wild people across the country. You can give yourself a fake name (``handle''), to protect your anonymity.
Compuserve users spend most of their time playing with the electronic mail, SIGs, and CB Simulator, rather than the databases.
Here's how those service arose. . . .
Compuserve was invented first. Though it had good SIGs and databases, it was somewhat complex to use and was boring: it transmitted text but no graphics.
Then came AOL, which was graphical and fun. At first, it ran just on Commodore 64 computers, but later it was redone for the IBM PC and Mac. On the Commodore 64, it used a joystick; on the IBM PC and Mac, it uses a mouse. It's the easiest service to use. Its popularity is growing the most rapidly. Sometimes the service gets overloaded, so when you call you get a busy signal.
Prodigy was invented last. Like a newspaper, it's financed by advertisers: while you're using Prodigy, the top part of the screen shows the information you requested, but the bottom part of the screen invites you to see ads for many products. You can ignore those invitations! Prodigy is also the most ``family-oriented'' service: it offers the most goodies for kids (easy databases and educational games), and it censors announcements and messages to avoid obscenities and libel suits.
By using Compuserve, Prodigy, and AOL, you can reach information providers such as Dialog (a collection of 450 databases on many subjects, plus the full text of most U.S. newspapers), Nexis (the full text of many U.S. newspapers and magazines), News Net (the full text of 800 industry newsletters and news wires, covering over 30 industries and professions), Lexis (the resources of approximately 50 law libraries), and Dow Jones News/Retrieval (business news, stock prices, and the full text of The Wall Street Journal).
Bulletin boards
A computerized bulletin board system (BBS) resembles Compuserve but is free. It emphasizes electronic mail, SIGs, and CB Simulators.
It's run by a hobbyist from a computer in the hobbyist's own home or office. You can swap messages with the hobbyist and all other callers on the system, as if they were pen pals. Some bulletin boards are sexually explicit (heterosexual or gay). Some of my friends met wonderful people on bulletin boards ___ and married them!
You can choose from thousands of bulletin boards around the country. To find the bulletin boards in your neighborhood, ask your local computer store or computer club or school's computer department.
These free general-purpose bulletin boards are the most popular:
