Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
Someday soon, you'll be able to access the WWW (World Wide Web) from your local BBS. Following in the footsteps of Internet providers like NetCom and on-line services like America Online, BBS software vendors are bringing internal Web browsers to their services' GUIs.
"Building Web access into BBS products is becoming a necessity," says Dennis Fowler, a journalist who follows BBSes. "With all the attention that the Web is getting, callers are eager for it, and sysops are pressing the BBS vendors to supply it." Fowler says some BBS system operators aren't waiting for their BBS vendor to supply WWW access solutions. Instead, they're creating their own Web gateways.
Adding Web browsers to BBS front-ends is the first step. But Fowler says Web access is a
two-way street: BBS callers demand access to the Web, and Web surfers want access to BBSes. "I expect to see HTML [Hypertext Markup Language] links to BBS functions, so that file libraries, for example, can be accessed by Mosaic users," Fowler says.
Galacticomm's (Fort Lauderdale, FL, (800) 328-1128; (305) 583-5990))
Worldgroup server
with its ICO (Internet Connectivity Option) lets BBS system operators add Web server capabilities to their BBS. End users still can't access the WWW via their Galacticomm front end. But through the WorldGroup server, a WorldGroup client can telnet, FTP, and remotely log in to other Internet sites. A future version of ICO will support pass-through SLIP and PPP for browsing Web sites from your local BBS.
Another product, First Class, the E-mail/BBS package from SoftArc (Markem, Ontario (800) 763-8272; (905) 415-7000) can send and receive Internet E-mail through optional gateways. It also lets you log in from the Internet. A future version wil
l let you broadcast data to the Web.
Other BBS businesses will likely follow Galacticomm. While officials declined to comment, it appears that Mustang Software and Esoft are both exploring Web capacities to link with their communications software and their BBS programs, respectively.
For end users, such developments will result in yet another inexpensive entryway into the Web. Heretofore, users needed either a direct Internet connection or an on-line service to access the Web. This isn't a problem, provided you can access such services with a local phone call, but for many other users, getting on-line means making a toll call. Today, the ubiquitous BBSes are making it possible for almost anyone, anywhere, to get into the WWW.
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In addition to its Internet access capabilities, Galacticomm's WorldGroup adds interactivity, allowing two BBS users to collaborate in real-time on projects, such as reviewing a newsletter's layout.
BBSes to Provide Local Web Access
