See an unfamiliar term? Check the newsletter glossary.
News from:
M V C o m m u n i c a t i o n s , I n c .
P.O. Box 4963
Manchester, NH 03108-4963
(603) 429-2223
July 1993
Note: text copies of all issues of the monthly newsletter can be found
on mv in the public archive; look in /pub/mv/inews. They're also in
the online menu!
SLIP onto the net
For the networking needs of a great many people, online accounts
(a login directly on an mv system) and UUCP connections (connecting
your computer to mv for periodic transfers of mail and news) are just
the thing. With an online account, you can simply dial in and have
access to a vast amount of Internet facilities at your disposal - all
you need is a terminal emulator and a modem. With a UUCP connection,
your computer becomes a part of the network for the purposes of news
and mail, but you don't get direct connectivity and access to the full
range of Internet resources.
You can put your computer live on the Internet with a dialup IP
connection (IP stands for Internet Protocol, an elemental part of the
way Internet computers talk to each other). SLIP and PPP connections
provide full Internet access to your computer over a dialup telephone
line, using high speed modems such as you might already use for online
or UUCP access. On your system, you can have Internet facilities such
as gopher, FTP, telnet, IRC, and so forth - and you can provide these
facilities to other systems on your local network.
What are the advantages of putting your system on the net via
dialup IP? For many - most - people, an online account is preferable,
as you don't have to worry about things like system administration,
installation of the proper tools, maintenance of disk space, and spe-
cial services such as ClariNet news, to mention a few. You let MV
worry about that, and you simply dial up and log in whenever you need
to access the network. And indeed, UUCP protocols are still more
efficient at delivering mail and news to your computer than IP proto-
cols are - but with a time delay because UUCP is not a constant con-
nection. On the other hand, if you already have a system maintenance
load, or want to provide Internet connectivity to your site, or you
need special access for custom applications, or for any other reason
you need direct connectivity to your computer system(s), then connect-
ing to the Internet via SLIP may be just what you are looking for.
MV provides two options for dialup IP access. One is for full-
MV Communications, Inc. July 1993
- 2 -
time SLIP users, and provides a reserved telephone number and modem at
MV for your exclusive access. The other is for occasional SLIP users,
where you dial into a hunt group at MV that's shared between all of
the occasional SLIP users. The dedicated access is provided on a
fixed monthly fee of $150/mo, plus a one-time setup of $300; the occa-
sional access is $25/mo, getting you up to 15 hours of access, with
charges of $1.50/hr after the first 15 hours each month.
MV has a SLIP demo account available on a limited basis for those
who want to try out dialup IP access.
Getting access via InfoPath
Last month we mentioned the InfoPath, NET's public network by
which you can gain access to MV by calling a 1-800 number from any-
where in New Hampshire. NET charges for this service, but for most
people it's a very good alternative to direct long distance dialing.
In order to use InfoPath, you need to get an access number from NET by
calling 1-800-845-1240 and asking for an InfoPath Network Users ID.
Things to remember about MV
* Do you know someone else who should be on the Internet? There
several different ways they can get information about connecting
through MV. They can send email to info@mv.mv.com for an
automatic reply or contact us in one of the usual ways or try our
info login (no password) at (603) 424-7428.
For new referrals we will credit a small finder's fee to your
account. This fee is a token of our appreciation and the amount
depends on the type of new access. Please be sure to have your
referral let us know you sent them to MV.
* MV maintains an archive of files related to UUCP and networking,
and of files of recent interest. This archive is in /pub on mv;
a directory (updated nightly) is in the file /pub/ls-lR, with a
compressed version of /pub/ls-lR.Z. Files in the archive include
mail and news software for MSDOS and the Macintosh as well as
UNIX; Ian Taylor's alternative UUCP package for UNIX; information
about Internetworking; uucp maps for all of the USA and Canada;
MV, NEARnet, and NSFnet policy statements; program listings from
Doctor Dobbs Journal; etc.
* Have a special requirement? Let us know. For instance, if your
system is shutting down for a vacation, we can install special
handling of mail for your system (for instance, returning a
recorded message to the sender, forwarding the mail to another
place, or simply keeping your mail from being returned while you
are down).
MV Communications, Inc. July 1993
- 3 -
* Feedback is always welcome by sending us mail (mv-
admin@mv.mv.com) or calling us at (603) 429-2223. As we hope you
understand, the office is often unmanned, but an answering
machine will take your message. In an emergency, you can try to
reach one of us via our home or daytime numbers:
home day
Mark Mallett (603) xxx-xxxx (603) xxx-xxxx
Marta Greenberg (603) xxx-xxxx (603) xxx-xxxx
* Please note that if you want to add more MV UUCP connections or
know of others that want to connect, running Unix is not a
requirement for uucp access. MV currently has several clients
running PCs and MACs, using uupc, waffle, fernmail, and other
uucp-like packages for these systems. And the software for
several of these packages is available in the public archive.
MV Communications, Inc. July 1993