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ASCII Express is telecommunications program, written for the Apple II series of computers. At a time when the use of the bulletin board system (BBS), or even telecommunications in general wasn't a common use of the Apple II, ASCII Express (from hereon as its more common name "AE") was the choice among telecommunication users throughout much of the 1980s. A terminal emulator, terminal application, term, or tty for short, is a program that emulates a dumb video terminal within some other display architecture. ...
The 1977 Apple II, complete with integrated keyboard, color graphics, sound, a plastic case, and eight expansion slots. ...
A bulletin board system or BBS is a computer system running software that allows users to dial into the system over a phone line and, using a terminal program, perform functions such as downloading software and data, uploading data, playing games, reading news, and exchanging messages with other users. ...
ASCII Express II
The original version of AE, called ASCII Express II, was written by Bill Blue in 1980, and distributed by Southwestern Data Systems. AE II runs on any Apple II with DOS 3.x and one of a small handful of modems available, including the Hayes Micromodem II. This version was used mostly by telecommers to access paid BBSs, including THE SOURCE, CompuServe, as well as free BBSs. The interface of AE II is basically menu-driven, with virtually none of the features included that is expected of a telecomm program today, such as terminal emulation and multi-file transfer protocols like YMODEM and ZMODEM. 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...
Beneath Apple DOS was a popular guide to Apple DOS. Apple DOS refers to operating systems for the Apple II series of microcomputers from 1978 through early 1983. ...
ASCII Express the Professional By 1982, ASCII Express II ceased development, and was replaced by a totally re-written replacement called ASCII Express "The Professional", also known as "ASCII Express Professional" or its much shorter name "AE Pro". This version was a collaboration between Bill Blue and Mark Robbins. AE Pro was a command-line driven telecomm program packed with many features lacking in its predecessor, including scripting, YMODEM and ZMODEM, terminal emulation, and support for ProDOS 8. AE Pro can also be used as a pseudo-BBS when configured as a host, allowing a user to dial-in and exchange files. This type of system was coined the name AE line. 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
YMODEM is a file transfer protocol used between modems. ...
ZMODEM is a protocol for file transfer with error checking and crash recovery. ...
For Australian-based Objectivist Prodos Marinakis and the prodos institute, see here. ...
Earlier versions of AE Pro were distributed by Roger Wagner of Southwestern Data Systems, and later by United Software Industries (founded by Mark Robbins, Bill Blue and others). A version of AE Pro for MS-DOS was also released in 1984.
The daddy of the modern P2P The early 1980s was the period when modeming was becoming very active throughout the world. Hundreds of Apple II-based BBSs popped up, most of them used only as message boards. With the aid of free Apple II software like Dalton's Disk Disintegrator (DDD), you are able to take an un-protected floppy disk, split it into smaller binary file parts, and then transmit the parts to another user. This is actually one of several origins of what is known today as peer-to-peer file transfers. A peer-to-peer (or P2P) computer network is a network that relies on the computing power and bandwidth of the participants in the network rather than concentrating it in a relatively few servers. ...
While other Apple II-based telecomm programs, such as DiskFur and CatFur, allowed for complete disk and file transfers, there was a need for a portal concept - one that is hosted using a BBS as its entry point. This way, a community of software enthusiasts and software pirates could collaborate as well as exchange software. The copyright infringement of software refers to several practices when done without the permission of the copyright holder: Creating a copy and/or selling it. ...
AE Pro was at the time the only telecomm program that was accessible, via an undocumented hack, from virtually any other BBS software, such as GBBS, Networks II, among other programs. This allowed for sysops to control access to the AE lines via user accounts. With many of the users phreaking their way into AE lines, these portals allowed for international pirating communities to develop. A system administrator, or sysadmin, is a person employed to maintain, and operate a computer system or network. ...
Phreaking is a slang term coined to describe the activity of a subculture of people who study, experiment with, or explore telephone systems, the equipment of telephone companies, and systems connected to public telephone networks. ...
Later years Within United Software, AE Pro for the Apple II was replaced by MouseTalk in 1987, simply a mouse-driven version of AE Pro. AE Pro and MouseTalk was soon overshadowed by ProTERM, a telecomm product that utilizes many of the advanced features of the Apple IIe and IIc, such as 65C02 opcodes, use of the mouse, and macros. 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
ProTerm is a classic telecommunication program for the Apple II and Macintosh line of personal computers. ...
Trivia - Greg Schaefer converted AE Pro from DOS to PRODOS in an afternoon and was paid $5000 for his efforts.
The original Novation CAT Novation was an early modem manufacturer, whos CAT series were popular in the early home computer market in the late 1970s, notably on the Apple II. The Hayes Smartmodem 300, introduced in 1981, killed off Novation and many other early modem companies over the next...
See also
External links - Subculture of the Subculture, describing the on-line pirating phenomenon of the 1980s.
- The Do's and Don'ts of ASCII Express, an example document written in 1985, lecturing newbies how to use AE lines.
- Historical BBS List, many of them being AE lines.
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