Running a Perfect BBS

Bulletin Board Systems (BBSs) were very popular in the days before easy Internet access, and now they're making a comeback. Mark L. Chambers' book is an excellent primer for the first-time system operator (sysop); while it comes bundled with a test-drive copy of Wildcat! (a popular DOS-based BBS package), the book is written to be useful even if you choose to use different software. While computer hardware has advanced since the book was written, that doesn't really make it obsolete since most BBSs don't require (or can't effectively use) 56K modem technology or Pentium II power; as far as the software goes, this book is about as up-to-date as you're going to find.One caveat: while the Wildcat! Test-Drive software is fully operational, it is nowhere near as powerful as the commercial version and probably won't satisfy many serious users for long. Think of it as just what it is -- a try-before-you-buy "test drive" version that shows what Wildcat! can do but lacks some of the commercial version's features.