Hello August!

23 Feb 25 14:55, you wrote to digimaus:

 d>> The current bullshittery in FTSC_PUBLIC is proof that
 d>> Fidonet is starting its death spiral. [...]

 AA> The ftsc voting thing is a bit over-rated, and too serious.

The basic problem is that too many people see the FTSC as a political 
organization/group.  It is not, and was never intended to be.  It is supposed 
to be a purely technical group which documents how FidoNet works, and the 
information that software developers need to create working FidoNet compatible 
software.  There is no advantage to any particular zone or region in having 
representation on the FTSC.  If the current slate of candidates are elected, 
we will have 3 members from Zone 1, and 1 each from Zones 2 and 3.

 AA> The documentation system called ftsc is not in itself a bad
 AA> thing, but some of the debate between what is a standard and is
 AA> not, and whether an established standard is MUST or a SHALL or
 AA> a MAY, seems overly complicated.

Certain individuals seem to think that the FTSC is an enforcement body, with 
the power to ban non-compliant software or compel changes.  It is not, and 
most likely never will be.  All it can do is document what currently is being 
used, with an eye toward future implementations (if any) being compatible with 
current software.

The fact is, FidoNet Policy only requires the ability to send and receive mail 
using an FTS-0001 session over a POTS connection during the designated Zone 
Mail Hour.  Any additional capabilities are a bonus, not a requirement.  Back 
when Internet Only nodes were first proposed, there were some who fought 
against them being included in the nodelist, as they technically do not comply 
with the requirement to accept inbound FTS-0001 sessions on a POTS connection. 
Now it's virtually impossible to get a real copper phone (POTS) line in most 
areas.  Virtually all phone providers these days are selling some sort of VoIP 
product, which may or may not work properly with a traditional modem.

Andrew

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